"“Bakit umuwi ka pa? (Why would you want to return?)” My editor asked this question right after I went back to work. The Executive Producer of a morning newscast asked me the same, with additional input: “Something is very wrong with you.” This was not the first time I heard these remarks. I have just returned from a two-week vacation from London, not just as a tourist though. By virtue of a visa, I’m also technically a resident of England. People have been telling me for years that I should stay in the land of the Beatles and Harry Potter—in a tone as if it’s really a general rule to want to live outside the Philippines." Read on... http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/371228/opinion/why-manila-is-better-than-london
Are you going to tell her The Beatles aren't from London, or shall I? There does seem an obsession with Filipinos in trying to move abroad. It's true. And they are convinced that anyone who lives in a country populated by predominently white people will become immediately rich. My wife finds this a constant cause of frustration with her entire family now convinced she is rolling in it virtue of a part time job in a supermarket. She has alos noticed, from observing other Filipinos here, that many of them choose to live a very simple life here in a tiny flat and work extremely long hours (eg two jobs in some cases) just so they can afford a nice house in The Philippines - in which they stay about 2 weeks a year. Thus giving the impression to everyone back home that they are rich.
