pt te AN A Story: Gio, Latif, and the Laksa When Gio was a second-year international affairs student in 1 university in Cebu City, he obtained funding to join the school €am participating in an international Model UN competition n Sydney, Australia. At the height of the competition, Gio made )lenty of new friends and became particularly close to Latif from he Malaysian team. The two first started talking when Latif asked io where he was from. Upon discovering that the Gio was from he Philippines, Latif lit up and declared that he was a big fan of ilipino actors Jericho Rosales and Kristine Hermosa. Gio was leasantly surprised to learn that Latif had seen every episode of 1e ABS-CBN telenovela Pangako sa ‘Yo (‘The Promise”). The show ad aired on Malaysian TV a few years back, and its two stars had eveloped a modest following. Ashamed that he did not know as much about Malaysia as tif knew about the Philippines, Gio asked Latif what his country as like. Latif, he discovered, was from a Muslim university in Kuala mpur. Gio asked him what he liked best about living in “KL,” d Latif immediately mentioned the food. Latif explained that in ala Lumpur, one can find Chinese, Indian, and Malay cuisines, told Gio that this assortment of foodways was the result of What is Globejyow the British reorganized Malaysian society during the colonial ‘ines. The British did little to change the way of life of the Malays who were the original residents, but brought in Chinese laborers to work in the rubber plantations and tin mines, and Indians to {velp manage the bureaucracy and serve as the initial professional ‘ore of a potential middle class. One of the ways that these ethnic {roups were identified was through their foodways. According to Latif, Malaysia eventually became famous for {/yese cuisines which can be found in the various “hawker centers" ‘cioss the nation’s cities and towns. These food stands are located \n outdoor food parks where locals and tourists taste the best of Malaysia, from nasi lemak to laksa. Gio interrupted Latif and asked, “What is laksa?” He felt more shamed at his lack of knowledge. “Ahh. ..let me show you what it js and how it is prepared” replied Latif. ee The next day, Latif took Gio to a Malaysian restaurant a few setition blocks away from the university. Gio was surprised to discover that mide Malaysian food was readily available in Sydney. Having noticed if fiom this, Latif explained to his Filipino friend that, over the years, as ashen more and more Malaysian students moved to Sydney to study, 5 Fann Malaysian restaurants followed suit. Soon after, they were catering avn jot only to these students, but to Australia-born “Sydneysiders” ofead 4 well, whose culinary tastes were becoming more and more eee diverse. show Gio finally had his first taste of laksa—a rice noodle soup in rs had ‘4 spicy coconut curry sauce. He found the flavors intense since, like most Filipinos, he was not used to spicy food. However, in deference to his friend, he persisted and eventually found himself ine enjoying the hot dish Kuala After the meal, Gio and Latif went to a nearby café and KL," ordered “flat whites’-—an espresso drink similar to latte, which is a usually served in cafés in Australia and New Zealand. Both knew sines, what flat whites were since there were Australian-inspired cafés in Alt of both Kuala Lumpur and Cebu.LLaksa: a rich and spicy rice noodle soup The new friends promised to stay in touch after the competition, and added each other on Facebook and Instagram. Over the next two years, they exchanged e-mails and posts, congratulated each other for their achievements, and commented on and liked each other's photos. Latif sent his mother’s recipe to Gio and the latter began cooking Malaysian food in his home. A few years after graduation, Gio moved to Singapore, joining many other overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in the city-state, The culture was new to him, but one thing was familiar: the food served in Singapore was no different from the Malaysian food he had discovered through Latif. He would later learn from Singaporean colleagues that the island country was once part of the British colony of Malay and the postwar independent Federation of Malaysia. Singapore, however, separated from the Federation in August 1965 and became a nation-state. Today, they may be two distinct countries in this part of the world, but Singapore and Malaysia still share the same cuisine. After he settled down in his apartment, Gio sought out and found a favorite laksa stall in Newton Hawker Center, He would spend his weekends there with with friends eating laksa and other dishes.What is Globalization? | 5 A hawker center in Singapore One Saturday, while Gio was checking his Facebook feed along the very busy Orchard Road—Singapore’s main commercial foad-—he noticed that Latif had just posted something 5 minutes earlier, It was a picture from Orchard Road. Surprised but also excited, Gio sent Latif a private message. Latif replied immediately saying that he too had moved to Singapore and was, at that moment, standing in front a department store just a few blocks away from where Gio was. The two friends met up, and after a long hug and quick questions as to what each was up to, they ducked into a café and renewed their international friendship. ..by ordering a pair of flat whites. Global Experiences at tO. chaos te fictional but verv plausible since it is,