The first time my wife joined me in Japan we planned to visit some of her relatives in Yokohama. We settled into a nice hotel, and she suggested we go to Yokohama’s’ Chinatown. At first, I wasn’t sure if she was just joking, but I soon realized she was serious. We lived in Chicago at the time and had been to Chicago’s Chinatown several times. This suggestion left me baffled. Needless to say, I was skeptical.
The sun was getting low and promised a nice, pleasantly warm evening. At first glance I could see this was nothing like we were used to. The lights seemed a bit brighter, the atmosphere felt inviting. Shortly after we passed under the gates, I found a pork bun stall and ate a bun that made me rethink all my life choices. It was fantastic!
As my mind opened to this experience, I couldn’t shake the feeling of how surreal it was to travel 6,000 miles to enjoy Japan and all it offered only to be in a Chinatown, which I mistakenly thought would be pretty much the same everywhere. It just felt wrong.
As a street food fan, this place is a can’t miss. In addition to the pork dumplings, we had several light snacks as we strolled. This place hits all your senses in just the right way. The smell of chicken being grilled mixing with incense and fresh candies. The visual input is almost overwhelming. Bright lights, followed by the warm glow from a shop filtering into the street. Fortune tellers set up between a gift shop and dumpling stand; it never stopped. The sounds of music, conversations in several languages and the familiar sounds of meals being enjoyed at restaurants.
What I thought would be a quick walk through a tourist-centric, rather hollow experience turned into something entirely different. After a while, I began to see, really see this was not so much a tourist hotspot as it was a neighborhood with people going about their lives. Kids still dressed in their uniforms enjoying a post-practice ice cream. Groups of friends heading out for a meal, and of course people doing their jobs. It was all so, for lack of a better word, comfortable.
It took me a while to realize why this felt so different from what I would have expected. Japan is unique in that so much of one world blends into another. Take food as an example. Curry is very popular in Japan. However, it’s not the curry you may have in mind. Rather, it’s a milder, sweeter version that I happen to love. Pasta with tomato sauce is another example. In Japan it may be called Neapolitan or simply an Italian, it’s a thinner, slightly sweet tomato sauce without the heavier seasoning of its Mediterranean cousin. Kentucky Fried Chicken is a Christmas meal and McDonald’s serves eel sandwiches.
The point of this post is twofold:
First – Yokohama’s Chinatown is very worthwhile, especially in the evening.
Second – Don’t be afraid to experience Japan in ways you might not have thought to be “Japanese”. You will likely be pleasantly surprised.
Finally, Japan not only re-imagines foods, clothes, and experience, but you may find yourself being changed a little as well. I know I have.
See you on the road.
