This is an authorized translation in English of a post in French by @japon: Tsukiji, le plus grand marché au poissons du monde
Remember that the person that speaks here is NOT me, Vincent Celier (@vcelier), but @japon, a French guy.
Tsukiji, the largest fish market in the world
It was my third day in Tokyo, and as usual I had a hard time sleeping. In Japan the sun rises very early, and even in October at 6 o'clock it is broad daylight. Being very sensitive to light, I wake up immediately. At 7 am, here I am in the streets of Tokyo looking for a coffee shop to start the day. It's getting hot, I decide to go to the Tsukiji fish market.
In the heart of Chūō District, Tsukiji is easily accessible via several subway lines. It is then a real dive in the heart of an extraordinary place, a little out of time, which sees passing more than 2,000 tons of fish per day.
As I get closer, the fish smells leave no doubt. Tsukiji is first a large food market that took possession of the streets. There are fish and more generally products related to the sea, but also vegetables, a little meat, cooking utensils, knives, etc...
Some products seem to me completely unknown, and I like to taste here and there. I engage the conversation with a young Japanese couple, asking them if what they ate was good. Astonished to see a stranger speak their language, they ask me where I come from. "Ah, France, it's great!" I realized that the Japanese had a real fascination for France. We chat a little, they come from Hokkaido (the big island in the north of Japan) and are traveling for a few days in Tokyo.
I walk in the streets, there are vendors but also some food to take away: octopus, skewers, donuts ... Flagrances of fish fill the air, sometimes it is necessary to have the stomach well hooked to support that at 9 o'clock in the morning. But no worry, if there is a place to eat fresh fish, it is in Tsukiji. I order some sushi with fat tuna. They prepare it for me on the spot, I taste, and ... why the rice is almost lukewarm? In fact, why in France are we served sushi with cold rice when it cuts all the taste? Rice at room temperature highlights the subtle taste of the fish.
I approach the main building that actually hosts the market. Reserved for professionals, it is now open to the public at 10AM. It may seem frustrating, but Tsukiji is a real anthill. Hundreds of people are bustling around, moving on small machines, loading and unloading pounds of fish or other crustaceans. It would be difficult for these professionals to do their job properly amidst hordes of tourists.
I inquire at the reception of the market, the entrance for the visitors is just next to the sanctuary... Finally there are so many sanctuaries in Japan that it did not surprise me that there is one at the entrance to the fish market. I stop at the purifying pool, use the Hishaku to purify my hands and mouth, then ring the bell, tap my hands to invoke the deity.
Let's go, we can finally go inside the market. But this is done under high surveillance. Security guards guide us to certain places. A little apart, the last transactions between professionals end. The market is coming to an end, the stalls are almost empty. The place is emptied of its substance but remains nonetheless interesting.
Tsukiji is a gigantic shed; inside there is a maze of alleys and hundreds of traders. Fish of different sizes, shapes and colors. Crustaceans that are completely unknown to me. I turn around and see a man pulling a big bluefin tuna on a wagon. All this may seem completely disorganized, a little old-fashioned but it's also what makes the charm of the place. We could easily get lost in the middle of the small alleys.
Hundreds of tourists roam the place quickly, and many leave quickly, happy to have made some pictures of the place to show on social networks. Gradually the market is changing. Fewer tourists, more Japanese coming to buy fish for the meal of the day.
The market of Tsukiji is a must-see place in Tokyo, as it shows us different aspects of Japanese life. On the horizon of the 2020 Olympics, the market should be moved a few kilometers. A more modern place, with stricter hygienic conditions, but it is the whole soul of Tsukiji that will finally disappear. What makes all the charm of the place are these old wooden stalls, these little tiny desks where you pay what you just bought, the pale light and especially those moments of life that we attend.
-- @japon
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