One of the welcoming things for parents about having their children studying away from home in different cities is that you may have many a chance to feel familiar with local histories and cultures besides visiting your son and daughter to see how they’re doing.
That day my daughter in Kyoto was off from school after a series of term exams. Why not make the advantage of this day? I snapped my fingers. I hit on an idea that I should go to Kyoto. I got the non-reserved seat for Nozomi to Kyoto and jumped in the train. It is just a thirty-minute-ride from Nagoya. Then I took the subway and the taxi and gosh it didn’t take that long before I got to my daughter’s apartment house.
I went into the entrance of the building and pushed the buttons for her room number. She was supposed to answer the door phone and open the entrance door to the hall. But there was a long silence. I tried once more and waited for the answer. No answer. Gee, she must be sleeping. How could she possibly do this to me! I took out my cellular phone and called her once, twice and after several times, finally I got her. Oh dear, a sleeping beauty? No, just a sleepy college girl! She must have been in bed till noon if anyone didn’t wake her up.
Anyway I’ll have to complete what I have planed for today. I made her ready for eating out for lunch at one of the old Japanese restaurants called "Hyotei" where they serve very traditional but casual Japanese dish called “Shouka-bentou”. It’s the dish served in a square-shaped lacquer ware which are partitioned into small parts. The chef dishes up varieties of vegetables, fish, or shrimp or meat cooked in many ways and in beautiful ways to symbolize the Japanese season of the year into a reasonable size of a lacquered lunch box. We were seated in the Japanese style of room with tatami mats where we have a beautiful view of a Japanese garden with moss through the windows. It is such a gorgeous way to enjoy a day apart from hectic routines of life.