Hako Sushi

Today, we're having lunch instead of breakfast. And we're not going far. You see, all of us - Rihanna Gaga, her mum and me - are recovering from a nasty sickness. Three days ago, Rihanna Gaga started to throw up and she's been very ill after that. So ill that we had to visit a doctor, as she was weakened by the fact she couldn't keep anything she drank or ate inside.

Her mum and me also suffered from fatigue - though not as bad as the little one, we had to spend most of the day sleeping and when we were not sleeping, we were caring for our child. Rihanna Gaga became the little baby again she was last year: very helpless, and dependent on our care. It was a tiring three days. Luckily, the medicine the doctor gave her worked quite well and since yesterday, she quickly recovered.

Today is the first day we venture outdoors again. Hako Sushi was on my wish list ever since we moved to Jumeirah Lake Towers. Not because I really like sushi - although I do - but because they have the prettiest terrace of all the restaurants and cafés located around the artificial lake in front of our tower: a series of open tents by the lakeside, with low couches full of cushions. This might very well be the most lounge-y place we've been to since Scheveningen's beach clubs! We opt for a selection of simple sushi and miso soup, with two glasses of orange juice and jasmine tea.

As we wait for our orders, Rihanna Gaga and her mum explore the boulevard, which faces the artificial lake and, on the other side, our tower (see the picture to the right: that's where we live!). When the sushi is brought, Rihanna Gaga is extremely curious. She wants to try holding the chopsticks, picks up sushi bits and puts her hand repeatedly in the soya sauce. She refuses to put anything in her mouth, however, except for a bit of pickled ginger - which, of couse, she doesn't like. She keeps circling the table and meddling with everything that's on it, making eating our lunch quite an endeavour for my girlfriend and me. She wants me to pour jasmine tea in her cup - but then refuses to drink it. And when my girlfriend gives her a bit of tofu from her soup, she puts it in the jasmine tea. It's funny to see how she tries to copy everything we do, like putting the sticky rice we've put on a plate for her in soya sauce, just like we put our bits of sushi in it. The only thing she does consume, is the orange juice.

The food is good. The sushi tastes fresh enough, considering we're not really near a fishing place and the soup is just what I hoped for: a salty, simple brew that is very heartening after having been ill for a few days.

Despite the fact that the terrace is made of open tents, there is less and less shade as time goes by. We notice that Rihanna Gaga is starting to sweat and getting slightly sunburned, so we pay and walk back home.