My favorite meal in Osaka was at the basement of a Muji store. Muji Cafe serves simple dishes that you put order in patterns like 2 hot dishes + 1 cold dish. It was surprisingly affordable (for Muji) and while it’s nothing to write home about (as I am) everything about the convenience of it matched my introverted needs. Its small portions of unique dishes you can put together differently each time so that your sedentary lifestyle feels a little more varied. Traveling these days burns me out easily because I feel this pressure to try all the famous spots and get the best “experience”. I think instagram and their #인생숏 #lifeshot hashtags have really got to me. It’s an image of effortless enjoyment in traveling, but in reality its incredibly taxing on someone like me who is always apprehensive about walking into a small shop or restaurant in a new country. When you’re just visiting, each interaction you have leaves a much more lasting impression on you than in your home country, so I get scared of making bad memories and associating them with a place I know so little about. I know it just comes with living life and you shouldn’t be scared of going outside; it’s just something I struggle with a bit more than othe average person. Muji Cafe may not have the automated ordering machines I’ve grown so accustomed to, but it felt as comfortable as walking into a McDonalds where you can blend into the sea of other customers. Honestly I forgot the names of all the dishes I picked out, but they were all delicious. The cold dishes I was hesitant about were actually as delicious as the hot ones, so definitely was surprised how tasty cold vegetables could be. And pudding was good as always, though nothing to write home about (again).