Confessions of a Frustrated Traveller

I have amassed a collection of travel guide books and books about travel writing over my three-year stay here in Dubai.  They are there to constantly remind me of my dream to see more of the world and hopefully write about them.  Sadly, travelling still remains to be just a dream for several reasons:  1) Money matters.  I have had to give up travelling on several occasions because I have had to fly back home to attend a friend's wedding or spend Christmas or my birthday.  This year I had to give up my chance to ride a plane so my mom can ride one. 2) Visa issues.  It's a perennial problem of Filipino passport holders.  Hopefully, with the new job title in my visa, I can travel within the GCC sans the visa hassles.  


I decided to live in Dubai as it is a great jump-off point for travelling.  The fact that three years later, I haven't seen much is frustrating.  I am here but I am stuck, something which can also be said about the state of affairs of other things.  Ugh.  It is frustrating because I am not used to sitting still - I am meant to roam (which by the way, if you rearrange the letters of roam, you get my name).  I am hoping that all this patience will be worth it.  Someday, I will have to pack Whiskers again and the camera will not just take pictures of food.  Someday, I will get to open one of these books gathering dust on my shelf.  Someday, I will find myself and know how it feels to be alive once again.  For now, the only thing I can do is dream.

One Fateful Day and the Weekend After

15 September 2011.  A day that seemed to go along smoothly until I started my journey home.  I was waiting for the bus but a cab came first so I decided to take it.  I sat down, paused for a while to think if I should wear a seatbelt.  I got distracted and never got to put it on.  In less than five minutes, the taxi I was in got hit by an incoming car as we were turning at the roundabout.  My last thought was, "I hope the car will not hit my side hard or I will die."


In movie-like fashion, the next few seconds went by (in my mind at least) in slow motion.  I got thrown off my seat, hit my head on the other window and hit my forehead on the back of the driver's seat.  Meanwhile, the car, after the initial impact, found its way to the pavement and hit a signpost.

Thankfully, there was no blood.  I knew I would only have a few bruises and a medium-sized bump on my head.  Memories of my first road accident back in the Philippines flooded my mind.  I wasn't shaking the way I did back then but I was frantic.  I started calling people up - Ella (who was probably sleeping on the  bus).  No answer.  John*.  He is still probably at work and can easily come to my rescue.  No answer.  The HR Manager.  Got lucky.  I was in near tears and could barely speak clearly.  No chance of getting me immediately, even though the office was just 5 minutes away.  Tough.  She advised me to just get out of the cab and hail another one.  As I stood waiting, I could see the taxi driver and what looked like an Emirati woman engaging in a verbal tussle.  I took a photo of the car just in case.  At some point, the taxi driver even managed to ask me for 10 dirhams.  I refused saying I already got hurt.


I reached home, scared as hell.  I just got into an accident, the world stood still but nobody even stopped to check if I was okay.  I could not get hold of my friends and when I called my mom, there was no answer either (it was 11pm in Manila).  I send a message to John again.  And to Ella.  And to Happy.  Everyone got worried.  I tried my best to convince them I was fine and to their credit, they kept checking on me, until it was relatively safe for me to lie down and get some much-needed rest.  My Room 311/609 were quick to send messages on Facebook as well.  


The next day, my mother was still clueless about what happened.  I tried to sound casual about it, "Did you know that my taxi got hit yesterday?  Check fb for the photo."  And then I received an equivalent of a Howler via Yahoo Messenger.  I was finally convinced to go to a medical center to have a routine check.


It was not until 2 days after the accident that I had the opportunity to have my skull and neck x-rayed.  Lying down on that cold metal surface felt very strange, it almost felt like I was a corpse in the morgue.  I felt lonely and homesick. Then I heard strains of Apl de Ap (of the Black Eyed Peas)'s "Bebot" in the background.  I just had to smile - the room was dark and somber - in stark contrast to the upbeat song about hot Filipino women!  


Luckily, the radiologist was also Filipino so we had a bit of a chat.  He allowed me to look at the results.  Finally, I could not help but ask if I could take photos of the x-rays.  He chuckled and guessed that I was going to post it on Facebook!  And so here they are, four shots of my skull and neck - how interesting! :)

I have yet to fully process what has happened but I hope that the negative vibes flew upon impact.  I was starting yet another life, at 30 years and 10 months, and 100 days till Christmas!  Great!  This was the second accident, 10 years after the first one happened.  I feel blessed and extremely lucky.  I must be a real cat - 2 down, 7 more to go, lol!  I try to make light of things - perhaps it is not my time yet cos I haven't seen stars (ehem!) yet!  It was a rude wake up call, to say the least but I know it will just be the start of another series of exciting adventures (and I hope it comes in the form of either a new job, a new country or a new relationship).  For now, I am just happy to be alive and to be makulit. :)

My Life in Dubai. An Update.

I did not realize that it has been more than two months since I last wrote.  To summarize, the last few weeks have been one giant roller coaster ride, thanks to my courageous attempt to once again shake things up.


I have been calling the Jumeirah Lake Towers area my home for a month and a few days now.  Before that, I have had to sit down with various people from the company to arrange the terms of the loan, canvas several apartments, buy stuff for the home, appeal to the goodness of my colleagues and friends, make arrangements for the moving company, phone, cable, internet, DEWA and aircon and still adapt to the many changes at work.  Who said moving to your own place was ever easy?


The decision to move has been a hard and I daresay a risky one.  I have enjoyed the company of my flatmates for 14 months but I yearned for more space - space to think, to breathe and to cry.  The seed of desire was inadvertently planted by John, whom I accompanied in his search for his first place in Dubai one fine afternoon.  I thought that after three years, it was high time to aspire for something bigger.  Luckily, my colleagues were all behind me and it was not very long before I finally had the keys to my very own place.


Everyone did their bit to help - from helping me move my stuff from the old flat, to giving away their sofabed and kitchenware (I only had 2 of everything, lol!), to giving their time to buy the TV and haul it in the car.  Others provided moral support at times when I felt overwhelmed with the task at hand.  I feel truly blessed - I must have done something right to deserve the kindness that I received over the last few weeks.  


On the social front, all is fine - still going out with the same group that was formed after a meetup in the Japanese resto.  I think I have scraped the bottom in terms of forming friendships with the people at work so their presence have spelled a big difference in my life.  John in particular has been instrumental in helping me meet other people - first his flatmates and then his flatmates' friends at house parties.  The Americans are back in the radar, yey! :)  In addition to that, I have also made friends with a non-drinking set composed of an American, 2 Moroccans and 2 South Africans.  It is comforting to make new friends again - I now have people to do things and share meals with - but only time will tell if they will remain companions in this Dubai journey or turn out to be real friends.  I admit that I still bear scars of the people who have left my life and at this point I am not about to throw myself again to unchartered territory.  John, by far, is the most accessible - living just across the road in JBR and is only a Whatsapp message away.  Aside from my bestfriend, John has now become my sounding board.  I feel very lucky to have him around! :)


Work-wise, everything is as complicated as it once was!  After being shifted to the Recruitment Specialist role in June, they realized the setup would not work so I was back in reception in July.  I am very demotivated at the moment because the hope of career growth just went pffft once again.  I still enjoy being of help to everyone and they know they can rely on me for that - but it is the constant micromanaging for an unknown purpose that is making my life miserable.  The lack of clarity in the chain of command, so to speak, is doing more harm than good.  I even think it was better when we were left to our own devices.  Everyday, I am beginning to lose faith in the leadership and with it, the hope of ever progressing in my career is slowly fading.  I am willing to ride out yet another wave of discontent but this time I am unsure how long I can still hold.  


The people whom I thought I have lost have begun coming back (or at least one of them definitely is) in one way or another.  Whether they stay remains to be seen but I will not exert any more effort to save myself from any disappointments again.


I suppose you cannot have it all but it should not stop you from aspiring for something better.  I am comforted by the fact that when everything else is turning crappy, I can go home, have a good cry and relax.  I enjoy the process of making this house a home.  I love being able to rediscover my passion for cooking for in immersing myself in it, I regain a sense of control.  I love that I can now watch TV again, even though I have a crappy cable subscription.  Best of all, I love that I have a big bed  - now I can finally sleep in peace and dream of more wonderful things! :)

31st of May

I think it is but fitting to write on the last day of May to remember both the good and not-so-good things about this month.


New month, new gameplan - workwise, that is.  The first day of this month ushered in my 3-days-in-Dubai-2-days-in-Abu-Dhabi routine.  I am now officially a 50% document controller for Al Bateen Wharf Project in Abu Dhabi and a 50% all-around admin support staff (among many other things) providing support for the 3 offices in the Middle East.  In short, I have to wake up at 5am, catch the "school bus" at 645am and report to work at 8ish am in Abu Dhabi.  The same routine applies going back to Dubai and depending on what time we leave the office and the traffic along that boring stretch of road, I should be home at 8pm at the latest.  Suffice it to say that the whole waking up and trying to sleep early the night before business could be daunting.  All this stress for nothing - I still end up doing Dubai stuff only because my whole team is on site and are hardly in the Abu Dhabi office.  Unfortunately, we have promised the Client that the whole team would be based there so 3 out of 5 have to suffer from this arrangement.    The good thing is at least I get to see more of Abu Dhabi (getting to work is like a sightseeing trip of T&T's projects both past and present) and it gives me an opportunity to get to know the people there.  Of course what makes this commute doubly exhausting is I have to speak in English so early in the morning, converse with the driver and stay awake the whole trip.   Eeeeekkk!


My brother visited Dubai again after almost a year (and that's the same amount of time that I haven't seen him).  He is now based in Oman, surrounded by sand and goats, he says.  I am happy to see him again though I found myself complaining to him today that it was not enough (after all, it was about 2 hours watching the movie and another 2 hours eating, walking and taking pictures).  Please refer to the previous blog entry for my thoughts on his visit.


I spent the next few weekends in the company of my flatmates and my roommate's visiting family.  It was another excuse for us to prepare a feast and of course, to take pictures.


May also marked the loss of two of my closest friends in Dubai.  Sadly, they were casualties to this dangerous game that Stranger and I continued to play for almost 3 years now.  It took a brief and unplanned conversation with one of them for me to breakdown.  All that hurt and frustration had to give at some point.  I may not have felt the impact in April when it all happened because Singapore turned out to be my saving grace.  However, that all came back in this conversation.  I still feel betrayed and hurt by someone's paranoid and selfish act.  Stranger may have saved himself from trouble but I lost two people whom he very well knew were very dear to me.  I had to give them up so they would not be dragged any further in this mess.  I still feel sad from time to time but there is absolutely nothing I can do.


And so it is in this somewhat unhappy state that John* happened to find me.  I think my roommate was a bit concerned about me being in the center of unfortunate events.  She thought of introducing me to their office newbie so at least somebody can show him around Dubai and I would have some form of distraction.  I was very skeptical to say the least but I showed up at Nando's for Ate.  Luckily, John, in his jetlag mode, was very chatty.  I could sense that we would click.  I think I have found another kindred spirit in my midst.  There was a relief in hearing that American accent all over again.  Before the night was over, he already got invited to the flat party the next evening.  It wasn't long before he won the flat over - he's just super game for anything:  karaoke, Pinoy food and later in the bar, drinking and dancing!  I concluded that my life in Dubai was just about to become a little bit more colorful.  


On Wednesday, we had dinner with his fellow newbie (oh, I was only up for a gelato - 3 scoops of it, hehe) in Al Dente.  The next evening, we watched Hangover 2 and had dinner at Burger King.  Friday night was spent with the Tiffin Club at Kisaku Restaurant in Deira where we met fellow food enthusiasts.  He seemed to enjoy the company of the group that it was my turn to get dragged for drinks at Belgian Beer Cafe in DFC.  It was good fun hanging out with a Filipino, 2 Americans, an Englishman and a Singaporean.  This clique looks promising - they are all warm and just open to trying things that Dubai has to offer.


May also had its share of domestic squabbles towards the end of the month.  Just last week, my roommate disrupted our sleep for two days in a row because he was so drunk!  That pissed me off and so I have decided to just keep my mouth shut and see how this all goes.  Two of the most important things here are my sleep and my food.  I am already trying my best to get decent sleep as it is and any further distractions can just drive me insane.  I ended up crying in the bathroom because the alarm would not stop ringing for about 30 minutes already and it was just a little before 6am on a Friday!  It also does not help that no one seems to care about buying food even though the supplies are already running low.  In addition, dinner would be served at 9pm, knowing fully well that I cannot eat that late.  I do not want to aggravate this "sleeping problem".  Sometimes I want to shout out of frustration but I decided to just cook for myself or eat very little at dinner.  I am still having trouble sleeping either way.  I might just resort to taking antihistamines again. :(


Still not getting very far, as far as tanning is concerned.  I bought tanning oil on a whim because I wanted a bit of color to my already-becoming-a-lighter-shade-of-brown skin.  I seriously don't understand how people can stay very long in the sun!  Perhaps I just need more patience but I must admit that there is a sense of freedom in wearing a two-piece swimsuit and basking in the sun away from the prying eyes of the public.  It's always good to tune out from time to time!


Fortunately, this month ends on a positive note.  After almost three years, I finally got a raise - not much, but it's still something.  At least my flight allowance now is AED3,000 as opposed to AED2,400 (Hello, Emirates?!?!).  Surprisingly, Her Highness partly made this possible!  She must have written a very good recommendation letter for it to get approved.  I shared the news to her and said thank you.  She told me that she always puts in a good word for me.  Well I never!  The most demanding woman in the office (who also happens to be the head of my project) is actually appreciating my work!!!   It's always good to know that I am doing something right.   


Today, I participated in a photo shoot for the Annual Review.  It's a good opportunity to be seen, I suppose, given that the theme is diversity.  We will probably be the first Pinoys to be seen in the company's global publication.  Perhaps I will finally get around to submitting my piece for the People Showcase in T2 (our company's intranet).  It's high time they put the spotlight on the admin staff!  It's time to put a face to the name and the voice of T&T's cheeky receptionist in Dubai.  These will probably be my legacy before I (hopefully) move on to my next adventure.


So what's in store for the month of June?  Rain?  Nah.  Rising temperatures, ideas for indoor activity, daydreaming about travel, more food adventures and bonding time with John* and the rest of the gang and hopefully more time for updating my blogs!  Oh, and I should finally be able to build the Burj Khalifa Lego model by then!!!

May Movie Marathon

The last time I watched a movie was in February, when I was running out of other things to do.  Luckily, I was given a free ticket so I had no excuse.  I remember wanting to watch Yogi Bear but learned that the ticket did not cover 3D movies.  I ended up going alone to see No Strings Attached.  I was thinking how apt it was because Somebody was celebrating his birthday that day.  It was your usual rom-com but I enjoyed it nonetheless.


Now, as the first week of May comes to an end, I have already watched 2 movies for 2 consecutive days.  I saw Thor in 3D with my flatmate (who was seeing a 3D movie for the first time!) and by the end of the movie, we were both gushing about how Chris Hemsworth (Thor) had a striking resemblance to Brad Pitt in Troy!  I enjoyed the movie immensely and wondered how much hard work has been done to make everything look so amazing!  I was a big fan of Greek, Roman and Norse mythologies as a kid and it was really great to see Asgard and the Norse gods come to life!  I am not sure though whether the movie was faithful to the Marvel comics version as I have not read it but thought the plot was interesting enough to keep the audience hooked till the very end!  Love, love, love the movie and love, love, love Thor! ;-)


Today (well, yesterday) I saw Fast 5 with my brother who was visiting from Oman, his wife and her relative.  I think sitting just two rows from the screen made it more exciting and heart-stopping for me!  I saw the fourth installment with him too but we both agreed that this one is so much better.  I think you can never go wrong with throwing hot chicks, equally hot men, hotter cars and sizzling action scenes that will keep you on the edge!  Highly entertaining, what else can I say?


I did not realize until now how much I have missed my brother who has always been my Dubai movie buddy.  My kuya is really passionate about films and is the perfect companion whenever a big movie comes up (well he is the perfect punch bag too, hehe!).  He will patiently explain the plot especially if the movie is part of a series I have not watched.  I always have fun reviewing the movie with him afterwards.  Plus, it is always fun watching guy movies with a brother who will fill in the gaps for his sometimes clueless girly-girl sister.  I enjoy rom-coms and cartoons but I also have a penchant for action movies.  Hence, it is a joy for me to watch Fast 5 even if I don't know how to drive (he does), shoot with a gun (he does) or fight (he does).  The reason is simple:  I can indulge my boyish side and still be my brother's little sister.


Come to think of it, perhaps that is the reason why I have stopped going to the cinema for a while.  Sure, other movie buddies have come and gone, but nothing beats watching the big movies on the big screen with my big brother.  I sure hope he will be in town when X-Men and the Transformers hit the cinemas!!!

The Price I Paid

Two years to the day of that near-fatal mistake and in the light of recent events, I realize that now is the best time to take stock of the relationships I have had since I landed here in August 2008.  Coming here, I thought that making friends would be easy and I would have a diverse set of friends in no time.  Nearly three years later, the people I have met and have considered as friends, at least to some extent, have a) left the country for various reasons, b) done some unacceptable things over a period of time that it was best to just drop them and c) continued to be my friends in a not-so-involved level.  Those who have remained all happen to be fellow Pinoys who I live or have lived with.  The other two are both my friends since college days.  Perhaps their constant presence is the primary reason why I continue to survive.  I found comfort in the fact that somebody will always be there to hear me out no matter what mood I am in.  They serve as my surrogate family, stepping into the shoes of real family members who sometimes forget - asking me how I am, if I have eaten, giving me advice and alcohol relief when the going gets tough, etc. - things I will be forever grateful for.  This kind of constancy, sadly, is sorely lacking in the other relationships.  Maybe it's the transient nature of the country, or maybe it's the culture they grew up with, I am not sure.  All I know is that I either become distant or I make an effort which, in their view is just a bit too much.  Just where does one draw the line?


I think I will be kinder to myself from now on.  Today, I am resigning to the fact that there will be no room for deep connections in a place like this.  People will come and go and I can no longer look beyond each moment that I share with the people who I am with.  There won't be any more effort to try and get to know people in a deeper level.  No more thoughtful gestures except for the people who really matter.  I will only give back what is given to me, however difficult it may be for me who derives happiness in going the extra mile for somebody.  The real Roma will only be revealed to those who will display true commitment.  I have had enough of wearing my heart on my sleeve.  The barriers are now up.  Two years ago, I honestly thought that someone finally understood me and got my back.  Unfortunately, I was not up to his standards and so it was very convenient for him to drop me again, and again, and again.  The same situation would happen with someone else later on.  Estoy muy cansada.  No mas.


Sadly, it seems that missing the company of true friends is the highest price I paid for leaving the motherland.  Until I come home, everyone else will just be fellow travellers joining me till the next crossroad.  Until I come home, I will never be fully able to be myself.  For now, this is the only way I can think of to survive the harsh reality of living a strange life in a strange land.

The Holy Week That Was...

For Christians all over the world, Easter marks the culmination of the whole Lenten season. To many, it also marks the end of a 40-day long sacrifice. I can proudly say that this year may be my best ever yet, in terms of sacrifice.  For this Lenten season, I have decided to give up alcohol.  Now, this is not to say that I am an alcoholic.  I do enjoy social drinking, just that it happens almost every week, thanks to my flatmates who seem to share the passion for this type of activity.  I cannot stress how hard it is to resist on several occasions - Stranger in town for a visit, a flatmate's birthday celebration that started at home and ended in the neighboring Pinoy bar, coming home and spending 2 weekends there, visiting a happening place like Singapore and the team dinner at Media Rotana on Maundy Thursday.  There was only one day that I faltered, and perhaps God will understand and make an exception - the toast at my childhood bestfriend's wedding.  As a result, I have had to content myself with drinking water and cola while the rest drank beer and tequila.  Last Thursday, the cranberry vodka just became a cranberry cooler - cranberry juice mixed with a bit of Sprite.  The plan to do something unique, that is, visiting a gay bar in Singapore had to be scrapped because my friend was also giving up alcohol for Lent.

Last week, I decided to level up by foregoing meat for the rest of the Holy Week.  The first day also saw me giving up rice for a day and I must say that drove me nearly mad.  I joked that I would be one cranky woman by the end of the week!  Surprisingly, it wasn't so bad as I pictured it to be.  I was forced to turn to fruits and veggies for sustenance and even managed to experiment with some salmon recipes in the process.  I ate less amounts of rice and calmed down when I realized that I can still have pasta and bread for my carbs.

My last challenge was also the hardest.  I decided to try my hand at fasting - restricting myself to just one meal for the whole day.  With only mushroom soup, spanish sardines pasta, fruit juice, a bowl of grapes and lots of resolve to last the whole day, I tried my best to enjoy my Friday.  I swam, spent some time in the sauna and even managed to clean the flat's common areas by myself (my cleaning partner was a no-show).  At some point, I even thought of food blogging but decided against it.  I just ended up watching Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations episode on Singapore.  Well if I can't eat food, I might as well just watch it! :)  Towards the end, both me and my stomach were grumbling.  Good thing my friend put things in perspective:  "Just pray for the people who have to face hunger everyday."  Soon enough, midnight came.  I survived!!!  To break the fast, I ate some leftover shrimp and egg salad with some Arabic flat bread.  They tasted like heaven to one hungry woman! :)

I may not have lost weight from the experiment but there is a sense of satisfaction for having completed these challenges.  I realize that I have been lax with myself for the longest time, often choosing what is convenient over what would be good for me, both in terms of food and relationships.  I do not have to take whatever or whoever is there just because they are there.  I have become too focused with goals that may take months or even years to realize, forgetting that I can also set small ones, enjoy the little rewards and use them to fuel the bigger goals.  I am thankful for Lek and the brief stay in Singapore - both happened at a time when I thought things were falling apart.  Now it turns out that the trip was my saving grace - it filled my tummy with good food and my head with new inspiration.  It also served to cushion me from the ensuing events.  I am not too bothered anymore with what happens because a)  if things took a turn for the worse, that means I am off to my next adventure somewhere else or b) if things start falling into place then it means I will stay here for a longer period of time.  I am thankful for the opportunity to gain a better perspective of things.  It is really true that in giving up, you are also gaining something.  I am finding myself yet again.  Hooray for new beginnings!  Happy Easter! :)

Duh!

Sometimes you just get the weirdest call...

Roma:  Good morning Turner & Townsend!
Caller:  So your office is open, huh?
Roma:  I'm sorry?  (Did I hear the question right?  I am slightly annoyed.)
Caller:  Your office is open today?
Roma:  Obviously, you are talking to someone - so yes! (Insert visibly annoyed tone here.  Almost tempted to say, "This is an answering machine.  Please leave a message after the tone.  Toooooooooooooooootttttttttt!)

I suppose it was time for my daily dose of stupid morning caller.  Grrr... (Insert eyeroll here.)

Home...Again!

It seems clearly insane to come home three times in a span of less than six months.  It may be costly, but I would like to think of it more as investing on my sanity...hahaha!  I love coming home because it offers me an opportunity to reconnect with friends and family.  I can do that online, sure, but nothing beats seeing them and actually hugging and kissing them.  To a certain extent, it is also indulgence on my part, because I can be the makulit Roma that everyone has come to love (I would like to think it is that!  hahaha!). 

However, coming home this time is slightly different - I am distracted and restless.  The upcoming wedding is stressful - I am going to be a bridesmaid and the wedding is out of town.  I will only be staying in the country for a little over a week - thus I need to cram dealing with banks, checkups, trips to the spa and the parlor, seeing friends, watching cable TV, etc in 10 days.  I have yet to recover from the stress of losing my wallet and my Overseas Employment Certificate.  There is also an amount of stress from the fact that I have lost two relatives in a span of 9 days and that I have not been able to see my relatives during this difficult time.


The process of returning to the Philippines can also be very exhausting - making sure you book the flights at the right time (especially when there are promos), planning the logistics (we don't have a car and we live 2 hours away from the airport) and deciding what to do, who to meet, etc.  Then there is the herculean task of packing - baggage limit can be anything from 20-35kg and so far I have managed to bring a variety of things - an LCD TV, bottles of perfume, chocolates, books, a flat iron and even old clothes!  Guess I truly have become your typical OFW (Overseas Filipino Worker), sans the glitter of gold jewelry and leather jackets, hahaha!


At the airport, you can easily distinguish the Pinoys from the rest of the world - they like to be in clusters and seem to be chatting noisily all the time!  At a glance, you will think that they are all friends, but if you listen close enough, they all just met at the airport!!!  Enough said about not talking to strangers!  Filipinos probably have the most interesting hand-carried luggage too - the biggest teddy bear, doll or toy car, the most number of toothpaste, coffeemate, nescafe, bath soap and chocolates ever!  A great number of them tote laptops and the fanciest phones too.  The others are garbed in their newest Nikes.  You get the old-timer OFW who is usually the calmest (been there, done that) and you get the this-is-my-first-time-to-go-home-after-X-years-and-I'm-so-excited-can't-you-tell lot who are obviously the noisiest.  There is a mix of anxiety and longing in the air - ate is coming home to introduce a foreigner boyfriend or a child fathered by a foreigner, kuya is nervous to see what has become of his family after ten years, ate finally coming home after escaping from an employer from hell, kuya proudly telling everyone that his son is finishing college and you have the likes of me who just want to come home, chill out and gain a piece of her sanity back.


Once the purser announces that the plane has landed at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, the plane bursts into life.  People start bringing out their phones long before the plane reaches full stop.  Some even clap their hands, overjoyed that they have finally reached their homeland.  As the tube connects to the plane, people jump up and reach for their stuff in the overhead cabin.  What ensues after is a mad rush to get out of the plane and survive the queues at the Immigration.  Once at the baggage carousels, there is a market-like atmosphere.  One by one, the luggage emerge - a balikbayan box filled with more soap, chocolate, towels, clothes and toys, 32-inch LCD TVs from every manufacturer known - and the addresses listed come from everywhere, Cagayan in the North to Davao in the South!  The passengers all look haggard but still manage to smile.  The Pinoy, always the gentleman, never forgets to assist the Pinay in pulling out the luggage from the carousel.  Shouts of "Kabayan, salamat!" (Thank you, fellow Pinoy!) and "Ingat!" (Take care!) abound.


After leaving the Arrivals area, Pinoys then have to maneuver their way to the winding ramp to see the eagerly-awating relatives on the other side.  Again, you will hear the petite Pinays letting out squeals because they are too small to resist the gravity and end up getting dragged by the trolley filled with heavy luggage.  By the time everyone reaches the ramp, they are partly running, crying and laughing!  The passengers now join a sea of confused faces as everyone is trying to locate their loved ones.  It is only a matter of time before everyone finds each other and the confusion, longing and anxiety are replaced with laughter, smiles, hugs and kisses.  The foreigner boyfriend gets a warm hug from his girlfriend's mother.  The half-Pinoy, half-foreigner kid becomes the apple of everyone's eye.  The father gets teary-eyed to see his kids all grown up.  As for me, I always get the shock of my life because my mom just appears from out of nowhere and says Boo!  (I guess I have always been scared of big crowds so I rely on my mother to find me all the time!)  


Excuse me while I enjoy watching cable from my LCD TV and my aircon. :)

Bitten By The Food Bug

is the title of my new mini-blog in Tumblr.  As I love taking pictures of the food I eat, this is the easiest way to share my food pictures (with the hope of making people salivate in the process.  Haha!).  Travelling to other countries can be very expensive so I just let my tastebuds do the exploring.  Dubai plays host to a variety of cuisines and eating can arguably be this city's favorite activity (but the shopaholics might protest).  This mini-blog will chronicle my journey with food (and includes info on where I ate it, how much it costs and if I am not too lazy, how it tastes) and pay homage to the ones who created it.  It is my hope that my photos will do justice to their masterpieces.  To the people who want to know what is there to eat, this will give you an idea.  To the ones who ask why I am not losing weight, this is your answer.  To my friends who get stopped from digging in until I take a picture of the food, this is where all the photos go.


Join me on my food adventure at:  http://bittenbythefoodbug.tumblr.com/.


Because life has a lot of flavor.

Roma's State of Mind

I was walking home tonight after a long day at work and suddenly, a thought occurred to me.  I am happy to be where I am but I am raring to go and explore more of the world.


After almost three years in Dubai, I can say I have eaten my way through it, seen the sights, learned to do housechores, lived with lots of people and experienced diversity firsthand.  I am happy because I can say I have achieved a certain level of comfort working and living here.  I had come at a time when recession was starting to peak but I am glad to have caught a glimpse of how people react to the most adverse of circumstances.  I have had the pleasure of working with some of the best and the most hardworking people I have known.  After almost three years, I have learned to deal with the different characters at work - the man I affectionately call my father, who can arguably behave like a brat at any given time of the day, the woman who is reputably the craziest of them lot, the quintessential last minute man and the man who likes to wear blue when he visits the office because he thinks he gets better treatment from me.  After almost three years, I already know how they want their tea or coffee.  They in turn already know that the best way to say thank you for doing crappy things like formatting BOQs or binding reams of papers is through food - a bar of chocolate, lunch or Starbucks.  If they go on trips, they know what to get me - postcards or money.  If they get their post, they automatically surrender the stamps to me.  I am happy to give an answer to the weirdest queries, happy to teach a few tricks in MS Word or Excel, happy to book the most complex of flights, happy to lend my writing and editing skills to each letter, report and submission that goes out of this office.  I am happy to just make things happen for everyone, perhaps except for me.


Unfortunately, at the end of the day, I cannot hide the fact that I yearn to do something else - something that will make use of my brain more extensively, something that will eventually pay more money.  I may be good at what I am doing now (ok, maybe except for the filing bit) but the call to excel at something more meaningful is something that has been resounding in my head for quite sometime now.  Change is the more important issue that I need to address right now - it could be in the form of moving to a different company or maybe even moving to a different country.  I am still buying my time, gathering enough courage, battling with myself and praying to God.  It will only be a matter of time before I stray from my comfort zone and plunge into the unknown.

Back in 2008...

I was dragged by my sister-in-law to attend a free Arabic course at the Eton Institute. This kept me busy while looking for work during Ramadan. It was a good introduction to the Arab culture and a good exposure for me too (Imagine being caught on TV after just living for a weeks here!) . Who would have thought that after 31 months, recession and all, I am still surviving in this amazing city?

See me and my groupmates (who later turned out to be my first non-Filipino friends in Dubai - both have left the country already) count in Arabic starting at 00:40. :) For me, this is where it all started. Enjoy! :-)

Strange Brew

My Chinese colleague Chen made me the strangest brew I have ever tasted.  Now I am not a fan of tea (or hot drinks in general) but of course I could not refuse.  After all, it isn't everyday that somebody makes tea for me.  I gave it a shot...

and regretted it after.  First of all, it looked something like jutes swimming in hot water.  This was supposed to be green tea, "Good for the health!" as Chen said.  It was green, sure, and it indeed tasted like it when the warm liquid touched my mouth.  It was a different story as soon as I swallowed the tea. The bitter taste started creeping in like ants crowding over a mountain of spilled sugar.  Blech!  I took another sip to give it another chance but it was no better than the first.  Ah well, at least I tried...and perhaps the same can be said with certain experiences and with certain people you come across in life.  We meet people who leave a bad taste in the mouth but we still give them another chance in the hope that the outcome this time will be different.  In the end, you realize that you just never really liked bitter.  You can only give yourself a pat on the back for having at least tried.

The Birds Are Falling

I'm going to try my hand at short entries with pictures for a change....

28 January 2011.  I was hurrying on my way to the metro station but I just had to stop and finally take a photo of this eye-catching graffiti.  It was one of those "artistic" shots that you so luckily stumble upon.  I wondered who made this given that a construction site would probably be the last place one would think of writing such a cryptic message on.  Interestingly enough, as soon as I reached the platform, the skies began to get dark and a thick cloud of sand covered the horizon.  It could very well have been an ominous sign to the unexpected sandstorm that lasted for about half an hour.  And perhaps that day, a few birds fell indeed.

My Thursday Surprise

Thursday led me to a small flower shop to buy a bouquet of flowers for a colleague who was leaving.  As soon as I entered, I knew something in me ticked.  I suddenly forgot that I was in the middle of a bustling commercial property.  Time stood still as I looked at rows and rows of pretty flowers in different colors, shapes and sizes.  A smile slowly formed.  I felt like Rosalinda*, in her flower shop.  My reverie was interrupted by a kabayan** who promptly asked how he could be of help.  I answered, albeit in a distracted mechanical manner, that I was looking to buy a bouquet.  Mr. Florist asked what her favorite color was and I told him I had no idea.  He then asked how I wanted the bouquet to look like.  My gaze shifted between looking at him helplessly and looking at the flowers in awe.  The roses, mums, lilies and hydrangeas all seemed to say, "Pick me!".  I was confused.  Forced to make a decision, I pointed at something blue, yellow, white, purple and green.  

While Kuya Florist was arranging the flowers I picked, I decided to make small talk.  I told him he was lucky because he is always surrounded by beauty.  I asked if it was easy to arrange flowers and he said it was.  I asked if he could teach me how to do different types of flower arrangement.  Kuya Florist said I could drop by after work or on Saturdays.  "Proomisssse?"  "Promise!"  I still couldn't take my eyes off the blue flowers.  I asked if they were artificially colored and he confirmed.  "Paborito mo ang blue, ano?"  (Blue is your favorite, right?).  He then decided to throw an extra flower for me and picked a blue rose (Good choice, Kuya!).  I beamed.


I then approached the owner who was manning the counter.  I told him I liked his shop and cheekily asked if I could learn flower arranging there and work on weekends there.  The owner was amused and said he would allow it but I won't have any salary.  I agreed and told him I would swing by one Saturday.  I was pleased with myself because I now have something new to do.


Kuya Florist approached me and showed the finished product.

After which, he handed me my special gift:  my very own blue rose. :)

I walked out of the shop feeling like a million bucks.  The blue rose seemed to catch everyone's attention and perhaps so did the mysterious smile pasted on my face.  I was the happiest girl in the world.


*Rosalinda was the name of the character (she sold flowers) that Thalia played in the hit Mexican telenovela of the same name.
**kabayan (aka kababayan) -  from the same country

Banana Chocnut* Smoothie

The sweltering heat forced me to unearth my dusty smoothie maker from the bowels of my boxes one summer day.  I had overripe bananas and Chocnut* waiting to be eaten.  My bottle of fresh milk seemed to be screaming "Drink me! Drink me!" when I opened the fridge.  Another eureka moment.  Banana Chocnut* Smoothie?  Why not?

It all starts with putting milk and some bananas in your smoothie maker or blender.

Pulse for a few seconds.

Add a few pieces of Chocnut.

Pulse again for a few seconds to mix everything together and voila, you now have your own homemade Banana Chocnut* Smoothie!

Reminds me of Jonah's Shakes in Boracay...mmmm... Dubai is no island paradise like Boracay but this is the closest I can probably get to having a taste of Philippine summer! :)

*Chocnut is a brand for a Pinoy sweet composed of chocolate and peanut.  There is nothing like it anywhere else in the world! :)

A Day In The Life of Receptionist Roma

Whoever said that the life of a receptionist is boring is wrong (though sometimes it can be, like today, hehe).  A cheeky girl thrown into a crazy bunch of office characters makes for a very interesting story.  Names, of course, will be changed to protect the true identities of the characters.

Binding 101

Roma has just finished binding docs for Mr. T.  Upon seeing them on the counter, he carefully inspects the reports and then quips, "You know I'm really annoyed by this."  He then proceeds to insert both ends of the comb rings in the little holes.  "You put them there so that the papers won't fall off."  I cheekily retort, "I wasn't a binding machine in my past life." and then smiled. (Read:  You hired a girl who doesn't do manual labor and has never touched a binding machine till she set foot on this strange land.  Haha!)

Last week, I was binding tons of documents again.  Mr. T walked past me and said, "Oooh, you're becoming an expert binder now."  I laughed.  (Who wouldn't be if you had a thousand pages to bind, hmmm?)  Mr. T:  "I used to bind lots of documents too, about 20-40 copies."  So that explains everything then.  I was learning binding techniques from the master himself.

Coffee Choices

Being a woman of many hats, I also moonlight as a coffee/tea girl (I hate this particular hat by the way, even more than being a human binding machine.).  Sometimes, however, making coffee can be fun, as you will see in the next story.

Director V:  Roma, can I have a cup of coffee please?

Roma:  A big one (regular black coffee) or  a small one (espresso)?

Director V:  I don't know, you surprise me.  

Director V's eyes then turn into slits and he gives me a winsome smile.  I wanted to pinch his chubby cheeks and unbutton his shirt.  But this goes on only in my mind.  Moral of the story:  Never tease the receptionist.  Bwahahaha!

Spelling Bee

A few weeks back, I was given the painful task of conducting callouts to contractors who were tendering for a major project.  If I'm lucky, I get to speak with a fellow Pinoy and assigning a schedule to them is a breeze.  The problem starts when I talk to people from the subcontinent.  Previous encounters have taught me that 1) they speak too fast that everything comes out garbled.  2) they don't listen.  3) and because they don't listen, they ask stupid questions and you have to repeat your spiel that they have been interrupting for the last minute or so.  Oh, and have I mentioned the accent?

Roma:  May I have the names of the persons joining the site visit?

Mr. X says the name in rapid fashion.  I only heard a person gargling what I presume to be the names I was asking for.  I roll my eyes and sigh.  Here..we..go..AGAIN!!!

Roma:  I'm sorry, could you spell that for me please?

Mr. X: yen - eee - yem ..........

Roma:  I'm sorry? (Dear Lord, what did he just spell?!?!?)

Mr. X:  Yen, yen, yen!  (Oooh, somebody's getting exasperated now!  Sir, the feeling is mutual!)

Roma: Yen for?  (OK, maybe if I try to sound like him, I would finally guess the letter?)

Mr. X:  Yen, yen, yen! (At this point, I was stabbing the paper with my pen...)

Eureka moment.

Roma:  Yen for November?  

Mr. X:  Yes, yes, yes!  (Ahhhh, ENNNNN!!! Grrr...)

Roma:  And the next letter is?

Mr. X:  Eee for apple.  (Okaaayyyy....)

Roma:  Oh, AAYYY for apple!  And then?

Mr. X:  Yem.

Roma:  Yem for mother?

Mr. X:  Yes, yes, yes!  (Ohmigoodness, I'm actually getting the hang of it!  Kill me now!)

In the almost two years that I've worked as a call centre agent for both US & UK markets, I have never been placed in a situation where you almost bled over a phonetic spelling.  Maybe I should practice spelling my name now.  Repeat after me:  YAR-OOO-YEM-EEE!

The Newest Bebe In The Family

About an hour ago, I finally received the most anticipated call.  It was my brother on the other line, telling me that his wife had already given birth!  My first question was, "Anong anak?"  My brother, whether he was teasing me or not, asked, "Anong ano?"  I asked in exasperation, "Is it a boy or a girl?!?!"  "Baby boy!"  I let out a little squeal of delight.  As if reading the next question on my mind, Kuya said, "He has a creamy white complexion like his mom but the "internal features" are from me."  Whoa, just an hour after the birth and he's already bragging.  Then he shares his relief over seeing his kid after a loooonnngg wait.  (Oh yeah, I've been anxiously waiting for news since last night and I was keeping my brother company by asking silly questions.)  Being the makulit that he is, he suddenly lowers his voice and tells me, "Don't tell our flatmates because I told them we had a dark-skinned baby girl".  I giggle like I had just heard the most wonderful secret.

I am very excited to see them!  I can't believe I am an auntie already and my mother is officially a granny!  Bwahahah!  It would be so much fun to tease her that she is already getting old - old enough to be called a lola! :)

And yes, I know someone will ask the inevitable about the other bebe - me.  Flashback to one of my conversations with Kuya.  Even before he got married, he has long wished for his kids to take after Leslie - to improve the race, he says.  Now that he has gotten his wish, the pressure is on me to produce tall kids.  He has this vision that the next generation should be tall and fair.  Hence he has this crazy dream for me that the man I should marry must be 6'2" and above.  Erm Kuya, that is literally a tall order!  And so we had a deal - I would raise his kids to be beauty queens and models and he would raise mine to be basketball players/athletes.  Such a riot our family would make!:)

Anyway, I have simpler wishes for our latest Bebe.  I wish that he will have chubby cheeks and a nice set of teeth.  (My brother and I are probably weird in that people are only able to believe we are siblings when we smile - the teeth is a giveaway but to the more observant it is also the naughty glint in our eyes.  That's also weird cos I have big deep-set eyes and he has chinky eyes.)  I wish that he will inherit his mom's penchant for dancing and his dad's skill and enthusiasm for sports.  I have no doubt that he will inherit the wit and intelligence of his parents (This is the auntie bragging now.)  I have also no doubt that he will be very makulit like his mom and dad and auntie (it runs in the family, you see).  I hope that he will be fiercely loyal like his parents, his aunties and uncles and his grandparents.  And I really, really wish he will grow up a charmer and win everyone's hearts (and not break any girls' - please don't take after your parents on this one!). :)  Heaven forbid you turn out to be right-handed or it will be difficult to teach you how to write! (My brother, his wife and I are all lefties.)

We are all happy that you have finally arrived, little bebe.  We will all work hard to give you the best life you can possibly have.  With your birth, we are given the precious opportunity to make your life a little more different and hopefully better than what we have.  Consider yourself lucky, kid, for you will be loved - a lot!  Oh, and be used to the lights and attention, honey.  Auntie's going to make you the family's latest celebrity (I can see millions of photos now!)! ;)

I Pine for Pan de Sal!

In honor of the Philippines' 112th Independence Day today, I shall write about another Filipino staple, the pan de sal.

There was a time when amidst the tik-ti-la-oks (that is how we think a rooster's crow sounds like, as opposed to the more English cock-a-doodle-doo), another dominant sound fills the early morning air - that of little pot-pots (the sound a small horn makes) and young boys shouting in their best "manly" voice "paaaannn de saaaallll!!!". I do not know which one was more effective in waking up the the community - the annoying sound of roosters atop each house patiently waiting for their turn to crow (that's the barrio's version of the alarm clock for you) or the promise of that hot piece of bread to dip in your equally hot cup of coffee.

The pan de sal (which I'm sure our Spanish-speaking comrades would be happy to translate as bread of salt) is a Filipino bread which is a regular a presence in every Pinoy breakfast table. The soft bread with a somewhat crunchy exterior has fed and sustained many generations of Juans (the Filipino's answer to Tom, Dick and Harry). The pan de sal can be eaten on its own, dipped in coffee or hot chocolate or paired with butter, cheese, peanut butter, corned beef, egg, hotdog , noodles - practically everything.

The journey of the pan de sal to the breakfast table is a long but interesting one. They would come out of big, hot ovens at dawn and are then displayed in big metal trays. Some would go straight to recycled big lard tin cans to be perched on bikes or in boxes to be hauled on the shoulders of pre-pubescent boys. The ones who buy them straight from the local panadero (baker) get to take them home in little brown bags that grow moist from the heat of the freshly-baked little pieces of bread. By the time the sun is officially up, everyone, the bakers and bread boys included, would have been enjoying their morning pan de sal.

Fast forward to Dubai, home to many Filipinos working in the Middle East. I have constantly been surprised by the variety and accessibility of Filipino foodstuff here. But none has prepared me for discovering a pan de sal that tasted just like the ones back home. I have tried many but they almost always came short of the real thing. That is, until my friend Ella pointed me to Thousand Island Bakery in Karama. When we first got there, I asked her if she was sure they sold pan de sal because there were no signs saying they sold them. It must have been 8pm already but there was a small queue and they were all ordering the same pan de sal. How strange, I thought. I was a bit skeptical to try as it may turn out to be another dud but since I've dragged myself this far, in typical Roma fashion, I said, why not.

I ordered six pieces (just in case they were really good) for two dirhams. It may sound like they were quite a steal - by Dubai standards, yes, but by Philippine standards, no. I think one piece in the Philippines must cost about 10-20 fils, almost twice the cost here. How to know if it's a good pan de sal? First you feel it. Is it hot? Then you smell it. Is it baked just right or has it stayed in the oven for far too long? Then you break it in two. You'll know it's fresh when the right amount of crumbs fall and the bread is easy to break despite the outer crunchy crust. Then you eat it. An authentic yummy pan de sal does not have any starchy aftertaste.

At last, the quest for the perfect pan de sal has ended. I found mine in Karama and biting into one brought back memories of early mornings back home. For that brief moment, I heard the cocks crowing and the boys shouting "pan de saaallll!!!". I smelled coffee and scrambled eggs. It was nice feeling the crumbs against my fingers. Best of all, I tasted home. I wished that the rest of the nine million Filipinos working all over the world (an astounding one-tenth of the Philippines' population) would be as lucky as me to find a little piece of paradise in the lowly pan de sal, the way I did on that one fateful evening.

Cooking For A Non-Filipino

I confess to having modest cooking skills. Ask me to make a pasta dish and I can whip up one for you in a jiffy with even the simplest ingredients. Ask me to cook Filipino food and I would have to think long and hard about it. Suffice it to say that I am not confident when it comes to cooking Filipino food. Ironic but true.

Earlier this week, my friend Craig emailed saying he was free the whole week as his girlfriend was back home (I could feel my eyebrows starting to twitch - in a different time this would have sounded like an invitation to misbehave. Then again this is a different person we're talking about here so no, nothing malicious there.). We should have dinner, he says. He then broaches the idea of cooking Filipino food for him in exchange for hauling my boxes up the bunk bed. In the next sentence he says he will cook British food for me too. Sounds like a fair deal so I agreed, albeit with a bit of uncertainty.

The next few days were spent thinking about what to prepare. My criteria: 1) It has to be edible. 2) I wanted to offer something new for the tastebuds but nothing too exotic. 3) It has to be relatively easy to prepare and must not be too much of a challenge to my modest cooking skills. 4) It must give an idea of what Philippine cuisine is all about.

Adobo and sinigang would probably be the default answers to my query. I've done sinigang (this is my favorite) several times but I was not too sure if I could find the proper vegetables to go with it. I have also tried cooking several versions of adobo but none came out the way I have envisioned it to be (FYI, I almost burned the adobo in my last attempt. This was definitely not an option.).

I then thought it would be nice to let Craig experience the concept of dips. I had to think of a dish that would go well with different types of dips. I thought of putting marinated pork belly in my trusty Imarflex turbo broiler. Then I said it would be nice to have ensaladang mangga (a salad consisting of green mangoes, tomatoes and onions) with matching bagoong (sauteed shrimp paste) and itlog na maalat (salted eggs). Dalandan (Philippine orange) juice would be the perfect partner to quench our thirst. Thus the Filipino summer picnic theme was born.

Unfortunately, the Filipino ingredients can only be found in the older part of the city. Hence, I had to take a 30-minute train ride all the way to Karama (one of the little Manilas in Dubai) in the sweltering heat just to look for salted eggs and green mangoes. I reminded myself that I needed to represent my country well so it is worth the effort. Although feeling very patriotic, I felt like fainting already. (Hey it was almost noon and nobody in their right mind will visit the Karama Fish Market when the mercury is almost hitting 40 degrees - except maybe me.)

Philippine dessert is pretty tricky to make so I decided I would just do a Filipino twist to a regular recipe. I ended up bringing out my stock of fruit cocktail, condensed milk and all purpose cream to create a typical fruit salad. I decided to add little cubes of cheese to the mix for that Filipino twist.

At 7pm sharp, my guest arrived. I was still battling it out with the remnants of the green mango (I do not know how to peel with a knife. Being clumsy, it's most likely that the knife will slide and so will a slice of my skin or worse, a finger.). We talk about how our weekend went (Oh yeah, mine went fussing over what to prepare for you! haha!) and how he took the train to Deira to get his car. I prepare myself for the little speech of what Pinoy cuisine is like. Yikes. (To the uninitiated Pinoys, you might pick up a few tips here.)

I began by telling him that our cuisine is very simple - we season our food sparingly (just salt and pepper most of the time) compared to other Asian cuisines which use herbs and spices extensively. This is where the concept of dipping sauces comes in. As I explain, he sees me bringing out one strange bottle after another (Mang Tomas liver-based gravy, soy sauce, vinegar and bagoong. I give him a little background on the salted eggs (why they had a fuchsia color). I explain what was in the salad.

After setting the table, we pose for a few pics (surprise surprise) then we started eating. As customary, I serve him first. He then asks how to eat the food (Is it the salad first or do you eat everything all at once?). I explain that we all dump everything in the plate and eat freestyle - you can either eat with your hands or use the fork and the spoon. I mention that we do not use knives to cut the meat. I let him smell the bagoong and taste a small bit. I was surprised he didn't scrunch up his face in disgust (like they did with my blue margarita - see previous entry). He just said it smells and tastes a bit strong. Honey, it's okay to say it's smelly and salty. Haha. I then scoop half of the salted egg and he gets the other half. I told him to mix it with the salad. He said it was good. I then pick up my pork belly and use my hands to cut the meat. I told him to try it with the dipping sauces and tell me which one he likes. He thinks the soy sauce vinegar combo was good. We continue to talk about history, cuisine, accents, languages, politics and jobs. He leaves out the fatty portion of the belly but he sees me eating it and he follows suit. It was crunchy and started dipping it in the gravy. Out of the corner of my eye I can see him licking his fingers too. I smile. Success!

It was then time to go. I show him my room and jokingly tell him it looks like a hospital ward now that the partitions are in place. He effortlessly hauls the boxes up while I had to stand on a stool to clear some space. I knew I got the right man to do the job. Haha.

I'm just glad that I have survived another first. I realised it was tough answering questions from a foreigner. In effect, the dinner was not only an opportunity to showcase my country's cuisine but also a chance for me to tell people about my country and its rich history (the question about what the Philippines was called before the conquerors came was tough - must search for a clear answer on that one). It was also a good opportunity to show them how other people live and hope that they begin to appreciate the kind of lifestyle that they lead in Dubai.

On another note, it was fun having somebody over and just enjoy free-wheeling conversation. It's been a while since I've had conversations about culture, etc. Perhaps my time in Dubai is not yet done. There's still so much to learn about the world and if I have to cook for each and every single new expat friend I meet then I will. Just don't ask me to cook adobo. For now. :)