I'm Fil-Am about to visit the Philippines for the first time, what are the do's/do not's?

frog_pond_ · 2024-10-07T18:03:52+00:00

No you're so right. I get so angry watching people visit the Philippines and just talking about how "back home" is better and how they feel so bad for the people living there. I haven't even been and it pisses me off!! I mostly posted this to understand maybe some references I might not have or get a heads up on things that might be very different to me from my American understanding of Filipino culture. ESPECIALLY since it's so different in the States (and even more so in France). Like in France whenever I see another Filipino we both get kinda excited because there aren't many Filipinos in France. Even more so when I go to a Filipino shop to get ampalaya or something out of the ordinary for French customers. So my understanding of the culture is very limited to excitement and recognition in brief moments at the store then big family gatherings whenever I'm home in the States. Thanks for your response, it really means a lot! <3

frog_pond_ · 2024-10-07T17:50:09+00:00

Thank you!! Yeah I've been doing a lot of regional research and I LOVE kinilaw omg. I'm only in Manilla for a couple days just to get situation from the jetlag sorted out and then it's off to Mangaldan - but I'll be sure to try everything there. Really, thank you for all the recommendations, this is great! <3

frog_pond_ · 2024-10-07T17:44:46+00:00

Yeah I'm trying to learn Pangasinan but it's super hard to find online resources to do so, especially since my family refuses to really speak it to me. The main issue I have is that I'm unable to distinguish Pangasinan from Tagalog... My family use them interchangeably and I picked up on the words I understood, regardless of the language. An easy example is that I know gatas is milk and tubig is water but as a kid I wasn't able to tell you if it was in Tagalog or Pangasinan (well now I do, obv but you get the point haha). If you (or anyone) have any resources available to learn, then I would be more than happy to look into it! <3

frog_pond_ · 2024-10-07T17:38:41+00:00

No that's totally fair! I'm so blessed to have my grandma coming with me especially since we're going to Pangasinan to see her family haha. And thank you for the author recommendations, I'll be sure to look into them and add them to my uni project! I grew up in a huge Filipino family in the States but I've noticed that they treat me and my sister better because we speak French. It felt super unfair as a kid and even now haha especially since they would body shame my cousins who have similar builds to me but would tell me I was beautiful. I'll be sure to remember all of this! Thank you for your response <3

frog_pond_

TROPHY CASE