Enculturation
February 18, 2009 by betchai-t-luc
Being a transplant from one country ( Philippines ) to another ( US ) I had my share of boo-boos or bloopers and/or funny memories that resulted either from my simple ignorance or from my American culture naivete. In time, I have learned to adapt, but these experiences surely continue to give me laughters.
Here are some of them:
1. TENNIS SHOES
In the Philippines, any type of sneakers is often called tennis shoes, whether they are actually running shoes or basketball shoes, it is very common for them to be called tennis shoes or simply “tennis”. When I was very new in US, a friend asked me to join in some group tennis, or doubles. When I met the group, my friend just looked at me and silently whispered, “your shoes have marking soles, they are not tennis shoes”. HUH? In my mind I was thinking, “if what I wear is not tennis shoes, then, what is it?”
If These Are Not Tennis Shoes, What Are They?
Okay, I must admit I was never a member of any tennis club in the Philippines, I just played with my co-teachers in our campus, which did not really ask us to wear the right “tennis shoes”. But thanks be for this embarassing situation, I ended up in the sideline, waiting for everyone to end their game, and when the sun set, all of a sudden it became shivering cold, and I did not have any sweater with me, someone from the group who I did not yet know at that time, noticed I was cold, and took his time to take his sweater from his gym bag, and loaned it to me. That was Khai, the rest is history. So, thanks for tennis shoes!
The first shoes above is my running shoes. I no longer have a picture of my old “tennis shoes” which were not really tennis shoes. To be able to play tennis, I had to buy “tennis shoes”, not running shoes, not cross-training shoes, but “tennis shoes”.
Tennis Shoes
We can probably call our sneakers tennis shoes when we are not in a tennis court or in a group who really plays tennis. Marking-soled running or cross training shoes may not only cause injury but also leave marking soles in the court. Tennis courts here in US only allows tennis shoes.
So, when some of my family in the Philippines text me to buy them “tennis” I ask, “what type of tennis? basketball? running? or gym?” I do not know, if Americans will understand that there are basketball “tennis” shoes. :)
2. BUSINESS CARD
I was so used to calling the business card a “calling card”. When I was very new here and was looking for job, I was afraid my pocket money would run out. So, what I did, I would go to nearby universities and would go to bulletins to look for part time job, like a tutor! Tutoring was then my source of allowance while looking for job. I met a student who needed some tutoring in Calculus, on the day we first met at Cal State library, he asked me, “Do you have a business card?” and I was quick in replying, ” I am sorry…but I do not have a business.” 
Gosh, I did not understand then the confused look of that student, so I had to change what I said, ” I am sorry, but I do not have business card. I am new to this country…and just so happen that my favorite subject is where you needed help.” So, we went back to business, and I was so glad he liked me enough to continue seeking my help despite I did not have a business…. I mean, a business card .
Later, I learned that “business card” is the same as what I call in the Philippines a “calling card”.
3. DUTY
When I was new with my job, my co-teachers were very friendly with me trying their best that I feel at home knowing that I live by myself so far away from home. A lot of the times, they would ask me about what I plan to do on weekend, and if I would reply, ” I will be going out with my Filipina friend, she won’t have duty tomorrow.” And whenever I say that, I see the confusion in their eyes, they would ask me, “Is she in military?” And I would explain, “No, a nurse, sometimes she has duty on weekend!” Then, they would correct me, “Elizabeth, duty is usually refered to soldiers in full time service with military, I do not think we call work shift here a duty.” Oh, okay, all I know is we describe shifts in the Philippines as duty and it can refer to any type of work :)
4. How are you?
I thought Americans are so friendly and thoughtful, when I cross their path, they smile and say, “how are you?”, however, the moment I reply, ” I’m good, thank you, how about you?” they already are several arms length away I wonder if they even hear my reply 
. I struggled with that, how can someone ask me how am I without even bothering to hear my reply? So, now, when I am about to cross their path, I maintain my Filipino way of greetings, I smile and say, “Good morning or good afternoon or good evening” while they smile too and say “how are you?” Just imagine if both of us say “how are you” then quickly pass each other, Heheheh!
But in the hiking trails, I like it more, since they actually have more time to be friendlier, they not only say, “how are you?” but they walk a little bit slower or stop for a moment to hear you say “I’m good, thank you, how about you?” and hear them reply, “That’s great! Hey, what a wonderful day, enjoy your hike!” And reply back with, “you too!”
But don’t expect people to greet you “how are you” when you are in a busy city street a simple smile will do.
5. Thank you.
I know in the Philippines, I used to say “salamat” to the jeepney driver when I get off, but not to a bus driver. But here, people make an effort, whenever they get off the bus, to say, ”Thank You!” to the driver of the bus when they get off, and wave to the driver. But sometimes, when the driver is not good, instead of “thank you”, I throw him a dagger look, and when I get off the bus, I feel sorry and pray that the driver won’t be affected by my dagger look and still would be able to drive safely for the safety of the rest of the passengers.
Hi sweet Beth! I got teary eyed reading that part where someone took pity on you enduring the cold…and then when i saw it was Khai my pupils actually dilated and my heart went thud thud thud hihihi…. i would love to hear more about what happened next…..i love “love” history hehehehe
On Tennis shoes? i know not a thing hehehehe….
I do not know if i ever will want to really go there…i have a fear for foreigners hahahahaha…I remember one time as a HS student i was walking along the market place and i saw a foreign looking woman and i said “ang dami namang nagkalat na Amerikano dito” and the woman suddenly turned to me and said “Excuse me, i am not American, i am British!” waaaaaaaa The first time i spoke to an American male patient as an intern to take his history i blurted out an altogether wrong phrase when i said “what’s wrong with you sir?”
hahahahaha he went like “What?!!!!! can i talk to somebody else in here?” hahahaha ….
I can not imagine you making a dagger look Beth…hehehehe all i can perceive is your sweet smile…the oh so girlie, demure woman Khai met hehehehe….
Beth, I’m laughing here because everything you wrote is so true and I experienced the same thing.
I’d like to also add that when new in the US, I was in the mall with my Filipino girlfriend who is also new in the state. In the Philippines, it’s OK for same sex to hold hand in the public, and so we did. An American friend of my friend saw and asked us “are you guys going out? We responded “yes” because we were about to go out of the mall. The next day, my friend told me that, all of her friends think that we were lesbian. That was the time we learned that “going out” is actually dating/seeing someone.
I also learned my lesson about not marking the tennis court with your shoes in Central Park. My uncle is an avid tennis player and he told me about wearing the right shoes but I thought it was ridiculous and beside I don’t have money to buy a new one.
Oh, we also call tennis shoes – rubber shoes back home. So imagine me asking the sales person in Modell’s for a rubber shoes
:-D
About the word “thank you” have you notice how we (Asian people) say thank you? My husband thinks when Asian say thank you, we drag the word you..like thank yooouu. After observing some of my Asian co-workers, I do agree with him. We do say Thank yoouuu.
Hi Miss Beth, nice post you got here. I can totally relate with your experiences esp here in UK where they have different terms to what we usually used back in the Phils. Here they call those “tennis” shoes trainers and they call those sweaters or any long sleeved shirt jumpers. haha! confused gid ko na sang una.
Then their usual greeting here is “are you alright?”. i remembered my cousin when she came over and I picked her up at the airport, she had this worried look in her face and the moment she saw me she asked if there’s something wrong with her or her appearance since everybody seemed to be asking her if she’s alright. haha!
hahaha! i, too, have my own boo-boos here in Singapore!
on calling card, here it’s name card or bussiness card too.
“take out” sa Pinas, “take away” dito! hahaha! my mom corrected me when i told the cashier in a hawker centre (food court) that the food i ordered is for take away. nakakahiya daw english ko! hahaha!
“go home” sa Pinas, dito “go back”. imagine on my first day at work, i was ready to go home when my boss asked me to go back. i hurriedly put back my bag in the locker and ask my Filipino colleague why they asked me to go back. yun pala, pinapauwi na ako! hahaha!
there’s a lot more but can’t remember all. will probably share it in my blog next time
btw best, nag-umpisa pala sa pag-offer ng sweater ang love story mo. how sweet of Khai to do that
hahaha! kakatawa naman…
kaka-nosebleed talaga mag-relate sa mga Ingles! hahaha!
Hi Zen, I believe in time you can adjust, and you’ll have fun. And we’re here to give bits and pieces adapting and understanding their culture. Hey, it would be fun if we all are near, hehe. Also, you know now that you ask them “how are you? first, instead of “what is wrong with you sir?” My doctor here always ask me first, “how are you?” when I see her, and then I tell her right away ” I don’t feel good, obviously” then we talk about what is bothering me
Hi Joanie, thanks for sharing your experience. I forgot about that, but it is not my experience, but my cousin
hehe. She said she had been mistaken as lesbian because she hold hands with a girlfriend, so, she is more careful now, hehe. And I laughed out loud with your smile of “are you two going out?” if i were still new here, my reply, would also be “yes”, hehe, since in translation, “lalabas ba kayo?” di ba, lalabas naman talaga? However, here, going out means “dating”, hehehe. Yes, our thank you extends the yoooouuuu, hehehe. Yes, at first, I too thought how ridiculous it is for America to ask to wear proper tennis shoes 
America teaches you to have plenty of shoes I guess, running shoes for running, gym shoes for gym, basketball shoes for basketball, soccer shoes for soccer, hiking shoes for hiking and there are even several types of hiking shoes…gheee, if you are into outdoors, you have to invest in all their types of shoes 
Hi Don, thanks for sharing, now I know what jumpers are, that is so confusing indeed hehehe. Yeah, here, sneakers can be trainers too, but seldom used, maybe got it also from British. OH, now, I hope those who ask me if “I am alright” are British Don, sometimes, in the trail, I pause or stop to take a rest, I believe I look okay, and some people would ask me instead of “how are you?” they ask “are you alright?” and I wonder if do I look like running out of my breath. Next time, I will just remind myself they must be British.
Hi Cher, would you believe some people here also use “take away”….at first, when i was asked about that, i did not know what to reply, until she changed it to the more common,”For here or to go?” About the go back, I too will be confused Cher.
Hi Cel, yes, nosebleed talaga, hahaha,
.
this is all very interesting, funny, and true! exciting talaga pag bagong dating! wala pa diyan yung iba-ibang twang. like dito sa south, pronunciation is a really funny thaaang.:)
chai !! i laughed about the tennis shoes as i called all of them rubber shoes….
few of my english colleagues once laughed at me while i was doing my hand-over report.. she said went back from O.R. seen on E.R. rowena you sound like american.” they call e.r. here accident and emergency(which i argued, don’t you think its a bit redundant coz an accident is by itself an emergency) and o.r is known here as theatre( i gave up at this point as i knew i aint gonna win).
pharmacy is called chemist here.heath center is surgery.we call consultant surgeons mr and not dr. and the other field of specialty in medicine dr.
well, i think i can live with that if only they can pronounce my name in our native tongue…ha!ha1ha1
Oh Beth.. we all probably had the same embarrasing moments here in the US.
#1 Good for you that you call them tennis shoes - I call them rubber shoes. Jeff to this date refers to all my shoes rubber shoes if it has rubber sole on it. I was embarrassed with the thought of arguing with him that I only need one kind of rubber shoes to go running, working out, play tennis, etc..
#2 Business card ! It was on my interview with the embassy that he asked me for business card. Then I had to think for a while if he meant credit card (dumb me) ! Then I looked at him and said - did you mean calling card ? hehehehe
#4 On the “How are you doing ?” - doesn’t that irritates you when they do that ? That really bugs me ! If they don’t have the time to hear how I was feeling - then just say Hello !
To add to your list - in the Philippines we call rest room (CR or comfort room). I was new and in the restaurant when I asked the server where is the comfort room - he looked at me so strange and probably thinking what in the heck she wanted ! Then he said with a funny look - did you mean Bathroom ? and gave me the instruction. I thought why call a place bathroom - sounds like a place you take a shower !
Beth.. this post is so real, brought me back lots of funny memories !
Hi ‘day,
haha!!!
I rarely read your blogs but this one’s really hilarious…
Keep on writing…
sori naman po late na comment ko…kase wala talaga kong maisip about this nung una ko tong nabasa…pero now nahimasmasan na ko…at eto naman mga ewan kung me sense na comments po…
una…natutuwa ako at binigyang pansin mo ang idea ng “enculturation”…pinapakita dito kung paano nag-aadjust yung mga immigrants sa bago niyang “kultura”…at gung ano ang mga pagkakaiba ng kinagisnan sa bagong ina-adapt na environment…kudos blogger…sana meron pang mga susunod on writings na katulad nito…critical kase po sya..hindi lang informative…nagsusuri hindi lang nagpapakita…
pangalawa…eto naman mag hirit kong ewan po kung me dating…1. yung tennis or rubber shoes or running shoes….sa tagalog nyan “de goma”…ayun lang alam ko at ok na sa kin yun….sabe pa nga sa probinsya..”uy ang ganda naman ng adidas mu…nike ba yan?”…nyaaaahhhh!
2…business card or calling card…good to know na parehas lang pala yun…ang katangahan ko naman abt jan…pag me nagbigay sa ken ng calling card…sinasabe ko agad….”uy …why ha?…you’re giving me a calling card…do i look like a call girl?”…ahhahahha (juks lang po!)
3….yung duty…ewan ko po jan…ahahha
4…yung “how are you”…jan ako naasar ng onte…kala ko talagang interesado sa akin…hihirit na ko ng mahabang paliwanag ng kabadtripan ng araw ko…aba’y bigalang wala na ang lekat na nagtanong….hmmmpppp!..ampness!
tapos yung ustralian na friend ko ang tawag sa “bread” ay bakery…huh?…di ba panederia yung bakery?…sabe ko nalang sa kanya…well in that case…don’t want to eat a bakery…because i’m not an anay you know!….ngurk!
Beth, this post opened a floodgate of similar experiences. Here are some of mine. I have several when we were new here.
In the workplace mostly:
In the Philippines, we say “Pass your papers.” Here it is “Turn in your papers” or “Turn in your homework”
The double-negative of my students often makes me smile and pout at the same time “Teacher, I aint got no pencil.” So…ok… what are you trying to say… Ano ba talaga, meron kang lapis o wala?! Hehe
In the Philippines we have the habit of saying “close the light” my 5-year olds go… “You mean turn it off?” Hehe or “close the door” they say “shut the door” Hehe
GROSS alert, can’t help it! Some blacks have a really strong accent, one of my co-teachers actually thought she heard one of our black co-teachers say : “Puta ki in the pekpek” Am sorry if this is gross, but it’s a true story and something they always regale us with during our Filipino parties – when they counter checked through the action, the black momma was saying “Put the key in the back pack” (Hehe)
I can very well relate to the endless “How ya doin?”
In the restaurants after eating, to ask for the bill, Filipinos go: “Waiter, yung CHIT please.” Here, they say “The check please.” Or sometimes, “The ticket” (why it’s called a ticket, I’ll never know –hehe)
Hay… nostalgia at its best. We live, we learn. Thanks Beth!
Add to these:
“See you later ” Translation: goodbye
“Lunch” — could mean a breaktime -doesn’t matter whether breakfast, lunch or dinner.
Folks here don’t say ” I’m finished”. They say, “I’m done”
People here love to say: “Perfect!”
I’ll say, “I’ll be there at ten.” A normal response would be: “Perfect, I’ll see you then.”
Here, in the U.S., a purse is a bag. Sa Pinas, a purse is a wallet.
A pocketbook here is a wallet. Sa pinas, a pocketbook is a book.
A knap sack in the Phil. is called a book bag here.
The secretary did not know what to give me when I asked for staple wires for my stapler. Here they are just called staples.
When nurses change shifts, they don’t give an “endorsement” like what we learned to call these back home; they give report. Only a check gets endorsed here.
Take a bath for pinoys is actually to take a shower. Here, when you say take a bath, it means a tub bath.
Here slippers are called flip flops. I would often hear kanos refer to bedroom slippers and the like but they would not call flip flops slippers. They might call them slip ons, probably.
Okay Beth, see you later.