Italy’s a great place to eat. Now that I’m in Germany, this fact is ever more exacerbated as I’m craving Italian pasta yet dreading ordering any such imitation of the cuisine. (I don’t care what you say–it’s an imitation if you’re not in Italy.)
Sorrento, a charming city located on the Amalfi Coast, was no exception. Roycifer and I looked in his Italy travel guide after we left and found that a restaurant we had chosen to eat at for dinner one night, off the beaten path, was in the book’s “Sorrento Recommended” list. It was by chance–well, we had “chosen” it because it was off the main drag. As in all things, the further you are away from a main street or piazza, the cheaper it is, no? But the restaurant, called Da Gigno, was in the tour guide and what’s more, the meal that we had ordered was almost the exact same meal they recommended inside the restaurant recommendation.
I got the gnocchi verdi provola e gamberi. That is, spinach green potato dumplings in cream sauce with provolone, served with tiny shrimp. Never mind that I had eaten about 40% of the entire dish as each potato dumpling and shrimp coated with provolone sank like rocks to the bottom of my stomach … the wood-fired pizza we ordered as a compliment was delicious. His butterfish was delectable. And we were satisfied.
During the hearty meal, however, we had some hometown entertainment. And so the place was a “find” but it wasn’t. Nearby sat a group of 4 more-than-middle-aged Americans that had broken off from a larger tour group. They spoke often of vouchers that they were redeeming for their meals. (Yeah, so it’s in a friggin’ tour book and now these huge group tours got dinner vouchers for the place. What.) I’d be hesitant to say that it was “Yankee company,” however, because the most vocal of the 4 was a silver-haired lady who spoke with a Southern twang.
I died on the inside as they she spoke about American politics.
“And you know that Barack Obama?” She lowered her fork and knife as she eyed her company and spoke in a low, deathly voice, before getting louder: “You know that if he were to get elected, he’d get sworn in on the KOH-rann?” Then, she kept eating. In a high-pitched voice she said, “Man I can’t believe it, that’s so absurrrd!”
She went on. She went on about Fred Thompson and how much she liked him. Someone else chimed in then, though my eavesdropping overhearing didn’t catch on. And she added, “Yeah that Giuliani, I like him too.”
You know. I don’t care if you like Fred Thompson. I mean hell, I like Fred Thompson, because I have been a fan of Law & Order for the past 15 years I-kid-you-not. And who needs to even know his politics (what are they, btw?) when on TV he brings justice his own reelection to the DA office?? The guy gets it done. On TV. And that’s all that matters. Besides, don’t discriminate. Against actors. Regan did all right, didn’t he?
And whatever that Barack guy’s politics are, he’d get sworn in on the Koran if he got elected.
* * *
A couple years ago I’ve had some (white) friends who did some traveling overseas who mentioned that if they got asked, they’d say they were Canadian but never American. They said it was to avoid some ghastly reactions indicating anti-American sentiment. I could understand that, I guess. Especially since this was about the time G.W. Bush declared a “victory” of the sort over some war we were fighting.
Roycifer and I haven’t really encountered any of that during this trip. Of course, perhaps it’s because we’re Asian American and the curiosity over our eyes and hair trumps their potential hatred of The States. A few “ching chongs” here and there both in Italy and Germany, and actually later that night in Sorrento, Roycifer got asked if he was from China. We corrected him and said Los Angeles, but what the Italians and Germans who’ve approached us really want to know is the blood. (London, on the other hand, is quite an international city.)
You know, they’re just curious.
The waiter who served me a Bavarian beef dish with noodles and salad last night in Munich said, “I only know one Chinese word–and that is ‘Sayonara.’” We laughed and taught him a new word. The correct word. The exchanging of trivia went both ways–turns out he was from Italy.
Home is where the heart is. Home is where you feel you belong–and whatever that’s contingent upon, that’s your battle to fight.
* * *
Tonight, while we were waiting for our S-bahn train on the platform, I found a drunk guy in lederhosen–obviously heading home from Oktoberfest–who needed help. He stumbled over to me and started speaking German while pointing up at the screen. I tried to understand, but he was kind of slurring his words. “Sprichst du Englisch?” He made a skosh gesture with his fingers and says, “Little bit.” After many broken exchanges while still pointing up at the screen, we discovered we were waiting for the same train and he was at the right place. Finally, I asked, “Wo sind deine Freunde?” (Where are your friends?) He laughed and then just kind of stared into space. I cracked up.
A guy waiting for the same S-bahn train about 30 feet away turned and saw our new friend, “Heyyy…” We exchanged similar Oktoberfest separation stories–ours from a couple days ago. “First time?” he asked. Yes, it certainly was. When he asked where we were from and again we said “Los Angeles,” he said, “Ahh but you don’t look like you’re from Los Angeles.” By then we were used to it. I said, “Yes, Los Angeles has many kinds.”
He responded, “Yes, the United States has many kinds.”
Indeed.
I wanted to say that many Americans, all inherently immigrants, still haven’t figured that out. And that has been my battle to fight–but it comes with the territory. But it’s mine–and it’s fine.
*e
9 Comments
It’s interesting how the prejudices follow you halfway around the world to another continent.
But then again, there are many other societies not as willing to embrace a multi-ethnic social makeup as much as the U.S. There’s plenty of flaws in our culture, but at least there are many of us trying our best to make it better… in a way, everyone benefits eventually.
Ooooh! I totally forgot that you were going to Europe! I’m jealous, cuzin! Have fun and be safe!
good think i like your kind, e*. because you’re one of a kind………
keep fighting the good fight against ignorance and spread knowledge and insight throughout the world…..
@alex chang: Inherently, The States is a country full of and basically made up of immigrants so yes, Americans should (imho) be the first ones to embrace that. It’s what they signed up for and it’s what they, themselves or their ancestors, are or were.
While visiting other countries I’m reminded of this and contrast the natives with that and well, since I’m a visitor I think it’s imperative to remember that I’m the visitor and that people are not going to be prepared to think in the “American PC,” non-prejudiced mindset. It requires add’l patience but indeed, it’s an educational experience to come out of your comfort zone. Just because you and I are offended doesn’t mean that the person who did the offending necessarily intended to be.
I look upon every chance at interaction as an opportunity to learn something while traveling. It’s been really eye-opening. And great.
@Franksabunch: And why would you, you newlywed?
Hope you’re enjoying your married life and I can’t wait to catch up!!
@big league: Aw thanks. “Ignorance” by definition tends to cover a lot of grey area but you know, I think there’s just as much knowledge I myself can gain from everything to shed light on my own ignorance.
of course; one often has to take a step back and look at it from not only the other person’s vantage point, but also put the larger social context into picture.
i guess we’ll just have to wait till the Star Trek-era to eliminate these things.
But London was fine, you say? It seems to corroborate with a particular curious instance in the media recently — the press coverage of Lewis Hamilton, the rising star rookie in Formula One racing. The man was one point away from winning the world championship of arguably the highest pinnacle of motorsport….as a rookie of 22 years of age.
The BBC Sport website’s coverage of his season always referred to him as a Brit and almost never made any mention of his skin colour during all of their coverage. However, ESPN and other American sports media ran huge features on the fact that he was BLACK.
Sigh. Things like this make me think that American is still rather immature when it comes to dealing with the “race issue.” True maturity/progress comes when we don’t see a person’s skin color anymore, no?
That’s interesting, Charles. I think there’s a few sides to the race issue, a very complicated issue indeed.
On one hand, I think that the “colour blind” and “no colour lines” bumper sticker phenomenon is kind of ignorant in itself, because when the person is in plain view and people proclaim to “not see any colour” I simply think they’re lying, the same way people who say they have “no bias whatsoever” are lying. I’m more of an advocate of embracing differences rather than ignoring they exist because race is very much a part of everyone whether we admit it or not. But using it to be divisive is an entirely other matter.
In your case, however, with the BBC not mentioning he is black that is pretty admirable I think. But then again, I don’t think American news proclaiming he is black is a bad thing because that is somewhat of an advancement of an African-British (or is he African-American?) competitor in the sport, of which there are very few. It’s a double-edged sword but all the same I don’t know that I really agree with ignoring race as being an issue completely. I see much more advancement coming from the embracing of our differences.
Good point. Certainly the issue is more complex than I presented it. I suppose that as our society advances and continues to break more barriers, that we SHOULD recognize when those barriers are broken (see the hoopla regarding last year’s Superbowl, which featured 2 African-American head coaches). When Jackie Robinson first broke the color barrier in major league baseball, it was a huge deal — now, everyone takes it for granted.
I guess the point which “got my goat” in terms of the American coverage of the F1 rookie was that the American media was projecting our own standards or perspective onto an international sport which exists globally. The British media, and the driver himself, regard him as British, so it felt ignorant for the American media to make a big deal out of something (skin color) which wasn’t an issue at the place where it was actually happening. The British media focused on him because of his incredible skill at such a young age, not because he happened to be black. I wouldn’t think of it as admirable as much as a matter of fact, since the BBC news covers sports which involve countries all over the world (soccer, rugby, motorsport, cricket, etc.).
I felt that it was just another example of how egocentric the American consciousness is in regards to the rest of the world. F1 is an international sport with drivers from 5 of the 7 continents and races are held across those same 5 continents. The differences of color or race or nationality are already taken for granted and accepted, because everyone is used to interacting within a global community. I guess America is still quite behind in terms of thinking that way.
(As you can tell, I’ve digressed into a rant which far exceeds the scope of the original topic. Sorry.)
Ahh, I gotcha Charles. I totally hear you. Indeed, I’d agree that was a complete projection of the American spin on race. And for Formula One, no less. We’re definitely lagging on adapting to an international viewpoint–no contest there.