“Load na dito!” The Philippines is powered by cell phones. They can do just about anything with them here, and you can’t turn a corner without seeing a sign saying that you can buy credit for your phone, or, as the Filipinos put it, “Load na dito” – Get your load here! When your phone runs out, you get a message saying that your load is insufficient.
I arrived in the Philippines with a basic Nokia cell phone, which I had purchased in Taiwan. I wasn’t sure if I could use it in the Philippines, so I went to a cell phone store yesterday to check. In the Philippines, if your phone is unlocked, it has or is “open line.” I was assured by the cell phone technician that my phone was “open line.” The technician then tried to return my phone having swapped my brand name new Nokia battery for an old junker battery, but I caught him at it and got my original battery back.
I then picked up a Globe SIM card for P40 ($1). That’s a pretty good deal especially when you consider that it comes with 35 free text messages. I then got my first “load” – a charge card with a 300-peso load on it. Then I learned that to text or call phones overseas, I have to add a plus sign in front of the numbers. I’m such a primitive in these technical matters that I was quite excited to actually be able to call Canada on my cell phone. It feels like I’ve joined the space age.