Standing Into Danger

Friday, February 14, 2025

Slurp Your Noodles!

On Tuesday Terry and I went to one of our favorite places to eat in Waikiki,

the very popular Marugame Udon.

People flock to it because the food is quickly prepared, satisfying, and affordable.

Marugame Udon specializes in Sanuki udon, a thick chewy wheat noodle

which originated in the Kagawa Prefecture in southern Japan hundreds of years ago.

People can watch cooks prepare hand-crafted udon bowls and tempura in an open kitchen.

Watching Cooks Prepare Dishes

Waikiki, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

February 12, 2025

Visitors and kamaaina (residents) enjoy dining here, and

the lines to get in are often long in the late afternoon and evening.

Fortunately, the line moves quickly.

A Line Outside Marugame Udon

2310 Kuhio Ave., Ste 124

Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

February 13, 2025

Customers waiting in line outside can watch people enjoying their noodles inside.

Marugame Udon

Waikiki

February 12, 2025

Noodles are a staple food long enjoyed throughout Asia,

and countries have developed their own versions of this popular food.

Where and when the first noodles were made is uncertain,

but research suggests they originated in Persia, perhaps 4000 years ago.

Noodles are made from an unleavened dough consisting of flour, water, and salt.

The flour can come from buckwheat, root vegetables,

mung bean starches, tapioca, rice, and seaweed.

The method for making the noodles varies too.

They can be rolled, flung, hand-cut, spun, extruded, or shaved from a block.

Most end up in a pot of boiling water to cook, but they can also be pan-fried or deep-fried.

Once cooked, noodles can be used hot or cold

in a variety of dishes limited only by your imagination. Source

Udon noodles are crafted from wheat flour, salt, and water.

Udon Noodles Boiling in Margame Udon, Waikiki

February 12, 2025

Terry and I ordered Marugame Udon's most popular udon dish, Nikutama Udon.

We watched as our udon noodles were extruded, boiled, and dished up with

sweet beef, scallions, and tempura flakes in a savory, umami-flavored kake-dashi broth.

I chose to add a lightly-poached onsen egg.

And I mean lightly poached!

The cook cracks open an eggshell, drops the raw egg in the hot broth in your bowl,

and the egg poaches while you pay and reach your table.

Onsen means "hot spring egg," and its soft whites and runny yolk were yummy!

A cook prepares the udon noodle dough which requires machine kneading, resting in a fridge, and flattening.

Traditional dough was once kneaded by foot!

Another cook feeds the flattened dough through a machine that extrudes evenly-sized noodles.

Then he collects the noodles for boiling.

Udon Noodles Almost Finished Boiling

We move through the cafeteria style line as our noodles boil.

There's lots to watch while we move through the line in this busy, efficient kitchen.

The cook waits until the noodles are perfectly cooked, then he removes the noodles,

rinses them, and rolls them into individual portions.

Our noodles are among those in the yellow container.

Other cooks assemble each bowl according to the guest's wishes.

The cook reaches for sweet beef to add to my bowl.

There are many types of tempura to chose from, and I go for the delectable tempura shrimp.

Nikutama Udon Perfection

I was so busy slurping my noodles that I forgot to get pictures of Terry and me.

In Japan and China slurping your noodles is considered a compliment to the chef.

Whether I wanted to slurp or not, it was challenging to figure out

how to get the long hot noodles into my mouth with chopsticks.

So perhaps it's just as well I forgot to take pictures.

Udon noodles in a flavorful broth are comforting and easy to digest.

When I was really sick from Graves Disease and high doses of Prednisone in 2022,

Terry ran to Marugame Udon often and brought back noodles and broth for me.

I'd curl up under a blanket on the couch and slurp the noodles.

Then, invigorated, I'd go out and enjoy what I could in Waikiki.

So, for sure, I will return to Marugame Udon more than once while we're here!

I'll be slurping those noodles along with other happy people!

I'm linking to Rain's Thursday Art and Dinner Date, Tom's Aloha Friday, and Nicole's Friday Face Off.

For Rain: Romantic Dinner ~ Terry and I had many romantic dinners on our cruise across the South Pacific to Australia in 2023.

Terry and I at Dinner on the Sea

Somewhere in the South Pacific

October 19, 2023

For Tom: Aloha ~ The staff at the Hideout has worked together for years, so it was an "ohana" or family celebration filled with love.

Aloha Birthday Celebration for Taylor

The Hideout at the Laylow

Oʻahu⁩, ⁨Honolulu⁩, ⁨Hawaiʻi⁩, ⁨United States⁩

February 11, 2025

For Nicole: Family Faces! ~ This is the newest family in residence at the International Market Place. The Mallard mother and ducks are swimming in a water feature in the cultural court in the large, busy shopping mall. The cultural court celebrates the abundance of water in the ahupua or district and honors the relationship between the āina (land) and kānaka (man). āpuakēhau mauka or the Āpuakēhau Stream once flowed from mauka (toward the mountain) to makai (toward the ocean). Many delighted people stopped to look at the ducks who were not the least bit concerned.

Family Faces

The International Market Place

Oʻahu⁩, ⁨Honolulu⁩, ⁨Hawaiʻi⁩, ⁨United States⁩

February 12, 2025

Happy Valentine's Day!

See you next time! ❤️🌺🍀

Till next time ~

Fundy Blue

Standing Into Danger https://selkiegrey4.blogspot.com

My next post will be

Friday, February 21st. 🤞

On the Bay of Fundy
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

Friday, February 7, 2025

Bring on the Lions and the Year of the Snake!

I am delighted to be back at the Royal Kuhio again this year

and to have had the privilege of welcoming the Year of the Snake

with the Wah Ngai Lion Dance Association on February 1st.

The lion dancers welcomed in the Chinese Lunar New Year

by performing a traditional lion dance for residents and visitors in the lobby.

Bring on the Lions!

Royal Kuhio

Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

February 1, 2025

The Wah Ngai Lion Dance Association

is a non-profit organization

formed in Honolulu in 2005.

All members are volunteers made up of

students and working professionals.

Website

Everyone should see a lion dance at least once in their lives.

Yes, it's visually exciting and throbs to the beating of drums,

the clashing of cymbals, and the singing of the gong.

But a lion dance is much more than vibrant sights and sounds.

It's a traditional Asian art form that dates back 5000 years to its origin in China. Source

Dancing Lions

Royal Kuhio

February 1, 2025

The lion dance tells a story and brings fortune and good luck to the audience.

Two people mimic the movements of a lion, one in the front and one in the back.

The dancer at the front leads the lion, setting the direction, pace, and footwork,

and the movements of the head, ears, and mouth.

The dancer at the back must follow the steps of the head dancer

and the beat of the music while bent over.

Lion dances are most popular during the Lunar New Year celebrations,

but they are also performed at community events, business openings, weddings, school festivals and other events. Source

Lions Delighting the Audience

Royal Kuhio

February 1, 2025

Anticipation grew as Royal Kuhio employees set the stage for the dance,

carefully suspending a Chinese cabbage in the entrance to the lobby.

The purpose of this curious act was revealed at the end of the dance.

A red packet or hong bao (Mandarin) or lai-see (Cantonese)

containing a gift of money was attached to the cabbage.

Other red packets were hung by the doors in the lobby area.

These packets are traditionally presented on many occasions in China

and other countries with sizable ethnic Chinese populations.

They symbolize good fortune and wealth.

They are also given to lion dance performers for their service. Source

People quickly filled the lobby area in anticipation of the dance,

and excitement and laughter increased as the members of the

The Wah Ngai Lion Dance Association arrived.

Pono Ka'ahanui, the resident manager, has worked to increase cultural events at the Royal Kuhio.

I love to participate in his traditional hula class every Sunday.

Everyone enjoyed the dancing lions as they pranced around displaying their skills.

Accompanying the lion dancers were musicians playing the drum, cymbals, and the gong.

The drum represents the heartbeat of the lion,

and the cymbals and gong represent its thoughts.

The exciting music is loud and intense to drive away ghosts and evil spirits.

One of the Lions Collects a Red Packet

And Another Red Packet

There are two different styles of Chinese dancing lions: Southern and Northern.

The more acrobatic Northern Dance features martial arts moves, kicks, leaps and climbing,

and the lions have a shaggier, more realistic appearance.

The Southern Dance mimics lion behavior

with lots of blinking, licking, scratching, and shaking.

The lions have oversized, stylized, dragon-like heads

and the lead dancers can manipulate their mouth, eyes, and ears.

The colors of the lions represent different qualities:

red for courage, green for friendship, and yellow for liveliness.

Northern Lion Dance

Flickr ~ Choo Yut Sing ~ License

Southern Lion Dance

One of the great things about the lion dance performance in the Royal Kuhio

is that everyone could be close to the lions and see their movements easily.

A Parting Shot

And that Chinese cabbage?

It's a famous lion dance routine known as choi chang or getting the greens.

A head of lettuce containing a red packet with money

is hung high in a doorway or outside a building.

The lion carefully approaches the suspended lettuce, often performing a difficult feat

such as the front dancer standing on the shoulders of the back one.

The lion grabs the lettuce, eats it, and spits it out spreading good luck and prosperity. Source

People often take a piece for good fortune and luck during the coming year. Source

You know I got a piece of lettuce!

All too soon the Wah Ngai Lion Dance Association members were packing up,

moving on to another celebration of the Year of the Snake.

The departure of this magical cultural group left quiet in its wake.

Back in our condo, I wrapped my cabbage piece carefully and tucked it in my purse

next to my father-in-law's St. Christopher's Medal (the patron saint of travelers).

With luck and good fortune, I'll be back to the Royal Kuhio next year

to see the Wah Ngai Lion Dance Association welcome the Year of the Horse!

I'm linking to Rain's Thursday Art and Dinner Date, Tom's Aloha Friday, and Nicole's Friday Face Off.

See you next time! Aloha! ❤️🌺🍀

Till next time ~

Fundy Blue

Standing Into Danger https://selkiegrey4.blogspot.com

My next post will be

Friday, February14th. 🤞

Books Read in 2024

"5 Languages of Love: The Secret to Love That Lasts" by Gary Chapman
"At Home in the World" by Joyce Maynard
"Cockroaches" by Jo Nesbo
"Death's End" by Cixin Liu
"Eruption" by Michael Crichton and James Patterson
"In Darkness" by L. Diane Wolfe
"In My Time of Dying" by Sebastian Junger
"Nothing to Fear" by Julie McFadden, RN
"The Bat" by Jo Nesbo
"The Dark Forest" by Cixin Liu
"The Frozen River" by Ariel Lawhon
"The Last to Vanish" by Megan Miranda
"The Montauk Monster" by Hunter Shea
"The Road to Character" by David Brooks
"The Song of Achilles" by Madeline Miller
"The Twist of a Knife" by Anthony Horowitz
"The Uninhabital Earth: Life After Warming" by David Wallace-Wells
"The Women" by Kristin Hannah
"Where the Crawdads Sing" by Delia Owens
"Writing the Shadow" by Joanna Penn

Pages

Friday, February 14, 2025

Slurp Your Noodles!

Friday, February 7, 2025

Bring on the Lions and the Year of the Snake!