MISSING HOME

by Ritchie Raymundo

It’s been 6 years since I left our home country, the Philippines and settled with my husband here in United States. I never thought that I would end up sacrificing a LOT of things in my life.  Here is a list of the things I’m missing terribly back home;

FAMILY

The most depressing and heartbreaking thing to do is to leave my family behind.  Even with the technology nowadays, a video chat or a phone call is so much different compared to a jeep or a taxi cab away right?

I really miss doing things with my loving Mama such as shopping or going to the mall for a stroll. But the thing that I miss the most is my Mama's nurturing and love.  I miss her being a best friend to me and my sister.

FRIENDS  

On my first year here, I had a difficult time getting into groups of our fellow Filipino brothers and sisters. There wasn't any connection and I never felt close to any of them. At that time, I terribly missed my friends from back home and felt so sad. I’m missed the days when I can confide and tell them anything I desire.

But after I was able to adjust to my surroundings, I am proud to say that I found some new people whom I can consider as real friends. I am one blessed person.

As for my friends in the Philippines, I will keep them for the rest of my life and will always treasure them in my heart.

FOOD

I am very fortunate to be in a country where many different races and nationality live. With this said, I have the luxury to try different kinds of food such as American, Mexican, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and even Moroccan once in awhile.  But even with the diverse food choices around me,  I still prefer my acquired taste for the Filipino Cuisine.  

I miss the taste of the different variety of fresh fish like dalagang-bukid, sapsap, galunggong, sword fish, bangus, lapu-lapu, etc. as well as tuyo, daing and tinapa.  I also miss some home cooked meals especially the vegetables.

STREET FOODS

Majority of the Filipinos who grew up in Pinas are familiar with different kinds of street foods. What I miss the most are taho, binatog, quail egg (tokneneng), fresh lumpia, penoy, isaw, adidas (chicken feet), fishballs, kikiam, etc.

I have also listed some of the places & restos/fastfood chains I miss in the Philippines: MALLS, MRT, BUS, TAXI, JEEP, JOLLIBEE, MAX’s, GOLDILOCKS, RED RIBBON, BARRIO FIESTA, GREENHILLS, DIVISORIA and many more.

How about you? What are you missing back home?