Anayo and Kanibo, my new Japanese friends from Batik Class invite me and Vanesa to join them for lunch at an Italian restaurant in Bangsar Village today.
We sit down in a nice corner of the restaurant and discuss our lives prior to our move to Malaysia and find out that Vanesa and Kanibo are both Kindergarten teachers and Anayo used to work in cosmetics. From there we get advice from her on skin care in this humid climate. And ladies, just a heads up, don't use lemon juice or cucumber on your skin. It really isn't that great for your skin.
I also find out that Kim is an extremely popular surname in Asia, which means that people probably think it's weird to call me Kim because it's like calling me Smith or Johnson. I told them they could just call me Princess Kim if they liked that better. I'm not sure if they thought it was funny??
We go around the table and ask each other about the stereotypes of each others countries. We ask Vanesa if everyone in Argentina knows how to dance the Tango?' That's a "no", just in case you're wondering. We also ask our Japanese friends about sushi and when it's A.O.K to wear a kimono.
And finally it's my turn. They ask me if I just love to watch baseball? I have to remind them that I grew up in The Netherlands and somehow after living in the U.S for 10 years I still haven't figured out the rules of this complicated game. Innings, Outs and Home Bases. That's just way too much to figure out! : ) Anayo and Kanibo look disappointed and tell me that today is the World Series and that Korea and Japan are playing against each other in L.A for the finals. Huh? The Japanese and Koreans play baseball? That's news for me! I thought it was just an All American thing! I ask them if the Japanese drink lots of beer and hotdogs while they watch the game. They tell me that they do drink beer, but replace the hotdogs with a healthier choice of salted green beans!
As Anayo explains to me that she really wants Japan to win because her husband is Korean,
I look up at the TV screen and guess what's on? The Game! So, during our Italian lunch, the four ladies from all different backgrounds cheer on the Japanese and scream out loud when they finally win the World Series!
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