Do you know what a Bento (弁当) is? No? Then allow me to explain it. (-:

A bento is like a lunch box, a single-portion takeout or home-packed meal. It’s common in Japan. A traditional bento consists of rice, fish or meat, and one or more pickled or cooked vegetables.
A bento is not only made at home. You can buy bento in train stations, convenience stores and special bento shops. It is common for Japanese wifes to spend a lot of time to make bento to their children, husband or them self.

Bento can be very elaborately arranged in a style called kyaraben. Kyaraben means character bento. Kyaraben is typical decorated to look like different anime characters or video games. Another type of bento is called oekakiben. Oekakiben means picture bento, which is decorated to look like people, animals, buildings or flowers. Contests are often held where bento arrangers compete for the most aesthetically pleasing arrangements.

This is what's a traditional bento is like.

This bento is a kyaraben. The decoration show us Kuchiki Byakuya, a charactar from the famous anime show Bleach.

And this one is a oekakiben. You can see it by the flower and the ladybird.

- Are you crying?
- No. He-he. No. It's just the rain.

Don't cry.
I'm happy that I sacrificed my life for you. 

 

I think it may be fun if I wrote some words from my free mind and not always poems and stories, don't you think?

Well... I've been running this blog for... let's see, three months now. I think. Some of my readers know who I am, some don't, pretty obvious maybe, ha-ha? I have to commit that Emiko’s not my real name. I thought it would be fun if I wrote my poems and stories under a penname. I've never done it before. So it’s kinda exiting to me.

Okay... The story behind the name Emiko is quite simple. I heard it in an Anime and I basically fell for it in no time. I started to use it as mine and now it’s a part of me.

It was, hm... A month, I think… after I started to use it that I came to remember that Japanese name always has a meaning. I was too curious to not Googel it.

If we separate the both syllables we find Emi and Ko. Emi means beautiful or blessed. Ko simply means child. If we then put them together it will be Blessed, Beautiful Child.

I think it suits me, even if I’m not a child anymore. Oh, now I sound high and mighty and all full of myself. That’s not the case! All I mean is I like myself. It’s totally unnecessary to hate yourself and it isn’t before you love yourself you are able to lover other.

One last thing before I end this, Swedish people usually put emphasis on the O in Emiko, that's wrong, and some put too much emphasis on the I. That's also wrong.  You should express it like this; Emiiko. Well… hope you understand. He-he.

I also hope you look forward to my other works. Oh, I almost forgot. I want to thank you people for like what I’m doing. 本当にありがとうございました!