Some Filipino Oddities

Warning: The following information are weird and useless. Read at your own expense.

• If the Mexicans have their Churros y Chocolate, Filipinos have their Pan de sal at Tsokolate (or sikwate in Binisaya). We love to dip our bread (pan de sal) in our chocolate drink (sikwate) before we take a bite of it. After the bread is gone, we gulp down the rest of the choco drink. Because of this strange habit, we make fun of ourselves... we are so obsessed with cleanliness, we wash our bread before we eat it... and we are so frugal, we don't throw away the waste liquid but instead drink it.
• Two years ago, Jas, Thaad and I went home to the Philippines.. The Detroit airport was busy with travelers and workers alike. We were in the check-in line, pushing these big boxes that we were bringing with us when I began to notice that some people were looking at us surprised. Yeah, people, we travel back home not with luggage but boxes we call balikbayan box. May I refer you to this link on how a balikbayan box is formed because it is so true. Actually, this is a very practical way since the contents are never coming back with us, they are all homecoming gifts (pasalubong)... even the shoes, or perhaps the sunglasses, we are wearing aren't coming back with us either.
• Ding Dong ... is that the door bell? Nope, that is just the nickname of a Filipino whose real name might be Ricardo (who would have guessed?). We are known to have "door bell" nicknames. Let's start with my husband, Bong. My sisters are Kwing & Yang. Everyone calls my lola (grandma) Bibang and my other lola, Soling. Ling and Ting are Bong's cousins. Ting-ting is my goddaughter. Bing-bing is my friend. Ding-ding is my friend's sister. Then there's a governor whose name is Bong-bong. Then there's Toting and Klang-klang and Bing-bong and Ging-ging and... I better stop. I don't want this post to be the reason why there's ringing in your ears. Oh, by the way, mine is Dang.