“It’s
more fun in the Philippines!” – this is actually a tourism slogan well thought
out. Surely there is a range of reasons why you could have fun here, including
beaches, crystal clear waters and the like. I didn’t have time to explore all
this, sadly, as I came for just (4!) days through a work trip. But I did get to
experience what must be one of the main reasons why this country is enjoyable:
the Filipinos.
Well-known
for their friendliness and kind-hearted nature, they make you feel good about
being here. Like Joel, my Grab (the Philippines version of Uber) driver, who
shows me in passing the “best place to see the sunset of the sun”, tells me
that this is his full-time job, and when I ask whether he enjoys this work, he
says “Yes, I enjoy it. Like right now, I enjoy talking to you.”.
Or
like Ellen, who flies in as my guardian angel, after I had been roaming through
the old town of Manila, Intramuros. Trying to get back to my hotel had proven
more challenging than I had expected. For about an hour already, I had been
trying to get a taxi, but they were all either full or refusing to take me to
my hotel on the other side of town, as it is rush hour and Manila is notorious
for traffic jams. The taxi drivers prefer to get several shorter rides rather
than one long one during which they end up being stuck in the jam forever.
Slightly exasperated, as well as exhausted from the humid heat and the fumes, I
ask a security guard in front of one of Intramuros’ colonial buildings whether
he can help me hail a taxi. He proves to be no more successful than I was on my
own. Enter Ellen: She sees my peril, decidedly insists on taking me to a
Starbuck’s down the road, ignoring all my objections. Even Grab drivers are
difficult to get during rush hour, but Ellen keeps on re-sending the request to
the app on her phone and stays with me until a car finally pulls up in front of
the coffee shop 45 minutes later.
Another Filipino trait: Resilience. The Manila Cathedral was rebuilt 8 (!) times.
A day
before, during the workshop for which I am here, I had learned what “it’s more
fun in the Philippines” also means: three young women who work for the
organization that hosts the meeting perform a karaoke song (“Colours of the
wind” from the Disney Pocahontas movie – since we are in a meeting on nature
conservation!) to motivate the delegates (government representatives from 7
countries, by the way…not boy scouts) during the final stages of a group
exercise. Wouldn’t happen in this way in Switzerland, I dare say…
It’s
not all fun and games in the Philippines. I get a glimpse of that as well, even
without visiting army prisons, remote rural areas, or the red light district.
Another driver, this time I am on the way from the hotel to the airport. He
asks where I am from, then tells me that he almost went to Switzerland last
year: One of his high school class mates works in Zurich, and had invited the
whole class to come for a week. He committed to provide for all expenses. Eight
of them went, but not my driver. “Why not?”. “Because I had to work.”. He tells
me that the hotel doesn’t give him any vacation to recover from his 12 to 15
hour working days, apart from 1 day off each week. So he missed the opportunity
to visit Europe. I ask him what he likes about his job, remembering my
conversation with Joel. He says “I get to see so many places all the time. I
could not sit in an office all day long.” He didn’t see Switzerland, but he
contents himself with seeing the different neighborhoods of Manila.
