15 THINGS YOU DON'T KNOW About The Phillipines

Pea walks through a collection of surprising cultural quirks and everyday realities of Philippine life that most foreigners don't know about, from the absurdly over-packaged food to why you'll never find tampons in a Filipino store, and what it means when you stumble across a dead body surrounded by people playing poker on the street.

What's Covered ​

• Speed bumps in the Philippines are enormous

  • Not the gentle reminders you'd find near a Western school zone — these require a full stop, and you'll still probably scrape the underside of your vehicle
  • Pea finds this ironic since "being overly cautious and safety-minded isn't exactly a thing here"

• Everything comes in "retail packaging" — tiny individual portions

  • A bag of cookies contains a bunch of even smaller bags, each with two or three cookies that must be opened separately — "our food version of the speed bump"
  • Shampoo and toothpaste come in single-use "sample size" packets
  • Medication is individually wrapped — the pharmacist asks how many tablets you want, and each comes in its own blister pack

• Takeout food packaging is absurdly over-secured

  • Multiple layers of tape, staples, and wrappings around every single item
  • Drink cups are tied with nylon string "harder to get into than police zip ties are to get out of"
  • Styrofoam burger boxes taped so securely you need a knife
  • But don't look in the bag for a plastic knife, fork, or napkins — there won't be any

• "Hey Joe" — why Filipinos greet foreigners this way

  • It's a way of greeting foreigners and testing their English, named after GI Joes from the war
  • Pea has heard foreigners get mad thinking it's a racial slur, but insists "we're really just trying to be friendly"
  • Her advice: just smile back and wave

• Filipino naming conventions and titles

  • Love of royal names like Prince, Duke, Princess, and King — considered trendy, not grandiose
  • Unusual names like "Juvie" that foreigners find funny
  • Extensive title system based on age and status (common in Asian cultures):
    • "Ate" for an older female, "Kuya" for an older male — even siblings use these
    • "Po" for someone significantly older, regardless of gender
    • In-laws are never called by first names: call her mother "Nanay" and her father "Tatay"
  • "We minimize the use of first names here and relate to each other based on age and status, which is a very un-Western thing to do"

• The age-guessing problem

  • Foreigners often can't tell if a Filipina is 13 or 30 — "even when she turns around you still can't tell"
  • But Filipinas have "the uncanny ability to tell their age with one quick look — after she smacks you, of course"
  • Filipinas can also tell if you've been admiring a 13-year-old boy — "we have perfect gender radar too, and we think it's funny that you can't tell the difference when it's so obvious to us"

• Buffet restaurants close early

  • Don't arrive later than an hour before closing time
  • Unlike Western restaurants that serve until closing, Filipino buffets stop refilling tables much earlier
  • "Closing time means lights out and the last customer has to go"

• Tampons are virtually impossible to find

  • Very few stores carry them; only feminine pads are available
  • The reason: people believe using a tampon means you're no longer a virgin — Pea confirms she's serious
  • Additional belief: taking a shower while having your period will make you insane
  • Pea's conclusion: "There's one week per month when it's really not a good idea to ask a Filipina out on a date"

• The mystery of the dead body surrounded by gambling Filipinos

  • What you've come across is a wake (not a crime scene)
  • Due to small Filipino homes and large families, wakes are often held outdoors in the street, sometimes shutting down traffic in one direction
  • Wakes can last many hours, so attendees pass the time gambling — poker, Lucky Sevens, and tongits (a rummy-like card game), played for real money
  • People passing by throw coins on the ground — this is believed to stop the spirit of the dead from following them home, and also helps the family pay for the wake and burial

• Post-credits segment: another animal rescue

  • Pea already has nine stray cats (five at her mom's, four with her) plus a sick dog she nursed back to health and rehomed
  • Found a very friendly cat in a parking lot who followed her everywhere — brought her home, fed her, gave her vitamins
  • Took her to the vet to be spayed, but the vet discovered she was already pregnant
  • Pea notes she looks very young to be having babies, then quips: "here in the Philippines, even children can have babies"
  • She doesn't have the room, time, or money for another litter plus spaying, and asks Dumaguete-area viewers to consider adopting a kitten when they're ready
  • Promises to keep them until fully weaned, with vet checkups, and will provide updates when the babies arrive

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