{"id":13228,"date":"2016-06-30T08:14:40","date_gmt":"2016-06-29T23:14:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/voyapon.com\/?p=13228"},"modified":"2024-11-25T23:37:27","modified_gmt":"2024-11-25T14:37:27","slug":"toyama-firefly-squid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/voyapon.com\/toyama-firefly-squid\/","title":{"rendered":"A Taste of Glowing Firefly Squid in Namerikawa"},"content":{"rendered":"

Imagine\u00a0looking up at the open night sky to see bright shining stars; now imagine looking below, at the cold dark sea to see\u00a0little blue crystals glowing under the waves, emanating their presence. These thumb-sized creatures are called firefly squid<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Firefly Squid: A Tasty Meal or a Sight to See<\/h2>\n

Literally translated\u00a0in Japanese as\u00a0hotaru-ika<\/strong>,\u00a0<\/em>this type of squid is\u00a0quite the hit in Japan for a few brief months each year. The popularity is not only for their mystical blue hue, but also for being a\u00a0delicious delicacy. I first found out about their existence as I bit down into a\u00a0cooked hotaru-ika dipped in yuzu-miso<\/strong> at a restaurant in Tokyo. As my chewing danced with the bitter-sweet taste of the squid\u00a0in my mouth, my friend showed me pictures of the western shores of Japan lined with waves of bright blue; it reminded me of the bioluminescent phenomenon back home on the shores of the American Pacific Northwest, though those are\u00a0created by algae.<\/p>\n

I decided to venture out to the Hokuriku region<\/strong> to see\u00a0these creatures for myself.<\/p>\n

\"photographs<\/a>

The images of firefly squid “hotaru-ika” lit up at night<\/p><\/div>\n

\"toyama<\/a>

Toyama Bay, where the hotaru-ika magic happens<\/p><\/div>\n

A Trip to Hokuriku<\/h2>\n

Namerikawa City<\/strong><\/a> in Toyama<\/a><\/strong> prefecture is located on the western coast of Japan<\/strong>. The Toyama Bay has a long standing history and relationship with hotaru-ika who come to mate on the shores every year between March and May.\u00a0In the deadest, darkest hours of the night these creatures emerge by\u00a0the thousands to find mates;\u00a0usually never to live long enough to see the sun rise again. If the weather permits – which is often too harsh and cold in this part of the region – a few thousand visitors each year get a chance to\u00a0witness the hotaru-ika in their natural habitat by taking a boat tour<\/a>. Unfortunately, I only planned my May trip two weeks\u00a0in advance\u00a0and the boats were full by then. Reservations open early March and fill up quickly, so if this is an activity that’s high on your bucket list, make sure to call well in advance – and\u00a0be prepared to get on the boat by 2am and to be layered\u00a0up in\u00a0winter clothes.<\/p>\n

\"photographs<\/a><\/p>\n

\"hotaruika<\/a>

The hotaru-ika mascot, Kirarin<\/p><\/div>\n

Firefly Squid\u00a0Museum<\/h2>\n

Luckily, there are other ways to learn about and interact with\u00a0hotaru-ika. The\u00a0Hotaruika Museum<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0is located right along the Toyama Bay.\u00a0It’s a museum with many interactive features geared a bit more for the younger crowd (say,\u00a012 and under) and if you can’t read Japanese, 60% of it would be hard to understand. But\u00a0for an entrance fee less than 1000yen, it’s worth a visit\u00a0in the area. The pictures and old drawings displayed upstairs\u00a0illustrate the history of\u00a0the museum hotaru-ika fishing culture. Since\u00a0the museum is catered to children, I was able to read quite a bit of the information with my\u00a0minimal Japanese literacy. After a short\u00a0history lesson, the building\u00a0descends down into “sea” for the interactive lessons about all types of squids. Quite honestly, I learned so much about the diverse types of squid around the world, which is\u00a0fascinating! The bottom floor also features a sea\u00a0creature\u00a0pool with crabs as well as hotaru-ika that you’re allowed to hold\u00a0(gently). These hotaru-ika are all hand-picked daily before the break of dawn to be shared with visitors.<\/p>\n

\"giant<\/a>

An image that shows the largest squid in the world<\/p><\/div>\n

\"hotaruika<\/a>

My darling host sisters<\/p><\/div>\n

The Firefly Squid Glow Show<\/h2>\n

The museum does their best to\u00a0ethically protect\u00a0and show the hotaru-ika. A documentary about this is shown in the theater. The short film is followed by the\u00a0famous live hotaru-ika glowing\u00a0show.\u00a0The film has\u00a0English subtitles, so don’t worry if you can’t understand Japanese! The\u00a0theater experience is perhaps\u00a0the best part of the museum. Since photography isn’t allowed for the glow show, you’ll have to go see for yourself what the hotaru-ika show looks like. I can tell you, though, that the glowing squid were far more beautiful in the pitch black room than their “firefly” name do them justice. One unfortunate news, however, is\u00a0that aside from illuminating when looking for a mate, hotaru-ika\u00a0also flash up when they feel under threat. Make sure to keep this fact in mind if this activity toys with your values. The real-life hotaru-ika are only shown in the museum\u00a0during the mating season (March – May). During the other months, the show is replaced with a generated\u00a0light show.<\/p>\n

\"hotaruika<\/a>

Waiting in line for the hotaru-ika theater<\/p><\/div>\n

\"hotaruika<\/a><\/p>\n

\"hotaruika\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Firefly Squid Museum Restaurant and Gift Shop<\/h2>\n

The museum also features a restaurant (which we didn’t go to) and a seafood gift shop\/caf\u00e9<\/strong>. My host family and I ate the fried hotaru-ika (flavored like Japanese Karaage<\/em><\/strong> fried chicken, but much crispier) which\u00a0was so salty and delicious. I also recommend the hotaru-ika burger\u00a0that\u00a0I regret not trying (and still think about, a month later). There’s hotaru-ika available for free tasting,\u00a0and any seafood bought here can be shipped\u00a0around\u00a0Japan. Another popular\u00a0dish here is the boiled hotaru-ika.\u00a0You can\u00a0buy uncooked hotaru-ika by the dozens\u00a0and boil them yourself right there in hot pots the caf\u00e9 provides. This is\u00a0for the brave souls who want to whole Japanese experience\u00a0here! My host family bought a pack of dried hotaru-ika instead, which we cooked in the rice cooker with rice and soy sauce\u00a0at home. This was a delicious ending to a fun filled day learning about such a small creature that leaves a big impact on\u00a0the region.<\/p>\n

\"friend<\/a>

Tasty fried hotaru-ika<\/p><\/div>\n

\"edible<\/a>

Edible hotaru-ika for sale<\/p><\/div>\n

\"hotaruika<\/a>

Home-cooked hotaru-ika rice<\/p><\/div>\n

For a youtube video of\u00a0what glowing hotaru-ika really look like, click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n

Hotaruika Viewing Boat Tour (mid March ~ mid May)<\/strong><\/p>\n

English click here<\/a>, Japanese click here<\/p>\n

Reserve a spot in advance, they fill up quickly!<\/p>\n

Hotaruika Museum (open year round but live firefly squid are only here March – May)<\/b><\/p>\n

English click here<\/a>, Japanese click here<\/a><\/p>\n[cft format=0]\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Imagine\u00a0looking up at the open night sky to see bright shining stars; now imagine looking below, at the cold dark…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":45,"featured_media":13259,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"pgc_meta":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2091,21,23],"tags":[1312,1357,1266],"class_list":{"0":"post-13228","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-chubu","8":"category-food","9":"category-sightseeing","10":"tag-museum","11":"tag-seafood","12":"tag-toyama"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nA Taste of Glowing Firefly Squid in Namerikawa<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Visited Namerikawa City in Toyama prefecture where is famous for Hotaruika, firefly squid!\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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