In Japan, people eat whale.
Forget all that creepy stuff you saw in "The Cove", I don't know anything about that. What I do know is that people here eat whale, and so do I. Aside from being a the color of a black cherry (which is weird), it tastes a bit like red-meat. I actually like it, and since Wada-machi (the town next to where I used to live) is one of 4 or 5 port towns in the country where whaling is allowed, I used to eat whale when it was served for lunch at school.
Now before you freak out and write angry comments about how whaling is terrible and evil, let me give you a few facts:
Fishers in Wada are only allowed to fish for a certain species of whale (which is not endangered although it oddly looks like a giant dolphin) and are only allowed to fish a certain number of whales and only during a designated period each year. They make a public announcement after every whale they catch so that the following morning (at the crack of dawn, I might add) people can come and watch the whale being butchered. It's all very out in the open, so it seems pretty legit.
So, if you feel bad for the poor, cute whales, I implore you to feel bad for the poor, cute cows, pigs, and chickens, etc. that we eat every day. Besides, at least the whales get to roam free until they end up on our tables, so the whales are actually better off, if you think about it.
If you're an angry vegetarian....well, then, touché.
At any rate, I had the chance to witness this rare spectacle, so I dragged myself out of bed at 3:30am and headed to the port in Wada.
That is the dolphin-whale. The port makes the butchering public to educate observers about where their food comes from, and what it takes to get food onto their plates. I think it's a good idea, when you think about it like that. If you look closely, you can see children among the people watching.
The fishermen start by cutting the thick, fatty skin from the sides...
Then they use a hook and chain attached to a motor to pull off a big strip of skin from the middle.
In the back there are a group of men cutting the fatty skin and meat into big chunks. Apparently the fat, the meat, and even the intestines are ultimately used.
Sorry about the blurriness...I don't have a very nice camera.
After that, the guys butchering the whale use these knife-on-a-pole contraptions to cut out chunks of meat and toss them towards the men in the back. I was surprised by how jiggly-soft the meat looked despite being rather firm and meaty once cooked.
By then things were getting a little stinky, and I was ready to get home and get ready for work. Perhaps because I used to watch surgeries on The Learning Channel as a child, none of what I saw was especially disturbing to me. In fact, I am glad that I went, because even though I love love love meat, in our modern society it's always good to have some perspective on where our food comes from and the animals who give their lives for us.
If you're ever in the area in the summer, ask around and I'm sure one of the friendly locals can help you find out when the next opportunity will come about.
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