Sind sie filipina? (Updated)
In other words, ‘pinay ka?’(are you filipina?) in Filipino language. While gigigoesgaga wrote a funny post on What it’s like to be pinay in California. I’ve also come up with a list ‘ala germania’ or What it’s like to be pinay in Germany.Please be noted that below list is only a mish mash of observations between pinays here not necessarily my own or my friend/s own experience.Please feel free to add yours.
‘Bato bato sa langit ang tamaan ay sumigaw lamang na ‘Aray’!’ (If it hurts,say OUCH!)
There you go,
1.People would think you are MOB (Mail Order Bride)
2.First question co-pinay would ask: How old is your husband?
3.First question non-filipinos would ask: What’s your husband’s job?
4.First thing a filipino/a friend would tell you: Beware of Filipino/a here!They bite! (sad but true)
5.Non-filipinos think you are either from Thailand or Indonesia
6.Filipinos could detect right away if you’re one of them by listening your accent or just by looking the shape of your nose (jk)
7.You learn to eat potatoes & bread with meat or sausages
8.Your husband think it’s weird to eat potatoes & rice at the same time.
9.People think your kids can be ’sikat’ entertainers in the Philippines.
10.If you drive Porsche and you are ‘maganda’(pretty),people think you are ‘puta’ (whore)
11.If you drive Porsche and you are NOT ‘maganda’,people think you are married to D O M (Dirty Old Man) or to M M (Matandang Mayaman)
12.If you drive Porsche and you are ALANGANING ‘maganda’,I’d think you are only ’gayagaya’ TH (trying hard) & CC (copy cat) lol
13.People would ask if you know a ‘yaya’(nanny)
14.People sometimes think you are the ‘yaya’ (nanny) Aray!lol
15.McDo,KFC or Starbucks is your favorite ‘tambayan’ (place to hang out)
16.People think you are poor in the Philippines
17.If you show them a photo of your villa back home,people think your husband paid it for ya!
18.Your idea of ‘revenge’ is to expose your husband’s business shirts while frying ‘tuyo’ (dried fish) in the kitchen (It’s just me,lol)
19.You sometimes don’t tell your husband,you send money to your family back home (Please refer to non-working wives)
20.If he knows,then there must be an issue!
21.They think you know how to cook bami goreng or satay ayam(they really think you are Indo or Thai, you see?lol)
22.They think you can make lumpia in less than 10 mins!
23.You wait for angebots(special offers) or you are buying stuff for your balikbayan box in Aldi or Lidl
24.You own any of the Tchibo item
25.Your husband think,it’s not ok to leave the ‘ulo’ (head) or ‘mata’ (eyes) of the fish,while cooking fish stew
26.You only fry ‘tuyo’ (dried fish) or eat ‘bagoong’ (shrimp paste) when he’s away
27.You watch any kind of filipino films from Rene Requestas to Lito Lapid type of movie,eventhough you never watch these types when you were in P.I. (bahala ng ka cheapan basta pinoy at hiram, pagtsagaan na lang,hehe)
28.You think filipino channel available is ridiculously way too expensive.
29.If you tell them you are ‘mayaman’ (rich) in the Philippines,people think you’re only ‘mayabang’(boastful)
30.If you tell them you are ‘may pinag-aralan( degree holder),people think you’re also ‘mayabang’
31.You met your pinay friend/s in one of Asian shops near you.
32.And then, she would tell you her ’suki’ (fave’) Asian shops
33.You like tupperware parties because of ‘libre’ (free) giveaways
34.You think your greatest investment are your tupperwares
35.And you bring your own tupperware for leftover foods to take home (normal na normal lang yan dito)
36.Your kids does not eat pancit anymore (nagmumukha na raw silang intsik sa kakain ng pancit,hehe)
37.So you cook Spaghetti Bolognese instead LOL
*updated
38. You are probably a member of any of the following group CFC(Couples for Christs),KOR(Knights of Rizal),ES(El Shaddai),LOM(Legion of Mary) and lastly PWNGTC? (Pinay who never go to church,lol)
39.You are a big pamaypay err,fan of Maloy Lozanes 
40.Your relatives think you’re kinda It- girl when you visiting them in the PI.
41.Your idea of signature names are either Esprit,S.Oliver,Mexx or Zara.
42.You think it’s cool to have a friendster or facebook account,lol
43.You probably know or have a friend or your friend’s friend was or has been experiencing to live in one of Frauenhäuser here in Germany.
44.You think the ’ Einbuergerung test’ and the ‘Zertifikat Deutsch’ are the same.
45.You are making fun of your friend’s broken english as your friend making fun of your broken german.Mwehehehe
46.You hate gossip but you gossip,too. (Ouch!hehe)
47.You have one of those pose in your photos with a hand gesture of the V (Peace) or the Sto.Nino sign.And you think you are too cute in these photos. 
48. One of the fave’ pastimes of your pinay friend is probably bingo or mahjong.
49. You think it’s no longer ‘in’ to give your friend ‘tuyo’ (driedfish) as pasalubong.
50. So you bring ‘polvoron’ made of Goldilocks instead.
More to come!!! 
September 15th, 2006 08:27
interesting facts. mukhang they think lowly of pinoys there ha.
September 15th, 2006 10:11
my observations:
- you sing karaoke kahit desentonado
- nagpapamahjong ka tuwing may party sa inyo/
- you send balikbayan box every 3 months
- you go to disco for whatever reason and dressed up like ‘ewan’ and behaving like ‘ewan’ there too (how diyahe)
- you think you are above your kababayan at home dahil nandito ka sa germany
- you are a former tsimay in pinas but you are acting like the last asshole dahil nagmukhang tao ka na dito
- you only make friends with people na may ‘carat’ dito because you think you belong to their level
sus madami pa kaya lang masyado ng hahaba itong comment ko
September 15th, 2006 10:38
Never good to generalize but I recognize many of your observations (it is quite the same in Belgium).
But I don’t know anybody driving a Porsche
September 15th, 2006 14:37
uy cheH, does that mean you drive a porche?
pasakay naman ha? 
Para yatang halos pareho ng mga expat experiences kahit saan tayo mapadpad no? Palaging may mga bruha. Grabe naman yung may dalang tupperware sa party no, kapal muks naman yun. Unless of course kumare mo yung host
mas pasimple yung ziplok bag no? 
Relate na relate ako dun sa mga tungkol sa asawa. Pero yung sa akin, MWP (matandang walang pera).
CheH, gusto mong mag guest writer sa blogkadahan? Next topic ang expat experience. Email me jmomblogs@gmail.com
September 15th, 2006 17:40
Hehehhe kakatuwa nito Cheh!
na share ko lang dito kase yan talga ang unang na encounter ko dito hehhehe
3 years pa lang ako dito sa Lux. pero sa listahan na ‘to haay naku naalala ko nung ilang buwan pa lang ako dito may na met akong pinay tas yon sya rin yong unang friend ko noon hahaha..
naalala ko yang 2,3,4 na yan as in totoo tinanong sakin, Gash! shempre nagulat ako noh! una yang tinanong sakin grabeh.
tas yon nga mag ingat daw ako kailangan ganito gawin ko kase bago pa raw ako. Hahhahha bah! tinuruan ako. Pero sa totoo lang ha, di ko type yong tepong ganun nga. Hindi sya umobra sakin kase isip nya mao pay pag sakay nakog eroplano hehhe.
Talagang iba iba tayong lahat NEVER ko talagang naitanong kanino man anong work at anong edad ng asawa mo hehehe, anong paki ko sa buhay nila diba
September 15th, 2006 21:31
I’ve never really mingled with the Filipino community here in Holland. Not that I am a snob but there’s just no time. If there is pagod na. I also don’t like to meet people I don’t know and I don’t like social gatherings (I’m lazy for this if its not work related). My only Pinay friend here is MadamE who is my old friend way back (15 years ago) in Cebu.
And, I don’t get mistaken for a Pinay. Some of my colleagues think I’m from the South (of Europe, lol). Guys on the street always say “OLA” to me. Sometimes I get mistaken for a Thai or Indo, but rarely. Never a Filipino, maybe because there are not many Pinoys here?
I haven’t been approached by a co-Filipino. I also have not approached one.
MadamE told me that a group of Pinoys in Amsterdam were visited by the police because they wouldn’t stop their noisy karaoke at night even if the neighbors already complained lol. (I don’t like karaoke by the way).
When Dutchman and I are in the Philippines, we get a lot of stares (and endless glances) from Filipinos even foreigners in the malls. Then I realized that perhaps it has something to do with us being the minority (baliktad na hahaha). Most Fil-West couples we saw kasi in the malls, especially in Cebu, were May-Dec types (20 years++ age gaps), so I guess we the supposedly normal couple became the odd couple, lol.
September 15th, 2006 23:45
can’t say i can identify with all of the above, pero i’m nodding to some. after a while, you get used to it, though. di ko na nga napapansin. or maybe makapal na lang balat ko. hahaha!
September 16th, 2006 00:15
Hahahaha, the tupperware stuff just rolled me on the floor. Seriously, they do that? Haha, dapat mauso din yan dito! =))
September 16th, 2006 01:15
hahaha, and okay ito ah.totoo ka sa tupperware thngie?saan yan? kasi ako, i ended up having all types of tupperwares here at home na hindi akin… (wait lang, parang meron ka pa nga napahiram sa akin at andito pa siya.i bet that square, big box with blue cover is yours, lolz)
i got it na Day. daghan kaayo salamat. Nag sugod palang ko ug preparar sa imo.Suway ko next week ug dalikyat sa post. Next week pa man akong off usab.
Salamat kaayo ha
September 16th, 2006 08:22
HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAH… I was literally “laughing out loud”!!! I love this post! Pinay ka pa rin talaga cheH!
German food is very bland! I relate with the Mcdo and KFC thing and the tuyo, bagoong thing when we visited Germany. We cooked for a German couple in Stuttgart and they LOVED adobo and embotido! The Philippines may not be as developed as Germany, but we pinoys know good food! (even if it stinks! haha)
September 16th, 2006 10:44
kakatuwa naman ‘to chehpie. ako kasi puro hardwood trees at imaginary ang friends ko kaya wala akong maishe-share hahaha….
pero one time, a couple of years ago my dad took me to a rex navarette show in san francisco, he’s so witty and hilarious you shouldn’t miss the opportunity to watch his show if he ever gets to perform there in germany. sabi nya, marami daw sa mga pinoy become afflicted with “dapa-ilong denial syndrome” (hahaha.. aray ko! tinatamaan ako!) pag napunta at natira na sa ibang bansa e dinedeny na filipino sila or muka silang pinoy at nag-iimbento na ng kung anu-anong dugo na naghahalohalo sa kanila at sinasabing hindi sila napagkakamalan na filipino eh samantalang maliwanag pa sa sikat ng araw sa kainitan ng tag-araw na pinoy na pinoy ang kulay at features nila.
rex is sooooo funny ang his parodies of filipinos’ strange behaviors and idiosyncrasies are so amusing …hindi mo talaga makukuhang magalit kahit tinatamaan ka na kasi super duper totoo at swak na swak yung mga sinasabi nya.
September 16th, 2006 17:49
haha!this is sooo ridiculous,but its true,i guess
i can relate to some coz its happening here also,i have lots of japanese friends than filipinos,coz i dont have much time to make chikas or to mingle and be indulged in their”chism” activities,LOL!
i make myself busy to be out of any troubles,hehe.
nice post,Cheh!happy weekend!!
September 16th, 2006 23:35
I would say ditto to DP. I never socialise with Pinoys here unless I know their background because of the so-called “they bite” warning. Also I usually get mistaken as someone from the south americas which I find quite flattering.
Anyway, I had a laugh at this one and have a nice weekend to you ate!
September 17th, 2006 08:56
Interesting list that kind of show the differences in culture and habits. I think a Pinay is judged very much the same in Norway, but then again people are sooooo – and too much – condemn.
But driving a Porsche and eating Spaghetti Bolognese can’t be that bad anyway? LoL
Have a lovely Sunday and week ahead:-)
September 17th, 2006 09:02
Ymir:Yes,people think you’re lowly at first but you’ll gain respect eventually.Depending on who & what you are!
beng: hahaha very true! ang kainis pa,sasasabihan ka, bakeet pareho pareho lang naman tayo ah Whoaa!!Ay mamah, you know some kind of langaw din pala,na kala mo kung sino na, kung makatungtong sa elepante ano?!tsk tsk.They tend to forget ‘once a langaw ,always a langaw’(even she’s improving to a bangaw,maybe,lol)
September 17th, 2006 09:18
Sidney: True!but generalization is unavoidable sometimes,especially if you are pointing/referring to a certain group or to a great mass of people.Name dropping isn’t nice either
September 17th, 2006 10:46
nyahaha! attina or ghee should make one like this,Japan version! lol!
tupperware? that was funny! and beng’s was err…strong but funny too!
looking forward to your post at Blogkadahan,i hope you’ll say yes!
September 17th, 2006 17:28
Ay, wala akong ma-i-share, di ko kasi na-e-ekperyens yang mga yan at di ko rin naman nagawa yong iba. Pero narinig ko na rin yong iba kahit papaano. Bibihira naman kasi akong makihalobilo dito sa mga pinoys, minsan lang kung may mga okasyon. Kahit naman di pinoys mga kausap ko e, di ko napapansin. Pero yong number 5, tatanungin muna nila ako kung taga-saan ako. Kahit naman kasi sa Thailand, napagkakamalan akong Thai. Susme, sa 3 weeks namin doon, 3 weeks din na ang line ko e, “I’m not a Thai.” Minsan may dugtong na, “I’m a Filipina.” Tapos tawa kami ng tawa ni erich.
Dahil tawa kami ng tawa, seguro naisip nila na I was denying that I was not a Thai. 
September 17th, 2006 17:36
JMom: how I wish!haha we can’t afford german top cars eh,hanggang french brand lang kami,lol matandang alang pera din yung akin:D
btw,just emailed my reply;)
September 17th, 2006 21:06
ethel: kahit saang sulok ata ng mundo neybor may toxic,hehe ako din 3 yrs mag aapat pa lang this coming November.palibhasa kasi palipat lipat kami 2 beses sa Hessen,then dito na sa Bayern, so ibat ibang klaseng kalidadez ng pinay aking na me-meet. Marami bang pinay jan sa lux? have a nice week ahead dai!
DP: haha J! Uli has never been to P.I. BTW. my parents & only bro met him in TR during our church wed. I moved to DE few months after that, then got preggy with seb,then ally (plus failed preg in bet.) ganun ka-tindi ako mag buntis sunod sunod lol I’ve heard similar police incident here as well, even worse pa nga,dahil alang mga papel ba. Sad part is,pinay din ang nag sumbong! shame noh?
Funny thing, I always get mistaken as Thai sometimes Hawaian pa nga weird!!even to non-filipinos.I never initiate dahil nga napaparanoid na rin ako from that warning ba’Beware’.I usually can tell if someone is trustable or nice by just looking at their faces.Kung hindi ko type mukha,I pretend na Thai ako sama noh?!hahaha. It’s just me, I love crowds, I love people (regardless of levels) I love minggling with them & parties.
September 17th, 2006 21:18
ruth:yung akin din medyo kumapalkapal na rin hehe
kai:yup yup dear!:D shocks pa nga akow noong una eh,ngayon sanay na.I dont bring plastic boxes ha, unless potluck.Pag potluck madalas may take home.Parang napalitan lang yung bitbit mo hehehe
September 17th, 2006 21:38
MissP:Hindi ko maintindihan,they’re buying those plastics,ang mahal mahal. I’d rather spend on something else noh?.Besides,kumpleto na ako sa ganyan bigay ni mama n law,haha
Maski yung anjan ako sa Hanau,may mga tupperware party din mga pinay but never attended any.Dito sa Munich once,tinaon ng host,nagpapalinis ako ng kuko sa kanya nyahahaha Beautician sya sa area,sideline nya yang tupperware.Mas maganda pinay maglinis ng kuko kaysa sa mga german noh?!lol
really?meyron pa ba sa iyo? that tupperware belong to my mader nlaw inday,lol
September 18th, 2006 06:33
alternati:lol My husband is from stuttgart,btw pag nagawi ka ulet doon ha?,let me know let’s meet up;)
minerva: “dapa-ilong denial syndrome” Aray mamah! hehehe isa na ako doon sa mga guilty.Likas ata yan sa atin eh, yung mga pinay dito,pag nasabihan ayyy kamukha mo anak mo (mga half tropical-half german) defensive lagi sagot,bakit dahil dapa ilong ng baby ko? mwahaha,maski mapuputi mga anak,pag simblay ang ilong,sasabihang ayy yung anak mo native na native ang itsura,meaning kamukha ng ina at syemper they’d take it na pangit! babaw noh?
September 18th, 2006 06:42
ghee: ay totots yan manay! the more you indulge yourself to them,the more chismis you get,lol oki lang makahagap eh,wag lang ikaw topic anoh?hehe
maski saan ata dalhin pinay,maski pa dalhin mo sa moon,bitbit ang pagiging chismosa at pakilamira LOL
charles:yup dear I agree,that is, if you can avoid them. Dito kasi magkakalapit pinay, punta ka lang sa supermarket or playground,may ma meet ka so mahirap.Marami bang pinoy jan sa Norway?
September 18th, 2006 08:05
Hahaha Cheh.
“People sometimes think you are the ‘yaya’”. people generalized that term way too much esp if you’re in HK.
September 18th, 2006 08:20
rennyBA: sad but I have to admit,there are endless list of not ’so pleasant’ stereotype attach to pinays all over the world.Yet I say to co-pinays,the only way to fight it really is to be your own person, do your best and not taking things too seriously like what am doing right now,lol
take care & have a good one,too:)
September 18th, 2006 09:01
sachi: o nga! dapat may japan version din:)
Thanks dearie! will see;)
sofie: hehe nakakaluka! siguro maging ganun din pinoy kung sa pinas,sa mga thai,mapapagkamalan din silang filipino tapos kala nag dedeny lang
Sa zurich ata,ang maraming filipino! lapit ng autumn neybor,lamig na ulet haayyy
September 18th, 2006 09:27
K: Yung friend ko,married to german din,nagpunta sa HK business trip ata ng asawa,kaya sumama na rin si misis.Sabi nya,may na kasabay daw silang pinay sa elevator at tanong daw sa kanya, huy anong lahi yang amo mo? hehe
September 19th, 2006 02:20
Hmm, I haven’t seen that many Filipina maids in Germany. Only MOW’s and you can always tell. The weirdest thing what happened to me, is that a classmate thought I could do a tea ceremony. I put Tabasco in that person’s tea for that insulence.
September 19th, 2006 12:28
dicey: haha so they think you’re japanese?lol yup right there are not much maids here in DE compare to HK ofcourse;)
thanks for visiting my blog,btw! will reciprocate a visit soon:)
September 22nd, 2006 23:59
What a great list!!!! It’s so fascinating to learn how flips are perceived in other countries.
October 7th, 2006 22:57
Hi I enjoyed reading ur messages and tama ka I met some Filipinas here and they ask me first kung saan ko na met husband ko and ilang taon or what kind of a job he had.
Hay naku pinoy talaga tayo and may na meet pa ako n isang pinay na ang laging bukang bibig about auto. Nakapunta lang d2 sa Germany they are acting na parang millionäre what more pag umuwi sa pinas.
At ung isang fren ko na married sa German umuwi ng pinas kasama mother inlaw at ung husband then nag book ng ticket sa barko papuntang Cebu ang pinagsama sa room ung husband at ung mother then sya hiwalay hehhhehehehe.
October 13th, 2006 11:34
pinayhekmi: thanks tin!
Pretmds: hi:) saan ka dito sa de?
November 19th, 2007 13:52
18.Your idea of ‘revenge’ is to expose your husband’s business shirts while frying ‘tuyo’ (dried fish) in the kitchen (It’s just me,lol)…
Wicked! Lol
26.You only fry ‘tuyo’ (dried fish) or eat ‘bagoong’ (shrimp paste) when he’s away.
Torture mani oi! My sister who is out of Pinas fries bulad na tago-tago kai basin nay magreklamo…Hehe.
November 19th, 2007 22:51
ahahhahaha…love this post manay cheh. very truthful and funny. nakakaasar when people stereotype against each other NO? pero ganun talaga
aliw basahin to. mooorree!!
November 21st, 2007 02:40
Waahahahaha. I love this post! It’s so entertaining and yet after reading it, it makes you say… waaa, oo nga ano?
Here naman we Pinoys/Pinays blend well kasi we look similar to the Khmers… na-a-identify na lang when we talk, nandun talaga yung Pinoy accent.
You are so right about the tuyo and the bagoong!
January 29th, 2008 10:19
January 29, 2008
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July 29th, 2009 20:40
i enjoy reading your blog…
November 9th, 2009 11:30
@Beng
i exactly think the same way.i´ve had experiences too,or lets say i´ve met or seen those kinds.
November 20th, 2009 18:06
I’ve heard it said many times that Filipinos are extremely good at “adapting” to any place in the world and that’s why there are in so many lands in such numbers. I never like such sweeping statements but I do think there are some traits that help out the expats from my slim experience with friends from there. Humor is the biggest one since finding something funny in even the worst situations is a life saver. Being able to keep good spirits in times when things are rough is another. I see both of these in this post.
November 21st, 2009 16:38
kaloka, esp yung pulvoron from goldilucks heheheh…fyi si Maloy Lozanes dating nakaupa sa bahay ng uncle ni Fafa, diko nga sya kilala dito nalang sa germany ko nalaman na sikat na singer daw yun…miss you ms cheh, keep it flowin!!!!