ASAKUSA Underground > Save the Asakusa seaweeds
A Welsh gentleman used to laugh, saying, “Only the Welsh and the Japanese
eat laver. We are savages”. It was long time ago, as you know.
Now, the rest of the world is catching up with us and adores nori. The popularity of sushi is not just amazing, but somehow threatening if you are aware of the diminishing marine resources.
Probably, it would have been wiser if we had kept our peculiar eating habit only to us. Nowadays, lots of people may feel something is missing if they serve them sushi rolls without nori.
“No one can eat this paper-like sxxx (excrement).”
We were able to hear this kind of objective analyses in a Japanese restaurant outside Japan (except Wales).
Those days are gone, and we will never get them back. So is the wild nori. Asakusa nori (Porphyra tenera) is an endangered species on the verge of extinction.
“Why Asakusa?”, one might wonder, “Asakusa has nothing to do with the sea.”
No, it doesn’t. Asakusa is inland, several kilometres away from the sea. However, it was on the sea half a millennium ago as its name shows it. Asa for Asakusa is the Japanese word for “shallow”. Kusa means “grass”, and, in this context, one can interpret it as reeds. Asakusa was wetlands with plenty of reeds, which is the ideal bed for nori seaweeds to grow on.
Supposedly, its paper-like style was also invented at Asakusa about three hundred years ago, thanks to the technique of paper manufacturing, for which the place was well known at that time. Nori was largely cultivated at the river mouth of the Sumida. Because of its delicious taste, Asakusa nori became the synonym to the best nori in Japan.
These days, Asakusa nori is just a brand. Most of it comes from the neighbouring prefecture, Chiba, or even farther like Korea and China. Besides, it is not the same species. The nori we eat today is Narawa-susabi-nori (Porphyra yezonsis), which they brought and improved in Chiba in order to cultivate a stronger and more marketable species.
In the 70s, they stopped cultivating Asakusa nori, and the massive creation of reclaimed lands destroyed wetlands where it grows naturally. Now, the researchers recognize only a handful of places where it grows.
“We want to eat tasteful nori with good flavour as we did before”, some people thought. They were a group of fishermen working in Banshu Higata (Banshu wetlands) off Kisarazu city, Chiba pref. They organized an NGO called Banshu Sato Umi no Kai about a decade ago. After the initial difficulties, they finally succeeded in reviving Asakusa nori. Now they are promoting it for high-end consumers. Making a small quantity of high quality products is one of the common elements among the successful smaller businesses in Japan recently.
If you want to visit Banshu Higata, take JR Uchibo line and get off at Iwane station. It is one hour’s walk. It is much easier by car. Take Aqualine and get it off at Kisarazu Kaneda exit.
If you find it too far, you can go to Sanbanze Higata (Sanbanze wetlands) or Yatsu Higata (Yatsu wetlands). At Sanbanze Higata, they cultivate nori although it is not Asakusa nori. You can see their poles for a distance. You are also allowed to gather shellfish on the beach for a small fee (420 yen for an adult, 210 yen for a minor) during the limited periond (late April to mid June). You can rent a rake for 100 yen (plus 100 yen deposit).
[To Sanbanze wetlands]
There is a public park nearby, and they have public transportations to go there. The park is called Funabashi Kaihin Koen.
The cheapest way to get there is:
At Asakusa, buy 270 yen ticket, take the Tokyo Metro Ginza-line train for Shibuya and change trains at Nihonbashi.
At Nihonbashi, take the Tozai-line train for Nishi-Funabashi. Take a rapid train. It will takes over the local train before it.
At Nishi-Funabashi, get off the Tokyo Metro. Get out of the barrier once and buy a JR ticket of 160 yen, or go to the fare adjustment office and say “Futamata-Shinmachi”.
Get inside the barrier and walk to the JR platforms. Take any JR train for Kaihin-Makuhari, Minami-Funabashi, or Tokyo. You can take either Musashino-line or Keiyo-line.
If you have taken a train for Tokyo, change trains at Ichikawa-Shiohama. Take the Keiyo-line LOCAL train for Soga and get off at Futamata-Shinmachi, the next station.
If you have taken a train for Minami-Funabashi, change trains at Minami-Funabashi. Take Keiyo-line LOCAL train for Tokyo and get off at Futamata-Shinmachi, the next station.
In front of JR Futamata-Shinmachi station, you can take the bus for Funabashi Kaihin Koen. They have one service every 30 minutes or more often. The first bus leaves at 6:43 on weekdays and at 6:58 on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. Is it early enough for bird watchers?
If you find it too complicated, we have still another alternative. Why don’t you visit Yatsu Higata, which is included in the Ramsar list of Wetlands of International Importance. You can see some rare migrating birds there. Therefore, it is very popular among Tokyo bird watchers.
[To Yatsu Higata]
The cheapest way to get there is:
At Asakusa, buy 270 yen ticket, take the Tokyo Metro Ginza-line train for Shibuya and change trains at Nihonbashi.
At Nihonbashi, take the Tozai-line train for Nishi-Funabashi. Take a rapid train. It will takes over the local train before it.
At Nishi-Funabashi, get off the Tokyo Metro. Up to this point, it is the same as going to Sanbanze wetlands.
Then, Get out of the barrier once and buy a JR ticket of 150 yen, or go to the fare adjustment office and say “Minami-Funabashi”.
Get inside the barrier and walk to the JR platforms. Take any JR train for Kaihin-Makuhari or Minami-Funabashi.
Get off at JR Minami-Funabashi station. It is 30 minutes’ walk.
-----Conversation Tips-----
“Yatsu Higata, doko?”
Translation: “Yatsu higata, where?”
Word: doko = where
The word “doko?” is very handy. It is worth memorizing.
We cannot recommend that you should ask a hurrying commuter, though. Your day will not begin nicely.
Save the Asakusa seaweeds
A Welsh gentleman used to laugh, saying, “Only the Welsh and the Japanese
eat laver. We are savages”. It was long time ago, as you know. Now, the rest of the world is catching up with us and adores nori. The popularity of sushi is not just amazing, but somehow threatening if you are aware of the diminishing marine resources.
Probably, it would have been wiser if we had kept our peculiar eating habit only to us. Nowadays, lots of people may feel something is missing if they serve them sushi rolls without nori.
“No one can eat this paper-like sxxx (excrement).”
We were able to hear this kind of objective analyses in a Japanese restaurant outside Japan (except Wales).
Those days are gone, and we will never get them back. So is the wild nori. Asakusa nori (Porphyra tenera) is an endangered species on the verge of extinction.
“Why Asakusa?”, one might wonder, “Asakusa has nothing to do with the sea.”
No, it doesn’t. Asakusa is inland, several kilometres away from the sea. However, it was on the sea half a millennium ago as its name shows it. Asa for Asakusa is the Japanese word for “shallow”. Kusa means “grass”, and, in this context, one can interpret it as reeds. Asakusa was wetlands with plenty of reeds, which is the ideal bed for nori seaweeds to grow on.
Supposedly, its paper-like style was also invented at Asakusa about three hundred years ago, thanks to the technique of paper manufacturing, for which the place was well known at that time. Nori was largely cultivated at the river mouth of the Sumida. Because of its delicious taste, Asakusa nori became the synonym to the best nori in Japan.
These days, Asakusa nori is just a brand. Most of it comes from the neighbouring prefecture, Chiba, or even farther like Korea and China. Besides, it is not the same species. The nori we eat today is Narawa-susabi-nori (Porphyra yezonsis), which they brought and improved in Chiba in order to cultivate a stronger and more marketable species.
In the 70s, they stopped cultivating Asakusa nori, and the massive creation of reclaimed lands destroyed wetlands where it grows naturally. Now, the researchers recognize only a handful of places where it grows.
“We want to eat tasteful nori with good flavour as we did before”, some people thought. They were a group of fishermen working in Banshu Higata (Banshu wetlands) off Kisarazu city, Chiba pref. They organized an NGO called Banshu Sato Umi no Kai about a decade ago. After the initial difficulties, they finally succeeded in reviving Asakusa nori. Now they are promoting it for high-end consumers. Making a small quantity of high quality products is one of the common elements among the successful smaller businesses in Japan recently.
If you want to visit Banshu Higata, take JR Uchibo line and get off at Iwane station. It is one hour’s walk. It is much easier by car. Take Aqualine and get it off at Kisarazu Kaneda exit.
If you find it too far, you can go to Sanbanze Higata (Sanbanze wetlands) or Yatsu Higata (Yatsu wetlands). At Sanbanze Higata, they cultivate nori although it is not Asakusa nori. You can see their poles for a distance. You are also allowed to gather shellfish on the beach for a small fee (420 yen for an adult, 210 yen for a minor) during the limited periond (late April to mid June). You can rent a rake for 100 yen (plus 100 yen deposit).
[To Sanbanze wetlands]
There is a public park nearby, and they have public transportations to go there. The park is called Funabashi Kaihin Koen.
The cheapest way to get there is:
At Asakusa, buy 270 yen ticket, take the Tokyo Metro Ginza-line train for Shibuya and change trains at Nihonbashi.
At Nihonbashi, take the Tozai-line train for Nishi-Funabashi. Take a rapid train. It will takes over the local train before it.
At Nishi-Funabashi, get off the Tokyo Metro. Get out of the barrier once and buy a JR ticket of 160 yen, or go to the fare adjustment office and say “Futamata-Shinmachi”.
Get inside the barrier and walk to the JR platforms. Take any JR train for Kaihin-Makuhari, Minami-Funabashi, or Tokyo. You can take either Musashino-line or Keiyo-line.
If you have taken a train for Tokyo, change trains at Ichikawa-Shiohama. Take the Keiyo-line LOCAL train for Soga and get off at Futamata-Shinmachi, the next station.
If you have taken a train for Minami-Funabashi, change trains at Minami-Funabashi. Take Keiyo-line LOCAL train for Tokyo and get off at Futamata-Shinmachi, the next station.
In front of JR Futamata-Shinmachi station, you can take the bus for Funabashi Kaihin Koen. They have one service every 30 minutes or more often. The first bus leaves at 6:43 on weekdays and at 6:58 on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. Is it early enough for bird watchers?
If you find it too complicated, we have still another alternative. Why don’t you visit Yatsu Higata, which is included in the Ramsar list of Wetlands of International Importance. You can see some rare migrating birds there. Therefore, it is very popular among Tokyo bird watchers.
[To Yatsu Higata]
The cheapest way to get there is:
At Asakusa, buy 270 yen ticket, take the Tokyo Metro Ginza-line train for Shibuya and change trains at Nihonbashi.
At Nihonbashi, take the Tozai-line train for Nishi-Funabashi. Take a rapid train. It will takes over the local train before it.
At Nishi-Funabashi, get off the Tokyo Metro. Up to this point, it is the same as going to Sanbanze wetlands.
Then, Get out of the barrier once and buy a JR ticket of 150 yen, or go to the fare adjustment office and say “Minami-Funabashi”.
Get inside the barrier and walk to the JR platforms. Take any JR train for Kaihin-Makuhari or Minami-Funabashi.
Get off at JR Minami-Funabashi station. It is 30 minutes’ walk.
-----Conversation Tips-----
“Yatsu Higata, doko?”
Translation: “Yatsu higata, where?”
Word: doko = where
The word “doko?” is very handy. It is worth memorizing.
We cannot recommend that you should ask a hurrying commuter, though. Your day will not begin nicely.