By: Bernie V. Lopez
Published in its print edition on September 21 – 27, 2024
Author’s note. This story was inspired by actual events during my coverage as a journalist of the Philippine tourism industry circa late 90s.
Hans was a South African mercenary who served in Africa and the Middle East. When he arrived in Puerto Galera, a major tourism hub in the Philippines, he instantly fell in love with the lonely beaches and the warm women, away from the wars he used to be employed in. This was the ‘paradise’ he was looking for, which moved him to tears. Imagine a vicious warrior weeping unashamedly because he found a way out of his miserable violent life.
I met Hans during my many stints in Puerto Galera way back in the early 90s. I was affiliated with a tourism NGO whose goal was to mingle with local peasants and make sure they were not trampled by the tourism industry. We counseled prostitutes on the verge of a nervous breakdown.
I had long talks with Hans over beer and scotch. We became instant friends because we had a common attraction for each other as adventurers of sorts. I hitchhiked through Europe for three long years. He was a mercenary for many years for wars in Africa and the Middle East. But now, at 62, he was an aging warrior.
As a former South African mercenary, Hans was a tough veteran who had a chip on his shoulders. When he arrived at Puerto Galera, he immediately had altercations with fellow expats and with the natives. He gained notoriety and was avoided by many.
His first task was how to dig in. He had some savings to start his own modest beach cottage, but he had to go around the law (at that time) that foreigners were not allowed to own land. So, he propositioned Elsa, a dark ugly prostitute he regularly availed of, to get married. This was a common practice among expats to marry ugly prostitutes to legalize land ownership – the uglier, the better, the more attractive to them.
Of course, Elsa, the daughter of a poor fisherman forced by poverty into prostitution, took the offer without even thinking. For her, it was a big step up. She was no longer a prostitute. She had this ‘white lover’ forever, the dream of many prostitutes, and was now a housewife of sorts.
Elsa told me, “My life soared from rags to riches. I had my own kitchen staff. I learned foreign cuisine, which was needed by local cottages to attract tourists. It was a perfect arrangement.”
Hans told me, “I didn’t have to pay for sex. She took care of the restaurant. I was still free as a bird after I taught her a bit about foreign cuisine. It was a perfect arrangement.”
The problem was the warrior in Hans always came out. He would maul Elsa for the slightest mistake. Elsa would weep at night, but she bore all the pain, clinging to her new life. The bruises on her arms were nothing to her, “part of life”, in her words. She occasionally stole some money from the restaurant income once in a while to get even.
Hans went home to Cape Town in South Africa and distributed flyers about his cottage. He had a few photos published in the local paper. In time, after a few visited his cottage, his place became famous by word of mouth. Business was thriving for the South African market. He had to expand, buying a neighboring cottage at a high price.
Something spiritual inside Hans and Elsa were evolving. Hans no longer mauled Elsa. Affluence had a way of changing them both.
Hans told me, “Through time, she was no longer a prostitute in my eyes. And I was surprised, I was beginning to fall in love with her.”
He no longer had a chip on his shoulder. He even gave advice to new expats, some of whom became business rivals. But he did not mind, because he was not greedy. The warrior had mellowed.
Elsa told me, “When he stopped mauling me, and I felt some shade of sweetness in his ways, I was beginning to fall in love with him. I never stole again from the restaurant income.”
That was when Elsa became pregnant, wanting to be a mother. In time, she had a handsome blonde boy whom Hans was so proud of. The prostitute and the warrior had both mellowed in each other.
People who use each other sometime become people who love each other. We need to find ways to uplift each other up in the darkness of our lives, because that is the key to the light that conquers that darkness. And that light spreads like wildfire. For love, like hate, is extremely contagious.#
