Journal 3

Last night I made sushi with some friends. mmmm...I love sushi. The creamy avocado, the crisp cucumber, the cream cheese crab, and the sticky rice on the seaweed. Ah, so tasty. Oh and let us not forget the sesame seeds and soy sauce and rice vinegar. Its all part of one the best meals one might ever have the pleasure of tasting.  So far I've only been brave enough to make a california roll but its so delicious I'm ok with just that! I have to go thte Chinese market by my house to get everything I need, and its the best store ever. Its reminds me of the actual Chinese market streets we walked through when I went to Toronto, Canada. Raw meat hanging on strings in the windows, pig heads, pig hooves, ducks, huge catfish swimming in an open tank of water. Ah...the memories. The smell is what reminds me the most, probably. It is especially pungent. When you go to a place with loads of Chinese people, the smell is like a fishy/fruity/something spicy/bubble tea smell. I was holding my breath when we went into one of my brother's convert's houses there in Tornonto, but I had never smelled that weird mixture of food in my life! I had to become a mouth breather in that tiny kitchen, and now I feel so bad about it because I walk in to the Chinese market here and the smell hits me, and I love that smell. Its the funniest thing because the first time I walked in there, a employee came right over to me and asked me if he could help me. I had my recipe in hand, with notes all over it, and pictures of the exact ingredients. The friendly man took the recipe and got me a cart and started leading me around the store putting everything I needed in my cart and told me the best brands, and what was cheap but really the best. I just basically pushed my cart and followed him around, trying to make out his broken english. This last time I went, they just waved to me. I've been in there that many times that I apparently look seasoned.  I'm a seasoned Chinese market shopper and no longer required to be lead around the store by an employee. I feel strangely proud...and so thankful I went to Toronto and smelled those smells and saw the markets with the meat, and the foreign, pokey, colorful fruit. The bubble tea, the red bean buns, and most importantly the fish sauce smell that gives the air the surety of being engulfed by Chinese people who love to cook. 


-Kayla