Finally, a sofa! My back! My butt! Oh the comfort!
Rain outside, big TV, kitchen that’s somehow smaller than before, but big enough to cook a meal (we actually had about an A4 sized bit of work surface this time!) so we stayed in, cooked spaghetti and watched Top Gun Maverick. And I have to say…
…this is the first sequel I’ve watched in literally decades that has actually been really good. Some CGI, but not excessive or ludicrous *ahem* fast and furious *ahem*, plenty of plane action, nostalgia in all the right places with some returning actors, love interest that doesn’t over bare the plot, character development, plot history and good acting (even if they do look a bit like Barbie dolls) and a few funny bits. When I heard a sequel to Top Gun was coming out, I was nervous to watch it in case it was just garbage. But I really enjoyed it, and surprisingly, Aimi was even the one to suggest the movie, so I think she secretly enjoyed it too!
It was made all the more pleasant by watching it in comfort from a proper sofa. We are in Hiroshima now, having taken our last bullet train to get here. I found a GPS speedo app and we maxed out on one stretch at 295 kmph (183 mph) without even knowing. The train was cruising, pretty much at its capacity of 1000 passengers, without breaking a sweat. Super smooth, super quiet. At one point coming into a station it felt like we were about to stop, when i looked at the speedo and it said we were still doing 100 kmph! When you have gone THAT fast, it plays tricks on your perception!
Arriving in Hiroshima, we found a food joint tucked away in the corner of the station. Aimi ordered Ramen, of course. But I ordered a Hiroshima classic, Okonomiyaki. It’s a (English) pancake with shredded cabbage, grilled pork slivers, noodles, a fried omelette on top drizzled with a sort of sweet soy/bbq sauce.
The name is derived from the word okonomi, meaning “how you like” or “what you like”, and yaki, meaning “grilled”. Mine came with a layer of cheese in the middle so it all fused and stuck together in a hot sticky mess. It was wonderful even if it did look like drippy dog doo on a pavement-pizza.
Filled with tasty food, we made our way to the apartment we are staying in. It was bucketing it down outside, so we were happy to take the tram or streetcar, as its known here, to avoid getting wet. It stopped just a couple streets from our apartment, which was convenient. I wish we had travelled on one of the older models that were grinding their way along the roads, they look so cool compared to the shiny modern one we took. Ah well, maybe tomorrow.
