Unless you're a Filipino or have close ties to Filipinos, you probably don't have a clue what I'm talking about when I mention anything about a balikbayan box. The word "balikbayan" is actually a combination word coined in the 1970s. "Balik" means to go back and "bayan" means home town or home country. So "balikbayan" is someone going back to their home country, but it only pertains to people going back to the Philippines.

Since I'm an American living in the Philippines, I become a balikbayan when I return after a trip to the US.

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There are a few ways to save money and make cheap calls to and from the Philippines. Using the long distance service provided by your regular residential telephone service may be convenient, but it isn't the cheapest route to take even if you manage to get a "preferred country" deal.

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While I was writing my previous two articles, I noticed I had an uninvited guest in my house. Perhaps he or she is welcome, but it's impossible to determine that when I can't see him or her.

You could say that I'm seeing things out of the corner of my eye, as is discussed on the Wikipedia page about shadow people. You could say it, but you'd be wrong.

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The Stevo once braved the frozen tundra of northern Canada as a reporter and photographer. He now calls southern China home and enjoys the humid clime more than the bone-numbing cold of his native land. He misses little of North America: Riding in the back of a Canadian air force transport plane and crossing a Chinese street both hold the same level of danger and excitement.

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This is a Blogger (blogspot.com) blog masquerading as a non-Blogger blog. It's not a bad thing, I assure you.

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