fandomhigh | International Cuisine

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International Cuisine | Friday, 3rd period

"Today we'll be going to Lithuania," Hannibal said, smiling at them. "For those of you who aren't familiar with it, it's a country in the north of Europe, formerly occupied by the Soviet Union, but its own country once again for many years now. Its cuisine has been influenced by other Baltic and nearby countries, but is uniquely its own."

He waved them through the portal and onto a mostly residential street, in front of an adorable house with a tiny fence and well-manicured lawn. "Welcome to Vilnius, the capital city. We'll be dining at Senoji Trobelė, a restaurant known for its local food, mead, and craft beers. The local drinking age, incidentally, is eighteen, so if you are - or can convince the staff you are - old enough, feel free. The local language is Lithuanian, which I speak fluently, but most of the staff should also know English."

He led them in and spoke with the hostess, and they were led to a table. "Please, enjoy your meal."

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Cutely.

Look at the place, enjoy the ambience.

It's sort of potato- and dairy-heavy, but there's lots of other stuff too.

He's here. Chatting with the waitstaff and folks in Lithuanian.

Unfortunately the only menu I could find for this place was a bad picture in Lithuanian. But it was too cute a restaurant not to use!

Peridot

Peridot had no idea what a 'drinking age' was, but she was definitely well over eighteen. And that was what she was contemplating while she looked around and took in the ambiance of the place.

... They really liked wood here.

"What do you think?" Hannibal asked.

"It's..." Peridot struggled for a moment to find the word. "Cozy?"

That was the word, right?

That was indeed the word. Or at least, a word. Hannibal nodded to her.

"They've done their best to keep it looking as rustic as possible. Humans often have a strong affinity for nostalgia. Is that a concept you're familiar with?"

"Sort of," Peridot hedged, after a moment. "I'm only really familiarizing myself with it now. Back before I came to Earth, there wasn't much to be nostalgic for. It was all right there already. Things changed, but that wasn't a bad thing. It was just... progress."

Hannibal nodded. "Change isn't bad in and of itself; life changes." He smiled. "Particularly short-lived organic life, but everything progresses. Places like this," he gestured at the restaurant, "offer nostalgia for a time when things were supposedly simpler."

Okay, this is too funny, but one of my friends is studying in Vilnius, Lithuania right now! (Well, it's his last day, but still!) So, I've seen pictures and little videos of it over the past month.

Hee! Nice!

Today's location was a suggestion from Shannon, after my random country generator kept giving me countries I hadn't heard of.

Kaylin Neya

"And more wooden," Peridot observed, looking around. "What purpose does nostalgia serve in this case? Does the food taste different?"

"Perhaps, if they use older methods to cook it," Hannibal said. "And presentation can have a psychological effect on the perception of taste. But for the most part, it is meant to invoke feelings of cheerfulness and camaraderie, and to make the place seem more genuinely Lithuanian, so that tourists here can feel they are experiencing something truly different."

"... Is it more genuine?"

Peridot looked back at Hannibal curiously.

"Do Lithuanians live in the trees?"

WELL WHAT CONCLUSION WOULD YOU DRAW?

Hannibal laughed. "No, they do not. But older houses in many places were made of wood. Some still are."

Peridot was fairly certain she was being laughed at. She frowned, but nodded a little at Hannibal's explanation all the same.

"Oh. So... this place is... like home."

That was actually kind of nice.

Hannibal was less laughing at Peridot than at the perfectly logical but fallacious conclusion. "This place is more like home for some than others," he said. "I am originally from Lithuania."

Peebee

Admittedly, it took Peebee a minute to remember that a drinking age of eighteen did not, in fact, mean that toddlers could legally imbibe. Pfft, whatever, she was plenty old enough.

She had the sunglasses and silly hat going on again today, and a high-collared coat to boot. Somehow, the whole disguise aspect added to the fun of exploring.

"So... does this make you have some sense of nostalgia?"

It seemed a bit more cozy than the molten peridotite that made her feel nostalgic, she had to give it that.

Hannibal looked around and shrugged. "Not particularly. It doesn't reflect the Lithuania I knew. The language does, perhaps a bit, but I am not terribly prone to nostalgia."

Summer Smith

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International Cuisine | Friday, 3rd period

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