Chino, Japan and the Donban Festival

Oh great, here comes another ramen review.



That ain't no ramen restaurant... it's the countryside!



Chino to be exact. Yep, my friend lives in a town called Chino... in Japan. I find it funny the demographics of people who laugh when I say Chino, Japan. They are either big fans of the O.C., or have a friend doing time in Chino State Prison. Or both.



I had a big sense of deja vu here. Actually, I'd ridden through here a few times on some motorcycle trips. Beautiful roads. If I fail my driving test again I will cry.



It's a sleepy little town.



But this is summer, let's have a big fuckin' parade.



It's the Donban festival. There is an official Donban festival song. It kept playing over and over and over.



And over and over.



Much to the liking of old ladies everywhere.



And the local girls basketball team. You want a boys team? Too bad. Well, maybe we can compromise. Wait a minute... Compramiss!





I couldn't really figure any theme to the festival. Just dance around with your coworkers. We joined up with the team at Eastern. They make microchips. If you want some microchips, let me know and I'll send you to the right guy.



Oh wait, I have a ramen review!



Kurodo Ramen in Chino, Japan.



A massive miso tonkotsu ramen with about half a pound of grilled pork.



And some gyoza on the side.



Amazing place, but you'll need a car to get here. It's in a traditional Japanese warehouse, and the ramen is served in old Japanese metal pots. The soup is a half and half deal with one side heavy on the tonkotsu and the other heavy on the miso.

I got the biggest bowl they had, but actually I'd recommend against it. If you get a more regular size, and finish the noodles, you can get a serving of sizzling meat fried rice to dump in. The rice soaks up the left over soup and is usually pretty amazing.

Rock on Chino!

You can get to Chino from Shinjuku station in Tokyo in about 2 hours on the super express train, but it will cost you about 5000 yen. On the other hand, just take the Chuo line local all the way for less than 3000, but it will set you back about 4 hours. Your choice.