There's been some expat traffic coming through the office these last couple of week. Obviously these guys skipped a lesson or two during geography. Some overheard conversations ...
White boy: So you are Chinese, you are from China?
Local: No. I'm Singaporean.
White boy: So your parents are from China?
Local: No, they are from Singapore.
White boy: So where are you from?
White boy: I love oriental food. I'm going to have Indian food tonight.
White boy: I can't tell who's Chinese or Malay. (pointing to Malay girl) Is she Chinese?
Caught Ocean's 13 yesterday, waaaay better than the Spidey and Pirates. Damn, I miss pulling cons. Good times.
As a white guy, I have to confess, those kinds of white folk make me want to crawl away and hide. I think they are terribly embarrassing. They have such a white-centric view of the universe, it is unbelievable.
ReplyDeleteReminds me of the following joke:
Someone who speaks two languages is called bilingual.
Someone who speaks three languages is called tri-lingual.
What do you call someone who speaks only one language?
American.
I'm with Richard. It is embarrassing to witness how rude many Americans can be. I understand that some people genuinely are confused about ethnicity but there is an appropriate way to learn. And really, most of these cases don't seem to involve such people. It is incredibly ethnocentric. And even more disappointing.
ReplyDeleteoh dear. don't they even read the news? maybe they haven't discovered google.
ReplyDeletewell, one's an American and the other an East European. ;D
ReplyDeletehahaha. That white boy has a lot to learn about Asia. :D
ReplyDeleteawww japanese is same...
ReplyDeletespeak only one language, mono-culture lol