When I first visited Manila, of the Philippines in the mid-80s, I was more curious of how the people there worked in the same electronics assembly factory of a U.S. multinational corporation. I was then working as an engineer for a same U.S. corp, which had a subsidiary company there.
I was fascinated to note that the majority of employees were women, especially in the production and purchasing departments, unlike any other I visited in Asia. This explained to me why many political leaders were women too. The streets in those days were busy with all kinds of locally designed 3-wheelers, plying the role of normal taxis.
Filipinos were great singers and musicians and choirs and bands were everywhere people enjoyed their drinks and songs.Food variety was close to our local Malaysian dishes, except for one they called "balut" which I never ever tried as I saw it and explained. It reminded me of the same in Taipei where they enjoyed the raw snakes blood soup mixed with some gall juices.
Shops in the malls displayed lots of locally made and handicrafted products which included the lamp shades made from translucent seashells which were practical and beautifully done. I felt that in those days the people really enjoyed their daily living while some more successful ones, in style and elegance, especially in their smart national custumes.
In a country said to cover over 7000 islands, I wonder how the people get to learn more and interact with one another.
This continues to fascinate me.
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