Lauging at Whitey

bun bo Hue


My last boyfriend was Filipino-American.

His family is about as Filipino as Filipino can get, from what I understand.

One Christmas, I went to his family's house, and there was all this traditional Filipino food for dinner. I love all of it, with the exception of Dinuguan, a pork-blood and liver stew, which many Filipinos can't even bear to eat.

One of his elderly relations followed me around, would point to a dish and say "did you eat that?" and I would proudly proclaim, "yes!" Then he said "you know what that is?" and I would say something like "pancit canton!" And he laughed his ass off. Over and over again, once for each dish he pointed to.

Rik assured me that it was because Filipinos have some kind of national insecurity about thier food; that they can't really imagine that other people would like it.

Really, it's just Lauging at Whitey.

And I have no issue with this. It's good for me.

White people have been making people who aren't feel like shit about their shin, their looks, their food, pretty much EVERYTHING for, well, EVER.

So if my payback is that I get snickered at, charged an extra (and still affordable) 20,000 Dong to get into a national park, then as far as I'm concerned, I'm getting off easy.

Serves me right.

I can't tell you how much Laughing at Whitey is going on in Vietnam.

I walked into a Bun Bo locals-only joint today and ordered a bowl. It's a fantastically delicious version of the noodle soup pho that vietnam is famous for. I'm the only white person in that place, and the pre-teen girl keeps turning around and giggling at me. The young boys are running towards me and away.

Everywhere I go to eat I'm looked at with puzzlement. And giggles.

Laura has an awful sunburn. The women at the market are LITERALLY pointing and laughing.

I'm trying my best to represent, by eating my way through vietnam, picking places that have the largest Vietnamese:American ratio I can find. And by that, I mean, if there ain't no Whitey I'm eating there. When I'm done, I'm as gracious with my poorly prounounced Kam on I can muster.

And I'm more than happy to take my razzing.