Rio Villa: The American English word "boondocks" signifies something far and unknown.

Jay Jay Maniquis: But was actually termed from the Tagalog word for mountain, "bundok."

Rio: Like the duality in these words, the Filipino experience is one of hidden strength.

Jay Jay: But their mountainous presence always has and always will be there.

Rio: These are Filipinos who create, innovate, and influence.

Jay Jay: Bringing the Filipino story-- both: "Out of the Boondocks."

Jessica Mercado: Inspirado means to be in spirit.

It also means to move and to breathe and to be guided.

I think eskrima is really a journey of self-discovery.

Many of us who are part of this great diaspora are constantly seeking opportunities in which we can connect closer to our Filipino identity.

♪♪♪ Rio: We're in Balboa Park to meet with Jessica Mercado, the coolest Filipina out there.

Seriously, she practices eskrima, an indigenous martial art dating back to prehistoric Philippines and the country's national sport.

Over tea, we talk about its traditions and how they influence and inspire her today.

Rio: So I feel extremely lucky that I have a father who took me to the Philippines since I was a little kid, has taught me so much about being Filipino, but there's still obviously so much that I have to learn.

One of those things is eskrima.

I don't know that much about it.

So can you tell us what is eskrima?

Jessica: I'd be so honored to.

So Doce Pares is a multi-style system.

It was founded on January 11th 1932 by our founding masters.

In Luzon region, especially my parents, recognize this system as being referred to as arnis or arnis de mano.

Eskrima is the Bisaya term and it's founded in Cebu, Philippines.

Rio: The Philippines is mapped out into three main regions, Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, with about 2,000 inhabited islands and 170 dialects.

Naturally, there are different names and styles for the martial arts.

Doce Pares is a system that combines many of these styles.

Jessica: The essence of eskrima is to strike.

Rio: And that's in a defensive way?

Jessica: Doce Pares, like many other Filipino martial art systems in the Philippines, it's weapons based.

The weapon is really an extension of you, and we learn that it's more than extension of our hand, it's also an extension of ourselves, and with that comes a lot of respect for oneself and for others.

It was never created to harm other life forms.

This art really is purely intended for others, to protect and to defend them.

Rio: I love that.

[instructor speaking indistinctly] ♪♪♪ Rio: How did you get involved in practicing eskrima?

Jessica: There's a lot of moments in my life where I felt like there were signs that were kind of calling to me where eskrima continued to appear.

Somehow I acquired a Doce Pares stick.

For years I had just, you know, practiced in my backyard, just trying to twirl a stick, and I just felt very compelled to always do that.

And at the time I lived in an area which I later on found out was only less than a song away from the Doce Pares headquarters in San Diego.

Rio: And when did you start practicing eskrima?

Jessica: I woke up one day and I knew I was turning 25 and-- Rio: Twenty-five is the year, sometimes.

Jessica: It was, it truly was.

I was laying down, and I just got up, and I thought, "I really would love to train martial arts."

And I realized, "Wow, we have our system."

And I looked into it, and Doce Pares, there's a group here in San Diego.

And they've really truly become a group that's now a family.

[sticks clacking] male: Learn how to fight in the space right here, okay?

So if you strike, gotta get out.

Okay, go slow.

--Passing low down the center.

[speaking indistinctly] [sticks clacking] female: One, two-- one, two, one, two.

Rio: Do you feel like when you're practicing, are you kind of more in a meditative state or does it take a lot of, like, thinking and strategizing?

Jessica: Every single time I come to practice I'm learning a curriculum, a system of an archaic way.

It requires not just a mental capacity to be present and to show up, it requires us to develop this stronger sense of loyalty and this virtue of an indomitable spirit.

So before I train I always like to set an intention, whether it's focusing on the breath, focusing on the movement, or I would try and have an intention in mind so that as I am practicing I don't get lost.

It is truly a meditative practice because it's one of the only times where I feel like I don't think.

It's like one of the only times where I fully feel present.

It's very inspiring to train because I know that this is one of the many ways in which I am able to connect with my roots.

Rio: I practice yoga, and there's so much that I take away from it even when I'm not practicing it.

I practice yoga, but then there's moments outside of doing yoga that I'm like, "Okay, I just need to breathe through this stressful moment right now.

Yeah, I'm just going to breathe."

So I was curious, are there things like that for eskrima that you're able to take with you outside of your practice?

Jessica: I always like to recall some of the lessons that I've gathered from my practices.

When I train, I feel very inspired.

Inspirado, which means to be in spirit.

It also means to move and to breathe and to be guided.

Through that, it's a reminder that as complex as it can get, to always bring the breath.

When we train, we truly surrender our egos, because going into this art, you're learning from one another and you're also teaching one another.

I think eskrima is really a journey of self-discovery.

Rio: Do you feel like you've grown stronger in your identity as a Filipino-American?

Jessica: Many of us who are part of this great diaspora are constantly seeking opportunities in which we can connect closer to our Filipino identity.

I think that all of us are in different pathways of seeking that truth.

Being a Filipina, I am--I feel more empowered when I see other women, other Filipinos like yourself embrace their cultural roots because it allows me to give myself the permission to accept myself fully as my authentic self.

I really believe that we're experiencing this consciousness or this conscious reawakening or this remembering of who we are.

Rio: There's a lot going on in society right now that I feel is kind of adding to that awakening, you know.

Unfortunately, COVID kind of brought out a lot of hate towards mostly like just older Asian people walking down the street, and it's just-- it breaks my heart.

I'm just curious, like, how was COVID for you, seeing just a lot of violence towards our community, and has it made you feel more inspired to practice and to share this self-defense form with other people?

Jessica: Thank you for that question.

Seeing that during the pandemic and knowing that there are other people who see the elders, our matanda, our lolos and our lolas as a vulnerable group of people when in fact they're the reason why many of us are here.

And it is important for us just like how bamboo bends.

It's so important for us to acknowledge our roots and to acknowledge those who've come before us.

Our group really took the time to make ourselves available to the community by creating and sharing spaces where the matanda can actually come out and learn basic self-defense.

And it was geared towards our senior citizens, and it was a really beautiful exchange because our founding members of the Doce Pares system--most importantly, we had Supreme Grandmaster Dionisio Canete, who was 82 and was leading world seminars, eskrimadors way bigger than me.

He can, like, basically disarm them and, like, throw them through--everything he did, it was just-- it was incredible and it's a reminder that, you know, we come from them, we are an extension of them, and to continue to pass on this story that Filipino people are very strong and are inherently strong, and we acknowledge that.

Rio: I love that part of our culture.

Like, having respect for our elders.

What is something that you love about being Filipino?

Jessica: This sense of familiarity or this sense of family, that wherever you are, you'll always feel truly connected.

Rio: These themes of family ties and the value of martial arts could be found in "Raya and the Last Dragon," a 2021 Disney animated movie that was inspired by Southeast Asian culture.

It was one of the first times Southeast Asians, including Filipinos, were able to see their traditions represented in a major Disney movie through its female protagonists.

Jessica: I think as a Filipina it's so empowering to see Disney shine light on Southeast Asian culture and to have an empowering role for potential eskrimadors or even young girls who are watching because when we grew up we had Mulan, and now more girls like us will have Raya.

I immediately notice her kris sword, and the kris sword is what she wields, and it's--it has like a wavy design to it.

And in one of the scenes, she has doble olisi, which is two-stick or [speaking foreign language] as we call it in Bisaya.

I was amazed.

I thought, "Wow."

You know, I felt like I was seeing me on screen.

Rio: You are the real-life Raya.

Jessica: Am I?

And there are so many real-life Rayas.

And I think when more girls get to watch this, there'll be kind of like this awakening where they're like, "Oh my gosh, I could do that."

Rio: That's exactly why we wanted to, you know, tell your story and show eskrima.

Jessica: It's honestly a really beautiful art system.

And I always feel so privileged when I get the opportunity to share this with others, and it truly should continue to propagate, to be promoted, and to be lived through all of us.

Rio: Thank you for--you know, for representing this amazing tradition and for putting it out there and sharing it with all of us.

[applause] Rio: We'll just get our tea.

Are you--do you like black tea?

Jessica: I love all kinds of tea.

Rio: What kind of tea?

Jessica: Chamomile is one of the top.

Rio: That's your favorite?

It's caffeinated.

Is that okay?

Jessica: Let's do it.

♪♪♪ Tha Kuya: When I was incarcerated, my favorite books to read were National Geographics.

And in doing that, I freed myself like out-of-body experience, not in some mystical type of way, but putting myself there in these places.

I never thought tattooing would bring me there.

I just wanted to do these things, right?

It was just a matter of living out my dream.

Jay Jay: Downtown San Diego, the east village neighborhood.

If you've ever found yourself here, you may have seen the Good Life Tattoo Shop.

It's run by a Filipino tribal tattoo artist called Tha Kuya.

I'm popping in to learn how he unveiled his own opportunities despite the obstacles.

Tha Kuya: I'm Tha Kuya.

That's it.

Jay Jay: That's it.

Tha Kuya: And people go, "How did you get that?"

It's 'cause I'm the oldest in my family.

Jay Jay: Now, for people that don't know, Kuya is, you know, the oldest--older brother.

And that naturally puts you in a leadership position 'cause people will say, "Hey, Kuya," and they look up to you.

What does that mean, like being the Kuya?

Tha Kuya: To me it means that I have to hold myself at a higher standard.

That whatever I do and whatever I say, it has to come from a position of wisdom, where you can't just tell somebody any old thing and not think about the ramifications of what you say.

It's a struggle sometimes.

You want to be human and make the mistakes, but not when you have like people watching you, you know what I mean?

So you have to really be careful how you guide people.

Jay Jay: What is Filipino tribal tattooing, and can you just talk about the history behind it and what it means to people?

Tha Kuya: That's where we got the name pintados back in the day.

We were called isla de pintados, island of the painted one.

It was taken away from us when the Spaniards took over, and anybody with a tattoo would be--would either be killed or whatever.

The revival is what brought about people getting back to their roots.

You know, a lot of people, a lot of the Fil-Am, a lot of them don't speak Tagalog.

It makes them feel closer to the Motherland getting the tattoos.

Jay Jay: Now, when they're choosing their designs, their tribal designs, what are the meanings behind some of the designs that you do?

Tha Kuya: It depends on the description and the story they want to tell.

I like the stories of overcoming, you know, people that persevered through struggles.

I like those the best because it comes from a place of pain, and getting through it, and then overcoming it, and then being a better person.

Jay Jay: And these tribal designs in the Philippines, do you know how they were, like, discovered, and how did you start, like, discovering the art itself?

How did you discover it?

Tha Kuya: I discovered it through people like the Four Waves Tribe and stuff like that, who brought the revival on.

And we did a lot of extensive research.

So really the platform was already there.

It was just me adding my artistic expression to it.

♪♪♪ Jay Jay: Kuya shares the meaning behind his own tattoos and the experiences that inspired them.

Tha Kuya: This is a fish.

If you look at it, it goes like this.

This was done by a really good friend of mine, Sef Samatua.

And I don't like getting tattoos myself.

I hate pain, but I had gang tattoos that I wanted to kind of cover up.

So the thing was--is, "Can you--" I said, "Can you cover this up right here on my hand?"

And it became this whole big thing right here.

Jay Jay: So it's a fish?

Tha Kuya: It's a fish for my faith.

And then I have this rooster.

I had a rooster when I was in the Philippines, and it was one of my fondest memories.

That was the funny thing is when I was a kid, you know, back in the day, they used to say, "If you don't change, I'm going to send you to the Philippines."

It took that point for me to go over there, seeing how people with very meager means accomplished things that people like us over here who have the means say that we can't do, and I'm like, "Man, we should be grateful for the opportunities that we have here."

Jay Jay: At what age did you realize that over in the Philippines?

Tha Kuya: I was like 16.

I think what we learned there is gratitude, being grateful for the things that we do have.

Jay Jay: For you, you were born here in the US, but do you know Tagalog?

Tha Kuya: Of course.

Jay Jay: [speaking Tagalog] Tha Kuya: [speaking Tagalog] Like, you can't call yourself the Kuya, bro, and not speak your language, you know what I mean?

That's one of the things that I try to hold on to, you know what I mean, is once they steal your language, well, they steal your identity.

So that's one of the ways that you keep it going, by holding on to your mother tongue.

Jay Jay: I grew up understanding Tagalog because my mom's side, they predominantly spoke Tagalog.

Is that how you grew up, like knowing Tagalog, just understanding it, or did you have to learn it as you got older?

Tha Kuya: I understood it, but I couldn't speak it.

So when I got sent to the Philippines, I had to learn it.

Jay Jay: I asked Kuya about the beginning of his journey exploring tribal tattoos as a creative outlet during a difficult time in his life.

Tha Kuya: It's just something that I was doing for a pastime.

Like, when we were hanging out.

It kind of blew up for me when I was incarcerated and then I started seeing these tattoos that were Polynesian, and that's how I got into the Polynesian is, "Man, I wanna one day get one of those."

Not knowing that one day I would do them.

Jay Jay: I heard you even have your tools from when you were incarcerated.

Is that a reminder?

Tha Kuya: It's a reminder of the humble beginnings in the setting, but that is what led me to all those things was my addiction, but being incarcerated kind of was a reset for me to where I could reflect on the things I've done and the people I've hurt and the things that I needed to change about myself, and I did it through my tattooing.

So when I got out, one of my buddies, we were on the yard talking about, "Hey, when we get out--" We had a bucket list of things to do like, "I want to eat some halo-halo.

I want to do this.

I want to take road trips.

Let's get tattoos."

So when we got out, we had--you know, they give you a certain amount of money, and I'm like, "Man, we only got $200.

I ain't going to spend this on a tattoo."

So I said, "Why don't you get the tattoo machine and I'll tattoo you."

And that was it.

I never turned back.

I kept up with it, and I just started tattooing friends, family, and ultimately from the garage, to the shop, to shows, to around the world.

The transition for that was crazy, bro, because it's something I never imagined when starting off.

I was self-taught.

So whatever tattoo I was doing, you know, I never thought I'd get anywhere with it, you know.

I had like three other jobs, tattooing on the side, and it wasn't really something I took serious until I got hurt on the job and wow, man, I'm killing myself chopping onions.

I used to work in a kitchen chopping onions and prepping food for chump change.

So I would work 2 weeks to get whatever I was getting paid, which I make in like 2 hours now as a tattoo artist.

So coming from the kitchen or the house tattooing to where I'm at now, it's a blessing, bro.

Jay Jay: It's inspirational, too.

Jay Jay: Kuya has now traveled all over the world to showcase his art and cultural expression.

He began to envision this while still inside.

Tha Kuya: When I was incarcerated, my favorite books to read were National Geographics.

And in doing that, I freed myself like out-of-body experience, bro, not in some mystical type of way, but putting myself there in these places in hopes of getting to that area or getting there sometime in life, right?

I never thought tattooing would bring me there.

I just wanted to do these things, right?

So when it did happen for me, I went to Samoa, I went to go Guam, I went to Philippines, Fiji, Hawaii.

I would go try every food, things that look strange, look--smell strange.

I would eat it.

Jay Jay: You'd eat that loco moko.

Tha Kuya: Oh, that's not strange, that's like-- Jay Jay: That's a good stuff, bro.

Tha Kuya: That's staple, bro, but I've had so many different kinds.

When I said that I was going to do these things in my head, it was just a matter of living out my dream.

Jay Jay: And what culture and country hit you the most?

Like, what place for you like, "Wow, I didn't expect this out of this place."

Tha Kuya: Of course, the Philippines, bro, because I was looking at it from a different perspective, you know, a different--different eyes, not like when you were a kid and that was the last place you wanted to go.

When you talk about being poor, growing up in poverty, why would I want to go see it?

I wanted to experience it in a different heart-- with a different heart.

That really changed the way I treated my kids, my friends, and treated life because to see it, it's not like seeing homelessness in the United States.

It's this is a way of life.

And to see the smiles on their faces, yo, you couldn't even take a picture of that and feel what I was feeling because the smell, the noise, and everything put together is an experience in itself.

Jay Jay: We were talking earlier off camera.

You were saying you have five kids.

Tha Kuya: Yeah.

Jay Jay: Wow, and what does it mean to you to be a dad?

Tha Kuya: You know what, to me, it's like the ultimate gift, you know, to bring life to somebody and to teach them the things that you've learned, and, you know, somebody that you can pour into and invest in.

Sometimes it's hard to understand, you know, the responsibility, especially when you have this weight on your shoulder and you're like, man, I got to raise these kids right, especially in the times that we are now where there's uncertainty with things and there's a lot of things going on, and like how are you going to raise them?

Jay Jay: How are you teaching your kids about the Filipino culture?

Tha Kuya: We teach them the respect, we teach them some of the traditions, but of course we're Filipino-Americans.

So they're mostly getting American teaching, but they love the food.

There's no such thing as, "Yo, what are we going to eat today?"

No, no, you ain't going to eat chicken nuggets.

My kids eat [speaking foreign language], they eat [speaking foreign language], kare-kare, bagoong fried rice.

You know what I mean?

So.

Jay Jay: They like it?

Tha Kuya: Oh, they love it.

They love it.

Jay Jay: That's amazing.

Thank you so much for talking.

Tha Kuya: I appreciate it, brother, thank you.

Jay Jay: Appreciate it.

Tha Kuya: Maraming salamat.

Jay Jay: Maraming salamat rin.

[Tha Kuya laughing] Jay Jay: People are serious, bro.

Tha Kuya: [speaking foreign language] male: [speaking foreign language] ♪ Say you wanna get lost tonight, baby ♪ ♪ Show me views I've never seen before ♪ ♪ With moments like this, I wanna reminisce, yeah ♪ ♪ On that love and your touch ♪ ♪ What you say, baby?

♪ ♪ Ooh, got me floating away ♪ ♪ you got me so high ♪ ♪ Can you promise to me we'll stay on this flight?

♪ ♪ Oh I just wanna-- ♪ female announcer: Support for this program comes from the KPBS Explore Local Content fund supporting new ideas and programs for San Diego.

♪ Yeah ♪ ♪ And when I'm wrapped up in your arms ♪♪