The humor that is Filipino

What sets Filipinos apart from other nationalities is really the Filipino sense of humor.

We are among the happiest people in the world, at least according to surveys.

And if New Year’s Eve celebration would be the gauge, I would have to agree.

The Harbour View area of Hong Kong reminded me of People Power in EDSA. It was like a mob rushing towards the bay to get a good view of the fireworks. We purposely left the confines of our hotel room to see how the Chinese celebrated the turn of the year.

When the countdown began, I started cheering and was surprised to see that no one else was making a sound. Everyone was just waiting quietly. My husband raised his arms, counting as well, when someone from the back called our attention “Excuse me, can you put your arms down?”

Finally, it was down to the last few seconds to midnight. In Cantonese, the crowd went, “Five, four, three, two, one...” And the cityscape lit up. But all you could hear was  “aaaahhh.”

My husband and I just stared at each other, shocked. How mum New Year’s Eve was in Hong Kong. No hugging. No cheering. No laughter.

In five minutes, the fanfare was over. People started going home as if nothing happened.

Orange and I agreed, “Iba pa din sa Pilipinas.” Back home there would be reunions, fireworks and merrymaking that we missed.

But the painful side of it, the New Year was not without casualties. Hundreds of them.

Last week,  I visited a six-year old boy named Buboy, whose face was deformed when a firecracker Goodbye Philippines exploded on New Year’s day on his way to the sari-sari store to buy coffee for his father. His older brother Jeff said, “We were so happy last night. Now we do not know how we will be able to cope.” Another boy, 10-year-old John Vincent, lost both his hands when he picked up the firecracker Bin Laden.

Even the names of our firecrackers are reflective of our Filipino humor. What happened last New Year’s Eve to the victims is a clear example of fun gone bad.

I’m sure this was not what Tourism Department had in mind when it came up with the slogan, “It’s more fun in the Philippines.” Fun, after all, is a positive trait. Our ebullience, as how Lonely Planet describes the Filipino, allows us to cope amidst all the challenges.

The slogan is accurate about the Filipino, even if Switzerland was the first to use it in the ’50s.

It didn’t have the same pizzazz as Amazing Thailand, or Malaysia Truly Asia, or even Incredible India, but it is Filipino cheer that we wish to infect our tourists with.

Hopefully, the campaign would pique the curiosity of tourists to visit our country and make us meet our target of 10 million tourists by 2016.

Our country is beautiful. Talk about the pristine beaches of Palawan, the rich marine biodiversity in Mindoro, the breath-taking Banaue Rice Terraces and the historical Intramuros.

But reality bites. Drawing tourists would not be without challenges especially with news of an Australian being kidnapped and insurgencies in certain parts of the country. But what country does not have bad news? How can one forget the bombing in Indonesia and the pickpockets in Italy, the pollution in China and the recent Royal mystery murder at the Queen Elizabeth’s estate in London. Tourists are even back in Hong Kong after the bird flu scare.

It can be done, but this is a task not for the DOT alone. It starts with a slogan, but we must provide an experience that is beyond fun. How about our safety? (Hello, PNP!)

(E-mail me at [email protected]follow me on Twitter @bernadette_ABS.)