eight days before i fly off and i start thinking about what it would be like to be there, breathing the air that everyone else there breathed, riding the same metro, walking the same paved roads. would i make any difference? would i be any different from the rest who have trodded the same path?
***
this morning, i received a message from an aunt, asking if it was true that i was flying off to the lion city to see my brother. i said yes. she asked me which terminal i was going through, how much was my fare and so on. and then she asked how long my ticket duration was. i said so and so, and she said, beware of the immigration officers! she told me that i might get into trouble and not pass the gates. she also told me to bring IDs to verify i was a good person etc.
that got me thinking - would i make it just that far? or would i cross the seas and land at 0945 in changi? then she told me singaporeans were racist against people who passed through the budget terminal, since most domestic helpers (househelp) pass through those gates. she told me i might have a rough time and be discriminated.
to ease my anxiety, i googled for stuff about "singaporean racism" and found several. especially towards indians and malays. there were quite a few experiences from fellow filipinos too. to tell you quite frankly, that did not cure the anxiety.
***
i was applying for a job as executie assistant in an arab-run agency in malate early this month. i was thinking if the indonesia gig wouldn't push through, maybe qatar would be nicer to me. i was so fuckin' wrong.
i went up the stairs after the secretary motioned me to come upstairs with her. the arab sat behind this massive table. i had to squeeze myself through the glass table that rested adjacent to the table to get a seat. i sat down and the arab asked me basic questions. after answering, he started bantering about stuff i said, saying i was lying, that i was giving him the moon and the stars etc. i couldn't really figure out the guy.
he said, "after college, you went straight to teaching? what's wrong with you!? after ten years, you are still teacher!? now you apply a different position" he stopped bantering and then called the secretary. she was motioned to call the employer and ask if i was qualified. i said thank you and went downstairs. the secretary asked me my asking price for the job. i said 60k. she went out of the cubicle, called a number and said, "sir, babaan natin ang asking price. 32k lang ang kaya ng employer. ilagay ko napo 32k?" she was going to write it down, but i said no. "60k po ang asking price ko. can i have my passport back?" she handed me my passport and i left the agency.
it made me think. did the guy have a point? 10 years in teaching. did i just really convince myself i was supposed to be a teacher, or were my skills mismatched with the profession i chose?
***
eight days to go and i'll be in another country (if the immigration peeps would allow me to pass through the gates LOL). i wonder if i'd encounter the same types of people there. i hope not. jigs (a former student of mine) was gracious enough to have provided me with leads as to where i could start job hunting. my brother has already vouched for my transport, lodging, food etc (*jumping in pure lunacy).
i hope things work out. still here. hey.
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