An insider’s snapshot views of Asia

AROUND ASIA IN 1 HOUR:
Tales of Condoms, Chillies & Curries
By Yeoh Siew Hoon
Angsana Books, 176 pages
Available at Powerbooks Specialty Store Imagine being a travel writer for 20 years, then having to boil down your wealth of experience into a short, photo-filled tourist book that businesspeople will tote along on their stopover trips to Asia. Talk about having to dumb it down.

But that’s how Singapore-based writer Yeoh Siew Hoon approached her book, a collection of short essays on Asian destinations that has a dual appeal: it’s an insider’s (i.e., Asian’s) perception of life here, while still retaining a quirky, objective eye on the region’s idiosyncrasies. It’s like she’s playing both sides: the expat’s mirthful take on a strange land, and the native’s love for all the strangeness she can uncover.

Siew Hoon originally wanted to be a tour guide, she notes in Around Asia in 1 Hour’s introduction, but was turned off by how those she met were more interested in commissions than surrounding culture. So she turned to writing instead (she doesn’t mention for which publications). This provided her with "a double orgasm," she says, because she loves to travel and loves to write.

Starting in Australia and ending up in Vietnam, Siew Hoon covers nearly every dot and land mass on the map that is collectively known as "Asia." (She questions if there even is an Asia; with such spectacular diversity, such a signifier could only be cooked up by sexplorers and travel agencies.) With a breezy style often peppered with wry observations and imaginary dialogues, Around Asia in 1 Hour could easily be consumed during a plane ride to, say, Singapore or even Palawan. Siew Hoon takes a fair snapshot view of each country she visits, drawing on culture, local news (and gossip), economic and political history, all mixed into short, whimsical sketches that rarely cover more than five pages long. Yes, she could probably go on at greater length about any of these countries (including Brunei, China, Cambodia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, New Zealand, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and yes, the Philippines); after all, that is the benefit of having 20 years of travel experience. But since the publishing market instead prefers "Asia for Dummies," this book more than fills the reading requirement.

It’s more than useful as an introduction, too. You will learn that Australia’s tourist industry was largely jump-started when the commonwealth decided to open its doors to Asian visitors. It was this mass influx of Asian tourists that made a "must-see" of Ayers Rock, the Gold Coast and koala bears. (A side-note: Australia clearly saw a market and tapped into it. The Philippines could definitely learn from this kind of pinpoint marketing.)

Without being preachy or heavy, she weaves in just enough serious background to intrigue the reader, such as the disparity in living conditions between Brunei’s royalty and its poor, or the Killing Fields of Cambodia which have become one of its biggest tourist attractions.

Being Chinese herself, she doesn’t pull any punches in describing her countrymen’s traveling habits, either:

Countries all over the world are preparing for the onslaught of Chinese travelers. Like all tourists who move in big packs, they have peculiar habits – so peculiar that they have been criticized in their own media. Some of the habits identified by the Xinhua news agency include littering, noise, disregard for queues, inappropriate dress and rudeness.

I’m being polite.

She notes that New Zealand now has a reputation among tourists worldwide as "Middle Earth," thanks to its prominent display in the Lord of the Rings movies. And she notes that Singapore is once again trying, like the hostess with a frozen rictus on her face, to project their spic-‘n’-span country as "fun, fun, fun."

And, lest we forget, she shares her impressions of the Philippines.

The Filipinos are known for throwing great parties. Their favorite venue is on the streets. Every time they want to change their head of state, they throw street carnivals where people do the cha-cha-cha to chase out the old guard.

The Western media often run headlines like "Revolution in Manila" so they can sell more newspapers. Locals often scratch their heads and say, "Hey, we were just having a good time."

It may sound simplistic, but isn’t this pretty much the way things are here in Manila? (Personally, whenever I receive a worried phone call or e-mail from the States about this mutiny or that bombing, I say, "Huh? I didn’t notice. Must have been busy that weekend...") The convivial atmosphere she puts down to Filipinos being "the most upbeat people in Asia." As Siew Hoon notes: "They see a silver lining in every typhoon, a goldmine under every earthquake and a calm after every storm."

It takes an outsider to put these things in perspective, I think. But it has to be an outsider with a sense of empathy, otherwise things just get ugly. The author is sharp enough to praise Filipinos for their musical talents ("Every hotel worth its chandeliers in Asia has a Filipino band"), and its women ("Women run the country because, well, they do the work"), a point Jessica Zafra has also made in the past. She’s also honest enough to say that, in comparison with other exotic Asian dishes, she finds Filipino food "bland, deep fried or salty."

Naturally, she praises the beauty of Palawan and its beaches, Cebu and even an aerial flight over Mount Pinatubo gets a glimpse. She ends up in Kalibo for the Ati-Atihan festival, points out that things are, as usual, quite festive – but not without mentioning that every year a few people get killed in all the reckless fireworks displays.

A good travel writer takes the pulse of whatever place he or she visits. She gets a vibe, hears stories, puts them all together with the facts and comes up with a picture that goes beyond the dry descriptions of an almanac. You can read Around Asia in 1 Hour in light sips, or read between the lines for all the deeper political and cultural forces working within each country. Siew Hoon’s snapshot essays are useful appetizers, urging you to read further on the subject. Or better yet, travel further, which is the point of such books, after all.