Getting older and a little bit smarter.

[Arizona Kid]

10 hours ago, Onemore52 said:

Some of my partners family came over last night for a visit, so cordially I went out and offered soft drinks (no beer, no way) and joined in the conversation UNTIL they all started speaking amongst each other, no problem I just went inside opened a beer and started cooking dinner.

I don't know whether they mean to be rude, but either way they didn't get offered anything I was cooking.

Isn't that pretty much the way it goes? Unless you've lived with them for awhile you are pretty much the outsider even if you are paying for everything. Maybe they think that since you are the boss man, they can't joke around with you that much. It took a couple of years before I was accepted into the conversations while we were all eating outside on the banana leafs. 

[Guy F.]

So none of you have made a serious effort to learn the native language? When I'm there I try to learn at least one new word every day. It earns me some goodwill among the natives. It brings a smile to some faces, especially the kids, when they say "hello" to me and I reply in Visayan.

Edited May 29, 2019 by Guy F.

[GeoffH]

3 minutes ago, Guy F. said:

So none of you have made a serious effort to learn the native language? 

I'm trying but it's going slowly, I've never learned a 2nd language and I grew up in an English only house so that probably doesn't help.

And because I spend half the year in the Philippines and half in Australia I'm not immersed in the language all the time so that slows things down too.

I looked for a language course I could do part time while I was in Australia but everything they offer around here is Filipino (Tagalog) and not Bisaya (Cebuano) which doesn't do me any good because SWMBO and her family all speak one or other local variety of Bisaya.

I'm not giving up although ordering food, buying gas and learning the name of common household items is about as far as I've gotten so far.

[Guy F.]

Google translate does Bisayan.

[jimeve]

42 minutes ago, Guy F. said:

So none of you have made a serious effort to learn the native language? When I'm there I try to learn at least one new word every day. It earns me some goodwill among the natives. It brings a smile to some faces, especially the kids, when they say "hello" to me and I reply in Visayan.

when the kids ask for money...I say walang kwater dong. Means... Don't have money boy.

[GeoffH]

32 minutes ago, Guy F. said:

Google translate does Bisayan.

Yes and I use that a fair bit to read Facebook posts from various family members.  It isn’t as useful as it might first seem because many family members seem to use varied or abbreviated spellings which google translate doesn’t handle that well.  Although I have noticed that the translation has started to offer alternative spellings recently for Bisaya which helps a lot.

[Onemore52]

12 hours ago, GeoffH said:

I'm trying but it's going slowly, I've never learned a 2nd language and I grew up in an English only house so that probably doesn't help.

And because I spend half the year in the Philippines and half in Australia I'm not immersed in the language all the time so that slows things down too.

I looked for a language course I could do part time while I was in Australia but everything they offer around here is Filipino (Tagalog) and not Bisaya (Cebuano) which doesn't do me any good because SWMBO and her family all speak one or other local variety of Bisaya.

I'm not giving up although ordering food, buying gas and learning the name of common household items is about as far as I've gotten so far.

Yes, me the same, but if I was to learn the language would I also have to adjust to their customs, for example last evening whilst enjoying sunset outside on the verandah the karaoke started at 6 p.m. so inside I went my serenity ruined, up this morning outside on the verandah watching the birds as I normally do with a cup of coffee, then bang the karaoke started again at 6:30 a.m. give me a break.

Learning the language and adjusting to their customs, that must include getting half the brain removed and having no idea of consideration for anybody.

[Mark Berkowitz]

I've been meeting other Americans with Filipina wives (and Fil-Am kids), and they all have very similar experiences, even after moving back to the States.  However, over here, we at least get to speak English to eachother while the women folk speak in Tagalog and Bikol... but in all fairness, when the women return back to us guys, they will speak in English only.

[GeoffH]

57 minutes ago, Onemore52 said:

outside on the verandah watching the birds as I normally do with a cup of coffee, then bang the karaoke started again at 6:30 a.m. give me a break.

I've honestly never experienced that problem but I suspect it's because most of the neighbours don't have their own Karaoke units (we do but we only use it in the early evening and only inside).  If there is karaoke nearby then it's because there is a birthday or other celebration and it's a hired unit (often from the sari sari down the street from us).  And honestly even birthdays are much more likely to be held at a beach or a 'resort' (like SWMBO's nephew's birthday this week) so the noise isn't near houses.  Maybe that's unusual? 

 

 

Edited May 29, 2019 by GeoffH

[Jack Peterson]

1 hour ago, GeoffH said:

it's a hired unit (often from the sari sari down the street

 We have always found that if Hired, they like to get/use up all the Hire time before it is collected  like they might lose out on something