13 November 2019
Lard noodles
Eating Champon in Koriyama
Champon, also known as chanpon, is the main thing people eat in Nagasaki. I was not brave enough to eat it when I was in Nagasaki last year. It is literally udon noodles and other things, cooked in lard. The soup then has lard added to it. And yes it tastes like lard. I am not a big fan! I decided today was the day when I had burnt enough calories to give lard noodle soup a try. Once was probably enough.
I have now explored Koriyama a bit, but not too much, I was taking it easy this evening. Initial impressions are that Fukushima, just up the road, is busier and nicer. Thats not to say Koriyama is horrible, I am just trying to pick a winner.
I see there are 2 big malls quite near the centre of Koriyama, those may have impacted business in the city centre. Rain is forecast tomorrow, so who knows, I might end up at a mall.
Japanese concept maybe. You have no kitchen in your house, you go to the rental kitchen when you feel like cooking.
I thought this evening I would just go to the station and that would be the end of that. Here is the station photo. But as you will see, I then decided to wander and gawk a bit.
The covered street thing is pretty small here.
The station has their christmas illuminations ready to go, but they do not seem to be turning them on yet, instead I present, snowman out the front of a bar.
The main street was busy enough.
There are also a few busy side streets.
If I was going to go to a bar, this is the one for me.
A lot of Koriyama places are quite vertical, and many of them are owned by a company called 'Elite'. There are at least 10 such towers I noticed so far. All seem to be a mix of bars, love hotels and karaoke in one building. Also I did not photograph it but theres a cool looking cinema, with 10 screens, in 5 buildings. Very unusual. The 5 building thing is why I did not photograph it, 5 photos would have been too many.
The alleyways here are not too narrow.
Tourist information centre. I went in and asked what time the zoo would be open tomorrow.
And here they are, lard noodles. If you like lard, give them a try!