3 hours on a bus. 30 minutes on a jeepney. 10 minutes on a tricycle. "You have arrived at your destination." Umm...yea. Looking around, there were no houses in sight, just a large expanse of dried-up rice fields. We made our way through the rice fields, following the narrow dirt ridges to a rather shaky and precarious looking bridge. At last, a nipa hut appeared in the distance and we powered through the last leg of the journey, looking forward to some relief from the hot summer sun. Exhausted from a long morning of traveling, my energy level was about as low as [insert something witty, like a reference to a recent celebrity blunder]. It all changed when the boy we were seeking popped up and said "Welcome Kuya!" with a huge smile on his face. My spirits were instantly lifted, and I remember thinking that day how that one smile made the whole journey worth it.
Filipinos are so incredibly gracious and generous with their smiles. Don't get me wrong, the Philippines isn't some sort of real life Candy Land where everyone smiles all the time. That would just be creepy. My experience is that when I greet someone or take a minute to stop and chat, I sense their appreciation of my time through a genuine smile. For example, even when I walk by an intimidating group of tambays (generally unemployed men who are always hanging around), if I just say good morning, I've got several genuine smiles coming my way (this could also be happening because they hear a foreigner using the local language, which is not so common...)
Being surrounded by such sincere smiles is one of my favorite parts about living in the Philippines. I love the lighthearted nature of Filipinos, with all their joking-joking and acute ability to laugh at just about any situation. It's a great reminder to not take myself so seriously and to just laugh it off and smile, like when you find yourself in the middle of nowhere and a two hour journey has just become four :)
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