Back in the hood

Been in Manila for six days now. I've had one get-together after another. My high school classmates from Assumption, my friends from university, and then my friends from Andersen. I've also been spending time with my sister, Leslie, and her husband Arnold and daughter Bea.

How does it feel to be back after 14 years of absence? Surreal! The city doesn't even look the same. So many high rises now, and a train transit system. Lots of development since I left. But lots of poverty, too. That part seems even worse than when I left. My sister lives in a gated community. Very posh and private. But outside those privileged walls, it's quite evident that life is hard. But I credit the Filipino spirit - people are smiling and laughing all the time. Just enjoying life, even if they have very little in way of possessions. But for a poor country, they sure like their shopping malls. It's all about the malls here. Malls in Vancouver pale in comparison!

My tagalog is getting better. My first couple of days here, my tongue was getting all twisted up so I just spoke English all the time. But speaking Tagalog got easier and I'm way more comfortable now. I even have the sing-song intonation that people here have when they speak. Give me a few more days and I'm sure I will sound just like my old self. hehehehe

It's all about food! Constantly eating - that's what I've been doing. But not sure why, I am always hungry still. Must be the heat. Maybe pigging out begets more pigging out. hmmmm...

And it's all about texting. I have been asked "do you have a cell phone?" so many times since I arrived. Sending text messages is the main method of communication here. "Just text me" and "I'll text you" are common phrases. When did the word "text" become a verb? And text they do - while walking down the street, waiting at the bus stop, sipping coffee at Starbucks. The thumb flies over the keypad at impressive speeds, composing cryptic messages, having conversations with unseen companions. A cell phone is a permanent fixture in one hand. Then there's me - with two thumbs at work, pausing after every letter to find the next one, spelling out entire words instead of using the shortcut versions. "s n d" means "is in the", "c u" means "see you", "ur" means "you are", and so on. It's crazy and everyone's really into it. I'm sure I'll also be a pro by the time I leave.

Other noteworthy observations:
- McRice burger. Instead of bread, rice has been formed into patties and the burger inserted between two rice patties. I haven't tried it yet but I will before we leave.
- Every place I've been to, the food has been superb. I'm going to take home a few more pounds than what I arrived with.
- This must be the billboard capital of the world. The highways are lined with massive billboards, many storeys high. Definitely was not like that when I left.
- Traffic is absolutely crazy. Took us 2 hours to travel approximately 50km. At least I had the billboards to entertain me.
- Skin whitening is big business here. Hmmm... What's wrong with being dark?
- The malls are the centre of social gatherings. Everybody goes to the mall, mainly to cool themselves, not really to buy anything.
- Some things are cheap, but some things are not. Lots of foreign stores are here - Guess, Kate Spade, Fendi, etc. And the prices are just like in Canada, converted to pesos. Who can afford to buy that stuff here? Weird.