This is America, please order in English

by Abha Malpani on

Since 2005, a Philadelphia based cheese-steak bistro owner has been defending a signpost in his shop that said: “This is America, please order in English.” Not surprisingly, he was taken to court on grounds of discrimination, equating it to derogatory signs like “Whites Only”. No ruling has been given yet.

I wrote a post earlier about how surprising I found it that people barely speak English in a big, cosmopolitan capital city like Madrid. It triggered a debate over whether it’s necessary for big cities (where English isn’t the first language) to have basic knowledge of English, or not.

I think it is relative. In non-English speaking metropolises, as long as the tourists put in some effort, lack of basic English may not be an important day-to-day communication hindrance, but it is definitely a disadvantage in the larger scope of things. For example: Madrid is bidding to host the 2016 Olympics — surely the knowledge of English would play an important role there. How is China tackling that issue for next year’s games? Anyway, I digress.

What do you do in an English-speaking country when your customers don’t speak English? Do you put up a sign like our friend did? Hmmm, I don’t think so — it’s quite an insult. The sign reminded me of when the English ruled India and the “No Indians or Dogs” sign was not uncommon. Couldn’t they just be offered picture menus where they could point out what they wanted? Or what about bilingual menus?

There is an online poll on the article asking whether people approve this sign post. At this moment, of the 115,732 people who voted, 92% of them approve. Call me overly sensitive but I’m kinda shocked to see the response.

What do you think? Are signs like that acceptable?

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Tourism with the “real girlfriend experience”

by Abha Malpani on

I’ve talked about nudist tourism and debauchery tourism, now here’s another spin on hedonistic tourist packages. It seems that the market for “sex” when traveling is rapidly being replaced by the emerging market for “girlfriends” on the road.

Premiering tonight at 10pm (GMT) is the documentary “My Boyfriend The Sex Tourist” that explores the life of western men for whom “wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am” is not enough, resulting in the growth of “commercialized love” packages where they can have women at their beck-and-call, 24-hours a day. The film’s director Monica Garnsey, traveled to Venezuela and Thailand and spoke to women trapped in these professions; the 2-part documentary is through their eyes.

When I was in Thailand, I saw the sorry state of Thai women making a living from prostitution. I heard that it is not uncommon that they submit to more that just sex, under the illusion of being rescued by a foreigner who will fall in love and want to get married. I saw the promo of this film and it seems like a much “happier”(?) one than I imagined. I think it is very depressing.

Turmoil in Africa

by Jerry Guo on

Are we seeing a turning point in African stability? Yes, there’s plenty of relatively safe countries in Africa to visit, but the news trickling in haven’t been particularly good for many others. First, there was the brouhaha over the British teacher in Sudan; it doesn’t help the 20,000+ UN peacekeepers don’t seem to be stabilizing the region as much as everyone thought.

Then there’s news today that Ethiopia is pressing untrained civilians, including doctors, teachers and office workers, to battle rebels in the Ogaden region. Most ominously, yesterday it was reported that Congo might be plunging back into Civil War. The picture above is from a village in Congo where families, particularly kids, have been forced to hide in an almost completely destroyed Catholic church as fighting between the government and the rebels continue.

Is this a trend we’re seeing? Or unrelated events that happened to coincide in one unfortunate month?

Dangerous and destructive art at London museum

by Abha Malpani on

London’s Tate Museum has a huge crack its floor. 15 people suffered minor injuries in the first 8-weeks of the crack — there since October — but no one has been badly hurt. This crack is not from an earthquake but has been chiseled in by Colombian artist Doris Salcedo who is known to ‘create artistic installations that function as political and mental archeology.’ Hmmm.

The crevice is 500 feet long and doesn’t exceed 1-foot width along its length. Called Shibboleth, according to the museum’s website: “the crack questions the interaction of sculpture and space, architecture and the values it enshrines, and the shaky ideological foundations on which Western notions of modernity are built.” The crack will be there to see until April 2008.

According to an article in the IHT, people have been reacting strangely to the crack. Some don’t see it and trip, some see it but don’t expect to be able to put their foot in the cavity, and not-surprisingly, many are debating over how safe it is.

I think it’s intriguing for the Tate to have allowed the physical destruction of an entire hall in the name of art.

Just like the Indian excrement art exhibition, I would never have imagined a huge crack in the floor to communicate something as profound as what Salcedo is trying to communicate. But, just because of the arrest-factor this crack has, I would take the effort to understand what it is trying to represent. Yes, I’m a sucker for random art like this.

Better book those diving trips fast

by Jerry Guo on

This week’s issue of Science is devoted to coral reefs, specifically the dire condition they’re in and the dangers they face. Not sure if anyone else here reads the magazine as religiously as me (give me a shout-out if you do), but they do a great job in highlighting the fast-eroding plight of the world’s coral.

Did you know that global warming, disease, and humans have already destroyed 20% of the world’s coral reef? At the same time, coral generates $30 billion annually through tourism and fisheries. And it’s predicted that the rest of the reefs may collapse in two decades.

Indeed, coral is one of the most overlooked victims of climate change–polar bears are just more cuddly, what can I say. But I think they’re finally showing up on the international agenda. I’m still conflicted whether tourism will help preserve these wonderful underwater paradises. What do you guys think?

(The Science articles are behind a subscription wall)