06/04 - Mmmmm...Calpis

Have you tried Calpis?

You should discover new things,

best way is to RUN!


There are a hell of a lot of drink options here in Japan, as well as a hell of a lot of places to buy drinks. There's convenience stores and vending machines pretty much every ten paces if you're in a busier area. In a more residential spot, you may have to walk twenty or thirty paces to find a vending machine. Inside the stores and vending machines there are tons of beverage options. Sometimes even beer in the vending machines, although this is not as common as many people have been led to believe.

One morning last week I greeted Aykut in the morning and we headed towards the station. The first thing I said to him all day was "Have you tried Calpis?" He looked back at me with a puzzled expression and said "Have I tried WHAT?! Excuse me?" I started laughing a ton realizing how ridiculous it must have sounded. Calpis is a popular soft drink here, made with nonfat dry milk and created through lactic acid fermentation. It's kind of milky or yogurty, similar to Doogh or Kefir if you've had one of those exotic drinks, but I think more refreshing. The name is altered for English speaking countries to "Calpico", to avoid the unpleasantness of people thinking you are saying "cow piss", as Aykut thought I might have that morning. There are different varieties of Calpis. You can buy it in concentrated form and add water, you can buy a carbonated soda version and you can buy the regular version in small bottles, big bottles, juice boxes, and little sacks with a drinking spout on them. In every form I've tried it in so far it's been delicious.

Today I bought a big bottle of Calpis on the way home and drank some to hydrate a bit. It seems to be a really good drink for this purpose, which is important with how hot and humid it is here at the moment. Especially when you are going for a run, which I did right after getting home. My favourite aspect of running here is taking a new route each time and discovering new things. A run led me to one of my favourite experiences so far in Japan, as I wrote about on the blog back here: http://bashoandfukuro.blogspot.jp/2014/05/0506-along-path.html .

On tonight's run I went off in a new way past our local station and ran alongside a ton of rice plantations. Further along, I discovered a new street of shops and restaurants that was quite interesting. There is even a Don Quixote store within walking distance from my apartment, in case I ever need to buy just about anything. On top of the enjoyment of discovering new things, the potential that there might be something really cool just a little bit further always makes my runs longer. An added bonus! I listened to one of my favourite bands, Talking Heads, the whole run, which really seemed to suit the surroundings. The humidity took its toll, but upon returning home I had the delight of a cool swig of Calpis.

All of the different Calpis packages are adorned with the company's blue and white polka dot design, a longstanding symbol. Thankfully, the products are no longer adorned with the blackface character logo they once were.