Japan’s secret ingredient

In March 2024, Japan’s tourist numbers exceeded 3 million. It was the first time in history that visitor numbers had surpassed the 2.9 million mark in one month, and when I heard the news I genuinely worried if at minimum 50% of those tourists had sore tummies.

You’re probably wondering why I would be concerned for tourist’s stomachs so let me explain. For many of us when we think of Japanese food we likely imagine perfectly assembled sushi, hearty ramen, and sweet smooth and colourful mochi. FYI, Japan is brimming with those things, and if I’m being honest the food here is probably some of the best I’ve eaten in the world. But Japanese food also has another secret ingredient, MSG.

For you lucky ones or dare I say it the blissfully ignorant ones, you may have never even heard of MSG (Monosodium glutamate). Basically it’s a flavour enhancer that is added to food, and it’s in a lot of food here. It can cause a range of symptoms from migraines, fluttering heart beats, feeling sick, numbness - I could keep going but I don’t want to be coined the Japanese food party pooper.

When I arrived to Japan, I, like many others ate anything and everything, desperately wanting to sample the plethora of gourmet food here. I soon learnt that those ‘gourmet’ rice balls from 7/11 that I was consuming almost daily were causing me a few little health/gut problems. At one point I thought I even had long covid - Alas, it was likely just the copious artificial flavouring I had made part of my every day consumption.

Foods I discovered had MSG

• Rice Balls from 7/11 - this was the absolute most devastating for me

• Almost all cup noodles - equally devastating

• Sauces/Salad dressing

• Seasonings

• Soups including Ramen

• Currys

• An undisclosed amount of other foods that will probs just make you depressed

Before you come for me, unless you’re severely allergic to MSG you’ll most likely be fine, and if you’re only in Japan on holiday then I would just go for it, eat everything, drink plenty of water, and walk as much as possible, but for those who are here permanently, it’s definitely something to factor in and avoid when you can. But how?

For me, we live in the countryside. We are surrounded by rice and vegetable farmers and we are very fortunate that we can access many fresh, seasonal food that isn’t imported. Our local supermarket is a 500m walk from us, stacked with fresh fruit and vegetables so if I chose to down the MSG it’s really on me.

Here’s some tips I use to avoid MSG when we’re away for racing and I can’t access my regular shops

• At restaurants ask for no dressing on salads and just add olive oil and salt and pepper

• Don’t go stupid on the Ramen - it’s a simple as that

• Eat at restaurants that have ‘healthy’ options

• Eat tempura vegetables at restaurants or in bentos at Supermarkets

• Minimise the amount of delicious mouth watering sauces you dip things in (I’m almost crying as I write that)

• If you’re going to get a rice ball at 7/11 opt for Pickled Plum, Salmon and Seaweed - there’s less sauce in these flavours

• Eat bread or rice to fill up (provided you aren’t gluten intolerant which is a whole other issue here)

• Drink water, water, water to flush the MSG out.

Unfortunately, unless you’re fully committed to ordering Organic boxes of groceries, going sauceless, and cooking yourself then you’re likely going to run into little encounters with MSG regularly, but it shouldn’t deter you from how magical the food is here.

Bare in mind if you’re from Australia or the US, our bodies haven’t been exposed to these kinds of foods for our entire lives, the Japanese have grown up on it and their bodies are able to assimilate and digest things that we might find difficult. The Japanese diet clearly has many health benefits when many are living to 100 years old, so MSG can’t be all bad, however it’s not one size fits all, so eat what your body can handle and avoid exclusively ‘convenient food’ regardless of how convenient it is.

Misty xx

Ganbatte!

Japan is a mysterious country, which seems fitting given that most of the time what I’m doing with my life is a complete mystery to me too. I’ve noticed over the past few years that every time that I begin something, every time I’ve thought ‘here is where I will plant my seeds, here is where I will drop my roots, that I become like a plant that is spontaneously pulled out of it’s home and repotted somewhere completely different. Anyway here I am, repotted in Japan.

Nothing here makes sense, yet everything makes sense. it is a completely polarising world. You can’t pay your bills online or buy a prepaid SIM card to save yourself, but you can buy literally anything and everything you need from 7/11 and there is always a convenience store within walking distance of anywhere you are at any time. There are Louis Vuitton bags in the Op Shops and the best sashimi you will ever eat for $7 at the supermarket, but one Rock Melon costs $30 and a peach (momo) you can pick up for a bargain at around $8-$10 for ONE.

I realised pretty soon after I arrived that Japan is like no where else. You cannot compare this country to anywhere you have ever been. Japan is in a league of it’s own and hides behind thick veils that will have you thinking it’s one thing but in fact it’s something completely different.

After six months here and being completely immersed I still have no idea of what I’m doing. I thought when I arrived that I would set up my online studio, that I would teach Yoga classes every day, and that I would live for the peace and routine that this country offers. LOL. Some days I feel like a child who really shouldn’t be left unsupervised, and other days I’m so freaking proud of ourselves that we did this.

The women here in the countryside of Japan have full time jobs parenting. It is WILD. The dads are responsible for working only. This is a contentious topic for me, as I didn’t grow up in a patriarchal family and my marriage is built on values that reject patriarchal thinking. I know we are different and although I’m sure Jay would love at times for me to really embrace the culture of Japanese women, it’s just never going to be me. But aside from my personal opinion, it’s intriguing witnessing this dynamic and what works and what doesn’t.

Most families have a minimum two kids, some where we live have three or four, and while big families are busy all over the world, here it’s on a completely different level. Below is a list of what Poppy takes to school every day (mind you this is just for one kid).

• Inside shoes

• Outside shoes

• Lunch bag

• Chop Sticks

• Spoon and Fork

• Cloth for wiping

• Temperature recording sheet with mesh bag

• Cup and seperate cup bag

• Backpack

• Drink bottle with cup attached to it

• Hat

• Masks, including a spare for lunch time

• Cloth bag for bringing home artwork and crafting items

• Diary

Then, they each have individual items that stay at school, emergency snacks, earthquake helmets, spare clothes, mud clothes, pool clothes, towels, drawing kits, skipping ropes, Takeuma (wooden stilts) like honestly nothing could have prepared me for the shit I would have to organise so my kid could get educated.

Organising all of that coupled with the fact that my Japanese is at the level of a three year old toddler, it’s been a wild ride transitioning from the woman I felt like I was in Australia, to what my day to day life looks like now.

I’m trying though. I’m taking Japanese lessons, piano lessons, Poppy has after school activities, we have friends, we go camping, like I’m really biting into this whole experience.

Rather than filling this page up with chaotic words about how I’m feeling in relationship to my new environment, I will just share some of what I have learned since I arrived.

• It’s more than acceptable to have 7/11 for dinner

• If a Japanese person tells you to meet at 7:00am it actually means 6:50am. Always be ten minutes early, no more, no less.

• It is quiet everywhere and it’s intended to be that way

• Don’t hang out your undies to dry outside

• You can run a bath by pressing a button in our kitchen (you can also change the water temperature)

• Miso soup will fix any type of stomach problems, period.

• Music will play over the community speakers at 7:00am (time for breakfast), 12:00pm (lunch) and 5:00pm (all kids need to go home).

• Japanese mums don’t speak to other Japanese dads at pick up and drop off (for fear that people will think there is something going on between them)

• Nature in Japan is the most beautiful of anywhere I have ever been, and the seasons are dramatic and cliche as anything! Where New Zealand is raw and untouched, Japan’s nature has the footprint of people but in a way that implies harmony.

Thankfully with all of the lessons we are learning, and as we are assimilating ourselves into the culture of living in the japanese countryside, racing here is the same as racing everywhere which has been deeply comforting. When we arrived the first race was just a few days after we had completed quarantine and we had spent just a single night in our new home. When we got to the race we instantly felt at ease. Racing is the one and only consistent in our lives and people who race just seem to understand that home is everywhere and it’s no where.