Mata Tabi (またたび) by Sakura Momoko (Shinchosha) Japanese text only

Momoko Sakura was a Japanese manga artist, essayist, lyricist, and screenwriter who grew up in the town of Shimizu in Shizuoka Prefecture. She is best known as being the creator of one of Japan’s longest running anime series - Chibi Maruko-chan, which was based on her own childhood. 

Chibi Maruko-chan was serialized in the magazine Ribon from 1986 to 1999 and continued in serialization until 2022. The first anime series began in 1990 and continued until 1992. The second anime series began in 1995 and continues today, even though Sakura passed away from breast cancer in 2018. She was fifty-three at the time. 

Her first collection of essays, もものかんづめ (Momo no Kanzume) was published in 1991 and became a million seller in Japan. Although the title translates in English to “Canned Peaches”, Momo is short for Momoko and she describes being stuck in a hotel room to write her essays. Her follow up collection of essays - さるのこしかけ (Saru no Koshi Kake, trans. Monkey Trick) and たいのおかしら (Tai no Okashira, trans. Seabream Head) were also million sellers. 

In January of 2000, Sakura Momoko became the editor-in-chief of a magazine called 富士山 (Fujisan). Although the title imitated the look of a magazine, its distribution was handled as a book. All five volumes include an ISBN number. またたび (Mata Tabi) is a collection of Sakura’s travel essays taken from all five volumes of Fujisan. The majority of the essays are her stories about her travels in various parts of Asia. The title translates to “Travel Again”. The only two essays outside of Asia she wrote about were her trip to London and her visit to Venice. 

One of her first projects for an article was visiting foreign countries close to Japan. One of the first destinations she chose was Khabarovsuk in Russia. All the times she traveled to Europe, she would hear an announcement saying, “We are now flying over Khabarovsk. However, when Sakura looked out the window, all she could see were mountains, plains, and rivers. She thought, if it’s popular enough to be announced then there must be something special about the place. 

When Sakuro told some of friends, “I’m going to Khabarovsk”, she was usually met with, “Huh? Khabarovsk?” One of the staff members of the magazine said they had been there before and told Sakura, “Don’t expect the food to be any good”. Another staff member who had been there informed Sakura that canned crab and caviar are cheap. Still, Sakura was determined to go and see for herself. 

Another destination, a foreign country close to Japan, was Guam. Guam is only a three hour flight from Tokyo but Sakura had never been there. She thought the only thing to do in Guam is swim in the ocean, go golfing and maybe do a little bit of shopping. She talked to a few of her friends who had been there and when she asked what did you do in Guam, almost all of them answered, “swam in the ocean, played a bit of golf, and did a bit of shopping”. 

Khabarovsk and Guam may not have seemed like interesting places to visit but Sakura’s writing and experience makes it a joy to imagine. In this collection, she also writes about her adventures in South Korea, gem mining in Sri Lanka, eating unusual foods in Guangzhou and  buying large quantities of tea in Yunnan Province in China, suffering from atlitude sickness in Tibet, checking out one of Japan’s World Heritage Sites - Toshogu in Tochigi Prefecture, cruising to a small resort island near the hot spring resort town of Atami, and ending the book with a trip to Sendai in Miyagi Prefecture to thank the people of the town for being the biggest supporters of her work. 

Every essay is a joy to read. They are filled with humor and you can feel the joy and pain of all her experiences abroad. Reading the book may inspire your wanderlust. I’m ready to pack my bags and go! ~Ernie Hoyt