Funny conversation

Today at lunch I was talking with one of the Chinese students who I've been working with over the past week. I had earlier been discussing with other Baylor students how much I miss eating Mexican food, so I decided to ask the Chinese student whether she had ever had Mexican food. She thought about it for a few seconds and said, "Well, I think I remember eating Mexican food before. I have been to Kentucky!"

I thought about this for a few seconds and realized that while I've never been to Kentucky, I can reasonably assume that it contains hundreds, maybe thousands, of Mexican restaurants. What was surprising was to find out that she had been to America, something that I hadn't previously heard from her. I said, "Oh, Kentucky! That's a nice state. What were you doing there?" Surprised, she said, "Oh no, I meant the restaurant!... Wait, Kentucky is a real place?" I explained to her that Kentucky is, in fact, a real state. Furthermore, Kentucky fried chicken is not considered by most (if any) Americans to be "Mexican food."

What Mexican food might look like, as perceived by the Chinese

I learned something from this conversation: most Chinese people have no idea what Mexican food is. This is hardly unique to China; when I was in England last year, I stayed with a family who had only a vague idea of what Mexican food is and had never had a burrito before (I offered to cook them burritos, and they accepted and enjoyed them). Unfortunately, while many cuisines, such as American and Italian, have become wide-spread globally, Mexican food has not achieved such success, despite being equally delicious.

That said, I'm sure I've said many equally questionable things when discussing Asian cuisine. I've tried a lot of new things since being in Asia which have shattered any notions I had previously had as to what people eat here. I've had both weird stuff (chicken feet, "fish balls") and unexpectedly delicious food (pineapple bun, egg tarts, and Indonesian food come to mind among many others). I suppose that this just shows the value of cross-cultural interaction: I've gained a better understanding of what (and how) food is made in China, and my Chinese colleagues are now more likely to be able to discern the fine line between fried chicken and a chicken burrito.