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earth_colorsHere are some notes from KodoGuru's 2018 New Year's Eve Special.
Setouchi Region. A region of Japan, making up the Seto Inland Sea, and the coastal areas of Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu.
Featured Shop 1:
Matsushita Seimensho
[松下製麺所]
[松下製麺所]
Address: Kagawa Prefecture, Takamatsu City, Nakano-cho 2-2
Tel. No: 087-831-6279
How to get there: 5 min walk from Ritsurin-Kōen-Kitaguchi Station (Map)
Kagawa Prefecture. The smallest prefecture in Japan by area. Goro stayed in Takamatsu, the prefecture's capital. It is best known for its Sanuki Udon, which was what Goro ate in the shop above. "Konpira-san", or Kotohira-gu located in Nakatado District, Kagawa, was the shrine mentioned by the the Kagawa ladies in the bus scene, while singing the folk song or drinking song, "Konpira" (video links: by a choir, as a game).
(info: wiki)
(info: wiki)
Featured Shop 2:
Sakana Kobo Maruman
[さかな工房 丸万]
[さかな工房 丸万]
Address: Ehime Prefecture, Matsuyama City, Gion-machi 3-21
Tel. No: 089-921-7242
How to get there: 4 min walk from Iyo-Tachibana Station via Iyo Railways (Map)
Ehime Prefecture. Located in nortwestern Shikoku. It is famous for its mikan (mandarin orange). In the bus scene, Goro asked if the orange he was eating was from Ehime (The lady corrected him, and said it was from Wakayama Prefecture, another big producer of mikan). Ehime is also famous for Dogo Onsen (the inspiration for the onsen in "Spirited Away") which Goro mentioned when he arrived in Matsuyama. When he got to Uwajima, he was given Jakoten (which he left in the cab), a processed fish paste specialty product from the area, that is fried when eaten.
(info: wiki)
Featured Shop 3:
Micchan
[みっちゃん]
[みっちゃん]
Address: Hiroshima Prefecture, Hiroshima City, Ushitaminami 1-7-1
Tel. No: 082-223-3329
How to get there: 10 min. walk from Hakushima Station via Hiroshima Densetsu (Map)
Hiroshima Prefecture. From Ehime, Goro crossed the Seto Inland Sea to Hiroshima, located in Honshu Island. He was gifted with Momiji Manju, a Hiroshima specialty confectionery shaped like a maple leaf. Hiroshima Toyo Carp is a professional baseball team based in the region. It was mentioned in this special that they won the 2016 Central League, but failed to be "Japan's No. 1" when they lost out to Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters in the 2016 Japan Series. And also, this may already be obvious, but Hiroshima is known for its tough-sounding accent, often heard in yakuza films, that is why Goro made mention of "Battle Without Honor and Humanity" while eating yakiniku.
(info: wiki)
Featured Shop 4:
Tatsumi
[多津美]
[多津美]
Address: Chiba Prefecture, Narita City, Hon-cho 345
Tel. No: 0476-22-0139
How to get there: 12 min. walk from JR Narita Station (Map)
Japanese New Year's Eve Traditions:
Toshikoshi Soba [年越しそば]. Crossing the Year Soba. I already mentioned this in my other notes. But I don't think I mentioned yet about the superstitious belief that the outcome of the coming new year, is a result of what they're doing the moment when the calendar changes. That is why, Goro kept asking himself in every New Year's specials, what kind of year will he be having (since he's either busy working or eating on New Year's Eve).
Hatsumode [初詣]. First shrine visit of the year, to pray and make wishes for a great new year. The shrine being visited by New Year visitors at the end of this special was Narita-san Shinshoji in Narita City, Chiba.
Fukubukuro [福袋]. "Lucky bag" with random items that you buy at a supposedly cheaper price. Goro mentioned this when describing the "kone" he was eating, meaning that since kone can be eaten in many ways, it's like a "deep fukubukuro" that has many surprises inside.
Fukubukuro [福袋]. "Lucky bag" with random items that you buy at a supposedly cheaper price. Goro mentioned this when describing the "kone" he was eating, meaning that since kone can be eaten in many ways, it's like a "deep fukubukuro" that has many surprises inside.
Hatsuri [初売り]. First business conducted by retailers in the New Year, or basically means, "New Year Sales". It's like "Black Friday" sales in the US, usually happens from January 1-3. Department stores are eager to dispose of their inventory to finish off the year, and make room for the new, while consumers are excited to spend their holiday bonuses.
Noodles mentioned:
Sanuki Udon [讃岐うどん]. The famous noodles of Kagawa that Goro ate at the start of the special.
Teuchi Udon [手打ちうどん]. It's what the sign says in front of the udon shop. It means the noodles there are handmade.
Seiro soba [せいろそば]. What Goro had at the ending. It's a style of soba served separate from its dipping sauce. Other similar styles are zaru soba and mori soba, each with a different history/origin, and containers, preparations, etc.
Tori soba [鳥そば]. Chicken soba.
Nishin soba [鰊そば]. Pacific herring soba.
Fish mentioned:
Sayori [サヨリ]. Japanese halfbeak. This was the fish that the Taisho called Yoshinaga, and Goro said "Sayuri" as a pun for the name of the famous actress.
Amagi [あまぎ]. Japanese butterfish, that was served deep-fried in this special.
Kampachi (or Kanpachi) [かんぱち]. Greater amberjack tuna.
Anago [穴子]. Conger eel.
Tai [帯]. Sea bream. Uwah. The way it was prepared in this special, didn't it look yummy?
Yakiniku terms mentioned in this special:
Galbi or Kalbi [カルビ]. Mentioned often in every yakiniku episode. Korean term for "ribs" usually beef short ribs.
Rosu [ロース]. From the word, "roast". This one also is always mentioned in every yakiniku episode. I have always translated this as "loin" or "sirloin". But since it was mentioned in this special that "kone" is meat from the "armpit" of the cattle, but also in "between kalbi and rosu", I was confused because the meat "between kalbi and rosu" (after checking the meat diagram of a cow), is nowhere near the so-called "armpit". So I was thinking that "rosu" might be the "brisket". Anyway, Japanese meat cuts and which part of the cow they came from always confuse me so I'm not sure anymore, so every time "rosu" is mentioned again, I won't translate it anymore, and just say "rosu".
Kone [ｺｰﾈ]. Said to be the armpit part of the cattle.
Shiro Niku [白肉]. "White Meat", or the meat of the cattle's throat.
Gari [ｶﾞﾘ]. The Hiroshima term for the offal rumen or first stomach. Another word for it is "mino".
The Puns. Or What Was Actually Said.There might have been one or two more, but this is all I got:
Kampachi. In the text shown on the screen, showcasing the Kampachi dish, it was written, "Koitsuaah, umeeh! [こいつぁ ウメェ!] (This is good!)". I'm not sure but the dialect might have been a reference to Kinpachi-sensei (since "kampachi" sounds like it) and the way he talks. And since the dish was cooked "iriji" or [炒り煮] (which means stir-fried and then simmered), the text said, "Iriji no Kishimojin" which is a pun on "Iriya Kishimojin", a shrine in Tokyo devoted to the Buddhist goddess Hariti or Kishimojin (it took me a long time realizing this weird pun! Grr! *shakes fist angrily*).
Eel soup. In the text for the "Clear Broth of Eel", it said "Wan-derful" with "wan" [湾] meaning "bowl" (in the subs, I wrote, "You'll be bowled over").
Gyu Suji or "Beef tendon". Goro made a pun on this. "Suji no ii gyu-suji" [筋のいい牛すじ] means "the beef tendon is skillful (or proficient)" (in the subs, I wrote, "I rate this tendon, ten out of ten").
Live New Year Eve's Shows Mentioned. To prove that the SP's ending was a real live broadcast, actors in the show mentioned what was happening in the other TV programs being shown in other networks at that moment.
Kouhaku Utagassen (NHK). Singer musician, Kuwata Keisuke was singing the theme song of "Hiyokko" at that time.
Boxing. Junior Flyweight boxer Taguchi Ryoichi won against Filipino Milan Milendo by decision.
RIZIN (MMA Competition). MMA fighter Kubota Rena lost to Asakura Kanna.
TV Asahi. They had a celebrity game show called "Quiz Survivor".
Downtown's Gaki no Tsukai (NTV). A live gag skit was happening at that moment with pro-wrestler turned TV talent, "Chono-kun" or Masahiro Chono.
TV Tokyo. And of course, almost breaking the fourth wall is "Kodoku no Gurume" being mentioned as the show about "eating lots of food".
No "Furatto Qusumi". Qusumi's usual end segment gave way to the special's live broadcast, so we didn't get to see the real life shopowners. But I'm sure the people used as extras in the shops' scenes were the owners themselves: In the udon shop "Matsushita", it was the cook making the noodles in the back. In the Maruman fish restaurant, the real owner was Maruyama-san, the drunk customer who came in last (I realized it after seeing his photo in the shop's website) and apparently can pass off as an actor. And in Micchan's shop, the real Micchan is obviously the woman helping in the background.
No "Furatto Qusumi". Qusumi's usual end segment gave way to the special's live broadcast, so we didn't get to see the real life shopowners. But I'm sure the people used as extras in the shops' scenes were the owners themselves: In the udon shop "Matsushita", it was the cook making the noodles in the back. In the Maruman fish restaurant, the real owner was Maruyama-san, the drunk customer who came in last (I realized it after seeing his photo in the shop's website) and apparently can pass off as an actor. And in Micchan's shop, the real Micchan is obviously the woman helping in the background.
