Speaking in Chinese

I am mono-lingual. I can only speak English. If English has dialects, I prefer Australian English but am growing increasingly comfortable with American English.

Here is something that deeply infuriates me. I hate, hate, hate it when people that speak perfectly good English deliberately speak another language that everyone but me understands.

Call me a racist, but there is one people group that I think is particularly guilty of this crime: the Chinese. I myself am not Chinese but, fortunately or unfortunately, I have a lot of Chinese friends. I hate listening to them compare their Chinese name characters or the pronunciation of the Chinese menu. I am left there waiting for someone to translate. Worse yet, when the waiter is Chinese (but speaks English), and they insist upon ordering in Chinese.

I can understand if, say, they themselves cannot speak English; or they are uncomfortable with their English, or someone else at the table cannot speak English and requires translation; or the waiter cannot speak English; or everyone at the table speaks Chinese; or they do not know the English word for something. But excluding people for no other reason seems very disrespectful to me.

I write this because I had such an experience at lunch today. Grrr.

I have often wondered why I am so bothered by this behaviour. I think it has something to do with one trip to Singapore back in my college days. On two occasions, I was out with some (Singaporean-Chinese) friends, and the shop assistant asked my friends whether I was their maid because I was Filipino. I understand that many Filipinos work as maids in Singapore (as well as other places in South-East Asia), but I was hurt nonetheless.

This however is a different story. Bottom line, I have a very deeply rooted problem and I probably need therapy.