London welcomed me with cultural appropriation in a noodle cup. It was a long day of traveling, I was too tired to think straight, I wasn't thinking when I grabbed the cup noodles, I wanted to put something in my stomach and then crash but, I just ate without reading anything and it's instant regret (the noodles do not taste good, one of the worst I've had yet). It gets worst on their website, visit at your own discretion, no surprise that the people on their team are not Asian people. @kabuto_noodles Stop selling fantasies and exotic interpretations of Asian people.
Day 321: I was a stranger but they kindly invited me to their reunion celebration, fed me and welcomed me to their home. #hmonghouse #hmongfrance
Day 319: I enjoyed a lovely afternoon by the ocean with wonderful people.
Day 318: I was going to mail postcards to friends and family while abroad but I decided that it makes more sense to make a series of postcards and then mail a copy of the series to everyone instead. Sit tight everyone, the copies will be sent after my return. Traveling by myself has been a reflective process. I cannot believe that I have to be at least one continent away to isolate the self until I have no choice but to focus on myself. I don't know when I will get another opportunity to make the kind of work that I am doing this very moment.
Day 316: July 8, 2019, Cholet, France
13 hr layover, lots to see, so much waffles, chocolates, and antique shops near the central station.
Thank you Milchhof for the welcoming. It's been wonderful staying here for one month, the majority of the people are friendly, the dogs are nice, the food is amazing, the Vietnamese food and presence in Berlin helped me survive. I'm ready for the next agenda, France.
Day 314: My last night in Berlin. The museum behind me was one of my destinations on this trip, unfortunately it was closed until the September Humboldt forum. It was filled with cultural objects and materials from places that Germany colonized. I believe they also have a small collection of Hmong textiles from the 1970s. The train station near the museum had benches that looked African inspired and seeing white bodies sit on them was a bit shocking. I don't know where to begin, how to formulate how to feel about the wonderful things here and the colonial history that is still very prevalent in the architecture and the way people see and experience other cultures and history. What does it mean to be Western? Where are the dialogues on exoticism and orientalism in museums and the arts? Unfortunately I did not have enough time to really see, hear and dive into these questions, but they continue to linger in my thoughts.
Day 310, July 02,2019: "Taiwan? Japan? China? Korea? Taiwan?" a produce vendor asked me at the flea market.
Day 304: a friend shared with me that her grandmother believes that the dab tsho is a article of protection, at times the paj ntaub look like eyes that stare back at wild spirits.
Day 303:
Day 301