Today’s Guest Blog is from Jason Dance. Jason intends to write a few guest blogs in the future for the site, and I’m sure we’ll enjoy them all. Welcome aboard, Jason!
Most people coming to the Philippines usually visit some of the well known places such as: Manila, Cebu, Boracay and Davao among other big names. What about the lesser known places where Filipinos hardly see any foreigners? Well, for all the expats in the Philippines or for the undecided minds wondering where to go; let me describe to you a small island in Samar called Santo Nino!
The first three words that come to my mind are “Peace and quiet”. I have never been to a place that gave me such a clear mind. It is located in Samar and 1 hour by boat from Calbayog. The only way to go there is by boat! The boat leaves once in the morning and departs once from Santo-Nino back to Calbayog. If the sea seems wild or a storm is brewing, the captain of the small boat will not set sail. On a side note, Calbayog is a very small cozy city with charming surroundings!
On the island there are no hotels, hostels or anything like that! My wife and I stayed at her aunt & uncles place. Everyone on the island knows each other…well almost. If you thought Filipinos are warm loving people the people there are 10 fold! They don’t really rely on electricity during the day because there is no electricity. The only time it comes up is from 5h30pm until 11pm. It’s usually during that time that people are at their homes doing their things together as a family. My wife’s Lola from mamas side and Lolo from tatay’s side are some the eldest people living in Sto.Nino as well. If you thought Filipinos sometimes stare at you well let me tell you that most of them have never seen a young white person before especially one as young as me. I am only 26 years old for those of you who are wondering.
We only spent two days there but it was such an amazing time! We went to the beach that was crawling with young one’s playing around and just being plain kids. Something that’s hard to see in the western world now. The beach is a long stretch and it’s a real eye gazer when you look out to the sea and you can see Calbayog but vaguely. The sand is not as nice as per say Boracay but it’s the sense of being at home that makes it look as white. The ocean water is clear as the sky unlike the port at Cebu where we live. At the Sto.Nino port, kids are in the water with bamboo guns that shoot water. I jumped in and the kids started to shoot at me until Anna my wife threw me one, so I could join in the action.
It was actually fiesta time…PERFECT TIMING! A fiesta is in simple terms a really good party that you will never forget! My wife’s uncle killed a pig for the occasion, which is extremely painful to hear especially when you’re sleeping and its 5am. There were groups of teenagers playing music and dancing in a circle at the beach. People were bringing there belongings by boat with family members of course. There was lechon for everyone, people gathering to drink beer or Tanduay, gossip and dipping our warm bodies into the ocean wondering if there where any sharks?!? There are but so tiny that they would never do anything. The weirdest thing you can encounter are people staring at you much of the time. It takes some getting used to especially if you’re travelling in less travelled areas such as Samar.
We explored the surroundings with Anna’s two childhood friends. Once we left the small city, there were lots of coconut trees and well mostly just good old nature! Many of the people that do live there are poor, but that never stopped them from being happy and to live their lives to the fullest. Most of the land has not been exploited, so you will mostly see trees everywhere. On several occasions, we saw children in some of the tallest trees I have ever seen. They were playing around but also getting some coconuts. We had the occasion to visit my tatay`s mothers grave site. His father built a shrine to commemorate his love to his wife. It is gated but anyone wishing to visit need only to open the gate as it is not locked. I was amazed of how white it was but mostly where it was built. The shrine overlooked Sto.Nino and the ocean itself!
I cannot say how fortunate I felt to have been there with my wife. I will always remember those 2 days in relative peace. For the record, I am the youngest foreigner to ever visit Sto.Nino! How can you forget such a place even more so when you’re in the books!
Jason,
Your story and your style are compelling and drew me
into your visit to Santo-Nino. I would like to visit there on
my next trip "home".
I look forward to reading your posts.
R L Graham
Arizona
Hello R LGraham
I am happy that you like my writing style and that you are the first to comment on my article. If you need advise for Sto.Nino please do contact me.
Thank you!
Jason: nice article. It takes a while to get used to the staring… I got the same up North until I visited a few times. Just important to realize that there is nothing malicious… Just curiosity. The longer I am here, the more I want to leave Manila and join that lifestyle. I almost sense that same feeling in your writing (just a guess).
Thanks Jason, It's nice to learn about all the different places in the Philippines. When one looks at a map it is just a mass of names. Your description made it real.
Hi Jason,
Great last name! As if I don't have a million other places to visit when I arrive in the Philippines thanks to your article another needs to be added to the list.
Was this your first experience of being stared at? Does the staring stop once you have been around a while? What is it like once you actually meet them? Since nearly everyone on the island seems to know each other was there a chance you got to meet many of them?
Would this place be good to visit if a person does not know anyone?
~Mike
Hi John M.
Yes, it does getting used to being stared at sometimes. But it's all in a friendly way…I guess I forgot to mention that. My wife is currently in Manila she can't WAIT to leave and go back to Cebu again. I do love peace and quiet it Sto.Nino gave it to me with plenty to spare!
Hi John in Austria,
That is so very true! There are so many places in the Philippines , due to their 7000+ islands…thx u for the compliment.
Hello Mike
Being stared at is weird at the beginning, but just like John said above they all mean well by it. it doesn't stop actually and that's ok too. Back in Cebu, when the same people see me they say, "Hey Joe Amerikano". Sometimes they do some silly thing to make me laugh too, hehe. Meeting filipinos that it be anywhere is a wonderful thing Mike. They are warm and extremelly friendly. I did meet many people since lots of them were part of my wifes family or extended family. Even people that you don't know will want to join in a conversasion with you from time to time. As for spending time there, I would really inform myself first before setting foot. If ever you go to Calbayog you can try to befriend someone from there first. Thx for your time!
It's not actually rude for Filipinos to stare. And if a Filipino catches someone staring at him, he just either recognizes the stare by giving a half-smile or just ignores it. Unless he is in a foul mood, or the stare in uncomfortably long, a Filipino might take offense on that. We generally like to stare. We stare at anybody who's "kakaiba" (different). We stare shamelessly at people, foreigner or not, as long as they arouse interest. People watching is our past time which explains why there are many people enjoying just lingering inside the malls. There's just too many to look at. If you're a Manileño and you go to far flung small towns, you may merit gawking. More so with foreigners. I think the same thing happens–let's say in Romania–if a person of color visits there.
When I set foot here un the US, the first thing I was told by friends and relatives is not to stare. Believe me it was hard to curb this compunction especially the fact that some do say "Hi" even if you don't know them. Once I was doing brisk walking in a park & there was this guy yelling something to his girl. That got me to look & perhaps stare at the scene. Of course, I received a "WTF R U looking at?" I realized that here, even if you call attention to yourself that still doesn't give people the right to stare. Staring is absolutely a no-no. My point is I can understand mostly americans being uncomfortable with staring because they consider it to be rude. Keep in mind though that in the Phil, this is just one of its many quirks. I do think however that staring is not uniquely a trait of Filipinos.
Beautiful entry, Jason. I still have to visit a place in the Phil where electricity is not 24 hours. I grew up and went into my adulthood in Manila but have travelled fairly around the Philippines. Samar is one, if not, the poorest province in the country. I think it is a province that has not benefited even from domestic tourism.
Hello Roy
Ya staring was weird but actually fine with me. In Canada people are more patient when others stare unless its a dramatic situation, hehe. My wife will also go into a culture shock a bit when she arrives in Canada. Samar might be poor but it has some great people there. If you didnt know Samar has the highest population of military personnel then the rest of the Philippines!
Thx for your comment and compliment. I hope you all enjoy other writings I have to offer.
I will have to check out Santo Nino on my next trip to Calbayog. My wife is from Calbayog and I have been there many times now and I am looking to see more of the area. Even though I have made many trips to Samar, I still get stared at but it no longer bothers me. When I am in the barangay of my wife, I sometimes feel like the pied piper. We will be walking down a street and I can turn around and there will be 20 kids behind me. It cracks me up. I did stop one day at a sari sari store and bought 200 pesos of candy to hand out.
Hello gary
You should head there with your wife for at least one day to see what you`re missing my friend. Calbayog is very nice indeed and has a huge population of children. They will follow you around that is so true haha!
it's funny how two people of different culture understand each other…well, i believe that respect is the right word for that! right babe?
nice article jason,
the staring thing in the philippines does not mean to be rude, people are just fascinated to someone who they have never seen or met, in your case the people of your province is not used to seeing a white guy, this kind of attitude is not particular to philippines only, you will get a lot of starring if you go to any country where "white guy" is not very common to see, you would get less attention if you are in manila particularly in CBD areas.
I have a friend here who is a black american, he don't get a lot of starring or attention because the local people here are used to seeing black people from africa as a matter of fact some local people here (the bedouin) are black, all i can say is, people stared at you not because you came from another country but because you are just different from the rest.
Enjoy your article and the discussion on "staring". Yes, there are still a lot of places in the Philippines, like Santo Nino. Here in Marinduque, we have several islands still with no electricity and residents have probably not seen "Kano" in their lifetime. Cheers!
My wife and I visited some of her cousins in Mandaluyong city which is a part of Manila and once I got out of the trike, I was surrounded by kids and we got plenty of stares so this even happens in the city. The area we were in was not too far off of Shaw Avenue but it was basically a shanty area so they were probably just surprised to see a kano in that particular area.
I do like Calbayog and we bought some land north of the city in the barangay of Ba'ay where we will build our home someday.
Very nice post! Growing up in Manila myself, I find that staring and looking up to "kanos" (americans / white per se) was important because it is part of trying to understand and put meaning to what one wonders about. I remember my first time seeing "puti" was during a commercial shoot for COLGATE with Eric Banes, I was one of the little kids who were lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the travelling "teeth expert" and I stared for a long time… finally seeing what I read in books and seeing on TV, a white man, an American. It is empowering for a kid especially if you know that there is a bigger world outside of the Philippines and seeing an "outsider" made me "travel" albeit just by staring. I always look forward to coming home to the Philippines and someday return for good.
Very nice post Jason. Keep 'em coming.
I enjoyed reading your blog Jason. It's very informative and interesting!
The simplicity of life in such places like Sto. Niño is one of the reasons why I always dream of going back to the Philippines for good. Aaaah, it just makes me feel so homesick!
I like being around people of simple means especially the ones from the barrio. And being in a place like Samar, where nature is untouched would make anyone feel rich. Imagine, they have million dollar views around them while people in the west pay a big premium just to have even a minor glimpse of a good view. People in the west pay exorbitant HOA fees for swimming pool facilities. People in places like Sto Niño have the beach to themselves for free! People in the west pay thousands for landscaping just to have a feel of "nature" and greenery around them. People in places like Sto. Niño have the bounty of natural trees around them where kids can play and even harvest some fruits. Makes one think , what makes people feel rich?
I love the discussion on staring esp the kids following you. That is so true! It's funny how kids can demonstrate their curiosity without the fear of being told "WTF are you looking at?"
As a young kid, my first few exposure to "kanos" were seeing a couple of very tall Mormons going around in our subdivision. My story is a little bit different though. The two Mormons were used as agents of fear. I was told that if I did not take my afternoon nap, the 2 Mormons would take me and not bring me back, so I cannot remember a time when I stared at a "kano" as a kid.
Just thought I'd share that. After reading the article, it made me think and search my memory bank for the time I first saw a "kano" and if I stared but what pop in my mind are the two traveling tall Mormons.
🙂 And the impression that was stamp in my memory was that "kanos" are very tall indeed.
Nice one Jason! Being 41 myself I am still treated as if I'm 21 here. I'm a new contributor on LIP also. I find myself turning on the computer everytime I am at home and checking what's happening here. By far the most Alive site for expats here in the Philippines. I am wondering how long before you go back to Canada and if you intend to spend more time there or here?
Being way under retirement age I will be back and forth a bit; but my intention is to ASAP be here full time. The business culture here requires some adapting to; but as Bob can show you, it is possible to make a good living here.
How is your Tagalog going? Mine is rudimentary but growing; if there is one key to really making it here, it's learning Tagalog. Just knowing a few basics makes people really happy that you are trying.
May God bless your marriage and your choices in life; may you and Anna be eternally happy together!
I am thinking about visting the Phillinppine, bu I am worried being a young black male I dont know how I would be trated their. I heard Asian people do not care to much for black people and I dont want to spend all that money on the trip to a play where im not like or wanted. I dont like being stared at because it makes you feel uncomfatable. Being from America staring is something you just dont do. If a females stars at you that not such a bad thing chances are she is interested in you. If a dude is staring either he is gay or he wants to fight either way it's not a good thing. Can a you black male tell me about his experines while visiting the Phillippines.
I am a black man and I have been to the Philippines many times.
It's just as safe to visit Manila as it is New York City, or any other major American city. Many black men travel to the Philippines and marry filipina ladies.