About 8 years ago my company sent me to the Philippines to work in a call Center. I was 38 at the time. I was not your stereotypical balding, overweight white guy. I was in great shape and looked about 5 or 6 years younger than my age.
When I left the USA I was dating a lady in Florida. Nothing serious, there were no commitments made between us.
My company sent me to Cebu first. I stayed at the Marriot and worked for Sykes, (ATT).
I was honestly completely naive to anything about the Philippines before I arrived there. 100% a totally open book. One weird thing I kept seeing at my hotel, was old, foreign men with beautiful young filipina women. It hit me as totally strange that they would be hugging and kissing on these gross old guys, but no one else seemed to bat an eye.
I went to the call center my first night there and it was kind of like being a Hollywood star walking into an auditorium filled with fans. It was overwhelming how much attention I got.
Young, pretty girls, and gays, would constantly ask me questions and when I came over to answer them, would wrap themselves around my arm, resting their heads on my shoulders. I felt very uncomfortable with that level of physical affection.
My first night there I noted a girl sitting off to the side. I thought she was beautiful and talked to her just enough to find out that she had almost no accent and seemed very smart.
That night I went back to my hotel and met a guy in the elevator with one of the most beautiful women Ive ever seen on his arm. He asked me if I had a girlfriend yet, and I told him I did, back home. I honestly did not know what he was talking about.
My next night at the call center I found out that the girl I had met, Lin, had been fired. I was very dissapointed.
For lunch that night, (4 am), a bunch of the call center workers took me across the street to an alley where 3 ladies were cooking over an open fire and I had my first Liempo. They taught me to crush peppers into a mix of soy and vinegar and I thought it was one of the best things Id ever eaten,.. and for only $1 american dollar!
A few weeks went by and and we decided to have a work based get together with one of the call center teams. We rented a boat and went from Cebu to the island of Pandanon off of the coast. Lin was there because her friends at the call center had invited her and I was pretty smitten. I shared one earpiece of my headphones with her on the Jeepney to the dock, and then on the boat ride across. We brought Lechon and hanging rice with us, and someone cooked Conch when we got to the island.
After a few hours the group began to head back to the boat to leave, but Lin and two of her friends asked me if, instead, Id like to take a trip to Bojol for 2 days. I thought this was great and said yes.
We paid a fisherman to take us across and after a couple of hours, hit the beach on Bojol. Once there we triked, jeepneyed and taxied around the island until finally we found a resort on the north side that had one room left with two beds. I took 1 bed and the three girls took the other.
Early in the morning I woke up and saw how crowded that bed was. I shook Lin awake and told her to take mine, and I went down to the beach and fell asleep in a beach chair.
I woke to the most beautiful site I have ever seen: the sun rising lit the water with orange rays. All of the boats were painted the same white color and parked the same distance out from the beach and the sands were the whitest I have ever seen in my life. I will never forget that image.
When I left the USA I was dating a lady in Florida. Nothing serious, there were no commitments made between us.
My company sent me to Cebu first. I stayed at the Marriot and worked for Sykes, (ATT).
I was honestly completely naive to anything about the Philippines before I arrived there. 100% a totally open book. One weird thing I kept seeing at my hotel, was old, foreign men with beautiful young filipina women. It hit me as totally strange that they would be hugging and kissing on these gross old guys, but no one else seemed to bat an eye.
I went to the call center my first night there and it was kind of like being a Hollywood star walking into an auditorium filled with fans. It was overwhelming how much attention I got.
Young, pretty girls, and gays, would constantly ask me questions and when I came over to answer them, would wrap themselves around my arm, resting their heads on my shoulders. I felt very uncomfortable with that level of physical affection.
My first night there I noted a girl sitting off to the side. I thought she was beautiful and talked to her just enough to find out that she had almost no accent and seemed very smart.
That night I went back to my hotel and met a guy in the elevator with one of the most beautiful women Ive ever seen on his arm. He asked me if I had a girlfriend yet, and I told him I did, back home. I honestly did not know what he was talking about.
My next night at the call center I found out that the girl I had met, Lin, had been fired. I was very dissapointed.
For lunch that night, (4 am), a bunch of the call center workers took me across the street to an alley where 3 ladies were cooking over an open fire and I had my first Liempo. They taught me to crush peppers into a mix of soy and vinegar and I thought it was one of the best things Id ever eaten,.. and for only $1 american dollar!
A few weeks went by and and we decided to have a work based get together with one of the call center teams. We rented a boat and went from Cebu to the island of Pandanon off of the coast. Lin was there because her friends at the call center had invited her and I was pretty smitten. I shared one earpiece of my headphones with her on the Jeepney to the dock, and then on the boat ride across. We brought Lechon and hanging rice with us, and someone cooked Conch when we got to the island.
After a few hours the group began to head back to the boat to leave, but Lin and two of her friends asked me if, instead, Id like to take a trip to Bojol for 2 days. I thought this was great and said yes.
We paid a fisherman to take us across and after a couple of hours, hit the beach on Bojol. Once there we triked, jeepneyed and taxied around the island until finally we found a resort on the north side that had one room left with two beds. I took 1 bed and the three girls took the other.
Early in the morning I woke up and saw how crowded that bed was. I shook Lin awake and told her to take mine, and I went down to the beach and fell asleep in a beach chair.
I woke to the most beautiful site I have ever seen: the sun rising lit the water with orange rays. All of the boats were painted the same white color and parked the same distance out from the beach and the sands were the whitest I have ever seen in my life. I will never forget that image.
