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White Carrots and Half Boobs
Sunday, July 3, 2005-1:00 PM
Natasha and I don't speak the same mother language. I'd like to think we can communicate fine in English or Chinese, and every day we get by using a kind of pidgin combination of the two.
Once in a while, we do have problems because we speak different native languages. Usually it happens when we're watching T.V. or a movie. If we're watching English T.V., Natasha can't catch everything. If we're watching Chinese T.V., I can't catch much.
The problem is particularly acute in the case of "The Late Show with David Letterman". With no subtitles and without adequate knowledge of American pop culture, Natasha is at a complete loss when Dave starts talking about Martha Stewart's incarceration or George Bush's latest foible.
In Tibet, our tour group was feeding us the cheapest food they could find. One staple dish they gave us was "hu luo bo" which Natasha told me was carrot.
But carrots, as I know them, are orange. These were white. Since, I didn't know what they were, I just started thinking of them as carrots myself.
Last night, after another dish with "white carrot" I decided to figure out once and for all what these vegetables were. A little research revealed that this vegetable, similar to a radish, is popular in Asian cuisine. In English it's called a daikon.
After dinner, there was yet another reminder that Natasha and I don't speak the same native language. Natasha was trying to describe a low-cut shirt she saw a woman wearing. Natasha didn't approve of the shirt. I think the word she was looking for was "cleavage".
She explained, "You could see her half-boobs."
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