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Survival in the Province
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How do people live in the Philippines on so little money in a province?
joethebaritone
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How do people live in the Philippines on so little money in a province?
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“Probinsyano” life is as fun as city-life in The Philippines. The standard of living is far lower and the people have creative fixes. (For illustrative purposes only) Brisk walk is part of daily life. Market rush is usually in the earliest of the day, a two-pronged strategy to cut cost and guarantee an automata exercise.The back of the house farm. Because of ultra low cost of residential space, probinsyanos can afford bigger properties to plant whatever crop they wish. They can also direct the farmers to haggle for discounts.Abundance everywhere. Mangoes or Coconuts bloom in almost every corner. The fruit-bearing trees outnumber the town’s population.The best things in probinsya are “free”. Many provinces or probinsya have long coastal lines, that means more fish harvested resulting in oversupply. Some local fishermen freely give away some fish to neighbors. Many provinces also have drinkable water systems, like springs. Many “nanays” wash laundry in rivers.Mama shops’ quickie loan program. In other states, they call the minute supermarket as mama shop or one stop shop. We call it “sari-sari store.” Almost every “barangay” has it and allows their patrons to have a 15-day or 30-day payment arrangement. Many owners charge zero percent interest for basic products like noodles, rice, sardines, biscuits, coffee etc.The spirit of “Bayanihan” lives on. At times of family crisis, the reciprocity trait of Filipinos come out naturally, offering a helping hand to sickening loved one, pregnant women, elderly or victims of typhoon. (Remember Haiyan-hit Tacloban?)And lastly, hand-me-downs . We treasure everything we have and we hand over whatever stuffs we can pass on and on and on.
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Thanks for the A2A. I live in Metro Manila so please take my answer with a grain of salt. Devine Alindayo has given the perfect list of common answers as to how Filipino people in the province live. To add in to the list: Filipino people care about their neighbors. People in the province live in close-knit towns and people share their blessings and help each other out. We have what we call “pakikisama/bayanihan” or fellowship in English. People who helped will not ask for payment on something that they helped with but of course a small token of gratitude is expected like giving them booze or food whichever is available or acceptable.They can pretty much eat anything that nature provides. From crops that are grown by themselves, to wild insects and animals. There are a lot of insects that are considered delicacies in Philippine rural areas. Here are a list of exotic Philippine foods: https://outoftownblog.com/guts-frogs-bugs-and-everything-wild-top-10-exotic-food-in-the-philippines/These are just examples, there are probably still a whole lot more out there that we don’t know. Filipino people are resilient and make do with what they have. If something broke, they can fix it by themselves.Everybody lives simply. What people call essentials in urban areas are considered luxuries in the provinces. They do not need fancy gadgetry like the latest smartphones and other such luxuries.Hand-me-downs. Clothes are handed down from father to son to brother(if any) or they may donate it to neighbors who need it.Ways of living are different. For example, washing clothes can be done by just washing clothes in the river because especially in the mountains, water is very clean. Another example is mode of transportation, people use animals like horses and carabaos to move around. Last example is moving houses. Houses in rural areas are made of bamboo and are light enough that it can be moved by just people. Here is a link that explains this more: Ancient Bayanihan Tradition Of The Filipino People: Villagers Move Your Entire House Including Walls And Roof | MessageToEagle.comChildren are expected to help their parents with chores and when old enough to help with work. For example a farmer’s son after reaching a certain age helps the father with farm work.Of course there are also some not-so-good ways like borrowing money and gambling. Thanks for your interest in Philippines.