Shocking Manila

I was a small fish, I had no idea what I was getting into, but I got a yes from the government and embarked on an extraordinary adventure to the capital of the Philippines.

My very trip to Manila was an adventure of its own. I nearly missed the plane in Frankfurt and due to the flight delay, I definitely missed the plane from Hong Kong to Manila. But the staff were organized there and I got another flight without being stuck at the Hong Kong airport. The arrival to Manila was a complete cultural shock for me. The seven hours’ time difference and Manila's climate classified as tropical were two instant reminders of a change. I was not prepared for something like this and there was not a single person I knew in town. As I arrived there during the week-end I decided to explore the surroundings of the hotel which was located at the congress area. Soon afterwards I saw the crowd gathered at a big hall which reminded me of a Jehovah’s Witnesses gathering and nevertheless, as I’m a curious person, I wanted to take a quick look of what was going on. I was immediately invited to join and realized that they it was a Christian mass as the majority of the population in the Philippines are Christians. It all resembled a great TV spectacle and at the end a friendly lady insisted that I meet the priest who had also lived in Germany and some other countries. He looked more like a businessman than a priest, though. As the Philippines was colonized by Spain, most of the people I met had Spanish names and spoke fluent English due to the fact that Manila was colonized by the British in the past, too.

The next day three musketeers entered the story that goes like this: Before the conference had officially started, I realized I got a bodyguard. I found a sheet of paper on the floor that was pushed through the slot of my hotel room door. It was a notification of the conference organizers informing me that I have a bodyguard at my service, waiting for me at the hotel lobby. Having a bodyguard was one of the major shocks that I underwent during my stay in Manila. Alright then, I said, I’ll have to manage somehow. The guy’s name was Edgar and I hanged around with him a lot as he appeared to be trustworthy and reliable. In my imagination I thought he could be one of the musketeers, keeping me safe as Manila doesn’t have a reputation of being tourist friendly or a safe city.

As soon as the conference had started, I had another shocking experience. According to the protocol, the participants were seated alphabetically, following the order of countries’ names. At that moment I realized I was the only person representing my country, Slovenia, and was actually seated as the head of delegation. My neighbour on the left, a diplomat from the African country of Sierra Leone greeted me in Slovenian and I thought, initially, that it was some kind of joke. But it was not. The guy’s name was Arthur and he actually studied economy in Ljubljana in the 1980s when Slovenia was still part of ex-Yugoslavia participated in the student exchange programme between non-aligned countries. My neighbour on the right was a gentleman from Somalia who had been living in New York for the past 20 years as a Somalian diplomat. His name was Ahmet and he told me I reminded him of one of his daughters. He was a true father figure to me and I felt comfortable with Arthur and Ahmet by my side, which was why I named them the other two musketeers. Arthur and Ahmet were really good company for me during the two-day conference. With the help of Edgar, the bodyguard, I was able to explore the old Manila and get a glimpse of the nightlife in my free time.

When I came home from Manila, I was mesmerized by the adventure. I realized my life would never be the same as it was before. This intercultural experience, although in a form of a short business trip, hit me profoundly. I suddenly realized that my journeys so far had not at all been real travels and that there was so much still waiting for me out there. There’s so much of the world that I still need to see, so many interesting people I need to meet. And no, not every day in your life do you get an opportunity to engage with people who are extraordinary enough that you can call them the three musketeers: Arthur, Ahmet and Edgar.