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Blanchards' Translations

Blanchard-Talk	Translation	Origin
HRC	Hard Rock Cafe: These can be found in Beijing, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Bangkok, Manila, Bali and Kowloon, as well as many other places in the world. Best known as meeting places for expatriates, tourist attractions for tourists, American food and music. SPG's (see below) flock here in droves...	Foreign
KFC	Kentucky Fried Chicken: Chicken ("ayam" in Malaysia and Indonesia and "gai" in Thai), is one of the few meats accepatable for consumption by all religions, hence it's popularity in Asia. Unlike the West, where it is seen as a working class or child's food, in many places in Asia it is for the middle class. However pronounciation of the full name was difficult for most Asians, hence it is know region wide just as "KFC". Still tastes bad wherever in the world you buy it. ..And in Asia the equivalent "Ayam Goreng" or "Gai Pad" down the road cooked on the street is much cheaper and tastier. ...Still, try telling that to your kids...	Foreign
Changi	Singapore's International Airport, not to be confused with the jail next door. One of the best airports in the world.	Bahasa Melayu
Kampung	The charming old wooden house villages recently abandoned by Malaysians for stucco cement houses with more security but little character. Sure you dont have to worry about the rain or the chooks wandering inside and eating your dinner. There are still many kampungs, even within Kuala Lumpur itself. The locals are embarrassed by them so you will have to find them yourself. When someone says they are "Balik Kampung", it means they are "going home" to their family village. During holiday breaks such as Hari Raya Adilfitri many city workers in Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur (and even Singapore) "balik kampung".	Bahasa Melayu and Bahasa Indonesia
SPG	Sarong Party Girl: Popularised mainly in Singapore to describe local well educated girls who lust after foreign men ('s wallets). As Singapore salaries climbed to among the highest in the world in recent years, SPGs now reserve their affections exclusively to locals. As locals are smarter to the wiles of SPGs, the latter are now an endangered breed in Singapore, even though they persist in neighbouring countries.	Singapore
Gweilo	Literally translates as "white ghost". Sometimes friendly, more often disparaging description for foreigners used in places with a substantial Chinese population that have to put with the pricks	Chinese
Farang	(or "falang" - as Thai's do not have similar sounds for the letter "l" or "r", the actual pronounciation is about half way between the two.) Thai slang for any white European foreigner. Thought to be derived from the French for "long nose".	Thai
Siphon the Python	Go to the little room (or dunny) for number one's. Ladies are advised not to use this term as they may be mistaken for a "katoey".	Strine
Feng Shui	Chinese art of designing physical environments to induce good luck and reduce bad luck. For example, if your desk faces the door of your office, youre destined to leave soon. Your front door should face an open area and not large buildings which get in the way of your forward plans. Aquariums must have a certain number of fish, and plants must be placed according to Feng Shui principles. The practice is widespread in arhitecture and surveying throughout China and countries with large Chinese populations like Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand. The Chinese government frowns on "superstition" as part of their policy of making sure there is no God greater than the state - therefore it is often portrayed as a "science". It's status as a science in reality approximates that of astrology.	Chinese
Selamat Datang	"Welcome" in Indonesian and Malaysian	Bahasa Melayu and Bahasa Indonesia
Sawasdee	(sometimes pronounced "sawatdee"). Welcome, good bye, hello, and for any occasion when you are stumped for something to say in Thailand.	Thai
Tandas	Toilet in Malaysian. In Indonesia the term "Rumah Kecil" is sometimes used - literally translated as "small room". Useful phrase after eating street food curry or "Ayam Kari".	Bahasa Melayu
Kway Teow	Flat noodle dish, originally with clams, but the hotels fill with prawns and lobsters to keep the gweilos/farangs happy. The latter prefer this dish as it is easier to eat with chopsticks than those slippery round noodles...ever tried to eat spaghetti with chopsticks....?	Chinese
Nasi Lemak	Traditional Malay breakfast which breaks all the rules for Westerners. Coconut Rice, curry, dried anchovies, peanuts and pickles...Guaranteed to increase your cholesterol count daily... Stick to the Muesli	Malay
Mai Pen Rai	Never Mind. Useful in Bangkok when discussing politics, traffic, immigration procedures, after waiting interminably for change, or anything else that will never change how much you talk about it	Thai

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