Category: Thoughts

Spotted: Little Pink at the Gym

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Which of these choices is incorrect:

I went to the gym and _______.

1) worked out because I’m finally starting to lose weight.

2) heard a body combat class punching and kicking to the Hairspray soundtrack

3) saw a white person in the gym.

The correct answer is, of course, Number 1. ( I mean honestly, I eat fried meat and halo-halo on a regular basis. Let’s get real.)

As I was finishing my work out, humming Hairspray as I wiped the sweat from my brow, I did a double-take of something that seemed strangely familiar but somehow out of the ordinary. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, it was a Caucasian male. A male wearing a pink polo and doing crunches. It took all my effort not to stop in my tracks and stare…very long.

Which brings me to my point. Why would someone work out in a pink polo? Jokes lang.

As young college Americans travel and study abroad, they are immersed in new sights and sounds. Common phrases include, “They don’t have ____ in America” or “Why don’t Americans drink ____ ?(usually a delicious yet inexpensive alcohol)” Other than the food, the culture and the traditions, America students are amazed by the homogenous body that makes up a number of countries in the world. India, China, Japan, Guatemala, Denmark. The streets and coffee shops are seas of similar stature, hair color, and facial structure. The Philippines is no exception. Anyone Caucasian, African, or blond for that matter stands out like a sore thumb.

And that is one thing that makes me so proud of America. We have racism, sexism, and the other kinds of bad -isms out there. However, we are the definition of a cultural melting pot–comprised of every language, religion and skin color. This is something special, something unique to our country and I believe our multi-cultural exposure can be an advantage if we let it. You look different from me? So what. Americans are lucky to grow up in a jambalaya of ethnicities and we should embrace the opportunity to accept one another on the basis of humanity.

You knew you could gain so much intellectual insight from a polo-wearing Caucasian sweating under the glare of his fit Filipino trainer?

Cute kid buying snacks from one of many local stores.

Back in Blog

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So in case all of you were wondering, I did make it back to the United States. On my To-Do list of life, Study Abroad was checked off with a big red mark. Travel accomplished.

I’ll admit the first week back at school was tough. The intricate city of Copenhagen, allure of travel every other weekend, and long conversations with international friends had been replaced with sorority events and dance company rehearsals. It wasn’t bad but it was very much different, returning to a place that did not seem to notice I had been gone. I was a second semester junior with my head back in sophomore year and my heart back in Denmark. I worked my way back into school mode and waited patiently until the time I would be able to travel again. That time has come.

On May 23rd, I will leave the United States once again and fly 22 hours to Manila, Philippines. It is the home of my father’s close friend and the location of my internship with the Law of Nature Foundation. I will spend 6 weeks in the capital working in the main office before relocating to the field work station on the Bantayan Island off the northern coast of Cebu. It’s definitely the farthest I’ve ever been from America but I can’t wait to feel the humidity and say Hi Kamusta? for the first time. (The national language is Tagalog). Hence the reason that the blog is back and better than ever. More pictures, more friends and more memories of how awkward I am in a new culture, or my own for that matter. Follow me thousands of miles away to an island nation full of beaches, rice, and friendly faces.

Wish me luck.