Tobacco Photos in Philippines

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Tobacco Photos in Philippines
I have been visiting the Bauang Central Market almost daily it is full things my Mother would like to see. I am sure she is bored reading about my Medical problem.

My Mother is an old woman; I suppose the photo of this old woman showing me tobacco will give her a laugh. I think this old woman is younger, but looks older than my Mother; my Mother is I think 75 or 76.

The Philippines culture is a mash of both modern and primitive, I find many of the same type of products being sold here as I did in Ethiopia, East Africa or say Bolivia, South America.

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Bauang - Paringao - San Fernando, Philippines
La Union Province
Southeast Asia
Monday, August 24, 2009
Bauang, Philippines Hotels
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Nobody in the whole area spoke English; I tried to ask where they were growing this tobacco. The Philippine are sporting, they love their photos taken. I can take a Jeepney for 8 Pesos from my Hotel to the Market, it is an enjoyable trip, I can socialize with about 1 in 10 people on the Jeepney, and this means 1 in 10 speaks enough English to talk with me a little.

The girls at the Dunkin Donuts told me that Bauang has a market on Thursday and Sunday.

Hoz want me to take photos of food, I found a typical food diner up on the second floor, there are many. There is also enough light to video the food. I am now looking for a person who speaks English to go with me and explain all the foods. I tried at the “Comedor” type restaurants, but nobody spoke English.

Tobacco, all types, I kept asking, is this for chewing, is this grown here, is this and that, etc?

I am doing the same things with Coffee, except the girls who sell the coffee beans spoke some English. Tomorrow…

Note if your best friend tells you everyone in the Philippines speaks English, assume he is towing along beside him a small girls to help. I am often amazed at how little interface there is between the Expats and the locals, face, but not interface.

Tobacco Photos in Philippines

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Reader Submitted Comments | Deleted Comments (1)

Charlie NYC said on Monday August 24th, 2009 09:53:52 AM

Those are some honking large cigars. I would be interested in knowing the prices. I would like to know if any Americans smoke them ? Do they cell cigarette loose tobacco ? I roll my own now that smokes are about 10 bucks a pack in Manhattan $ 7 if you buy in a shady Bodega. They usually brought in from upstate Indian reservations or down south. 30 discount and if you roll your own down to about 3.50 4.00 a pack a 60 discount but I imagine it is super cheap in Philippines ?

He did you hear the Governor of New York is blaming his low ratings on Racism ? Guy doesn't even know what a white person looks like (He is Blind) but is dam sure they are ruining his life. (even though a white person selected him to be Lieutenant Governor). The Original Governor was nice enough to step down after getting caught visiting prostitutes many many times
No I think his low rating are because of New and high taxes and turning people INTO criminals

Effective August 1, 2009, New York City now taxes diapers are considered clothing. The 4.875 tax

taxes on a NYC resident comes out to be about 57-60 with federal,ss+medicaid,State,City taxe,City tax 4 1/2 on and on meals tax ,tolls, everything

So a nice $80,000 salary is now worth 37,500,,000 before you wear,buy or eat anything. don't forget parking tickets and crazy car insurance. Yup must be racism !

I smuggle my diapers in from New Jersey now......call me a racist/smuggler

you travel blog is really cool. Have you ever tried Hoboing in NYC ?

Charlie

Hoz said on Monday August 24th, 2009 02:52:14 PM

That tobacco is probably grown in Ilocos, it's a favorite crop for up north. The lady looks like my Lola (Grandmother).

mom said on Wednesday August 26th, 2009 02:35:14 PM

I would be interested to know if this lady sells tobacco for herself and family or someone else. She really looks very thin and perhaps not very healthy. Do the older people there draw social security and like medicare or are they on their own to survive. I am sure this is very interesting for a person who has never been to this type of market but I have to wonder what the people selling it think about their situation in life. Seems kinda sad to me.

Andy HoboTraveler.com said on Wednesday August 26th, 2009 05:10:41 PM

Mom, your question are the same as mine, simple to know why, I am your son. However, as you son, I also have great manners.

Here is a list of cultural manners, I wrote in September of 2001 in Belgium.

But let me say and you feel this, how would you feel if a rich man walked in to your factory from say Germany, took out a camera that cost more than a years wages and took many photos. Then the person starts to ask many questions in a foreign language.

Would you feel uncomfortable, how many question could the RICH German ask before you felt uncomfortable?

I have good manner, and soon after I start taking photos of people who do not speak the same language or have incredibly less money than me, they start to think....
"He is making fun of us."

I am not, but too many questions is an insult in any culture.

The person asking question is controlling the conversation, the coffee girls the next day were a lot easier, I could allow them to control the conversation. But if they do not speak my language, this lady spoke a language like Tagalog, but not Tagalog.

CULTURAL MANNERS
The newsletter:
http://www.hobotraveler.com/newsletterhobo048.php

The cultural manners cleaned up:
http://www.hobotraveler.com/newslettercuturalmanners.shtml

I have to make a friend of the lady before I get to invade her life, this takes time, something a tourist never has and I seldom have time to become friends.

Here is good story I wrote in Lome Togo, explaining how an old lay with extreme good self esteem taught me some words.
http://www.hobotraveler.com/2007/06/agpe-popcorn-learning-togo-ewe-language.html

Thanks Mom,
I guess we will both keep feeling and learning until we die. I will try, but do not expect much, hard to continue on the same path daily.