It's refreshing to hear stories from foreigners about your home town, country. Be it one of their best experiences, or one of their worst, you have to take it all in. Even if they would tell you the things you've grown accustomed to, the same things that you complain & rant about, the very same reasons that would make you burst your hate or thoughts on the social media.
'MANILA' by Paulo Correa
Their views and thoughts about Philippines can be honest, sometimes brutally for some, but it's the truth. I have no issues hearing the not-so-good feedbacks from other people because I too know the pros and cons of my homeland.
No, this is not about the late Lee Kuan Yew talking about the Philippines.
These are some of the comments of a patient I have come across recently. His work entails him to travel to eastern parts of Asia to visit and check on the satellite companies in countries like Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore and Philippines. (I DID tell him I envy him. Not just once.) He would stay for at least for a week in each stop, and he does it twice in a year. (I think I subconsciously submitted by CV to him that day.)
'What do you think about Manila?'
'It's great. I stay in Makati. I love it there. The people are nice. I stayed in the Peninsula, it was fantastic.'
'Any favourite food they forced you to try out?'
'To be honest I can't recall all the dish names, but the food is great. I love it. And the beer too!'
'What do you like about the job, particularly the visits that you do?'
'I love how each city and country presents a unique perspective and flavour. How Tokyo is so busy, how lovely and hot it is in Manila, how the food is spicy in Singapore etc.'
'Yeah, the Manila weather is crazy.'
'True. When it is hot, it is really boiling. And when it rains, it floods so badly.'
'What's one thing that you can think of about Manila that is bonkers?'
'I once tried to use the underground (He was referring to MRT), and when I went through the entrance, I saw the guards carrying heavy firearms, like armalites. I was like, seriously? I know it can be bad and unsafe out there, but firearms at public transpo? I asked the guards and they just laughed with me.'
Hey random bystander, hands up!
***
Notes:
- Random guy+firearms photo from here.
- Lee Kuan Yew story by Philstar.
- 'Manila' from post: 'Blogterview: The Art of Paulo Correa'
- To view more of Paulo's works, you can check his portfolio on behance.net/pauloexmachina or facebook.com/pauloexmachina. He would appreciate a tweet on @pauloexmachina.
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