Making a sense of self, making a sense of place: Food

The politics surrounding food is not as subtle as some of us think. In fact, the food we consume can almost accurately tell others about who we are– our “socio-class”, our wealth, our education, our religion and beliefs, interpersonal ability etc. Whether we consciously think it or not, food is a status symbol.

On a slightly different note– this week's interesting read was Mandy Thomas' Transitions in Taste in Vietnam and Diaspora. I haven't had the privilege of having Vietnamese friends as yet so, besides loving their cuisine and a little read on the diaspora, I have very little knowledge about Vietnamese social culture. In my opinion, Thomas' work cleverly explores the Vietnamese "socio-culture" change in relation to the diaspora by illustrating how the Vietnamese flavours have evolved as meal times, for the new generation, become more socialised. I've never been to Vietnam but have always wondered (whenever having steaming hot combination beef pho with floating red cut chilli) what it would feel like to be having that meal on Vietnamese soil, in a little shack by the Mekong river. Would the flavours, serving size and presentation be the same, better or worse? In most of the Vietnamese restaurants I've patronised here in Perth, I can see that time has been invested into not just the cooking of the meal but also the presentation. Something that a sole hawker of a street-side stall in Vietnam, serving tens of patrons every hour (maybe even every half hour)– I'm assuming– would not be doing. So in a way, the presentation of Vietnamese cuisine served here in Perth has been "westernised"– a signifier of the transition of socio-culture in Vietnamese cuisine. Vietnamese cuisine is not the only one, I've seen similar transitions in cuisines from other cultures, including mine. For instance, pais (Portuguese baked fish in Kristang) has been for generations cooked in banana leaf. Due to the scarce availability of banana leaves in Perth (not many Asian shops order them in) and convenience, my mother and I have been substituting them with aluminum foil.

There is this magnificent restaurant in Leederville, serving gastronomic Eurasian Portuguese and "Malaccan" cuisine, that still use banana leaf to cook their dishes.

Anyway, reading Thomas' cross-cultural analysis, I was taken back in time to my own transition in culinary experience.

It was that time of the week again. Japanese night.

Even before I sat down, my eyes were already fixed on a plate of sushi, that was probably on its umpteenth round on the slow-moving conveyor belt. I'm able to recognise that hue of orange even from a mile away, every time. Plate in my hand, as I removed the translucent cover. The welcoming sight of glistening and plump roe on rice that's wrapped in contrastingly dark green compressed seaweed, made me salivate. It's been more than a decade, and nothing's changed. It felt like I was 12 again, just about to have my first sushi. And the world paused for a moment. The popping sensation of the tiny bubbles of roe in my mouth, and the distinct taste of moistened seaweed. Mmm.. Seaweed. Rewind.

Brought up in a Muslim household (even though we are not religiously staunch), when we were children, my parents used to control what my siblings and I ate: no consumption of non-halal food. It was like in a maximum security food prison, as Mama (with a pleasant smile on her face) searched our school bags and uniform pockets the very second we got home, in case we had secretly stashed “prohibited” supplies. Till today, I still wonder in amusement if Mama expected to find anything. I guess those bag checks were implemented as a deterrent. However, at the age of 10, I started forming a palate for experimenting new flavours. To cut a long story short, I got into trouble for a) successfully “smuggling” dried seaweed (the one used in sushi-making), b) eating it secretly in my room, and c) giving my brother some!

Over the years, as my parents became more exposed to the wonders of the culinary world, their food restrictions lax. Hence, my first sushi experience at the age of 12 (yet for most 12 year old girls in Japan, it is part of a staple meal). Nowadays, as I share my plate of roe sushi with my other half, I couldn't help but reminisce about the day marked as the start of my culinary independence and freedom.

Reference List

 

Thomas, Mandy. 2004. Transitions in Taste in Vietnam and the Diaspora. The Australian Journal of Anthropology, 2004: 15 (1) Academic Research Library

Senses of place: How do we know who we are and where we belong?

Before presenting the reflexivity on the documentary and you tube videos, I would like to reflect on this week's theme– how do we know who we are and where we belong?

What makes me “Me”? My cultural background? The languages I speak? We are a product of generation after generation of socially constructed ideals, customs, religions, etc. I find that people's social interaction with others is, to some extent, a blue print of their ideologies. Most people (including me) resign who they are to their upbringing. Easily, almost submissively, I often find myself saying, “Well, that's how I've been brought up.” This got me dissecting the very ideologies I was born into. If I had migrated to Australia at a much earlier age, would I have developed a completely different identity to my current one? And would that make me more or less “Aussie”? As I have lived in Australia on and off for about 14years and permanently for 5 years, I would very much like to regard myself as an Australian but at times I get abruptly reminded by some that I am not a “true blue Aussie” due to the fact that I wasn't born here. Do we need to be born here for us to belong here? Ironically, I have cousins born here in Western Australia who have rather staunch grip on their ethnic roots and religion. I, on the other hand, embrace the Australian culture (an honorary award should be given to the person who created Vegemite– where have you been all my life?) at a blink of an eye. My friends even often jest about how I'm more Australian than they are. But what if I hadn't embraced it with ease? Would I not be Australian if I had stuck firmly to my ethnic culture, or as some people would call it– a refusal to integrate? Can't we be Australians and still practice our beliefs openly (without imposing them upon others, of course), without being prejudicially stereotyped and discriminated against? Constantly seeking for this utopia I heard so much about; the fair go, equality, multiculturalism etc., I'm hoping to land at its door step one day. Regardless, my sense of place is here. For now. As much as I can't deny the rat-race city of Singapore is without a doubt my motherland, my heart tells me I belong here in modern democratic Australia.

SBS: Immigration Nation Documentary 

I was intrigued by this documentary because, not having the privilege of learning Australian history in depth, I had little knowledge of the “White Australia Policy”. I believe one of the intended purposes of this documentary is to effectively bring awareness to the history of Australian immigration policy, by provoking emotional reaction from the audience. This is achieved through the narration of the “White Australia Policy” that tore families apart. Being a family oriented society; I can envision Australians emotionally reacting to the exemplifications. The documentary also hints at Australians to look at their roots, because just like other migrants in Australia (regardless of race), their ancestors were not native Australians either. No one should have more right than another to belong in Australia, except for the Aboriginal people. In my opinion, one of the chief questions raised is– has the “White Australia” political condition changed? Modern Australia proclaimed to be multi-cultural, a racial melting pot, non-racist and yet many didn't disapprove on the “black face” skit on Hey Hey Saturday. Some said the guys that painted their faces black aren't even Caucasians. Personally, I think it shouldn't matter that they are not Caucasians. The issue is we are tolerating prejudicial stereotype, and thus encouraging racism by making excuses for such act and brushing it aside as just “larrikin” humour.

You Tube: Australia Day- Perth

Alright, the very first thing I noticed is that there are no Aboriginal people in the video, which says that the producer of the video has very little clue on the historical context of Australia Day. My first impression of the video was that a tourist, not an Australian, put it together; it presents what looks like a tourist's idea of Australia Day– sequences of Australian icons. Australia Day has been portrayed superficially in this video. If a local made this video, then it saddens me to think that someone (and maybe a lot of others out there) can be as ignorant and insensitive as to think that Australia Day is all about celebrations and meat pies. Either that, or they chose to sweep that knowledge under the rug, in support of the “White Australia” ideology.

You Tube: Mankind Is No Island

My first impression of this video was that it would've touched the audiences’ hearts. The background music is hauntingly melancholic, juxtaposed against emotive visuals of homeless individuals. What almost put tears in my eyes was the shot of the signboard saying, “This is freedom?” It makes me wonder if there is any place in society for homeless people. Their family, friends, employers and the government have rejected them. And vice versa. They've been stripped of any individual identity previously held. They now take on a collective identity of just another “homeless” on the street. In society, they are “faceless”. Then I thought, “Wait a second.” Good on Van Genderen for taking raising-awareness of this pre-existing issue to a creative and enthralling level but what was said in the video is not something that hasn't been said or brought to our attention before. The million-dollar question is– has Van Genderen's video made me care about homeless people more than I already had? Is the video such a revelation that I now see the issue of homeless people in a different light? The more I watched the video, the more it feels like an exploitation of homeless people. I have to admit that it's a fine line between raising awareness and exploitation, as I've seen in poverty tourism. But when personal gain is involved, in my opinion, that's enough to tip the scale.

P.S: That's not a picture of a real homeless person.

Reference List

Australia Day - Perth
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyE31HcsBPo
(accessed 22 July 2011)

Jason Van Genderen, Mankind is No Island

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrDxe9gK8Gk
(accessed 22 July 2011)

Immigration Nation

http://www.sbs.com.au/immigrationnation/

(accessed 22 July 2011)