kenjisbizarreadventure-blog

[kenjisbizarreadventure-blog]

[kenjisbizarreadventure-blog]

[kenjisbizarreadventure-blog]

It has always been my dream to travel to the Philippines. My community is filled with Filipino influences, Filipino people, restaurants, cultural festivals, yet I’ve never truly felt like I’ve understood what it means to be Filipino. To that end, I wish to travel to the Philippines in order to discover my roots, and to find out more about my culture. I’ve created my blog as a sort of log as I strive to discover more about the Philippines and Filipino culture.

My first step was to collect as much information as I could about the country. News articles, some history, pictures of cultural events and monuments, as well as pictures of local people’s everyday lives, including a video of a Filipino folk dance. The goal of this would be to closely find out how the average person in the Philippines would spend their time, what they see around them every day and, in the case of the news articles, what their concerns are.

I collected blogs and videos from world travelers in order to find out their experience as outsiders with no familial or cultural connection to the area. These were helpful because they are a completely different outlook on the Philippines; they travel to vacation destinations or out into the jungle-like rural areas. For instance, in the video Exploring Itbayat and Sabtang by Travel Gretl, she explores 2 of the northernmost islands and travels to traditional villages and jungles in the Philippines. Here you can picture how generations of Filipino people lived before western culture influenced the country.

During my research into the Philippines, I found a cute video about fun Tagalog tongue-twisters that shows off the linguistics of the Filipino native language, Tagalog. Unfortunately I cannot speak the language at all. I don’t have the chops to begin to pronounce the tongue-twisters. From my experience as a half-Filipino guy living in America, this is not uncommon among younger Filipino people, especially those living outside the country. Despite this, before I travel abroad, I promise to myself that I’ll learn a fair bit of Tagalog. I believe that true mastery of any language cannot be learned without traveling to that language’s country of origin and practicing with native speakers.

In order to better understand the concerns of the Filipino common-folk, I looked-up some recent news articles about the country. I was surprised to learn from Bloomberg that some areas of the Philippines are facing major water shortages. The Philippines is a chain of tropical islands, so I assumed there would never be a need for fresh water; there would always be enough from rainfall. However it seems that this is a growing concern for the capital of Manilla. The shortage comes directly from the water company. There seems to be a problem with a new water treatment plant. Hopefully the communities without water can work together to keep everyone safe and hydrated until the plant is in working order.

My research is far from completed. I wish to find even more information about the history and culture of the Philippines. I believe I could gather more traditional songs and artwork that showcase the values of the society. I’d also like to take a virtual tour of a history museum in the Philippines in order to understand how the culture was shaped by different influences to become what it is today. I find information like this to be deeply intriguing and I hope that I can share more on my blog. I want it to be a reminder of all the work I put in to finding out more about my heritage and the Filipino culture.

  Here are some interesting links to the videos used, the travel blogs, and news articles mentioned.

https://flic.kr/p/i2g5mX

https://youtu.be/1VXtGNWHHS4

https://youtu.be/trKPBaPhKl8?t=30

  Gutierrez, J. (2019, March 17). Philippines Officially Leaves the International Criminal Court. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/17/world/asia/philippines-international-criminal-court.html

Worsening Water Shortage in Philippines Triggers Probe. (n.d.). Retrieved March 17, 2019, from https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-03-14/worsening-water-shortage-in-philippines-triggers-senate-probe

The president of the Philippines wants to rename his country. (2019, March 14). Retrieved from https://www.economist.com/asia/2019/03/16/the-president-of-the-philippines-wants-to-rename-his-country

https://www.twowanderingsoles.com/philippines-travel-guide

https://www.jonesaroundtheworld.com/one-month-in-the-philippines-travel-itinerary/

[kenjisbizarreadventure-blog]

Be Positive! Be Pinoy!

The Philippines is a country that has always been close to my heart. Being part Filipino in Hampton Roads is a blast, everywhere you look you’ll find friendly Filipino faces, famous Filipino food, and fantastic Filipino festivities in full view. There’s such a large and close-knit Filipino community here that you can’t help but be swept up in it. This is what I’ve grown up with my entire life, however I’ve never been to the Philippines. I feel it is my cultural imperative to go at least once in my life. Like a Muslim making a pilgrimage to Mecca, a trip to the Philippines feels like a true rite-of-passage.

              I think the main reason that I want to go to those beautiful islands revolves around the Filipino history and culture itself, though the aforementioned blissful tropical paradise is always a great reason to visit someplace. I’m accustomed to the day-by-day social formalities and mannerisms of Filipino-Americans at social gatherings (i.e. always be eating while around your Lola or else she’ll load up your plate so heavy you can’t even lift it.). However even when armed with such valuable social knowledge, I don’t know much about the history or the cultural origins of the Philippines. Its mainly a blurb of “and then America came and beat the Spanish during a war and that’s why we eat so much SPAM.”

              In all seriousness, I am really interested in Filipino culture, history, and to some degree, the language. When I finally make my pilgrimage, I’ll be sure to brush up on my Tagalog, visit a museum or two, and make friends with some real history nerds. Until then, please continue to support me on this blog and hopefully we can create some really meaningful memories abroad.

-Kenji