A once-in-a-lifetime meeting? It made us feel blue just to think that it was the last time to see N chan's family. The last dinner with them was arranged at their relative's restaurant. I took a snapshot of their menu board to record the restaurant's name. I'd surely be back to KK with full preparation for climbing Mt. Kinabalu and drop in at this restaurant again. We enjoyed KK's local dishes and were completely satisfied.
Additionally, lots of mangosteens were served. My wife had known that they were nicknamed as the queen of fruits, but I didn't even know their name. My mangosteens debut was really fantastic. Great tastes, and easy to peel them! I like fruits, but don't bother eating fruits which need peeling. I just eat fruits on a plate after being peeled. However, peeling mangosteens was really fun and easy. We wondered how much it would cost to eat them in Japan. Could we get them in Japan in the first place? We unconsciously overate them. Thanks to this N chan's family, we became Malaysian and Borneo island's big fans.
My family line has been Buddhist priests for generations. When I left my hometown at the age of 18 to learn medicine in college, my grandfather advised me to keep the Buddhist terminology, "Ichigo-Ichie" in mind. I had a big struggle to express its profound remark in English and is this ok? "Treasure every encounter, for it will never recur."
However, I don't want to end this visit to Borneo with "Ichigo-Ichie". I'd like to visit KK again and see them. We shot several pictures with them in the lobby of Jesselton Hotel, which created an early 20th century's British atmosphere. I'll upload a picture taken together with N chan, her mother, and her grandmother. Take care and good luck to you all! I'll surely see you again!
P.S.The heart-marks in the first picture were added by lovely N chan.
(Vocabulary)
Mangosteen ［C］〔植〕マンゴスチン（の実）《熱帯アジア産；果物の女王とされる》.
terminology 専門用語
マレーシア旅行記： Ｎちゃんファミリーとお別れ
一生に一度の出会い？ このご家族と今日を限りにしばらく会えないと思うと悲しくなる。一緒に摂る最後の夕食はご家族の親戚のレストラン。次回コタキナバル訪問時には必ず寄りたいと思いレストランの名前を画像にてメモした。店主自慢の料理をいただき、デザートにはマンゴスチン！フルーツの女王の名にふさわしい味だった。不精者の僕には剥きやすさもありがたかった。日本で食べるといくらくらいかかるだろうか？そもそも日本で手に入るのか？そう思うとついつい食べ過ぎてしまった。美味しかった。初めて食べた。このご家族のお陰でマレーシア、そしてボルネオ島のファンになってしまった。
僕の家は代々僧侶の家柄で父方の祖父は臨済宗妙心寺派の僧侶だった。僕が１８歳で大学の医学部に合格し郷里を離れるとき、祖父が言った言葉。『一期一会』を大切にしなさい。英文でどう書けば理解してもらえるか随分考えたが、『全ての出会いを大切にしなさい、繰り返されないことなのだから』で良いだろうか。
ただ、このご家族とは一期一会とはなりたくない。次はキナバル登山でコタキナバルを再訪したい。２０世紀初頭のイギリスの香りの漂うJesselton HotelのロビーでＮちゃんとお母さん、おばあさんと記念撮影。お二人ともいつまでもお元気で！またきっと必ず絶対にお会いしましょう！
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