I’ve never been to Asia. However, I’ve met a couple of friends online from the Philippines and we spend hours talking about football as well as other things. I’ve spent time looking at their photo albums on facebook and from the pictures I think I’d have a hard time telling the difference between the Philippines and Southern California.
One of them is in Baguio City and the other is in Quezon City.
Besides being able to order delivery from McDonalds, what would I notice as a difference between the United States and the Philippines? Currency and people speaking a combination of English and Tagalog are a given.
The main differences I found in Korea was the American ideal “personal space” they have one, but it is much smaller. It took time to realize they were not heming me in just for fun, they just didn’t notice how close they were to me.
I have a friend that grew up there and just returned from a visit. Here comments were:
It’s very 3rd world.
It’s really, really hot. I checked and she might be exaggerating a little. Manila is less hot than Orlando in August. the high is usually around 30. They do have 400mm of rain in August, which must make it a bit humid.
It took her two hours driving to get to her Mom’s house in the Manila traffic.
In The Philippines, if it runs, you can drive it. There is no concern for pollution controls or road safety. Often people will drive on the opposite side of the road, into oncoming traffic just to keep moving. Los Angeles on its worst smog day is a clean day in Manila.
It is true that Manila sometimes feels a lot like Latin America, which should not be too exotic to someone familier with America’s Latino areas. But there are plenty of differences- a middle class Manila suburb will have lots of large buildings on small lots that have been built up as remittance money comes in. There will be lots of high walls around the houses. Around the neighborhood will be small one-man shops and street food vendors. It feels decidedly like the developing world.
In general stuff is not in as good of shape as America (not surprising, the Philippines is very much a developing country.) Any public lawns and parks probably have yellowing grass and graffitied benches. Fountains will be dry, buildings will have patches of plaster falling off, and electrical lines may hang in alarming ways. The streets probably don’t have nice gutters and curves- they will be the rougher roads we are used to finding in the country. There is quite a bit of noise and pollution. Manila in particular is an incredible dense city, and the traffic is epic.
For stuff distinctly Filipino, there are of course the jeepneys. 80’s music is universally popular and the “default” music. Many people speak English but you don’t hear it on the streets much.
Manila does have amazing malls, and these resemble what you’d find in America.
Outside of the biggest cities, all bets are off. You quickly realize you really are in Asia and start getting that Southeast Asia vibe mixed in with a touch of what feels almost Polynesian. It’s not to difficult to get to places were local tribes live in raised bamboo shacks, speak languages nobody else speaks, and rely on stuff like hunting. For someone who has never left America, it would be very exotic and not familiar at all.
There are very distinct ethnic-mix differences between islands. Also fairly distinct (IME) differences in dialect. I’ve never had much problem understanding English spoken by residents of Luzon, but those from Mindinao were much harder for me to understand. Of course, English is not their first language, but it’s one of the official languages (there are something like 170+ languages spoken there).
Food is an interesting mix of local, Chinese, Mid-Eastern, and European (Spanish!) influences. Again, IME, cooking seemed to be more a male art. Some is very simple, and almost bland, and some is incredibly complex and full of competing flavor notes. If you go there, learn to like lumpia, pancit, and adobo. Those, by the way are categories, and not specific dishes - Pancit, is basically a quick whipped-up dish with noodles, and comes in many varieties. Adobo is a kind of marinating seasoning applied to meat, and can be pork adobo, or chicken adobo, and so on. Note that Filipino adobo is quite different from, say, Puertorican adobo. Lumpia is a kinda spring roll-like finger food that can contain everything from fried plantains (yum!) to veggies, to shrimp, pork, or what-have-you.
It’s a GREEN place. Humid. Warm. Lotsa green…
Generally, I’ve found Filipinos to be very friendly and hospitable, but the standard ‘check your assumptions and attitude at the door’ warning still applies; they’re proud folks, and you don’t want to go pissing them off. Especially since they’ve got some very intersting local martial arts, including stick fighting.
Regarding the traffic and the Jeepneys, the latter are their public transit system, which is to say they don’t have one, even in a city that size. I read a short article a few years ago, which followed a Manila office worker through her commute and workday. She drank nothing in the morning so she wouldn’t need to use the bathroom during her hellish commute.