Ehrich Ehrich is a writer and computer consultant, managing large-scale database implementations. It reminds me of the break between high school classes, when doors burst open and a thousand conversations erupt. Every bus, tram and ferryboat deposits more talkers. They come here to meet friends and countrywomen beside fountains, before finding a patch of sidewalk outside for a picnic. They venture down side alleys, where stalls sell cut-rate underwear and blouses.
Leaflet distributors are on the prowl.
They ignore Westerners and the few Chinese women who venture downtown on a Sunday morning. They look for the slightly darker skin and fuller facial features of these Filipino women. I wonder what scam they are promoting. These are the maids. Some 150,000 of them tend the children, and do the cooking and cleaning for the wealthy and for middle-class families who need outside help to manage two incomes.