So this is your first time here? When did you arrive in Hong Kong?
Where does your employer live?
Do they have any children?
Do you have any children?
Yeah, an eight-year-old boy.
So what made you decide to come to Hong Kong?
For the future of my kid.
What do you think was the hardest part about adjusting to Hong Kong?
The attitude. Because it’s a new employer again. I went to Kuwait for two years and Malaysia for two years also. So this is my third time.
Which place do you prefer?
Here, because we have a day off. In Malaysia, they don’t have. It’s more nicer here. We can have our time also.
What do you like to do on Sundays?
Go to church, and just be with myself. Alone time for me. From Monday to Saturday, I’m always inside the house working. So this is my me time.
Before you left the Philippines, did you have a job?
I didn’t have a job. I just took care of my child. I came home last March from Malaysia, then applied here for a couple of months and then I am here.
Who does your child live with?
What was it like to grow up in the Philippines?
Play with my cousins. Our place was like a compound. We all lived together – our relatives, cousins. It’s more fun.
Do you have any siblings?
Yeah. I have a sister, one year younger.
She’s in the Philippines. She was previously a call center agent. Now she is taking care of her boyfriend’s father because he’s kind of sick.
What would you say is your greatest challenge right now?
To be positive in this kind of new environment and new boss. To try to finish my contract soon, hopefully.
How do you deal with homesickness?
Technology is here, anyway. So you can just call them or video chat. I don’t really have this homesick anymore. If I’m out, I’m enjoying the place.
What was one of your happiest moments working as a helper?
I’m happy even if the employer is not really good. At least I finished and struggled through everything. And in the end, it’s the fulfillment that you finished a two-year contract. And I am so glad I have a very nice employer now.
What is your relationship with them like?
Right now we’re getting to know each other. I’m getting used to the way they like the house. I’m thinking it will be okay.
Can you describe when you felt very scared in your life?
Scared? I am always scared when I go to a new place, where you don’t know what will be.
What were your employers like in Malaysia and Kuwait?
In Kuwait, the first few months they were kind of strict. But at the end they treated me as a family. In Malaysia, it was okay, but the first year the kind of treated me – in terms of salary, they didn’t give me every month. Only this female employer was not so good. Here, they are very nice – hopefully.
Did you go to high school or college?
What was your favorite subject?
Favorite subject? I don’t remember. But in any subject, you have something that you like.
If you hadn’t left the Philippines, what would you want to work as?
Working in the office. I know it’s not easy, but it’s more decent. I don’t mean this work is not decent.
What are you most grateful for?
My kid. I’m a single mom.
What is the hardest part about being a single mom?
You have to be both the dad and the mom. I need to know what to do so I can give my son more. My life is not that great, so – I am crying! A good education.
If you don’t mind me asking, how did you become a single mom? You don’t have to answer.
The guy left us when my son was two years old. He found a new wife, but it’s okay. That was 2011. Long ago. I’m trying.
What’s your biggest hope for your child?
What’s your biggest hope for yourself?
I really want a family. Now I’m really crying. Sorry about that.
What’s your favorite part about the Philippines?
It’s my hometown. There’s no place like home. Cebu. My hometown is in Cebu.
Do you have any message for your fellow helpers?
You just need to be strong in this way of life, because it’s not easy to be away from family.
