This blog entry could have gone several directions. One was to be a personal entry about how the one type of surprise I like is a chocolate surprise. The other was to be a  pet please entry about care packages, because it was the care package (left) that I received from a Japanese family friend that made my day–maybe my year–today.

But the heart of this entry involves the two ramen bowls you see in the foreground of the photo. Let me give you a little background:

In Japan, there are literally millions of ramen restaurants. I know that in America it’s thought of as cheap noodles that you eat when you can’t afford anything else, but in Japan it’s a delicious soup with tons of varieties. Most ramen places are roughly equivalent of a Chipotle here in in the States–you come in, eat your food, and leave. You don’t make a 2-hour meal out of it.

During my year abroad in Kyoto, several of my American and Japanese friends were really into ramen. The Japanese guys even put together a ramen tour that I never fully understood, but it amounted to eating some interesting ramen (like a bowl that is lit on fire before you eat it) along the way.

My American friends and I had two favorite ramen restaurants: Tonryuu and Ippudou. Tonryuu serves this thick, buttery broth that will make you yearn for a second bowl (a decision your stomach will regret). Ippudou has a milky broth that is augmented with your choice of red or white. We never quite figured out the difference, but our best guess is that red is spicier than white. Like most things in Japan, we just went along with it.

Both of these places were so popular that they had lines out the door every time we went. Every time. But it was worth the wait.

So a few weeks ago I mentioned on Facebook that I had purchased one of my favorite Japanese candies (chocolate crackers in the form of mushrooms called, of course, Chocorooms) on Amazon, and the post incited a discussion about other Japanese treats that I missed. My friend Tomomi (a former exchange student of my family’s) offered to send me a care package, and I asked if she could add a bowl of instant ramen. I mentioned Ippudou in case they sold their instant variety in Tokyo.

And lo and behold, I found two bowls among all the chocolate in the care package. I had just come from the grocery store with giant scallops in hand, so I quickly pan seared them and added them to the ramen. Doesn’t it look delicious?

There was a moment when I was eating the ramen that nearly brought tears to my eyes. It was a moment of pure bliss–not just from the deliciousness of the ramen, but also from the transportive nature of it. Here I was in my condo in St. Louis eating a bowl of ramen that, up until that point, I had only consumed halfway around the world in Kyoto 10 years ago. It was a moment of true connection through space and time.

If you’ve studied or traveled abroad, what food would transport you back to that country and that time if you ate an exact replica of it today?

]]> http://jameystegmaier.com/2012/02/the-joy-of-ramen/feed/ 0 http://jameystegmaier.com/2011/10/things-i-learned-about-myself-by-traveling-abroad-alone/ http://jameystegmaier.com/2011/10/things-i-learned-about-myself-by-traveling-abroad-alone/#comments Fri, 28 Oct 2011 05:49:23 +0000 Jamey Stegmaier http://jameystegmaier.com/?p=4740

Me in Howth. Just me.

This past week I’ve discussed my Ireland trip in detail, and I’d like to end the week with a reflection on what I learned from going on this trip solo.

I wanted to stretch myself on this trip, to step outside of my comfort zone. I’m a planner at heart, and thus I didn’t plan anything for this trip so I can be more spontaneous and go with the flow. I’m an introvert, so I wanted to push myself to meet new people when I have no default option. I’m terrible at initiating conversations with strangers, so I wanted to put myself in a foreign place to see how I’d respond in that area.

Here are the results from my little experiment. It’s filled with contradictions.

1. It’s really nice not having to worry about someone else’s plans or agendas.
2. It’s nice to have a copilot when traversing foreign soil. There’s certainly something to be said for figuring out things on your own (as I did when taking the bus to Howth), but I was able to enjoy Dublin in a different way when a new friend guided me through the city.
3. I like company when I eat at a restaurant. Those were the most difficult times in Ireland, and it doesn’t help that I’m a really slow eater. I didn’t feel self conscious about eating alone; moreso I was surrounded by people having a wonderful time at their tables, and it make me really aware that I didn’t have someone there to talk to.
4. No matter where I am, at this point in my life, I prefer a quiet beer at the bar over a crazy night at a club. On Friday night, I contemplated going down to the club in the hotel. There were tons of young people there. I almost did it to stick with my adventurous theme. But I kept coming back to the fact that I don’t enjoy clubs. Just because I’m abroad doesn’t mean I should force-feed myself things I don’t like in the name of “growing.” That was a good thing to realize on the first night.
5. I like to write in quiet places, not noisy cafes. It doesn’t have to be a secluded place; just a quiet place.
6. I really like not having a plan when I travel, but after I make a decision to go somewhere, I should research that decision a little bit before going so I don’t miss out on anything huge. For example, the taxi driver on the way to the airport at the end of the trip asked if I had gone to basically the best old pub ever when I was in Howth. I hadn’t, unfortunately, and it made me want to go back to go to that pub. But it was too late.
7. Smithwick’s is my favorite Irish beer.
8. It’s really nice to detach from e-mail. Now, I sent plenty of e-mails when I was at the hotel, but when I left the castle, I no longer had wi-fi. And it was incredibly freeing. The impulse to check e-mail went away because I simply didn’t have that option. I was able to walk and think and breathe without having the exciting prospect of a full inbox prodding at me.
9. Being in a foreign country doesn’t mean that I’m suddenly free to initiate conversations with total strangers. Even in Ireland, where people are notoriously friendly. If that’s an area in which I want to grow, I’m going to have to work on it myself–a new country isn’t going to do the work for me.

I spent the last 6 days just outside Dublin in Clontarf, Ireland. It was a solo trip, and I’ll delve into what I learned about myself tomorrow. But for now, here are 11 insights I have into traveling to and within Ireland, or really just traveling anywhere.

1. When you travel, especially in Ireland, it’s okay to make some friends that are purely there as temporary travel companions. I was befriended by this dog during a hike on the Hill of Howth on Tuesday, and although his company was unexpected, it was quite nice.
2. Plenty of Irish smoke, but smoking in restaurants and pubs in Ireland is illegal. I was quite happy to learn that.
3. Eat as much indigenous food as possible when you travel abroad. I had Irish stew, fish and chips, shepherd’s pie, corned beef and cabbage, and an assortment of those triangle sandwiches you can only find in the British Isles.
4. It’s okay to break some habits–good and bad–when you’re traveling. For example, if you normally work out five times a week, don’t spend 8 hours in the hotel gym when you travel unless you’re enhancing your travel experience (i.e., talking to people while you work out, doing a completely different kind of workout than in the States–you’ll find lots of very odd exercises in Japan). I rarely sleep in, and I have three meals at almost exactly the same time every day. I broke out of those habits in Ireland because they would have impeded my experience.
5. You need cash. Lots of cash. Don’t wait until you get to the airport, especially if you’re lazy like me. You will not be able to use your credit card nearly as much as you can in America.
6.  Know where the nearest grocery store is. Especially if you’re staying in the same place for most of the trip. Also, the grocery store is the cheapest place to stock up on the best gifts to bring back home to your friends and coworkers: chocolate.
7. The hotel can–and should–be so much more than the place you sleep every night. It’s really nice to have a home base that feels local to the country you’re in. Plus, if you’re in Ireland, you’re going to have some rainy days, so if you have an awesome hotel to explore, you have built-in entertainment.
8. Find the “experience” in everything you do. Two out of the five days of my trip were interrupted by heavy rain. Like, a month’s worth of rain in two days (this was not your average Irish rainfall). I’ll tell you what I did: I walked in it. I got soaked. But I walked in it. This is coming from someone who often doesn’t even drive in the rain, much less play sports in the rain. But I wanted the Irish experience, and so I walked. I honestly don’t think you can have an unsuccessful trip if you take that approach to travel.
9. Google Maps is awesome…but so is getting lost. Google Maps gives you the freedom to roam without the risk of sleeping on a park bench because you can’t find your hotel. But getting lost has its perks too–it forces you to meet people, to interact, to be vulnerable. I’d recommend a mix of both.
10. Remember that it’s a vacation! You should not walk away from Ireland (or any trip) feeling more stressed than when you left. We all relax in different ways, so find your way and make it happen. I know there are some people who feel like they need to see and do everything when they’re in a foreign country. And in a way, you’re right–don’t go all the way to Ireland and spend your time watching movies in your hotel room. Just set clear goals for yourself and leave a little room to unwind. And indulge a little bit! Instead of rushing through a meal so you can make the train to Waterford, savor those potatoes and top it off with dessert and an Irish coffee.
11. Buy an item of clothing. I messed up–I forgot to do this. But let me tell you, when I was in Oxford for 3 hours a few years ago, I stopped by a flea market and picked up a peacoat that I’ve worn ever since. People actually stop me and ask me where I got the coat. And I get to say, “Oh, in Oxford.” There’s a story behind the clothing you buy abroad. I wouldn’t say go on a shopping spree, but buy one or two things that you know you’ll wear. Spend a little money if necessary. You’ll remember those days in Ireland every time you wear that wool sweater.

Now on to the contest. I brought back some treats from Ireland–specifically, Butler’s chocolate, made right in the heart of Dublin. One of the bars is filled with whiskey, and the other is solid milk chocolate (see photo below; you can’t tell, but they’re pretty big chocolate bars). One lucky person will win the chocolate and my tour guide to Dublin, just in case all this talk of Ireland makes you think you’ll really go. I’ll cover shipping.

All you have to do is share this blog entry on Facebook and include @jameystegmaier in the message so I see that you’ve posted it (if you need to friend me on Facebook to properly do that, friend me here). If you include another friend in the message (i.e., “@maureensmith, you’d appreciate this guy’s thoughts on Ireland!”), I’ll give you two entries to the random drawing, which I’ll do this Sunday, October 30, at 11:00 am CST. You can only share it once. Oh, and I’ll throw in a third entry if you e-mail me (jamey.stegmaier@gmail.com) with any typos in the above post…I’ve been up since 6:30 am Dublin time and am starting to feel it.

Tonight is my last night in the Clontarf Castle Hotel, and I just wanted to share how incredible the experience has been. I cannot recommend this place enough. Here are a few reasons why:

1. It’s a castle! This hotel is not like any other. Its walls are those of a very old castle. And it’s so much more than just a novelty feature. Sure, the bedrooms just feel like ordinary hotel bedrooms. But there are a number of lounges that intertwine in and out of the castle parts of the building. This is particularly important for rainy Irish days when you don’t want to go out much. Hanging out in the castle parts of the building on those days is a vacation in itself.
2. Location. The hotel is in Clontarf, a little seaside town about 10 minutes away from Dublin and 20 minutes away from Howth, where I spent a lovely day today. Honestly, there’s not a ton to do in Clontarf, but it’s great if you’re like me and want to pretend you’re indigenous for a few days on vacation. Now, there are certain perks to staying in Dublin–considerably more choices of restaurants and pubs, as well as more tourist destinations–but Clontarf feels like an escape from the hubbub of real life, which has its benefits.
3. Affordable luxury. This is a four-star luxury hotel that you can stay at for under $100/night.
4. Amenities. I’ve spent most of my time in an awesome in-hotel bar called the Knight’s Bar, but there’s also a club and an expensive restaurant here. Just depends on what you’re looking for, but it’s nice to have all of them in the hotel. They seem to attract a number of locals, not just people staying at the hotel. And there have been a ton of weddings here during my stay. I may or may not be married to an Irish woman; I’m really not sure what happened in that ceremony.
5. Service. I need a separate section for this, because it’s been astoundingly good. See below.

1. Crunchy foods help keep your mind awake, as do spicy foods. I’d particularly suggest baby carrots since you typically don’t eat much healthy food on road trips.
2. I would pay double for fast drive-thru food on road trips if there were healthier, organic options available. I still like burgers and chicken tenders on the road, but I don’t want processed crap, and I’m willing to pay for it if it’s fast.
3. Idea: Drive-thru restaurants where you get your gas pumped while you wait in line for your food.
4. I unabashedly unbuckle and unzip my pants during long road trips. You don’t realize how constricting your pants are until you undo them. I also tend to wear my oldest jeans since they’ll end up serving napkin double-duty during the drive.
5. I’ve discovered the key to taking fewer bathroom breaks is to take longer bathroom breaks. Don’t rush them. Pee, then simmer down for a 15 seconds, and then pee again. It’s almost as if you have two separate bladder–the first is immediate relief, and the other is long-term storage. Empty both of them.
6. The hands-down scariest vehicle to see on the road is a stormchaser van.
7. My number one new tip is that you should get some stand-up comedy CDs for the ride. They’ll jolt you awake and keep you that way for a full hour. My favorite from my recent trip was Aziz Ansari (you can borrow mine if you know me). Buy them used on Amazon. I tried to find a Netflix for comedy CDs, but there is no such thing. You could make tens of dollars if you started one of your own!

What tips would you add to this list?

Picture your ideal vacation. Say you get a week off work and have a $1,500 budget. Where do you go? What do you do?

Here’s what I’d do: I’d fly to a foreign land, find a remote town and settle in for the week at a cozy inn. I’d read and write and get drunk with the locals. I’d eat good food–lots of good food. I’d flirt with girls with cute accents. I’d take walks and sleep in. And if there’s something famous in the area, I’d check it out but not obsess over it.

That’s it.

How do I know this? A few years ago I went to Wales because I was working on a novel about Frank Lloyd Wright. We drove all across Wales for three days and then spent three days walking all across London. It was a great trip.

However, two days into the trip, we stopped at a town called Hay-on-Wye. It has the highest number of bookstores per capita of anywhere in the world–it’s a tiny town, and I think they have about 30 bookstores.

We spent the night there, perused the bookstores (I bought a 150-year-old hollow book. Yes, be jealous), and then jetted off to see more of Wales.

I wish we had stayed. I would have been perfectly happy if we had stayed.

I understand that many people have very different ideal vacations. Some people want to run around and see everything. Their trip isn’t complete without 100 photos of them standing in front of churches and monuments and sculptures. Others want to sleep in hostels and meet tons of other travelers. And others want to party–they want to dance in Prague until the sunrise puts them to bed.

These are all good things to know about someone you’re going to travel with. So…how do you travel? Does it match how your significant other likes to travel?

Every time I drive, I learn something new. Here’s what I learned this time around:

1. Dragon Dictation is the best. I have an app on my iPhone that converts speech to text. When I drive, my mind wanders to a million different ideas, so having a way to “write” those ideas so I don’t lose them is crucial to my sanity.
2. I like the smell of skunk. At least, I’m intrigued by it. I wouldn’t seek it out, but whenever it hits me on the drive, I think, “Hey, that’s interesting.”
3. Fish and chips is a bad choice. I stopped in Louisville for the greatest fish and chips in the world at the Irish Rover. However, I learned rather quickly that fish and chips is not a good driving food. I had grease all over myself within about two seconds.
4. Tolls suck. West Virginia and Virginia are peppered with tolls. St. Louis is not. I’d much rather pay for roads through my taxes than having to pull over and hand someone money every few miles. (Sidenote: Wouldn’t tolls be so much better if you could get something in return, like a candy bar or a frappocino? Tolls should partner with Starbucks.)
5. There’s no shame in unbuckling your pants. This is akin to taking off your shoes on the plane. You don’t realize how uncomfortable you were until you just do it. I might start to do this on shorter drives too. Seriously, try it.
6. Feel free to follow me. Isn’t it nice when someone follows you at a safe distance on the highway at the exact same speed that you’re driving? It’s like finding your highway soulmate.
7. Taking naps on long drives is okay, but make sure to pull over before you do so. I had never taken a nap on a long drive before, but maybe I’m getting old, because I had to on this drive. I was so groggy both ways until I finally succumbed and pulled over for a nap at a rest stop. A 30-minute power nap makes a huge difference. 20 percent of all car accidents are related to tired drivers, so do yourself a favor and take a nap. Eating loud foods like carrots can also help snap you awake after the nap.
8. Soon our cars will drive themselves on the highway. Our cars already have this miraculous thing called cruise control. Some cars can park themselves now, and others can detect animals, people, or obstructions on the road ahead. And Google maps their Google Earth software with autonomous cars. I predict that we’ll start to see cars that drive themselves on the highway as soon as 2015, and the technology will be widespread by 2020. It’ll be longer before cars can drive themselves in complex urban environments, but on a straight stretch of road for miles on end? Your car can take care of that.

Also, head over to Blank Slate Press to check out the pre-order form for our first novel.

Here's Biddy about three minutes after getting home.

]]> http://jameystegmaier.com/2011/01/things-i-learned-on-the-drive/feed/ 25 http://jameystegmaier.com/2010/04/some-thoughts-about-louisville/ http://jameystegmaier.com/2010/04/some-thoughts-about-louisville/#comments Mon, 26 Apr 2010 01:40:17 +0000 Jamey Stegmaier http://jameystegmaier.com/?p=2312 For a variety of reasons, I’ve been to Louisville a number of times over the last year and a half. I wrote this entry on last year’s Kentucky Derby, along with this entry on a Ray Lamontagne concert.

I paid Louisville another visit on Thursday and Friday, this time for another concert. I have a few thoughts I want to share about the trip:

1. Phoenix. Phoenix is the band I went to Louisville to see. They played at The Palace, an awesome venue (especially if you have second-row seats). The band was awesome, as was evident by the pulsating crowd. When the band played Rome, I think it may have been the best song I’ve ever experienced at a concert. The band had these Tron-themed lights everywhere, and the song just builds and builds, it has a great beat, and everyone in the crowd had their arms in the air. It was incredible. Also, at the end of the concert, the lead singer crowdsurfed for a few minutes. I watched him surf right on by me. You can listen to Rome here:
Rome – Phoenix
2. Irish Rover. The Irish Rover restaurant in Louisville serves, hands down, the best fish and chips anywhere. Crispy on the outside, flaky and fishy on the inside. I go here every time I visit Louisville. Here’s my plate:
3. Mac and Cheese. Confession: I’ve never eaten mac and cheese. Never ever. I never liked the idea as a kid, and the goopy fake cheese on Kraft boxes don’t appeal to me as an adult. If I want cheese and noodles, I want marinara sauce in between the two. However, as of Friday, I have eaten mac and cheese exactly once. A restaurant called Avalon served it just as most of you remember it from your childhoods: with chunks of lobster, a truffle reduction sauce, and crispy potato fingerlings on top. It’s the only way I eat my mac and cheese.
4. Bed & Breakfast: I’ve become a big fan of bed and breakfasts. They’re just so much nicer than hotels, more accommodating (better breakfasts, free drinks and snacks instead of the $5 Cokes you can get from those pressure-sensitive trays in most hotel rooms), and the prices are just about the same. I definitely enjoyed my stay at the B&B where I stayed in Louisville, but I’m not going to mention the name of the place because of a key lost opportunity. My friend and I were the only people to stay at this B&B on Thursday night, and we had the smallest room in the place. I think the B&B owners should have, hands down, upgraded us to a bigger room. This would have significantly improved our impression of the place and would have given us a story to share with others at no additional cost to the B&B. Do I expect to be upgraded? Not at all. But I think it’s one of the easiest things a business like a B&B can do to create a special memory and a story.

Overall, Louisville was great. If you’re planning on going to the Derby this weekend, make sure you check out my post first. You can bet on the Derby online here.

Prior to last year, I was horrible at long-distance driving. I’d get stiff, bored, and tired after about 2 hours in my Camry. But last year I had a long-distance relationship that resulted in several 8-hour trips to West Virginia. I learned to incorporate books on tape and crunchy snacks for the road, and it wasn’t too bad at all.

Today I drove from my hometown of Chesterfield, Virginia all the way to St. Louis. With my cat. A 12-hour drive. Although the trip was mostly pleasant, I found myself wanting a few modifications for my car to become the ultimate long-distance vehicle:

• A lift-up flap in the center of the driver’s seat that opens into a built-in, removable urinal. Gross? Kind of. But it goes really well with…
• An extra gas tank. It took two and a half tanks for my Camry to get from Chesterfield to St. Louis. I could reduce the number of stops to one with a combination of the urinal and the extra tank.
• Massage chair: My back and neck get sore driving that long, and without volunteers for massages along every possible route, a massage chair would suffice.
• Electric shocks: I’m not all that enthused about this idea, but if this were built into the seat, it would help a weary driver stay awake.
• Temperature-regulated center console for food and drinks.
• Bluetooth so I don’t have to keep plugging in my iPhone for “get pumped” music (my song of choice for getting the blood moving on this drive was Flo Rida’s “Right Round”–the song that played during slideshow at the end of The Hangover)
• Some place/perch that’s more appealing to a cat than the interior of his litter box or between my feet.

How would you pimp your ride for distance driving?