Balikbayan: A Counter-Culture Movement

Balik - verb: come back

bayan - noun: town

literal meaning: back home; homecoming

My own definition of a balikbayan is a person who has been to a foreign land, either for work or residence;  and comes back home for a visit or a vacation; or one who has retired from working on a foreign land and comes back home eventually to retire and stay for certain period of time or permanently.

One of my blog readers posted this question: "How would you counter the prevailing mass culture that a balikbayan should pay all the bills while on a vacation in the Philippines?"

Florence has stayed in the Philippines for two months. She had not been home for 18 years. In the middle of her vacation in the Philippines, she called her sister in California, "Napiang na ko!" [I have been crippled!].

Pilar just came back two weeks ago for a three-weeks stay in the Philippines. She complained that every move in the Philippines is expense. "You are a nurse from America? You must be earning millions of dollars!" straight on her face, a woman in the market exclaimed to her.

There is a prevailing mass culture that when one goes home from abroad as a balikbayan, he/she 'should' pay ALL the bills: breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, party, movies, shopping, outing; literally everything that a balikbayan does for herself plus the entire family, village -- he/she should pay for everything!

I asked Florence, 'then why did you pay?' "Because no one wants to pay!" There is a silent culture that the balikbayan is "obligated" to pay for everything!

So how would I counter this [silent] culture that I would be paying the bills during my 30-days vacation in April 1-30? Here's an initial list of what I thought; please feel free to add your creative ideas:

1. blogging that I am on a shoe-string-vacation budget so people will no longer expect that I will pay the bills!

2. giving all my PhP42,000.00 to my "treasurer" less airport taxes and terminal fees [around PhP2,000] and just stick with my budget;

3. safekeeping of my credit card to my "treasure" that credit card use is only for emergency purposes;

4. stay at home

5. invite friends at home, instead of setting a date in a restaurant or mall

6. sticking to my agenda that I came home just for my 3 children & mother & siblings [core family] only

7. just smile when someone tells me i have to pay

8. do not bring cash whenever and wherever

9. pack my own sandwiches & alkaline water

10. tell directly that I just loaned my airplane ticket and I am in debt and can not afford to spend outside of my budget

11. YOUR OPINION MATTERS... any other ideas would be very much appreciated!