Lunch box

I had my first bento (lunchbox) on Friday during a video conference which spanned over the noon hour. Here's a pic of it. So many things I can't name them all. In fact, when I tried to discreetly ask my co-workers sitting next to me what some of the things were, they didn't know either!! Here's my version of the meal starting from the top left and moving clockwise:

--red ball is a pickled plum (that sour thing I tried a few weekends ago), and it was a no-go. I couldn't do it to myself again! Mixed with maybe some black veggies.

--5 balls of chicken & rice wrapped in seaweed... yummy... the best part!

--Some kind of vegetable with seaweed wrap.

--pink stuff is their version of pickles.

--Random pieces of cooked fish and chicken and a wonton. Also a baby bottle of soy sauce for the rice balls.

--Some kind of vegetables. Weird colors and consistencies I've never seen before.

--Finally, the green stuff are waxy cold beans, and the black stringy stuff is seaweed.

On to another LUNCHBOX experience:

Today some girls from the office invited me to eat lunch IN with them. I didn't even know people brought their own lunch or where they ate, so I definitely wanted to check this out.

We ate in the main reception area (which is on the 5th floor), and I found it supremely strange. Kind of odd as a first thing for new visitors to see...

Anyway, I packed my normal American lunch: peanut butter sandwich, Cheetos (from Japan, which taste different and don't have nearly enough cheese powder on them), applesauce cup, box of raisins, Oreos, and water.

The girls I was with (2 friends I've eaten with before +3 new ones) were very critical of my lunch. They kept asking where my meat and vegetables were. I said maybe I'd eat them with dinner. Then they asked why don't I like vegetables. I would show them my applesauce and raisins, but this didn't help. This went on and on for the entire time. Apparently, peanut butter is a "sweet" in Japan, so they said I was having dessert for lunch. One girl said I was eating only "snacks".

On the other hand, their lunches consisted of (3) rice with veggies and meat, curry & rice, and a sandwich (which I found out was from McDonald's but her mother added more vegetables and then packed it in her lunch!). They did not have any sides. My one friend brought a dessert to share since it was a special occasion for me. It was a tiny bag of "octopus sticks with soy sauce". We each got 2 sticks. It was actually quite yummy, but clearly not filling.

I went back to my desk and jammed 3 Oreos into my mouth. I didn't want to eat dessert in front of them since I already felt like a freak show. It was quite a discouraging event. That is until all of the emails started rolling in... several girls emailed me to thank me for joining them and showing them such an interesting lunch. One even said to thank my mom for my care package from America because she's never seen a cup of applesauce or a box of raisins before!! In the emails I also received an invitation to: go shopping on "Oshu Street", go skating at the ice rink, get Japanese cooking lessons at one of their homes, and plan a weekend in Kyoto where we will try on kimonos!! Ahh, Japanese hospitality at it's best!