Sometimes I get surprised by the kindness of people. For example this morning......
My husband Lucas and I went to the grocery after mass. I needed few things only so I got 2 packages of lumpia wrapper, 2 packages of green mongo, a bundle of lakatan banana, one pack of calamansi, one piece of ginger and three cans of spam. It was about ten in the morning but few check out counters were opened at the grocery and the queues were long. I was supposed to go to the senior priority lane but the the line over there was equally long and their carts were mostly filled to the brim. Then I saw a shorter line in between lanes, and quickly followed it. Alas the last cart at that shorter lane though had a sign that say “closed”. I smiled at the last person in line, took her “closed” sign and put it on my cart. I said I have only few items. She smiled back at me and said nothing.
But alas the counter girl on that short lane that was closing up would not agree to it. She said her last customer was the girl in front of me. That she was closing already besides she had already rejected other customers previously and they would be angry at her. So, okay okay, I was moving out. When I was leaving, some people on the other side of the long lane, advised me to go to the senior lane, but I said it was worse there. I did not even realized that those who were queueing on that long lane were sympathetic with me. Many said that the counter lady should have taken consideration since I had few items only, besides being a senior at that. I said it was okay, I will just look for another line. Then a young lady on that particular lane opened her line to let me cut in. I said “ Thank you, it’s all right. The people at the back will get angry.” But the people at her back which were mostly younger family men encouraged me to cut in. They all gave way to me. I hesitated but they all urged me to go ahead of them, including some other ladies in Muslim garbs agreed to let me in. I was extremely embarrassed but took their kind gesture. Thank you, thank you, thank you very much.
And to think, I have always been the kind of person, who would insist on following the rules and toeing the line. I am so much embarrassed that people has shown me kindness instead. Thank you.
Thank you Lord for the lesson I learn today.
Saturday, February 15, 2020
Friday, February 7, 2020
Chinese Connections
My eyes alone be speak of my ancestry. Even though I have the biggest eyes among my siblings, haha, yet people in the Philippines identify me as Chinese despite this my brownish complexion.
My heritage is complicated:
A. On my mother’s side:
1. I am a 5th generation Chinese, descended from Yu Sui Fon (Sui Fon Sero) who married Latipa Sapi, a Muslim royalty princess from Cotabato City.
2. From this union sired Kadidong Sero who married a rich Chinese merchant named Lu Shio Khun.
3. My maternal female forebears since then had been marrying Chinese men down to my generation.
B. On my father side,
1. I am a natural born Filipino, begotten of Francisco Ledesma; who was an illegitimate child of Jose Uy (a Chinese) and Maria Ledesma from Jaro, Iloilo.
2. My father was born of a Filipina mother in the Philippines, but he was brought to China as an infant and raised by a Chinese mother.
3. He came back to the Philippines at the age of 17.
4. He left Iloilo for Cotabato and married my mother Mary Go near the end of World War II on April 4, 1944.
C. In Cotabato, I grew up in a Chinese community. I studied at the Chinese school. I speak Fujian language at home, specifically the Xiamen dialect from where my maternal grandfather came from.
D. The maternal side of my family was rich and landed. My grandmother was modern in her outlook. She sent my mother for better English education in public high school and my aunts to the Notre Dame School for Girls in Cotabato. My mom and her siblings all speak good English, fluent Chinese and Maguindanaoun and many other dialects.
E. Regarding Chinese philosophies and ideology, from my father and maternal side of the family, they were more loyally inclined to association with mainland China, than Taiwan. Yet our schooling taught us to hate communism in its entirely by the Koumintang.
F. But I am a baptized Catholic and I practice my religion faithfully.
G. Yet there is no conflict there from all the above complex situations. We all live in harmony, together with our community despite affiliation, ideology, education and creed. Family members quarrel only when money is involved and gets really ugly into the picture. Hahaha.
H. How do I consider myself? I am a true, and blue, and red blooded Cotabateno.
Presently I live with my husband and the Tan’s family. My husband Lucas is a second generation Chinese in the Philippines. Both his parents came from Xiamen, China. He was a naturalized Filipino citizen under the new constitution during the Marcos time. He is a law abiding citizen and teaches all his children to be so. Our children went to the same Chinese school in Cotabato. But they speak more Tagalog than Chinese. They are also more fluent in English than Chinese. My eldest son Roy lives in USA and owes his allegiance to the United States. My second son Tom looks more Filipino than Chinese, even in complexion. Emil, my third son is married to a Mexican American who resides in the Philippines. My grandchildren are totally Chinese illiterate, non Chinese speaking and no Chinese schooling. Hopefully when they grow up, they will still remember their Chinese ancestry and be proud of it.
Meantime, whatever ancestry we belong to, let’s pray for China and its people. Let us pray for our own country too. May the Wuhan corona virus be contained as soon as possible. Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy.
My heritage is complicated:
A. On my mother’s side:
1. I am a 5th generation Chinese, descended from Yu Sui Fon (Sui Fon Sero) who married Latipa Sapi, a Muslim royalty princess from Cotabato City.
2. From this union sired Kadidong Sero who married a rich Chinese merchant named Lu Shio Khun.
3. My maternal female forebears since then had been marrying Chinese men down to my generation.
B. On my father side,
1. I am a natural born Filipino, begotten of Francisco Ledesma; who was an illegitimate child of Jose Uy (a Chinese) and Maria Ledesma from Jaro, Iloilo.
2. My father was born of a Filipina mother in the Philippines, but he was brought to China as an infant and raised by a Chinese mother.
3. He came back to the Philippines at the age of 17.
4. He left Iloilo for Cotabato and married my mother Mary Go near the end of World War II on April 4, 1944.
C. In Cotabato, I grew up in a Chinese community. I studied at the Chinese school. I speak Fujian language at home, specifically the Xiamen dialect from where my maternal grandfather came from.
D. The maternal side of my family was rich and landed. My grandmother was modern in her outlook. She sent my mother for better English education in public high school and my aunts to the Notre Dame School for Girls in Cotabato. My mom and her siblings all speak good English, fluent Chinese and Maguindanaoun and many other dialects.
E. Regarding Chinese philosophies and ideology, from my father and maternal side of the family, they were more loyally inclined to association with mainland China, than Taiwan. Yet our schooling taught us to hate communism in its entirely by the Koumintang.
F. But I am a baptized Catholic and I practice my religion faithfully.
G. Yet there is no conflict there from all the above complex situations. We all live in harmony, together with our community despite affiliation, ideology, education and creed. Family members quarrel only when money is involved and gets really ugly into the picture. Hahaha.
H. How do I consider myself? I am a true, and blue, and red blooded Cotabateno.
Presently I live with my husband and the Tan’s family. My husband Lucas is a second generation Chinese in the Philippines. Both his parents came from Xiamen, China. He was a naturalized Filipino citizen under the new constitution during the Marcos time. He is a law abiding citizen and teaches all his children to be so. Our children went to the same Chinese school in Cotabato. But they speak more Tagalog than Chinese. They are also more fluent in English than Chinese. My eldest son Roy lives in USA and owes his allegiance to the United States. My second son Tom looks more Filipino than Chinese, even in complexion. Emil, my third son is married to a Mexican American who resides in the Philippines. My grandchildren are totally Chinese illiterate, non Chinese speaking and no Chinese schooling. Hopefully when they grow up, they will still remember their Chinese ancestry and be proud of it.
Meantime, whatever ancestry we belong to, let’s pray for China and its people. Let us pray for our own country too. May the Wuhan corona virus be contained as soon as possible. Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy.
Tuesday, January 14, 2020
Volcanic Eruptions.....
The recent Taal volcanic eruption last Sunday afternoon found me and my husband safe at home in Cotabato. My daughters Martha and Marion were however at my second home in Manila. They posted pictures taken by their friends from Tagaytay and other near by areas. The eruption was a big blast that ashes fell far and wide even reaching up to Manila and Quezon City. When ashes began to fall in Quezon City, I was of course concerned about my daughters over there. I told them to close all windows at home and not rely on the maids to do so. Tomas in Cebu was also concerned about his sisters. He told them not to go out, and to stay and eat at home that night. My daughters were prepared though, they were home. They also gave the security guard an N95 face mask to use. Pretty soon, authorities began to suspend classes for Monday, declared no work in government and advised people to stay at home and not exposed themselves to the toxic ash fall.
This recent incident, made me recalled that time when Mt. Pinatubo erupted in 1991. It caught us, my children and I, living at Balete Drive, Quezon City. (While Lucas stayed behind in Cotabato.) I had during that school year, enrolled all my children at Jubilee Christian Academy. (Except for Roy who was studying at Philippine Science High.) My father Francisco Ledesma just passed away on June 5. We were that very night commemorating his ninth and last day of rosary prayer at my brother Jun place which was just right behind my apartment, where my father used to live. After the prayers, we also ate dinner over there. After dinner, while walking back home, white ashes were already falling down from the sky. At home, my son Tom began to get frighten because of the smell of sulfur. He was afraid that we would all die from toxic suffocation. He asked for us to go back to my brother’s place and sleep the night over there, due to the fact that my brother Jun had air condition units in their rooms, and thus deemed safer. That evening, I too was also concerned about my asthmatic son Roy, afraid lest the ashes would trigger him an attack. But my 4 year old twin girls were already asleep. So I told them, that the three boys can go over and sleep at my brother’s place, while we girls, together with the maid Imelda stay home. Tom would not hear of it. He wanted everybody to go. If we would not go, he would stay too. To appease his fear, I closed all the windows of the house tightly that night. The next morning, ashes encompassed all homes. Our apartment got dusted too but not as much because of the tightly closed windows. It was a Sunday, we rode the jeep and went to Mt. Carmel Church to attend mass, covering our noses with handkerchiefs. The wind was blowing ashes all over the church. There were very few church goers. It felt like a movie doomsday scenario with the almost empty pews. I was thinking, “Where are the people? Aren’t we supposed to be here for we need God more now?” According to my children specially Emil, who also recalled the incident with me, said; they remembered the priest saying a hurried and short homily. I didn’t even noticed. I didn’t even know why I wasn’t even at all that frightened. (except my concern for that one asthmatic son.) Somehow I knew we would be all right.
Still, thinking about it now, I guess I must have been maybe naive then; yet still, I am glad I was brave maybe because I had faith? I do thank you Lord for protecting us, please continue to protect us everyday.
This recent incident, made me recalled that time when Mt. Pinatubo erupted in 1991. It caught us, my children and I, living at Balete Drive, Quezon City. (While Lucas stayed behind in Cotabato.) I had during that school year, enrolled all my children at Jubilee Christian Academy. (Except for Roy who was studying at Philippine Science High.) My father Francisco Ledesma just passed away on June 5. We were that very night commemorating his ninth and last day of rosary prayer at my brother Jun place which was just right behind my apartment, where my father used to live. After the prayers, we also ate dinner over there. After dinner, while walking back home, white ashes were already falling down from the sky. At home, my son Tom began to get frighten because of the smell of sulfur. He was afraid that we would all die from toxic suffocation. He asked for us to go back to my brother’s place and sleep the night over there, due to the fact that my brother Jun had air condition units in their rooms, and thus deemed safer. That evening, I too was also concerned about my asthmatic son Roy, afraid lest the ashes would trigger him an attack. But my 4 year old twin girls were already asleep. So I told them, that the three boys can go over and sleep at my brother’s place, while we girls, together with the maid Imelda stay home. Tom would not hear of it. He wanted everybody to go. If we would not go, he would stay too. To appease his fear, I closed all the windows of the house tightly that night. The next morning, ashes encompassed all homes. Our apartment got dusted too but not as much because of the tightly closed windows. It was a Sunday, we rode the jeep and went to Mt. Carmel Church to attend mass, covering our noses with handkerchiefs. The wind was blowing ashes all over the church. There were very few church goers. It felt like a movie doomsday scenario with the almost empty pews. I was thinking, “Where are the people? Aren’t we supposed to be here for we need God more now?” According to my children specially Emil, who also recalled the incident with me, said; they remembered the priest saying a hurried and short homily. I didn’t even noticed. I didn’t even know why I wasn’t even at all that frightened. (except my concern for that one asthmatic son.) Somehow I knew we would be all right.
Still, thinking about it now, I guess I must have been maybe naive then; yet still, I am glad I was brave maybe because I had faith? I do thank you Lord for protecting us, please continue to protect us everyday.
Monday, January 6, 2020
Christmas Trees and Decorations......
Before I take down my Christmas decorations, I like to post some pictures. Every Christmas, I put up the Christmas trees and lights and decorations at my two homes (both in Cotabato and Manila) by myself with help from the housemaids. My homes are adorned with my own personal touch. During the Yuletide season, I reminisce my Christmas pasts and enjoy my Christmas present. I am 68 years old, yet still very much a child at heart. My soul does not grow old......
I took this picture of the Christmas tree at the airport pre-departure area. This was the kind of Christmas tree I had when I was young. Except for the green foil, my maiden family tree was wrapped in green crepe paper. We also curled the leafy part of it.
My Cotabato home decor this 2019.
Christmas is not complete without the crèche. I have several big and small crèches at my home in Cotabato City.
Spot the mini creche.
My porch entrance to my house. This is where I hold my parties and dancing activities.
Marion, Yuri, Martha and Angel beside the Christmas tree.
Christmas decor at my second home in Manila.
Smaller Christmas tree at my second home.
Spot the creche decked with lights.
Christmas table piece.
The children all came home to Cotabato except for Emil and Suiling who decided to visit Sue's mom in Singapore. We had a merry and hearty family filled activities. Everybody has also left this January 2020 for their respective work, home and places. All is well. God bless this family. Happy New Year! Lord, continue to keep us safe and healthy through out the year.
Sunday, January 5, 2020
Christmas Present
It's December 2019. Except for Lucas who is at work inside the store, we are all lazying up at home. My children except for Emil and Suiling, are home in Cotabato. My daughter Marion's boyfriend Marion Olmillo is also here in Cotabato visiting. On December 28, 2019, we shall be attending the school annual homecoming event. My son Tomas' batch 94 is sponsoring the homecoming program. It will surely be a grand evening. Everybody is hoping and wishing to win the grand raffle prize which is a Toyota car.
I am more relax now, but before they all arrived home, I was so stressed preparing the house: cleaning the rooms, fixing my internet, checking the toilets, installing a new water pump, repairing the water tank, putting up water heaters inside the bathrooms, decorating the house, wrapping gifts, stacking food and busying up for my annual Christmas house party on December 24th, etc, etc.....
Below are few pictures of my Yuletide activities:
I am more relax now, but before they all arrived home, I was so stressed preparing the house: cleaning the rooms, fixing my internet, checking the toilets, installing a new water pump, repairing the water tank, putting up water heaters inside the bathrooms, decorating the house, wrapping gifts, stacking food and busying up for my annual Christmas house party on December 24th, etc, etc.....
Below are few pictures of my Yuletide activities:
Watching solar eclipse at the roof top
Christmas eve party at home with family and friends.
Playing interesting Christmas game at the party.
Opening of Christmas presents at home, after the mass.
Selfies beside the Christmas tree.
Visiting churches and going around the city.
Eating out.
Going to the beach.
Taking family pictures.
Specially arranged family dinner at home. This one taken before my children depart for their respective homes and places.
Attending parties (Here with the church lecom members and our parish priest Father Samson).... and many many more happy activities this yuletide season.
I sincerely and gratefully thank God for a family filled activities this year. Thank you Lord for all the safe travels. Thank you for your birth and wonderful celebrations. Merry Christmas 2019 and Happy New Year 2020. Dear Lord, please continue to bless us with your love and protection. We love you! Happy New Year to all!!!
Wednesday, December 18, 2019
Christmas Past.....
My late mother Mary Go Ledesma raised her children like Americans. I was named after Hollywood actress Hedy Lamar and my sister Jeannette after another screen icon Jeannette Macdonald. We watched English movies, read English comic books, and were exposed very casually to the American language. My mom spoke English fluently, having been educated during the “Peace Time” at the city’s public high school. (With probably a few American teachers.) As children, we were brought up as Christians, celebrating Christmas and believing in Santa Claus. During Christmas time, however small our abode, the family never failed to put up a green crepe paper covered Christmas tree. We the children hang and decorated the tree with our mini plastic toys, Mama would string the tree with Christmas beads and Papa the final touch, decking it with colorful Christmas lights. On Christmas Eve, the kids would hang stockings on the branches of the tree, and Santa Claus never failed to fill them with candies, sweets, little coins and some little knickknacks too. As a child, I would try to stay up late to catch Santa Claus putting stuff into my stockings at night, (which to my wonderment, I never did.) and woke up very early to dig deep into the stocking on Christmas morning. For me, as a young girl, the tree was such a delight and beauty. It was also truly magical. Thus, this was how I was brought up, growing up filled with so much Christmas spirit and fun.
This wonderful childhood also included a new dress at least once a year. My mother would bring me to a modiste at Manday across the bridge to fit in for a new dress once a year for the school Christmas party. My auntie Elsa Go in Manila would also gift me with one or two beautiful ready-to-wear dresses for the season. I never wished for a present nor yearned for toys or dolls. But these were the best gifts any girl would wish for. I think my dress was always the prettiest during my elementary to high school Christmas years.
Not all was rosy pink and honey sweet though. At school, my “exchanged gift” from my Kris Kringle in class was always disappointing. Yearly I got the same cheap commercially packaged box of cookies from my classmates whoever they maybe. The cookies were completely soft and tasteless. Although on my part, I would myself go all the way to Benedicta Store to looked for a Christmas appropriate gift for my Kringler, such as a little Belen, or a mini doll or a deck of playing cards, etc. When I was in high school though, I was not eager for the exchange gifts anymore. Rather I was looking forward to receiving Christmas cards from any admiring boys. Many of my girl friends in high school were receiving plentiful of them, sadly I never got one, not even during my senior year. Yet despite my great disappointments nothing can dispel my heart. Christmas in its entirely, was great!!! There were dancing parties, school fairs, bingos, Christmas Eve’s masses, carolings, going to the beach, and food, plentiful food! How I loved them all.
To this day my Christmas past has made me remain the person I am today, a child-at-heart. And these and all and everything good on earth, I thank thee graciously Lord for coming to us on Christmas Day and for coming to us everyday. You are the greatest gift of all! Peace, joy and good will to all. Merry Christmas!!!
Sunday, November 3, 2019
Hongkong
Before I even went to HongKong, I already heard a lot about the HongKongers. According to many, the Hongkees were very rude people. If you shopped in Hongkong and asked to see a certain item but decided not to buy, the salesperson involved would get mad and abused you orally. ‘You better not ask to see anything if you don’t intend to buy’, these were warnings from friends and relatives alike who had been there.
The Chinese in Hongkong are mostly Cantonese, while majority of the Chinese in the Philippines are from Fujian. The Fujian people are hospitable and nice, while we consider the Cantonese as more patriotic and enterprising. Patriotism is good. Being enterprising is not bad either, but not to the extend of being too materialistic and rude. This opinion maybe regionalistic and bias; but honestly I think people from certain area tend to posses certain kind of characteristics, developed through long years of associations and practices. There is always some truth to it when the criticism has become widespread.
I went to HongKong for vacation several times. My Chinese brother Uy Chiong Bian lived there with his wife and children. My maternal aunt Josefina Sen too, worked and resided in Hongkong as a pharmacist for a long time. She retired as chief pharmacist at St. Mary or Queen Mary or St. Elizabeth Hospital (I don’t quite remember the exact name.)
The first time my husband Lucas and I visited HongKong was in 19- -, with his brother Dr. Domingo Tan and his wife Jackie from Virginia, USA, and our family friend Roberto Atienza and his wife Alma from Manila. We were three couples, all six of us. We stayed at the Holiday Inn, Kowloon side. We went sightseeing during the day, ate at the Jumbo floating restaurant, also ate at some popular food center places and yes, shopped at night.
From my own experience? Indeed, the Hongkongers were very very rude!!!
1. Filipinos like to do small talk. When Berto Atienza tried to do so, the salesperson from the shop rudely told him to take a walk. My husband heard the comment and was simply aghast at the rudeness of the shop keeper. This kind of comment would simply never happen in the Philippines.
2. When my husband Lucas was searching to buy an accessory camera lens from another store, somehow the salesperson inside the shop was showing him several items which he didn’t take fancy to. He asked to see another item from the display counter and the Hongkee salesman said.....” If you can not afford the cheap ones, more so you can’t afford this one.” My husband was taken aback by such rude presumption. ChiongBian my brother heard it, he quickly tried to appease my husband by saying “If you like it, we can make bargain.” But Lucas was already very angry. He said, “No more! Even if I can afford it, I have totally lost interest to shop here.”
3. On another time and another trip, this time with my children Roy, Tom and Emil. Lucas and I brought the three kids on a vacation from China to HongKong. We brought them to Ocean Park to have fun. The place was great and the children were enjoying the rides tremendously. During lunch time, we took a break. Thankfully despite the crowd, we were able to find a table at the park for ourselves. I told Lucas to sit with the children while I go ordered some food. The line was long and of course I queued with the throng of people waiting in line. When it was my turn to put my order at the counter, all of a sudden the line was broken up. People came to my left and those behind me at my right were placing orders before me. But being a mother hen, knowing that my children were already hungry, I quickly defended myself. I said first in Mandarin “Wu sien” then folllowed it up in English “I am here first”. When the counter attendant heard me thus speak, he quickly turned and attended to me first. Tsk, tsk, tsk.....maybe they thought I was an ignorant Filipino nanny. Haha!
4. My auntie Josefina Sen was very kind and hospitable when she knew we were in HongKong. She treated us to a sumptuous buffet dinner at Parklane Hotel, which my three boys were completely at awe and delighted at the array of good gourmet. Aunt Josefina was very pleased with my kids, the next night she further brought us to a newly opened restaurant. She treated us like VIP. We were chauffeured in her Mercedes Benz. (She had two including a van!). Inside this newly opened restaurant, she ordered Peking duck and plenty of other dishes. But alas, Auntie had a fit of tantrum when the waiter did not pay heed to her repeated request. (I guess it is in our blood line that we become very fierce when mad. Hehe.) She scolded the waiter in Cantonese. She said she belonged to a group of people who go out often, eating at popular places in Hongkong and she will tell all her friends not to eat there. “Your restaurant is so new and you’re so arrogant already.” She said. The restaurant quickly changed our waiters and kept on apologizing to her the whole night through. After dinner, they even gave us freebies of fresh fruits and special tea. But auntie Josefina was so angry, she didn’t take a single bite, all through out the night.
5. Despite that, I still went to HongKong several times more. I brought my twin girls for their first out of the country vacation from China to HongKong. HongKong for me was a great place. It was nice and clean, the food was superb. But I will tell you frankly, I honestly don’t trust the Hongkees much. Even the concierge at the Ambassador Hotel where we were staying, was acting superior and insisting for us to take the cab when I was asking him for certain direction. Luckily a Filipino Chinese family man heard us, and told us how to take the subway. The young man said he was helping us because he hated the rude Hongkees much. Hahaha. Luckily my brother ChiongBian was very helpful. He was always available to bring us around the metropolis. He guided us through the train transit and all. My twins had a most wonderful time in Hongkong.
6. But my experience in Hongkong was getting better. The last time I went there with Lucas and my siblings, we had better experiences with the Hongkongers. There was even a young man who voluntarily helped us buy our train tickets. He looked at my husband and told Lucas, that he could avail of senior discount. Hurrah! Things have changed. The shop people where also more engaging and friendly to us that I was able to buy more things. Maybe they were getting much competitions from Singapore, Korea and Japan. We all thought.
But alas, with the recent demonstrations, riots and destructions of properties, I say the young Hongkongers are foolish, readily destroying their own place and future. The older generations had built up Hongkong to such prosperity. Why do the youngsters want the Americans instead?! Have they totally lost their sense of history and/or geography? You are a small part of China. You are attached to the mainland no matter what. You are not an island that can be segregated. What do the foreigners care? The tourists can always go somewhere else. And America now a days does not want more immigrants specially trouble makers. Such a waste of energy. Maybe the people should just learn to be more kind, than arrogant. And things can get better.........
The Chinese in Hongkong are mostly Cantonese, while majority of the Chinese in the Philippines are from Fujian. The Fujian people are hospitable and nice, while we consider the Cantonese as more patriotic and enterprising. Patriotism is good. Being enterprising is not bad either, but not to the extend of being too materialistic and rude. This opinion maybe regionalistic and bias; but honestly I think people from certain area tend to posses certain kind of characteristics, developed through long years of associations and practices. There is always some truth to it when the criticism has become widespread.
I went to HongKong for vacation several times. My Chinese brother Uy Chiong Bian lived there with his wife and children. My maternal aunt Josefina Sen too, worked and resided in Hongkong as a pharmacist for a long time. She retired as chief pharmacist at St. Mary or Queen Mary or St. Elizabeth Hospital (I don’t quite remember the exact name.)
The first time my husband Lucas and I visited HongKong was in 19- -, with his brother Dr. Domingo Tan and his wife Jackie from Virginia, USA, and our family friend Roberto Atienza and his wife Alma from Manila. We were three couples, all six of us. We stayed at the Holiday Inn, Kowloon side. We went sightseeing during the day, ate at the Jumbo floating restaurant, also ate at some popular food center places and yes, shopped at night.
From my own experience? Indeed, the Hongkongers were very very rude!!!
1. Filipinos like to do small talk. When Berto Atienza tried to do so, the salesperson from the shop rudely told him to take a walk. My husband heard the comment and was simply aghast at the rudeness of the shop keeper. This kind of comment would simply never happen in the Philippines.
2. When my husband Lucas was searching to buy an accessory camera lens from another store, somehow the salesperson inside the shop was showing him several items which he didn’t take fancy to. He asked to see another item from the display counter and the Hongkee salesman said.....” If you can not afford the cheap ones, more so you can’t afford this one.” My husband was taken aback by such rude presumption. ChiongBian my brother heard it, he quickly tried to appease my husband by saying “If you like it, we can make bargain.” But Lucas was already very angry. He said, “No more! Even if I can afford it, I have totally lost interest to shop here.”
3. On another time and another trip, this time with my children Roy, Tom and Emil. Lucas and I brought the three kids on a vacation from China to HongKong. We brought them to Ocean Park to have fun. The place was great and the children were enjoying the rides tremendously. During lunch time, we took a break. Thankfully despite the crowd, we were able to find a table at the park for ourselves. I told Lucas to sit with the children while I go ordered some food. The line was long and of course I queued with the throng of people waiting in line. When it was my turn to put my order at the counter, all of a sudden the line was broken up. People came to my left and those behind me at my right were placing orders before me. But being a mother hen, knowing that my children were already hungry, I quickly defended myself. I said first in Mandarin “Wu sien” then folllowed it up in English “I am here first”. When the counter attendant heard me thus speak, he quickly turned and attended to me first. Tsk, tsk, tsk.....maybe they thought I was an ignorant Filipino nanny. Haha!
4. My auntie Josefina Sen was very kind and hospitable when she knew we were in HongKong. She treated us to a sumptuous buffet dinner at Parklane Hotel, which my three boys were completely at awe and delighted at the array of good gourmet. Aunt Josefina was very pleased with my kids, the next night she further brought us to a newly opened restaurant. She treated us like VIP. We were chauffeured in her Mercedes Benz. (She had two including a van!). Inside this newly opened restaurant, she ordered Peking duck and plenty of other dishes. But alas, Auntie had a fit of tantrum when the waiter did not pay heed to her repeated request. (I guess it is in our blood line that we become very fierce when mad. Hehe.) She scolded the waiter in Cantonese. She said she belonged to a group of people who go out often, eating at popular places in Hongkong and she will tell all her friends not to eat there. “Your restaurant is so new and you’re so arrogant already.” She said. The restaurant quickly changed our waiters and kept on apologizing to her the whole night through. After dinner, they even gave us freebies of fresh fruits and special tea. But auntie Josefina was so angry, she didn’t take a single bite, all through out the night.
5. Despite that, I still went to HongKong several times more. I brought my twin girls for their first out of the country vacation from China to HongKong. HongKong for me was a great place. It was nice and clean, the food was superb. But I will tell you frankly, I honestly don’t trust the Hongkees much. Even the concierge at the Ambassador Hotel where we were staying, was acting superior and insisting for us to take the cab when I was asking him for certain direction. Luckily a Filipino Chinese family man heard us, and told us how to take the subway. The young man said he was helping us because he hated the rude Hongkees much. Hahaha. Luckily my brother ChiongBian was very helpful. He was always available to bring us around the metropolis. He guided us through the train transit and all. My twins had a most wonderful time in Hongkong.
6. But my experience in Hongkong was getting better. The last time I went there with Lucas and my siblings, we had better experiences with the Hongkongers. There was even a young man who voluntarily helped us buy our train tickets. He looked at my husband and told Lucas, that he could avail of senior discount. Hurrah! Things have changed. The shop people where also more engaging and friendly to us that I was able to buy more things. Maybe they were getting much competitions from Singapore, Korea and Japan. We all thought.
But alas, with the recent demonstrations, riots and destructions of properties, I say the young Hongkongers are foolish, readily destroying their own place and future. The older generations had built up Hongkong to such prosperity. Why do the youngsters want the Americans instead?! Have they totally lost their sense of history and/or geography? You are a small part of China. You are attached to the mainland no matter what. You are not an island that can be segregated. What do the foreigners care? The tourists can always go somewhere else. And America now a days does not want more immigrants specially trouble makers. Such a waste of energy. Maybe the people should just learn to be more kind, than arrogant. And things can get better.........
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