Hudson Okada
@hudsonokadaUdê, a.k.a. Hudson Okada, was born in the city of Matão, São Paulo, on Aug. 2, 1979. Since 2005, he lives in the city of São Paulo’s Liberdade district. He is part of the Jornal Nippak team of collaborators. As a writer, he has won several literary contests – including an honorable second place in Brazil’s Sesc-DF Prize for Literature, in the short stories category.
Updated July 2016
Stories from This Author
Ramen in Brazil
June 11, 2018 • Hudson Okada
When someone tells me they don't like Japanese food, I ask if they don't like those noodles, instant noodles, you know those? the noodles? And most of the time what I hear in response is: “Hmmm, noodles... I love noodles!” For those who don't know, ramen – or, as it is better known here, ramen noodles –, the favorite meal of 95% of students around the world, is a typical Japanese dish. Of course, I couldn't help but say: it …
Origami
April 30, 2018 • Hudson Okada
The first time I visited the Liberdade fair, I spent a lot of time at the newsstand, which is right in the center of the square, to choose an origami book. At that time, my grandfather had taught me how to do the tsuru – a sacred bird in Japan –, so I was dying to learn other foldings. So I chose the coolest little book ever! Its leaves were light green, in a pastel tone. And, in each of …
Immobile
March 19, 2018 • Hudson Okada
Walking through the center of Liberdade, I noticed that a real estate agency on Rua Galvão Bueno had my surname on its facade: Okada. I didn't think twice about going in and getting some of his business cards in case I needed proof for anyone who didn't believe me when I jokingly told him that I was now in the real estate business. But one of the brokers, Ms. Clara, also caught my attention. It's just that she was very …
My Grandmother's Ozoni
Jan. 5, 2018 • Hudson Okada
“She’s making soup!” That was my mother’s and my aunts’ hint to us children, that it was time for us to get out of my grandmother's kitchen. For several days, she had been dedicating herself to the preparation of this very special broth, the ozoni, so that, according to Japanese tradition, it would bring us good luck in the new year about to begin. My grandfather, her husband, didn’t care much for any of that. My other grandparents, on my …
Feijoada?
Dec. 6, 2017 • Hudson Okada
I never imagined that feijoada could be something disgusting in a person's eyes. But the reaction I saw from a young Japanese man when he tasted this dish made me change my mind. The guy had just arrived from Japan. He came through an exchange program, he was staying at a friend of mine's house, and he wanted to get to know all the clichés of Brazil. We promise to introduce you to the beaches, samba, cachaça and carnival. But, …
Palate
Oct. 2, 2017 • Hudson Okada
Even though I was still a child, I easily came to this conclusion: my maternal grandparents' house was so different from the others I knew – until then – that, when I was in it, it was as if I were on another plane. And there were several reasons for this impression: The adults – my grandparents, my parents and my uncles – only spoke to each other in Japanese. My ditchan 's newspapers and books were all written in …
Gohan with rice
July 17, 2017 • Hudson Okada
Having been born and raised in Brazil and having parents who always cultivated the culture of their ancestors, I only realized that Brazilian cuisine and Japanese cuisine were distinct when I was around seven years old. At that time, a friend of mine, who is not Nikkei, said the following about our colleague who, like me, was one of the only Nikkei in the city of Matão, in the interior of São Paulo: “Man, you won't believe it: yesterday I …
Japanese people are crazy
July 3, 2017 • Hudson Okada
I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve heard the phrase “Japanese people are all crazy!”. I will tell you some of them: - Oca, Ibirapuera Park, São Paulo: I was at the impressive “Bodies: The Exhibition” exhibition – in which human corpses with plasticized organs and muscles are on display – when I noticed a couple of Nikkei visitors fighting among themselves. Very angry with his wife, the man wouldn't give up the dish the two had planned to …
In two countries
May 29, 2017 • Hudson Okada
Living in Liberdade, a neighborhood in São Paulo, is like living in two countries at the same time. And it wouldn't be for less. Searching the São Paulo city hall website, I learned that the population of this neighborhood is, more or less, 70 thousand inhabitants. I also tried to find other numbers – such as, for example, the number of people of each ethnic group living there – but, unfortunately, I couldn't find them. Even so, from what I …
Heat
May 8, 2017 • Hudson Okada
Every Japanese car manufacturer installed here in Brazil needs to subject the design of its products – in this case, cars – to an extensive readjustment process to adapt them to the tropical climate. This process, in fact, is not only necessary but also enviable. I must confess that I always thought I should have gone through such a genetic engineering process; because, as I am also of Japanese origin, I inherited from my parents many pieces adapted for the …
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