Teen Stomach Challenge: Japan Style

During our first 2 years in Japan, way back in 1995, before kids and international cats and Phd's, our challenge was simply figuring out the basics: how to pay a bill, how to tell flour from cornstarch, how NOT to get lost.

During our next 2 years in Japan, in 2005, our lives revolved around easing Patrick, age 8, and Aya, age 6 into living into Japan (and at times, easing Japan into living with THEM). By 2005, Bob and I were comfortable and confident enough living in Japan to give up the paranoia and mistakes of our first stay. In 2005, while Patrick and Aya were still too young to be left alone when I went grocery shopping, they were still young enough to be more than happy to tote along with us where we went, the adventure for them simply in BEING in Japan.

This time around, we have a whole new challenge:

keeping Patrick and Aya fed.

Or conversely, keeping enough food in the house at one time to feed them.

There seems to be a severe disparity between the size of the packaged food here, and the rate of emptiness of our resident teen stomachs.

Back in Davis, I bought 3 to 4 gallons of milk per week; most of this milk was poured into Patrick.

Here, milk is sold in 1 liter cartons (Think quart). I am finding myself buying milk on a nearly daily basis.

Back in Davis, a wide variety of bread is sold in long loaves that have anywhere from 20 to 30 slices.

Here, the primary bread available are loaves of delicious, soft white bread, sold in 8 slice packages. I am finding myself buying bread every other day.

We fly similarly quickly through rice, margarine, strawberry jelly, grated white cheese, ketchup and, oddly enough, carrots. The list goes on: ramen, potatoes, eggs, lettuce, tofu.....

And peanut butter.

Imported American-style peanut butter is sold in tiny camp-store sized 12 ounce jars that cost the equivalent of $4 to $5 each. We would probably go through 2 or 3 jars of peanut butter per week, but I have spread out appropriate threats to eat other foods besides peanut butter sandwiches; it would not do to bankrupt ourselves on peanut butter.

However, we may end up just simply bankrupting ourselves keeping Patrick and Aya fed.

I suppose it is a very good thing that I will not have a conventional teaching job this year, since I suspect I will be spending a great deal of time toting myself to and from the grocery store.

There is hope, however. This fall a Costco will be opening in Kyoto.

....but will Costco-sized food fit in our very Japanese-sized house?

I'll keep you posted.