Sunday, January 25, 2009

FOREIGNER

I've just arrived home (?!) from Adelaide City and still wearing this smile that has started six and a half hours earlier in the food court of Rundle Mall.

While I was queuing in KFC, there was this young (possibly 5-year old) Caucasian boy in front of me who was fidgeting around that he accidentally dropped his hat on the floor without noticing it.

A couple of minutes later...

Hey, mate! You dropped your hat! I said loudly to catch the little boy’s attention in the middle of the noisy and busy hall. My call was effective; he immediately turned his head and looked at me.

I directed him to his hat that has been resting on the floor.

The little boy rushed and picked up his hat and after doing it, he stared at me for about five seconds. I could see the innocence from his gaze, especially when he moved his sight from my face down to my feet... then back to my face and up to my head!

I smiled at him.

His concentration was instantly distracted by the sound of his name as his mom –now carrying a tray of dinner combo—called him and pouted her lips towards the nearest vacant table.

WHILE THEY WERE EATING, I’m still waiting on the KFC counter and I could see through my left lateral vision that the little boy was still intermittently looking at me, possibly wondering why my hair is black, my skin is brown, my nose is flat, and so on...

I’ve been experiencing this since I arrived in Australia... many times—a speculative stare from a Caucasian child!

When I was a child, I was fascinated by the foreigners who lived in our small town in Southern Philippines. They were the people who established the Christian educational institution- a state college, where I actually finished my high school.

Their body built and size was really different from the locals of Mlang, Cotabato. They have blond hairs, blue eyes, white skin, and a high-bridged nose (unlike mine). They ate strange cuisine and spoke a different language with a very distinct twang! They were foreigners and I considered them a proof of what my Mom had told me that other countries exist.

But after more than twenty-nine years of existence in this world, my idea of being a ‘foreigner’ has changed. Yes, foreigners may eat exotic meals and speak a different language… but they can as well possess black hairs, hazel-coloured eyes, brown complexion and a big, flat nose—because here in Australia I am, absolutely, a FOREIGNER!

-an excerpt from my other blog, the Silent Water


The poultry farmers while waiting for the arrival of the new batch of chicks.

L-R: Australian, Filipino, Iranian, Dutch

28 comments:

yAnaH said...

hmmmmm kaiba talaga ang mga Pinoy noh? talagang may distinction. pero hindi lang naman dahil sa panlabas na anyo kaya nagmamarka ang mga Pilipino sa ibang lahi... may mga qualities din kase tayo na wala sa kanila... positive traits ba..

lucas said...

haha! sikat ka ibig sabihin! hehe! dito sa pinas basta foreigner, people tend to make a big deal out of it. haha!

Anonymous said...

be proud! hahaha stand tall,, 6 footer ka doc diba! hahha,

ang important, basta sa larangan na ating pingakakakitaan, tayo ang nangunguna sa husay..-chico

RJ said...

YANAH
Positive traits ng mga Pinoy sa ibang bansa? Yes, tama! [Hindi kaya mabait dahil FOREIGNER?] o",)


LUCAS
Big deal nga. Whew!

Hahaha! Sikat ba 'pag ganu'n?! Siguro nga!


ANONYMOUS (CHICO)
Sige, sige i'LL take your advice. Ayos ah!

Nebz said...

Baka naman kasi kamukha mo raw si Brad Pitt. Si Brother Brad Pitt. Joke.

Nice post, RJ.

Solar eclipse 2mrw. D namin kita d2 sa saudi. pero sa australia at pinas, kita raw. buti p kayo...

poging (ilo)CANO said...

ayus yan doc aga, forenjer tayo sa ibang bansa.hihihi..

baka crush ka ng bata kaya nakatingin sayo. bata pa lang bumigay na siya...iba tlga ang gwapo mo doc aga, pang international.lols.

rdaconcepts said...

Gano'n talaga. Pilipino E. Proud 2 be Pinoy Doc!

mightydacz said...

hi dok,ngayon dockie tayo naman ang mga foreigner tayo naman ang mga tinitingnan lalo ng mga local peepz.Buti hindi nagpakuha ng picture n kasama ka?Dyan ba madalas napagkakamalan ka rin na hindi pinoy tulad ng may nagtanong na sau na indonesian,malaysian or other east asian country?

Anonymous said...

Natatawa ako habang binabasa yung kwento mo tungkol sa bata. :D Sa Okinawa rin nuon feel kong porendyer ako, at kay gagalang nila (maski yung matatanda na... Sa Tokyo medyo iba ahehe, pero konti lang).
Duon sa pix nyong apat, mukhang mas malaki ka pa rin. And I suppose mas magaling kang mag-english kaysa sa kanila. ;)

Kosa said...

Nice post!
tama ka...lols
be proud nga nman!
Pinoy always rules..
taena.. may mga ganyan ganyan pala dyan.. dito sa canada wala naman... almots 60% ng mga tao dito, hindi canadian born.. madaming intsik.. indiano at Pinoy!

iceah said...

Hi pareng RJ I miss passing by and commenting on this blog c: so may other blog kna pla c: visit din ako doon c:

I like your post pati yung galing sa kabila c: 2 points of view very nice c: ako nasanay nako sa ganyan I actually like the attention really specially in class when I talk dito sa Mindanao kasi tagalog nga ako everybody quiets down. Anyway, sanay nako kasi my parents are missionaries and we hop from place to place since childhood days ko kaya well adjusted narin ako sa tao.Isa rin yan sa trait nating mga pinoy na maganda kya madali satin magtrabaho sa ibang bansa c:

eMPi said...

foreigner din tayo pag dating natin sa ibang bansa... kakaiba kasi anyo natin e... hehehehe

Anonymous said...

may iba ka pa palang blog kuya :)

RJ said...

NEBZ
Di ko alam kung anong oras ang solar eclipse, ah. Aalamin ko po ngayon.

Wow! hahaha! Kamukha ba ni Benjamin Button?! Nakakatuwa, sana totoo. o",)


POGING (ILO)CANO
Hahahaha! Ibang klase rin ang analysis mo Pogi, ah. (,"o


RDACONCEPTS
Yes! Tama, proud na proud ako bilang isang Pinoy!


MIGHTYDACZ
Hahaha! Hindi naman nagpa-picture sa akin. (,"o

Regarding du'n sa mga napapagkamalan, ako ang madalas nag-aalangang mamansin sa mga Filipino rito kasi baka nga Indonesian o Malaysian. Hinihintay ko munang marinig na nagta-Tagalog sila bago ko pansinin.

RJ said...

HOMEBODYHUBBY
Foreigner na foreigner nga talaga tayo kapag nasa ibang bansa, absolutely!

Pinakamatangkad nga po ako sa aming apat. Hindi naman ako pinakamagaling mag-English, dapat yung Australian, di ba?


KOSA
Dito, bro ganun din, 40% ng mga tao ay born overseas, pero majority kasi white people. Kaya itong mga bata rito kapag makakita ng itim ang buhok, nakatitig talaga.


ICEAH
Welcome back! o",)

Friendster blog ko po 'yong sa kabila, madalang nalang po akong nag-a-update doon. Salamat sa pagdalaw doon.


MARCOPAOLO
Absolutely, Mark!


JOSHMARIE
Friendster Blog ko yun, madalang ko nang ina-update.

Anonymous said...

Yan ang advantage ng nakakapunta ka sa ibang bansa. Lumalawak ang iyong pananaw at naitatapon ang "colonial mentality" na kinagisnan ng nakakaraming pinoy. Sa Pinas, tinitingala at ginagaya ng nakakarami ang maputla ang balat, kulay mais ang buhok o di kaya matangus ang ilong. Pero karamihan nagigimbal pag nakita ang may ganyang katangi-an na naghuhukay lang ng imburnal sa 'merika.

Anonymous said...

dont worry masisilayan mo rin ang part 2 ng ice plant... ;)

PaJAY said...

DOk baka blogger yung bata at medyo namumukhaan si CHOOK-MINDER.lolz.


Mabuhay ang mga pinoy na Foreigner...

Nice Dok.

my-so-called-Quest said...

proud to be pinoy!
mas masipag ka naman at mas mabait kumpara sa kanila. ahehe (sipsip) ehehe

kung sa akin mangyari yun di ko alam magiging reaction ko. baka magmukmuk ako. hehe

Ishna Probinsyana said...

Kung dito dati, ikaw ang tumitingin sa foreigner, ngayon naman ikaw ang tinitingnan as foreigner.

Anong nafifeel mo everytime tinitingnan ka nila in 'that' way?

RJ said...

BLOGUSVOX
Precisely! o",)


JOSHMARIE
Yes, aabangan ko Joshmarie!


PAJAY
Hahaha! Baka ang nanay nya ang blogger, at nakikisilip sa monitor kapag nagba-blog ang nanay. hahaha!

Mabuhay!


MY-SO-CALLED-QUEST
Proud na poud, Doc Ced!

Bakit ka magmumukmok?! Mahiyain ka pala, Doc?!


ISHNA PROBINSYANA
Natatawa ako, at napapangiti. Naaalala ko yung mga panahong ako ang tumititig sa mga foreigner na nakakarating doon sa bayan namin. Hahahaha! (,"o

Anonymous said...

Hi Ruel,
I enjoyed this post...
Good luck

RedLan said...

Ito yung pinaka the BEST post na nabasa ko sa chook-mindersquill. I like your story of a lil boy. Naiimagine ko ang scene habang ina-narrate mo. Siya siguro ay parang kaw rin nun. Parang foreign na foreign ka sa kanya. Isa lang ang masasabi mo, iba talaga ang mukha ng pinoy. Palangiti. Tingnan mo ang photo oh.

BTW, hindi ako marunong sa photography. Gusto ko nga matutunan ang tamang anggulo at paggamit. I have only canon digicam. yung pinakamura. Tama ka. Mabilis talaga ang galwa nila. Most na nacapture kung pics ng tribes ay nakatlikod nga. Naka G-string, lol. Ambilis kasi nila kumilos.

RJ said...

FARSHID
Thank you for visiting! o",)


REDLAN
Wow! Ganu'n ba?! Thank you.

Kahit simpleng digicam lang ang gamit mo, Red, maganda pa rin ang kuha mo. o",)

jhosel said...

haha. thats one great example how ironic life is. haiz.

i enjoyed reading your post.

god bless.:D

RJ said...

JHOSEL MENDRIQUE
Yes, a good example, indeed!

Salamat sa pagdalaw dito sa CMQuill! o",)

Mac Callister said...

haha natawa naman ako dun sa "but they can as well possess black hairs, hazel-coloured eyes, brown complexion and a big, flat nose"

nice mate!

Joanie said...

RJ, the Iranian beside you looks cute. :-) I know it's pretty cool to work with foreign colleagues.