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Some of my readers may not be aware of it but I am Filipino, born and raised in a little quaint city called Cebu. Some of you may not know either, that the Philippines is a tropical country that is blessed with an abundance of rain. Sometimes this abundance becomes overwhelming, as the monsoon rains could pour out for days.

In the past week, the monsoon rains have poured reportedly about 500mm of rain which left 50 percent of Metro Manila flooded. I know it's hard to imagine how it would be like to experience severe flooding, as some of you may live in a place where having as much as a little thunderstorm could mean having a bad omen.

How bad could it be? Trust me. It's real bad. You can literally swim through the flood as if swimming through an Olympic-sized pool, except that there is a great chance that the athlete you may be competing with is a big wet rat hanging on to a cardboard. And no, not even your precious SUV could pummel through these waters.

But you know what, Filipinos experience this almost every year. It's not a good thing, no...but we don't let anything rain on our parade (yep, pun intended). And to prove to you how Filipinos keep their spirits high in such disasters and calamities, here are some photos that cannot deny the evident Filipino humor (or improvisation?).

I was checking my Facebook for updates in Manila but these amusing photos have been gracing my news feed instead. The Filipinos are at it again! =)

I hope the original owners of the photos won't mind me borrowing these =)

Want to cruise on a rainy day but too flooded to use the car? Use the wave runner!

Can't afford a wave runner? Just build a boat out of plastic bottles!

Air beds are not just for sleep overs anymore!

What flood? Pshhh. Lemme get my drink on.

Who wants a piggy-back ride?

Filipino humor is so contagious, it tends to rub off on the tourists... is flood-swimming fun? Yes! Is it really dirty? Heck yes! Will you get sick? Even bigger heck yes! 

Image via Manansala Photography

I know it's probably not as humorous to some as it is for me or the rest of my fellow Filipinos. But to us, these photos are just a reminder of how nothing could ever dampen our spirits and we will always show our resilience, no matter what life throws at us. So, the next time you attempt to cry about your first-world problems, you might want to re-read this post again =)

On a serious note, the Philippine Red Cross would appreciate any amount and any kind of donation that you could send their way. There are hundreds of flood victims that have no food, clothing nor shelter to stay in. Please click on the Philippine Red Cross website for more information.

You don't need to be a Filipino to help, you just need to be human.

Thank you. Salamat.

Toodles!