Authentic, Not Exotic

In one Amazing Race (All Star Edition) episode, contestants were required to write down names of the places the show has been to. Turned out many of the contestants cannot spell the Philippines correctly. They wrote Phillipenes, Phillipeans, etc....

While attending a lecture on the Ethnic Conflict in Southern Thailand, I stumbled upon a book entitled "Authentic Though not Exotic, Essays on Filipino Identity" by Fernando Zialcita. I just started reading it but essentially it offers another way to look at the encounter between the Western and the indigenous. It articulates that while Spanish influences has transformed our local customs, it is also true that local genius has transformed Spanish influences ensuing a new culture. Many of our ASEAN and Asian neighbors cannot understand or worst disdain the fact that there are so many Spanish influences in our culture. Many foreigners skip going to Philippines for tourism because it is not exotic enough. For the Euroamerican, our ideas and language is certainly not the stereotype of a true Asian. However, the author argues that authenticity which he defined as "fidelity to one's self in relation to one's concrete circumstances" should not be confused with the exotic. More on this when I finish reading the book, hehehe.