Tōshijima's Sea Harvest

Seaweed, whitebait, and various other fish

Cathy Cawood Jun 25, 2015 - 1 min read

<p>Small boats bring wakame seaweed to the port  </p>

<p>The wakame is plunged into boiling water to stabilize it</p>

<p>Near the port many trays are set up for drying shirasu</p>

<p>Workers turning tiny fish (shirasu) on trays so that they dry evenly</p>

<p>The fish on the left have been drying longer than those on the right</p>

<p>Fishing boat carrying octopus pots</p>

<p>Checking the nets for holes as they dry in the sun</p>

<p>The big wheel on this truck is used to pull up large nets</p>

<p>Scale with big hook for weighing larger fish</p>

<p>Fish market worker transferring small sharks from a water-filled tank to a basket</p>

<p>I wonder what this fish is called?</p>

<p>Buyers inspect the catch at the fish market before the bidding starts</p>

<p>For small scales in the fish market</p>

I took a short ferry trip from Toba and watched as wakame was unloaded from small boats. Workers on the docks immediately plunged the seaweed into vats of boiling water and it turned from black to rich green. As I walked away from the port I couldn't help but notice the net 'tables' for drying whitebait (shirasu in Japanese). My friends took me to a sizeable fish market where buyers write their bids on cards - only one chance to win the bid! Nearby an area with many fishing boats, and nets drying in the sun. For hundreds of years the people of Tōshijima have gathered food from the sea, and they are still at it!

Cathy Cawood @cathy.cawood

I came to Japan in 2003 to teach English. I lived in Shiga prefecture for 1 year, and it still holds a special place in my heart. I lived in Kyoto for 9 years, then moved to Machida, Tokyo in 2014 after meeting my Japanese partner. I love to take photos, and my Japan in Pictures Facebook page ha...