Blog | FindingSachi – Japanese Food, Cycling Japan, Foodie Adventures | See Japanese food found on a bicycle tour

The Non Textbook-Case Woman on the 2015 Textbook

Oct 8 • Blog, Inspiration • 3621 Views

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Have you ever noticed the moments when life expands and shrinks according to your behavior? We may not always realize it in the midst of it. But in hindsight, certain actions take us to completely unexpected, wonderful outcomes. This is one of those that have happened to me because of my bicycle tour across Japan. Among many people I met throughout my cycling journey of Japanese food, there were those who spoke the same language, and I don’t mean English or Japanese. John Rucynski, a New York native and an associate professor at Okayama University, was one of those. I met John whilst I was staying in Sapporo, Hokkaido, where he had also cycled for two weeks from his home for the charity of Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami disaster. At the same time, he was writing for an outdoor magazine in the US about cycling in Japan. Mind you, he’d cycled at a MUCH faster pace than my let’s-take-the-longest-time-possible tour, but how we were reporting on a theme of Japan, using the
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Lost and Found in Japan

Mar 6 • Blog • 2779 Views

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We hear this all the time here. “I lost something in Japan, but it came back all intact.” It’s so common we all take it for granted sometimes. This week, I was visiting Tokyo for a few days. On the way to my return flight, I was not my usual self. Some things had happened, and I was feeling a bit out of sorts. That led me to line up in the overseas airline counter even though I was supposed to be at the domestic. Never done that before. I lost the time I thought I had, and now I was in a hurry. I checked in fine, I lined up at the security check, took out everything from my pockets, laptop, and the little cosmetic scissors out of my makeup purse. Everything came through fine and dandy, and I rushed my way to the gate where everyone was boarding the shuttle bus to the plane. On the bus, I noticed something was missing in my pocket. I checked all my pockets. Nope, not there. What about my bag? Dig, dig, dig… I don’t see it. Maybe I put it in th
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Congrats! Japanese Cuisine Now Listed As World Heritage

Dec 10 • Blog, Japanese Food, News • 29117 Views

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As some of you food lovers may already be aware, Japan has just become only the second nation after France to have its national cuisine designated heritage status last week. Below is from AP news: “The United Nations cultural organization (UNESCO) has added traditional Japanese food to its cultural heritage list, making it only the second national cuisine to receive the prized designation. A UNESCO committee announced the decision Wednesday at a meeting in Azerbaijan. Previously only French cooking had been distinguished as a national culinary tradition. UNESCO has also recognized specific dishes from Mexico and Turkey, and added the Mediterranean diet — the tradition of sharing food and eating together — at this week’s meeting. Known as “washoku,” Japan’s traditional cooking embraces seasonal ingredients, a unique taste and a style of eating steeped in centuries of tradition. Japan hopes that UNESCO recognition will both send a global message and boost ef
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Discover The Cool Summer Miyagi! Part 1: Sendai

Jul 30, 13 • Blog, Honshu, Japan Disaster Relief, Japanese Food, Japanese phrases
Having a Dream: The Ultimate Anti-Aging

May 10 • Blog, Inspiration • 2272 Views

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I just caught the morning news with a truly inspirational man of youthful heart. 80 year old Yuichiro Miura is in the last bit of training now for challenging Mt Everest. His face, his vocal tone, the energy that I could feel from his interview was striking. I cannot believe he is 80! He gave out his secret to being so young and vibrant, which I’d like to share with you to get your Friday going. “The ultimate anti-aging is ‘having a dream’, ‘challenging’, ‘trying to achieve’” As for me, I am currently working on the renewal of my website whilst I juggle with other consulting work. It is a time consuming process as I want it to be nice, but is also a good challenge which lets me “achieve” and share my dreams with the world. One step at a time, we are all trying to climb our own Mt Everest. Here is the song of my such morning. Have an awesome Friday, everyone!
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Guest Appearance 2 “Return of Sachi” on Tokyo Podcast

Jul 17 • Blog, Book Review, Guest Appearance • 26074 Views

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I’m back on Tokyo Podcast, hosted by Anthony Joh! In this latest episode, I was asked to give a review on a new book in Japanese by Ruth Jarman Shiraishi called, “日本人が世界に誇れる３３の事” – 33 More Reasons to Be Proud. Click here to listen to the podcast, it’s a totally fun and laughable half hour. Here’s a quick written summary of the book: Ruth Jarman Shiraishi’s new book 日本人が世界に誇れる３３のこと (33 More Reasons To Be Proud) was written for Japanese people about their actions that seem ordinary to them, yet are significantly different from the American culture that the author grew up in. The habits and customs that are not considered special by the Japanese are listed as the wonderful assets of this country by Ruth. She has lived and worked in Japan for over the last 24 years, and her love for Japan comes across throughout this book. She shares the findings from her experiences, particularly from the traditional Japanese business scenes. She sees the passion of Jap
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Surrounded by Bikes and Making Plum Sake in Rain

Jun 19 • Blog, Recipe • 2266 Views

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In life, unexpected things happen all the time. Without this, I think I’d fall into the dark sea of boredom. New things can be seen as obstacles to avoid, or challenges to tackle. I tend to choose the latter. My mission in showing you Japanese food from my bicycle is far from over (as you would all agree). I am finally onto my book writing so you can see my entire tour and learn more about the food and culture behind it. But please don’t hold your breath for it just yet. Parallel to that seemingly never ending project, I do work, which keeps me busy and humble around many bicycles and some remarkable people of many nationalities. Although my cycling tour ended (for now:), it has kept me in the world of bicycles. Saying yes to the unknown is pretty awesome despite the challenges. OK, it’s been long over due – let’s talk about food, which is what my site is about! It is now rainy season here in Japan. This season is called “tsuyu (梅雨)”, written w
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One Year from 3.11 Tsunami Disaster & The Start of My Japan Cycling Tour

Mar 12 • Blog, Honshu • 3714 Views

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It is March 11, 2012 today. One year ago, the magnitude 9.0 earthquake struck Tohoku, the north eastern Japan, wiping countless beautiful coastal towns with the great tsunami. This huge disaster killed approximately 19,000 people, destroying thousands of homes and businesses that are still far from being recovered. Just one day before the earthquake struck was the start of my Japan cycling tour. I left my home in Fukuoka Prefecture to head south to Okinawa on my pink bike. I was so far away from the disaster site, but soon found out as I took a break from cycling around 3:30pm that afternoon. The event occurred at 2:45pm. I was sad, confused, even had guilt for going cycling when so many people were dying as I watched the small TV screen in a little ramen restaurant. I’d done a lot of preparation for my tour, and started cycling with so much excitement like I’d never felt before in my life. Then on the very next day, it happened. The sadness and helplessness took over me wh
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Day 92-93 Japan’s Surf Mecca and The Open Air Buddha of Kamakura

Feb 29 • Blog • 2213 Views

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From Okinawa all the way to the center area of Japan, I’d seen many surfers along the coast. This Shonan Beach in Chigasaki is famous as the surf mecca of Japan with the long sandy beach accompanied by a walking / cycling road. I caught so many bicycles with a surfboard holder, parked right by the beach. Dare I say… it’s like the less crazy version of Venice Beach in Los Angeles. There is a small island by this beach called, Enoshima. You can see it on the right in the above photo. I cycled over the bridge, and it said, “Welcome to Enoshima.” Enoshima Shrine was what was bringing people to the island. There were also many food vendors leading up to the shrine. Paddle surfers, wind surfers, internet surfers (namely, me), they were all there. Shirasu don, baby anchovy bowl, was the local lunch of the day. Remember, I’d had the raw one a few days earlier? This one was boiled. The ocean lets us play and gives us good food. How good is she? This area, sou
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How to Make Okonomiyaki: Pancake gone Japanese

Feb 22, 12 • Blog, Japanese Food, Recipe