routine + lunch

12:40 usually can't come soon enough. i am so hungry by then after having breakfast at 7 am. the kids either bring home lunches or buy lunch at school. i buy lunch for 280 yen (about $2.80). i always like to check out the little lunches the moms make their kids, packed in compact little bento boxes. usually it is a two tray stackable container, often one is filled with rice, sometimes with flavorings on top, the other tray is a conglomerate of little bits of stuff, pieces of fish or meat, maybe a little cupcake tray divider of veggies or noodles. they eat very different than in the US.

there is a cafeteria (with a/c, yay) at our school (on the third floor, which i find strange) but it's small so each grade level takes a turn each week. this week it's the 2nd graders turn. the kids not in the cafeteria get bento boxes they pick up from a serving station and eat in their classrooms. they have two choices for bento boxes and there are two choices in the cafeteria. usually the boxes and cafeteria offerings are very similar or the exact same. we pre-order our lunches in advance and choose which one we'd like. everything is rationed out, nothing is wasted and they only prepare lunches that are ordered. if you miss an order, you miss your lunch. they run a tight system here! everyday i eat in the cafeteria so i pick choice A or B. the teacher next to me helps me read the menu and pick which one sounds best. thank goodness for her!

the lunches are usually pretty nice. a few times i have gotten a less than desirable choice but usually it is pretty good. the lunches usually have rice or noodles, a kind of meat, and a couple little veggies or fruits. the veggies are very different. usually little pickled, shredded type stuff. i usually don't mind it. sometimes there are weird jelly pieces that i usually pass on. overall, the food is mild on flavors and pretty easy to eat. it's always a bummer when i walk in and get the lunch that now see/know i don't want. that's no fun. ramen day and curry day are always good! i am a happy camper! ive had spaghetti, too and that was ok. it's always a little mystery for what's to eat because i have pre-selected but i can't re-read the menu so everyday it's a surprise. i've stray away from fish orders and usually from what i see, it's the right move. the worst thing i tried were these whole bodied little fish, about five inches long, breaded with the skin on and everything. everyone was just gobbling the little suckers up, so i tried it too. first bite wasn't too terrible, second bite, my teeth went through the fish belly and i felt fish tummy goo in my mouth. it was simply disgusting. my stomach is turning just thinking about it. i will never eat those again. ever.' 

i sit at a teachers table at the front of the cafeteria. sometimes another teacher or two will sit at the same table but sometimes i am alone. the kids will say hello when they walk by and i do a lot of waving and saying hi to whoever gets up enough courage to call my name. often times, a kid will say my name, i will say hi back and then the whole group of kids start to laugh. i don't know what they are laughing about, i hope its just nervous laughter. 

they recycle everything here. there are bins for plastics, tin foil, paper and the glass bottles of the milk. when i am finished eating and the trash crowds have started to dissipate, i'll get up and drop any recyclables where they belong and take my tray to the dishwashers. lunch is done in about 25-30 minutes. afterwards, i head back to the teachers room...

afternoon, to be continued...