day 37: the gwapong runner encounter

original scene

930 ng gabi, umaambon ambon. konti na lang ang tao sa school. habang nasa gitna ako ng kalsada (intersection), may naulinigan akong tumatawag. pagtingin ko, nabungaran ko ang isang gwapong runner, sabay sabing, "excuse me, is this the way to the pgpr?"

original scene me: yes, go that way

revised scene 1 me: oh, im on my way there. lets run together

revised scene 2 me: i wont tell, habulin mo ko!

revised scene 3 me: i dont really know. but i know one thing, i wanna get lost with you...

dialogues

scene 1 (sa klase kagabi)

teacher: so, is it really possible to have an autonomous history?

classmate 1; yada yada yada ....

teacher: if smail would you ask you to write history, what would you write, pre-colonial, colonial or post-colonial?

classmate 1: blah blah blah

teacher: he wouldnt be too happy if you write history that way

epal me: if i read it right, i think what smail is saying is its possible to write an autonomous history, you just have to focus on the locals. he is not saying though that we should discount our Eurocentric or Americo-centric histories. histories written in those perspectives are helpful in understanding our colonial histories. theyre important in understanding our overall history as a region. but he would want us to write a history of the region in itself, something which does not focus on foreign relations.

teacher: so what kind of history would you write, pre-colonial, colonial, post-colonial?

epal me: i think he would want me to write a post-colonial history blah blah blah

classmate 2: i think blah blah blah

classmate 3: blah blah blah

teacher: he would want you to write history say from 1940 onwards, something that is NOT CENTERED ON THE COLONIAL because if you write history that is centered on that, you are giving very high importance on the colonial and not on southeadt asia as a region.

epal me: (aaahhh...yun pala yun!)

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scene 2

(nasa booth ng nus student union, titingin ng planner)

me: you still have copies of the planner?

tao sa booth: yes, we still have a few stocks left

me: can i borrow one, il jst browse through it

tao sa booth: sure. (binigay sa kin ang planner)

me: (hmm...mukha namang ok. pero dapat hindi sya lalampas ng $10) how much is this?

tao sa booth; oh, its free. do you have your matric card?

me: yeah, here. (biruin mo yun, pinapamigay ng libre ang planner!)

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scene 3 (sa klase kanina)

teacher: (discussing about dispute settlement mechanisms in wto) there's a joke that asian's dont complain or have few complains because they dont speak english well. so instead of writing, they just dont complain. thats why the asean agreement (or treaty, i forgot) has only a few pages

epal me: maybe there's some degree of truth to that because as mentioned in the readings, developing countries have fewer complaints because they dont have enough capability to gather information that would support their claim

classmates: yeah, yeah

happy monthsary singapore

Nung una tayong magkita 2 taon na ang nakararaan, hindi kita nagustuhan. Pano naman kasi, ang boring mo. Ang tahimik, ang ayos, ang linis. Eh sanay ako sa maingay at magulong Maynila. Para sa akin, para kang isang matandang mayamang masungit na laging nakapustura. Sa loob ng 3 araw na pamamalagi ko sa piling mo, ang nagustuhan ko lang, ang dami ng mapagpipiliang pagkain, ang chinatown, at ang sistema ng transportasyon mo. Ni ang pinagmamalaki mo ngang sentosa, hindi ko ikinatuwa eh. Natawa nga ako sa pinagmamalaki mong Palawan at Siloso beach. Ano ba yun, walang kabuhay-buhay. Wala sa kalingkingan ng (hindi ko alam kung ginagaya mong) Palawan sa Pilipinas.

Pero pagkalipas ng 2 taon, aba, pakiramdam ko gusto mong magpasikat sa akin. Binigyan mo ako ng pagkakataong mag-aral ng libre sa iyong pinagmamalaking unibersidad. Ginantihan mo ng kabutihan ang katarayan ko sa yo. At nagpapasalamat ako dun.

Paglapag ng eroplano ko, sinalubong mo ako ng makulimlim na langit. Umulan ka pa nga eh. Hindi ko alam kung gumaganti ka. Ilang araw pa ang lumipas, malamig pa rin ang pakikitungo mo sa akin. Lagi mong itinataon ang pag-ulan sa tuwing lalabas ako. Gumaganti ka nga!

Ngunit nang masimulan kong makita ang kagandahan mo, aba bumait ka na sa akin. At nalaman kong sadya ka lang palang moody. Sala sa init, sala sa lamig.

Sabi ng ibang mamamayan mo, isa kang bansang mahilig magpasikat. Hindi ko alam kung totoo pero so far, pinapabilib mo nga ako.

Naunawaan kong ang katahimikan mo at kaayusan ay isang paraan upang mapangalagaan mo hindi lamang ang mga mamamayan mo kundi pati na rin ang mga bisitang tumatapak sa lupain mo. Pati nga mga puti na galing sa kanluran, bilib sa yo eh. Ang ayos mo kasi. Ang mga propesor mo, ang gagaling! Laging handa pagpasok sa klase. Ang facilities mo, astig! Lahat ng kailangan ko, naibibigay mo. Minsan nga, pati yata hindi ko kailangan, binibigay mo pa rin eh. Baka masanay na ko sa pag-spoonfeed mo.

Naunawaan ko din na mabait ka naman pala. Nagsisilbi kang tahanan sa iba't ibang lahi na gustong magkaroon ng maayos at tahimik na pamumuhay. Kaya pala, halu-halo ang mamamayan mo. Sari-saring kulay, itsura, amoy at kultura. Punung-puno ka pala ng kultura.

Dati, akala ko para ka lang Fort. Yun pala, para kang pinaghalong Fort at probinsya. Meron ka ng lahat ng basic services pero ang mga mamamayan mo, pwede pa ring umuwi ng bahay ng may araw para makapaghapunan kasama ang pamilya.

Sa loob ng isang buwan, naging mabait ka naman sa akin. Wala naman akong naging problema sa iyo maliban sa mali-maling baba ko ng bus stop. Pero hindi mo kasalanan yun, ako ang may mali dun. O sige na nga, tayong 2 may mali dun. Yung mga driver mo kasi, kinakausap ako ng intsik eh hindi ko naman maintindihan.

Tsaka yung ibang mga lalaki mo ha. Nung isang araw, may nakatabi ako sa bus. Nananahimik ako tapos biglang sumigaw. Yun pala may muntik ng bumangga sa amin. Tapos nagsimula ng usapan. Eh hindi naman ako interesado. Tapos nung nalamang Pinay ako, tinanong agad kung gusto ko daw ng bagong kaibigan! Sinabihan ko ng no, its ok pero binibigay pa rin ang number. Turuan mo naman silang gumalang! Hindi porket may mga kababayan akong pumapatol sa mga mamamayan mo dala ng pangangailangan eh lahat kami ganun na din. Nakakasama yun ng loob ha!

O sya, mag-aaral pa ko. Para naman hindi sayang ang pagpapaaral mo sa akin. Basta, sana, maging maayos ang pakikitungo natin sa isa't isa. Huwag kang mag-alala, hindi ako magpapakarebelde dito. Nagrerebelde lang naman ako pag pinipilit akong sumunod sa hindi ko pinaniniwalaan eh. Pero ikaw, nakikita ko naman ang kahusayan at kabutihan mo, kaya promise, susunod ako sa yo.

Happy monthsary! Sana maging maayos ang mga susunod pa nating monthsary =)

Eto, kumakain ako ng paborito kong egg tart para ipagdiwang ang monthsary natin. At boring ka pa rin, walang libreng gravy ang manok mo sa KFC. Ok fine, titigil na ko =)

day 30: youth olympic games

(this is a late post)

monday. binulabog at hinatak ko si lito para suportahan ang philippine team. as usual, naamaze na naman ako dito. the ticket was $10 and it comes with this free debit card which also serves as an ezlink card. ergo, free ride sa bus at tren for the entire day. way to go!

this is team philippines with coach mon jose

and team us virgin islands

team pilipinas supporter

at isa pa uling team pilipinas supporter

chito loyzaga: san ba ok umupo dito?

anthony suntay: dun o sa likod, may bakante pa

coach eric altamirano (in white, nakatayo): nakakagigil! hindi ko mapigilan ang pagiging coach!

bobby parks sr (in blue, sitting): oist, eric, sit down. i wanna see my son play!

ok team, 9 points ang lamang. habulin natin.

para sa philippine flag!

magaling naman ang mga bata. eto patunay

eto pa

kaya lang, eto ang tinik sa lalamunan ng team pilipinas. ang 3-point shooter ng us virgin islands. bawat bitaw sa bola, pasok!

ok na sana

pero eto ang nangyari, 34-28, in favor of us virgin islands

the 2 coaches

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team greece vs puerto rico

team angola vs belarus (yata)

madami pa iba pero wala na kong magandang kuha

national day

I was watching the National Day parade on tv earlier and while the SAF was showing off (yep show off talaga) their capabilities with all the F15s doing acrobatics in the air; the tanks, the amphibians, etc in parade, deep inside, naiiyak ako para sa AFP natin.

I dont know if its because theyre only 45 years old and we're 112 years old, but the celebration of their national day is very much different from the way we celebrate our own independence day.

I know not everyone is hyped up but at least, the celebration goes beyond the laying of wreath on their hero's monument or announcing that the day is going to be a holiday so that people can go to the beach or to the mall and forget what the holiday is about.

I dream that one day, we can come together not just to topple a corrupt official, or remember the birth/death of someone prominent or welcome a victorious boxer but to celebrate a collective achievement as a nation. A celebration not limited to personalities but is concentrated on the achievement of the Filipino as a people and the Philippines as a nation.

I dream that one day, we as a nation can rise above what we are now and have a taste of what it feels like to live in a state where systems work.

Sana.

day 18

found a bank today with just 500 dollars of average maintaining balance. good for me

had this for lunch. 4.50 worth of shabu shabu

day 18

i really have to train my ears on the way some words are pronounced here. i was wracking my brains over what "course peck" is. iniisip ko baka short cut ng course prospectus. yun pala, course pack.

i went to the library orientation at the central library this afternoon conducted by one of the librarians. it was an interesting orientation. with the way the school uses the world wide web to widen the student's access to its resources, there would be no excuse for anyone not to read. as in ang dami dami daming resources. and looking for them is so convenient. things were so different when i was in college. feeling ko super high tech na ang OPAC sa library. soo archaic haha

and because of the accent, a lot of things said by our lecturer were understood by moi through contextual clues

i walked from the engineering auditorium all the way to the central library today! feeling ko practice for amazing race =)

got some stuff at the IT coop also. syempre dun lang ako sa 10 dollars and below ang presyo. hay buhay...

day 17: tapos na ang maliligayang araw

i whipped up 3 dishes today: stir fried toman fillet with shiitake mushrooms, garlic spinach and menudo.

the toman fillet was an experiment which turned out to be successful. sauteed spinach and menudo were old recipes.

i checked IVLE today and voila, the reading lists were there already. and i have one submission to do on aug 12, first day of class.

as ive said, tapos na ang maliligayang araw ko.

eto na to!

foodah

im a food lover. i love eating traditional food as well as those which are unfamiliar to my palate. it gives me joy to try something new not knowing how it should taste like, and if its supposed to taste the way it is it or not.

being here for the past 2 weeks have also been a food adventure for me. trying old and new food.

here's something i prepared for lunch.

stir-fried bean sprouts with tofu, cabbage and carrots.

this one is what i had for dinner when we first went to funan.

ayam penyet, an indonesian fried chicken recipe. its your deep fried chicken with sambal, lettuce and cucumber topped with dried lemon grass which looked like flossed coconut husk.

sugar cane juice to go with it because the sambal is so spicy. drinking this juice reminds me of my childhood days when we would just chop off a meter-long sugar cane from the backyard and munch/bite it off while playing.

fried dough (bicho bicho without the sugar) and soya milk from the bean house across the street, which hoys warned me about due to sanitation issues. ok next, i wont buy from there hehe

chicken sambal. a really large serving of chicken with sauteed string beans, cabbage, biryani rice and prata.

the dream

last night, i had a weird but happy dream. i dreamt of being with mimi, sezy dezy, jam, and i think some of her officemates whom i dont even know. i just knew theyre were her officemates because she told me so.

and guess what we're doing? we're planning a trip from cagayan to manila, on a motorcycle/tricyle designed like a caterpillar. there were six seats in all, one for the driver, who'll be sitting at the left seat on the front row, and the rest of the seats are for us, the passengers. its like one of those rides in the carnival.

sezy dezy is the designated driver of that ride, and she doesnt know how to do it. she's just baking on a manual which directs one how to drive that motorcycle. and we're all confident that we can reach manila with that. my biggest concern though is passing by sta fe, the biggest challenge in our ride. sta fe is a zigzag road that you have to pass through to get through cagayan. i was worrying how dezy can manouever that ride. but aside from that one "minute" detail, we were all excited about the trip.

and then i woke up.

day 15

this time, we went to toa payoh for mass. hoys will go somewhere tonight so we have to go to mass early.

we went to toa payoh mall after. its the divisoria for toiletries and household needs.

we went to a grocery store where a lot of pinoy items are being sold. pagpasok, kumakanta si yael ng crazy for you na sinundan ng parokya ng buloy

btw, if you happen to visit SG and see a mr bean stall, try their pancake and soya milk. good snack for a good price.

day 14

went to funan to buy this and other school supplies

day 13

this is the yusof ishak house, venue of the bits and bites event. bits and bites is an orientation activity organized by the office of students affairs with the participation of the international students society and the graduate students society.

in this event, new students come to party, participate in games, try food from different countries and showcase their country's culture via booths.

so here's how it looks. a sea of students cramped in one venue.

the boat is sinking, group yourselves according to height!this is the singapore booth which hosted a lot of activities.

find the singlish words is one of them. in fairness, medyo mahirap sya.see this group of girls? thats what theyre doing. finding the singlish words.biruin mo, ang relak pala ay isang commonly used singlish word! hindi ko nga lang alam kung singular din ng relax ang ibig sabihin nun hahameron ding postcard writing. cute little postcard.so syempre, gumawa ako. and because im only alloted one postcard, sa office ko na lang pinadala para siguradong makakarating. pag sa bahay baka tangayin ng pusa ng kapitbahay. phia, please share this postcard with everyone including mae and dez hahathis is the iran booth.a girl writing my name in persian.one of their traditional drinks. milk with water and salt and i dont know what else. i tried it and its ok, a bit salty and sour. para kang uminom ng suka na medyo mild.this is kaachy. its made of flour, oil, etc etc. panghmagas yata nila.date ball. nope, its neither a date food nor a gift for your date. its a ball made of dates. its sweet and is served for dessert. i also tried shirazi salad, the one on the lower left part.this is the indonesian booth.the vietnam booth.the malaysian booth.where students play sungka. its an innovative way of creating a modern day sungka.and holen hehe pare pareho lang pala ang laro ng mga batang asyano.some girls asking for bindi from the indian booth

and here's a little girl having her arm tattoed

may mga tournament ng sipa

and traditional javanese dance

there were also bands and other games like pomelo peeling contest, etc etc.

went home at around 815pm. this is how the school likes by that time.

i've been standing here waiting for the bus
on a Saturday, from an orientation night (paumanhin sa eheads)

andyan na

these are my take-home for the night. a magazine, a free shirt as a prize, my name written in persian, and an eraser from the international friendship group with our flag on it. pero ang nakasulat na pangalan, filipina.

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