Nonny is a bush tucker fruit which looks remarkably like a custard apple, with the same texture and markings; the name "nonny" is also reminiscent of anona, the name in various countries of continental Europe for the custard apple. However, the similarities stop there. Whilst we were repeatedly told that this fruit was high in vitamin C and antioxidants, it is one of the few things I have been offered that I have found myself unable to eat. The smell was something between a Livarot cheese which has been allowed to go rotten in a warm room and vomit. I suspect that, unlike the almost equally foul-smelling durian, the flavour was not much better than the smell.

Noodles have an extended history in Japan and still today they are probably the most consumed food in the country. In general there are four types of noodles commonly eaten: soba noodles, made from buckwheat flour, are thin and grey-brown; udon noodles come from wheat flour and are very thick and whitish; ramen, still thought of as Chinese though Japanese consume them voraciously, are medium thickness and grey; lastly, hiyamugi and somen noodles are quite thin and usually eaten cold. The first three types are eaten as a kind of fast food and even the noodles served in hot soup are usually al dente, and devoured quickly, before they can go limp in the broth.