So, it was a rocky weekend for me. I got lost. Really and truly, in a small suburb of Ota. Well, lost… I knew where I was and how I got there, but not really how to get back because the bus didn’t show up at the time marked on the schedule. Or at least, from what I could READ of the schedule.
Yeah, there were a lot of literacy issues over the last few days. I couldn’t read the bus schedule as well as I thought I could and missed firework festivals as a result; I somehow switched my air conditioner to heat in plus 30 degree weather and had to go to the school to find an English teacher to help; and I had to get assistance understanding how to use an iron because I couldn’t figure out how to turn it on. In one word, the weekend was frustrating.
But, it’s Sunday night, school starts tomorrow, and I’m feeling better. Mostly because of the strange and wonderful things I keep finding here in Japan. For example, I just had the most delicious whole wheat bread I’ve ever tasted. And this, after my last bread purchase was so sweet, it should have read, “cake” on the package.
Anyway, back to yesterday and the lost bus adventure. Stuck out of town and missing what I have heard is the best fireworks show in the region, I manage though sign language to have a woman at a dry-cleaning shop call me a cab. My night is ruined, my wallet nearly empty, and my mood black. So, I decide to treat myself to a cheer-up – sushi at this conveyer belt place I’ve had my eye on.
On the way to the sushi, I pass a Brazilian import store and café. (This is going somewhere, I promise.) I go inside to check out the place and don't really find much of interest. It’s in another language I don’t understand and I’m not familiar with most of the products. In the cafe, I ask to check out the menu. It’s a very short menu with a small selection of South American and American food (read burgers and empanadas.) But, something catches my eye at the bottom of the page. Just under the empanadas, in fact, it clearly says, “kibe.” Sorry, what’s this? I read it again. It still says, “kibe.” There’s a picture. It looks familiar (I call them kubba.) Here, in Ota?
I head home and straight to my computer to do a little research on the Internet. It turns out that the most popular fast-food chain in Brazil is a Middle Eastern place called Habib's. So popular, I guess, that kibe makes its way on to a Brazilian menu in Japan. I love this planet!
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