伊集院ラーメン Ijuin Ramen

This is a story about ramen.

Sorry if this blog isn't written so well. I wrote it rather quickly.

As some might know, I've had a vicious cough lately and my nose has been rather stuffy. During these times, I tend to prefer spicy food, hoping that it will clear up my sinuses.

Yesterday, when the end of my work day was approaching, the idea of having spicy ramen popped into my head and really appealed to me. I thought about it even more and decided that I wanted to try to get the ramen to go and eat it at home. Not feeling well and barely having a voice, I didn't really feel up to sitting in a restaurant.

There's two places for ramen here in Ijuin and one of them I knew for certain had spicy ramen. So, on the way driving home from work, I looked at the sign in front of the shop and was able to read in that short time that the shop opens that 5 for the evening.

So, I walked to the place at 5 and then was able to read the sign even better. The opening time was not 5, but rather 5:30. Further, the shop doesn't even open at all on Tuesdays.

I decided to go to the super market and buy things to try to make my own spicy ramen, but as I was walking around the store, I realized that I was really really hungry and tired. I ended up just buying premade food for dinner and gave up on ramen for the day.

Today, as the work day was wrapping up, I decided to go by the ramen place at 5:30 and ask if I could do take out as I had planned the day before.

I got there and asked, but they couldn't sell ramen to go.

I decided to try the other ramen place, Ijuin Ramen. I went into the shop and asked about taking ramen to go. The two guys in the shop said I could. It turned out they gave me a regular bowl from the shop and asked me to return it when I can. They covered the bowl with plastic wrap in hopes that it would stop the broth from spilling. They put that, along with chopsticks and a spoon on a tray for me. When I was still uncertain about how it would hold up in the car, they got out another case for me.

I was so surprised that they did that for me.

I think some readers would probably say that this kind of hospitality is "typical Japan", but I honestly don't think that's true. Sure, people here are very kind and helpful a lot of the time, but, like in any other country, an experience like that is very rare and awesome to have.

I drove home, careful of the ramen in the back, hoping that no matter what I do with my life, I go about it thinking outside of the box and going out of my way to make something work for someone the way they have their heart set like those guys did for me.

Oh, and the ramen was delicious.