Mar

24

Swiss Influence

Filed Under General, Society & Culture, The Philippines, Travel/People & Places | 18 Comments


I’m now on my second week of my trip to Manila. For some strange reason, I’m doing things that are characteristically un-Pinoy (un-Filipino).

Why, for instance, do I:

– automatically clear the table and dump the food tray at the trash bin station after dining in fastfood restaurants when it should be the Filipino “busboys” (those assigned to clear the mess) doing it?

– unconsciously bring my own shopping bag as I go grocery shopping? (What was I thinking? Did I honestly think that Philippine supermarkets would charge me CHF.30 — USD.20 or PHP 12.00 — for those plastic grocery bags freely given to customers?)

– willingly put my grocery items in those free and sturdy shopping bags after each transaction and not let the cashier do it for me as is standard procedure? (Perhaps, the SM Southmall supermarket personnel found it weird that I had real initiative to do this kind of “volunteer work.”)

– carefully drive as if there are electronic police radars everywhere? (I used to be a “reckless driver” in the Philippines, according to my husband.)

– subconsciously slip into German when talking to my three-year-old niece? (e.g. One time, I asked her: “Was?” instead of “What?”)

– honestly feel surprised that sales people are willing to go the extra mile to meet my needs? (My husband and I have always felt that the “customer is not always right” in Switzerland.)

– voluntarily do the dishes and wash my own clothes when, in fact, we have a househelp?

– spontaneously greet family and friends with a beso beso (cheek-to-cheek) greeting when I was never the type to do so, being introverted. (In Switzerland, the beso beso tradition is taken into extreme: two people’s human cheeks ‘meet’ three times! But this, in itself, is another blog entry.)

– surprisingly find it awkward that the Gilmore Girls characters actually speak in English and not in German (the dubbed version I see on Vox in Switzerland)?

And then, it dawned on me: I’ve been subjected to some form of socio-cultural mutation without realizing it sooner, and perhaps, I should always unlearn and/or relearn things, depending on where I am at the moment. For the time being, I must constantly remind myself that I’m currently on sabbatical leave from all things Swiss. (Photo taken from http://www.uenon.ch)

RANDOM TRIP: When in Rome, do what the Romans do.

Mar

20

Pedestrian Panic

Filed Under Society & Culture, The Philippines | 8 Comments


I miss my acquired “pedestrian power” in Switzerland.

Today, I ventured out of my comfort zone (read: my parents’ house in Las Pinas, a city south of Manila) for the first time, and hied off to Manila with my sister using public transport. Little did I know that I had to relearn how to cross the street Philippine-style in order not to lose my life while on vacation to visit my family and friends.

In Manila’s concrete jungle, the pedestrians seem to have no rights at all. Drivers are the kings and queens of the road. They don’t let pedestrians cross the street even at pedestrian crossings. You cross at your own risk. Motorists, most often than not, are not gracious. (But in fairness to Filipino motorists, a number of pedestrians are also undisciplined and are guilty of jaywalking. During my driving days in the Philippines, I almost hit and run over people who had the gall to cross streets at undesignated places.)

This afternoon, I almost got hit by a speeding van while crossing the street along the pedestrian lane on my way to the jeepney loading zone near Manila’s city hall. If my reflex system had been undependable — that is, failing to rush to the other side of the street on time — I would have been the next police report in the area. My epitaph would have read: “Dead due to lack of alertness while crossing a main street in Manila. Forgot that white pedestrian crossings in the city are not recognized by Filipino motorists after migrating to Switzerland.”

Uninitiated Swiss people will definitely have a hard time in Metro Manila if and when they decide to tour some areas of the metropolis on foot. I think my step-mother-in-law will not survive here on Day 1 alone.

Where, o where, are the yellow pedestrian crossings of Switzerland? Suddenly, I miss the Swiss drivers who step on their breaks every time they see me cross the street at designated crossing lanes. Those yellow lines empower me with pedestrian rights, something that seem non-existent here in the Philippines.

While I can walk leisurely and with dignity as I cross the streets of Switzerland, here in Manila, just the mere thought of making the first step to reach point B from point A that traverse a busy street already gives me the jitters. I should wear a reliable pair of running shoes next time if I have the guts to go back to the “battlefield” where there’s an ongoing war between pedestrians and motorists on who has the right of way.

RANDOM TIP: Be extra alert when crossing the streets of Metro Manila.

Mar

17

Plane Seatmates

Filed Under Society & Culture, The Philippines, Travel/People & Places | 7 Comments


Before I left my husband’s beloved Switzerland for my beloved Philippines last Monday, I asked God to grant me two things: 1) a safe journey to Manila; and 2) nice seatmates during the flight back home. The Lord was good, and basically said “yes” to my requests. I arrived in my homeland in one piece, and I didn’t have seatmates akin to the Orthodox Jewish man in black garments who refused to sit beside me during a 1999 flight from Tel Aviv to Amsterdam just because I’m a woman and, thus, considered “impure.”

Seated on 23C on my flight from Zurich to Amsterdam, I encountered no problem with my first seatmate, an African lady bound for Tanzania, who was on 23A (there was no 23B passenger between us). My only “issue” with her was her constant trips to the toilet which required me, being the one seated on the aisle seat, to get up every time she uttered the line “Excuse me.”

She was a friendly seatmate who whispered to me that the KLM cabin crew was apathetic and didn’t bother to help her when she needed aid in putting her bulky bags in the baggage compartment. “They don’t care,” she remarked. “U-huh,” I replied.

I then commented that her two handcarry bags were so bulky (one was literally bulging with clothes). I later learned that she paid CHF200.00 (USD155.00) for exceeding KLM’s 20-kilo baggage weight allowance.

“The Swiss man at the airport was no good,” she said. “U-huh,” I answered, not knowing the details. I then advised her not to bring clothes anymore but only gifts to family and friends the next time she revisits her homeland. My two check-in bags, I told her, were filled only with Lindt Lindor chocolate balls, Caotina chocolate drink packs, COOP milk chocolate bars (bought at reduced prices), Victorinox Swiss Army knives, Swiss cow kiddie backpacks, and all items pleasantly Swiss. She said she would take note of this “good idea.”

We then talked about Swiss prices and the German language, and both of us were one in saying that both are “terrible.” Citing Switzerland’s high cost of living, she recounted how she had to pay CHF100.00 (CHF78.00) for taxi fare that morning to reach the Zurich Airport from her house which was just 20 minutes away from the airport by car.

We parted ways at Gate E3 of the Schipol Airport in Amsterdam where I dropped her heavy bags (she desperately needed help) prior to having our souvenir photo taken. She said it was “very nice” of me to lend her a hand. We then promised to keep in touch. Her name is Eva, and she has been living in Switzerland for two years now. After a farewell beso beso (cheek-to-cheek greeting), I then went Duty Free shopping before I proceeded to Gate F8 where a sea of Filipino faces and the sound of wild chatter awaited me. I thought I was already in the Philippines.

My next seatmates on my connecting flight to Manila were both Pinoys (Filipinos) — one was a domestic helper based in Italy, and the other, an NGO executive who attended a conference in Brazil. The former, who was sitting beside me, was pleasant to talk to, although she spent the entire journey sleeping and vomitting; she suffered from “travel sickness.” The latter was a smiling, calm person who ate her Nissin noodles with style (I should learn how to use chopsticks pronto).

I was a bit bothered, though, with the NGO exec. She kept asking personal questions — my social status in Switzerland, my career (which is non-existent as of this writing, unless being a housewife and student is considered a career), and even my state of childlessness.

The last thing I needed at that time was an unsolicited advice on how to find jobs in non-profit organizations in Geneva and how to become a child-bearing woman by going to this posh hospital in Manila to meet this miracle specialist who makes childless women become pregnant. Maybe she meant well, but when it comes to guarding my privacy, I’m more Swiss than Pinoy. Besides, who, in his/her right mind, would discuss his/her reproductive system with complete strangers in a public place?

Next month, before I fly back to Switzerland, I would like to have seatmates who will not ask me too many private questions in one go. I know I need not worry in my flight from Amsterdam to Zurich. The would-be Swiss passengers will surely be reserved. Smiles will be scarce, but that’s okay. A formal, serious seatmate is better than a too-familiar-for-comfort co-passenger. As long as nobody speaks to me in Swiss German, I will be just fine.

RANDOM TIP: Offer help to passengers flying solo who are having trouble putting their handcarry bags in the baggage compartment.

Next Page →