Life as a Pinay backpacker in South America

Trisha Velarmino

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Life as a Pinay backpacker in South America
'Where are you from?'

 

“Where are you from?”

“Take a wild guess. I’ll give you 45 tries.”

“What makes you think I couldn’t get it on the 5th or 6th try? Hmmm. Let’s see. China? Thailand? Japan? Korea? Indonesia?”

“None of the above.”

“I don’t know. You could be from anywhere.”

“The Philippines.”

Then everyone’s looking at each other, figuring out who’s the bravest in the group to ask where the Philippines is. One blurts out: “Where is the Philippines?”

Ahhhh. Thank God. Blessed are those who are not scared to admit that they don’t know something.

“I am from a country in Southeast Asia where the best beaches in the world are. It is also the home to the most hospitable people in the world.”


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They are still a bit confused. “It’s near China and Thailand,” I’ll add. After that, I’ll receive this “oh-okay-we-get-it-now” face. If they still don’t understand, I’ll pull up Pinterest on my phone and show them my Phillipines folder. Everyone will start circling and look at the photos with awe.

“Your country is stunning! I want to travel there someday!” For the rest of the night, I just tell them about the islands of the Philippines, the population, the people and things that they can do when they visit my country.

But for some people, it just doesn’t register. They still think I am from China, Thailand, Korea or Japan the next day.

“For a Filipino, you speak very good English.” FYI, the educational system in my country uses English a lot.

“But we don’t meet a lot of backpackers from the Philippines. It’s rare.” I have no idea what they actually mean. Does traveling need to be labeled by citizenship? I know it’s an honest remark, but I believe every person, no matter what race or country they are from, is allowed to travel the world. Filipinos are very diverse in terms of traveling style. We’ve always been big dreamers and hard workers. This is why I am here: I want to prove to everyone that despite our passport’s limited access, we can be great “backpackers,” too.

Solo travel

One of my Couchsurfing host’s friends in Brazil once said, “You have a guest from the Philippines? Be careful! She might eat your dog while you are out!” Seriously? This is the most hilarious remark I’ve ever heard and this was the first time I ever encountered it.

In every house I’ve been in, they would always joke about it and some are really serious – they would hide their dogs in their rooms before I arrive.

This is one thing I never get tired of correcting. I grew up with dogs and they are still alive now. I was also a long-time volunteer for animal rights organizations in the Philippines and we never ate any of those shelter dogs we took care of everyday.

“But we read it in the news,” they’d follow up. I am not completely denying that I know some instances of people eating dogs, but that doesn’t mean that’s part of our everyday culture and lifestyle. I just tell them not to believe everything they see on television.

Friends from everywhere

“And oh, how are the victims of the tsunami?” What tsunami? Again, they are mistaking the Philippines for Japan or Thailand. I even get messages from other people saying, “I hope your family is okay. I heard a big tsunami hit your country.”

Maybe they are referring to the typhoons that hit us every year? I never denied that our location makes us prone to numerous typhoons but I told them that there will be seasons to visit the country safely. But the tsunami questions? I’m still asked about that as often as I’m asked about if I’m Chinese or from some other Asian country, or if we eat dogs.

I’ve gone to great lengths to make myself fluent in Spanish. I studied, I stayed with local families and put myself in situations where I didn’t have to speak English. After 6 months traveling South America, I was able to communicate fairly well. A year after, I became fluent. “She’s from the Philippines. They speak Spanish there.” No, we don’t. My history skills from grade school are always tested when this topic comes up.

My life here has been like a script. The same questions are always asked, but I never tire of explaining where I am from. I realized that despite how little others may know about our country, I am very proud to present it in my own creative ways.

They still call me chinita after one and a half years here. However, they are just pertaining to my physical features. Many of my friends here now know a great deal more about the Philippines. – Rappler.com

Trisha Velarmino is a road scholar who loves languages, burgers, cats, football, hot sauce and coffee. She is the author of the travel blog, P.S. I’m On My Way where she writes about her long-term travel adventures, volunteering, learning languages and encouraging women to travel solo. Follow her on Facebook.

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