HSK - Bring your own lunch to work

CITYLIFE / Odds & Ends








Bring your own lunch to work
(CRI)
Updated: 2006-09-19 09:49



Most working Beijingers do just fine for breakfast and dinner, but
lunches at work are a real headache. So, some women office workers have
come up with the idea of bringing their own lunches from home. A very
old-fashioned practice that previously seemed reserved for elders,
actually, bringing a lunch from home has several advantages.




[Photo by baidu.com]

Zhang Jing works in an office building in Beijing's central business
district. Everyday she brings her own lunch from home in a small
lunchbox. When many of her colleagues are thinking hard about what and
where to eat, after just heating up her meal in the microwave, Zhang Jing
can enjoy her lunch right in the office. But, she has her own reasons for
bringing a home-cooked lunch. "I'm not used to the food at restaurants
and feel more comfortable eating home-cooked meals. Besides, I like
cooking myself."

Perhaps influenced by Zhang Jing, more women in her office have started
packing their lunches to the workplace, saving themselves both money and
time. "If we choose to dine out at the restaurants nearby, it's very
expensive. I've calculated that it costs over a thousand yuan a month if
I have lunch at the restaurants here."

"The lunch break is not long. So if I choose to dine out, it has to be in
a rush. It's almost impossible for me to enjoy my meal."

Actually most of those that work in the over 3000 enterprises with
offices in Beijing's CBD face similar problems. Dining at a nearby
restaurant costs at least 30 to 40 yuan every time. Although they earn a
lot, to spend so much just on lunch is still too costly. Especially when
there is no canteen in the office building, packing a lunch from home is
a good solution.

Now during every lunch hour, Zhang Jing and several of her colleagues
gather in their small meeting room and eat their lunches together. Lunch
has, quite unexpectedly, become a time for them to chat leisurely, share
their home-cooked meals and exchange cooking experiences.

Miss Wang is one of the lunch group. "If someone brings a very good dish,
she shares it with the rest of us. And we often talk about our cooking
experiences. All of this makes lunchtime very enjoyable."

Packing a lunch is common among elder generations in China, who value a
thrifty lifestyle. But now, as more and more young office workers in
Beijing follow the practice, it may become yet another fashion in style
in the modern workplace.
















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