Have you ever had the experience of something becoming bigger and bigger because of a casual remark? This time, we will be reporting on an incident that occurred during the summer vacation when staff were welcome.
1. New Translation of The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter
Have you all heard of The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter? It's a story about an old man who goes to cut bamboo and finds a girl inside a bamboo stalk, and brings her back with him. This time, the main character is not the girl, but the bamboo itself.
2. It all started with a casual remark
What do you feel like doing in the summer? My best friend Yaba-chan and I used to talk about wanting to try nagashi somen (flowing noodles). It's a desire that flickers through everyone's mind at least once in the summer. Nowadays, you can find plastic nagashi somen machines at hardware stores, and when I was in high school, a classmate brought a nagashi somen machine that rotates noodles around in the same place instead of a packed lunch, so I thought of nagashi somen as a relatively easy way to do it. Looking back, I'd forgotten what real nagashi somen was, and before I knew it, I'd become accustomed to the modern version.
3. Let's have Nagashi Somen
As I was standing there, a rather large truck appeared in front of me, saying that they were going to make Nagashi Somen. Our Nagashi Somen started with the Tale of the Bamboo Cutter.
4. The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter
Is there anyone who starts by cutting bamboo to make Nagashi Somen noodles? I thought it was a bit strange, but I followed the truck.
5. Bamboo grove
We arrived at a magnificent bamboo grove. Bamboo forests are so cool. The men cutting the bamboo were also very pleasant and nice. We chose bamboo that was as thick as possible so that the somen noodles would flow smoothly.
6. Sticking out
It's sticking out from the truck. I was worried about whether it would violate the Road Traffic Act or something, but I wasn't caught, so I guess it was okay.
7. The Tale of Splitting Bamboo
Next, we split the bamboo in half. It seems quite difficult to split it neatly down the middle. Once a crack is made, it splits straight down the middle, which was fascinating. It's not finished once it's split in half. It's not yet ready to be used as a bamboo vessel to pour somen noodles into. We hit the nodes inside with a hammer to remove them. The remaining nodes are then neatly shaved to remove any unevenness. All of these steps are necessary to allow the somen noodles to flow smoothly.
So far, we have been working to be considerate to the somen noodles, but to ensure the safety of the people who will be eating the somen noodles, we need to chamfer the edges of the bamboo. This is the process of rounding the edges so that people do not get injured by splinters.
After all this, we finally made it to the Nagashi Somen venue. Eating somen is hard work.
8. The Bamboo Grinding Story
It's not ready to eat yet. Remove the cuticle-like substance stuck to the inside of the bamboo with a scrubbing brush.
9. The Tale of Bamboo
Now that we've come this far, we can finally assemble the bamboo. The legs that support it are also made of bamboo. Mr. K, who helped us with the One Day Tale of the Bamboo Cutter, assembled it beautifully. It's a masterpiece that extends onto the sidewalk.
10. The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter Completed
It was a lot of work to get to this point. Thanks to the help of many people, I was finally able to complete the Nagashi Somen... I was so satisfied and fulfilled after making it that my desire to eat somen had faded. I've included some photos below. It was delicious.
What did you think of the magnificent Tale of the Bamboo Cutter? It made me want to be more careful about what I say every day. The summer heat is still lingering, but I hope you all enjoy the rest of your summer! Bye.