Transitory International Labor Migration

Transitory international labor migration: a Belle Waring's-eye view:

John & Belle Have A Blog: Trip: The girls and I are going to the Philippines next week with our maid Tena. She is from a town on the main island of Luzon, on the west coast about 7 hours drive north of Manila. She hasn't been back home to visit her kids in all the 5 years she's worked for us, preferring to take the money I would have spent on her ticket and send it home. I had been trying to convince her for quite a while, with little success.

Overseas workers who go back for a visit to their hometown are invariably hit up for money by every relative and even aquaintance they see. Some maids end up spending so much on these trips, what with presents to buy and people to help that they wind up in debt at the end of their 2-year contract, having sacrificed a lot for little apparent gain.

Tena also has said that it would make her feel so homesick to see her children for a short time and leave them again that not seeing them is better. But slowly, with the application of greater and greater amounts of cash, I talked her into it.

We are going back for her daughter's high school graduation. She's not telling her kids or her mom; she wants to just walk up and surprise them. Sounds to me like the kind of thing that causes heart attacks, but whatever. I have never been to the Philippines, and I'm really looking forward to it. It is always such a different experience to go and stay in someone's home, rather than in hotels. Tena's mom is going to teach me how to make lots of tasty food, such as stuffed milkfish and a kind of ox tongue stew. I am going to supply the meat (including a whole pig's head!) and beer and booze for a big party, and Tena's getting the veggies, soft drinks and so on.

I tried to get a whole suckling pig, but they could only come up with what is basically a small hog, and that's too much. So, head it is! I just hope I don't get drunk and get double-dog-dared into eating an eyeball (something I have done in the past, with a BBQ sheep's head in Cyprus.) They are almost certainly going to rent a karaoke machine and make me sing, though. I better start practicing "You Are The Wind Beneath My Wings" now.

Tena says there is a nice beach nearby, with restaurants on the beach where you can get tasty fresh fish and squid. I think most of the time we're just going to hang out, though there are some catholic shrines and things around that might be interesting. I'm looking forward to going to the wet markets and seeing all the stuff. I think I'm going to have to pass on the delicacy called balut, which is a boiled egg containing the partially formed chicken embryo, which you eat bones and all. Crunchy. Also, tripe stew? I just don't like tripe. I've tried.

John's parents are thoughtfully paying for Tena's daughter to go to nursing school starting in May. Her son is being a bit of a slacker but will hopefully finish up next year, and then I hope I can convince my family to help with his school. Big improvements all around! Thanks Paul and Kay, you rock!