Migrant Tales From Pinoyz2nz - Kwento ni JD

"And when I had an overseas call to my son, he asked me bakit ako naglilinis ng floor sa Mcdo? I told him we loved them so much that we are doing these sacrifices for them. - JD". Nabasa niyo na yong kwento ni Ivy sa nakaraang post. Heto naman ang equally inspiring at makabagbag-damdaming narration ng experiences ni Jun Dandoy in his own words.

Much is said about this topic "is it true,mahirap buhay sa Nz?" And we read different views and opinions both from people na "nandun na at mga papunta pa lang dun." Well for us who have experienced the "best of both worlds", we can only share our personal experiences in order for some Pinoys to have a glimpse of what's in store for "your decision to migrate" and leave your native land. And in order to lighten up the spirits of those undecided pinoys, here's my life story (buhay NZ, ika nga).

My wife and I started to entertain the idea to migrate to NZ sometime in 2003. But we only got serious in 2005 when (Immigration NZ) INZ replied to our queries and started to lodge our application. Si Mrs ang masigasig mag-inquire thru on line (since office work siya - madami siyang time and ako field work- Sales & Distribution-South Luzon Coke) and at one point I asked her, "baka scam yan?" We even tried the services of Mheta but since malaki-laki sinisingil nya, nagduda na kame and applied on our own. Year 06 Dec when we were interviewed by the famous Frrrannccesss Wuuu- hu-hu-hu? in Makati city (kase nag coup d'etat sa Thailand noon).

Got our WTR-2yrs last Mar'07 and flew to Christchurch (CHCH) July'07. We left our kids muna with my in-laws sa Ilocos Sur. Ang dalang baon namin bukod sa sang-katerbang damit, ay yung pinagbentahan ng auto ko (P85k), tibay ng loob, determinasyon at dasal sa May Likha. I didn't pay much attention to the forum (Pinoyz2nz) then (kase kanya-kanya opinion), tsaka gumugulo lang sa isip ko, eh.

We both stayed at my cousin's farm in Hokitika for 2 weeks and we met some members of the West Coast Filipino Community. They were all very hospitable & gave us microwave, iron, TV, plato atbp. Sang ka pa? Libre kagamitan. While staying in the farm doing nothing and watching the cattle fall in line in the shed to have their precious milk extracted, we applied on-line announcing that we are already here in CHC. We received several mails (telling us that our appli is unsuccessful), so we went to Greymouth and tried our luck there. Kumain lang kame sa McDo Greymouth at nag-dare-ran lang na what if we apply here? We asked the service crew if they have job openning & was referred to their owner/manager (Indian guy) & after some very short chat, he asked if we can start right away!?

Dito na nagsimula ang kalbaryo namin to have a "local experience". Since baguhan lang ako, these kiwis always pick on me & told me to do this & to do that? Utusan ako. Habang nag-mop ako ng kitchen, halos ma-iyak ako (kase di-katulong ako sa Pinas). And when I had an overseas call to my son, he asked me bakit ako naglilinis ng floor sa Mcdo? I told him we loved them so much that we are doing these sacrifices for them. There is also an instance wherein I was tasked to collect/pick-up the rubbish inside & outside the Mcdo premises. Gigising ako ng maaga para pulutin lang mga upos ng sigarilyo at wrappers ng mcdo. Sa isip-isip ko, pinag-aral ako ng mga magulang ko sa Unibersidad ng Santo Tomas, tapos yayo lang ang work ko d2? All this for an $11.25/hr job, not bad kung mag-coconvert ka. Siempre, mega-compute kame how much kikitain namin for a week, for a month, etc. We tried to save our small earnings by not buying unecessary things. Dahil hindi sanay hindi kumain ng kanin, nagsimula kaming mag-bread na lang para tipid.

I aso applied & was hired as grocery assistant at Grey New World supermarket. Yung work na hindi gagamitan ng college degree, mag-fill ka lang ng grocery shelves (merchandizer). Tanung ko, pang-PR na ba ito? Sales ako sa Pinas, eh merchandising work lang ito? So, parang malabo maging skilled work? Bale pan-dagdag na lang ito sa CV as local experience. We celebrated my wife's bday last Aug'07 without our kids by our side and it made our journey more lonely. Lungkot ang kalaban mo. I had these two odd-jobs until Oct'07 because lady-luck struck & gave me a break last Sept'07.

I was shortlisted by one of the companies I applied for in the newspaper. It was an Australian firm doing business in NZ & soon I found myself booked for a business trip(training) in Melbourne, Australia & another week in Auckland Sales office, then back to Chc (last wk of Oct'07). And during that business trip to Melbourne, last Oct10'07 is my youngest son's bday. Nasa ilocos silang magkapatid, nasa Greymouth asawa ko('coz she's still working sa Mcdo Grey) at ako naman nsa Melbourne for my training. Hiwa-hiwalay kaming mag-anak. Diba nakakalungkot? Pero kasama sa sacrifices natin yan. Dasal ang ginawa ko and wished we will be re-united with our beloved kids soon.

After serving and proving my worth to the company for three months, I was confirmed as a regular/permanent staff. So, I submitted my third month payslip requirement of Immigration NZ and received a letter of approval (conversion of WTR to PR). Then we submitted our passports and have it stamped last Jan.23'08 (barely 6 mos upon arrival last Jul25'07). Together with our passports, they send also our CD interview with Frances Wu. So I pressume whatever you declared during your interview, dapat yun ang maging permanent work mong i-declare sa immigration officer assigned to you dito sa Chc. So, kung tugma yung sinabi mong gusto mong work na a-applyaan at yun na ang present work mo, the Ofcr will probably grant your conversion (WTR to PR) without questions asked. Tinawagan lang nila employer mo just to confirm your status with the Company, then yun na- tatak kaagad ng PR passport mo.

Along the way, we met a lot of nice and supportive friends in Chc who helped us adjust to our new life here. Meron dyang patutuluyin ka ng libre sa flat nila, kase pinag-daanan nila ang dinadaanan mo ngaun. Ganun lang talaga buhay ng migrant, handang mag-sacripisyo sa lahat ng mga bagay-bagay. Wag ka nang mag-inarte dito. Iwan mo sa Pinas mga di mabubuting ugali.

Lastly, kukunin na namin mga anak namin next month at hindi na sila dadaan sa ahensya ng gobyerno, para wala ng kuskos-balungos. Para wala ng pahabol s'men gov't. Thank you sa mga tumulong regarding this issue.

I do hope this experience of ours will inspire others who seek this so-called "New Zealand dream". Kung kaya namen in less than 6mos, kaya nyo rin yan mga kababayan. Konting tiis lang at pasencya at buo dapat ang loob mo-tutal ginusto mo itong pag-migrate in the first place, di ba?

Indeed, the Lord knows how sorely we miss our kids back home. Kaya He made all these things happening to our lives.

Goodluck to all!

Jun Dandoy
CHC