Marooned in paradise that is Hawaii

(August 24, 2006) HONOLULU – For someone who hasn’t been back to the Philippines for a long time, almost 12 years now, Hawaii is almost like home because of the weather (hot and humid though not sticky unlike in Metropolitan Manila), and the water around it.

For a first time visitor like me here in the island of Oahu, Hawaii is truly a paradise, where all you have to think of is having a good time. But be warned, as we’ve always been told, and which I will repeat, Hawaii is very expensive. Not that I’m saying that only those who can afford can come here, as I urge everyone to visit these magnificent islands, the advice is you have to be creative, and at the same time accept your fate sometimes because you will have no other choice but shell out the dough when you are here.  (Warning: Don’t let your kids rule your entire vacation, they want to savor all what Hawaii could offer.  Don’t let them read too many brochures.) 

It’s Wednesday when I was writing this, or a week since our first arrival. We hit the beach the first day we came, and the next, and then went to the International Market, where we bought stuff you could afford and be entertained too by what they sell and by the dancers and the trio of musicians. Here at the market, I bought myself a ukulele. I wanted to buy the one made of koa – a precious type of wood which is highly rated for acoustic guitars, but I had to settle for rosewood, which is mellower than mahogany in terms of sound, and since the finish on the rosewood is better if you also have learning kids.

For provisions, ABC Stores are all around you.  There are 7-11s, but ABC is at every corner, every street here in Waikiki. It also here where I met several Filipinos manning the registers, just like in the hotels where they are employed. There are about 170,000 of our kababayans here, according to local newspapers here in the Aloha State, which was once governed by Ben Cayetano, a Filipino.

For those who have yet to visit Oahu, Waikiki could be compared to Roxas Blvd., sans the bikinis, surf boards, the foul smell of the polluted Manila Bay (that is what I used to remember and hoping it has changed) and the homeless. The sidewalks of Waikiki along Kalakaua and adjacent streets are littered with people the whole day and until late night, with street entertainers and the tourists, who may only be wearing bathing suits by day and or shorts and t-shirts by night. 

Both Costcos east and west of Waikiki are the usual, except for inflated prices, which is normal in the islands, where produce and other goods need to be shipped, and because the lifestyle calls for it.  While the housing market in the mainland may be headed for a not so soft crash landing, a 15% spike in housing prices was reported here in Hawaii just a couple of days ago. Such is life in Hawaii, where mainlanders would rather go to have a taste of tropical paradise, while still enjoying top level of safety and security since you are still in the United States.

Investing in Hawaii thus makes sense if you’d like to buy properties here, just like what my brother did, where the soil is red (described by Dole as decomposed volcanic soil), which is very fertile, with constant weather and with minimal or sometimes nonexistent hurricanes. It has a history of tsunamis, of course, but it is very well prepared for it, just in case.   

The freeway (H1) going to Hanauma Bay, east of Waikiki, is spectacular, more so past the national preserve, which I will present in my photos later. The waters are crystal clear, the surroundings pristine and very clean, unlike when I used to sail our fishing boat off the coast of Manila, where our FUSO 4DR5 diesel engine (used by minibuses) could only muster a few prawns and squids as there were more plastic bags floating (that reportedly suffocate dolphins) and other debris from Pasig River and other tributaries that feed the bay with human and industrial wastes. 

I really envy places such as this where even millions of people who swim in its oceans, eat by the shore, lay barely clothed by the beach couldn’t spoil its beauty and even preserve them for the generations to enjoy. I just wish that the next generation would be able to see a cleaner Manila Bay, where the suns sets in a much more spectacular setting than here in Waikiki. 

What makes you feel good though is the thought that we also have world class beaches in Boracay, Cebu, Palawan and Mindoro. I guess you just have to make travel plans away from Manila if you’re looking for some tan and naked torsos too. (As I’ve mentioned in my last week’s column, security at the Ontario International Airport was tight, but not stressful as I guess it would’ve been if we flew via LAX. Please take out all your belongings if you have carry-on bags for a quicker way of going through X-ray screening. We did not experience any delays, nor hassles. My suggestion, follow the advise and use regional or alternative airports other than LAX. Mahalo.(RFL)

Aid vs. sovereignty

(January 4, 2007) IN MY last column, I said the U.S. showed us who’s the boss and recent developments tell us how this is done and why we had to follow.  Washington said they didn’t force the Arroyo administration although President Gloria Arroyo said she was “pressured” to hand over Lance Cpl.  Daniel Smith to U.S. custody pending appeal of his rape case.

I also said in my last piece that the country was about to lose part of the $114 million military package, aside from the cancellation of the US-RP joint military exercises, if Smith was not handed over. That is a lot of money, but beside that, the Arroyo administration could not afford a strain in the US-RP relations. It is not going to be her who will make this happen at a time when there are Muslim terrorists in southern Philippines, although I believe that this is more of an economic problem and can be resolved domestically without outside help, and when U.S. budgetary resources, including financial aid, are stretched to the maximum because of the war in the Gulf region.

It is unfortunate that some of our kababayans would agree to the manner in which the Arroyo administration bowed down to the demand of the United States. But I am most appalled at the way the president used that it was in the “best interest of the Filipino people.” Wait, wasn’t it that an American military personnel was found guilty of raping a Filipino woman? I cannot emphasize anymore that not only is Arroyo a woman president, the Filipino nation must learn how to stand up on its own two feet. So what if we lost U.S. aid? So what if the military exercises were cancelled?  

I’ve always been a proponent of the Confucius philosophy of teaching someone to fish instead of giving him the fish. The Philippines, being an agricultural country, awash with natural resources and with a very fertile soil, must be able to feed itself. The waters around us is filled with all the marine life that can feed the entire 80 million Filipinos, which brings to mind the irony of holding military exercises when we cannot even go after illegal poachers that are stealing our fishes and other marine life.

All the financial aids we have received must have been enough to run the engines of the economy. If Malaysia, Indonesia and now even the communist Vietnam, are marching towards progress twice or even thrice the rate of that of the Philippines, then we shouldn’t be dragging our feet and just watch them leave us behind. Instead of building a strong military, we should be acquiring technology and equipment to improve our manufacturing sector. 

We should be building fishing boats with the latest in catching gear, a more advanced canning industry and establishment of fish markets that can compete with Japan’s, where tunas are sold in thousands of dollars, where every ounce of fish meat is sought by the highest of bidders. We can do the same in the Philippines, given the same type of technology in refrigeration, fish wharfs and ports.  Heck, bangus is even better if it comes from Taiwan, where they are better cultured and raised in controlled environments. Mas malalaki daw at mas mataba. 

Actually, the real reason is that Taiwan did the marketing. We failed to use our friendly alliance with the Americans to harness our milkfish industry so that we could’ve captured the bangus-loving folks all over the world, including even the Chinese. Doesn’t that even bother you?

It is high time we stop begging for aid, especially when such assistance has conditions attached to it that we sometimes forget that we are a sovereign nation. We have been subservient to many occupiers, who have denied us our right to exist peacefully and freely. We should exploit our very own resources, but we should not rape our ourselves.(RFL)