I am convinced that Monday is "Nasty Fish Dish" day for my school district. Every Monday that I have taught at a school (and consequently eaten school lunch) on a Monday, it has always included some form of nasty fish. Most of the time, I grin and bear it. Sometimes, it is even tasty. ... But other times, I just have to (not) say a polite, "No," by simply not eating it. Today was a day where I could bear to eat it, but only after I picked out the spine bones with my chopsticks. Of course, I didn't know there was spine in it until after I took the first bite.
Last Monday they had grilled Salmon - the catch being that there were bones in it. I'm not quite sure how people manage to eat those, because I tried, but I got a bone stuck in my throat. It wasn't until later, when I mentioned it to a teacher, that I realized that mine was the only one that had had "accidental" bones in it. Hmph. (Oh, and for the record, eating a nice, sticky rice ball is the cure for a bone stuck in the throat - though I have heard peanut butter works well, too.)
The only time I flat out refused to even try the Monday fish was when it was fried, whole fish. I don't know what kind of fish they were, but they were small - a little smaller than a hot dog in length and widest circumfrence. They were fried and so I could see their eyes still. Everyone ate everything. Head, tail, bones and all. I just....couldn't. I think I have a pretty open mind when it comes to foods (excluding insects - insects should never be willingly eaten), but that was a bit much for me.
The good thing about eating with a bunch of Japanese people is that they are too polite to ask you why you aren't eating it. This saves me from having to try to disguise the fact that I think whatever I'm not eating is disgusting.
Labels: food, life in japan