Trying to stay out of the heat, I slipped into the chic,new shopping mall called Tokyo Mid-Town.
Not interested particularly interested in designer goods,I was not even window shopping and at a brisk pace
and head lowered I was heading towards Roppongi station.My inertia was broken when I virtually bumped into a group of journalists
and photographers from the Japanese press.No, they were not out for an interview with The TenGooz, in fact Im still not sure what they were there for.
When I looked up,my eyes focused on something they had never seen before- pyramid-shaped and cube-shaped watermelons, on display at an exclusive fruit shop.
By exclusive I mean high priced. These novelty melons were selling for 200 bucks each! In Japan sending a gift of fruit
is common in mid-summer. These presents, which do not necessarilly have to be fruit(drinks, meats or salad oil are popular, among others)are called O-Chugen,
and are sent to professors, teachers,bosses, in-laws, basically anyone who is in a position to help you out.
These watermelons are not mere curiosities but reflect the hard work and ingenuity of Japanese researchers struggling to deal with watermelon industry related problems.
The two greatest ostacles these researchers have been struggling to overcome have been wasted shipping space due to the fruits round or oval shapes(up to 25 percent of a container can be wasted)
and of course, run-away(or should I say roll-away) melons which have lead to injury and even fatalities over the fruits long history.
San Fransisco is one town which will likely take a liking to these shapes, as that hilly city has been plagued by rolling melon related accidents.
Too bad there is no Nobel Prize in pomology!
Avi Landau
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