Our first traditional meal here in Japan will also probably be our largest. This is the first time we’ve ever been anywhere where we’ve felt it would be rude to turn away food (something I’m really not accustomed to doing.)

I’d always wanted to try sushi, but have always been put off at the last minute. As we had a fixed menu here, it was my chance to try it “in captivity”, and I was actually really quite pleasantly surprised.

We sat down to an enormous selection of fantastically prepared fish that was laid out so intricately it was more like a work of art than a meal - it was a shame to demolish it with my clumsy chopstick technique. Along with the sesame rice that came out shortly afterwards, it made an interesting and satisfying meal.

At this point, I was quite ready to top it off with some fruit and green tea… but more food came in the form teriyaki sea bass. Always willing attempt to cram more food into me, I tucked into that too - and it was very tasty.

At this point, I was completely stuffed… then more food arrived. I wasn’t even sure what this was, appearing to be a whole fish completely covered in some kind of sugary batter. We both made the universal sign for “I’m stuffed”, but our host (an old lady called “Grandmother” Fumiko ,who’s a little like a cross between a little old Jewish lady and Mr. Miyagi) insisted that we eat up, pointing to the tail and making hamster gestures (“mmm, crispy!”). We pretended to eat as she shuffled off to the kitchen again, petrified that something else would soon be joining the sugar-fish.

A few minutes went by, and we were both starting to realise that nothing else was forthcoming… so we made our escape. We crept past the kitchen and made it our room, only to have Mrs. Fumiko knocking on our door a few minutes later, brandishing two fruit plates. I think she got the message this time, and popped them into our minibar for us to eat later and at last we could breathe a sigh of relief and unbuckle our belts.