"Look Tatay, all this dust under the bed", said Jay
My then new Filipino houseboy showed me all the dust and I wondered how there could be so much as my Indian Houseboy, Nigil, who came twice a week was supposed to already have cleaned the floors two days earlier! Then I watched Nigil wash up, by rinsing the dirty china and not even leaving it to drain before he put it away. There was a trail of broken items from cups to lamps, never explained , and once I came home to find an old man cleaning my house. When I asked who he was he said he was Prem, Nigil's dad! That is the last time I take advice from John Jaworski , who said "I have a great houseboy for you" when I arrived in Bahrain.
The following week Nigil left a note to say he couldn't come as he was working at the Golf Club and I had no ironed shirts for work , so I left him a note telling him to leave me his key and not return.
Jay took over and did a great job every Saturday and we used to go walking after I collected him from Nabi Saleh. We also went shopping, out for breakfast (we went to the first Farmers market together all those years ago) and so on. After 4 years he was known to all my friends after helping me organise many birthday and Christmas parties . He was invited with me to Neil Wilson's Christmas party, Petri's birthday dinner and so on. It was so sad when he died at the end of 2020.
Unfortunately his main job ( for a Saudi Millionaire ) often called him away and so I took on a second Houseboy , also Pinoy, called Patrick. He was a great laugh, always singing and happy, a great Navigator when we were out driving and he knew everything and everyone in Bahrain and could smell a bargain a mile off.
Jay left after he was supposed to organise a surprise birthday party for me while I was away and did nothing to help, leaving Patrick to do all the work. Then he had the cheek to turn up, inviting a gay Pinoy friend, and sitting drinking outside until the early hours . It was not the first time he got so drunk he could not work. The previous time I got a very slurred message at 3 am asking me to collect him from a party in Hoora! He then fell asleep while he was supposed to be making his bed. So when he failed to turn up to work at 8 am after the party he too lost his job. Annoyingly it took a lot longer for me to get my house key back off Jay ( a year!).
Sadly in October 2020 Patrick messaged me to say Jay had been taken ill at the end of 2019. He had returned to the Philippines in December 2019 and passed away from Organ failure in October 2020. It was a double blow to his family as his brother had been killed in a car crash earlier the previous year. My condolences to his family for their sad double loss at such a young age. He will certainly be sadly missed by all his friends here in Bahrain like Patrick, Corleen and Mike and Nea who have now retired to Thailand.
Jay was replaced by Corleen , who happened to be from Mindanao like Patrick and they became firm friends chatting away in Bisaya as they worked. They became Birthday party specialists setting up and clearing up after my many parties. Eventually Patrick changed jobs and could no longer work for me on Friday so Joshua started- he was then a housekeeper at the Elite hotel so my beds and towels were always immaculately folded and the toilet roll as well!
Then Joshua left Elite and moved to Swiss Bell hotel so could not work any more and we briefly had Gabi work for us.
Gabi was young, sweet and innocent and it was his first job. He told me he was so happy and proud when he took his first pay packet home and gave some to his mum as a thank you for looking after him. Corleen got on well with Gabi and we used to go shopping, to the beach and so on. Being young, he had a lazy streak and when the house went quiet I would have to go on search of Gabi, who would be lying face down on my bed playing games on his smart phone.
Over the years Jay, Patrick and Corleen had told me what happened to them as boys when they were Makulit ( naughty) and so Gabi soon learnt to work harder after I introduced him to broom pamalo sa puwit ( being hit with a broom handle).
Sadly Gabi returned to the Philippines when his Grandmother died and Patrick got a German Boyfriend and moved to Germany to live with and eventually marry him. He recommended his cousin Ram who turned up a few times but spent most of his day in front of my bedroom mirror adjusting his hair, checking his make up or taking selfies on my bed. So he did not last long.
Kuya Vin, The Ilocano Houseboy
Vin, from Vigan, worked for me for a long time . He was nearly run over by a car in Bahrain and had to go back home to the Philippines. I went three times to see him, once we went to Villa Escudero, then I went to stay in Vigan with him and the third time he came to Manila and we flew to El Nido together.
Lee also came and helped out when he was working for KFC and we thought it would be easier when he changed jobs to work at Singapore florists. However they had so many weddings on Friday and deliveries from Holland that he too became very unreliable and eventually Corleen replaced him with Jake.
Jake cleaning the Calachuchi
Jake learnt fast what was required, only having to be corrected a few times for not telling me things had run out, missing jobs on his list or putting things back in the wrong place. He made up though by helping me with my walking and cooking and many other chores including the compost. Corleen stayed inside so he did not get any darker and did the sewing and ironing and washing and my manicure and pedicure. When COV 19 struck Corleen made me 7 masks, all in different colours, which were much admired by everyone. He made the costumes for Cinderella for the Manama Theatre club and 12 chefs Uniforms for my 2018 Calendar, which he designed.
Five of the seven COV 19 masks made by Corleen
Of course all of them taught me Ilocano, Tagalog and Bisaya and showed me photos of their life in the Philippines. I particularly liked Corleen's shots of his nephew having a shower in the garden and Sebastien and his friends cycling!
They also taught me how too cook many of their favourite Pinoy favourite dishes and each was an expert in one regional dish. I remember Patrick telling me I had made the Pinakbet wrong because I put everything in the pan at once as it said in the recipe book. He patiently explained some vegetables took longer to cook than others so should be cooked first. I will also always remember Joshua on the phone to his Auntie trying to make little balls for our Guinataan biloo biloo until Corleen took over saying he had spent many years playing with little balls and knew what he was doing!
Sadly of all 10 houseboys only Corleen remains as Jake had to go back to the Philippines while I was in Dubai when the job he applied for took too long to materialize and his previous employer cancelled his residence. I think Corleen deserves a medal for putting up with me for 8 years!
So I will end by thanking you all for looking after me during my 11 years in Bahrain and helping me in my journey to become Phillipino.
I hope to repay your kindness when you all come and visit me in Palawan. Please don't drive by my door next time Kuya Patrick blaming a poor phone signal!
Thanks for showing me what Maarte and Sosyal means ( and talking of that for introducing me to Maganda James!) and teaching me to live on 4 bd a month!
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Hello, I am The British Kabayan! Feel free to read my stories.
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