What's That Coming Over The Hill, Is it a Monster, Is it a MOONSTEEEERRRR!!!

Hello guys sorry if I haven't been around lately, thirteen-hour workdays can do that to ya!

First of all, this has been long overdue, my friend Jonas has completed The Challenge of the Super Duper Friends, basically featuring the American presidential aspirants as superheroes! My friend Jonas runs the Philippine office of an American storyboarding studio, and it's their first foray into animation



Secondly, check out my new links, Eurotrippen and BerlinBound, who shares my Monty Python love. I raise my hat to his British wit by dedicating my new favorite song to his blog--Okay, the band's Welsh, but that's the same thing, innit? Just joking!

Kinda the same, a bit different

There are several things here in Germany that remind me of home.

Meister Proper, uhrm, Mr. Clean,

Magnolia Nestle,

and Selecta.

However, my guilty pleasure here in Germany is Germany's Next Top Model by Heidi Klum. It's quite a discovery, and an eye-opener on how Heidi Klum is like. GNTM is ten times better than America's Next Top Model! ANTM feels like a Tyra Banks vanity project, while GNTM is actually about the girls! No super big Heidi photos adorn the set. The girls actually get sound modeling advice and critique, and the drama is kept to a minimum. The challenges don't suck, and are actually practical when applied to the modeling world. Of course, there is a resident bitch, IMG Models scout Peyman Amin, but the show doesn't descend into a condescending bitchfest, which happens often in ANTM. Unnecessary cattiness? Not here.



Heidi Klum is a great host in Project Runway, but she's waaay, waay better in German. She does the suspense thing really well in PR, but she's a master in GNTM. She's actually very witty in her native language!

During a catwalk challenge, a contestant took to the catwalk so sexily, swaying her skirt to and fro so violently with her hands that she accidentally flashed the judges. As judging time rolled around Heidi told the contestant, "You walked so beautifully, like the models would do in Valentino shows, but you showed us your underpants!"

"Did she? She didn't!" said runway trainor Bruce Darnell

"She did! She had pretty pink panties on!"

Goodness that made me laugh! If they can only remove that annoying German TV habit of cueing in inappropriate or cheesy American songs as background music...

Leipzig Memories

Ciy Museum, Leipzig

The first time I heard of Leipzig was in a Sweet Valley Twins novel when I was 11. In it, Jessica and Elizabeth's family hosted a boy from the East German Gymnastic team, who were visiting the town at that time. Yes, that's how old I am. Yes, I read Nancy Drew too. He wanted to defect to the capitalistic USA, and the twins convinced him to go back by throwing a party with German photos, music, and strudel.



What does that have to do with this post? Nothing. Just wanted to say that I went to Leipzig, and met up with That Queer Expat and B. from Eurotrippen, who, in my opinion, has one of the best expat blogs out there. Pardon Adam's open mouth, he was in the middle of saying "cheese!" It was a lovely, sunny spring day, a perfect day to wander around Germany's medieval streets.

Leipzig is a great city to visit! The shopping's amazing, and it makes me wish that I had two cents to rub together so I can buy a 30 euro dress without feeling guilty. I've just realized how much I miss living in a big city, and how stylish city people should actually look. I've realized how frumpy I've become since moving to university town Jena. Now that I live in Erfurt, I see everyday how much I badly need to reverse the fug.

P.S.

I kinda feel sorry for this guy!

Our New Life

We've spent the last two weeks moving in and trying to sort out our life here. They say that a picture is worth a thousand words, so I'll let the video do the talking. Enjoy!

All the Little Things That They Do

Every culture has its own quirks, and even the level-headed, "rational" Europeans have their own weird habits that I can never get over. Here's my top five list.

1. THEY EAT RAW MEAT The first time I landed in Germany I was horrified to discover that they like to put raw ground meat seasoned with onions, pepper and salt on bread, a dish they call "Gehacktes."

"But it's just like sushi!"

I can't just imagine myself eating raw meat from a warm-blooded mammal, sorry.

2. "Geh nicht drausend mit nassen Haaren! Du wirst dich erkälten!" (Don't go out with wet hair, you'll catch a cold!) Similar to the Filipino concept of "hamog." People should either blow-dry their hair, or if they can't help it, put a hat on before braving the elements.

The last time I heard, the cold was caused by a virus.

3. "Let's open the windows for oxygen!" Even in the coldest of winters, they open the windows for a few minutes to reportedly get rid of the "stuffy air" in the room. It's understandable, since most German houses are poorly ventilated due to the cold weather, encouraging the growth of the dreaded house mold.

4. And the open windows policy apply to bedrooms, too. The common over-engineered German window can be opened all the way, or only slightly ajar at the top. Neat. But the typical German has one quirk: He has to leave the bedroom windows half-open all the time for "fresh air" to circulate in the bedroom. Naturally, this leaves bedroom temperatures freezing. As Martin, a German friend of ours puts it, "Germans have no sex lives because they keep their bedrooms ice-cold."

Germans buy potatoes in sacks, like we do rice in the Philippines. Potatoes have to be kept in the coldest spot in the house. Three guesses where MIL keeps her potatoes.

5. Mayo with French Fries, Mustard with Wurst. I have adopted this quirk wholeheartedly. I take it that this is a European thing. Don't put Ketchup on your Fries or on your Wurst; it's a dead giveaway that you're not a local. As I slathered my Thüringer Bratwurst with ketchup, the vendor at the stand I frequent gave me this horrified look and jokingly teased, "but ketchup is only for kids!"

And I like the mustard here. It's bitter-spicy (not hot), much unlike the radioactive yellow "mustard" that they sell back home.

Geschafft!

I did it! I passed my German language test with flying colors! I got a 5 (the perfect score!) for the listening and Reading parts of the test, a 3 at the written part (Scheiße!) and a 4 at the oral part!

All I have to do is to convince a university that a three ain't that bad (remember I need a 4 out of 4 for my course!) since I got a 5, twice! Three means I still passed the test.

Ich habe es in einem Jahr geschafft! Letztes Jahr (Jan 2006) konnte ich nur "Alter Schweder," "Guten Tag," und "Gesundheit" sagen! Jetzt kann ich Deutsch ganz offiziell! Es hat viele Tränen gebraucht, aber es hat sich gelohnt.

Hooray!

We are finally moving! Found an apartment, and we're moving to Erfurt! By the end of the month! Yay!

I am very, very happy to be moving out, and I am happy to be out of reach from my MIL. She is quite sad, and has taken to hugging me and saying, "Everybody wants to leave me. You too?"

While I am sad as well, I am actually more excited at the fact that I'll be independent in a new city, and happy to be away from her meddlesome and annoying ways.

She always prides herself as a really good cook, and admittedly, she does cook well. She loves making traditional German dishes, and asks me to watch while making them. "Das ist wie meine Oma das gemacht hat." (That's how my Grandma used to make it.) Since traditional German cooking is rich in meat, potatoes, and fat, a normal meal in the household usually drips in grease and butter. Even her vegetables are marinated in heavy sauces or butter. Hearty German dishes literally are not for the faint of heart! Then she complains the next day at how big she's become.

I think I have gotten along with her for the past eight months by playing the compliant Asian. Though Thomas says that the following statements are not completely true, I think that I never complained. I do stuff around the household the way she wants them done to avoid arguments. I never answer back. I understand that because Thomas was not here to explain my behavior, and that because I can't express myself in German as well as I can in English.

I patiently waited for the day that Thomas would be done with school so we could move out of this backwater city. It is beautiful, yes, but a tad slow for my taste.

She, in turn, treats me like the provincial innocent. That was ok, because in some respects, I was. But sometimes it gets too much!

Everytime I cook something Filipino or Asian, she always has to meddle with how I should do it. Mas marunong pa siya sa akin, eh sino ba ang Pinoy dito? I tell her that I want to recreate the taste of my childhood, but she insists that her cooking methods are better than mine! She always meddles in my cooking. She doesn't want anybody to meddle with her cooking but she insists on meddling with mine, all because I sometimes cook with a recipe in hand!

Like during Filipino Food night. She insisted that I flood the freaking wok with cooking oil as I made Lumpiang Shanghai (spring rolls) so we can fry a lot in a short amount of time. People normally use up to three tablespoons of oil when frying spring rolls.

I didn't use water or egg yolk to bind the end of the wrapper because it doesn't work. The spring roll wrappers sold here are too thick, they break because of the moisture. So I let it be. Barbara told me, that won't work. But I've done it before, and it does.

So as I cook the Spring roll in the vat of oil, the wrappers ballooned and floated to the surface. She exclaimed "Scheiße, I told you so! You should've used egg!" in front of everybody! Carola, the other cooking host said "Shh, don't fight here!" I was steaming mad at Barbara, and gave her dagger looks. Thomas just ladled out the excess oil in another bowl and told me, "See, I told you, you shouldn't listen too much to my mother!"

Well, it was my fault because I was too much of a pushover. But in everyday life she is just the same as well. Typical German who wants to control everything. So anyway, I promised to cook these past few days as a thank you for allowing me to stay in her house.

Last night I made Tortang Talong (Eggplant Omelet). To remove the skin while achieving the burnt eggplant flavor, I put the eggplant over her ceramic hot plate stove, a lot safer than the Filipino method of grilling it on fire. She took a look at what I did, and said "Scheiße, what you're doing will make the stove dirty! I think you should put it in the oven instead."

Since it was her stove, I had no choice but to put it in the oven. It works just the same, but it didn't taste the same. Then as I fried the omelet on a skillet, she noted, "Cooking one eggplant at a time is so inefficient. Why don't you put everything in the oven? You can cook three to four eggplants in one go!"

Grr grr and more grrr!!!! Outside I was all calm, but deep inside I wanted to scream! "Hey, who is the Filipina here? You and your pseudo-Asian dishes are fine, but when I cook Filipino, then I cook Filipino! If I wanted to make baked eggplant omelet, then I would've done so!"


I made Maja Blanca for dessert, from scratch! I literally scraped hard coconut meat out of a shell to make coconut milk! She asked where I put the water, and I replied that I threw it away. She went, "Scheiße, why did you throw that away? It was good for drinking! We drank that in Cuba."

I couldn't take it anymore, so I made Thomas explain to her that coconut juice is only good when it comes from a YOUNG coconut. Old Coconut juice tastes yucky. Because he was in Southeast Asia for a year, he knew that.

I know she just means well, but I can't take all this meddling! I will be glad to have a kitchen I can call my own!

Expat Meme

From Heidelbergerin


5) Name five things you love in your new country:

1. Being able to wear what I want/ Fashion. Love the clothes!

2. To be able to walk around/bike around without being assaulted by pollution, noise, and traffic

3. The honesty of the people

4. Things get delivered/done when and as promised.

5. The Autobahn! Cheese! Bread! Cold cuts!

4) Name four things that you miss from your native country:

1. Malls! Mall of Asia, Megamall, Glorietta, Greenbelt.

2. People are friendlier in the Philippines.

3. Shops are open from 10 am to 10 pm, even on a Sunday!/Midnight Madness sales/Really cheap Chinese shit. There's also a lot of Chinese crap here but they're more expensive.

4. Filipino culture/Filipino Christmas/Filipino Food/Filipino weather/Filipino beaches/My Makati life/My family

3) Name three things that annoy you a bit (or much) in your new country:

1. Everything is so expensive, double or triple the price compared to the Philippines

2. The obsession over privacy. I understand it, but sometimes it gets too much. Being a Filipino, I have a much looser sense of personal space. When I first got here, I had to ask Barb's permission to enter her living room (because it was "her" living room)

3. Power-tripping inflexible government workers.

2) Name two things that surprise you (or surprised you in the beginning) in your new country:

1. They eat raw pork!!!!

2. They allow their children to roll around in the dirt! And clean them up later when they're really, really filthy. Filipino mothers watch over their children like hawks. Kids can't play outside unless their backs are caked with baby powder, with a small towel placed under the backside of their shirts. Pag pawis na, hala! Habol! May dala nang basang bimpo at kailangang punasan ang mukha!

1) Name one thing that you would miss terribly in your new country, if you had to leave it.

1. The lack of social hierarchies. Angela Merkel and the jobless single mother have equal rights.

I would encourage anybody living abroad to answer! What do you like/dislike about your new country?

Broken Record

A little Pictionary of my new life.



I work here.



Fellow teachers Mary-Louise (Canada) and Jeff (US)

Jeff and I got to talking yesterday, and asked a question that I've heard a thousand times.

"How is it that you speak with an American accent?"

People who know me personally know that I speak with an American accent. I sound like a broken record, as I've told the story a million times already, to schoolmates, officemates, and most of my co-teachers. I was raised by my grandparents, who were born during the American occupation and educated under the American educational system. They decided to create an English-speaking household. It isn't hard, I tell them. I was raised on a diet of Matlock, Steve Allen, McGyver, and Sesame Street. It is possible to raise an American-speaking kid in the islands.

I didn't learn my native language, Tagalog, until I was three, when I had to go to school. That resulted in 11 years of hell, when kids picked on me because I spoke English well.

Mary-Louise joins in, "Hey I had a friend whose parents were Polish immigrants. They speak Polish at home, and she didn't learn English until she had to go to school."

"That's just what she said!", Jeff exclaimed. "See, I wonder what would happen if I marry a German. I speak German as well, and I want to know how it would be like for my kid if we decide to use English at home."

I was reminded of a question that has been floating in my head for some time. I speak German, English and Tagalog. I would love it if my kid would be able to do the same. However, I'm scared that I would overwhelm my kid. I could speak Tagalog exclusively to my future children, while Thomas could speak English, even if my English is better than his. Our children could pick up German in school, right?

A little note on trilingualism: Thomas' best friend is half-Greek, half-German, and was born in America. His dad, a university professor, spent a year there on a PhD grant. He holds all three nationalities (shh, don't tell anyone!). He speaks all three languages in varying degrees of fluency. However, he didn't start speaking until he was three!

At first his mom spoke to him in Greek, his dad in German, and both occasionally spoke to him in English. However, because he didn't utter a word in any discernable language, they decided to raise him in one language: German. Then he started to talk.

Because of his multi-lingual upbringing, he is able to pick up languages quickly. He now speaks Spanish as well. I noticed that I share this trait. German is a difficult language, but my progress is better than most of my classmates, who were raised speaking only one language.

I can't expect my children to have the same capabilities as I do. Will I overwhelm my future children if I try to raise them in three languages? Will it work?

Meanwhile, I hope that I still have enough room in my head for Spanish. Thomas and I plan to move to Chile after five years to learn the language. Since Tagalog has a lot of Spanish in it, I hope I can learn it quickly. That's another challenge for my future kid!

Biyenan Blues

Pasensya na kung Tagalugin ko yung post na ito. Mahirap na, baka mabasa ng mga Aleman! Alam kong binabasa ako ng pinsan ni Thomas! Rant lang ako ng konti dito sa blog ko ha, pasensya na.

Hay, naku, wish ko lang makapag-ipon na kami ng pera para maka-alis na kami dito. Don't get me wrong, magkasundo kami ng biyenan kong hilaw, pero minsan di ko siya ma-take na kasama sa bahay. Kaka-graduate lang ni Thomas nitong March, kaya ayun, dito kami pareho sa Jena naka-tengga. May trabaho na siya, kaso laging nau-urong yung starting date ng trabaho, freelance consultancy firm ang pinasok niya eh.

Kaso nga lang, parang aso at pusa magaway ang mag-ina. Daig pa ang mag-asawa! Kaugali kasi ni Thomas yun ex niya. Si Barbara, pagdating sa akin, very patient. Hindi ko alam kung bakit. Kasi foreigner ako? Kasi lagi ko siyang sinusunod kahit alam kong wala siya sa katwiran? Kasi ako yun taga-linis at taga-laba at taga-luto sa mga araw na depressed siya?

Ako naman, diskarteng close. Ngiti lang, minsan kahit inis na. Kailangang pakisamahan eh. Magiging biyenan ko din yan someday. Namana ni Thomas yung ugaling nagmamarunong lagi sa Nanay niya, alam ko yun. Ugali ng ex + pagmamarunong=recipe for disaster!

Nakatambak noong Sunday yung mga gamit ni Thomas from Deggendorf sa home-office niya, hindi naman ginagamit yung opisina. Alisin daw, so inalis. May isang rung sa shelf na walang laman, so naglagay siya ng bag doon.

Ito namang si Barb, nagfreak-out! Alisin daw yung gamit niya, opisina daw niya yun. Ayaw alisin ni Thomas. Ano ba naman yung iisang part ng shelf, di ba? Tapos ayan na, as in she went apeshit. Talagang namula sa galit! Iyak ng iyak sa inis. Ewan ko ba, menopause lang kaya 'to? Tapos nun, sorry ng sorry, sabay halik sa amin. Eh hello di naman ako kasama sa away.

Yan lang ang latest sa mga kaganapan sa bahay. Basta ako, ewan, parang pahirap na pahirap para sa akin na pakisamahan siya. Sabi niya, aalis daw siya papuntang Greece o Spain for the month. Di naman umalis. Haay basta sabi ko sa kanya alis na kami dito by the end of the month. Sana kumita ako ng more than 800 euros this month para makapag-rent kami ng bahay.

Hay naku, nahahawa na yata ako sa negativity niya at ang vibe ng bahay niya. I know that I have to get away from here as soon as possible.

My Favorite Things

Before there was Germany, before there was a Thomas, there was a 6 year old girl named Arashi who watched her favorite film over and over again as a child. She knew all of the songs by heart, and would later sing these songs like 'Edelweiss' and 'My Favorite Things' up in the lonely Alps.

She thought that 'Edelweiss' was the national song of Austria, and that this movie was representative of the people that lived in these two countries.

Later, as she set foot on these two countries, she was horrified to discover that the people had no idea of the American movie with the Governess, the Captain, and his seven children! Except in Salzburg, where they are now making a killing out of the Americans who like to ride in buses and wear silly hats. They know a German film, though, which had no music, no girls who were sixteen going on seventeen.

So she made it a mission--A mission!--to introduce this lovely film to everybody who cared to listen. She ordered the special 40th anniversary DVD edition on Amazon, and with bated breath, organized a film night and shared it to her German friends.

The hills of Jena were alive, not with the sound of music, but with laughter!
"Who on earth eats schnitzel with noodles?" asked a girl beside . Yes, who on earth does eat breaded prokchop with noodles? The crowd tittered everytime the American-speaking Austrians mispronounced words like "Auf Wiedersehen" and Edelweiß!

"Oh it's a very Hollywood movie. How can people think that the Germans are like that?"

----------------------

Well, an idiot like me, that's who.

I live in a land where Al Gore would be preaching to the choir. I don't know about the other Germany, but this Germany is hard-core about environmental issues. People bring their own backpacks to the supermarket. They have to pay something like 6 pesos for every plastic bag they get from the store.

I also passed around my DVDs of my favorite American TV show "The Amazing Race." My friend Adam and I are so in love with it that he downloads and burns copies for me. I passed it around my group. What did they have to say about it?

"It's a waste of airplane fuel!"

I told Thomas that my camera, which I forgot in Manila, would make a trip to Germany with a stop over at my aunt's in Las Vegas.

"What a waste of airplane fuel!"

You have to admire their economy of words and resources.

Salamat!

Hello guys I'd like to thank everybody who sent in their suggestions! I ended up making pansit, lumpiang shanghai, and biko! They ate everything (and I mean everything) that I didn't even have leftovers for the staff to eat. It was fantastic!

The version of biko that I made was suggested by the anonymous poster in my February 2 entry. The biko was basically a hybrid of the ordinary biko that we think of, but the brown caramelized topping that I made out of condensed milk reminded me more of the cassava cake toppings that come from Bulacan. Instead of macapuno, I filled the biko with langka. This is a tradition I see often in Cavite.

And I tell ya, I've served these old folks before, and they are picky eaters.



So thanks everyone for your suggestions! They want an encore, and I'll probably make Leila's embutido this time!

moi dix mois

Caught this in Chuvaness's website a month ago. With nothing to do I decided to translate it for kicks. From German TV, interview was also done in Germany. Words in parentheses are mine, for clarification. If anybody can explain the words that I don't quite understand, I will be very grateful. Thanks!

Host: "Today we open the door to a mysterious world. We will meet with Mana, the man that never speaks. Small bling (as in bling bling, jewelry) is good for the shop (or business). Mana has more than one. He founded the Gothic Lolita look, mixing metal with classic and j-pop, and connects big shoes with big theater. Mana whispers, his medium answers. Both their appearances suggest that they know Marilyn Manson. What great secret will he whisper to us?"

K: As a teenager I was a fan or Mötley Crüe. They appealed to me when I saw them in a magazine because they had an extreme style. I found Tommy Lee super, that's why I really wanted a drum set, and my parents actually bought me one. That is what Mana said.

Host: Shortly Tommy Lee would Mana neither become a 'heavy metal-er' nor a drummer, but the guitarrist and the head of the cult Japanese band Malice Mizer. Fans love the hard sound, and the doll-like appearance of the musician (Mana).
With his solo projct Moi dix Mois, the control-freak Mana propels (or boosts) artistry, the Gothis Lolita look and elegant poses to the top. Everything has to be perfect. He prefers to make his own clothes.

K: I opened the fashion/clothes shop moi meme moitie 99% by myself, with clothes for Gothic Lolitas, beause there weren't any clothes that combined something sweet with something dark before. That's exactly what I did. Besides, I don't like short-lived trends, and my concept is for people who see things the same way. That is what Mana said.

Host: And the clothes sell well. There are schoolgirl lolitas with kilts (schottenrock. more likely, plaid skirts) and knee-high socks. Sweet lolitas with rouge, and elegant gothic lolitas with victorian-style corsets. All looks combine innocence and darkness. The fingers spread out to form the sign of Satan and a sweet smile on their lips. Through eiland (? island) is Mana's soul-craving for beauty specially fulfilled.

K: I heard a song from French pop singer Mylene Farmer sometime ago, and the sound of the French language fascinated me. Since then I became interested in French culture. That's what Mana said.

Host: Unexpected thirst (? I don't get the last word. Verdürtnis?) is behind the cult. (I think this means that this unexpected thirst powers the cult). This report about this circuit doesn't quite contain dark experiences and black masses. On the contrary, in Japan the Gothic Lolita Bible contains clothes patterns and recipes for cakes with confectioners sugar crosses. Mana and his fans won't allow themselves to be so easily defined. Devil's signs and baking (? what's backodien?), büschen (?) and evil looks. Perhaps the characterization of the perfect gothic lolita fails because even its creator has a hard time defining it.

K: That's the question of my life. (64$ question). That's what Mana said.

Host: That's when Mana crams back into his own universe made of great secrets and small gestures without so much a whisper. Sayonara, Mana-San.

Dreams

Ich habe sie schon geschafft! My German language test is behind me. Cross your fingers (or press your thumbs) for the results, which I should get within 6-8 weeks. God, I was so nervous, ice cold and shaking as I took the test. By the time I got to the very end I could hardly hold my pen straight! I hope that the proofers would still give me a four. I had a serious fight or flight attack yesterday from the nerves! I felt like I've run a marathon.

If I pass the test, if I get a 4 (with 5 being the highest) in all four parts of the test (reading, writing, listening, oral), then I can go to University! Get a Master's Degree!

I want it for the sake of getting it. Is that wrong? It seems incompatible with my dream of becoming a travel journalist/travel writer.

I've been seeking the path toward this dream for years now. I was a sucker for all of those travel programs and articles, I guess. Here'e a letter I got two years ago from pro-travel journalist Lester Ledesma:

Hi Catherine,

First of all, my compliments on your decision. Not many people have the guts to follow such a clearly undefined path :)Am wondering though as to what kind of travel journalism you are hoping to get into, as you did mention that you sent applications to travel documentary production houses. Or are you hoping to work with print publishers instead?For a start, I'd suggest you go on your own journeys first and write your own articles about them. At this stage, try to focus more on developing your writer's voice and your photographer's eye - these will be your products for sale, so be sure they are of good quality. Don't worry muna if the stories you write will be published or not. The material that you gather from these trips will be your portfolio, which is very important - think of this as your resume. No editor will believe that you can write a good travel article if you can't show them a good travel article, di ba?

With your portfolio in hand, start calling up editors and show them your work. Some may like what they see and use these stories - if so, ayan... pandagdag sa pogi points mo yan :)The thing is, for a writer who is just starting out, don't expect anyone to hand you an assignment wherein they send you to some faraway place that you'll cover. It just doesn't happen that way. Talagang you'll have to spend for your own travels muna so you can make your stories. Parang investment: travel=raw material. Travel story=final product.Then when you start getting a name for yourself, those cool assignments will come in. Pero matagal pa yan so be patient and concentrate on your products first :)

Sa photography, yeah.. there is a bit of techie stuff connected with it. Pero its not required... what is more important is the quality of the photos you take. So concentrate on developing your photographic style as well - its the "art" that will sell, not the "techie" stuff. Study the work of photographers you admire so you can somehow "absorb" their styles. Again, this will all take lots - maybe years - of work. Money may not be good at first - pero if you're really into it, chances are you'll be able to hack it. Ika nga - if you want it bad enough.... :)

...and I want it badly enough. If I go into pro-blogging then this will definitely be my niche. Wish me luck!

Represent!

As the only Filipina from the Philippines in this city, I have been invited to do a cooking demo for a group of East German women, who have never seen a Filipino in their lives.

The rules are: It has to be easy to prepare, it has to be easy to duplicate, and the ingredients should be readily available in the local supermarkets and Asian grocery stores. It should also suit the German palate.

I've decided to make lumpiang shanghai as an entree, and pansit guisado as an appetizer. I don't have any ideas for a salad (optional) and a dessert.

I made palitaw for Barbara, but she didn't like it. She said that the sticky consistency was too alien for her. I decided against turon because I'm making something with lumpia wrappers already. Don't say minatamis na saging because the Spanish restaurant carries it. And they know leche flan comes from Mexico.

I need something that's distinctly Pinoy. Send me an email! I'll be cooking on the 3rd of March!

I hear the call of the open road...

It's been a year since my dream-like journey around the Philippines, and six months since I went around the old continent on a motorbike. I miss the feel of the open road. Pavement that stretches for miles and miles, with no end in sight.

I miss the feeling of losing track of time. In long trips comes a point where you don't even know what day it is. Sunday? Thursday? In the end, it doesn't matter anyway. The rush of freedom, borrowed as it may be, is exhilitating.

Right now, I am sitting in front of a computer and dreaming about and longing for a really long road trip.

So your Grandad was a Nazi...

Thomas and I stayed with his relatives in Berlin over the holidays. As I was poring over old family photos, I noticed a peculiar thing: Thomas' grandad looked a whole lot older than I expected. Bald, thin, with weary eyes and lined face, he seemed like he was in his fifties. At first glance I thought that he was Thomas' great grandad. In fact he was just in his early forties.

I approached Thomas' aunt, who confirmed that yes, he was her father. He died before Thomas was born, in the 70s at the age of 56. She was 15.

"Why did he look so aged?"

"He was a medical doctor. After the war he was detained in a Russian labor camp for the next six years, and didn't come back to Germany until 1951. He died of a heart attack. I guess being imprisoned took a toll on his health."

Whoa.

The implication is that he was a Nazi kind of took me by surprise. Thomas's family is not racist. However, I always had this sugary sweet hope in my heart that Thomas' family was a lot like the Von Trapps. I never thought about it, but in my heart of hearts I wanted the family to be one of those nice people who helped the Jews.

Later that night I told Thomas that finding out that his grandad was a Nazi freaked me out a bit. In a hurt tone, Thomas told me to get over it. "Hello, if I had been born in that time I would've been a Nazi too. There were benefits to being a party member. Just because they belonged to the party didn't mean that they believed in it. Why are you judging my grandad because of my country's past?"

"By the way, my aunt (from the other side of the family) was a member of the Stasi, and that is at the opposite end of the political spectrum."

I mean how hardcore is that? First, I find out that his granddad was a Nazi, and now I find out that his aunt was an East German Stasi?

In a world where even the German Pope was a Nazi, it honestly shouldn't be surprising. Trying to find a native German family untouched by the Nazi regime would be trying to find a household untouched by death. It doesn't exist.

By all accounts, Thomas's grandad was a great guy. Up to this day, his children adopt a reverent tone of voice when they talk about their father, the mighty doctor who survived a Russian labor camp.

I also feel a bit of envy. My grandparents were teenagers during the war, so they didn't do anything more exciting than hide out in the mountains of their respective provinces.

I need time to come to terms with the fact that Thomas' family, like the rest of the Germans, are players in Germany's conflicted past. It's not that they wanted to be a part of any of these groups. The circumstances of Germany's turbulent history forced them to be so. While I try to accept these facts, I am praying, hoping, that no Jews, gays, or political prisoners were harmed in his hands. Maybe, just maybe, he was a Von Trapp after all.

Du bist zu wunderbar, Berlin!

Had a great New Years in Berlin! Berlin has the greatest museums in the world! If you're a museum-lover, Berlin is a great place to go. The major museums are all located in a place called Museum Island. It would take forever to go everything.

Here's a tip: Go the the least crowded museum you can find. Buy a three day ticket, worth *€ 7.50. It's just fifty cents more than the day ticket. Both tickets allow you to view the 60 or more major museums in Berlin. The fee includes an audio guide. It's really helpful because it spares reading time and eyeache and it's also very informative. I love how well organized the museum system is!

*EDIT: Reduced price for students and senior citizens. The three day ticket is more expensive for normal people.


The line to the Bode Museum. I tell you, the museums are packed here.


An ancient gambling game from the early Christian period.


A brilliant piece from the 15th century.


The interior of the museum.


The Berlin Main train station. Brilliant. There's a sign that reads: Welcome to the most modern train station in the world.


The train station's got a giant Christmas tree decorated with Swarovsky crystals. Sponsored by the Swarovsky company, of course.


The Reichstag


The world-famous sculpture of Nefertiti.


The museum is so huge, they've fitted an entire Greek temple facade in it, and more!

Love the vibe of the place, love the energy of the city.

So how was your New Years?

Merry Christmas y'all!

Merry Christmas to everybody! I miss Christmas in the Philippines. Iba talaga ang Pasko sa atin, mas warm at as close ang pamilyang Pilipino kaysa mga Aleman.

Sorry for the lack of updates, I'm in a tizzy with my new schedule. I'm still adjusting to my new and very busy schedule and my challenging job as an English teacher.

I'm gearing up for the TestDaf Prüfung on February 14th. If I pass my German language proficiency test, I can move on to university. Wish me luck! That leaves me only a month and a half to prepare. Half of the time I'm in Erfurt, half of the time in German school here in Jena, with barely enough time to prepare for both my English and German lessons. I started learning German barely a year ago. I hope I can make it!

Kann ich das schaffen? Ich muss! Naja, wenn es nicht geht, versuch ich sie noch mal, no? Mein Kopf ist immer noch ein Sprachsalat!

It's weird being at the receiving and the giving end of the classroom. I have more respect for my German teacher, and I appreciate the lengths my German students are going through to learn a new language.

Anyway, Thomas is also gearing up for graduation on February It will be an academically challenging couple of months for the both of us.

I wish everybody a blessed Christmas! Have a great one y'all!

The Naked German

I was at the Erfurt main train station yesterday, waiting for the commuter train that will take me back to Jena. I tried to pass the time by reading magazines. Boy, the Germans have quite an array of them. I loved this magazine called L-Love (a lesbian mag). I was leafing through a magazine called BRAVO (think of those teen mags back in the day, like Tigerbeat and 16, except that its in German) and was shocked to find this section called Dr. Sommer.

"Dear Dr. Sommer, Hi I am ____ from ____. I'm fourteen, but I haven't had my period yet! Is that normal? I also just hooked up with a boy, and I would like to have sex with my boyfriend someday. Can I do it even if I don't have my period yet?"

The middle of this spread had a photo girl and a boy no more than seventeen years old having sex (or acting out having sex.) The letter that accompanied the picture was from a 12 year old who wanted to ask what an orgasm was, and how does it feel like?

I was shocked speechless for a few seconds. God, I couldn't help but feel envious. When I was 12, I asked my grandpa what was a penis and a vagina? I read it in a magazine, and looked it up in the dictionary. The definition read: "The female reproductive organ," and so forth. What the fuck was reproductive? So I asked my grandpa. His curt reply: "I'll tell you when you're older." But then he never did.

We are so prudish in the Philippines that we only have one famous sex therapist, and she caters to adults. These magazines are catered to children and teens. I am in love with the sexual openess. In the Philippines, everything that has to do with sex was dirty, confined to magazines like FHM. And the Censors ban everything sexual in movies and TV. Here in Germany, I can open my TV and see something sexually explicit just by channel surfing. And nobody gives a damn.

I am very much at home with my body. As evidenced by my blog and by my cosplaying, I have an exhibitionist streak. I have sunbathed topless in a public beach in Nice, France; done the FKK beach thing; and tried not to stare too hard at the sea of breasts and uncircumsised penises when I went to the sauna here in Germany. In this way, I fit right in. The Germans, especially the East Germans, love to be naked. They are so desensitized with nudity at such an early age that it is no longer a big deal to them. People here remain virgins because it is their choice, and not because somebody said you have to remain a virgin till you die. Nobody accuses anyone of pedophilia. A section of the Dr. Sommer column claims to empower teens and promote a good body image by asking their teenaged readers to pose nude for the magazine. The poses are non-sexual, but I am uncertain whether it achieves this purpose.

God, I think my sister will have a fit when she sees this magazine. She once asked me to not tell her 7 year old daughter that Thomas and I live together without the benefit of marriage. This is from a girl who has children with 2 different dads. I think its a bit prudish and hypocritical of her, but she's raising her child, not me.

Oddly enough, even if the Germans are very open about sex and nudity, I believe that they are an emotionally straitjacketed people. They can be a lot like my sister, just in the other way around. They don't believe in lying, and are emotially hurt even with white lies, those things meant to lubricate social relations. Phrases like, "Let's get together sometime!" are considered impolite if you don't mean it. The naked senior citizens in the sauna frown if you address them as "du" and not the polite "Sie" form. You can't talk about your personal life to your close friends, it's impolite. They love their emotional distance, and you should respect that. In short, they're the exact opposite of the Americans.

I am now beginning to wonder where I should raise my future children: In the Philippines, where decent, normal folk go to Church everyday and listen to songs like Ocho ocho, or in Germany, where they'd be exposed to Schiller, Göethe, and BRAVO.

EDIT: Adam wrote a blog entry about this entry and posted a link of a scanned Dr. Sommer issue. Check it out!