Shocking Cultures

Whenever I feel so doomed, missing home, feeling tired and bored, it is reminds me how I wanted to be here. This! A place exactly where I am. It reminded me of my everyday prayers a long time ago that I really wanted to go away from home. Not just to earn Dirhams, but for so many reasons. And one of them is to get a life away from my rants and raves of a tiring job that was never been fairly compensated.

Now here I am. Though I am not complaining, I am more on contemplating. What and where in the world am right now?

I remember when I used to go places, I always love to capture and learn the cultures of the people. My first struggle has always been the dialect, then the currency.

Natutuwa ako mag collect ng mga pera ng ibang bansa. They are so colorful and they look like "play money". Well of course, at first they were neatly filed on my wallet. But at the end of the day, I have to spend them all. Well, at least I have taken a picture of them before they're gone with the wind. Now, that's the Rupiah. A money in Jakarta, when I have visited my sister in Indonesia. I was the happiest kid then. My sister gave me 100, 000 Rupiah. Akala ko ang yaman yaman ko na. Only to find out that their money value is so low. My gulay!

Talking about gulay, the next thing that amazed me were the vegetables. I don't know why I always want to take pictures of them eh sa totoo lang d nmn ako mahilig kumain ng gulay...Though all my different encounters whether it could be in China, Jakarta, or even in ABu Dhabi, I always get a picture of a "Gulay".

So look, eto Ang Gulay! Bow!

peppers from Indonesia

Ang talong from Abu Dhabi...

And of course, ang tumatagingting na dirhams!


I sometimes find myself weird that I whenever I capture things, I have to think that maybe I could use this for future references. Maybe I could show the next generation how it was back then. The views, the food, and the things that seems to look different from what I used to see.

That was me in Macau...


Now, as I was saying, it is indeed difficult to be at a place where you didn't used to grow up with and adopt the culture as if it was really yours. The reason why I was comparing the things that has amazed me during my travels is that today, when I am working in a world that is entirely different from a Filipino culture, It is indeed a challenge. Meaning, it is difficult. Few weeks ago, I was battling with the dialect encounters. It was so stressful to deal with people, especially in my profession as a nurse pag hindi mo sila naiintindihan. Nosebleed talaga. I remember last night when I saw a book of my mentor and asked her if I could read it. It was all in Arabic. I told her, "how could you read this all? Isn't it difficult?" Then a filipino colleague came to talk to me in Tagalog. My mentor then asked me, "how could you talk in Tagalog so fast? Isn't it so difficult?" We both then laughed.

God is so amazing. He has indeed made the world so colorful and full of wonders. Whenever I travel, I always love to learn different cultures. And never in my dreams that I would be dealing with the arabic culture this way. In one way or another, I could not complain nor question God why He chose me to be here. In the first place, it was my choice. There were so many things though I have learned in here, and I know there will be more.

Now I am looking forward of more cultures and places that I will be visiting one day. I wanna witness myself that the world is indeed ROUND! =)

There's always a first time!

It's been 3 weeks since I have been away from home. When I say away, it means, 4ooo miles away. Yes, I am here in the land of nowhere, where everything is new. The place, the culture, the people, the weather , the religion. One by one, I have to deal with it. So, let's call it a "major-major" adjustment in Abu Dhabi!

When my dad accompanied me at the airport, I was damn nervous. You know that impression of most people have on the arab place? "Scary!" So I was so afraid. I saw my other colleagues with their parents and a bunch of friends with them, teary eyed and all that. My dad left already that I was alone with all my anxieties and there were not much emotional goodbyes for me to make. Well, that's a perk, I believe so... I should re assure myself that it's ok (coz I had no choice)..

There are a lot of perks though when you had traveled a lot already before. You already know how it feels like when the plane takes off, the turbulence, the immigration process, the baggage, etc. I was alone in my journey and I knew that I would make it. And yes I did! Although may mga kasama nmng Pinoy, they were all strangers to me that time. I just took few pictures though during my plane ride, for blogging purposes (hihi)

But..... A BIG But!!! it was my first time to travel for almost 12 hours via plane with a connecting flight in Singapore. Woohooo! I was shivering, dizzy and super bored that I had already finished 3 movies on board.

Now let me show you the airport that welcomed us in land of United Arab Emirates!

amazing, right? Yeah I was amazed! But then again, I was really anxious of the life beyond this beautiful things my eyes could see....Nung una kong makakita ng mga taong naka abaya halos lahat, bigla akong natakot. Oh em gee! eto na yun! At lalo kong naramdaman yung realidad nung nakaamoy nako ng kakaibang amoy. haha.. So kelangan tagalog, syempre para hindi maintindihan.

Okay let's see...
How does it feel like to be officially called as OFW? I have been hearing a lot of things about being an OFW..

malungkot, mahirap, etc, etc...
But then again, In my life in the Philippines, I was so independent that I was living away from home that at this moment, I felt like I am still living on my own, only that it's in a brand new world! Honestly, I don't feel like missing anyone yet. (aside from my dog)...Of course my family too, pero I know, kanya kanya na nmn kami ng buhay ngayon. Lahat nasa malayo na din. Well,  I hope it would feel like this until the end of 2 years. Maganda nga siguro yung wala kang masyadong naiiwan para d ka masyadong nasasaktan. (chos)

So far, so good... I just wanna share my first few "first times" in here...
The first time I exposed myself outside, I was sunburned. The temperature was 41 degrees and it was pricking hot. I bought some hydrating creams because my face and skin was super burned. My goodness! But the good thing is that, everything in here is centralized.

So after I had recovered from the heat shock, I was so amazed to hear that it's raining din pala in here. In fairness nmn.. I took pictures again.

It was so funny that even at work, the rain was so big deal. Everybody was talking about it. Ang saya ng lahat. Umuulan! haha
Well, so much about the rain. There are other new things that amazed me in this place. Another thing is when I have my journey to work, I always encounter camels walking and passing the streets. May nakalagay pa na signage, "Be careful, camels crossing". (sayang d ko napicturan!)

After few days that we get used with the people, my anxieties and worries slowly has been deteriorating. There was even one time when I went to the mall alone. I took the taxi and I left the plate number with my friends. Afterwards,  I could hear my heart pounding.... But then again, Thank God, I reached there and got home safely.

We also experienced the place in here that is "ala- Quiapo/Divisoria" ang dating... Everything you need to buy is there. We have to hurdle the prices and it was so cheap. When we get used to the place, we again took pictures...

That's the mosque at my back..

And that's the busy streets at night.

Then, while we were walking at the mall, we passed this atm machine, which looked like a vending machine. Instead of food, it's Gold to Go! Susyalan. So pagbigyan nyo na. First time din namin makakita nito. We were so wondering how much a little gold bar costs. Then we said, "Oh, kaya nmn pala ng sweldo natin. Not Bad! pero syempre, why would we waste our money for that dba?" wala lang, just to quench our thirst of curiosity.

A closer look...

Life is full of mysteries and uncertainties. We will never know what it's like when we never try. Sometimes, we get too scared that we never get out from our shells and at the end of the day, we would end up full of regrets and "what-might-have-beens". In this journey, I have learned a lot. I know that different challenges are waiting for me ahead. But then, I know that there's nothing bigger than my faith and my courage to conquer them all. Inshallah!... =)