clifford wong wrote:

> "Victor Sack" > ¼¶¼g©ó¶l¥ó·s»D
> ...
> > Recently, we ate at a Vietnamese restaurant, possibly the only truly
> > authentic one in Germany. Among other things, we had whole curried frog
> > legs, as well as whole, unpeeled giant prawns, some deep-fried, some
> > grilled. Only chopsticks were provided. Whole large frog legs are as
> > impossible to eat with chopsticks as whole chicken legs. Besides,
> > covered with thick curry sauce, they were rather messy, of course.
> > Giant prawns needed to be peeled, but were very hot indeed. We ate them
> > all using our fingers regardless. Was this correct? The restaurant was
> > full of Vietnamese who didn't appear to be surprised, but maybe they
> > were just polite or used to farangs' uncouth behaviour...
> >
> > Victor
>
> what is the meaning of "farangs' uncouth behaviour"? my eng is not good.
> many thanks
>
> clifford

'Farang' was the (IIRC) Thai pronunciation of 'Frank', which is what they used
to call all Europeans who came to Asia in the sixteenth and seventeenth
centuries. It is still used to describe 'foreigners' from Europe, though is
probably used more widely than in Thailand these days -- including by
'farangs' to describe themselves. As foreigners, they often don't know what
local customs are, and their behaviour was often regarded by locals as being
uncouth i.e. not civilized.

--
Ken Berry