The Freshest of Fresh Fish -- Part 1

   Japan is all about fresh fish.  They pride themselves on it.  But this past weekend, here in Malaysia, I saw fish come out of the ocean and leave in the hands of buyers in less than an hour.  It was by far one of the most interesting of the outings organized by Spiral Synergy that I've joined. I was a part of a small but eager group of international expats. There must have been at least 3-4 languages being spoken in that van at any given moment. Most of us were motivated by the prospect of special photo ops as much as the thought of getting really fresh fish. In truth, it was a little too fresh for me!   I prefer my fish breaded or deep-fried, as opposed to flopping, clawing, writhing or otherwise dying in a plastic tub.  That's why Hubby prefers really good Japanese sushi or sashimi and I go for fish-and-chips, thank you!


         Anyway, we were whisked out of George Town, across the Penang Bridge and out to a little fishing village on the border between Penang and Kedah States.  It really was "the border," too. On one side of a small estuary was us; on the other were the folks of Kedah.  

      Starting around 10:00 a.m., the boats begin hitting the shore, zooming in quite quickly, one after another.  They're colorful and a bit bigger than you might imagine.  Immediately things start to happen.  No time is wasted between the boats arriving and getting those fish into the hands of the buyers,none at all!


         The fishermen start sorting the catch by type, flinging away any debris.  There are so many different types! There were grouper, big fat shrimp, manta rays, eel-like things, crabs and many more.  The one thing I didn't see was any kind of shellfish.    Maybe that's because this is net fishing, not trawling on the 
bottom where shellfish would be (I suppose.) But what do I know?  I was raised in America's Midwest, where most of us have never seen a fish still alive and breathing.

She wants fresh fish, she buys at boatside.

  

Beating the nets to knock off little fish

  

  While the sorting and selling is going on, men unfurl and beat the nets with sticks to knock the small fishies out of them so they won't stick, rot and stink.  Eager buyers, local women in headscarves and middle-man buyers with fistfuls of money, flock around to buy the fish directly off the boats.  And what happens to the rest?

I'll tell you about the really interesting part in the next blog post  (maybe tomorrow?)  -- coming soon to your very own computer!