Tokyo, baby! (Part Two)

Finally, a day with the time and inclination to blog. Unfortunately, inspiration's still missing from the formula. (Maybe if I just inundate the post with lots of pictures, no one will be the wiser.)

Two young women wake up at the crack of dawn in a bid to catch a fish auction.

the normally crowded trains are empty, save for a few sleepy passengers.

the notice the ladies should have paid heed to before entering the market.

At the designated stop, they trail a bunch of camera-wielding ang mos, into the delivery stations of the market, and already find themselves in the midst of a hive of activity. The auction was over, but the day had just begun.

a scooter swerves past them, its rider determined to deliver as many goods as he can within his stipulated timeframe.

Stepping into the narrow aisles of the wet market, they realise they have to compete with produce-laden delivery vehicles, the widths of which fit snugly within the aisles - hence leaving little space for manouevrability, especially if you get caught at the crossroads with three or four of these machines coming at you, one after another.

one of said machines, its driver catching a breather outdoors & reading his latest sms

But from what greeted their eyes after the dust from the wake of the machines settled, the two knew that having less than 5 hours' rest the night before, splashing around in murky water, getting lost and eventually missing the auction, was all worth it:

the fishmonger at this stall pinched the crabs' load & offered it to the two ladies, who declined politely. they then watched in amazement as next, he popped the fresh roe into his mouth, chewed, and thereafter declared (with much relish): Oiishi.

more roe, but this time without the drama.

Sea urchins (as supposed)

big huge fish. below is a (badly-taken) video of the fishmonger slicing it up.

the first time Ms Coddle's seen red prawns this fresh. the first time she'd seen fresh red prawns, period.

meet the fish with the big sad eyes.