Accents
The 'sensational' Filipinos
Si Ronaldo, Josito, Michael, Meryzel, Eva, Aida, atbp.—they are the Filipinos in the staff of cruise ship SENSATION of the Carnival Cruise Lines. They are the Overseas Filipino Workers, the OFWs, the abbreviation that has become a by-word in the Filipino household. They make up the nearly 300-strong Pinoys employed in the SENSATION.
For three days and three nights, April 16-18, on a cruise to the Bahamas, the kababayans (countrymen) in the staff made our vacation extra enjoyable by giving us the feeling of being in the beloved country. It was refreshing to meet fellow Filipinos after a surfeit of an all-white assemblage. (For instance, in South Carolina’s St. Gregory the Great Church where we used to attend Mass, we were the only Filipinos in a sea of white. Ditto in the Marlinton, West Virginia congregation). Long intro but that’s what meeting a fellow Pinoy does to you. Nostalgia sets in, you remember home-sweet-home, and feel kind of rejuvenated.
Ronaldo and companions are the modern-day heroes of our time, the Bagong Bayani that former Pres. Fidel Ramos had so extolled. They count among the 9 million OFWs spread all over the world whose monthly remittances prop up the country’s economy. OFW remittances in 2008 alone totaled $16.4 billion. Cut that and the Philippine economy would scuttle in the doghouse. Featuring here some of these heroic souls we were glad to get acquainted with on cruise ship SENSATION:
Ronaldo Gonzales of Bulacan has been employed at the Carnival Cruise Lines for fifteen years now. He started at age 20, is now 35. His name tag carried the position of Team Headwaiter. We’re happy that a fellow Filipino, assisted by a waiter from Thailand, was assigned to our table at the formal dinner. College for Ronaldo was in vocational automotive, but he readily dismissed the vocation to find working in a cruise ship financially more rewarding. Proof is the mini-grocery built out of his earnings that his wife manages back home, at the same time caring for their two kids, a daughter, 12, and a son, 7.
Josito Gullo is what I call the hometown boy because he comes from Sto. Domingo, Arevalo, which is just a stone’s throw—speaking in the global context—from our residence in San Antonio, Oton. Josito, 38, has two daughters. When he comes home for vacation to visit the wifey and their two children, he said he’ll visit us in Oton. We are looking forward to meeting him in native grounds. Time then for us to reminisce our SENSATION experience and inquire as to how the rest of the Pinoys in the boat are faring. As a way of his family keeping in touch with him and to assuage somehow their missing him, we are thinking of a visit to his family ahead of his own scheduled vacation. Meryzel D. Belen of Cavite wrote her name down and designation as Bar Waitress, and HRM as her degree (Hotel and Restaurant Management to the uninitiated). She carried a tray of pina colada in Carnival cocktail glasses, asked if we’d want to purchase one, and graciously served us when we nodded. She said we could have free refills and could take the trademark glass for souvenir. Her area of service is the huge open deck of the ship where she’s a new employee for two months now.
So glad to get conversing with us is a fellow Pinay, Hotel Stewardess Eva Batoy from Misamis Occ. A family of her own and kids? No boyfriend as yet, she laughingly said. She finished Banking and Finance, but abandoned all intentions of a bank job after signing up for a 9-month contract with Carnival. She gets the equivalent of more than P20,000 monthly. Sufficiently adequate for a single 27-year old.
Aida Sambag is tall for a regular Filipina, husky, and stays well-built at age 54. She possesses just the ideal physique for her position of Security Guard. An A.B. graduate, she’s been with Carnival for five years already, earns P40,000/month or thereabouts. She hails from Bonifacio, Manila where her husband and child reside. Aida is proud of the fact that the Pinoy new hires need less training and are better equipped to tackle the demands of a job compared to other nationals. We salute to that!
Yam Tepollo was the charming Pinay who ushered in guests to the Fantasy Dining Room. Her smiling face was a welcome sight every time we went for formal dining. A tete-a-tete with the Masscom graduate would have been nice; both our schedule being too tight, there was no time for a one-on-one.
Michael Azores was the first OFW we met whose job as checker was temporary for the day. He checked our tickets and other credentials prior to our entering the boat. We would have wanted to talk with him further, but we missed him in the multifarious activities programmed in the cruise.
As I was writing this, May 2, I set the computer on stand-by to join the rest of the family watch live on TV the fight between the Pacman and the Hitman or Manny Pacquiao vs. Ricky Hatton of England. In less than 10 minutes, the boxing bout has given the homeland the Sensational Filipino of the hour as World Light Welterweight champion. Manny Pacquiao downed his opponent in an amazing TKO, prompting Rudy to remark: “They call us a country of servants; we are a country of champions!”
My husband was referring to the news how a Hong Kong columnist named Chip Tsao called the Philippines a “nation of servants.” The Chip, rather cheap shot—ugly, disgraceful, despicable (any more?)—created a tsunami of protests from the Philippine government and from Filipinos worldwide. In a previous column, I served this to Chip Tsao: “This degenerate alien should be subjected to a lecture on the dignity of honest labor.”
The OFWs—from an array of blue-collared to the white-collared—deserve our nation’s respect, gratitude, and admiration. (Next week: Longing for Boracay in Nassau, Bahamas) (Email: lagoc@hargray.com)