My Asian Adventure - Part Six, Random Observations
I'm finally back in my body again after finding protein bars at the health food store. Having my blood sugar crashed while adjusting to culture shock and dealing with homesick is definitely not a good thing for me. Wow, crazy Jen BAD! LOL! And now back to the blog...
They have really reliable public transportation here, called Jeepneys. Basically they’re small flatbed trucks that have been modified to have a roof and they pack people in the back like sardines. I swear one day I thought someone was gonna sit in my lap, LOL! It costs pennies to ride them and they have a regular route around the island. There are no regular stops so when you want to get on one, you flag it down and when you want to get off, you tap your change against the roof or make kissy noises so the driver knows to stop. The best part about these vehicles is that they’re all art cars and each one is different. We’ve seen Hello Kitty, Bob Marley, and Pink Floyd just to name a few. I’ll start getting pics of them so you can see how interesting it is.
The water here is not safe to drink, so we only drink bottled water. It’s a huge local industry because even the locals can’t drink the tap water. The stuff that comes out of the tap doesn’t exactly smell rank, but it also doesn’t smell fresh…it has a hint of the ocean which is not my preferred scent. Since it’s what we have to bathe in, most of the beauty products are heavily scented to counteract it. Thankfully it’s a better water smell than the one Jon and I used to get in Washington in the summer…when the water table got low it smelled like rotten eggs. Now that was truly foul! :)
Speaking of bathing, there are no shower curtains here. The bathrooms are designed to get wet and they all have floor drains. We had to get rubber mats to go in front of the toilets because, combined with the humidity, it takes forever for the floors to dry.
More random bathroom observations…they don’t flush the toilet paper here. All the bathrooms have a trash can next to the toilet, omg it’s unbelievable and creepy. Rebels that we are, we don’t practice this at home because it’s just nasty. Most public restrooms don’t have paper in the stalls, there’s usually some in the main part of the restroom that you have to grab before heading into the stall or you’re stuck dripping dry. Also, most of the public restrooms don’t even have seats installed, you’re just supposed to squat over the bowl. My thighs will be amazing by the time I get home, lol! Seriously tho, I’ve gotten really particular about where I’ll go to the bathroom, and when I’m at the mall I’ll buy something at one of the stores so I can use their private restroom. Also, they’re called “Comfort Rooms” here so you have to ask for the CR or no one knows what you’re talking about. :)
Here’s something annoying…much like in Mexico, they use their kids to beg for change. We don’t see it as much locally, but in Cebu City it’s ridonculous. As white people we’re automatic targets, but Eric thought of a brilliant way to get around it. When they walk up and hold out their hand, he holds out his hand and asks them for change. It’s funny and it works every time.
People are incredibly polite here and they address you as “MaamSir” or “SirMaam” depending on your gender. Because everyone uses the public transportation, they have “Courtesy Booths” at the big stores where you can check your bags for free and continue to shop. The customer service in the stores is unparalleled, they have fleets of people just waiting to answer your questions and help you find things. I have to bust out my vocabulary tho because they don’t always know what you’re asking for. Sometimes there’s even a little charades involved, lol. Thankfully I used to do tech support so I know how to use simple words to describe things…
They have really reliable public transportation here, called Jeepneys. Basically they’re small flatbed trucks that have been modified to have a roof and they pack people in the back like sardines. I swear one day I thought someone was gonna sit in my lap, LOL! It costs pennies to ride them and they have a regular route around the island. There are no regular stops so when you want to get on one, you flag it down and when you want to get off, you tap your change against the roof or make kissy noises so the driver knows to stop. The best part about these vehicles is that they’re all art cars and each one is different. We’ve seen Hello Kitty, Bob Marley, and Pink Floyd just to name a few. I’ll start getting pics of them so you can see how interesting it is.
The water here is not safe to drink, so we only drink bottled water. It’s a huge local industry because even the locals can’t drink the tap water. The stuff that comes out of the tap doesn’t exactly smell rank, but it also doesn’t smell fresh…it has a hint of the ocean which is not my preferred scent. Since it’s what we have to bathe in, most of the beauty products are heavily scented to counteract it. Thankfully it’s a better water smell than the one Jon and I used to get in Washington in the summer…when the water table got low it smelled like rotten eggs. Now that was truly foul! :)
Speaking of bathing, there are no shower curtains here. The bathrooms are designed to get wet and they all have floor drains. We had to get rubber mats to go in front of the toilets because, combined with the humidity, it takes forever for the floors to dry.
More random bathroom observations…they don’t flush the toilet paper here. All the bathrooms have a trash can next to the toilet, omg it’s unbelievable and creepy. Rebels that we are, we don’t practice this at home because it’s just nasty. Most public restrooms don’t have paper in the stalls, there’s usually some in the main part of the restroom that you have to grab before heading into the stall or you’re stuck dripping dry. Also, most of the public restrooms don’t even have seats installed, you’re just supposed to squat over the bowl. My thighs will be amazing by the time I get home, lol! Seriously tho, I’ve gotten really particular about where I’ll go to the bathroom, and when I’m at the mall I’ll buy something at one of the stores so I can use their private restroom. Also, they’re called “Comfort Rooms” here so you have to ask for the CR or no one knows what you’re talking about. :)
Here’s something annoying…much like in Mexico, they use their kids to beg for change. We don’t see it as much locally, but in Cebu City it’s ridonculous. As white people we’re automatic targets, but Eric thought of a brilliant way to get around it. When they walk up and hold out their hand, he holds out his hand and asks them for change. It’s funny and it works every time.
People are incredibly polite here and they address you as “MaamSir” or “SirMaam” depending on your gender. Because everyone uses the public transportation, they have “Courtesy Booths” at the big stores where you can check your bags for free and continue to shop. The customer service in the stores is unparalleled, they have fleets of people just waiting to answer your questions and help you find things. I have to bust out my vocabulary tho because they don’t always know what you’re asking for. Sometimes there’s even a little charades involved, lol. Thankfully I used to do tech support so I know how to use simple words to describe things…
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