Posted September 24, 2011 by Jonelle Patrick1 Comment WTF Japan?

Whale Bacon

The friend I went to Tsukiji with this week told me that when she was growing up in Kyushu, the only kind of bacon they ever had at home was whale bacon. Apparently, it’s always eaten raw, so when she was reading an American book years later and the dialogue was about the smell of frying bacon wafting through the house in the morning, her first thought was, “EWWWW!”

If you’d like to check out the Tsukiji Outer Market for yourself the next time you’re in Tokyo, maps are on my website, The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had.

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Read a novel set in Tokyo

In the wake of a deadly earthquake, fans erupt in a frenzy of mourning when it’s discovered that their favorite pop star is among the dead. But when Detective Kenji Nakamura is sent to investigate a death at a local shrine, he finds evidence that suggests the impossible: How could the head priest have been murdered by…*read more*

Jonelle Patrick View All

Writing mystery books set in Tokyo is mostly what I do, but I also blog about the odd stuff I see every day in Japan. I'm a graduate of Stanford University and the Sendagaya Japanese Institute in Tokyo, and a member of the International Thriller Writers, the Mystery Writers of America, and Sisters In Crime. When I'm not in Tokyo, I live in San Francisco. I also host a travel site called The Tokyo Guide I Wish I'd Had, so if you're headed to Japan and want to check out the places I take my friends when they're in town, take a look!