In response to the last post of what I would miss in the Netherlands (and US for that matter), here is what I look forward to upon going back to the Philippines:
Netherlands: Colorful trees in Autumn and Blossoming in Spring
Philippines: Being able to grow plants and veggies all year round, Coconut trees, Tropical flowers and green trees all year round
Netherlands: Mashed potatoes with rookworst and andives/Rookworst sausage from HEMA
Philippines: Purefoods hotdog, or langgonisa with tomatoes for breakfast, dried fish, tapsilog, barbecue, salted eggs, singangag (garlic fried rice)
Netherlands: WYSIWYG and brutally honest people
Philippines: Friendly, easy to get along with people with great sense of humor
Netherlands: delectable Indonesian takeout food
Philippines: you can find almost everything else there: Thai, Vietnamese, Indian, you name it, and all for less.
Netherlands: visiting exotic European cities and people watching, grandiose architecture and other man-made structures
Philippines: Boracay, Palawan Ilocos, rice terraces, Mayon volcano, Batanes and all the neighboring Asian cities for less than the price of a ticket to London
Netherlands: working with people from various cultural backgrounds
Philippines: getting into the exciting world of IT outsourcing and developing a new business venture
Netherlands: cool, but comfortable spring weather and fresh air
Philippines: ok, ok, airconditioning never beats fresh air
Netherlands: late sunsets in the summer
Philippines: bustling night life, seeing a lot of people walking around even late at night, Christmas lights and lanterns (parol) during the “Ber months”
Netherlands: good strong, coffee
Philippines: Starbucks?
i’ve always wanted to travel out of the philippines. i honestly wonder though how it would feel like to be away for so long. despite all of our country’s problems, it still is home. maybe i will never survive if i have to stay away for long
I think I’d settle for the warmth of the Philippines over any European city. Sounds a very vibrant place to be.