A Destined Detour: My SSEAYP Experience

10 years ago, I had an incredible journey that totally changed my life… In 1999, right after graduating from UP Diliman, clueless about what to do with the Creative Writing Degree that I just earned, I threw all caution into the wind and decided to take a detour instead of heading on into the working world, or Law School as I had originally planned. I was neither ready for a “career” nor for Higher Learning… BUT I was craving experience… I hoped for an adventure… I longed to feel life and see the world. And well, my wish practically landed on my lap.

So I saw this ad for the 26th Ship for South East Asian Youth Program on the newspaper and I just knew right then and there that I was going to be a part of it. They were looking for young people aged 18-30 years old, Youth Leaders specifically, to become Youth Ambassadors for the Philippines who will travel around South East Asia and Japan for about 2 months on board a luxury liner. It was a Cultural Exchange Program sponsored by Japan, so basically it meant that it was a subsidized trip A.K.A Free.


Here’s the thing. I wasn’t really THAT active in college any more than I was back in High School for me to really qualify myself as a “Student or Youth Leader”… BUT somehow, I just really felt that this gig was for me. Yeah, I’ve been civic-minded. I’ve had my hands on socially-relevant activities. They weren’t very recent though but I told myself, nothing ever happened to those who didn’t try. So I sent my application. And since I just got back home in Davao City that time, after 4 years of college life in UP, I decided to apply as a Representative for Region 11. Imagine my surprise when I came in for the panel interview. There I was, waiting in a room filled with University Student Council officers, Councilors, Lawyers, Doctors, Honor Students, Scholarship Grantees… the bigwigs!!! I’ve never felt any smaller than I already am in physical size. There were around 40 applicants for Region 11 and they were only going to get 2 – a male and a female. I thought, gosh, how can I even compete with these people who sure looked like they were sure about themselves, their advocacies and their career plans? I was but a Fresh Grad who didn’t even know if she could actually make a lucrative or even just a decent profession out of her college degree.

The moment I stepped inside the interview room, I got the reaction that I was expecting… “You’re so small!” The interviewer glanced back and forth from my application form to me, surprised that there weren’t exactly hints about my short stature in the 2x2 ID photo. Duh! I just quipped back with a smile, “The photo’s not lying. I’m really larger than life!” In my head, I was laughing out loud and telling myself “Ang yabang mo Virgilind!” But guess what? My witty comeback actually sealed the deal. The five panelists (from the National Youth Commission and the SSEAYP Alumni Board) enjoyed my “joke” and from then on, they were just interested in ME and dismissed the fact that I didn’t do anything socially-relevant during college except to have a major crush on a Student Council Officer with the initials A.K.P. Hahaha! But hey, kidding aside, I really had a nationalistic heart and my passion for promoting Philippine culture was undeniable. More applicants had better resumes but at the end of the day, it was my personality that won them over. I guess they needed someone to make Philippines “memorable” during the program. Or perhaps, it was just really my Destiny… Just don’t quote me on that. Haha! The present NYC officials might raise some eyebrows.

Anyway, so the rest as they always say is history. I emerged from the regional applicants and became part of the 30 national youth delegates to the 26th SSEAYP. Fresh from college, I had the privilege of traveling to Japan, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Vietnam (for free!). I met State Dignitaries and even Royalty. We traveled around Asia with 300 fellow Youth Leaders from the ASEAN countries and Japan on board a cruise ship called Nippon Maru. I lived with foster families and experienced local life in these countries. I saw the world… grew wings, an open mind and a bigger heart.

SSEAYP really changed the course of my life. I found true friends and learned a lot about people, other cultures, and life in general. SSEAYP really planted a seed of Nationalism in my heart. Before anyone ever knew what Pinoy Big Brother was all about, we already had our own sort-of PBB experience in the ship… the drama, the back-stabbing, the romance, the tasks, and most of all – the responsibility of being an exemplary Pinoy in the eyes of our Asian neighbors. Nippon Maru was our version of Bahay ni Kuya.

This year, our batch is celebrating its 10th Anniversary. It’s been a decade since our SSEAYP experience but ‘til now the stories just don’t cease around reunion dinner tables… the after-curfew cup noodle trysts, guessing who’s dating who or who locked themselves inside the storage room… the gossip, the games, the parties, and the debates on politics… Whew! It was like High School all over again except that we were all in our twenties!

I was so naïve back then – all set to be consumed with adventure! The experience gobbled me whole but I managed to come out alive! SSEAYP may have a different effect on every other person but for me, it was certainly a Coming of Age experience… a Rite of Passage of sorts… my Debut into the Real World. The little girl turned into a woman, in more ways than one.

If you want to take the same "detour", check out the National Youth Commission website for the SSEAYP Application Process. Deadline for Philippine Participating Youth will be on April 13!
Be a Youth Ambassador for the Philippines!
Check out some more of my SSEAYP photos HERE