A vist to a Senbei shop

And I was worried about finding things to photograph...

Yesterday our friends, the Ericksons, made a surprise visit to Nikko and I got to spend a few hours with them. Actually I was good friends with Evan's mother when his family lived in Japan for a couple of years. Evan was only 7 or 8 then. Now he is married, has a BEAUTIFUL wife and two sweetheart daughters.

"What do you want to do? Do you like senbei?"

Senbei translates as 'rice crackers' but there are SOOOO many different types of rice crackers in Japan. Deep fried, grilled, pressed. Flavors? Soy sauce flavor, salt, sugar, hot pepper, curry. Senbei with sea weed, with soy beans, peanuts, sesame seeds. Even soggy senbei are being sold these days!

And in Nikko there is a senbei factory where tourists can come and "sample" different senbeis.  (In this store alone there must be at least thirty different senbei.)

There was also a room where you could "paint" your own senbei.

First toast the dried rice dough over a grill.

"Count to ten and then flip it. Count to ten again. Keep flipping until your senbei is light brown."

"Next, come over here and paint your senbei with soysauce. Then it's back to the grill to lightly toast the senbei again."

The soysauce browns faster than the senbei and thus the "picture" appears.

Eden worked on a Happy Face.

Mom and Lena did a bunny for Easter.

"Yeah! No one's going to eat MY senbei!"

We ate our fill of senbei and bought a bit to take home. Ah, the business possibilities with senbei! Because the new school year starts next week, regulation school backpacks are on the market and the senbei shop has made these mini backpacks filled with senbei. So cute and colorful!

"Now what colors do I want?"

Pink and red for two sweet girly girls!

"Thank you Tanya!"

My pleasure!