An off the cuff episode in which our hunger soon leads to talk of 'isakayazas', the ubiquitous Japanese eateries where you can lie on straw mats if you so wish.

In a similar vein, we marvel at Dave's metabolism, before talk veers towards liquid sustenance and we trawl through Hiroshima's nightlife area of 'Nagarekawa', discovering the delights and dangers therein.

STAVKA sing to us concerning 'Towers to the Moon', which leads Andy to wax lyrical about the unbounded imagination of childhood and how its cynicism-free innocence is occasionally recaptured in Zen-like moments.

We then discuss the origins of the good old English word 'collywobble' before once again delving into Dave's bag of Japanese idioms to round out the show.

We begin with Dave visiting a local art gallery where he sees a lot of blokes pissing against the wall.

In 'Website of the Week' we take a squint at www.alllooksame.com, where we discover that despite living in the Orient for 13 years we can't distinguish between Chinese, Japanese and Koreans.

A digression into why Japanese ladies' legs are compared to radishes and mention of Dave's first romantic exploit in Hiroshima bring us to this week's STAVKA song, the anti-war epic 'The First Casualty'.

Andy then muses upon the culinary fare found in the north of England, in particular the fabled dish known as 'peawet 'n' scraps', before we tuck into a discussion on 'Nihonjinron' - myths of uniqueness which the Japanese like to propound about themselves.

Muffin the cat puts in an unexpected appearance, and we round out with another collection of idioms form Dave.

We kick off with a discussion on Japanese biscuits, which soon morphs into the pleasures and dangers of the hi-tech toilet.

Next, Dave dons tacky clothing and heads for the golf course, where we learn a lot about balls.

In the 'Website of the Week' feature, we visit http://www.smalltime.com/dictator.html, where our attempts to extract comedy from an online game of 'Guess the Dictator' bomb horribly...

STAVKA comes to the rescue in the shape of the tune 'Mass Shoplifting in the Suburbs'.

Andy then reads the Ivor Cutler story 'Old Cups of Tea' in tribute to the recently departed Glaswegian comic.

Dave wraps up by delving into all things cherry blossom, those ephemeral pink bits which are so prized by the Japanese.

In which we receive our first email, a message of support from the good folks of the Planet Japan podcast.

Dave then brings up the touchy subject of whale meat, from which we stray into the 'joys of soy' - the recent fad for soybean milk.

Andy then tells us how he lost $100 in a ticket vending machine, before trying to talk about his recent trip to Australia, but Dave diverts things into a discussion on hot cross buns after which Andy recounts his youthful exploits as a pheasant-plucker in the English countryside.

STAVKA provide the musical interlude with the song 'In Search of Cryptic Authors'.

Next, we start to explain the Japanese game of 'Go', and actually play a live game for the edification of our listeners, followed by another selection of Japanese idioms.

Our second effort kicks off with a stroll round Hiroshima's cafes, before heading into the strange world of 'Engrish' - bizarre legends on T-shirts and inappropriately-named food products found all over Japan.

Talking of food, have you ever had pink chocolate nipples, cow intestines or a glass full of live fish? We have!

Andy begins his 'History As I See It' series with an assault on Finland, informing us what those jolly Nokia-wielding lumberjacks were really up to 60 years ago.

Today's musical interlude is "Iron Iconoclasts (Go To Hell)" by Andy's band STAVKA.

Next, we attempt to get serious (or as serious as the free-flowing cognac will permit) as Dave looks at the pros and cons of the dropping of the Atomic Bomb on this fair city back in '45.

Finally, another batch of Japanese idioms from David-sensei.