Diaspora

I was quietly enjoying my satay ayam appetiser by the window whilst watching the world go by, when the restaurant began to have customers milling in. As it was a Friday night, in about 30 minutes after placing my order, I daresay the place was full. And you can easily tell that most of the patrons were Malaysian, despite the faux English accents, smart pinstripe suits and mwah-mwahs between friends.

I remembered my first ever experience of seeing how ‘different’ Malaysian expats in London were. It was in 1988, and I, together with a bunch of my sixth form batchmates, were roped in to wait on guests at a large Malaysian event at Porchester Hall in Bayswater. Before I go on, being an urbanite, I thought I’ve seen enough of the ways of the world as it is (despite being only 18).