I was given this by my foreign neighbors, who also wished me a good appetite, but it’s something tough and more like an egg than food 
I was initially even afraid.
The neighbors are foreigners, and we just say hello to one another in the elevator. Then, one night, someone knocks on the door. They’re grinning, giving me a bag, and speaking in accented Russian:
Enjoy your food!
I peek within, and this is what I see. Strange, hard, dark objects that seemed like they belonged in a dinosaur movie or a museum. They don’t appear to be edible. They feel as cold as stones in my hands. Even when I smelled them, there was hardly any smell.
— Is this food? I asked warily.
They went after nodding and grinning even more.
I spent a lot of time standing with the bag in the kitchen. My mind was racing with ideas: “What if this isn’t even supposed to be eaten? Could it be a joke? What if I’m overlooking something crucial? Throwing it out felt strange; putting it in the refrigerator was frightening.
Ultimately, I went online. I looked for images, descriptions, and shapes. And I was astounded by what I saw when I eventually located it.Have you previously witnessed anything similar?
Have you ever seen anything like this before?It was a water chestnut, as it turned out.
It is consumed. You eat it raw, boil it, and peel it. It is practically considered a delicacy in several nations. It was just like nothing I had ever seen in my life.
I met the neighbors the following day and informed them that I had discovered what it was. With joy, they began to quickly explain something, using gestures to demonstrate how to eat and peel it.
And that made me realize how odd the world is—for some, it’s a terrifying, unfathomable thing, but for others, it’s just “enjoy your meal.”
