When I first came to Manila, I thought adapting meant choosing which habits to keep and which ones to leave behind.
I worried that becoming comfortable with Filipino culture might somehow make me less Vietnamese. Then I started noticing how naturally the two cultures appeared in my everyday life.
I still crave phở when I miss home. I also learned to appreciate adobo, Filipino snacks, and the little expressions my classmates use every day. I speak Vietnamese with my family, but I have picked up Filipino words without even trying.
Maybe adapting does not mean replacing one culture with another. Maybe it means collecting pieces of both.
College has made me realize that identity can be messy, especially when you are building a life somewhere different from home. But perhaps that messiness is not something I need to fix.
It might simply be part of growing up.
Vietnamese girl + Manila college life = endless culture shocks. I’m a Communication Arts student exploring the funny, surprising, and sometimes confusing differences between Vietnam and the Philippines. Basically, I’m here to answer one question: Pho real? 🍜
[…] between the food, traditions, and experiences I grew up with and the ones I am discovering here. Learning to embrace two cultures at once has become part of my experience as a Vietnamese student in the […]