After a visit to the grocery shops last night I realise this is the land of petite things. Little lettuce a bit bigger than my fist, little Spanish onions and tomatoes the size of my thumb. The bread have barely any crust and are only made in the sweet variety.
Robinson's Mall, Lacson Street
The Mall as undergoing an extension. White walls, floor to ceiling windows, international cuisine restuarants surrounding a spitting water feature - the slogan as 'Experience a lifestyle change' and indeed it was for these humble people. This wasnt Philippines at all. They've obviously taken inspiration from the first world and it reminded me of Dubai. After 1 hour of eating breakfast (which was of rice, bread, fried egg and Longainsa sausages) Sheila suggested we eat lunch. It's a filo thing to constantly ask your guest if they are hungry and not take no for an answer. They eat more than three times a day, in seemingly large quantities.. I'm used to me 1-2 meals a day in small quantities. But they are all so skinny. Sheila thinks it must be the asian gene that staying skinny is easy.
'I cant believe how often you guys eat here.
'I dont think its often. This is how I normally eat. Probably because its so hot here, we burn off food quickly and have a fast metabolism.
We ate at a Mexican restuarant called Mooon, yes, with the triple 'O'. Strange. I realised that a lot of the signage here are hand written or if computerised, appear to be hand written, e.g. Comic Sans and Lucida Handwriting or Lucida Calligraphy. To the unfamiliarised eye, this confirms the (insert word opposite to Modern)ism lifestyle here.
Back to the mexican resturant with the triple o. The girls had black tops with puffy arms, a ruffled skirt striped green, red and orange and matching scrunchies in their hair. They played mexican music from the large speakers and inside the walls were orange with mexican patterened tiles and ceramic pots for decoration. It was an experience. We ate outside in the gentle breeze. I gasped in excitment when I saw San Miguel Light beer on the menu. The waiter heard me and asked if I would like some to drink. haha. It was still morning! I said, a bit later.
Sheila and boy boy needed to get their drivers license renewed so I got to roam alone for probably the first time ever being in philippines. I was kinda scared.. but there was no reason to be scared. I just get stared at. And followed in the stores by the sales assistants. Sometimes they stand 50cm in front of me look me in the eye, and then look me up and down. Umm..
Awkward. She asked me for my name,
'Hi Jen, meet Raymond. Can I have your number?'
'Um, No I'm only here on a holiday'
'So I cannot have a number?'
'No, I have a boyfriend'
'Is he filippino?'
'Yeh. Okay thanks bye'
I walked straight out. I was a little annoyed, I just wanted to shop. I couldve bought sneakers and they wouldve made a good sale but the lady had to be the young boys wing man.
Walking in the Mall i see a few white old men with younger filo women. They have children with light skin and light hair. Usually a mistisa/mistiso is good looking but not all the time. Sometimes they have strange white with a purple/browny tinge especially under their eyes. I heard a conversation between a white man and his filippina wife:
Wife: There's mcdonalds over there
Husband: I'm sure I'll find Australian food here somewhere...
I wanted to turn around and say HEY! IM AUSTRALIAN TOO! but also, pfftt you're in your wife's country embrace it you idiot. I understand traveling to the phils isnt everyone's cup of tea. I learnt how to fix a toilet because here the toilets dont work 100%.When you shower you have to use bucket and pour the water over your body while you soap yourself with the other hand. There is no hot water here so you have to get used to the sudden splash of cold water on your back.. Do not bring your best clothes, make up isnt necessary since you sweat it off anyway.
I went to the Nikey store and bought three items: a purple parachute jacket/hoodie similar to my silver one but PURPLE. I had nike written in bright yellow on the chest. It made me smile when I touched it so I bought it. I'm easy like that. $75 AUD so cheap. I also got a white tshirt with the iconic Michael Jordon pose in metallic silver in the centre. And a white Manny Pacqiao shirt. all up $120 AUD.
I bought sticky tape to stick things into my travel journal and an Art of War book, just incase I need to develop some military plans. Ive also bought a navy blue chiffon dress with yellow stripes on the chest for $15.
I need to go back when my funds have gone through my bank account. Last minute and 'ohh I'll do it later' me, I transfered funds into my card on Friday night, it will take no more than two days to get in but because Monday and Tuesday were a public holiday, I've gotta wait til Thursday! Almost one weekkk... I feel anxious when I cant access my money overseas. I'd feel stranded without money. I dont know how those backpackers who work for cash do it.
Also on Thursday my dearest mother touches down s well as Tita Grace. Mum can take me shopping and buy me what I want :D
Me: No, lemme pay for lunch
Boy Boy: Let me pay, your mum comes soon anyway, she can pay next time
Driving in Philippines is stressful for everyone in the car. There are no road rules except for stick to the left lane. There are a few traffic lights here and there, but every other intersection it's who ever pushes in gets their way. Just because its a main road doesnt mean they have right of way. You've got to read the body/car language to know who goes first. Horns are overused here, not to signal the other driver that they've fucked up, but to make them aware taht you are overtaking you, or they are very close to you. The cars on the road are so close to each other that I could reach out of my window and open their door without having to extend my arm completely.
I've noticed more new or nice looking cars here compared to when I was here four years ago. I think these people are getting richer. On my ride home from the airport I saw a Hummer! in a khaki light brown colour, soooo gangsta and also a Toyota Hilux.
My humble, wheel chaired bound Tito Manual is apologetic of his little van with no aircon. And also of his english which I honestly think is better than mine because he says words I havent heard of. Tito Manual runs an electronic repair store and school at the wrong of our compound. He is a teacher. He is the repairer. He runs this business alone. He is into philosophy, psycology, religion, history, sociology and many more... He tells me his theories. He is very intelligent. He was born with a condition that binds him to a wheel chair so it seems he finds freedom in intelligence.
Tito Manual's Theories
If you believe in God, you must believe in Satan. God is an unexplained theory, and we have accepted it as a mystery. There are many mysteries before our time. We accept the mystery of creating fire, or the mystery of electricity, or the mystery of weather. If you can accept fire then you can accept God. The human body is very complicated and well designed, there must be a creator, something this intricate cannot just be. Just as there is a house, there is an architect.
Hairy men are romantic men. There was a study conducted: A group of men were told to shave off their hair. Half of them were allowed to have sex as often as they liked and half were told to restrain themselves. At the end of the experiment, all the men shaved their hair again. The men who had sex had more hair than those who didnt. Therefore, hairy men are more romantic.. or just horny. I guess hairy men is a symbol of masculinity.
This world will come to an end because people distrust each other. When you get older you begin to behave in a way that will benefit other people, instead of acting in ways that will benefit you. That is the meaning of being mature.
How can you tell a girl is from the city or the rural area when the wind blows? If she holds on to her hair, she is a city girl. If she holds on to her skirt to keep it down, she is a country girl. City girls are materialistic and prioritise appearance. Country girls are conservative and want to protect their legs from exposure.
a lot of filippino families have at least one helper. They eat after the family have had their meal, they are allowed to shower here, and sometimes even sleep here. They are paid to wash the dishes, clothing, clean the house, go shopping, sometimes cook.. from what I'm seeing it is really more like a helper than it is a slave. They are very much apart of the family, they are spoken to and respected. Nannah said her fiance's helper was with them for 40 years. But I could imagine the unfortunate few that are taken advantaged of from cruel families.
I asked Nannah how much these helpers get paid.
The minimum pay per month in Philippines is 6,000 Pesos = $133 AUD but because their meals and showers and sometimes accomodation is catered for they are paid 2,500 to 3,000 = $55 - $66. I spent someone's 2 monthly pay at the nikey store in 5 minutes today...
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