Thursday, November 09, 2006

Memila

The newly-beardy Ian Hocking tagged me a few weeks back, asking for 'Five Things About Me'. Since I've responded to similar memes in the past, I hope I'm forgiven for offering Five Things About Manila, which is sort of the same thing, since I've been here for a couple of days.

1. Jose Rizal, the hero of Philippine independence, who was executed by the dastardly Spaniards (a more dastardly word than 'Spanish', somehow) in 1896, was only 4 feet 11 inches tall.

2. The locals love calamansi, which sounds like seafood, but is actually a kind of citrus fruit. It looks like a small lime, smells like a tart orange, and tastes like a mild lemon. Which covers all citrus-themed eventualities, really. Except for grapefruit.

3. They're very big on security here. Bag searches and metal detectors are standard when entering hotels, malls and public transport. At the train station, I saw a security guard with an AK-47. But he appeared to be in a cheery mood.

4. At this time of year, you can't go anywhere without hearing 'Last Christmas'.

5. The Pilipino word for 'one thousand' is 'sanlibong'.

Take this tag to the heathens: Anthony; RealDoc; the redesigned Treespotter.

PLEASE LEAVE THE FOLLOWING IN ALL POSTS

'Remember that it isn't always the sensational stuff that writers are looking for, it can just as easily be something that you take for granted like having raised twins or knowing how to grow beetroot. Mind you, if you know how to fly a helicopter or have worked as a film extra, do feel free to let the rest of us know about it.'

8 comments:

Unknown said...

the instructions weren't clear, five things about manila?

and we can't mention spanky catholic girls?

Tim F said...

No, it's 'five things about me' (or, rather, five things about you). I just chose to write about Manila, because that's where me is. I mean, that's where I am.

You can write about you, or Jakarta, or whatever.

And the sixth thing about Manila, as Ace points out, is spanky Catholic girls.

Unknown said...

glad you recovered. you're dangerously close to missing out on the best part of the place.

Anonymous said...

Ooo, have I been tagged now? I've never been tagged before. I'll do the meme anyway.

Mangonel said...

Oh hell. How long have I got? I mean, do I have to do this within x days and pass it on so I and all my loved ones don't meet inventive and grisly ends?

And if I do pass it on to y others do untold riches await me?

Spinsterella said...

"Bag searches and metal detectors are standard when entering hotels, malls and public transport."

Sounds just like Belfast. More Catholics in Manila, obviously.

Dr Ian Hocking said...

Excellent work, Mr Footman. 'Spaniard' is a word that needs to be said more frequently, I think we're all agreed on that. I'll be interested to see what the heathens come up with...

Anonymous said...

"sanlibong" isn't exactly the word for "one thousand". sanlibong is a shortened term (or a conjunction? i can't remember my grammar days, haha) for isang libo (isa is "one" while libo is "thousand"). to explain furthermore, an "ng" at the end of any word (e.g. sanlibong) serves as an indicator that the word is an adjective, thus "isang libo". isang libo is later shortened to merely 'sanlibo, and therefore used as 'sanlibong if it serves as an adjective.

maybe you heard filipinos use 'sanlibong while selling and heard them say, "'sanlibong piso" or "one thousand pesos".

oh and a bit of trivia: we use the word "po"(not pronounced as "pow") or "ho"(not pronounced as "hoe") to respect older people or people with higher ranks.

-- a concerned filipino
http://dyeisi.multiply.com