Post #38 (16.05.14) >> Early morning walk & fish for brekky

I woke up this morning feeling the opposite of homesick which i would normally expect to feel at the end of a trip.

Japan is a totally different destination ! positive ^_^
Would I return ? MOST DEFINITELY ! (with the Wife)
Did i feel this way about Singapore ? GET LOST ! (see what i did there ? using Singapore's advertising slogan) haha.

I still can't read or pronounce Japanese street names & food, and I sure as hell can't speak the language.

Even so, I felt the need to see everything one last time.

I finished packing my luggage, cleaned out the fridge and packed away my blogging station at about 9am.

Shopping from the other day

With checkout at 11am, it meant i had 2 hours to have a bit of a wander whilst everyone else was still sleeping.

I set out of the hotel room on my own with cameras at the ready, to take it all in for one last time *sigh*.

My intention was to have breakfast at the Kuromon Ichiba market again but rather than make a bee line for the market i zig-zagged all over the area first.

Bye vending machine around the corner

First i headed over to Dotonburi, being so early it was dead.

Bye bridge from Soemon-cho to Dotonburi !

Bye Glico man !

Tourists doing the trademark pose

Look at those silly poses in the background

Goodbye leggy tourist

Following Dotonburi, i headed down Ebisubashi-suji

People waiting in line to play Pachinko

Across Mido-suji

To more of Ebisubashi-suji.

Into Doguya-suji again which was pretty much totally still closed.

Then back to Namba station area.

Honda Beat with number plate that spells BOOB !

Then back into Den Den Town

I'd definately choose left over right

Continuing further into Den Den Town to see the parts we didn't previously.

Being so early, everything was still closed or just opening as I walked around.

Maids on the walk to work

With an hour to go before check out I finally arrived at the market.

I walked the entire length to scope what fresh produce was on offer today and what to eat for breakfast.

Karaage

Tempura prawns and beans. Yum !

Time running out, i made a selection of fish from the fish market.

Tuna, Salmon & Sea Urchin ... perfect breakfast.

Gonna crave Sea Urchin so harddddd

Just can't get enough

Then came the time to try something different.

Fugu is a Japanese delicacy.

These little ugly fish are also known as puffer fish or Japanese river pigs.

They contain tetrodotoxin, a neurotoxin more lethal than cyanide.
Each fish has enough poison to kill 30 people.
When ingested, it causes total paralysis and eventually leads to death by suffocation.
There is no antidote.

Symptoms of poisoning include dizziness, vomiting, nausea, numb tongue + numb lips, numb face, paralysed muscles, all while remaining conscious.

Poisoning normally occurs within five minutes of consumption.

Most deaths only occur when this fish is prepared by untrained fisherman catching and eating it themselves.

Chefs must undergo additional training and be qualified to prepare and serve Fugu.

Fugu should only be eaten at a licensed restaurant.

In some restaurants, the Chef may leave a small amount of the poison so that you can feel a subtle tingling sensation.

Some adventurous diners purposely ingest small amounts of the poison to feel the tingling and onset of symptoms.

No thanks, not for me.

They say this notorious delicacy is best eaten as raw sashimi.

To experience this death defying delicacy we had planned to go to Zuboraya.

The Dotonburi branch is famous for its giant Fugu lantern hanging outside the restaurant.
Unfortunately our planning fell through and I thought if I don't try it here at the market, I may just miss out.

I gently peeled a slice of the white fish, dipped it into the sauce and put it into my mouth.
Then i waited ... and hoped not to feel a reaction of any kind *fingers crossed*
More than five minutes passed, and nothing ^_^

Fugu has the reputation of being bland and tasteless ... but I actually liked it !
The texture of it was like a cross between squid and jelly fish.

Would i try it again ? Yep !

live Fugu

Walking back to the hotel at a brisk pace because i was late for the 11am hotel checkout, my lips did feel a slight ZinGGG !
Perhaps it was the result of Fugu ? or was it the excessive soy sauce i managed to spill on the plate ?
Maybe I was just being a hypochondriac ?

Either way nothing happened, and I'm still alive :)

I got back to the hotel, caught up with the guys & checked out of the hotel.