A young man was sitting without expression in an eating place in Dihua street

emotionless man in restaurant — Blank-faced man in an eating place

It was still early for dinner, but the restaurants lining Dihua Street in Taipei were already crowded with customers. On the tables lined up in front of the restaurant were sheets of paper with menus written on them, which were pasted on the walls. Chinese characters were lined up in rows, and the names of noodle dishes and fish dishes caught my eye. Among them, I saw the name of stinky tofu, famous for its distinctive aroma. Then, upon closer inspection, I saw a single sentence mixed in with the characters written in Japanese.

Taiwan is a popular destination for Japanese. Books on Taiwan are stacked in bookstores, and I am sure that many Japanese tourists visit this restaurant. With these thoughts in mind, I looked at the bustling storefront.

I looked over and saw a young man sitting at one of the tables. On the table was an empty bowl. Apparently, he had already finished his meal. Next to him sat a woman who appeared to be his girlfriend. She was talking to him about something, but the man did not look at her, but gazed blankly somewhere in the distance. His expression was expressionless, but somehow there was an air of avoidance of a subject he did not want to hear about.

Amidst the hustle and bustle of the entire restaurant, only the space between him and her seemed strangely detached. I tried to think of something in that subtle air, but decided not to think any further. I just decided to accept it as part of the scenery there.

Comment via

日本語