pinoy fame in malaysia

when the female Malaysians i met learned that I am Filipino, they almost always squealed with delight.

"Oooh, I love Kristine Hermosa. Do you know Jericho Rosales? And, how do you say, 'deet? dayet? Diether Ocampo'? "

imagine my surprise. the Filipino soap "Sana'y Wala Nang Wakas" hit the Malaysian TV sets and the ladies are going berserk! i never knew they were that famous in Malaysia--and in all states: Peninsular, Sarawak, specially Sabah!

aside from the soaps, Freddie Aguilar's "Anak" is topping the charts when it comes to popularity among locals. get this:

i went to Bako National Park, an island away from the city to go jungle trekking, monkey-spotting, bird-watching, and i was astonished that one of the staff there actually has an mp3 of that song stored in his office desktop! sensing their fondness of it, i offered to teach them the song--get the lyrics and translate it for them.

my thrilled students Salmiah and Lihos