Weekend Japanese Cultural Experience

Weekend Japanese Cultural Experience

I have been sick for a few days this week and what better way to cure my ills than to partake in some authentic Japanese Ramen, the answer to the standard chicken soup.  So we went on a quest for a true Japanese experience in good old Maryland this past weekend.  It was a challenge to find vegan Ramen, but we were up to the challenge!

KO and I started our day Saturday at the Kensington Farmers Market.  Nestled near the eclectic Antique Village, the Market included some delicious choices under the colorful multitude of tents next to the train station.  Homemade soaps and lotions made of healthy herbs and oils smelled heavenly. We sampled slivers of paisley colored fabrics that were filled with ice to keep you cool on a hot day.  Delectable fragrant scones and buttery croissants reminded us of our recent trip to Paris and England.   There were enormous barrels of pungent pickles and red, yellow and purple flowers beckoned us to enjoy their aromas.   Across the street, a building housed a wonderful selection of used books and I picked up The Secret Lives of Presidents, which interested me after viewing Hyde Park on Hudson, the story of FDR's love affairs right under the nose of Eleanor.

We capped off this part of our adventure with a lovely stroll through the turn of the century homes in Old Kensington.  One story is that when you bought a home here after the war, you got a Chevy along with it!  Every home is adorned with picture postcard gardens and it is a pleasure to walk back in time through this neighborhood.  In one of the antique stores we found an early 1900s wedding dress and an 1850s Chinese chair. It was fun to see what treasures we could discover there.

  

Our tummies were growling with hunger and the day had become humid and scorching so we ventured up to Wheaton to our first culinary experience, Ren's Ramen.  If you have been eating that cheap instant ramen in the packages found in every grocery store, than you are probably thinking that ramen is no big deal.  I was in for a real surprise.  KO had experienced ramen on his two journeys to Japan so he was seeking to recreate that experience.  The wavy Nishiyama noodles at Ren's are aged perfectly and sent here from Sapporo Hakkaido Japan.  The vegan ramen here is made in a seaweed broth, cooked overnight and onions, carrots, bean sprouts and cabbage complete the package.  We eagerly dug into our steaming bowls and were greeted with an almost buttery taste of wholesome broth and a kind of al dente noodle like none I had ever experienced before.  It was the perfect choice to sweat out any ailments you may have.  With less than twenty tables, the place was swimming with both Japanese and American clientele and the prices were very reasonable at eleven dollars for a large bowl of this amazing confection.

As we had planned a progressive meal where one has a different part of the meal at different restaurants, we headed to Tamari in Rockville to continue our Japanese experience.  First we stopped in at the Japanese grocery, Maruichi, located in the Talbot Shopping Center.  I had been searching for jinenjo, a wild yam which, when grated and eaten,  is supposed to promote strength and well being.  The store had this root vegetable along with many other interesting products.  We asked the proprietors what their favorite restaurant was and they said Niwano Hana,  so we scrapped our plans for Tamari and headed up the Pike.  We were greeted with the traditional Irasshaimase, which means welcome as we entered this quiet oasis in the Wintergreen Center.

Sushi chefs in their white hats and coats busily and meticulously prepared our vegan sushi as we listened to lilting Japanese melodies.  The sushi was fresh and flavorful. We topped our meal off with Yokan.

This is a type of dessert which is made with agar and Aduki beans, similar to jello, and was delectable and refreshing.  This food put us in the mood to complete our Japanese day by watching the movie, Ramen Girl, the story of an American girl in Japan who decides to find the secret of making real ramen and learns a great deal about life in the process. 

In the evening, we decided to work off some of this food with some more exercise.  At Kentlands  in Gaithersburg, on Friday and Saturday nights, there is a Tiki Bar next to the Diner.  It is here that the whole community comes out to hear bands play various genres of music.  This night Beggar's Tomb was on the bill.  Old and young came together to rock out to Grateful Dead tunes til late into the night.  Under the twinkling stars we danced with others clad in their tie dyes shirts and skirts, listening to music that took us back to our youth.  Nice to still be able to experience a small town feeling just ten miles from the DC line.

Hopefully Macro Adventure blog is giving you some ideas for how  to spend your weekends in this cosmopolitan area.  Please leave comments on the blog and join as a follower of the blog so we can all share ideas.  Until next weekend....