Slanted Eye Army

Familiar paper streaks during Chinese New Year

Grandma making traditional cake, never succeeded in this personally

Grandpa, always trying to teach me how to make one of these

'Cai Kueh'

Family roots, counter alienation and confusion which helps define who we are, they provide something steady, reliable and safe in this world of disorientation. But seriously, why does the world often judge Asians or specifically Malaysian Chinese not by our own origin? I've been traveling to various places, meeting a diversity of people but dejectedly people often come in front saying: 

"Where are you from?" 

"Japanese?"
"Korean?"

"China?"

If you're lucky enough they might call you a 'Singaporean'. 

Once in Turkey, I was doing my last minute shopping with a friend of mine and these really amusing shop workers confronted us. 

"Where are you from, China?"

His friend replied: 

"Impossible that they're from China, they have beautiful eyes, double eyelids [Not to point fingers that individuals with single eyelids are less attractive or whatsoever]"

So I decided to play along and said that if they can guess where we're from [highest confident level ever since Malaysia appears to be seen by no one in this entire globe] I'll get a thing or two from their shop. What do you know, out of the blue he blurted out...

"Malaysia!"

The thing is that, why does it take people from all walks of life to recognize citizens of Malaysia? Why can't people assumed us directly that we're from Malaysia instead of making guesses that I'm from Japan or Korea or China? It's as if Asians are meant to have slanted eyes, having coitus to produce slanted eyed babies invading the world with their Asian level mentally, maybe like an empire or army of slanted eyed terminators invading mother Earth? That's my imagination, no really... I'm not even close to being a racist among people of my own roots.