As for culinary school,
my class was very international,
and I was the only
Japanese student.
India,
Pakistan,
Bangladesh,
Vietnam,
China,
Korea,
Turkey,
Thailand,
Australia…
It was truly
all mixed together.
It was such a wonderful
environment.
I was able to hear directly
from friends
from each country
about their religions,
cultures,
and even the foods
they could or could not eat.
I still feel
that was such a precious
experience.
Some of the students
came from countries
that had been at war
with each other,
or countries
with difficult histories
between them.
But this was Melbourne.
Our teacher
would always say to us,
“Let’s respect one another.”
Respect.
That word stayed with me.
Of course,
it’s only natural
that we all think
differently.
But we had met each other,
and here we were,
studying together
in the same place.
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