Essay

The dangers of wasabi

By Kip Cates

We often develop stereotypes from our first contacts with people from foreign countries. I still remember my first impressions of people from Japan. I was a college student in Canada, majoring in French and German, and had just begun studying my third foreign language, Japanese.

Our sensei was from Japan. He was very formal, often bowed and always wore a suit and tie, even in summer when all of us Canadians were in T-shirts and shorts. Strange! The more I studied, the more eager I became to meet Japanese students my own age. Eventually, I made friends with a guy called Yasuhiro.

Getting to know "Yas" was a bit of a culture shock for me. The first strange thing was his footwear. Everywhere he went — on campus or downtown — he wore slippers! "I wonder if they have shoes in Japan?" I thought to myself. The second unusual thing was his driving. Every other week, it seemed, he got a ticket from the Vancouver police for speeding or for going through a red light!

One day, Yas invited me to a Japanese restaurant. It was my first time, so I was very excited. This was way before the sushi boom, when Japanese food was still quite exotic in Canada. Of course, I'd used chopsticks before. As a boy growing up in Vancouver, I'd often visited Chinatown with my family.

First, Yas introduced me to sake. I was surprised to learn that a small cup could pack such a strong kick. Next, it was time for my big challenge — sashimi. Raw fish! I was nervous because I'd been brought up to be suspicious of anything uncooked. I took a deep breath, closed my eyes and took a bite. Not bad!

By chance, I noticed some green paste on the plate. "What's that?" I asked. "Oh, that's wasabi," said Yas. "It's a kind of horse radish." "How do you eat it?" I asked him. Yas looked at me and smiled. "Just take a scoop and eat it straight." I was young, ignorant and naive, so I trusted him. I picked up a spoon, took a large bite of wasabi and swallowed it. Big mistake!

Immediately, my nose exploded. I fell to the floor gasping for air. My lungs seized up. I couldn't breathe! I seriously thought I was going to die. All the while, Yas sat there, laughing and enjoying his practical joke.

I learned a number of things that day. First: Sake is strong. Second: Raw fish tastes pretty good. Third: Never trust a Japanese boy who loves practical jokes. But I seriously wondered if all Japanese were wild drivers who wore slippers, drove through red lights and tried to kill their friends with practical jokes!

Shukan ST: JUNE 8, 2012

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