Mobile vendors in Japan have assumed a number soft melodies to announce their presence. There is the whistle-like “tooo-fuuu” to announce the tofu truck which comes around in the morning and the mournful ramen melody heard around midnight for those having not yet eaten. In winter, there is the yaki-imo truck, which promises the potatoes are rock-roasted, and on weekends, when dad is home, trucks pass by with rather rackety announcements to sell you laundry polls (always the same price as 30 years ago, they claim) or to collect your used electronics.
They each have a sound and a predictable appearance, but perhaps none is more beloved than Donkey Bread (robanopanya「ロバのパン屋」). Its melody is evocative of the jaunty gait of the donkeys used before today’s minivans, and it generally appears ’twixt that time when housewives have finished their housework and must begin preparing lunch - exactly when toddlers too young for kindergarten grow stir-crazy. (I know this because I remember. Trying hard not to cry here.)
Donkey Bread was born in Kyoto in the early Showa era to sell steamed bread, and by 1950, there were 200 outlets nationwide, though few are left. Tani Hideo-san (78) is the last in Kumamoto. Since 1961, he and his wife (77) have awoken at 3:00 to steam some 1,500 pieces of bread filled with various flavors which he sells for 50 yen apiece (“Or two for 100 yen!” he jokes). Until the late ’70s, he used a donkey cart, then switched to the same van he uses today. He reflected, “Long ago, I’d travel as far as Misumi, which took seven hours, including grazing time for the donkey.”
Sadly, Tani-san has decided that it is time to hang up his baker’s spurs, largely due to a neck injury he suffered in a fall last year. However, he is aware of his legacy. “I know that many are nostalgic of this melody. I hope there will be someone to succeed me.”
Tani-san’s equipment is all well maintained and stored at his house, simply waiting for a successor. Let me know if you are interested.
A photo of a young Tani-san with his donkey and the original article from Kumanichi are at the link. - William
