I was at a pub (The Brass Monkey, for those in the know) last night and stumbled upon two tall, beautiful women – one who looked full Chinese, the other who I couldn’t see because she had her back to me. Once I got to see her, I guessed that she was half (and she confirmed by using her hand as a knife and cutting down the center of her face) and proceeded to ask her some personal questions that only mixed people allow each other to ask after just meeting. Here’s her story:

She’s half-Austrian (mother), half-Taiwanese and grew up in Taiwan. When she was 12, she moved to Austria. She speaks German, English and Chinese, all fluently. She told me that whenever the family is in Taiwan, they speak German at home. When in Austria, Chinese. Her Taiwanese father put a lot of effort into keeping her aware of her background, so she told me that she feels more Taiwanese / Chinese. She also experiences the phenomenon that when she’s in Asia, people think she’s white, when she’s in Europe, they think she’s Asian (Japanese, apparently).
I used to think I was really “half” … by blood and by culture, but this girl takes the cake.