Food! Goodness me, school lunches!

[jerseywonder]

Going back to the original topic ... from what I've seen and heard, you are expected to eat everything that you get with your kyuushoku - it's considered rude not to, and the students have to eat everything so you'd look bad leaving lots of food.

However, in many cases it is possible to bring your own lunch to school if you'd rather not eat the kyuushoku. I'm vegetarian and my base school is a senior high, so I don't have to worry about school lunches there - the students all bring their own food and eat in their homerooms, and the teachers bring their own food and eat at their desks. Everyone's happy. However, I also rotate between four elementaries and a junior high school, where the students and teachers are all served exactly the same lunch and eat together, either in a canteen or in their classrooms.

My base school must have notified all the other schools in advance that I'm vegetarian, it has never been a problem - from the start they knew that I wasn't going to eat the kyuushoku. I take my own lunch and usually heat it up in the microwave whilst the children are serving out the kyuushoku, and then I go join them - either in the canteen with all the other students, or in one of the homerooms. I did feel a little self-concious at first sitting there with my tupperware of Thai curry or whatever whilst they all tucked into their udon, but the children are often really interested in what I'm eating, and the teacher usually asks me what it is and announces it to the class. Once a teacher even helped himself to a mouthful of my lunch without asking me - was a bit of a surprise!

If the kyuushoku has things in it that I am able to eat (such as a salad, vegetable soup, fruit, some bread or a dessert), often I'll get a serving of this even though I've brought my own food, and I normally get given milk as well. It's a pretty good deal to be honest! I was a bit worried that I'd cause some problems, but no one seems bothered or angry or insulted that I am not eating the same lunch as everyone else. And I definitely don't have to hide myself away from the children so that they don't get jealous - I eat with them.

I think if you really don't want to eat the kyuushoku, you should make it clear from the start that you'll be taking your own lunches to school everyday - you can't just change your mind if you see a lunch you happen to like the look of! If you do opt for the lunches, though, be expected to eat everything they give you (unless you're able to sneak it to someone else!).

[eFred]

This is in response to trout person:

I'd like to make something clear. I'm picky yes. But it doesn't mean that I don't appreciate food. A lot. I come from a dirt poor family. Goodness, I only recently had the pleasure of running hot water at home! I understand the whole "eat what you're given because you never know when you're next meal might be" sentiment. BUT it doesn't that I'm gonna be stuffing myself just to be "less immature".

I think if you really don't want to eat the kyuushoku, you should make it clear from the start that you'll be taking your own lunches to school everyday - you can't just change your mind if you see a lunch you happen to like the look of! If you do opt for the lunches, though, be expected to eat everything they give you (unless you're able to sneak it to someone else!).

I think I'll be doing that if I get in (happythoughthappythoughts). After all, cool people bring home lunches.

[Siyris]

I think I'll be doing that if I get in (happythoughthappythoughts). After all, cool people bring home lunches.

Just be careful with this attitude. I have said and will say again, there are schools that simply WILL NOT accept the ALTs bringing their own lunches. I once asked my coworkers what would have happened if I were vegetarian... and the answer was that, at my schools, they will not accept vegetarians for the very reason that they want the ALT to eat with the students. So just... don't assume I suppose.

[eFred]

I think I'll be doing that if I get in (happythoughthappythoughts). After all, cool people bring home lunches.

Just be careful with this attitude. I have said and will say again, there are schools that simply WILL NOT accept the ALTs bringing their own lunches. I once asked my coworkers what would have happened if I were vegetarian... and the answer was that, at my schools, they will not accept vegetarians for the very reason that they want the ALT to eat with the students. So just... don't assume I suppose.

Yup. ESID and all that

[losdutchmen]

All this food talk is making me hungry...

Once again we see a huge cultural difference between the West and the East, particularly, Japan. Kids in Japan are strongly encouraged to eat everything, no "likes" or "dislikes" when it comes down to it. Actually, they may dislike something, but they are still expected to eat it. I was told by Japanese teachers that this is for their own good basically, to instill good eating practices and build an appreciation for nutrition. It also builds character and teaches children not to waste. Compare this to kids in the West. I can only speak from an American point of view, but the amount of waste is incredible. Children are served a full lunch, but eat what they want and throw out the rest. I'd say nearly half of the good goes in the garbage. Vegetable on the plate = FDA nutritional standards, but those items almost never get eaten. Lunchtime in the States is a social activity; more talking and playing goes on than eating. In Japan, classes, or the whole school, sit down and eat TOGETHER. Lunchtime is for eating. Sure, there is talking and socializing, but the focus is eating lunch, and finishing it.

I know a kid down the block, he's 11. He basically eats only white/brown food, meaning, chicken nuggets, fish sticks, chips, yogurt, applesauce, and french fries. He's eaten like this for years. He's creating an eating pattern that will shape how he eats for the rest of his life, just like a previous poster commented that their habits had been built from a young age. Is that healthy? What will this kid do when he goes somewhere that doesn't serve his "favorites"? Will he be willing to try something new and different when he's older? Probably not.

I like the concept behind "eat everything" in Japan. I like that they appreciate food and try not to waste. Americans, or Westerners, look like spoiled, greedy jerks; we have so much but we throw most of it away. As an ALT you are walking into their country, their culture, their rules. Choose your battles, but don't be so staunch about what you will or won't eat. Show a little flexibility. Otherwise, you'll be reinforcing the negative stereotypes of your home country, or the West in general. Yeah, they will accept you and allow you to eat carrot sticks and pb&j. They will smile. But in their heads or when you're not around, they will be talking about the "picky foreigner" who is selfish and unwilling to try anything.

[Musashi]

I definitely appreciate their different foods and their diets.

I'm not a very picky eater, but the only time I was a bit squeamish about school lunch was when we had dried sardine fish with a soup with small boiled eggs.

It was a terrible combination and even the teachers didn't like it.

On a side note, I was reading a book on food waste -- and Japanese are just as wasteful as the west when it comes to wasting food.

[vava]

On a side note, I was reading a book on food waste -- and Japanese are just as wasteful as the west when it comes to wasting food.

Elaborate, please? I've never ever witnessed a Japanese person fail to finish what's on their plate. I remember my host families making sure that I ate every single last grain of rice in the rice bowl, too. I'd like to hear where exactly this book is coming from, because compared to my family members (and many of my friends), who often throw away their food after being only a little over half done with it, it's really hard to believe this. Even with Japan's "no doggy bag" rule, I feel like Japanese people tend to just stuff their faces full at restaurants anyway so there's never waste in those situations either.

[DjinnWired]

For the sake of pedantry... maybe we should clarify "waste". Because in my mind, eating more calories than your body needs for good health is no less wasteful than composting them

In my prefecture left-overs from the school lunches are fed to the pigs who eventually also end up in the school lunches. Beautiful symmetry or creepy potential cannibalism? Discuss.

[Musashi]

Haha, well at school they tell the kids to finish up what's on their plate. (I think all cultures do that)

But as a whole japan wastes hella food. I've been to enkai's, or Izakaya's where people leave almost untouched plates of goodness!!

You'd have to read the book, but basically the energy/resources used to produce food, then wasting it (by not using it for human consumption is the waste)

It's cool how Japan is starting to at least feed it to pigs instead of tossing it in the dump -- but it's still waste, and a lot still ends up in the dump like the West.

If anyone is bored, here's the book, it's actually pretty good:
http://www.amazon.com/Waste-Uncovering- ... 0393068366

[frayedflower]

Random musing here, keeping in mind ESID, but... In the case of lunches, what about spicy/hot foods? I'm not really a picky eater in any other sense, but I'm exceedingly sensitive to spicy food. If it came down to it I'd probably deal with it - but I'm sort of curious if anyone else has had a situation like this!

[AVN]

Random musing here, keeping in mind ESID, but... In the case of lunches, what about spicy/hot foods? I'm not really a picky eater in any other sense, but I'm exceedingly sensitive to spicy food. If it came down to it I'd probably deal with it - but I'm sort of curious if anyone else has had a situation like this!

Well you'll be pleased to know overall Japanese people are spice wussies. Most of them self-admit to it. A lot of their curries and such are quite mild. At enkais sometimes we get something spicy and half the table or more can't eat it.

[hawkharness]

Random musing here, keeping in mind ESID, but... In the case of lunches, what about spicy/hot foods? I'm not really a picky eater in any other sense, but I'm exceedingly sensitive to spicy food. If it came down to it I'd probably deal with it - but I'm sort of curious if anyone else has had a situation like this!

Well you'll be pleased to know overall Japanese people are spice wussies. Most of them self-admit to it. A lot of their curries and such are quite mild. At enkais sometimes we get something spicy and half the table or more can't eat it.

Hurray!! I was wondering this too. Three cheers for Japanese genes!

[Siyris]

Random musing here, keeping in mind ESID, but... In the case of lunches, what about spicy/hot foods? I'm not really a picky eater in any other sense, but I'm exceedingly sensitive to spicy food. If it came down to it I'd probably deal with it - but I'm sort of curious if anyone else has had a situation like this!

I have never had anything spicy in the school lunches... I did have one enkai where we went to a "Mexican" resturant... but even there, the spiciest thing was maybe a 3 on a 10 point scale? There's a Korean place I went to with a few friends where you are able to get spicy food if you want... but you can also order mild... which pretty much means no spice to it at all.
You should be fine.

[DjinnWired]

At elementary schools the lunches have to be suitable for seven year olds... they aren't going to be serving ring-sting curries

[stefaluff]

I saw this article the other day and thought about this thread:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/blo ... _blog.html

I didn't mind the idea of eating fish every day before, but now I'd rather have it and those really long hot-dogs than this stuff.. yeesh!