It has happened again.
Met a new friend for dinner last night and she asked, “Sorry Melissa but…are you Singaporean?” -__-; I replied, “If I told you that I’m partially Peranakan, would that make sense to you?” Her answer was a very earnest YES.
I brought home made gado-gado to the office for lunch one day and my Indian colleague saw it. She asked whether I brought it from home followed by another question, “Are you Peranakan?” and when I answered that I’m partially Peranakan, she exclaimed, “No wonder!!” -_-?
Both my friend and my colleague said that I don’t look 100% Chinese. Huh again. Friend said that I look Indonesian Chinese (that’s still 100% Chinese what!!) while colleague said that I have a Peranakan look. What’s a Peranakan look I asked. She didn’t know how to describe it but she mentioned something about Malay quality. -__-;; I still don’t get it. Well, at least she hit the nail somewhat on the head…
This reminds me of when I went to the Ritz for my D&D and the doorman opened the door to our taxi and said, “Welcome back.” LOL….ok…maybe it is because of my outfit ‘cos I’ve been to the Ritz several times before in my biz suit and never got that.
Glad to say…the Chinese from China still think me Chinese because they automatically speak to me in Mandarin. And I’m talking about those Chinese who stop me in the middle of the street to ask for directions. 🙂
Nonetheless, I’m proud to be a SINGAPOREAN Chinese. I may not be 100% Chinese if you want to be that picky about bloodlines but who cares? The world is becoming more rojak. Heck…I think nobody can really claim to be 100% of a certain race if you really trace your ancestry. So yeah…I’m happy to just be.
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