Irenu Načinović

Sports has always been the main topic in our home. The 2002 World Cup in Japan had already made Croatia highly popular in that distant country. The fans of Osaka Cerezo wanted to host one of our young talented players. The choice fell on Dino, a 12-year-old, and my fate was to accompany him. Our first day there was filled with impressions. For the first time, I saw road loops wrapped around a tall residential building in Osaka. Hirohito, his wife and their two daughters, Sakura and Ai, gave us a warm and cordial welcome. Each day was all about football. We watched their club’s matches dressed in lilac raincoats – like all other Osaka fans. For them, cheering is fun. Whole families, including the youngest children, come to the stadium and after the game they hang out, sitting on the floor of a local café.
They organized numerous receptions for us. The club’s director welcomed us in the sports department of Osaka, which has a population of ten million. Everywhere we went, Dino was showered with attention and gifts, as a genuine star – and I got the treatment of the star’s companion. Walking down the streets, girls asked for his autograph because, as they said, of his blue eyes. There were hardly any foreigners or tourists in the city back then. The girls asked for my autograph too, even though I don’t have blue eyes. And I must admit that I liked it. As instructed by a friend from Croatia, thanks to whom I joined this Japanese voyage, I had plenty of gifts with me, including many stickers with the Croatian name and flag. The childlike joy that the Japanese express when receiving these small gifts is incomprehensible to us. I gave away a hundred gingerbread hearts and several boxes of Bajadera, highly valued in Japan.
Almir Tuković, then a starting player and big star of Osaka, had us over for dinner. He explained a great deal, as even though they teach English at schools and try very hard, the Japanese actually speak English poorly. Our host Hirohito also barely spoke English and it was not always clear what he was trying to say. Communication was our biggest challenge. I only took the subway to the city alone once. I needed to feel what it’s like not to understand a single written sign as they were all in Japanese. On the way back, it took me a while to run into two schoolgirls who were ready to read Hirohito’s hand-written address and take me to the right entrance in the huge maze of the subway station. They didn’t speak any English, but they understood what I needed.
When not attending matches or receptions, Dino practiced with the juniors, or we toured the city. Hirohito took vacation time to fully dedicate himself to us. His daughters, when not at school, also joined us. The city is huge, metro rides take forever. Our hosts generously gave their bedroom to us and, just like them, we slept on a futon. We spent evenings sitting on the floor of their living room around their traditional table with built-in heating and a blanket (kotatsu). Everyone’s legs are covered with a blanket to capture the heat. This was the only heating in the house in November. I was so surprised by the simplicity of the interior, the absence of any sign of high-tech, or even wardrobes. When we didn’t eat at restaurants, they prepared the traditional Osaka dish, okonomiyaki– a combination of a pancake and an omelette. The liquid dough is topped by anything – grated cabbage, meat or seafood, cured fish and whatever else, and it’s fried in a special pan. The seemingly incompatible ingredients result in an unexpectedly harmonious flavour. The most unusual dish was the very tasty canned sweet beans with ice cream.
The trip’s highlight was a visit to the fairytale-like Kyoto and the train ride to this former Japanese capital. Up to this day my heart fills with warmth when I think of Kyoto. Countless fully preserved temples adorn the parks, at the time in autumn golden and bright colours. Numerous geishas from their famous Gyon neighbourhood walked in front of each temple then – before the advent of selfie-obsessed tourists. I remember Kyoto for the flavour of its rice flour dessert – Yatsuhashi, which was sold as a souvenir in ornate boxes at every corner.