A Roller Coaster Ride in Kuwait.

This is basically the continuation of my previous blog “A Journey to Kuwait”.

A roller coaster of Life.

In my previous blog entitled “A Journey to Kuwait” simply discussed my life and what I had been through before coming in Kuwait from Philippines. In this blog post, I will cite how my life became a Roller Coaster ride in Kuwait.

Some people who might not know what the life I have here in Kuwait including the life of some OFW (Overseas Filipino Workers) in Kuwait, our life here is an upside down. We are working hard in Kuwait to get a little amount of salary every month to send to our families in the Philippines. This blog will be my story.

In the year 2010 when I arrived in Kuwait. It is October 26, 2010 to be exact and that day is my Birthday. I was 21 years of age when I came. So, counting it from 2010 until today, I am 7 years and 6months in Kuwait. 7 years and a half that I had been working away from my families. In the year 2010, I worked as an Office Boy in the National Bank of Kuwait. I worked there for about a year and 8 months with a very low salary. My salary that is really not enough for my family in the Philippines that I must had to have a part time job to get extra money. With a Hundred KD salary, I am sending all to my family and whatever I get from the part time job will be for my personal expenses. It is still OK because we have a free accommodation and a free transportation to work. But reality check, the salary will never be enough as the cost of living in the Philippines is continuously increasing. What kind of part time job I had when I need to have an extra income? Everything. Literally everything. For someone who has the eagerness of helping his family, he will do everything. And considering that I am a risk taker and an opportunity grabber. Don’t take it a wrong way when I say opportunity grabber. I never took advantage anyone around me. I am doing everything with at least a dignity and that I will never hurt or harm anyone.

It was April 2011 when something happen to me and my best friend. That was the moment that I wanted to go home. I was crying and stay in my room because I never expected that it is going to happen. My best friend and I has been dragged to dessert and raped by 3 Arab man. I will not expose much information but that is what happened. 3 Arab man raped us and robbed us. I am even too lucky because my best friend protected me when the guy will slap and kick me. I was on the ground, crying because when I was looking with the plate number of the car, the guy slapped me so hard that I got off the ground and the other guy will kick me and my best friend cover himself from me so I will not be hurt. When the guys took everything from us, they left us in the middle of the dessert. We are crying, hugging each other and my best friend is checking me if I am ok and I don’t get hurt much. While walking out to find the main road, we saw the white car approaching our way and we start to run. With our bare foot, we run towards the other way that it will be hard for the car to pass through but it is a very rough road and there are lots of thorns and we didn’t care about it because we do not want the guys to catch us again. But thanks to our God, it is a different car and we walk towards the main road.

As we are waiting on the main road, we need to get hitch because we do not have any money as the 3 guys took everything from us. There’s this 1 car stopped and says that he will help us but we didn’t go with him because he don’t know how to speak English. We thought that if the guy doesn’t know how to speak English, he will do badly to us. So we wait for another help form someone else. Then there’s this one old man who stop and try to help us. He is a kind man who dropped us to the nearest bus station and gave us five dinars. But since there was no bus by that time, we try to stop another car. They are Emiratis, showed us their ID cards and they said they are Lawyers. Along the way to Salmiya, we start to tell them the story, and advised us to go to Police Station but we don’t think it is necessary action because we do not know anything about the guys who robbed us. When we arrived to Salmiya, we took a cab going home. When we arrived home, we took a shower and go to church (It was Friday). While on the mass, the Priest is citing the sermon. Me and my best friend beside me is praying so deep while crying so hard. We are too lucky because we are still alive and starting that day, we became best friends.

August 2012 when I left NBK (National Bank of Kuwait) and worked as a Waiter in a Kuwaiti Fast Food – Restaurant named Kout Way. Unfortunately I stay there for about 3 months only. Why? I pulled out my documents and decided to leave the work. The reason is Harassment. Yes. HarASSment. My manager in charge (no need to mention his name), an Egyptian national, is somehow a good person the first time I met him during my interview and when I start working with them. It is actually a kind of him dropping me home from Salmiya to Mahboula in the middle of the night. I though he is only concern and too kind, but he has this hidden agenda for me. He is always talking about his life and listen to him. To pay him with his kindness, I listen to everything he is saying and start to motivate myself to work more hard. He is actually telling me all of his comment towards my performance at work. So, I take it as an advice and work more hard. After a week of dropping me, he suddenly asked me something personal and that surprised me a lot. I strongly response to him with a NO and he say he understand it. Nothing has changed, he still dropping me home. But, he starts touching me at work. He sometimes put his hand inside my pants because he says he likes me a lot. At first, I never said anything but he keeps on doing it to me. So, I cannot take it anymore and I requested him to talk to him in the office privately. I told him, I don’t care how he see me outside of the work but during the work, I need him to respect me. I am an employee and I am not someone on the street that he can touch or do whatever he want. He says, “I can do what I want because I am your manager.” I respond to him “No, It’s not because you are my manager, you can harass me and do whatever you want. You can disrespect me outside of the work but not during the work. Be professional since you are my manager. Your professionalism will reflect to you. If you respect me, I will also respect you. Harass me once again, I will quit.” He smiled at me and says sorry. He said that it will not happen again and I thank him for that. A week had passed after the confrontation and he is not doing anything wrong to me which relieves me. But, after another week, he maybe want to try if I am serious with what I told him. He touched my ass in front of my colleague. I was too angry and I say “What the fuck!!” I throw my hair net and go directly to his office. I told him to prepare my documents, my salary and I will be back in an hour with the uniform dry cleaned. He was laughing and I am bursting into anger. I walk down and bang the main door of the Restaurant. The two Kuwaiti bosses called me and I was so angry and walks away. One of my boss called me and asked me why I left. I said I will return in an hour and I will speak with them personally. I did return my uniform, got my passport and money. The Egyptian manager requested me not to tell the bosses but I did. Not because I want to get their sympathy but I don’t want that to happen with someone else in the future. In the end, the bosses can never stop me from leaving the work.

After leaving the Kout Way Restaurant, I joined Al Shaya – The P.F Chang’s Restaurant. I trained for about 2 weeks, under all my expense and nothing happened. Since my visa will expire anytime soon, I need to transfer it to somewhere else. One friend from NBK had introduced me to work in a massage parlor. As a massage therapist. I worked there a lot and got my visa transferred but things didn’t go well. I had a lot of customers there and I am one of the topnotch masseur there. A lot of customers are looking and requesting for me. However, since things didn’t go well, I decided to move to Khaitan. A massage center also owned by my Kuwaiti friend. He let me work with him with all that I need. All my request has been provided. Sooner or later, I became the Manager in Charge of that spa. I started to be the manager there since March 2013 until November 2015. Things are too well. I have a good salary that I even get to renovate my mom’s house, gave them everything they need, even gave them more than what they need.

November 2015 when I join the company named Amsterdam. We call our boss as “Bo Yaqoub”. I was happy the moment I join the company; met new friends and gave all my best working with them. I even work after 4pm or sometime even in late night. I am so dedicated with my work after things became rough. My boss is not allowing me to travel and not even giving me the increase of salary that he promised me. Again, because the salary is not enough for me and for my family in the Philippines, I need to get extra income in any possible ways. Name it, I did that. I even asked friends to lend me some money even I am not doing it, but because I have nothing and my family needs it most, I need to make way to provide it to them.

After 2 years and 3 months, I left Bo Yaqoub, my boss, my second father. And I join the company named Al Wazzan United. I do not have much information and experience to share in this company but I will have it posted on my next blog.

Now, some people might not know what we are facing or what life we have here in Kuwait or in another country. One thing is for sure, we OFW’s are doing all our best to survive and at the same time to provide the needs of our family in the home country. This is my story, and each OFW’s have their different story. We are not sitting in our apartment waiting for the money to come, we are shedding sweat and blood to get money for our future, for our family, and for ourselves the least. So, the next time you heard OFW, don’t think that we are rich, we are also human who works hard. We sacrifice our own happiness and be away of our family just to venture our life across the country.

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Isa pa, hindi porke’t nakikita nyong masaya kameng nagpopost ng picture namen sa mall, sa restaurant, sa park, or kung saan man, nangangahulugan na iyon na kame ay sagana. Minsan, ‘yun lamang ang aming paraan para maibsan ang aming lungkot at pangungulila sa aming pamilya o kaya isa lamang yung dahilan upang bigyan ng reward ang sarili namen sa pagsisikap at pagsasakripisyo na aming ginagawa sa pang araw araw na buhay. Naisip na ba ninyo ang hirap namen na malayo sa aming mga pamilya? Naisip nyo ba kung ano ang hirap namen sa tuwing kame ay nagkakasakit? Na pagkatapos ng aming araw sa trabaho, kinakilangan pa naming maglaba at magplantsa ng aming uniporme para sa kinabukasan? Nawa’y maisip ninyo na hindi kame nagpapakasarap dito sa ibang bansa, kami po ay nahihirapan din.

-MarkBensonBeberino