Joy and Telegraph
Posted on 30 July 2008 by Natalie
(telegraphy) or about jubilant emotion 
(joy). For those of you unfamiliar with Detroit, Michigan, these are popular roads just west of the city.
The intersection of Telegraph and Joy houses a cross-cultural Mecca of the Detroit area. That’s right! I am able to travel from New Delhi, India to Ho Chi Mihn, Vietnam within minutes. It’s quite the incredible experience.
I can shop at:
- Suraj (Indian Groceries & DVD’s of course)
- Asian Mart (family is from Vietnam)
- Joy View Meat Market (being vegetarians perogies are all I can eat here)
- Pipe-N-Hot Pizza (authentic Italian pizza by the slice)
- Anna’s Fresh Seafood (even for a vegetarian, it’s worth the peak at octopus, cuttlefish, squid and other fish imported from Asia)
- Baiz Bakery (the couple is from Lebanon – great vegetarian selection!)
- Joe Randazzo’s Fresh Produce Market (feels like Mexico)
Some of these locations, “Randazzo’s for example feels a lot less like shopping in the U.S. with about 95% of the employees speaking Spanish.
It is important to recognize that America is not the only way of life. Or the best. Every country around the world offers a variety of culture and life to experience.
Some days I will enter one of these stores and find myself immersed in a new culture, as though I am in that country. The various foods, beverages, and other products that I have never seen, tasted or used before, over whelm me. Then the language barrier is in place as I have attempted to ask questions, sometimes walking away even more confused than when I began.
Real life example:
Setting: Natalie is holding small un-boiled tapioca balls, which she picked up near the tea at the Asian market. Now she recalls Bubble Milk Tea
Let’s ask and find out if I can boil the tapioca balls and put it in with my tea!
[For my example, "the woman" refers to the kind Vietnamese woman that might be the store owner.]
Natalie: “Excuse me. Is this for tea?”
The Woman: “Oh, is good.”
Natalie: “Good for tea?” (Now gesturing to box of tea in other hand)
The Woman: “No, not tea. Tea. Okay?”
Natalie: “So this is not for tea?”
The Woman: “No really, it’s good. Try it!”
Natalie: “In my tea?”
The Woman: “Yes, it’s good. Try it!”
Natalie: “Boil this.”
The Woman: “Yes.”
Natalie: “Together!” (now gesturing the tapioca balls becoming larger and putting them into the tea)
The Woman: “No! It’s good. Really! Try it!”
At this point I think I kindly thanked her. Then pondered going online to research other products in the future. So, I ended up buying jasmine tea and dung beans. That’s right, not to be confused with the dung Beetle. Dung beans have a higher amount of protein than I have ever seen in my life. It’s truly incredible. There are 48 grams of protein in one cup of cooked dung beans. However, this could be a language translation error made in Asia, while trying to accommodate to Americans that wish to know the nutritious value of their dung beans before consuming them. Needless-to-say, the dung beans have proved to be a great source of protein to vegetarians. Justin and I could really feel the protein, if you know what I mean.
Overall, I walked out the door of the Asian Market and within a few moments I was back in our 4Runner cruising down Telegraph. While Justin and I backpack and are living in various countries I will not have this luxury to escape any culture instantaneously by walking out the store door to hop into my personal vehicle and see familiar American street signs and traffic patterns.
Although, I absolutely love the feeling of entering a new country through the stores at Telegraph and Joy, I wonder if it will prove to be unhelpful.
Am I currently teaching my mind and body that I can escape any culture as quickly as I find the exit and dash through it with the “ding, dong” of the awareness bell? Perhaps I am training my self like one of Pavlov’s dogs in all of the wrong ways.
What do you think?
Tags | food, people, unfamiliar, urban exploration
This is really a small world. Justin spent his 1st 5 years in the Joy and Telegraph area. Randazzo’s was a weekly stop for us.
Know if only I could remember this time in my life everything would be perfect. I mean, I remember this time in my life but it is like going to the optometrist and looking through a blurry lens. If I really concentrate and squint with my left eye I can almost see the writing on the wall.
Hey Natalie, I’ve shopped at this Asian Market a few times, so I can vividly picture the scenario you described. I learned early on that gestures and body language go a long way when the spoken word fails.
Regarding my thoughts…
I don’t think that anything can really prepare you for your journey but experience itself. But I do think that your experiences at Joy and Telegraph have now given you a glimpse of what you can expect on a larger scale.
Even though you were able to escape to familiar surroundings through the exit door, no doubt you will reflect on these experiences when you find your self in unfamiliar surroundings interacting with the locals. Your mind will already be opened to accept different cultures as well as your palate ready to try different cuisines. And if you ever need one…you will just have to create your own “exit door”. (Maybe you will be able to find something familiar just when you need it, i.e. a can of Coke, a McDonalds, a snickers bar….or it might be something tucked away in your backpack.)