Ordinarily it should be a straight forward process. According to most sources it should have been a simple swap, my UK license for a new Japanese license. But this is Kagawa prefecture, where the police need to find something to do to occupy their time. Here's how it went:
1. K needed his UK license transferring as well, so he rang the licensing centre to book an appointment for us both. But they will only do one person per day, and they only hold these appointments one day a week. Great. K books me in for the following week.
2. The whole family accompanies K to his appointment, a 40 minute interview with a policeman. He is told to come back the following week to complete the process (photo, etc).
3. The whole family returns to the licensing centre for my interview and for K to get his license. I am interviewed by the same policeman, for well over an hour (and entirely in Japanese). Surely there should be a set list of questions that he needs to ask me? No, he wants to know everything about how I got my UK license (20 years ago). How much did I pay for my provisional license? How many driving lessons did I take? How much did each lesson cost? Where did I practice? How much did it cost to take the test? etc., etc. K is told that he will have to return to the centre in order for them to add the bike permit onto his license, as they can't do both car and motor bike on the same day.
4. The whole family returns to the licensing centre to complete and collect both of our licenses.
So much for straight forward - K had to take 3 half days off work, and I dread to think how foreigners who can't speak Japanese would get on. Grrrr.
Oooh, I've got a recipe for you! I made this Miso Mayo Teriyaki Chicken a couple of days ago and I've never seen Jack eat so quickly!
The meat was served with stir-fried spinach, sweetcorn and onion, and some daikon (mooli radish) and wakame (seaweed) soup.
Miso Mayo Teriyaki Chicken
4 chicken breasts
4 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons mirin
2 tablespoons miso
4 tablespoons mayonnaise
Prick the chicken breasts all over with a fork, season with salt and pepper, and dunk in some flour before frying in a little oil until cooked through. Whilst the meat is cooking, mix together the remaining ingredients to make a sauce. When ready, pour the sauce over the meat and let it sizzle for a minute, turning to coat it all over. Slice the meat into chunks and you're ready to go!
