Blessed Relief

Help has arrived in the form of Annie the amah, otherwise known as Annie Apple by our 2 year old. Annie came recommended by friends whom she worked for in Manila. They have been anxious should it not work out but in my eyes Annie can do no wrong. She is my saviour and my redeemer. She has rescued me from the eternal round of washing, ironing and cleaning. She makes a mean moussaka and we now have fresh fruit salad every day for breakfast. I finally have time to spend with the children and am freed up enough to start enjoying Hong Kong.

Getting her here took an age. All instructions issued by the Philippines Consulate General and Hong Kong Immigration for the purpose of hiring a foreign domestic helper or FDH turned out to be relevant only for amahs who had previously worked in Hong Kong. Annie hadn’t. All the research, form filling and correspondence I had done on her behalf was for nothing.

I unearthed an agent who said she could help. She spoke excellent English so I went to meet her. I eventually located the World Champ International Employment Agency on the 11th floor of an unprepossessing building tucked away in a narrow road in downtown Hong Kong. On entering Room 1101 I found myself in a tiny internet café with upwards of 40 computer terminals on one side of the narrow aisle in which I stood. To my right was a long glass shop counter full of cut price gold jewellery, watches, earrings, chains and rings and behind that more shelves laden with souvenirs and gifts. Was this the right place? Absolutely, for the World Champ International Employment Agency doubles up as World Champ International Enterprises, providing services for the FDHs it assists in coming to Hong Kong; computer and internet for those wishing to email home and jewellery and gifts for them and their loved ones. Brilliant!

World Champ’s Director explained the process of hiring a Filipina helper, got me to write a letter to HK immigration explaining how dire my situation was and took on our case. We were rolling.

Some seven weeks later the day of her arrival dawned. I could barely contain my excitement. It was a Friday. Annie was expected at 18.40 and my husband was going to meet her at the airport. At 6pm the phone rang. It was the agent saying Annie had not cleared Philippine emigration and had not boarded the plane. Philippine officials had accused her of forging our agent’s letter of invitation and had refused her exit.

So what now, I asked? The agent said she had booked another ticket for Saturday. But what if she is refused again? We have to hope for a different official, was her reply. Maybe they’ll be kinder tomorrow. And what if they’re not? I wondered. What if there’s an official with a hangover, problems at home and a grudge against women leaving to work in Hong Kong? What then?

Saturday dawned and much of it was spent on the telephone. It emerged that the airport officials were demanding a new copy of the letter of invitation this time notarised by the Phil Con Gen in Hong Kong, a requirement which World Champ had not encountered before. She would not be on the Saturday flight either. Seeing the disappointment on my face the Pioneering Accountant announced that he would fly down to Manila to fetch her and that come hell or high water she would be here by Sunday.

It was gallant in the extreme but the necessary document could not be obtained until Monday at the earliest so in fact there was little point. We wired money, booked a third ticket and sent the notarised document by overnight courier on Monday night. And joy of joys, on Tuesday evening, after 43 helpless days, Annie the Angel stood in our kitchen, smiled at me, and started laying the table.

Postscript
To my dismay and somewhat to my shame I find I am not elated, not bouncing with re-found energy or raving about the joys of having a maid. In stead it feels rather as though I have run a marathon; a marathon not just of seven weeks but of seven months which started back in London, packing up and letting our home, organising the move, sorting out schools, bidding farewell to my old life and being a single mother of four while the Pioneering Accountant went ahead of us to Hong Kong. I can only compare the feeling with getting a cold the moment you stop working or falling ill on a long-anticipated holiday. You hang on in there for so long and then the moment you allow yourself to relax you get sick. Ill I’m not, but tired I am, and oh bliss, with Annie here wielding the iron I can at least start to catch up on some sleep.