A quick stop at the morning market this morning saw me going back with some mee siam + sambal sotong + curried pork and some good ole fashioned apam balik made by an equally old gent.
While buying my mee siam, the lady selling it (who hadn’t seen me in months) and I started some small talk. Never mind that this guy she was serving kept staring at me, starting from my toes to my head. Never mind that she kept poking jibes at me about how I was ditching my parents next year and that I “don’t want” them. No, it was more of this statement that sort of set me off.
Switzerland? There is nothing there to eat. It’s like eating prison food!!!!!!! (short pause) So you married a New Zealander? OH, you meant Switzerland! So…what kind of people live there?
Kill me now.
You know, as much I love Malaysian food, it is not the only kind of good food in this world. Sure, it’s not as spicy as our curries and sambals, but have you guys ever tried anything like fig jam with foie gras? Liver isn’t exactly my favourite item on the dish but the fig jam was superb. What about a classic thin-crust Italian pizza? Or a true blue kebab from Algeria? Or a light Greek salad?
How a person views food tells a lot about their perception of the world and themselves. To limit yourself to just the confines of this country limits your access to, well, everything out there. And there is such a big wide world to discover…not to mention all those droolicious dishes!
Yes, it did occur to me that she had no idea where I was going or who I was married to. Being someone of that age, she automatically assumed that I would be tied to a Malaysian, living in Malaysia and eating Malaysian food. Sorry but I’d like to add variety to my plate.
i understand ur frustration. *hugs* (also for the one u left on my blog, sorry late reply *HUGS*)…
i’ve met a couple of typically ethnic Chinese Malaysians who go abroad and simply CANNOT live without Malaysian Chinese food. my ex’s mum would even bring her own stock of instant noodles instead of eat western food, while they’re on holiday to where ever in the world they go! she refuses to eat anything else.
& to think they’ve tonnes of money to travel yearly. i can’t understand that myself, but yeah, there are ppl like that.
Prison food in Switzerland? Hmm, I do know they have really yummy cheese, sausages and chocolate. Yeah, I guess the mee siam lady hasn’t been out of the country. There are lots to eat in each country. I still drool when thinking of Parisian food I had – yummy steak sandwich with fries, falafel, exquisite cakes at Gerald Mulot, Laduree’s macaroons, etc.
CCQ: Dun remind me…I miss them breads!!!! T.T