Dried Fish

In Japan, fish is everywhere. From supermarkets selling fish that has already been killed too live fish flopping around in buckets at local fish markets. You can't walk down any street without seeing or smelling some type of real fish or fish flavored or shaped products. However, you would expect mixed nuts purchased at a westernized, large grocery store chain not to have dried fish mixed in with the almonds and sunflower seeds, in Japan this is not the case.
For breakfast sometimes I like to have yogurt with granola or muesli. Last week I decided to mix things up and try mixed nuts in my yogurt instead. I picked up the first package I saw that included almonds, not bothering to inspect the picture on the front too closely, or look at the ingredients.
The next morning after sleepily adding the nuts to my yogurt I took bite and noticed that the mixed nuts tasted a bit "fishy" ( no pun intended). Ignoring this, I ploughed ahead and finished my yogurt and mixed nuts, albeit a little disappointingly. Later that day I packed the nuts as a snack for the hiking excursion I was to be going on, I did not plan on eating them, but giving them to my friend Kim to try as she enjoys trying food that other people think tastes gross. I poured some into Kim's hand and as she inspected the clump of nuts she became horrified.
"Sarah, why is this fish staring at me"? She asked. Indeed the fish was staring at her, as were about five more in the pile in her hand. Inside the mixture of nuts there were dried fish coated in batter about 3/4Th's of an inch long and the width of about 2 or 3 sewing needles glued together. Upon close inspection you could see their entire bodies, right down to their curled tails, eyes, and open mouths. No wonder my yogurt tasted "fishy".
The moral of the story? When in Japan don't be surprised if there is fish in anything edible, even mixed nuts.