Tattoos are generally regarded as a mark of criminals outside of these instances in which they represent

the military or civil service. No matter what kind of tattoo a person has, it doesn't matter. A Filipino man

I once met had a Jesus portrait tattooed on his arm. I tried to talk to him about it, asking him where he

got it and other questions because I also have tattoos. He seemed very shy and embarrassed about it.

He told me that it was a "mistake" he made when he was younger, that he regretted it, and that people

looked down on him because of it. He did not wish to continue discussing it. In a nation with a significant

Catholic population, we are discussing a tattoo of Jesus Christ.

Having said that, opinions are beginning to shift gradually. Tattoos are becoming somewhat more

common among young people. In fact, there are tattoo conventions and artist competitions in the

Philippines, and at one of these competitions, I got one of my own tattoos.

When compared to the United States, tattoos are also extremely affordable in the Philippines. My arm

has a cartoonish "punk-rock penguin" tattoo that cost me about $200 in the United States. It is only

about 6.5 inches tall, took about an hour to complete, and it is cartoonish. Another tattoo I have is about

14 inches tall, extremely intricate, and it took me about 8 hours to complete. I spent about $80 all up.