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| Yes, thats a tuna-head. And yes, its the size of a beach ball. Imagine how big that tuna was..... |
Chris and I both agreed that the Tsukijii Central Fish Market was BY FAR the best thing we experienced during our stay in Tokyo. There simply are no words to accurately describe how amazing this place was. It was amazing, chaotic, invigorating, fascinating, exciting and we both almost got killed about a hundred times. I have never been so excited to see a hundred Japanese men running at me with 2 ft. long samurai-like knives. The funniest thing was how 'weird' Chris and I thought our local grocery stores were for displaying smelt, octopus, salmon roe and other disgusting seafood throughout its seafood department. After our experience at Tsukiji Fish Market, I didn't even think twice when I passed the tub full of fish intestines at our local grocery store this evening. Maybe we've been in Japan too long......
The Tsukiji Fish Market is the world's largest fish market. Each day over 2000 tons of fish and seafood (worth over $18.5 million USD) are sold within the market. Thats over 550,000 tons and $5 billion USD sold annually. Tokyo, and its surrounding areas, get's over 90% of the seafood within the Tsukiji Market. Each morning an auction takes place where the fisherman sell their catch to wholesalers who call the market their home. This auction usually takes place well before 6 a.m. Fun Fact: In 2009, a single 128kg tuna from northern Japan was sold for $96,300USD. (Thats over $750 per kilo!!!!) The record for the most expensive fish sold at the auction was in 2001. A tuna was sold for a record $200,000USD.
If it lives in the sea, it's probably for sale in this market, where acres and acres of fish and fish products are sold each day within a lively, almost chaotic atmosphere. Each vendor is allotted its own area and a quick scan of the room will reveal mountains of octopus, rows of giant tuna and endless varieties of shellfish and tank upon tank of live fish.
Tourists are welcome to visit the Outer Market, however, lately tourists are discouraged from visiting the actual wholesale market because they have become a disruption to the business taking place within the market. The workers of the market are moving a thousand miles a minute. I was acting like a typical tourist, trying to take as many pictures as I could, and I almost got killed numerous times. My brand new suede Ugg boots miraculously survived without disaster.....I wish I could say the same about the scarf tied around my purse. I don't even want to think about how many times it was dipped into octopus guts, tuna carcasses, shrimp tanks and numerous other less than appealing locales.
Taka (Our Personal Interpretor) has a friend who is a Master-Sushi Chef in Tokyo. He underwent a four hour bus trip to escort us into the wholesale portion of the market. He has a great relationship with a local man who runs one of the most prestigious tuna shops within the market. This experience was absolutely unbelievable. If Chris and I were to visit the market alone, we NEVER would have been able to experience the market to its fullest. First of all, the market is crazy and dangerous. Upon entering the market, one would think they were entering an abandoned warehouse district that houses illegal activity. If we still felt adventurous enough to enter we would have been thwarted away by the hundreds of busy workers who rode around on motorized carts with reckless abandon. The aisles were no wider than 3 feet and one had to try their best to stay out the workers way....if not, you were pushed into the nearest fish tub. They are there to do business and they have NO TIME for being courteous to the tourists. The owner of the tuna shop told us that most people will work each day from 2 a.m. to 10 a.m. By 8 a.m. every worker is already cleaning up for the day and getting ready for the next days catch.
The things we saw were UNBELIEVABLE!!!!! We saw whole tuna that were larger than most dolphins. We saw crab legs thicker than my forearms. We saw garbage bins FULL of beach ball sized tuna heads. There were bins and bins of fish parts that I coudn't even identify, much less start to think about why people would eat it. We must have seen two million eel and fourteen million shrimp. Some of the prawns we saw were larger than lobsters found in the U.S.
I could sit here all day and try to explain everything we saw....but I think it may be easier to depict through pictures. In attempt to keep this post 'somewhat' short I will highlight some of our favorites. To see the rest, please visit our blog where all of our pictures will be posted. I should warn you....if you want to view all of the pictures: make a pot of coffee, get a snack and be prepared for it to take a while. There are ALOT!!!!!
