You are a Filipino if...

Today was a Holiday so we went to look at some Chapels around the island and to a favorite tourist attraction. This is a volcano inside a lake. The place we visited had a nice restaurant with entertainment and from the place you are seated you can see the volcano. It is beautiful!

Our driver came to pick us up so Daniel didn’t have to drive. This meant that we had time to chat with our driver and facetime some of you. Remember, we are 14 hours ahead not 24 hours.  So our mornings are your evenings and vise-versa.

During our time in the car I also was reading a book called “You know you are Filipino if…” and I couldn’t help to laugh at the fact that I blend right in.  The Latin culture is so much like the Filipino culture and here is why.

You are Filipino if:

*You give your children four or five names.

*You always kiss on the cheek whenever you enter or leave a room.

* You would never be caught dead leaving a party or event without saying good bye to the hostess.

*You abide by your parents house rules even if you are over 18.

*You live with your parents until and even after you are married.

*You think nothing about hosting a houseful of relatives for weeks on end and still smile about it.

*The prospect of sending your elderly parents to a nursing home is inconceivable.

*Your house has a distinct aroma.

*You decorate your living room wall with a giant wooden spoon and fork and a picture of the “last supper.”

*You decorate your hallways with your family’s frame diplomas, certificates and plaques.

*Your parent’s furniture is still wrapped in plastic.

*Most of your home décor is made of wicker.

*You keep a fly swatter in your kitchen.

*Your kitchen table has a vinyl tablecloth.

*You recycle plastic shopping bags as garbage bags.

*You use the finest things you own only when there is company.

*You have a piano no one plays.

*You use a machete to cut the grass in the yard.

*You use a “piedra pomez” stone to scrub yourself in the shower.

*You prefer hand -wash to machine-wash laundry.

*You hang your clothes out to dry.

*You insist on having an extra bed in your hospital room.

*You use Vicks vapor Rub as insect repellent.

*You have ageless skin thanks to the high humidity of the tropics.

*Your skin is a perpetual tan that makes it resistant to skin cancer.

*You eat some foods with your hands.

*You think a meal is not a meal without rice.

*You think sandwiches are snacks, not meals.

*You feed all your visitors.

*You always cook too much.

*You always leave room at your table for unexpected or uninvited guests.

*You recycle bottles into water containers and store them for later use.

*You wash and reuse disposable Styrofoam cups, plastic spoons and forks, and aluminum wrappers. You also love recycling paper plates by covering them with wax paper.

*You prefer “bistek” to beef steak.

*When dining out you fight over who will pay for dinner.

*You hang your left arm out the car window and wave your hand to signal a left turn.

*You hang a rosary on your car’s rear view mirror to show you are religious.

*You tail an ambulance just to beat the traffic.

*You can squeeze 15 passengers into your five -seated car.

*You think traffic regulations are recommendations, not rules.

*Signs like “no left turn” or “no U turn” applies to everyone else not you.

*You think the yellow light means “step on the gas, you’ll make it!” and the guy behind you is counting on you to do just that.

*You drive where there is space even if it means converting a two-lane street into a four-lane road.

*You know that last minute maneuvers on the road are considered clever and if your car is bigger, you have the right away.

*You have the ability to create your own parking spot in a jam-packed parking lot.

*You can crack jokes, play cards and eat and drink at funeral wakes or “velaciones” and not feel irreverent.

*You feel compelled to keep a 24 hour vigils at funeral wakes.

*You think the Christmas season begins in September and ends in January.

*There are at least 50 people other than your family on your Christmas list.

*You unwrap Christmas presents ever so carefully, so you can reuse the wrappers and bows for next year.

*You can’t throw anything away.

*If you are Catholic, you make the sign of the cross every time you pass a Church.

*Your second piece of luggage is a huge box.

*You don’t know the meaning of traveling light.

*You’ve master the art of packing a suitcase to double capacity.

*Packing entails jumping up and down on your suitcase to get it closed.

*Your carry -own luggage requires a small forklift.

*You insist that customs officers who open your luggage repack everything “just the way it was.”

*You unpack and repack luggage at public international airports.

*Your collect items from airlines, hotels, and restaurants as “souvenirs.”

*You feel compelled to give “souvenirs” to all your friends and relatives each time you return from a trip.

*You can’t resist buying items on sale even if you don’t need them.

*Everything in your house was bought on sale.

*It is a must to go duty-free shopping even when you come home with ten pieces of luggage.

*After buying a new pair of shoes, you keep the box for storing things.

*You use paper foot outlines when buying shoes for your kids.

*You check the labels of clothes to see where they are made.

*You are a fashion victim.

*You point with your lips, never with your index finger.

*You smile all the time for no reason.

*You respond to the sound of a “Pssst!” in a crowd.

*You ask for Kleenex instead of tissue paper, kotex for pads or Cutex for nail polish.

*You are perfectly understood by fellow Filipinos, although you seldom mean what you say and say what you mean.

*You are always late to any event even as important as that is.

*You say, “I’ll try” or “maybe” when actually you mean No!

*You give an answer to any question, no matter how ludicrous, because you don’t want to say: “I don’t know.”

*You beat around the bush and use third parties when conveying unpleasant news.

*You cope with a serious situation by turning it into a humorous one.

*You’ll go into debt for a celebration.

*You have a high threshold for pain and suffering.

*You take to the streets during a coup to satisfy your curiosity while ducking machine-gun fire,

*You like everything imported.

*You always rather sit in the shade than bask in the sun.

*Umbrellas are used for rain or shine.

*You still hold doors open for, give up your seat to, and carry the bags of women and the elderly and assist them when boarding or stepping down from vehicles.

*It makes you uncomfortable to be praised or flattered.

*You ask people you just met how many children they have and what their spouses do for a living.

*You love to laugh at yourself and at others and no one gets offended if they are called fat or ugly.

*You give funny nicknames to all people you know. 

*You love to dance and sing Kareoke.

Well, except for the Kereoke singing, the Latino culture is very much like that! but one thing I know for sure, no matter where you are from or how behind you are compare to other countries around the world, you think yours is the best!

Con amor,

Vero