Photos From Doha
These are some photos taken from the 2006 Asian Games in Doha back in December 2006. I just decided to post them now for no good reason. The money we earned was OFW good but “do nothing” Doha was the most boring city I’ve ever visited, no offense to the residents of that oil-rich country, though I’m sure my site is blocked by their firewall. It’s nothing like what they portrayed in the movie Transformers, if you’ve seen it. There were no alien robots that could follow you from underneath the desert sand. Allan, Eric Mana, Alvin Campana, and I spent a whole month over there and we were homesick after the first day despite the 5-star accomodations, exotic food, and an appearance from Sean Paul .
We performed nightly in the Athlete’s Village where all the competitors from all over the world stayed. Every country in Asia from Uzbekistan, Khazakstan, Pakistan, Turkmenistan, and I-don’t-understand watched us in the social center as they sipped on their gin and juice sans the alcohol and anything fun. Yes, just like most Muslim countries, alcohol is forbidden and so is pork and porn.
The biggest challenge was the language and cultural barrier. We came to realize that neither English nor love was spoken by these foreigners. Not counting the Filipinos, HongKong Chinese, and Singaporeans, the athletes watched us with expressions on their faces that depicted “What the hell are these clowns saying?” But we kept the show going lest we be scolded by our Lebanese prison guards who gradually lightened up after we bribed them with cigarettes and promises of a modelling career if they ever visit the Philippines. After crying in the bathroom for a day, Allan and I decided to switch gears and create a new act combining comedy, improv, sketch, and magic with the help of the best Illusionist in the Philippines, Eric Mana. My alter ego was born. His name is the Fantabulous Fantastic Flying Fingerdini. Allan’s alter ego is the Ringmaster. The new act was a huge hit, we became an overnight sensation. Even at the airport on our way home, a crowd of Indians and Pakistanis mobbed us for our photos. Since then, we’ve tucked away our new identities, never to be spoken of or seen again. But who knows, maybe one of these days we will perform the Fingerdini act here in the Philippines.
Would I do it again? Would I go back to the Middle East and live the life of an OFW entertainer? Well, that depends on how much they’re going to pay me and if I could at least bring my girlfriend without being decapitated for breaking their moral law of not sharing a room with a girl if she’s not your wife. We discovered that the only exciting thing to do in Doha is to go to Dubai.