January 16 - Feb 2. I spent 16 days in a place that felt like home even though I had never seen it with my own eyes.
Now one might ask, why would Elaine think she would never go the Philippines? Honestly, because I never had any expectations that I would ever go there. My parents weren’t those Filipinos who went to the Philippines every year to visit. They did not go home for batch mate reunions.
The last time mom was in the Philippines, she was 7 months pregnant with me.
The last time dad was in the Philippines was when my Lola Inday passed away. He returned home to bury his mother. I begged to go back with him on that trip. It was the early 90s. Many of my St. Gen’s classmates were going to the Philippines for visits during the holidays. School could wait, the Philippines apparently could not for them. But for me, it did until now.
A key factor for why my parents never went back home is cost. The cost of our family of three going to the Philippines together seemed insurmountable. When Papa Dodge went to the Philippines in the 90s, I recall my Lola Sweet, my grand aunt, helped offset the cost of his plane ticket. Lola Sweet was a “madre,” a nun, on a fixed income.
Did I talk to my parents about going to the Philippines? Of course. But just like as a kid when I knew we would never get a dog even if I begged, I knew the Philippines wouldn’t be in the cards for our family. Especially after Mama Ging-Ging’s stroke. There was no way we could make that trip. So we lived our lives in the States and connected with our family through phone calls, text messages, and later on Facebook messenger.
And then Papa and Mama passed away. The logistics of figuring out how to travel with elderly and sick parents disappeared. A trip to the Philippines seemed like a realistic goal. So with the help of Mike’s data scientist research skills, credit card points we’d been racking for quite some time, and money saved, a trip to the Philippines was booked.
It would overlap with Sinulog and Dinagyang. Festivals that are dedicated to Santo Nino that are similar to Mardi Gras. Sinulog takes place in Cebu, while Dinagyang takes place in Iloilo. Mike’s parents do Dinagyang every year, so they’d be our guides in Iloilo. Tito Alan, my dad’s brother, lives in Cebu and he was our host and guide in Cebu. Post festival itinerary included family time with Mike’s family. Resort time, aka the White Lotus experience, in Boracay. And lastly Manila sightseeing.
Mike and I would document the trip and cover it on the This Filipino American Life social media accounts. I would have a reason to chronicle everything beyond for my own recollection and memory. I would get to close that particular chapter of my life. It has always been an odd thing to say to folks that I had never been to the Philippines. Given how involved I am with the Filipino American community, there was always an expectation that I had already been. Now I can finally say I have.
Here is a compilation of songs that I heard or listened to in the Philippines and added to my annual playlist for the year. I put it all in one playlist dedicated to the Philippines trip.
The next few substacks will be dedicated to this trip. I’ve got so many stories to tell. Thank you for coming along this journey with me.