36. THE NEW COLONIALISTS

Many white Europeans and Americans have colonised choice areas of Asia. They came, they saw, they stayed. Despite the inconvenience of crossing borders every 1-3 months to get a fresh extension, there are those who have stayed years.

Those with means operate restaurants, pubs, travel agencies, 'consultancies,' guest houses, orphanages or just about anything to keep themselves in the country. Others, not trained as teachers, teach in language and international schools.
You'll encounter them in Thailand....Bali's a big favourite. Others are in India, Nepal, Vietnam, to a lesser extent, Sri Lanka. They've formed enclaves, where they stick with their own kind, forming private communities.

I met an American transsexual with a nice big house in Koh Samui but who moves around the country as a hooker, going to where there are festivals which draw white tourists. Every month, she crosses the border to get her stay extended, something she's been doing for 4 years. She swears she'll never return to America - she hates the people, the politicians, the hypocrisy and phony lifestyle. She was having a difficult time keeping afloat when I met her. My friend and I dropped by one night at the bar where she worked, bought 3 of us beer so she could earn some commission. She was a good soul with a kind heart but was a misfit back home.

There are others who are there for cheap sex, cheap booze and low cost of living. Others have stayed because they have met the gay companion of their dreams.

Auroville in Pondicherry is a European commune, a large village of sorts. Local Indians and other foreigners are allowed into certain areas escorted by a white resident, while others stand around like sentries watching like hawks, making sure these Asians don't walk on the grass, don't talk too loudly (it's not cultured you see) that you don't linger too long, and that the local Indians don't pee on the flowers.

The same exists in Osho's Center in Pune. Courses and accommodations are in US$ and targeted at the international community, effectively cutting out the local Indians. At both these centers, the only Asian faces are those who have lived a long time or were born in a white society. They speak German, French, American or crisp English.
 
A white resident will show visitors around the Pune Center. Dressed in their maroon cassocks, these residents look awfully pretentious - masters and mistresses of all they survey. A conversation with them will reveal a holier-than-thou demeanor - these folks carry with them their previous religious conditioning which is basically Christian/Catholic and bring this baggage into the centers. To cater to local Indian devotees of Osho, the Indians have set up centers in several cities in India, so there we have the divisions - it's organised religion all over again.

This is less pronounced in Baba's ashram, perhaps it's because he's still in his physical body, lives there and walks among the devotees. However, as a volunteer in the kitchen and dining rooms, I note that this command and control exists among the white female volunteers who live in the ashram, some for years. They are involved in the day to day running of the kitchen and cooking work.

The helpers on a daily basis are chiefly Asian volunteers and their duties are given out by these white 'supervisors' who more often than not, want to show whose 'boss'. When these folks return to their home countries, they crawl back into the holes they came out from. 

These people, chiefly Europeans, are such control freaks. They are happy as long as they are in charge giving out orders and others remain below them. The colonising mentality is so deeply ingrained into their psyche.

You can export wholesale, moronic surfies, loud-mouthed louts, football hooligans and drunken thugs to other countries, their spots don't change. They will remain insidious, the collusion will continue between individuals, companies, the private and public sectors. The glass ceiling will remain firmly in place.

While it's now politically incorrect to colonise lands, they colonise minds, through the chiefly Anglo-Saxon international media...and those charismatic, evangelising American Christianity...



'No tribe howsoever insignificant and no nation, howsoever mighty, occupies a foot of land that was not stolen' - Mark Twain

35. BALI HI !

Uluwatu

The Kechat performance - an upbeat updated version of the Ramayana story. In Muslim Jakarta and Jogya, in Buddhist Thailand - the very Hindu Ramayana ballet is a tourist staple.

Jewish friend from the UK

Elderly but spritely folks are everywhere in the places I've been to. They live proactive lives.

Every 5 years or so, I get the urge to re-visit Bali - my other island in the Sun. After the recent second bombing, I made plans to visit.

The second bombing has left Bali high and dry. They've just started to recover from the first - tourists arrivals were slowly picking up. The Balinese have long depended on tourism and the terrorists know that. The drastic drop in visitor arrivals is bad for business but good for me as the place was less crowded.

I stayed in Kuta where the first bombing took place. I had dinner in Jimbaran Bay where the second bomb went off 2 months ago. The folks are as friendly and easy going as always. Despite the slowdown, they were'nt pushy. They seem resigned to karma.

The energy in Bali is positive and the Balinese are a calm and collected lot. Despite being in the cut throat tourism industry for years, they are not corrupted by it. 

There is much give and take among shopkeepers, cabbies, travel agencies, motels and other small businesses. They may be competing with each other for the tourist dollar, yet they are friends who joke and chat during lulls in the business. The service staff are helpful and try hard to please. 

This is rare in Singapore where shopkeepers can treat their neighbours with suspicion, are cold and unfriendly and secretive. Nobody talks to one another, they would'nt know what's going on next door even if the shutters are down a whole week. Even their staff are briefed not to get too friendly with staff from other shops.

When you compete, you do not meet.

34. THE SPG

Somebody, clearly not Singaporean, wanted to know what's SPG.

The Sarong Party Girl was coined by some white trash who came to Singapore, liked what he saw, stayed, savoured the local women (he'll be a fool not to), married one, became a permanent resident so as to milk the system for all that it's worth.

The SPG describes local women who hang out at the white men's favourite watering holes, hoping to snare a white expatriate or some tourist. These women, mainly young and tanned, labour under the illusion that these are white knights in shining armour. Their uniform of choice is a low slung sarong with tight fitting tops where cups may runneth over.

It's a classic tale of when bimbo meets himbo. The men have an Asian fantasy with a penchant for skins in various shades of mocha. The deserve each other.

Singapore Airlines has long been associated with its girls in their lovely batik sarong uniforms - classic and elegant. (Note: SPG stands for Singapore Girl too)
I suspect there are white guys out there who have a fantasy about Asian women in sarongs. A friend's niece (a former SQ air stewardess) married one, at every function they attend in his home country, he wants her in her uniform. Poor girl.

Last I heard, the SPGs are a dying breed, perhaps they've wised up......or they've changed their uniform.