Making sushiwith a view of Mt. Fuji

One morning in Numazu City, Shizuoka, in an old house in a quiet town by the sea. I scooped freshly cooked rice from the clay pot and pressed it firmly into balls while it was still hot.

On the kitchen table I spread out a sheet of bamboo sheath, laid out rolled omelet and the rice balls, and added a few slices of pickled cucumber. I folded the sheath over and tied it with string, and the bento was ready. Let's have breakfast while looking at Mt. Fuji.

Carrying the bento, I walked along the road by the harbor. Past a stop sign, the island of Awashima floated on the water, with snow-capped Mt. Fuji rising behind it.

I sat down at the water's edge and untied the bamboo bundle on my lap: rice balls, rolled omelet, pickled cucumber. I ate them one by one, watching Mt. Fuji lift its head above the clouds, then lingered over a cup of coffee, looking out at the sea.

Close by was a bus stop called Nagahama. Beyond the seawall, Awashima sat squarely on the water.

Back at the old house: I'm home. With its wooden walls and glass sliding doors, it is a traditional Japanese house said to be seventy years old.

Books and art volumes lined the shelves, with a guitar leaning beside them. A framed portrait, shoji screens, an old chest of drawers. Glasses and cups sat quietly in the cupboard. This is living with a view of Mt. Fuji.

In the afternoon I went out shopping. Beyond the arcade of the shopping street, Mt. Fuji rose huge over the rooftops.

Numazu Port, where seafood from Suruga Bay gathers. Signs reading "Fishermen's Meals" and "Dried Fish" lined the street, with a puffer-fish ornament hanging out front. Past an arcade stacked with crates, a table of dried fish stood beneath the sign of Sakanaya Senbon-ichi.

Handwritten price tags everywhere: horse mackerel, four for 1,080 yen; splendid alfonsino, two for 972; squid dried overnight. There was even a tag for handmade kuro-hanpen, the dark fish cake Shizuoka is known for. Let's get some dried horse mackerel, a specialty of Numazu. I love the atmosphere of local stores.

For lunch I went to a cafe on the shore. A Nordic flag fluttered beside a sign reading "Umi no Stage." Numazu is also the setting of a popular anime: posters hung inside, and characters were drawn on the whiteboard by the door.

What arrived was a plate of yellow pilaf under a rich brown sauce and crispy fried onions. Lunch in an anime-like setting. Tasty, and happy. Through the shade of the garden, past a white table, the sea opened out.

Back home, I made coffee. The red enamel kettle went on the flame, and I ground the beans in a hand mill. Grounds into the dripper, hot water over them, and coffee dripped slowly into the pot.

On the counter by the window sat a toaster and the dripper. I set a green cup and a small jar on a round tray. Inside the jar was a "deep sea pudding" in beautiful transparent blue, made with the motif of Suruga Bay, the deepest sea in Japan. Under the blue jelly lay a rich yellow custard.

I scooped up the blue jelly with a spoon. The refreshing ramune flavor and the rich pudding go well together. With my coffee, I rested in a rattan chair by the window. A happy afternoon.

At dusk the sky turned pink, and Mt. Fuji and Awashima stood out like shadow puppets. Rows of small floats dotted the water. When the sun went down, the windows of the old house glowed with light.

Time to make dinner. The dried horse mackerel went on the grill. And tonight, let's try making sushi with the fish I got at the local market.

I set a white plate in front of me and readied my hands. A slice of white fish with its skin still on went onto a ball of rice, then gently onto the plate. Here is your sushi. Next, tuna: Numazu is a great place to get good tuna at a reasonable price.

I wrapped rice in strips of nori and topped it with chopped tuna and green onion for negitoro gunkan. Raw whitebait, also a specialty of Numazu, went on as a warship roll too, spooned over the rice.

I carried the plate around the counter, and the Numazu special was ready: nigiri of white fish and tuna, gunkan of negitoro and raw whitebait. The crab miso soup is on the house.

I poured a glass of Ryoma 1865, a non-alcoholic beer, and raised it to the night in Numazu. My first attempt at nigiri was not a complete success, but it was great fun, and delicious.

I bit into the whitebait gunkan and picked apart the grilled horse mackerel with my chopsticks. Numazu, the town of Mt. Fuji and seafood: you get twice the fun at the same time.

From the dim hallway I looked back at the lit kitchen. What kind of life will I find on my next journey?