Life in the Faroe Islands, 1

 
 
 
 

Vocabulary

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Video

 

 
 
 
 

Transcript

At first sight, the Faroe Islands make your heart skip a beat. Secluded in the North Atlantic Ocean, it’s striking mountains are cloaked in fog. There’s not a tree or a person in sight.

Hard to imagine for someone from the Philippines.

Mary Joy from the Philippines: “And I was looking, oh there’s no houses. Where are the houses, I was just thinking.

Many have never heard about this tiny country at the door of the Arctic Circle, especially in tropical Thailand.

Namfum Sadi from Thailand: “When I told my friends that I’m going to be in the Faroe Islands, they said, ‘Why you are you going to Egypt?’”

Reporter: “Egypt?”
Namfum Sadi from Thailand: “Yeah.”

Home to only 50,000 people and 80,000 sheep, it’s also cold and wet.

Mary Joy from the Philippines: “It rains. A lot.”

And in darkness for more than half of the year.

Mary Joy from the Philippines: “Winter. Yeah it feels very gloomy.”

Namfum Sadi from Thailand: “Everything is like a shock, because we come from warm country and a big country; and here it is so small.”

But stay a while and something happens in a place that seems like it’s on the edge of the Earth, women from afar are finding something they yearn for.

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I’ve come to find out what it is: hundreds of women from Asia are moving to the Faroe Islands.

And being from a warm climate myself, I can’t understand how they survive one long dark winter let alone the rest of their lives.

They marry Faroese men, often who they know little about.

But don’t assume they aren’t in charge of their destinies. To find love, you have to take a risk.

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Hence Erland is the local running star, the pride of the islands — and of his parents Mary Joy and Dan Thompson.

Mary Joy was one of the first Filipinas to move to the Faroe Islands more than fifteen years ago.

Priest Presiding over Marriage: “Mary Joy, wear this ring, as a sign of my love and loyalty to you.”

They married in the Philippines in 2002.

Dan had written her love letters for two years after seeing a photo of Mary Joy babysitting her cousin’s children. The cousin had also married a Faroese man.

Mary Joy, from the Philippines: “He asked for my address and he started writing to me. First it was an introduction of himself, that he was single, and that he worked, and owned a house . . . trying to sell himself.

One day he decided to come to the Philippines. And yeah he proposed to me immediately and wanted to get married.”

Journalist: “And what did you think when you first saw him.”

Mary Joy, from the Philippines: “He’s okay; he’s the same man in the picture.”

Ten days after arriving in the Philippines, they were husband and wife.

Mary Joy, from the Philippines: “Yes (we are) 20 years (apart), but it’s okay.”

From barely knowing each other to today, they’ve come a long way.

Journalist: “Hi guys. Good to see you. What a beautiful place. This is where your boat is kept?”

Along with their athletic son Hans Erland, they have two other children: Lea who’s 12 and Daniel 8.

I’m tagging along on this excursion while the boys try to catch lunch.

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Questions

Island. The Faroe Islands are in Egypt, and have a mild cool to hot Mediterranean Climate. True or false?

Tropics, Tropical Climate. Does the video feature migrants from Britain, Canada and Eastern Europe living in the Faroes? Did they come for the weather?

Arctic, Arctic Zone, Tundra. Has moving to the Faroe Islands been a big (culture) shock for Filipinos and Thais, or has the transition been smooth and easy?

Rain, Rainy. The presenter is probably from Sweden. What do you think?

Storm, Hurricane, Typhoon. Have Asians (Asian women) been living in the Faroes since the 1960s?

Temperate Climate, Four-Season Climate. Dan and Mary Joy met in a nightclub. Is this right or wrong? Were they dating for two years before tying the knot (getting married)?

Subtropical Climate. In the beginning, did Dan write to Mary Joy, describing the climate, geography, economy, history, food and culture of the Faroe Islands?

Mediterranean Zone. Are their children assimilating into (blending in) Faroese society, or do they maintain Filipino culture and identity?
 
 
 
Oceanic Moist Climate. Many foreigners and migrants live in my city and country. Yes or no? If yes, where do they come from? What do they do?

Semi-Arid, Steppe, Prairie, Grasslands. Do foreigners assimilate or blend into mainstream society?

Tropical Rain forest. Do some or many people from your country move abroad (and marry locals)? If yes, what are some common destinations?

Desert. Are there (lots of) intermarriages between people of different ethnicities, race or nationalities in your country or among your nation?

Alpine, Mountainous Climate. My friends and I would like to live on the Faroe Islands! Would you like to visit the Faroe Islands?

Polar Ice Cap. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you like to live? If I could live anywhere in the world, I would like to live in . . . . .