In this article I'll talk about what it was like my very first few weeks in the Philippines.
Preparing for My Trip
The first time I went to the Philippines, I was going because my husband had gotten a job there. We were only boyfriend and girlfriend at the time. So, I only went to see him off and support him leaving.
Before I went, I asked my Filipina friends what to expect. They told me to be very cautious when going. They told me not to take out my phone to take pictures. They told me not to wear jewelry. They told me not to take too much money out with me. They told me not to ride in taxis that weren't from Uber or a big company. They told me not to walk on the street…for instance, going on a stroll was considered dangerous.
They also told me to be careful when it came to my luggage. There's been some issues regarding luggage, drugs, and bullets finding their way into foreigner's luggage. Extortion is the goal in that scheme.
I was overwhelmed to say the least. Before I had asked them, I didn't know what to expect. But to be honest, I certainly wasn't expecting all of that. I started to freak out, so I did what I normally do. I went on Google.
I searched to see how Black women were treated in the Philippines. I found this woman who said she had THE WORST experience EVER there. She said they were so rude and racists towards her that she would never go back. So, watching that video only managed to make things worse in my head.
Leaving for The Philippines
I was really really sad and upset that my husband (then boyfriend) was leaving for the Philippines. I don't think that helped the way my trip turned out. There was first a hiccup at the airport. We got through okay, but I was still on edge because we almost missed our flight.
Then my husband got motion sickness from being on the plane when we arrived. I was worried, but we had to keep pressing on. When we got out of the airport, and were driving, I was truly shocked. I had never seen a third world country before, at least not in real life. It was quite sad. I felt so bad about the houses there, and just seeing the people on the street. It was just something I had never experienced.
My Actual Stay There
My husband was sick, after he rested though, we went to a mall close to his apartment. We took an Uber there because I could get WiFi on my phone. The mall was really nice, but there was a problem. When I went inside, everyone, and I do mean EVERYONE was staring at me.
I'm a really shy, introverted person, so I was extremely freaked out. On top of all the anxiety I already had from my friends, I thought omg, is everyone going to be racist towards me. I basically just wanted to go back to my husband's apartment and hide.
We wanted to go back home that night from the mall, I wanted to get an Uber, but my husband wanted to try to get a taxi outside. I told him that I didn't think it was a good idea. But we tried. We told the taxi driver where we lived, and he told us that he wouldn't take us!! It was too close I guess, but I had never had that happen before. We had to go right back inside the mall and get an Uber. Luckily, the mall had Wi-Fi. We made it back to his apartment okay afterwards.
There was a lot that I had never seen when I was in the Philippines. I didn’t know that you couldn’t put toilet paper in the toilet. Apparently, there are very few countries in which you CAN flush toilet paper. We couldn’t drink the tap water, and I was even scared to wash the dishes with the water because it caused a thick film on the kitchen sink. Oh, and there happened to be a rooster or chicken that woke us up EVERY morning with it’s cock-a-doodling. It was a culture shock for me, I can’t lie. I never knew that I would be complaining about first world problems, but there I was.
Racism in The Philippines?
We went to the movies at one point during my trip. The girl who was selling the ticket told me that I was really beautiful. That of course made my trip. My husband said maybe a lot of people were staring because I looked so beautiful. It changed my perspective a bit towards everyone. I realized that maybe they haven't really seen a lot of African American women in the Philippines. At least not in Cebu where I was.
After the initial shock of people staring at me, I didn't feel any type of racism when I was there. I actually felt like people were quite friendly, they were a lot different from Japanese people. I think the woman, whose video I watched, was a bit on the chubby side. I will say this, in Asia in general, they don’t like people to be overweight. They WILL tell you that you need to lose weight. My husband’s mom said it to him, and he’s not chubby. My friend’s parents also told her as well. It’s just their culture. I’m not saying that some people aren’t overweight, but they prefer smaller people.
In Conclusion…Did I Enjoy My Trip?
It was around Christmas time when I went so it was very festive. We went to the mall to eat to be on the safe side, but I got sick only a few days in. I got food poisoning. I was sick for like four or five days. So, I was sick for half my trip. Plus, I think I stressed my husband out to the max.
I did not enjoy my first few weeks there or living there in general. I do feel like it was my attitude coupled with stress. I was completely out of my element. I think the Philippines is only for the rich. I still feel strongly about that even to this day.
I'll write another article about what it was like for me living there for five months. It was a rollercoaster of a time. Well, until next time!!
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