Returning to Tokyo after long service in the provinces, new subway lines can make you feel like Urashima Taro. Apart from Toei Asakusa Line branches (Nihonbashi–Tokyo–Higashi-Ginza), new Tokyo Metro lines seem to have paused—but unfamiliar routes still bring surprises. A trip to Meguro recently showed how close it is to central Tokyo. From Palaceside Building in Takebashi, walk five minutes to Jimbocho on the Toei Mita Line, then twenty minutes on a through Tokyu train.
Meguro is famous for the rakugo story "Meguro no Sanma" and holds a "Sanma Festival" around the station each September. Last year sanma arrived from Kesennuma, Miyagi, and Miyako, Iwate—hit by the earthquake—widely covered in newspapers and TV. Nearby "Yumesake (Monsieur) SanMA" uses Kesennuma seafood; direct shipment from the area resumed late last year. Sanma is not in season now, but the other night I enjoyed fresh flounder sashimi. The photo shows "oyster and yellowtail seafood mizore nabe." Can you spot the shrimp and oysters?