Bringing in packed lunch as a Filipino

Added: 2026-05-25

[00:00:00]So, there was a time when I used to hate having a packed lunch. When I was younger in school, I was always conscious when I brought in food from home because my dad would always pack me the same thing. Filipino food. Rice and adobo, rice, egg, and hot dog, rice, egg, and tocino, and sometimes that rice was garlic fried rice for that extra aroma. Now, it wasn't always rice.

[00:00:20][music] Yeah, even though rice is life.

[00:00:22]Sometimes my baon would be pancit or spaghetti. You know, the Filipino spaghetti. But, no matter what I brought, my food from home was so heavily judged by those around me. See, I grew up in the UK, so my food from home wasn't really considered normal food by the other kids and even the adults. But, fast-forward to me as an adult now, I'm no longer ashamed to bring in food from home, to bring in food that you normally wouldn't see in your school canteen because food isn't just food. It's a part of culture, a part of identity, a part of who I am, and I'm no longer afraid to express that even in something as little as my packed lunch.

[00:01:02]Just dropped my hot dog.