Japan Navigator

Talking about fish, a few weeks ago I had the chance to visit Tokyo’s Tsukiji market again. It was a cold grey morning and there were few tourists, but the market was bustling as usual. I was early enough to catch some of the action at the tuna auction. Is tuna running out? You would not believe it if you see at the considerable numbers of the huge fishes still daily making their way through Tsukiji.

Tuna have become popular since the Japanese became meat eaters in the 20th century. In the 19th century, tuna was used as cat food, it was considered unfit for human consumption because it was too fat and oily. But after you have become used to red steak… Now we probably have to start consuming something else on our sushi again - fish come and fish go.

The best initiation to Tsukiji is John Bester’s Tsukiji, The Fish Market at the Center of the World (California, 2004), a jewel of a book that not only gives a detailed sociological account of the workings of the fish market, a combination of (free) marketplace and binding customs that inhibit total competition (much like Japans economy at large), but also is unique as being the only ethnographical study incorporating a tourist guide.

Here they lie, the great proud fish, as they swam in life - in shoals - so now their frozen bodies rest in rows. It reminded me perversily of a military graveyard.

Here the fish is being sawed in pieces, a heavy job. After head and tail have been removed the body is sawn vertically into two equal pieces…

…which are then further hacked into smaller parts by this sword-like knife. Don’t pick a quarrel in Tsukiji.

The mighty head, in the meantime, mourns its loss of body, sea and freedom…

If you rather want to see tuna alive and kicking, visit the Tokyo Sea Life Park, where they swim around in a huge tank built around a theater.