american fob

fob = fresh off the boat. someone who strongly retains their own cultural identity even in a new country.

i was hanging out with a friend and we happened to bump into three of his friends (the free university is both large and tight knit ^_^) and each time i said "nice to meet you" which isn't completely unheard of, but kind of weird to say to every person you meet. i think he was laughing at me on the inside ^_^

today i was at lunch with the same friend at a ritzy restaurant in a super nice area of berlin. being the SUPER SLOW eater that i am, had only finished one-fourth of my food before we needed to go. i asked for my food to be wrapped. my friend started laughing because that's "so american." i recounted this incident to my -extremely- environmentally conscious french roommate and she said "no way would i have taken food home."

the concept of 'waste' is so different her than in the us. even though americans consume more and produce the most garbage in the world, it would be considered wasteful to leave 3/4 of a bowl of pasta at a restaurant. on the other hand, waste/consumption is so much lower in europe, but taking home that much food is considered unthinkable.

i'm pretty sure i'm the first customer that has asked for something to be wrapped up in a VERY long time because the (seemingly sturdy) plastic box started cracking under all the weight and then started slighty leaking after i left the restaurant.

me and my boss told me her theory that it has to do with a concept of class - that originally it must have been considered kind of poor and low-class to take away food, and so the culture of just not getting food wrapped developed. my friend today said that it has to do with the concept of not wanting food that is not fresh. i used this opportunity to extoll the virtues of cold pizza + a glass of milk for breakfast...