Lina’s Diary : September 16, 2026: Morning Matcha, Writing by the Balcony, and Quiet Memories of Tesco

I woke up a little early today, got out of bed slowly, and spent some quiet time on the balcony, sipping freshly prepared matcha as I always do.

I woke up at five this morning, while it was still slightly dark. Then, slowly and carefully, I made my matcha and drank it. Sitting on the balcony, I could hear the birds singing, and it put me in such a quiet frame of mind; as I sat in the chair for a while, the morning sun began to shine brightly, and I was able to welcome the morning feeling so refreshed.

Right after that, a feeling that I wanted to work welled up inside me, and I started writing today’s article. The article I wrote today is the one I published a little while ago, about Tatsunokuchi Onsen in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan:

Although I had visited there for research in the past, wanting to make sure the information was completely accurate and that anyone hoping to visit this place could find everything they need without feeling lost, I did some thorough online research all over again. And as I was writing with all my heart, before I knew it, it was 1:45 in the afternoon. I hadn’t noticed at all that over seven hours had passed; I was writing so intently that it just felt like that time arrived in the blink of an eye. I feel I was able to write something really, really good.

And now that night has fallen, I am in the middle of writing an article about a place in the UK that I love so much. I’ve been looking back and remembering various places I loved in the UK. It might be a little too ordinary to sound interesting, but for locals, it’s just everyday scenery—I found myself remembering the inside of Tesco.

I always bought flowers by the entrance, and as I walked further inside, I loved the fruit aisle and always looked forward to it. I loved the blueberries and blackberries I bought there, and I always bought them to take home and arrange on the dining table. This is back when I was a student.

If you ask why I loved Tesco so much, it was because I really liked chatting with the ladies at the cash registers. They always spoke to me and were so kind to me as a student. When I was a student, I was always so busy; I hardly had time to make lunch to bring with me, nor did I have time to sit down at a nearby cafe. With my break almost over and running out of time, I would dash to Tesco, and when it came to something quick to grab and bring home, bread and a quarter-cut of roast chicken were so easy to buy that, looking back, there was a period when it was almost always that.

I’ve eaten roast chicken all over the world, so of course I’ve had incredibly delicious ones, and I’ve eaten at upscale restaurants too. But there is just something unforgettable about the flavors from one’s student days. The roast chicken from Tesco is just like that, a memory from my student days, so I often find myself thinking, “Oh, I’d love to have that again.”

Come to think of it, when I was in Portugal, I ate roast chicken very often. I think many people know that roast chicken in Portugal has a very distinctive flavor. To me, it had this unique atmosphere and taste, almost as if it had koji in it, and I really loved that flavor. I would buy some potatoes alongside it and have it for dinner—I did that so often. Of course, the flavors vary depending on the region and the shop, but I really love Portuguese roast chicken.

Oh yes, I also love Japanese roast chicken. With Japanese roast chicken, soy-sauce-flavored ones are definitely very common. Then, if you go to Okinawa, a southern island in Japan, garlic chicken is immensely popular, and there are so many places serving garlic chicken. I love both so much. Writing about all this has made me hungry.

Tonight, I’m thinking of continuing with the story of that town in the UK where you can take a quiet trip, which I was writing earlier. It’s almost finished. In the morning, I wrote the article about the Japanese onsen all in one go, forgetting the passage of seven hours, but tonight, I’m writing at my own pace, softly and quietly, taking breaks now and then to sip tea or have a sweet, stepping out onto the balcony to look up at the sky, relaxing, and then picking up my writing again—working along at a very gentle pace.

Come to think of it, yesterday I mentioned that I was writing an article I suddenly felt like writing during my morning walk, and this morning, although I didn’t go for a walk, I wrote what came to me while standing on the balcony, looking up at the sky, and listening to the birds. That was the story of a quiet, elegant journey to a Japanese onsen. And then in the late afternoon, while watching an online piano concert and feeling a very quiet sense of peace, I felt this gentle urge to write about the UK back in those days, and that’s how I started writing this article just now.

The article I’m writing tonight feels like it’s going to turn out really well, too. I wonder what I’ll feel like writing tomorrow. Little by little, my cherished memories, things I’ve used and loved, and towns I’ve visited and loved are being added to my blog, and it brings me so much joy. I want to keep making this blog a truly wonderful space.

Well then, good night.