Chronicles of Bakalah

When you are in a very strange place and you obviously have this culture shock, you always look for some comfort by finding any familiarity or similarity between the new place and your culture back home. This is the reason why it's nice to see and meet  Filipinos and you want to ask "kamusta" although unfortunately some snob don't answer back. 

Back to the topic, here in the kingdom, finding things similar to Filipino culture seems a tall order except for the ubiquitous presence of bakalahs and I am not referring to what you are thinking. A bakalah is a cross between a sari sari and convenience store and it can be found just everywhere. It is always a stone's throw away  from where you are. 

In the Philippines, sari sari stores are named after the owner usually a woman. (Remember the famous eheads song "Tindahan ni Aling Nena") or after the husband and wife  e.g. Boy and Nena's Store. ( Yes, we had one.)  Here in the kingdom, it's usually a man's name used to headline a store. Example: Rasheed's Supermarket. Yes, small stores here are also called supermarkets. 

The bakalah,  more or less,  has everything one needs and if you get lucky, you will find Filipino products. The flourishing bakalah business created local brands like Makati  which produces copycats of Filipino kitchen products. 

Bakalahs are indispensable part of every OFW's life. Some do their daily trip  to the store and some guys would do it weekly every Friday  when they are from a remote  work location. Generally speaking, going to the bakalah is a way of life even for locals. If you need a freshly baked kubuous (bread) or if you need call cards (bataqah), you run to the closest bakalah. 

Ask the store hand how much something is and he will say, "Only for you my friend, 10 riyals. " Problem is, the Indian/Yemeni/Sudani guy says that to everyone who pops the question! See how friendly they are! That's their way of making you feel special. Some of them even try to learn some Filipino vocabulary like when they greet you, "ano nah?"   

Maybe these are the good side of the story and on top of it, for most Filipinos, seeing pancit canton, ginisa mix, purefoods hotdogs, bench cologne, and even maxipeel to name a few can provide instant relief when they are feeling homesick.  

Maybe that's the real  bright side of it. 

By the way, pwede nga pala magpalista sa bakalah.