Miso-Marinated Black Cod

Earl Grey Ice Cream

A sashimi breakfast at Tokyo’s famous Tsukiji fish market sounded like a good idea. I’d get up early, wander the stands, take some pictures, generally work up an appetite, and then sit down to eat what may arguably be some of the very freshest sashimi on earth. But, as it turns out, a morning of looking at fish, breathing-in a miasma of fish, even being splashed unexpectedly with flying bits of fish, does not an appetite to eat that very same fish make!

In stark contrast to the gleaming clean of Tokyo’s streets, buildings, parks, and trains, Tsukiji is mayhem. A mayhem organised by its own principles perhaps, but to the uninitiated, remaining outside the path of a speeding fork lift, or free from flying fish juice is a full-time concern. Smack in the middle of the most sanitised and corporate part of Tokyo, the market offers a reminder of how it’s the cogs that turn largely out of sight that ensure the otherwise well-oiled city may run smoothly.

Processing over 2,000 tonnes of seafood every day, Tsukiji is the largest wholesale fish market in the world. Under threat of relocation for years, it seems that these threats are about to become a reality. Next year the market is reportedly moving from its historical central Tokyo position to the distant outskirts of the city.

I managed to avoid being run over, and hastily snapped some pictures before fleeing for the shower...

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