Homecoming

AFter 6 weeks in the Philippines, I'm back home the bay. It's been quite a journey, but I'll save time for reflection in the next post. Let's recap how the past week has been.

Monday- I left with Mary Ann for our trip to Bohol. We left Victorias with Ate Glenn and Kuya Buboy, who dropped us off at the Silay Airport. I'll definitely miss Mary Ann's family, especially Ate Glen and Kuya Buboy for making me feel at home. Ate Glen definitely always brought laughs. I scared her by telling her I saw ghosts, so after that she kept joking that she would slaughter me like a chicken (they take ghosts pretty seriously in the Phils. I told other ppl I saw ghosts and they believed me too). Kuya Buboy was definitely one of the chillest ppl I've met there also, always smiling and making sure u were having a good time. Anyways, we got to got to Bohol after a plane ride to Cebu, then a ferry ride to Bohol. One the Ferry we watched The Forbidden Kingdom and it was pretty good.

We got picked up by our tour guide Albert, and headed to our pension house where we were going to stay for that night (A pension house is kinda like a really cheap motel). After, we explored around the area. We picked up some pasulubong and some bootleg dvds (We got pacquiao's fights, a dvd with 25 movies, some other asian dramas/shows, and animes). After we watched the dark knight at the mall nearby, and it was pretty good in my opinion. I might be biased tho cuz Batman's my favorite superhero. After that headed back to the pension house.

Tuesday- This is when we started our tour. We first started off by seeing the Tarsiers, which were pretty cute (pictures to come). After that we drove through the man made forest. The next sight we saw was the chocolate hills, which were pretty beautiful. Seeing the hills, I thought how dope it would be to live on one of those. After that was a restaurant cruise on the Laboc river. They had a guy who played the guitar and sang some popular songs while we ate the buffet on the boat. (my highlight was the pancit).

During the ride we came to a tourist stop along the river, where some members of the Ati tribe were dancing and performing. This was a negrito tribe (indigenous people's of the Philippines, usually darker, shorter, and have curlier hair. They were named negritos by the Spanish colonizers). They were dressed up in grass skirts, and had spears and bows and arrows. As most of u folks who know me and Mary Ann, we didn't really like that these people had to be put on display as savages, for tourist entertainment. So we just watched while most of the tourists on the boat took pictures with the Ati people while they posed with spears and bows. However, we talked with one of the little girls there, and that was nice.

After this we headed back on the tour, to Baclayon church, the memorial for the compact between the Spanish and the Filipinos, and the shops where we bought some more pasulubong. After this we headed back to the Bohol Beach Resort where we stayed for the night. It was pretty beautiful, had dinner where a band sang to each table. And we sat along the beach. Sitting there in the dark, with just the moon to light up the ocean was one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. There was no sound besides the ocean waves. So for probably an hour or so we just sat staring into the vastness of the ocean. Probably one of the most peaceful moments I've had in the philippines. After this we headed back to the room.

Wednesday- We said goodbye to Bohol and to Albert and headed back again by ferry and by plane to Manila. We got picked up by Ate Che, and headed back to stay at Kuya Rhodel's apartment in Makati City. We were pretty tired, so we just knocked out, since I was going to standby for the 7:45AM Flight to Tokyo, then Tokyo to SF.

Thursday- We left early in the morning so I could standby. After getting through the line and waiting however, they told me that the flight was full and that they couldn't get me on the plane since there were no seats. (Since my mom works for the airport, we fly standby, meaning we fly for free, but we get the seats left over). I went back with Mary Ann and Ate Che to the apartment. We slept, then after got some food then came back to the apartment. Watched some of our bootleg movies, hahaha. Kung Fu panda was pretty good, The Happening was ok, and Leatherheads was ok. Was going to watch Urduja, a Filipino animated movie based on the folktale about the princess, but it was entirely in Tagalog, and I still have a lot to learn : /. After, I talked to my parents, and we decided to just buy a Philippine Airline Flight to SF, since all the flights to Tokyo, and Tokyo to SF were full. After that we just knocked out.

Friday- Slept in, and watched some more movies. We watched Kiki's Delivery Service, which was pretty good. After that got some food. Mary Ann's Kuya Bati and his son Bullet (yes, Bullet) met us up. Bullet was super cute. Kuya Bati's other son is named Bloodymere, true story. Anyways, we took the taxi to the airport, since my PAL flight was at 10, and I wanted to be there by 8. The taxi driver ripped us off, charging us 300 pesos for a ride to the terminal. The first ride we took to the airport, it only cost us 100. As we got dropped off, I stopped to give the driver a piece of my mind, something I've been meaning to do for a while since I've been here. I'll leave out the expletives (as I was pretty pissed off at this guy), but I basically told this guy off for thinking that just because I was balikbayan (a Filipino from outside the Philippines), that he could rip me off to alienate me from other people here, when I love this country and its people just as much as anyone else. I also called him an asshole.

I felt good, because this is something I've been wanting to say for a while but never found the right words to say. I want to say though that though it upsets me, I do my best to understand where people are coming from. It's just been frustrating at times when I see the disconnect between Filipinos in the Philippines and me as a Filipino-Chinese-American, and no matter what I do, I can't overcome this disconnect. I can say though that most of the people I've met here have been incredibly welcoming and loving, especially my family, Mary Ann's family, the staff at Charity First, and the people here that I've met and worked with in general.

We waited at the airport for Ate Che, who was coming all the way from Cavite to say bye to me (She's super dope like that). While we waited, I checked in my bags and took care of my terminal fee. After Ate Che arrived, I said my farewells to Ate Che, Kuya Bati, and Bullet, and Mary Ann. I boarded the plane feeling both excited and sad for leaving this place that I've come to love.

I'm home now, after my 12 hour flight. The Flight wasn't long and I watched 21 and Vantage Point. I came home to the smiles and hugs of my parents and had dinner. I'm glad to be home but I'll miss the Phils, and most importantly the people I've met there. However, I know I'll be coming back, and that I now have family and friends that have helped make a home for me over there.