The Dragon’s Revenge?

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February 19, 2008 · Filed Under Milan - My Zone

Anti-Chinese feeling in my area of Milan appears to be running a little higher than usual. Someone seems to be getting some kind of warped pleasure out of scribbling ‘Cinesi merda’ (’Chinese shit’ is the translation) on the walls alongside Chinese run businesses in Via Paolo Sarpi and its immediate vicinity here in Milan.

Oddly enough, the Chinese residents of the area have not taken to writing ‘Italiani merda’ on the walls in the area, or have they? Well, I don’t really know. So, I wondered, how do you write ‘Italiani merda’ in Chinese.

Well, out of sheer curiosity I asked the bar staff of Chinese origin in a bar I pop into on Sundays for a quick coffee to write ‘Italiani merda’ in Chinese. These people chuckled a bit at my request, smiled, and then obliged, with one of them writing the offending words on a paper napkin.

Ah, I thought, now I’ll know if the Chinese are getting their own back. Except for the fact that I discovered, about two minutes later, that I could not even work out which way was the right way up for this group of two, what I assumed to be, words. I don’t even know whether the writing was a translation of the offending words, or a Chinese equivalent, to be honest. The writing could have read ‘Who is this idiot asking such a stupid question’, or worse, for all I knew.

This rather pointless act of abject curiosity has brought me to two conclusions.

First, it really would be pointless for the Chinese to go around scribbling ‘Italiani merda’ all over the place in Chinese, as the Italians would have no idea they were being insulted.

And, secondly, I doubt whether there are that many graffiti artists in China, as it would take them ages, in their elegantly complex language, to write anything on the walls there, especially seeing as the spray paint cans beloved of those who write all over the place are not the most precise of instruments. If anyone would care to correct me on the existence of graffiti artists in China, then please do.

PS We went for a Chinese meal in one of the restaurants near us this evening. And it was very good. Indeed, the fame of this particular place has even reached as far a field as Genova, or so I discovered from a friend of mine from Genova this evening.

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Tags: bar, Business, China, chinese, dragon, ethnic tension, graffiti, Italia, Italian, Italians, Language, Me, Milan, odd, Paolo Sarpi, People, tension, translation, Writing

Comments

3 Responses to “The Dragon’s Revenge?”

Gege Bau on February 20th, 2008 3:16 pm

Very funny and charming post! I like how your mind works, Alex.

Far be it from me (!) to generalize… but are Italians the most xenophobic people on earth? Granted, I live out in the deep provnices, where folks are, well, provincial. But I’ve bumped into racists in big cities too.

My very unenlightened town doesn’t have many Chinese people, but it has a very large North African community. The locals, being cowards, do not have the nerve to write anti-muslim graffiti on the walls - they prefer to plaster the walls of public bathrooms with their slogans, complete with swastikas. So heartwarming! The most common is “Islam = Merda”, but my personal favorite is “Mussulmani = FROCI”!!! Wow! A double whammy - that one managed to insult TWO groups in one!

Hey, when you drop by to pay me off and get your mandolin lesson, would you mind bringing me a very large vat of vegetarian hot&sour soup? Thanks.
AlexR on February 20th, 2008 11:17 pm

Hi Gege’,

Glad you liked the post - I’m trying to bit a little more light hearted after all the heavy weight political stuff lately.

Now, “are Italians the most xenophobic people on earth?”, well, no, I don’t think they are horrendously xenophobic. Certainly some are, and those out in the provinces tend to be this way inclined, same back in the UK. And I suspect, down in the depths of the US of A.

It also depends greatly on where you are from, and the colour of your skin. People have made a few minor jabs at me for being English, but then the English also jab at the Italians.

As for the ‘hidden’ graffiti where you live, this is very much a measure of the types who find differences so difficult to accept. My theory is that they don’t really know why they dislike these groups. I think the word for it is ‘ignorance’.

I challenge anyone to look at a human heart and identify where its former, late, possessor was either gay, Muslim, black or whatever. Truth is, underneath it all, we are all the same. As soon as we all manage to get this into our little heads, the better for the world.

And on the subject of ignorance, you’ve hit me with Yiddish, and now, vegetarian hot and sour soup. I’d love to bring you a vat of the stuff. If only I knew what it was! (I shall Google it!)

Then, if I can find this super soup here, I’ll gladly bring you some, and the 10 bucks and have a go at playing the mandolin.

Regards,

Alex

PS Can’t you try and make some of this soup? If I can create English sausages here, surely you can do soup!?
Gege Bau on February 21st, 2008 5:17 pm

You and I are the ying and the yang of the Expatriot Experience! Love it!

Ignorance - yep, that pretty much explains it. Some ignorant people have the good taste to keep it to themselves. Others have the sense to contain their ignorance to bathroom walls. I’ve always had the great luck to run into people who don’t suffer these limitations.

But HERE HERE for your beautifully right-on-the-money sentiment - the sooner people we humans get over the racism/sexism/homophobia thing, the better off we’ll all be.

Wha?? You don’t know hot&Sour SOUP? ACK! Get yourself to the nearest chinese restaurant immediately! It’s the most consoling bowl of comfort a person could ask for! Sure it’s possible to make at home… if your home doesn’t happen to be stuck in the backwoods of nowheresville where the only non-italian ingredient you can buy is ketchup.