Orients

An Oriental touch

in the Southern Occidental setting

In Argentina that is heavily influenced by the Italian culture, what a nice surprise for me to have a taste of the Orients here!

Nicolas came up to me and asked me to dance in Spanish. After I struggled with him for a few lines, he started to speak in fluent Japanese.

As I found out, Nicolas received the Japanese Cultural Scholarship for his bachelor degree in Fukuoka, Japan, and now, with his additional endowment, he is continuing with his graduate school there as well. I find it surreal in conversing with an Argentinean in Japanese in a Milonga setting.

Yuka was a professional dancer in Tokyo and came to Buenos Aires by herself. She has been here for a year and she mingles wonderfully with the local people.

I stumbled upon her when she was renting the dance studio from my Tango House. She was very surprised that I initiated my chat with her in Japanese.

Yuka continues to take Jazz dance class that combines with Argentine folk dancing, in additional to her Spanish and tango classes.

Through Yuka, I get to know Yusue (in red, behind Tete) who also came to Buenos Aires alone. She and I take the same Tango classes where she and I learn the part as leads. She envisages teaching tango in Tokyo in the future.. By now, I am used to speaking Japanese in Milongas.

I noticed that there are many more Japanese tango dancers; some are long term residents, some are transit visitors. No wonder so many Argentinean assume that I am Japanese too.

	Ling, originally from Taiwan, Yuka and I were having Chinese dinner in a Shanghainese Restaurant because Ling has been craving for a taste of cilantro and seafood. It turned out to be an "inter- national dinner". While we were eating Ma Po Tofu (which
	is not a Shanghainese dish, but a Sechuwan one), Yuka expressed her thought in Japanese mixed with Spanish, I translated it into English to Ling, to which Ling replied in English and Mandarin, further to which I translated back to Yuka in my pigeon Japanese and Spanish. The Shanghainese waiter was eavesdropping in awe. We had a fruitful chat; it was amazing.

Speaking of Chinese restaurant, one Sunday night, Geoff, Marcela (my friend and my Spanish teacher) and I went to the Chinatown next to the La Glorieta Milonga. Having a bowl of piping hot noodles that replenishes us with water, carbohydrates and sodium, all of which we have lost from our dancing, is the most civilized diet I could think of.

Geoff is a Brit living in Hong Kong for years and can speak some Cantonese. Marcela, a native Argentinean, had lived in Spain and Sweden and can speak fluent English. Three of us communicated in English; between two of them, in Spanish.

Despite Marcela's multi language talents, she had a bad case of allergy after eating the Chinese food there; it might be the <Chinese> M.S.G., or the <Chinese> peanuts in the Dan Dan Mien (noodles) we ordered, or the <Chinese> spicy hot sauce. Her arms were reported to be so swollen that they look like the body of the Michelin man, which by the way, is French.

One hot and humid night after the La Glorieta Milonga, I returned to the Chinatown, this time with Linda and Nicolette. We tried a typical Hong Kong style noodle house where Linda could taste Chinese congee with the 1000-year-eggs. I conversed with the Shopkeepers in Cantonese to make sure Linda and Nicolette could specify the exact ingredients in their dishes.

Good Chinese restaurants must be rare in Buenos Aires. I was taken to the same Shanghainese Restaurant again, for my farewell dinner with Jessica, Ricardo, Marcela and Claude. I am proud to report that both Marcela and Claude can master their chopsticks well.


Ricardo not only can master his chopsticks, he can read, write and speak Chinese, as he is a Chinese medicine doctor, In his Office, you can find Chinese medicinal equipment (such as for acupuncture), books, models, even a china set for tea connoisseurs.

And then, as if there is not enough oriental touch, I somehow constantly ran into some Oriental writings here and there whenever I went.

	A Japanese instruction in one of the new lines of the Subte. Obviously, that series of the car compartments were manufactured in Japan.
	I noticed two funny things about these lantern covers: first, the white one features inside out Chinese characters; second, the meaning of the characters is something official, not poetic to say the least. Therefore, these lanterns were made in countries where Chinese were not used.
	The artwork of the T-shirt worn by this craftsman, who carved mate's cup holders at the Street Fair at Mataderos, is actually made of three stylized Chinese characters turned upside down. There is nothing specific in their meaning though.

As a final thought from my discovery of the Orients in Buenos Aires, I found a Chinese phrase at Ricardo's physician office:

"Express your words
	with honesty,
		softness,
			harmony,	and
				simplicity."

References:

Ricardo Fernàndez, O.M.D., http://www.taochia.com.ar

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