The Lucianos: It's More Fun in the Philippines

They say if you say something long enough you might start believing it, right? Isn't that a basic principle of hypnosis and the goal of any good marketing company? Well the slogan for the Department of Tourism (DOT) here in the Philippines is, "It's More Fun in the Philippines!"

At first when I saw this slogan I didn't think anything more of it than just an ad campaign. But then slowly as I started to observe more about life I really began to think to myself, "wow it really is more fun in the Philippines!" The DOT will show you pictures of all of the tourist destinations and try to lure you with beautiful white sand beaches. But I wanted to show you how regular every day living is.... more fun in the Philippines!

Traffic is more fun in the Philippines.

A lot of people will comment about the traffic here in Manila. And its true, with 12 million people living in one city, traffic will be inevitable. But bumper to bumper traffic is pretty much the same no matter where you are. You are stuck with no where to go. But I will argue that if I have to be stuck in bumper to bumper traffic I would rather be here in the Philippines.

Okay so its 4pm on a Friday afternoon and you are traveling from Santa Monica, over the Supulveda pass, to the San Fernando Valley and you are stuck in traffic. Haven't you always wished you could drive on the shoulder of the road, make your own lane, or even drive in an empty lane on the counter flow of traffic?

Or what parents don't dread being stuck in traffic when they have their kids with them? Wouldn't it be great that while stuck in traffic with your kids that their favorite cartoon character popped up out of nowhere, just for them? I think Jeepneys are great for moms stuck in traffic with their kids. Jeepneys are one of the most popular forms of public transportation here in the Philippines. They were originally made from left over US military jeeps from WW2. Their brightly decorated exteriors is one thing that makes them so widely known. Jeepneys are like snowflakes, no two are exactly the same. They come in all colors and designs.

I am particularly thankful for the jeepneys with superheroes, race cars, robots, dinosaurs, dragons and Power Rangers painted on the side. They always get a round of loud cheers from my boys in the back seat.

Pop Quiz!

Q: What does September 1st in the Philippines and the day after Thanksgiving in the States have in common?

A: It is the unwritten rule of when retail stores are allowed to play Christmas music!

Just this week I was grocery shopping when I realized that the store was playing a Christmas song. Not just one song, but all the songs were Christmas songs. So I went home and dressed my son in his Christmas outfit.

Singing is more fun in the Philippines.

Before moving here I had heard that karaoke is popular here in the Philippines. What I didn't expect was all the singing. I have witnessed a husband pushing the cart for his wife in the grocery store, singing out loud down the aisles. I have struggled to order a glass of tea because the large group of teenagers are singing in unison over in the corner. And in the malls where you can buy karaoke music they will often have an employee, who's job it is to perform karaoke to catch your attention.

Or how about those dance games in arcades in the malls? The ones where you put your coins in and follow the moves of the people on the screen? I rarely pass one in the mall that isn't in use...usually dancing performed by somebody coming home from school or work (as they are still in their uniforms). They put all effort and heart into it too, you can tell because they are good dancers!

But singing here is so common that people will sometimes name their business after their favorite song. I was telling my friend about this and she said, "how fun! It is sort of like 'hidden Mickey's' in Disneyland. They are scatter all over the city and you have to discover them!" I have found only a couple so far. Here is one.

"People are people
so why should it be..."

Or how about the mechanic who named his shop, "Good Vibrations"? And while we are on the topic of names for businesses, another trend I have noticed is using a play-on-words for the name of your business. Shampooch. InfiniTEA. And my favorite, "RePhil"

Time will fail me if I tried to recount and capture all of the ways I have noticed that it is more fun in the Philippines. I cannot stay in my seat when God's awesome and magnicifant power is displayed in a heavy rainstorm. The rain is so loud it makes me run to the window, look out and say "Wow!" And the variety of new fruits is exciting, fun and delicious!

And several of the restaurants I am familiar with from the States are more fun here. At Starbucks you can order a french press.

And at Wendy's you can order ice cream floats and get mini snack combo meals of a frosty and french fries. Haven't we all been dipping our fries in our shakes anyways, why not pair them up?

Even dropping my boys off at school is fun because of the "free range" chickens that roam the streets in the neighborhood. They love parking right at the corner because then the boys can say hello to all the chickens each day that are roaming free.