Takopa

Takopa is the abbreviation of takoyaki paatei (Takoyaki Party - I wonder what it means?).

Monday night, my host family bought a small Takoyaki grill for the table and we had both Akashiyaki and Takoyaki. My host mom said she really wanted me to try Akashiyaki and knew I wasn't able to find it both times I went to Kobe - she also wanted me to be able to try to make it. I was so grateful and we ended up having a lot of fun!

So Akashiyaki has a lot of egg in it and not much else. Once done grilling, it is put in a soup-like
sauce. The texture is very soft, especially compared to takoyaki. It is not as solid and doesn't really hold together once you try to pick it up. I do not exactly remember what was in the soup/sauce, but those green vegetables are a plant literally called "three-leaves" and have an interesting, strong flavor that mixes citrus and mint...maybe? It's hard to describe, but refreshing yet savory.

Next, we made takoyaki together! The akashiyaki was very hard to flip and turn since it is much softer, but we all soon became pros at grilling and flipping takoyaki. It felt like we were crabs playing with sand, with our stabbing and turning motions with our little sticks. We filled the batter not only with octopus but ginger (which is dyed pinkish red in Japan for some reason), green onions, and tempura topping. Once grilled, we added a green herb, a brown seasoning, and a delicious barbecue-like sauce (I apologize for lack of details!). It was delicious though it made for a dinner longer than usual, ending around 9 pm. Thankfully, I had been studying before and time managing and all that joy so did not have to worry too much.

The next day I took my camera to school because I had noticed the lotuses in the pond of the campus garden were blooming! So beautiful! Little white, symmetry, graceful flowers popping up with bright green lily pads out of shallow and muddy water - gorgeous. I also like that side of the pond because the two large koi fish of the pond like to sleep under the lily-pads and are pretty adorable. Another adorable thing: the tiny creatures everywhere in the pond right now! Baby snails, baby turtles, baby fish, water striders, damselflies, gem-like dragonflies and the occasional duck. I love how bustling it is. Even the plants are more abundant: you can see forests of algae that the fish and baby turtles navigate. It's its own world.








I love this garden so much. The sound of the mini waterfall, the look of the ripples, the lush colors, and the lively ecosystem is so beautiful and peaceful.

I have also been enjoying practicing in K-ON club. I'm finally getting the guitar songs for our July concert down as well as have memorized a few bass songs (specifically, Panic at the Disco's Don't Threaten Me with a Good Time and Gorillaz's Feel Good Inc.). The campus life is different from back home, but it is still enjoyable. For instance, very time I head to K-ON, I hear every other club's activities since their club rooms are pretty much all in the same building. So many interests and hobbies converging near each other just creates a sense of passion and fun. Tuesday was tough since it was the day before my two midterms. I was pretty exhausted after my two tests, especially since I haven't been sleeping easily - but I think I did well.