Philippines Thru These Eyes

Onwards to the Horizon

2007-11-28T11:43:00.000+08:00

So. This is it. It all comes to an end. I'm currently sitting at a computer at the Peace Corps office in Manila. I have just finished all of my closing paperwork and am merely waiting on my medical approval. As of tomorrow morning I will be a RPCV (returned Peace Corps volunteer), even if I am yet to return to America. I will also be a "tourist" again, at least according to my visa. I'm feeling such a mixture of strong emotions at the moment its hard to express them all in words. I'm excited for my travels to come, I'm so sad to be leaving such amazing friends and family, I'm so excited that I will soon see other amazing friends and family that I have missed so dearly over the past years, I'm nervous about the uncertainty of my future regarding work/school/finances, and I'm proud of the work and goals I have accomplished in the passed 33 months. It’s all overwhelming!

Quickly approaching, if not all ready arrived, is the one of those "transition" periods in life. They involve so much, evoke such emotions, and its so exciting and scary at the same time. I love these periods. I feel most alive during them. I hope to open myself up to it and accept and prepare for the next challenges in life.

Before I embark on this transition stage however I want to take a moment to thank each and everyone of you that are reading this. If it wasn't for your support and friendship over this past 3 years I never would have made it into the Peace Corps, let alone have made it through it in such an positive manner. Each of you has been amazing, from packages, to cards, to emails, to text messages, to phone calls, to visits. It’s showed me how incomprehensively lucky I am to know and have such brilliant, giving, and supportive people in my life. I love you all and owe you each a debt of gratitude. May the sun always shine on each of you!

To my Filipino friends that read this, salamat gid sa tanan. Paglakat na ko, mahidlaw ko gid sang mga lugar sa Filipinas, pero pila ka hidlaw ako sang mga tawo sa Filipinas. Salamat gid sa mga bulig nyo, sa mga support nyo, sa mga friendships nyo. Syiempre indi ko manalipat ang Philippines, sa Philippines may mga amigo ko kag may mga family ko. Syeimpre mabalik ako so lugar nyo. Grabi gid kamo tanan!

Who and where am I?

2007-11-19T12:41:00.000+08:00

This past weekend I traveled to my first host family’s house, which is located on the other side of the Panay Island, in the province of Capiz. This was the beginning of the end for my Peace Corps service. It was the first of many good byes I will be saying over the coming weeks. Upon arriving on Friday afternoon I found myself alone, standing outside, looking out over the surrounding area. I found myself in a reflective state, thinking back to April 2005 when I had first arrived to that spot, after only 8 days in the Philippines. I remembered being nervous, scared, excited, and completely unknowing of what the future would bring my way. It was the last time I remember thinking about "why" I had joined the Peace Corps. That was the moment when the "click click click" of going up a roller coaster stopped and the rush of going down started. Now, 32 months later, the ride is nearly over.

Before I left for the Peace Corps I was consistently asked why I had joined. This is no easy question. There are multitudes of answers, all of them are just as true as the next; to make a difference, explore the world, learn about myself, for the adventure, to change the world, the experience, etc. However I found myself falling back and giving one response more than any other. I want to make myself a better person, and in turn make the world a better place.

While standing in the front of my first host families house I thought back to the first time I had stood there and the intensity of it all; all my expectations, the unknown adventure that lay just ahead of me. Now standing their again I began to process. Somehow throughout it all, over the last 2 1/2 years, I had failed to take stock of what was happening to me, to realize if I was changing. Before I new it, as I have mentioned many times on this blog and to many of you, my life in the Philippines became just life. Nothing extraordinary, yet extraordinary in the since that it was my life. For the first time since starting my new life here I began to analyze what had taken place. What had happened? Who I was now versus who I was then.

Answer: I am completely clueless. Since stirring these questions awake I have yet to get a full night sleep, not from anxiety but just from deep down curiosity. This type of reflection is very healthy and I enjoy it very much, but I do not expect answers to come easily. That is okay though, there is no rush. I have time.

I did realize some things of immense importance to myself. I still wake up each morning and look at myself in the mirror and I am happy with who I see. Not in a narcissistic way, but in a analytical way. I look myself in my own eyes and I ask myself "is that a good person standing in front of me?" No one else on this planet can look in your eyes and really see the true answers to that question except yourself. Even then the true answers can still try and hide. This act of looking at myself in a mirror I have done since I was in high school. It is a lesson that my Father taught me. I have found great amounts of solace in. I am my own judge in this world, often I am the toughest, and I am the only one who’s opinion matters in the end.

I don't know if I'm a better person as a result of the last 2 1/2 years, but I do know I am still proud of what I see in the mirror. Perhaps this would mean very little to the me of nearly 3 years ago; perhaps this is how I grew. To the present me this as important to life as water. It matters not if I am lucky or unlucky, rich or poor, single or otherwise, blessed or cursed. I can honestly say that I would choose the lesser of all the previous if it meant I still found the person standing in front of me, the person looking deep inside my eyes, the person in the mirror, was still a good person; if I still took pride in being that person.

I do. And I aim to keep it that way. As long as I accomplish that small, immensly important, task I am making the world a better place.

Return of the Family

2007-11-06T13:58:00.000+08:00

How lucky am I? Not only do my Mom and Dad travel over 10,000 miles to see me once, but they come back 18 months later to do it a second time. Marvelous! This time around we were missing one key component, my young and accomplished little sister. She is a grown up now, quite the opposite of her older brother. I wished dearly she could have been here but the cards didn't fall as such.

I managed to fully enjoy my time with my Mom and Dad. We did things a bit differ ant than we did the previous year. We visited my home, site, and friends first for 3 nights. As with last year everyone loved spending time with my both my Parents. My Dad was as big a hit as ever with my "Barcada" (drinking circle) in my barangay. After I returned home upon my Mom and Dad returning to America, my friends told me how approachable both my parents were. Due to an unwritten class system here, it is often the opposite for foreigners. I was very proud and happy that my parents did not fall into the norm.

While my parents were at my site my Host Agency through me an "early" going away party. They wanted my parents in attendance for the short program. Throughout the program I was a bit shy, I felt I had worked hard over the past two years but I didn't feel I deserved the unbelievable praise and honor that was being bestowed upon me (read further). My Parents did seem to enjoy hearing a bit more about my work and meeting many of the people I had worked with over the previous 30 months.

After three days at my site we moved onto the other side of the Philippines for a 5 day tour de Bohol. Bohol Island is one of my favorite locations in the Philippines, this was the fourth time I had gone. however it was the first time I stayed at the Bohol Bee Farm. The Bohol Bee farm was an unreal resort, all native with modern amenities and some of the best food I have every come across on this side of the world. Everything they serve is all organic and grown in their own gardens. We even at flower petal salads! After five days of their food I walked away feeling fantastic! They also provided us with vehicles to see the famed Bohol Chocolate hills, to take a slow boat down Loboc Rive, tour very unexpected but delightfully butterfly farm, see the cute Tarsiers (world smallest monkey), and do some incredible snorkeling (and for myself diving).

It was fantastic to spend so much time "just being" with my Mom and Dad. As we have all grown older this kind of time together becomes less and less. Its ironic in a way, seeing that as this type of time together lessons, how much more I treasure it and wish I had more. I guess I try to hold it like a bit of water in cupped hands. You can not hold it to tight or you will loose the water, and not tight enough and the water will drip away. How new agey does that sound? But it is how I feel about my time with my parents. I miss them dearly already and I can't wait till next May when I will get to see them again.

Eric the Rain God

2007-11-06T13:10:00.000+08:00

Better late than never. At least that's what I'm telling all of you to make myself feel better. So here it is, some pictures of Mr. Eric Persha's time visiting me this past September. He came on late notice, too late for me to appeal to the sun gods to be kind to us. Eric did manage to make the farmers here very happy, upon his arrival he ended a very long dry streak of the wet season. For his short 1 1/2 weeks here it managed to rain every day, most days all day. We still managed to have a fantastic time.

Of all my friends that I wanted to see the Philippines, Eric was atop the list. Not for my own ego of wanting to show off the wonderful place I live, Eric and I live vicariously through one another; I envying his crazy adventures and he mine. I wanted Eric to see the Philippines because from the moment I took my first hike through rice paddies, my first ride on a local banca boat, my first ride through the mountains on a bike, and the first time I scuba dived, I had always known that he would absolutely love it here. While Eric was here I managed to show him a bit of all the pre-mentioned things, and a bit more.

The bit more included the usual must see Filipino stuff, such as; cock fights, local drinking circles, cheap massages, etc. Mostly while doing it all, I felt a bit in repeat mode. I have been very lucky while living here, I have had 8 people from the States and 4 from Europe come to visit me. So showing off the beauty of my Island was something I was already well practiced at.
Yet it was just nice to have 10 days with one of my best friends to relax, talk, and enjoy.

On Eric's last day we decided to throw a "despadida" party. This is a local going away party, and we did it "Barrio" style. We bought a goat, killed it, and made it into one of mine, and Eric's most recent, favorite dishes. Calderata Kanding. Above is the before and below is the after.

I think this was the first vacation that the two of us took together that we weren't both more exhausted after it than before it. Perhaps were growing up, or if not growing up, than growing older.

Buhay na!

2007-09-12T14:51:00.000+08:00

Long time. I have been very bad as late at publishing my blogs and posts. It is a combination of many things that have kept me from doing so. It seems as my time grows closer to my leaving date here in the Philippines, roughly three months left, I have less "new and exciting" stories to tell. Perhaps after taking on the now fabled beer truck and loosing all else pails in comparison. I haven't even been snapping as many pictures as I have in the past. I have been doing well, perhaps my life is less exciting, but it is well none the less. My work load is substantially lower than is has been in the past, yet my final project is shaping up well. I am starting to become very proud of it. I have also been eagerly awaiting the arrival of my Mom and Dad, who get in next month. I was very surprised and extremely happy to open an email early last week from Eric Persha announcing a last minute plan to come out and visit. He will be arriving tomorrow. As I look at my remaining time here it is filled with visits, planned weekends (Thanksgiving and fiestas), work, diving, and biking. I know that the remaining time will fly by and before I know it I'll be completing this adventure called Peace Corps. Its funny to finally be looking at the final months of my service. Its hard for me at nights to be sitting around with my host family and friends and to think in 3 months time I'll be saying goodbye to them for a long time. Its ironically very similar to the feelings I had the last three months in America before I headed to the Philippines. Its just as exhilarating looking at the next steps and goals in my life. The world works in funny ways.

Well I'm sure after Mr. Perha's visit here I will have some fun new pictures and stories to tell. In the mean time I will keep this brief. I just wanted to let everyone know I am doing very good and still happy. I hope the same for everyone else. You are all still dearly missed.

A Half-way Tour

2007-07-02T14:32:00.000+08:00

It began oh so well, my last week away from work until my Mom and Dad where to visit just before the end of my service. Myself and two friends, both former Peace Corps volunteers, embarked on a 8 day tour de Negros. The Negros is an island just SE of the island I live on, Panay. The original plan was to bike around the whole island, with a separate day trip on a small adjoining island of Siqiour.

The trip started out fantastically. Three days of riding brought us to the opposite end of the island, 365k from where we started. 120k the first day, 80k on the second, and on the third we managed to bike 165k (102 miles). The last day’s distance was a personal record and it was on a fully loaded bike. At the end of the third day we arrived in that province’s capital city, Dumagette. There we enjoyed a rest day of down home Texas cooking courtesy of two awesome volunteers from Texas stationed there and of long cheap massages.

The rest day left me feeling fantastic for the fifth day of the tour, our fourth day of biking. This day was to be spent taking a short boat to the neighboring island of Siqiour for us to ride around its coasts, a short ride of 79k. From the get go it all went wrong. We had trouble with the boat company bringing our bikes aboard. All three of us, having spent a couple years in the Philippines, were worn out by each person trying to “get their own” from us. After we paid the boat company for a cargo fee of our bikes we were than told we had to pay an optional porter fee to load our bikes on the boat. Seeing we were young and somewhat fit we thought this to be silly, we could easily do it ourselves, not to mention we had already paid a cargo fee. After a lot of arguing, due to the fact that none of us seemed willing to walk away without explaining how poor their service was, we were on the boat and a bit frustrated. Than the boat company sprayed the top of the boat, including our bikes and bags with seawater. When I talked to the captain he didn’t seem to understand that salt and bike components don’t go well together. The whole boat ride was a fiasco of us being forced into the American stereotype of difficult, self-centered, loud men. We than noticed four other wide eyed “Ameri-kanos” on the boat, turns out they were Peace Corps trainees heading to their site visit, and they seemed to be a bit uneasy and shell shocked from the scene that myself and my two friends seemed to be causing. We had a short conversation with them, wished them luck and told them after 2 or 3 years here they too may have moments where they are a little jaded.

Once on the road on Siqiour, which by the way is considered the black magic capital of the Philippines, the day continued to be troublesome. My bikes rear derailleur kept consistently skipping. I would fix it and it would than start skipping again. Once a derailleur is set it should take either a crash or a lot of miles before it starts skipping again. Than my friend Jeremy’s bike started doing the same and his was all but brand new. It was very frustrating and a bit boggling.

At lunch I fixed my bike one last time. Climbing on my bike is the last thing I remember until I awoke on the side of the road. It was like coming out of the deepest dream I had ever had. My eyes were open but I couldn’t focus; I could hear but not words. It was weird. There were a bunch of people crowded around me. I had no idea where I was, what I had been doing, or what had happened. My head was spinning in every direction but I didn’t feel any pain yet. Than came the pain. I realized my face was throbbing, I couldn’t move my neck, my leg was in spasms and my chest felt like it was being crushed every time I took a breath. A memory; I was here with friends. Where are they? Someone get my friends!

Once Jeremy and Thor arrived at the scene they took charge, which is good because I still had no idea what had happened. It turns out I was well behind the two of them because after lunch I continued to have problems with my bike. As best as can be assumed; I was following a Sam Miguel Beer truck down a hill and must not have been looking ahead. I think I must have been looking down at my bike. The drivers of the truck said they stopped and a short time later I rammed, going about 30+kph, into the back of the beer delivery truck. Yes, as my friend and fellow PCV stated, you can insert dumb Homer joke here….hmmmm….beer…..whack!

Jeremy and Thor, as well as Peace Corps, did an amazing job of taking care of me. I was really scared for a while; it took me almost an hour to gain back fluid rational thought. I don’t know what I would have done without them. Jer and Thor organized a jeepney to rush me to the pier where Peace Corps had a boat waiting to take me to Dumagette.. Upon arriving at the Dumagette pier an ambulance was waiting and I was taken to the hospital. Lots of X-rays, MRIs and Cat Scans later it turns out I am one very luck boy. Without my helmet, which suffered in the crash, I think I would be one dead boy. No breaks, but I did get some fun but painful whiplash, a pinched nerve in the neck, bruised ribs, nerve damage in my right leg from the impact, a swollen face, and lots of minor cuts and bruises. After two more days in Dumagette, Peace Corps had me flown to Manila where I saw some specialists that said I would be fine in a few weeks, but I would need to do some Physical Rehab for my neck and leg.

Fast forward another two weeks and I’m back at my home in Miagao. Still very sore, particularly my neck and leg, but I will be fine. I’m happy to be back and even happier to be in at work and doing something productive again. I’ll be taking it easy for another two or three weeks; just focusing on work and working on getting my bike fixed. Oh and I will be buying another helmet.

Lows and Highs

2007-05-20T09:03:00.000+08:00

Over a month has passed since my last up beat post; my tour de Panay. In that time my spirits have been crushed and built back up again. It has been an emotionally draining month with many contradictions. Many of you may have read about the Volunteer, Julia Cambell, who lost her life while serving in the Peace Corps. She was a wonderful women. We were in the same batch. She was stationed on the opposite side of the country from myself. Her loss was felt throughout the country, by Volunteers and Filipinos alike, and my thoughts continue to go out to her family. Her death drew a large amount of attention in the Philippines. People continually asked me, and other volunteers, about Julia. Often they knew more than I did. I tried to avoid reading the papers and watching the news. Knowing more wasn't going to make myself feel better about the situation. People's inquires grew so intense that I started to refuse to talk about any of it. Filipinos treat death much differently than Americans. It is one aspect of the culture I have not adapted too, and do not feel I could If I did want to. They seem to confront it much more, use humor to deal, and in general don't portray symptoms of grief like many people in America. This isn't belittling the feelings of loss they surly have. However with Julia people wanted to talk about what had happened and offer, there much too late, criticism. I disliked people bringing it up, many times for no other reason than to find out if I personally knew her or to tell me what she should have done to prevent this tragedy. It was boggling to me and I had a very hard time keeping my temper. It still is on going, however not near the level it was. As with most things the media has moved on, in this case to the Filipino Elections. I just hope they haven’t moved on to far as to forget Julia and the amazing person she was.

Yes, it was election time in the Philippines and it proved to be a difficult adversary of mine. I knew I would have trouble accomplishing much in the month, and weeks, leading up to the elections. My mayor ran for congress and his wife for Mayor. Knowing I would have a very non-productive April and beginning of May was part of the reason I decided to extend for 6 months instead of fewer. I accomplished some basic tasks regarding the project in Brgy Cagbang, working on sustaining potters livelihoods. The foundation of the site for the potters workshop was accomplished. As was a day seminar on community organization options. However beyond those nothing more tangible was done. I worked on finding a reasonable size/priced Kiln to purchase for the barangay and also finding proper professionals to assist in the training of product development and other business skills. Now with the election complete I hope to move at a more steady pace. I won't get into what the election was like here but if you are at all interested simply Google it. It was interesting to say the least. I choose to not be at my site during the election. Many volunteers left site during the days before, during, and just after elections as precautionary measures so as not to appear has having a political agenda of any kind. I was one of those volunteers who felt it best for myself to not be at home during this time. That decision was made simply for my own mental well being, and the fact that I got to go on one of the best trips of my life during that time, nothing more.

On May 11th myself and 5 other friends left Panay Island for an 11 hour boat ride to the middle of the Sulu Sea. Located there are the Cagayan Islands. They consist of less than 1000 people, no electricity and no fresh water. The lack of electricity is easy for me to imagine. The lack of fresh water sounds impossible. They rely solely on rain catchment systems and of the closest island with a fresh water source, which is about 35 kilometers by way of boat. It is one of the most remote places in the Philippines and it was a joy to visit, even if I never set foot on land

After the 11 hour boat ride we awoke to the sound of the boat dropping anchor. It was just before sunrise and we all climbed out of the small cabins to what will forever be remember as one of the most fantastic wake up calls of my life. I rose out of the cabin to look out around the boat; there was nothing but water in every direction but one. There, located 100 meters off the bow of the boat was a small, uninhabited, what sand island. It seemed to be transported from a Hollywood beer commercial minus the bikini clad women and, well, beer. On this post you will see 3 pictures of it. The one above before sunrise and the two located further below; one of me at sunrise and the other during the heat of the day. It was gorgeous. It was Boomboom Island. The first island of the Cagayan islands and the first of three we would dive in the next 4 days.

Dive we did. Myself and the above men dove our little rear ends off. The first day at BoomBoom Island I did four dives, the most I had ever done in a day. In that day I saw lots and lots of fish but things of mention were 2 sea turtles. The one below I saw off the bow of the boat just after the above mentioned wake up call. I also saw the biggest thing I had yet to see underwater. A spotted Eagle Ray, with about a 2 meter wingspan. It was amazing.

The following morning, early, we hauled up anchor and headed towards the island of Calusa. Calusa is Gert's, the owner of the Dive Company we were with, favorite spot to dive in the world. That is saying something considering he has had over 3,000 dives and has been diving for over 30 years. It is world class, as we would all soon find out. On the way to Calusa we stopped on an outer reef for a quick dive. It worked out marvelously. Myself and 2 others were in one group and we immediately dropped down to 45meters. As we did so, within the first 2 minutes of our dive, we were right above two large white tip reef sharks. As we dove on I saw three more, the biggest being over a meter long. I came up thrilled! My first sharks!

After that we were off to Calusa (Below). The entire island of Calusa is surrounded by reef walls. Walls, for myself, are the most fun to dive. That day I did four more dives at Calusa, putting my total at five dives for the day. I saw another shark, black tip reef shark, and did my first ever night dive. I felt like a burglar at night, like I didn't belong. It was exhilarating watching the fish sleep and seeing the ones that never were out during the day. The highlight of my night dive was sitting and watching a 1+ meter cow fish sleep for about 5 minutes. I was less than a meter from it. The following day at Calusa I did four dives and saw schools of giant bumper head patriot fish, each close to a meter in length, giant napoleon rasps, eels, an amazing spectacle of coral spawning causing all the fish in the sea to be more active than I had ever witnessed before. In addition I went to an amazing depth (for myself) of 59 meters. That’s almost 180feet. Normal open water divers are only supposed to go to 20 meters however I have been advancing my certifications. Still I never dreamed I would go that deep. It was Brilliant!

Throughout the trip I saw numerous pods of dolphins but the most memorable was after I came up from my deep dive with Gert, the diveshop owner, and my friend Shawn, who is a dive master. We were in the dingy, which is a small boat used to fetch divers after dives so as to leave the big boat anchored. On our way back to the big boat the pod came right up to the dingy. The dolphins were jumping up out of the water not more than 3 meters from me, cutting across the bow of the moving dingy, and diving back into the ocean. The water was so clear you could see the whole pod below us. We drove around a bit, extending the mesmerizing experience close to 10 minutes. Unforgettable.

The next morning we were out and up early again. A last dive was done at Calusa, we dropped in on a large school of Barracudas, some over a meter in length. I will never forget one, the largest and most solitary of the school. He circled right in front of me and I could see him eyeing me with one his teeth showing. He seemed to be saying, "watch yourself, you’re at my home." After that we were off to the actual island of Cagayan to do two dives. They were both good but nothing compared to Calusa's brilliant walls, corals, and fish.

That night we hunkered down for another 11 hour trip home. But lucky for use we had still a bit more diving to do. We stopped off at Nogas Island, where I had done a number of dives in the past. That morning at Nogas I almost didn't dive. I was tired, having done 16 dives in 4 days. I also thought after diving world class dive sites I may not enjoy Nogas at the moment. But something pulled me into the water for two more dives and they both were the best dives I had ever done at Nogas. On the first a sea turtle seemed to play with me underwater; coming up two times to within a few meters of me to take a look. Normally sea turtles swim off at the site of people underwater. I couldn't believe my luck! The second dive I saw the largest bumper head parrot fish of the trip, larger than those at Calusa. My friend Shawn said it best, "It was the size of a barn door!" My guess is it was well over 1.5 meters.

Later that day we finally arrived back at Gert's home in San Joaquin, just 30 minutes down the road from my home. When I finally set foot on land, the first time in 5 days, the world started spinning. I couldn't believe it I was land sick for almost two hours! When I got home I reveled in my bathroom taking a much loved freshwater bucket bath. It was like heaven. Later that night when I awoke around midnight from my exhausted slumber, the result of 18 dives in 5 days, to go use the rest room I found myself gripping for ropes and poles to not fall over the boat till I remember I was at home.

The next day I found out my Mayor lost his bid for congress, and his wife won her bid for Mayor. It will be nice to have work go back to being work without all the nonsense that elections bring. I'm already trying to plan my next dive trip, December?, I'm a full on addict now. I have 39 dives and only need another 20 to get my dive master so I can lead dives under water. Perhaps, perhaps. There is still a lot to see down there. Yet first I have work do. Until I get the time and money to dive more I will be more than happy filling my days with some resemblance of productivity again.

Tour de Panay

2007-04-10T13:13:00.000+08:00

Holy week in the Philippines. It is an interesting time of the year in the only Christian country in Asia. This year I opted not to watch the annual crucifixions. Instead I decided to relish my five day weekend (Thur/Fri/Mon) to test my ability to actually do a tour on my bike. I have spent enough time researching and money investing for my slowly approaching Southeast Asia adventure, but I had not accomplished a multi-day tour. I had completed a number of long day rides, some with a single overnight. A multi-day tour of a significant distance had yet to be completed and I set out to remedy this. A fellow volunteer, Mark, decided to join me for the tour of my island, Panay, and a bit of the neighboring island, Gimaras. He accomplished much more than myself. In order to arrive on Panay he biked 170k and took two boats, arriving last Wednesday afternoon in the city of Iloilo. I had biked the 45k to meet him and escort him to my home in Miag-ao. That evening we did some tuning on our bikes and spoke about our intended route around the island. The plan was to bike around the island in 3 1/2 days, and on the afternoon of the fourth day (Sunday) to take a boat to Gimaras to do a spot of biking there. Each of us would be heading to our respective homes on the 5th day.
On Thursday morning we awoke early. I was feeling good, the previous day while fetching Mark in the city I had biked 90K at a high speed and I was not feeling sore. A good sign. However I knew that with loaded Panniers (saddle bags) and the first day going through mountains with a serious stretch of climbing I may soon be. The day’s goal was to make it to a coastal town, Lau-an, to stay with some fellow Volunteers for the evening. Total distance would be 112k. With the exception of 2 flat tires, the first of many for me, the day went without a hitch. We even picked up some friends upon the way. Often while biking Filipinos will come peddling up fast on their bikes and bike with me. They just get a kick out of being with the foreigner. Not long into our ride on Thursday morning this happened to Mark and I. They asked the normal question I get asked every 2 minutes on a bike ride, “Where are you going?” When I responded, “Lau-an,” and they replied, “Us too,” I was a bit shocked. Not because they were going there but because one of them was on a one speed, BMX bike. With mountains coming ahead and a long stretch of road after that I thought he had a fat chance. To my surprise, and shock, this kid killed us through the mountains on only one gear and set the pace on the flat, and he had come from Iloilo so he did 40k longer than mark and I. So all and all he did 152K all on a one speed BMX bike. Crazy. I wouldn’t have believed it if someone told me. Mark took the bike for a spin during lunch, with him being 6 foot 3 he looked a little awkward. (See below).

Mark and our two companions on our first day at the top of our vist mountain pass. The guy on the right is who rocked the BMX bike.

That evening we had an incredible meal cooked by my friends, Pasta Alfredo. So Yummy. We were off early the next day. However we made a change in route. Instead of cutting across the top corner of the island we decided to follow the coast. I had heard that this coast had absolutely stunning views. However it was 90% dirt and rough roads through some serious mountain passes. I estimated it would add about 100+ kilometers to our trip but we would try to make it up the following day. As we started the road, the road rose slightly and fell and rose…..and fell. We were continually amazed by gorgeous vistas and villages, many times with stunning views overlooking the ocean and white sand beaches from above. We kept going through mountain passes and kept saying to each other “that must be the last one.” We kept being wrong. The final pass we made just before dark. It was the longest of the day and lucky for us it was paved going up. Going down it was not. Just as we road into the small town of Caticlan my trip odometer rolled over 134K for the day and the sun set. There we found a cheap hotel to stay for the evening. We quickly cleaned up our bikes; our gears were full of grit from the day of riding off pavement. We than went and ate a huge meal. Well a regular meal with lots of rice. We were in bed very early. With our detour we were planning on biking 180K the following day.

My alarm went off at 4:30. As I came from my stupor I asked Mark “What is that sound?....Is that rain?” It is not supposed to rain this time of year in the Philippines. I hadn’t seen rain since mid January. Yet as I looked out the window it was pouring! I gladly reset my alarm for 6:30 and went back to sleep. When we awoke next it was beginning to slow down. We packed up our stuff and heading down to load up our bikes. First thing I see is my flat tire. The third one! I was starting to get mad. I quickly patched the tire just as the rain stopped. Seconds letter I hear my patch blow. “Damn it!” I thought the patch may have gotten wet and not sealed well. I had already used my spare tube so I decided to round up another tube. I put it on and we headed on our way, seriously delayed, but on our way. Five kilometers down the road I hear my brand new tube explode. I’m not happy. I ride a tricycle back to town, find a vulcanizing shop and have it fixed. 4 holes! I can not believe my luck with tubes. Finally we are on your way again. Sixty kilometers later the same tire blows a hole again, I had already bought another tube along the way and I quickly change it. After this we realize we are not making it the originally intended 180K due to the rain and my flats. We had plans to bike a small island off of Panay, Gimaras, on Sunday and Monday and we had no interest in abandoning those plans. We decided from the next major city we would bus the rest of the stretch of the day. We rode into Kalibo City after biking 83 kilometers. It was a gorgeous road with great coastal views but I was annoyed the whole time with my tube situation. I was more than happy to bus the rest of the day. After a huge meal of Calzones we were on our way, via bus, to Passi City, our intended destination for the day. We arrive just after dark and realize that bussing was the proper decision. The road was bad and the scenery wasn’t great, if we had to skip a stretch that was it. We stayed the night at a fellow volunteer’s house that evening, enjoying Jollibees (Pinoy McDonalds) and a couple beers.

Early the next day we were off to finish the round trip of Panay with a short 60 kilometer jaunt to Iloilo City. Upon arriving there I headed directly for McDonalds, the real one, and had a McMuffin. It was worth the trip. We than were off on a short boat trip to bike around Gimaras and stay at yet another friend’s house. Once there I cooked some chicken curry, my friend cooked some awesome mashed potatoes, and we chatted the evening away. The next day Mark and I went our different ways. I had only a 65 kilometer ride home while he had almost 200K.

We both made it home safe and I loved my first multi-day tour. All and all it was 6 days and 564 kilometers. It was also the first time in years that I have done vigorous exercise for 6 consecutive days and that felt awesome as well. I came home with a bit of euphoria, a lot of motivation for my SEA trip, energy for work, and with more than ever to day dream about. It ranks as one of the most enjoyable weekends, however long, of the last few years.

Gobbledygook

2007-03-21T14:35:00.000+08:00

This blog has no real meaning, with the exception that at the moment I just want to write something and post these pictures. The title of the blog is a vocab word I learned while studying for my GRE Vocab section.

I've been starting work on the livelihood sustainment project, however I have found myself with a surplus of extra time on my hands. Holy week is just around the corner, thus taking much of people's attention from work. It is also "election" time in the Philippines; this up coming May. This means that many of the people at the office, and unfortunately much of the office funding, is being used for election campaigns. Limiting the ability to accomplish overtly large tasks at the moment. To be fair, I knew that this was going to take place. Thus my extension. Yet however much you are aware, expect, and prepare for some events to take place, when they move from the future to the present they tend to have unexpected effects. In this case it is a bit of homesickness. This also is due to the fact that many people from my batch are now preparing to leave. However I do think this homesickness is much better than having frustration with work. I know now its just part of life in the Philippines and I have to be patient and accomplish what I can in the mean time. With my spare time I have done a few more dives and been putting in some serious hours on my bike. What I should be doing is studying more for me GRE. I will most likely be doing much more of biking, diving, and studying in the upcoming month and a half before election.

Below are pictures of myself diving off the islands of Romblon. It is clear on second picture that I really have no idea what I am doing underwater. The thumbs up sign means to head to the surface. I should have giving the "A-Okay" sign. When the camera was there, that was my first reflex. It was my first underwater picture, my nerves got to me.

The two pictures located below have nothing related with each other, or the others on this page. Yet I wanted to post them none-the-less. The first picture is of Mt. Napulak. This is the mountain located not far from my home that I had climbed last year with some friends from the city. I hope to repeat this climb later this year. The next picture is of Brgy Cagbang. The village where I am working with the livelihood sustainment project. Just over the bridge, on the left is were the association will place their pottery workshop.

Below are some Macro shots I have taken in the past.

Mutya Ng Kalikasan

2007-03-12T12:33:00.000+08:00

It seems that the longer I keep this blog, the further delayed each blog becomes. The event of this particular blog's topic actually took place slightly over a month ago but I have failed to find the time to write fully about it. Upon the departure of Tin Tin I quickly returned back to the office, putting in the longest days I have yet needed to since arriving in the Philippines. The organization and groundwork needed for a full production of this sort was beyond my initial understanding. Much of it was completed before my January guests arrived, but the final touches where finished once they left. Needless to say through organizing this event I learned a tremendous amount.

Mutya Ng Kalikasan means, in a rough translation, Miss Nature. “Miss” pageants, or beauty contests are a very popular event in the Philippines. The overall production, from the music, dresses, talents, and even intermission numbers are all things that many Filipinos enjoy greatly. Last year, around this time, I was slightly picking fun at this with my good friend, and counterpart on environmental activities. He than suggested the idea of a Miss Earth but more poignant to environmental concerns of the Philippines, particularly the schools. With our encouragement a rural school in the mountains implemented a school Mutya Ng Kalikasan last year that was very successful on a small scale.

It was than we decided to promote a municipal wide search to promote the Municipality’s new solid waste management practices, increase public awareness and increase the involvement of the students and schools in environmentalism. A lot of changes took place during the organization of this contest, some to my liking, some not to my liking but all and all the final result was extremely positive. The contestant’s gowns and wardrobes were made entirely of recycled wastes and native plants. The talents of the contestants were directly linked to the environment; with some doing interpretive dances, writing and signing songs, on the spot painting and improve speaking. Local grade schools participated in the demonstration of environmental sound practices during intermissions. The stage was all-natural; with bamboo, trees, a cave and a running waterfall. Lastly, and what I was most proud of, was the accompanying recycle drive held between the schools to see which school could recycle and sell their waste for the most amount of money. The participation of the schools was simply amazing, with the winning school receiving almost two hundred dollars through recycled waste sales. It was an awakening to the principals that this alternative income was available to them on a regular basis and I’m proud to say a month later and many schools are continuing their recycle “drives” to produce income.

In addition the contest was filmed by an English women who was doing film work for the Philippines Department of Tourism, who has since included clips of this contest in the Philippine tourism video for the Philippines. The Mayor was thrilled that a contest of this proportion could be put on at roughly a ¼ of the cost of previous contests and has pledged to support it in the future. Almost 2,000 people were in attendance that evening, who through their admittance fees, assisted in raising a total of close to 100,000 pesos that has went directly to schools for environmental education and solid waste management.

We have started the preparations for next years contest. However I won’t be here to see it completed. I will assist as much as I can up until I leave. At the moment I am also busy working on the Livelihood Sustainment project funded by the US Embassy I mentioned in a previous post. It is another project that I am under qualified for. I am doing massive amounts of research to bring my knowledge up to par. I have 9 months to liquidate the money from the grant. This will not be a problem, however I mean to do it in a very sustainable matter, especially with the knowledge that the project will most likely not be completed upon the termination of my contract this December.

"The Winner"

On a personal scale I have been trying to get into the studying groove for my GRE exam that I will be taking this June in Manila. The idea of possibly returning to school for my masters excites me, however the studying is hard to return to. In the evenings and weekends I have been biking lots and diving more and more. I hope to get my advanced dive certificate on the weekends this April. This is partly in preparation for my next little vacation in May when I will be doing a one week live-a-board at a small set of Islands in the Sulu Sea, diving 2-3 dives a day for 5 days. This upcoming holy week (first weekend of April), which is the largest celebration bar none in the Philippines and a 5 day weekend (thur/fri/mon), I have planned a bike tour around my island. It will be 3 nights, 4 days at about 100-130 K a day. That should bring you all up to date on my life for the time being. As always I would love to hear the flip side of it all and find out about the current events of your own lives as well.

I hope this post finds everyone in good health, good sprits, looking forward to summer, and happy. I miss you all.

An Almost Failed Success

2007-02-20T09:48:00.000+08:00

I was hoping to have some rants from my guests of the previous month. However not much to my surprise they have procrastinated, submitting nothing to me. Perhaps they had a bad time. Perhaps such a good time it can’t be formulated in words. Perhaps its simply laziness. My guess is the latter. While waiting for them to meet their imaginary deadline I will fill you in on the events that followed the departure of the American boys.

After some big hugs and exchange of pointless British slang Tin Tin and I bid farewell to Pete, John, Kyle, and Justin. It was hard to see them go, however I feel it was a shared feeling that we all knew it was needed. Our bodies could not handle much more. Upon returning to my house in Miagao I promptly returned to work for the remainder of the week. Tin Tin promptly visited the CR (Comfort Room, aka bathroom) for the first of a multitude of visits. I believe he spent more time there than anywhere else during our four day rest period.

That Friday the two of us headed off to fulfill one of Tin Tin’s childhood dreams. A few flights later we landed in Legaspi City, Bicol. Our plane flew in over and landed next to what is considered the world’s most perfect cone Volcano, Mt. Mayon. Upon disembarking from the plan I turned to my left and it stood smoking and towering over me. It was magical.

A few rides later we were sitting on the other side of Bicol Island, in Donsol, looking out over the ocean, beers in hands, willing the creatures of the deep to grant us their presence the following morning. We were going swimming with the largest fish in the ocean, a shark that can grow in to the length of 18 meters. Yet it has a throat the size of a large fist, Whale Sharks. Gentle giants of the sea. The Butangding (whale shark) conjugate in the waters off of Donsol during this time of year to feed on the large plankton population. I sure was hoping the plankton were out there, acting like bait to Tin Tin’s dreams.

We awoke quite early with anticipation, it wasn’t only Tin Tin that had a dream to fulfill, yet he did travel, and invest, the most to fulfill it. After awaiting many people, all were on Filipino time, and using our meager math skills to work out a way to pay (who knew it would be so expensive?) we were on a boat searching for our Moby Dick. Little to our knowledge three mornings later we would still be searching, turning ourselves into Captain Arab himself. The day went by, the weather turned bad. We were of course let down. We had but one more day before our departure.

Salvation was in our hands. We discovered that often times the sharks are located off another island near-by, near a Manta Ray bowl. We could dive with Mantas, the angles of the sea and Whale sharks, the gentle giants of the sea! The fate of the gods had turned to smile on us. Of course we booked three dives the following day, took a ride to town to get the needed funding for this adventure and were off early the next morning.

Half-way to the dive sites Tin Tin’s keen eye spotted some disturbances in the ocean. We were hoping it was our Moby Dick. It was not, however not to our disappointment a huge pod of dolphins was cutting through the ocean. It was a scene that belonged in a movie. Tin Tin and I standing on the bow of the boat, the dolphins cutting across the bow up and down through the water, blowing water into the sky. It could only be a sign of good things to come. Our expectations were high, a day of such great possibilities. In life that is the only thing you can ask for. The possibility.

Our possibilities were great, but fate didn’t lean our way. Others in the area saw manta rays. Not us, also no sharks. It was a long, wet, cold ride home on the boat. The sun had disappeared; the clouds had rolled in. Not just on the weather but on our spirits as well.

We arranged for an early morning outing, our one last chance. We were now Captian Arap in the flesh. We had to depart by 9:30 am to make our plane. At 9 am I informed the boat captain to take us back to shore. Our spirits were dejected and low. We consoled each other but it was half heartedly. I was disappointed, but more so that my friend hadn’t fulfilled his dream. I knew in the back of my mind I could return relatively easily in a more appropriate time of year to witness these beasts. He could not. It was agonizing. Tin Tin had covered his head in a towel; I thought he very well may break down. He is good with dealing with his luck, which is impressive, seeing his luck is almost always bad. However in this case I thought that it may be a bit much for him.

“Butangding! Butangding!,” our guide yelled. Before looking to the ocean I immediately looked to Tin Tin. He had flung his towel off, and was peering out over the ocean like a child who was just told Santa was nearby. I followed his eye line, and there it was, a huge dorsal fin slicing through the ocean. We quickly threw on our snorkeling gear, the captain positioned the boat, and we were in the ocean. Visibility was quite low. We were swimming in a general direction and all I could think was “that was it, it has already submerged. I am not going to see anymore of it than its fin” For the thirty seconds it took us to swim to the where the Sharks path would be I was completely pessimistic. The days leading up to now had conditioned it in me. Then, as if in a special effect from a movie, coming out of the darkness, was the whale shark. My brain locked into it, it was so quite, I swam hard to keep up with this magical beast. As it passed me I felt the power of its huge tale push the water into my face. It slowly submerged to a depth I couldn’t see. It was breathtaking. This short exposure to one of nature’s wonders was followed promptly by two similar incidents with the same shark. At my closest I was within two or three feet. I could have touched the shark! But I didn’t. I don’t know why I didn’t but I think it was similar to Tin Tin’s view. He said he wanted to desperately but held back, “I just had to much respect for it.”

Looking back I don’t know what I enjoyed more. The anticipation or the shark. Clearly the shark was magical. Something I will never forget. All in all I probable spent less than two minutes swimming with the whale shark, however those two minutes are written in my brain like no other. Yet the two days leading up to the shark; the anticipation, the possibilities, the let downs. It all helped to build to that moment.

We made it to our plane on time, actually very early. I had mistaken the plane departure time. Apparently I have a hard time reading military time. However if we wouldn’t have told the captain to take us back when we did, would we have left the weekend in total disappointment? Or perhaps the gods simply wanted us to be agonized before granting us the view of something so mesmerizing.

One Flew over the Cocks Nest

2007-01-31T12:45:00.001+08:00

It has been some time, well over a month, since I have last posted. I am sitting here pondering where to start this post. I know before it is finished it will be long. Like most things, at least for those of us who aren't overly gifted in this writing department, it is easiest to start at the beginning. So that is what I will do, start at the beginning. Where is the brining? Oh yea, as my last, very short post mentioned, my Christmas was grand (see below). It was quickly followed by a very crazy New Years. Spent with nearly twenty other volunteers, all of whom in prime condition to bring in 2007 in spectacular fashion. I brought it in three nights in a row, or should I say three sunrises in a row. After that weekend I realized I may still be young, but I am no longer 19. My body hurt.

On Nogas Island, on the Eve of Christmas Eve. No power, no people (except us), no worries.

Speaking of being young, I am now officially, in numbers, closer to 30 than I am to 20. I don't like this one bit. In representation of this I did nothing special for my birthday this year. I bought a couple cases of beer for my friends, and a 4 kilo fish to cook up (pictured below). That was the just of it. It was enjoyable, the night ended early, and for the most of it I tried to pretend it wasn't really my birthday. It’s funny, when you are a little kid you want everyday to be your birthday. I think it was only a year or two ago and I still wanted many days to be my birthday. I have now officially crossed over to thinking of one birthday a year is far too many. Regardless of my negative birthday feelings, I had a grand birthday present awaiting me. I just had to hold out one more week, and in that week do a lot of work. I had 5 great friends arriving in a week. First I had a full plate of work to do.

My Birthday Present to myself

WORKIN' ON THE NATURE WAY

December and January have proved to be great months with regards to my projects at site. I started December off knowing I would be quite busy. My counterpart and I decided to organize a competition of sorts for the yearly Municipal Festival, Salakayan. The competition would tie in the work we have done in schools on environmental education, educate the community further, and prove as a fund raiser for Solid Waste Management and Environmental Education in the schools in the upcoming school year. This competition is to be "Mutya Ng Kalikasan," or Ms. Nature. The overall concept is similar to a regular beauty pageant. which there are plenty of here in the Philippines. However we have added some other twists as well. The gowns must be constructed of all recyclable wastes and native plants. The talent must have an abstract link to the environment, the production numbers are informative, interpretative dances, regarding different aspects of environmental education. Of course the interview potion will pertain to the overall concept of the program. 100 percent of funds earned will go directly to the schools Solid Waste Management budgets and environmental education. Also each of the participating seven high schools is partaking in a recycle drive competition to see who can collect and sell the most recyclable waste to the local junk dealers association. All and all it is a good project, with lots of ground and prep work needed have it go off successfully. Thus my nervousness of being away from work for seven days while my friends were visiting me, just weeks before the program D-day. I did manage to accomplish lots of prep work and after being back from my vacation it seemed to have paid off. With only four days to go all is on track.

Of course this wasn't the only thing that was occurring in my working life in the past two months. It is funny how some things just fall from heaven into your lap. I have had a relatively good service in the Peace Corps thus far. My host agency has been extremely supportive and I have had the funding needed to complete some worth while projects. However what occurred at the end of December made me feel a bit guilty. There are other volunteers who are not near as blessed as me in regards to their support at site. The Chargé d'Affaires's ("vice-US Ambassador’s) wife had come to visit my town; while she was here we started talking about aspects of Miagao, and obviously potent ional development projects. The Major had mentioned a pottery village that I had visited a number of times and this is where I conversation led. I have often thought this village would be a great site for a livelihood sustainment project, however with only five months left at site I didn't feel I could acquire the funding and support to launch a full scale project, and a half effort one would only leave the village in worse condition. After a long discussion, a number of emails, some other random contacts, and a quick project proposal, all in the midst of my work with Ms. Nature and the holidays I was able to procure a sizable grant from the US Embassy. So sizable that at first Peace Corps was not going to let me have it because it would have been 2/3 the amount of their total from the US Embassy for all volunteers in the Philippines. Once again I was back to emails and phone calls and I was able to procure it outside of the regular Peace Corps funding. The only catch is I have to stay until the funding for the project has been spent, and the project is well established. Thus I am extending my service. As of now for 3 months, however this could change to an additional 2 or 3 months (5-6 months total) depending on the progress of this project. Regardless I believe I will be leaving the Philippines by the end of 2007. (Note: This does not mean I’m going home, but simply leaving the Philippines. I have a lengthy trip planned; however I will get to that later this year.) Once the Ms. Nature ends, on February 5, I won't be letting up much, but diving full bore into this livelihood sustainment project. All and all I like this work a lot. Its nice to be really busy, the days fly by and I sleep quite well at night knowing that I am doing, or at least trying to do, some good in my town. I do know that for the most part the pottery sustainment project will be my last major project here in Miagao. I may get my hands dirty in a couple of other small ones but nothing as big as this. Thus, even more so than others, I hope to make it very successful. It is the American in my wanting to leave behind a legacy. Saying that sounds terrible. That is not why I am doing it, but I'd be lying if I didn't admit it would be a nice bonus as well.

HEY JOE!

I said at the beginning I said I would start at the beginning. I did, but I have to regress a bit now. In the midst of all this work, I had four crazy "AmeriKanos" visiting me and one crazy Frenchman....wait, I mean Englishman. I always get those two confused, seeing how similar they are. The Englishman arrived on a Saturday night, with the Americkanos arriving the following morning. The cast is as follows.

Justin Pete Kyle

John Tin Tin

Within hours of them being in the Philippines I had them at a one cock derby. The infamous cockfights. In retrospect, if timing would have allowed, they may have enjoyed this mindless slaughter of poultry much more after having spent a handful, or even one, night in the Philippines. Particularly a few nights at my home, where it is encircled with cocks of different colors and sizes. All making the very same sound at very irregular hours of the morning and night. Within minutes of being at the cockfights I could tell I had my friends culture shocked to the extreme. It was a joy to show them such a different aspect of the culture so early on. They were also jet legged, no matter how much “Extra Joss” (Filipino Red Bull x 10) I fed them. Eventually, after breaking even, we walked out. Justin thought he may have been the reason for us leaving, but I assured him that falling asleep and knocking over a few beers was not enough to get kicked out of a cockfight.

The following day a party of epic proportions was thrown. Since having returned from my gallivants around the Philippines with this cast and crew, I have returned to hear continues rave reviews of this party. “Better than fiesta” sums it up quite well. Lots of food, lots of beer, lots of people, and of course Videoky. Also, upon insistent requests of Kyle, a 31 kilo tuna. For those of you who are metric impaired that is 68.2 pounds of fish, all cooked between bamboo poles over a charcoal fire. The party went late, and being Monday some of my friends were wondering how the music was blaring and the videoky screaming at 1:00 AM, without there being complaints of neighbors or cops showing up. I quickly told them two of the local cops were there. I also explained “Bahala na” to them. Come what may. It’s a grand Filipino concept.

Tin Tin, Justin, and Kyle standing in aw of this grand fish.

Tin Tin continuing his friendship with Uncle Eddie

The two days following the party were full of hikes, swimming, boat rides, snorkeling and diving. It was seeing the heart of the Philippines, the nature and the culture. There was riding on the back, top, and sides of jeepneys and trikes, watching why locals can climb and swim better the foreigners, playing with water buffalos, finding out that Kyle is not an ocean buff, discovering temperamental monkeys, finding that cold showers in the tropics are not always nice, John beginning to get his beat down by the Filipino sun and weather, and so on and so forth. All and all it was tiring, but it would prove to be nothing more than a slight warm-up, if not a relaxing beginning to what would follow for the final four days of the trip.

Pete and a water buffalo, the water buffalo wasn't was smelled.....

Justin looking down at me and the falls, he and his brother would later have faild attempt at back flips

Kyle in the Miagao mountains. Lookin' Good. Your going to bring what back? And do what to them?

On the Thursday after there arrival we woke up early (yet again) and headed for the tropical paradise island of Boracay. Here we would no longer be a freak show of six white guys walking around together. We would be normal again. If only for two days. As a matter of fact we picked up one additional white guy in the form of Jeremy, my friend and fellow volunteer who lives on the island north of there. The two days in Boracay were crazy, with me getting far to intoxicated the first evening, with gentle persuading by the others of course. We did have to ditch Kyle and John, they were being a bit of a bore and we had to give them there overall space for the night. However later that evening Kyle provided us all with enough quote worthy material for years to come, even if he does not recall it all. The second evening was a bit tamer. Through interesting events we ended up at a male model show. Some of us called it quits from there, with an early wake up coming the next day. Others stayed and enjoyed the male models. I was not in the latter. With the early wake up we all headed to Kalibo, for the famous Ati Atihan festival. This is where things really started turning into a big daze. Red Horse were drank early in the day, and late. Drums were beat upon. Dancing was done. Friends were made. Sleep was NOT had. Two days and nights of this foolishness. Many stories were created. All of which are beyond the ratings of this particular blog. It was a great way finish my friends trip and to send my friends off. I may not see them again for two years, but I will remember that week, perhaps not the last two days, but that week for the rest of my life.

That is a can of Red Horse in Kyle's hand. The rest you can decipher for yourself

That deciphers it for you. I believe he was approving of the singer to his back. They almost made it big.

John also approving of the singer

We were trying to get Tin Tin drunk enough to take him here. We did. The problem was we were to drunk to remember where it was

This photo requires some back ground. Before I left for the Philippines, almost two years ago, I met up with Erin (the girl pictured above) in Madison. Eric (the guy on the T-shirt) was also with me. We did the normal chat and meet thing. After she left Eric turned to me and said “I give her two weeks and she is back in the States.” Of course one evening I let this slip to Erin. Since Eric couldn’t make it here himself for her to flip him off, his picture would do

Tin Tin making friends....He does that so well.

That Monday morning, after the last night of Ati Atihan my friends from

America

went home, much to my disappointment. It was a delight having them. I loved showing them where I have been living and it was great to spend so much quality time with a group of people I genuinely missed and genuinely enjoy spending time with. I can't wait till the next time were together to do it again. The bonus however was that my Englishman friend, Stuart "Tin Tin" Skinner, stayed. Stay tuned for the next episode our travels. Also to come will be more pictures from the above mentioned vacation along with some alternative commentary from the Kanos........

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

2006-12-25T12:27:00.000+08:00

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! Hope everyone is having a great holiday weekend. I spent Saturday doing some great diving than slept on an uninhabited island with no power or people later that night. It was amazing to feel the kind of privacy you get from being one of three people on an island (the other two being my friends). We cooked a great meal of native mungo beans, vegetables, and pork over a wood fire. Of course we enjoyed a bit of brandy as well. They slept on the white sand beach and I in my hammock between two trees nearby. We than awoke in the morning to do a spot of brilliant snorkeling and drink our coffee before our boat came to pick us up. I just wished I had all of you there with me! I miss you all!

Merry Christmas!

Mga Pabo!

2006-12-03T15:24:00.000+08:00

Turkeys!

The title of this blog is a good lead as to what is to come. It means turkeys in English. So, if you are astute, you may have concluded that this blog is about Thanksgiving. What a fabulous Thanksgiving it was. Last years was tops, this year tops last year. This one held a bit more personal meaning. As opposed to last year, when November rolled around, I was barley starting to get settled at site. The excess of new inputs in my life hadn’t yet slowed down. It was still some crazy adventure. Fast-forward a year to now, and the adventure has slowed. Now it is life. I have my home here, my friends here, and yes, even my family here. I also have all those elsewhere in the world, which my somewhat recent trip home to America reminded me of in such grand fashion. I realize the great opportunities that have been available to me. Not just through my country of birth, but also from the friends I have been lucky enough to meet on my path through life, the family I grew up in, and most importantly the parents that raised me. That’s a lot to have in life, and a lot to be thankful about. While I sat on the beach roasting turkeys on an open charcoal pit for three hours I did lots of thinking and this year, more than those in the past, all this became glaringly evident to me.

I got some great pictures this year for thanksgiving. As the title of this blog alludes to most will involve a turkey, mind you some of them may be a little bit graphic. I fell into the roll of the “turkey” guy. Out of the four turkeys that we “lychoned,” (roasting on a charcoal pit on a bamboo pole) two came alive and two came dead. So, with assistance from my friends, we killed, plucked, and roasted our birds. The pictures below will give you a good idea of the process. Its nothing too special, I have vague memories during my childhood in South Dakota of my Dad doing the same thing. However the subsequent nightmares of a chicken running around without a head, squirting blood everywhere may not have been all that good for my mental health. Thus, subconsciously, I believe I am more appeased by the fact that the heads stay on here, at least till after the bird is dead. You see I enjoy the local delicacy dinugu-an (blood soup), and if the blood is wasted spurting everywhere you can’t very well save it to make dinugu-an. I’ll let the pictures tell the story of the rest of the day.

"Buhi nga Pabo (Alive Turkey)"

"Patay nga Pabo (Dead Turkey)"

"Getting ready to pluck the feathers….. "

Not to bad a place to do the prep work, and yes, I did use that hammock in the background later in the day!

"Ako, ang Ido, kag ang Pabo (Me, the dog, and the turkey)"

"What a place to cook the Thanksgiving birds!"

"They’re getting close to being done……"

Ward. Ward really isn’t this scary. He’s a great guy, and I’d like to take this moment to personally thank him for the two bottles of Jose Cuervo he brought to our Thanksgiving celebration.

"The beach, not a bad why to end the day."

So, as you can see, it was a great day. I hope all yours was just as good. Unless of course your one of those silly people in Europe that don’t celebrate this grand holiday. In which case I hope you had a good November. I miss you all and hope everyone’s holiday season spirits are on the rise! Salamat gid sa ninyo sa tanan. Palanga ko kamo tanan!

Blunderings of the Good Sort

2006-11-16T11:02:00.000+08:00

Hello all. It has been sometime since I have put up a real worthy blog. I will remedy this today. So much has happened in the past month or so. On both this side of the world and the other. Elections, Bears are 8 and 1, Packers are not even close, Work here for me is good. With the exception of Arsenal's defeat this week of the Reds......Life is good.

I had a realization of sorts the other day. I was standing in the Municipal MRF (Material Recycling Facility), which I have been assisting in building and overseeing over the past year and I got extremely happy. To me it has appeared to come along at such a slow pace since I arrived at site. However while standing there I realized how much it has grown in that time and I got an overwhelming since of pride. Overlooking the workers sorting and segregating the residual waste into different piles for different uses, the sheds for all the recyclable waste, the compost bins that have finally been completed, the pure organic demo farm. It felt good. I need not take credit for all this, not even in the slightest. My counterpart, Jerome Novilla, is amazing, and he is first and foremost the driver of these projects. However I assist in many a way, and I take just as much pride in his work as I do in my own. I prefer it more this way. I know all this will last well beyond my last day here. In addition to that, I am happy to say I have just been allocated a large sum of money to host the first Miss Kalikasan Miagao (Miss Nature Miagao). This was a concept conjured up once again between myself and Jerome, after implementing solid waste management in schools last year. It is a way for us to increase community awareness of the Municipality's environmental projects, as well as stimulate youth environmental activism. We also snuck in some "sister" contests that should really have a financial benefit on the participating schools, involving junk dealers and fund raising. The contests finish up next February and I'll be sure to let you all know how it turns out. Okay, I'm done blowing my own horn here. I always fell awkward writing or talking about my work. Work is just not something you discuss much here. Its just that this week I really had some feelings of accomplishment over the long term, and I wanted to share them.

Three weekends ago was yet another Festival in the Philippines. This one occurring in the City of Bacolod, on the Island of Negros, which is just southeast of the island I live on. Bacolod has a reputation as being a fun city, with a good night life. So of course I had to go see Bacolod's Mascura Festival. It was a great time. It had been some a bit of time since I had seen lots of volunteers. We had two crazy nights. In terms of the festival, in my opinion, it ranked nothing to Ati Atihan. I did see a familiar face. Now you will all as well. If you go back to my past blog from January, Ati Atihan, you will see the below face with a pepper in his nose. He was at Mascura as well, and looking just as good!

The next few pictures are also from Mascura. The one below is an example, in my opinion, of a waste of money and time. So much security. There were some bombings in the south the week before and threat of some in the north (aka Manila). However look at the picture. Smoking cigs, texting on cell phones, leaning on the fence, all standing together. There could have been only one of them and I would have felt as safe.

This guy rocked. Okay......How to get into this? When you go to cities here there are street kids, in some places many. Kids with no home, no family. During festivals there seem to be even more. They will always ask for money or food. Its hard but you can't give it to all of them, I don't have that much. No matter how much you realize they are in such a bad situation, that many times society has forsaken them, forgotten them, they can annoy you. I know this sounds horrible, but it is the truth. They will not leave you alone, keep tapping you on the leg or pulling at your clothes. Of course if you are white this is magnified greatly because here, all white people are rich. This guy was different. I dug him from the start. Myself and two friends were having an afternoon beer on the street and he just came up and sat at our table. He didn't say a word, he was just observing a group of foreigners hanging out. We decided to stay for another round so when we ordered we ordered a Coke for this guy. We shared our sumsumman (snacks) with him. He had the best smile and kept his newly acquired hat pulled really low. Later in the evening we saw him again, this time with a friend. My friends Erin and Nicole had just gotten plastic masks and they decided to throw them this kids way. They loved the masks! (the 2nd picture below). They hung out around our group for an hour or so, then went on there way. I hope he is doing good now.

Also within the past month I have completed my Dive Certification, under CMAS. I am now a certified one star scuba diver. I have a depth limit of only 20 meters, but I hope to be achieving a two star diver within the next three months. This will put give me a max depth of 30 meters, and the ability to dive at night. I have fallen in love with scuba diving. There is nowhere in my past experiences in life where one can get so close to nature. It is fascinating. I love the quietness of being underwater, no matter how many or few people are diving with you. It is simply you and all that the ocean contains. Its Zen like, and after each of my few dives thus far I have come out of the water feeling rejuvenated and with a smile slapped across my face. It doesn’t hurt that the Philippines is one of the best places in the world to go scuba diving either.

Earlier this week I was cooking dinner in my home when my friend came yelling for me to come with him to the next barangay (village) and see the sea turtle. Well I didn't know the Ilonggo word for sea turtle, but I knew he really wanted me to see something. So I joined. On the short walk I learned it was a sea turtle and I had to run back and get my camera. As we gathered around everyone was joking and laughing about killing and eating it. Which no one would do now, if they were going to do that no one would have known there was a sea turtle. Its a big big big no no, that is accompanied with jail time and a large fine. It seems that up until the mid 80's there were lots of these guys around, and they tasted very good. Thus they are sparse in the present. This guy got caught on a fishing hook, but is lucky it was in Miagao. The University of the Philippines Fisheries school is located here. They were contacted, picked up this guy, tagged him, and he has already been released. Lets hope his luck holds.

The rest of the pictures are from my Barangay. More or less more faces in the crowd, along with some daily occurrences here that may not seem so daily to you all. Like the coconuts in front of my house that were collected and awaiting transport to the market, or the rice being dried on the basketball court (its harvest season).

I'm getting excited for Thanksgiving. I wont be celebrating on the Thursday however, but instead the following Saturday, the 25th. I have already bought two turkeys, 15 kilos in total. Of course they are still alive, and on the morning of Saturday the 25th, Friday night for those of you in America, I will be killing them and roasting them over an open fire on a long bamboo pole. I'll be celebrating with some other volunteers who live on my island. I wish you all a great Turkey Day! Take care and Peace!

The Broken Contract with America

2006-11-08T15:15:00.000+08:00

I know some of you will be as happy as I am; I also know some of you will not like this at all. To the latter, to *#$%&*# bad! I am a happy person today. Some respectability has been returned to America. Perhaps people are waking up. With the exception of the ban on same sex marriage (however close the voting was) in seven states, why must religion dictate our government? Oh that's right, we live in a theocracy. At least South Dakota took a step in the right direction to fight the theocracy by upholding a women's right to choice. Mind you Arizona's voters proved, in my opinion, to be quite naive on their language stance but they didn't bow like others to the religious right on the same sex marriage issue. Missouri took a big step in rational thinking to continue Stem-Cell research. Overall, the day went great. I will limit my gloating. Yet after what those of you who don't like this post put me through in Nov. 2004 I feel it is my right.

My hope now is that we use these "victories" wisely, don't bicker and try "to get even" for the last 12 years, but promote a better America to the world. Do some hedging to limit some of the damage of our current incumbent President, and make a step forward to improve America. Which will, more importantly, lead to a better world.

Peace!

Books Books Books

2006-10-27T09:34:00.000+08:00

Well I don't have a TV, and when its rainy season there is little else to do. I've read a good share of books since I've arrived. I thought it would be fun if I posted a list of books I have read since I have been here in the Philippines. Many of you probably won't care, which is fair enough. Quickly in my defense, I don't have a vast collection to choose from. What I find, is given to me, or mailed to me is what I read. I have read some amazing books. I have also read some utterly shite books. If you look at the list I'm sure you will agree. If your interested I put the link under "links," its also just below. The list is fairly complete. I didn't start it until after my first two months, so I had to pull a number from memory. Due to this i'm sure I left out one or two. Also I tend to go long spans of time without writing the names of books I've read down, thus I could have forgoten a few others. Like I said, its close to complete and I'll try to keep it that way.

http://lloydbanwartbooks.blogspot.com/

Fiesta.....Baby

2006-10-12T11:06:00.000+08:00

The big two fiestas. Well for me at least. The first was the weekend after I arrived in the Pines. I get all the way back to my house on the morning of the 19th of September. That afternoon I was already at a cockfight, and winning lots. What a great day. But has luck will have it two days later, Thursday, I lost it all on another cockfight. The next day, the 22nd of September was the Municipal Fiesta. I ate a lot, seeing my stomach was fully expanded from America I could fit double the food. After that I had a two week wait for the really crazy one. Most the pictures below are from my Barangay (village) fiesta. It was intense. Three days of drinking and eating. Oh and three nights of drinking and eating. It was over this past Sunday. Everyone was tired. It was a fun time as the pictures will show you. My landlord killed 3 pigs (I helped with two), a goat, and multiple chickens. We also went through many many cases of beer and bottles of Tanduay (the local Rum). Enjoy the pictures.

This is the view I see every day while I "go to the bathroom." It has nothing to do with Fiesta what so ever. I just wanted to put it in a blog somewhere.

This too, is not from fiesta. However it very well could be. The other white guy is a volunteer from the next batch after mine, Ian. He is located about a 20 minute jeep away from my place. Lucky for me he is a wicked guy, to be honest I was a bit worried when I found I would have another volunteer located so close. Turned out all good. This is from my friends birthday party and it was Ian's first time killing a chicken.

Now this is Fiesta. To be exact the Barangay Damalisan Fiesta. This picture was taken after the events in the next two pictures.

I have no idea what I was thinking. But to me it seemed like a perfectly reasonable and smart thing to do. Everyone was already drunk, all day eating and drinking. About 11:00 at night. I decided to teach my friends how to play flip cup. The old guy (my best friend here's dad) smoked me.

One of his few misses.....

I don't know....It was fiesta.....

Ian eating goat brain. It took him 20 minutes with two spoons to get into that thing........

Home was good

2006-10-11T11:33:00.000+08:00

Whooooaaa. I'm back in the Philippines. That was one crazy month. I know it has been some time since my last update, I do apologize. Upon returning to the Pine's I had my Municipal fiesta, than my Barangay fiesta, all mixed in with the catch up work I had to do as well (wasn't that much, but it was still catch up). See the next blog for pictures of my Fiesta. They were a good time. As for my time in America. As I quickly noted before I left the states. It was great. After a few weeks of reflection I still have that view. I am not going to make this blog very long and dragging. Nor will I get upon a soap box to preach. However I will do a little run down of the things I loved, was shocked by, and didn't miss at all.

Firstly the things I loved. As you will see below in the pictures. I loved seeing my friends new babies. The scary thing is is that these are not all of them. I didn't use my camera like I should have while I was home, I was in to much of a daze to worry about missing anything while messing around with it. (once again I will submit my request for anyone with fun pictures of our nights or days out while I was home to send them my way). I loved eating. I know I know, this is nothing new for me. But lordy! I think I gained almost 10 pounds while I was home. When I came back to the Philippines everyone, bar none, said two things to me once they saw me. You got fat. Where is my pasalubong?(gift). One word, beer.....variety is the spice of life. Of course this blog would be incomplete without saying my big congrats to Steph and Derek. Congrats! Your wedding was awesome. Steph was gorgeous and Derek didn't look like he did in his first passport picture (that's a damn good thing, right D?). The threads for the wedding party were awesome. The bachelor party was killer, I never knew I could get SO sore playing paint ball! Another thing I loved while being home that I had no idea how much I missed was hot showers. To me they seem like such a luxury, one luxury that I would prefer not go without. I don't care if its 90F outside. A hot shower is nice. I'm sure there is more stuff I loved and am leaving out but the thing I loved the most, or a more appropriate word would be, appreciated the most, was how much all my friends and family went out of there way to see me, or create time to see me. It was touching. No matter how close of friends and family I make here in the Philippines, I have doubts upon finding people that could top you all. What can I say? I was home.

Some babies.......

Upon getting off my plane in the Twin Cities to catch my plane to Chicago, and after customs gang raped me, I officially entered the United States of America. Two things hit me at once like a train. I mean no offense to anyone but these two items do really stand out to me. One, people talk on their cell phones a lot....I mean A LOT. I know I am the worst myself at this, but its what I noticed. I got out of customs and remember thinking, wow everyone is in conversation, but upon further inspection I realized that no less than 60% of the people were on their cell phones. What's wrong with interacting with the people around us? The second thing was, people in America are fat. I'm not talking fat like me, I'm talking waddle waddle fat. It was mind blowing. Our country has a problem, and it needs to be addressed. There shouldn't be 8 year old kids that can't even break into a jog, let along a alarming percentage of them. Later that day, after finally getting into and out of Chicago (getting out almost took longer than it did to get there), Myself and my friends Pete and Kyle stopped at the brat stop for a beer. While sitting there, sipping my beautiful Guiness in a slight ecstasy, I noticed there were nine TV's in front of me. Nine. Each roughly one to two feet from the other. How many stations you may ask. One. Nine TV's, one station. I was slightly confused, until I remember I was in America. Excess is the norm. On that note, I won't elaborate to much, but my Dad and Mom went out shopping. I accompanied. They stopped at Walmart. Walmart....Holy Jesus of Mary. I had forgotten such things existed.

Greg, enjoying his corn

The first week I was home I was in a state of bliss, shock, happiness, and more. The second week this initial wave started to fade away and some things did start getting to me. The speed of life that everyone held. The constant questions about my future, and everyone else's for that matter. It seems that almost everyone was worried about tomorrow while forgetting about today. It sounds so typical. Second rate "Ask Jane" stuff, but its true, today is all we have. From where I was sitting in the States, everyone of my friends and family had it pretty damn good. With all that said, I'm utterly and completely happy I decided to come home for the 17 days I did. It was a big trade off for me, but one that was very worth while. I already miss you all, and can't wait till we meet again. Either on this side of the pond or the other. To all of you take care and keep me updated on your lives! I love hearing all stories, even if you think its mundane. Mundane to you is a world away for me.

Peace

Chris, after D and Steph's wedding, at the new Gyro place by Pete's place. He may have been happy....

Heading West...To get East.

2006-09-17T12:19:00.000+08:00

Like Macarthur, I shall return. Wait......Wrong country....Or is it? Its midnight, Saturday night, and I will be leaving to return to the Philippines in 12 hours time. My time home has been remarkable. It went by far too quickly, but that is due only to the great friends and family who spent that time with me. I want to thank everyone who took the time to see me. Whether it was an hour, night, day or more. It was touching. For those of you that I wasn't fortunate enough to get to see I apologize. I wish I had more time at home but alas the world doesn't always work that way.

Upon arriving back in Miag-ao I will of course have a bit of cacthing up to do. Also this upcoming weekend is the Municipality Fiesta. It'll be a great welcome back occasion to the Philippines. I will be hoping to post a blog up of my time home within a few weeks. If any of you have fun pictures of our days and/or nights out please send them my way. I would love to store those memories away and of course post them on this blog.

I will miss all of my Family and Friends. You are all amazing. I knew it to begin with, however times like the past two weeks reinforce it that much more. When ever it may be, I am already excited for my next return trip home.

Thank you all!

Phone #

2006-09-02T13:41:00.000+08:00

Well all after a 22 hour boat ride, and a 20 hour flight I have landed in the good ol' US of A. Get a hold of me. I hope to see as many of you as I can in the alotted 17 days.

262 716 7324

Thats my phone number for my 17 days at home. Use it, loose it. Up to you, I would love to hear from all of you, drop me a call to meet me out or give me a txt to meet up. Also I should be checkin' my email almost everyday feel free to write here as well....but it will be a more delayed replay.

Homeward Bound.....Temporarily

2006-08-31T13:49:00.000+08:00

I'm leaving on a jet plane, I know I will be home again.....soon. I'll be setting foot on U.S. soil in less than 48 hours for the first time in 1 1/2 years. Yippy! I'm excited. I signed up for a pay as you go phone, but the cheeky fools have said "their network is busy, and it may take a day or two for my number to arrive." So stay tuned and I will post it up. Here is a more or less schedule for my time at home, once again this is subject to change. Many days I'll be in both Milwaukee and Kenosha (Kenosha till my parents pass out and than move up to Milwaukee for the evening fun) and some will be spent running to other family member's houses when time and schedules allow.

Sept 1' - Arrive (parents house), thank you Pete and Kyle for coming and picking me up!

Sept2- Dereks Bacholar Party, paintball, Brewer's game......than Jurassic 5 show.....than Derek's Bacholar Party continued(Milwaukee)

Sept3- Try to make to to bloody mary morning down in Kenosha, go to parents. (Kenosha)

Sept4- Labor day, Cookout at my parents for friends and family. If your free join me.

Sept5- ????---Parent's during the day and evening.....nights in Q.

Sept6- ????---Parent's during the day and evening.....nights in Q.

Sept7- Milwaukee

Sept8- Milwaukee (Rehersal Dinner)

Sept9- Derek's Wedding

Sept10- More celebration of Derek's Wedding at Brewers game than watching the Bears beat the Packers.

Sept11- Kenosha (night in Q)

Sept12- Kenosha (night in Q)

Sept13- Kenosha (night in Q)

Sept14- Milwaukee ("Sound Tribe Sector 9" show at the Rave, who's in?)

Sept 15- Milwaukee---Katie's party in the early evening followed by a semi-Persha-polluza bash.

Sept 16- Kenosha

Sept 17- Fly back to the Philippines.

Paradise Destroyed

2006-08-23T11:04:00.000+08:00

I went. I saw. I stood. I felt as truly helpless as I have ever felt in my life. It was sickening. Not just the smell, which was so potent it nearly burned your nose, throat, and lungs. But also the site of it all. The destruction. The locals cleaning as best they could, knowing it was futile because with the next high tide all the work they had done would be replaced by yet more oil. Keep in mind when looking at these pictures that these were white sand and rock beaches. Beaches that supported the people who based there lives off of them. These are just pictures from one beach, but at the moment there are over 220 kilometers of beach front in the same condition.

Due to a lack of time I could only stay for a short while at the affected area. Myself and a new volunteer, who is located close to my site, had biked to the island from my site (minus the boat transfer of course). It was getting late and if we wanted any chance at all to get home before dark we had to leave after only a few hours. I spent a lot of that time just talking with the people there. I'm still so amazed at the resiliency of Filipinos. They all had that smile on there faces, making the best of it. "Bahala na" in the local dialect, Come what may. I was an outsider so they wouldn't show any grief to me, but I could see it in there eyes. I really don't know if they them selfs knew the scope of it, and really how long it will be to return to any semblance of normal. It turned out that in the mid 80's there was a volunteer stationed there, at that Barangay. They of course asked if I knew here, and shared their stories of her. I love hearing stories of past volunteers. They all still missed her, this was evident in the warmth of the stories. I was told when I go back to America if I see her to say hi, America's pure size is a mystery to most people here, even with all the Western media. I ask myself what the volunteer would say if she saw her past home in such disarray.

Upon arriving home, after biking nearly 150 k in two days, and seeing such heart wrenching scenes I was physically and emotionally in shambles. I sat and couldn't be bothered with reading, was in the mood for Radiohead's "Hail to the Thief," but alas didn't have it. So I sat in silence in my somber state. While doing so I dribbled this onto paper.

"Were Here" By Lloyd Banwart

Feeble. Were here to help
helplessly
bare witness. To see
squandered beauty
for some
Shattered existences.

Were here.

Needs
of validation arise.
Justification
lacking sufficiency.
All measures having merit
all actions collapsing upon one other.

Were here

Life
crawling out of the well
pulling at one another to escape.
Making escape
Unattainable
smiles on the faces, weeping within the eyes.

Were here

Waste of gifts.
awarded one, destroying too
many people.
Countless,
those awarded.
destroyed by the few.

Agonizing Spectacle of Waste

2006-08-17T15:38:00.000+08:00

By the title of this blog I am reffering to the waste of the enviroment, not the waste of so many peoples black gold.

This past weekend, off the coast of Guimaras (a small island located just next to the one I am located), occurred the largest oil spill in the history of the Philippines and one of the largest ever in Asia. This island is a short two-hour trip from my home here, and you can see it from the beach located in my Barangay. The very same area I took my family and friend Jen too to enjoy the natural beauty of the Philippines is now considered a National Disaster Site. For this small island, that only recently crawled out of the category of one of the poorest provinces in the Philippines, this a tragedy of epic proportions. The number one livelihood, for over 30 percent of the people, is fishing. Followed closely by tourism of its beautiful wide sand beaches, diving its coral reefs, and enjoying its rugged beauty. As you can imagine, after over 530,000 gallons (2 million liters) of oil are spilled into the sea, these are not very profitable livelihoods. It is already estimated that the economy of Guimaras will fall quick and hard, just as it's environment so suddenly has, and will continue to. The current estimated time for clean up of this oil spill is over 3 years, assuming that the Philippines can avail the proper assistance and needed amount of funds.

Why am I telling all of you this? I don't know. It’s so devastating to see. It makes me stomach go in knots when I see the pictures. Since it occurred last Friday, during one of 3 typhoons that hit the Philippines in 2 weeks, I have been searching, calling, emailing agencies to find out how I can asset. If anything, just donate my labor. My counterpart and I have already gathered a large group of people who are interested in donateing their time to assist in anyway. However there is yet a well-collaborated effort. I have friends living on the island and through them have contacted the local Municipalities and Provincial Capital. Its so frustrating calling and calling and every time getting a "waay ko kabalu," I don't know. Greenpeace is now taking note, but I don't yet know if that is a good thing or a bad thing. This next weekend, I'm going to see the result of this tragedy for myself. Also I will go to the Provencal Capital and Local Municipalities and ask in person about coordinating efforts.

The Philippines is requesting technical assistance from Japan, and financial assistance from both Japan and Malaysia. I have written my Congresswoman, Gwen Moore, to ask her to take note of this and see about America donating any kind of assistance to this disaster. I'm not soliciting any of you to do the same, however I wouldn't complain if you did.

Needless to say its so hard to see this, specially so close to where I live. I'm sure upon my arrival home I'll have more information to share with all of you. I hope it is good news; however on the topic at hand I highly doubt much good can come of this. It’s only another example of how devastating oil is to our environment. Whether it makes it into our cars and homes or not. I assure you all that during my time at home not one of you will hear me once complain about the high price of gas. It may be a bit extreme but I think, and thought before this disaster, that it should be higher still. It's the only way to change consumer habit, and the world is in desperate need of that change regarding its oil use. If your sighing and saying something profane under your breath at me right now because of how much you currently spend on gas at the moment, than search Philippines Oil Spill. Read the articles and take a look at the pictures and tell me if you can put a price on preventing that or other similar atrocities?

Mabuhay Filipinas

2006-08-02T12:51:00.000+08:00

"Mabuhay Filipinas"

The Philippine's flag, at a local talent show in Sigma, Capiz.

To be honest I really have no topic at all in my mind as to what to write about. I picked these pictures at random and couldn't think of much of a general theme to accompany them. I'll say a little something about each and leave it at that. The next three get their own sub-title to this blog. At the end of the post I'll have a "very rough" schedule of what I have thus far planned for my trip back home.

"A night in the Bario"
By "bario" I mean barangay. By barangay, I mean the village I live in. Bario just means really rural basically, far from the city. Well I live in the barios. When I get home from work each afternoon my routine doesn't really vary that much, but here is an example of one possible evening in the bario.

Buy some fresh fish, right out of the ocean and throw it on the grill.

Buy some 5 year old Tanduay. Which is the local Rum here. However everyone calls it whiskey. Sit down and eat the fish and drink the whiskey. A lot of talking about the weather and anything interesting that happened since the night before.

Below is Alpy. She has adopted me against my will. She continues to break into the back area of my house and sleep there, no matter how many times I kick her out and fix what she broke to get in. However when people are around she is a respectful bitch. She is waiting here for the bones from the above fish.

The rest of these pictures are all very random and have taken place over a fair span of time. Below is just one of many many islands I passed on my 24 hour boat ride from Manila home to Iloilo. It was a spectacular way to see the Philippines. I love boat rides, I feel like I am lost in translation on trips that long. The same on planes, buses, or even long walks. There is something about the act of "traveling" that is so relaxing. For that time, you have nothing else to do but wait. You are in transition. Boats are just the best way to do it. You get a bed, lots of space to walk around, but still it forces you to just be.

Below is the church in Sigma, Capiz. The town were I stayed during my training. They have recently repainted done some renovations and I just really enjoyed this picture.

The next two pictures are more of what has become an ongoing theme for me here in the Philippines. Cute kids. This is Iya. My host niece from my first host family in Sigma (place as the above church). No she didn't burst into tears shortly after this picture was taken. The next picture is of Lady. She is my landlords daughter and made great friends with my sister, Tricia and with Jen. She asks about them all the time. She was all dressed up for a Floras de Mayo in this picture.

Next to kids, I have taken more pictures of "uncle Eddie" than any other person in my barangay. Maybe that is a mis-statement. More pictures of Eddie turn out well then any other person in my barangay. This is another shot from the Cockfight I mentioned a few posts ago.

Just a nice, serine picture to end this post. My beach.

==========================================================================

This is anything but set in stone but so those of you that may want to ask off from work or want to have a rough idea of where I'll be. Here you go. Some of the days I'll be in Kenosha I will be there till my parents go to bed than head up to Milwaukee. Also I will be getting a pay as you go phone from best buy too (unless someone knows of a better place). Once I get the number I will post it on here as well, along with a more set schedule just before I come home.

Sept 1' - Arrive (parents house)

Sept2- Jurassic 5 show, out in Milwaukee afterwards (Milwaukee)

Sept3- Try to make to to bloody mary morning down in Kenosha (Kenosha)

Sept4- Labor day, Cookout at my parents for friends and family

Sept5- ????

Sept6- ????

Sept7- Milwaukee??

Sept8- Milwaukee

Sept9- Derek's Wedding

Sept10- More celebration of Derek's Wedding at Brewers game

Sept11- Kenosha

Sept12-Kenosha

Sept13-Kenosha??

Sept14- Milwaukee

Sept 15-Milwaukee

Sept 16- Kenosha

Sept 17- Fly back to the Philippines.

My 1/3 Life Crisis

2006-07-27T10:23:00.000+08:00

I was going to title this my mid-life crisis. But instead decided it would be nice to live past 50, thus the third life crisis. It may be a bit optimistic still, 75 would be a nice age to reach. Talk to me in 50 years.

Yes, I will admit it. I'm a 25 year old, white caucasian male and I feel like I am hitting my mid-life crisis about 15 years early. Maybe it’s a new feature of us Gen TwiXer's, I don't know. So in my last 16 months here in the Philippines, all and all I thought I was getting healthier. You know; a rice and fish diet, almost no TV, lots of walking, high heat all year, riding my bike, swimming almost every day. All these things are true, with the exception of my hypothesis on overall healthiness.

I just returned this past weekend from two weeks in Manila for my mid-service conference. This really only entailed a bunch of medical checks, a required Physical, Dental, and Optical exam. The three appointments started on a positive note. Dental went great. Which was a surprise considering the average Filipinos love of a substance called sugar. Ask those who have come to visit. Its in everything, and I mean loaded in everything; spaghetti, bread, soups, stews, fish dishes. You name it, it has sugar here. That and I still have a slight Mountain Dew addiction (it is cheaper than bottled water, and so good cold!). So a cavity or two was expected. I was not the least disappointed to find out I was wrong.

That was where the good news stopped. Apparently a fish and rice diet is really good for you, unless you have a bottle of soy sauce a week addiction. Apparently pouring liquid salt all over your rice isn't good. It tends to cause a little thing that goes around in my family. High Blood Pressure.

I also found that if you have a planters wart, get it treated ASAP. If you let it go for...um....I don't know...2 years (to be fair it didn't bother me till about 2 months ago) it hurts like a (insert random profanity here) to have taken out. I would think that being cut up by a knife once was enough on my little joy ride to Manila. I was wrong. I also had what is called as "jeep's disease" here. Don't freak out, it basically is nothing more than an ingrown hair on my lower back, upper buttocks area. But, yep you guessed it. It had to be removed as well.

Take the above events and couple them with my getting my first pair of eye glasses ever, the eyes are a going too, all in a matter of 4 days and that equals a bunch of crazy "I'm getting old, my body's falling apart" thoughts in my head. I know I'm only 25, but those are the thoughts I had. Thus my early mid-life crisis. I don't have the money to go buy a fancy sports car, I'm not married so I can't have an affair, and I'm too young for sleeping with a younger women to have an overwhelming affect on me....hmmm....maybe I'll look for a Ms. Robinson. Basically at my age I'm ill equipped to deal with a mid life crisis. I hope for the next one I am better prepared.

The good news. After cutting out soy sauce for 2 weeks my blood pressure dropped drastically. My wounds from my surgeries are healing well. I look damn good in my new glasses. Maybe its all not that bad after all. I will add that after spending two weeks in Manila, I don't want to ever spend two weeks there again. There were some sporadic evenings/afternoons that were very enjoyable. But for the most of my two weeks there (all due to above medical issues) I just missed my house at site. Manila was loud, expensive, busy, and I was just another "white rich foreigner" there. The ill feeling I had in Manila added to my crisis mind set as well. Since I have returned to site stuff has gone great and I quickly slipped back into my enjoyable "island lifestyle." The crisis is over. Life is good again.

Next blogg, a general schedule of my events on my upcoming visit to the States.

One Turn Leads to the Next

2006-06-30T08:18:00.000+08:00

Well as many of you now know I'm coming home September 1st to the 17th for a visit! I'm excited for this. Very excited. But don't get me wrong; I still got a lot going on here.

Since my parents and other friends left life has been busy, very busy. Work continues to surprise me every single day. At one stage I honestly thought the women’s group I have been spending so much time helping was going to dissolve. They have had more road blocks, and trees cut out from under them than I care to re-visit. Now I think they may stick it out, and if they keep doing that than success could be in their future. Maybe I should say they continue to surprise me with their drive. I've been to a number of schools as well, distributing environmental education books I was able to obtain and lucky enough to find funding to reproduce. I have been throwing myself full bore into the organic farming bit. It has such a strong chance to have a hugely beneficial impact on farmers here, possibly lowering their total input cost by up to half. Not to mention the environmental bonus. I've had three successfully test runs with an organic spray fertilizer. I have farmers asking me about it simply from the results of three short weeks of use at the Dept. of Agriculture and at the MRF (Material Recycling Facility) Demo Garden I’m working on establishing. In other words stuff is good. I have a full schedule up until the day I leave to come home, well except for a week in Manila for a mandatory Medical Examination. Fingers crossed for a clean bill of health.

So I mentioned I would have a list of "MUST DO'S" once I visit home. This list is more for my benefit than any of you....obviously. However, if any of you would like to assist me with completing any item on the list, please feel free.

Play a MINIMUM of 18 holes of golf, including an hour on the driving range (I'll need it).
Eat a number of large, juicy, medium rare steaks. Including one at Corpers 5'oclock club in Milwaukee
Drink a large number of micro beers, local beers, and Guinness.
Eat at Soup Brothers, Taco Bell, Subway, and Conohitos
OrderJimmy John's twice. One time eat it 5 minutes after ordering....so fast you'll freak. Second time let the #9 "marinate" in the fridge overnight and eat for breakfast in the morning.
Go watch at least one Show (concert). (note: I'm already attending J5 on the 2nd at The Rave)
BBQ Wiscony style beer brats. Most important, eat 'em too.
Have a drink at the Pfister Cafe and Blu. Just cause I can.
Meet the new members of my group of friends, including; The Billingsley babies, Heidi's baby boy, and Doug and Jen's baby girl.
Two words. Frozen Pizza.
Drive again
At least one 2:30 am Ma Fishers excursion. I’m not saying what kind of condition I’ll be in, however if past experiences hold true, I won’t remember it.
Take a HOT shower everyday for 17 straight days. Some days may call for multiple.

(This list is subject to additions at anytime I see fit)

I'm also going to keep a "rough" schedule on here so people will have an idea of when I'm available and where I’m at. However seeing its two months away this is difficult at the time. All I know now are Sept 2nd I'm gong to J5 in Milwaukee, and Sept 9th and 10th are dedicated to D and Stephs Wedding. I’m still waiting to hear when the Bachelor party is…….

Here are some pictures that I had uploaded a while back but have yet to post.

Below: Two of my friends at the last Disco in my Barangay. They may or may not of had a large amount of Tanduay Rum. They may or may not be dancing in the middle of the national Highway.

Below: Eddie with his cock.

On a side note, shortly after this picture was taken his cock was killed in action. Eddie and I both lost money because of this.

Below: This is Po, he is a little crazy, but he's great. He just sits around the Barangay all day smoking cigs. If there is ever music on, watch out. He'll bust his groove. Next thing you know you just got served.

Below: Eddie.....Gwapo.

Vacationing in the 'Pines

2006-06-17T11:39:00.000+08:00

(Above: My gorgeous Mother, enjoying the Boracay sand)

I’m back. I don’t know what I’m back from. But I’m back. It seemed like my “normal life” hit the pause button about 4 weeks ago, than someone hit play this last Monday. The problem was it had to all move in fast forward to catch up the present.

What a month. May. Incredible. It started with Typhoon Celoy, only a level one when it hit here in the Philippines, my heart goes out to those in China who experienced it at a level five. I wish them all the best. I have never seen rain like that in my existence on this planet. I have seen it on TV, and heard about it from friends whom I know have experienced hurricanes. For me however, it was shocking. It rained hard on day one, day two the winds kicked up and it was still raining hard, day three I started thinking where the hell is all this rain coming from? Day four I had stopped thinking about it and was just in a state of amazement it could rain that hard for that long. Day five the rain lessoned and by the end of the day it was done. I later described it to my parents like a really bad thunderstorm that lasted four and a half days. I normally would have loved the storm. I would have taken refuge in my home with a good book, a few beers and my music and had a grand old time. However on this occasion I was waiting for two people to arrive from England. The storm was thus annoying me greatly because it was keeping me from my long reunion with my friends Mikey and Gwyneth. After a day and half of delays, some tricky (and in my opinion very lucky) changes in route they managed to slip into Iloilo during the storm. As with me living here, it was fate they made it. They went to Gwyneth’s family’s home in the town about 20 minutes from mine, and the next 3 days I spent there with them, just enjoying each other’s company and catching up. And of course watching Liverpool give me a heart attack in the FA cup final, luckily the result revived me. Liverpool, FA Cup Champions.

I left Iloilo to meet my parents in Manila the same day that Mikey and Gwyneth left for Boracay. I would be seeing them there in two days, my parents and sister in tow. While in Manila waiting to pick up my parents I managed to find a bar that was televising what was billed as a match of great possibilities of greatness. Champions League final. Arsenal vs. Barcelona. All I can state on this tender topic to my friends Bryan, Mikey, and Phil is my heart goes out to you. I heard the referee had a Barcelona tattoo on his ass.

(Above: Road damage after the typhoon)

My parents arrive! After almost missing them at the airport because of the previous stated match, I found them. It was great to see them. We didn’t linger in the thriller, Manila. That city puts me on edge. So off to Boracay we went for four days in one of the best resorts on the island. It was lush. My Dad discovered Tanduay Rum, my Mom and Sister discovered fresh mango margaritas. All were happy. My family met my friends Mikey and Gwyneth and got along fabulously. Mikey, my Dad, and I drank and complained about them shopping, and the girls shopped, spent money and lay in the sun. We did do some fun stuff in the sun. We all did a tour of the island by boat that included some fun snorkeling adventures. Mikey and Gwyneth couldn’t resist the Jet Ski’s so they rented one for a while, Mikey says he let Gwyneth drive, I don’t believe him. Why? Well they both came back alive, that’s why. And of course my Sister and I had a bonding moment two hundred meters in the sky, while we parasailed together.

Boracay was fun. However the real adventure for my family began after we left the touristy paradise and I introduced my family to the real Philippines, including places and people. So after a short bus ride (only 10 more minutes Mom!), our first stop in the real “Philippines” was my first host family in the Province of Capiz, Municipality of Sigma. It was a short stay, only one evening, but was the first of numerous amazing meals we had. It was also my family’s first experience of the amazing hospitality of the Filipinos.

(Above: Mikey and Gwyneth in a hamock on Boracay)
(Below: My dad might have had to much Tanduay Rum, and was getting "frisky" with the statue, my Mom didn't aprove)

(Above: Boracay's White Sand Beach, directly in front of the resort we stayed at.)
(Below: My sister, Tricia, and I having a sibling bonding momment in the sky.)

(Below: Tricia in Boracay)

The next morning we were off again, but this time I was going home. Home to Barangay Damalisan, Miag-ao. After nearly ten days of being away I was eagerly waiting arriving home, however I think the real expectations lied on my family’s shoulders. This is where their Son/Brother had been staying for the past year. I think it would be suffice to say that once they arrived in my Barangay, Damalisan, that my Family began to understand why I enjoy it here so much. Mind you I didn’t have time to see this initial enjoyment. After arriving I was on another quick trip back to the city. My friend Jen was arriving from Switzerland that evening. A few hours later I was reacquainted with Jen after nearly three years and she was meeting my parents for the second time on a second continent.

Jen and my Sister made quick friends in my Barangay and were persuaded to enter a Barangay Volleyball League game. By league I mean just lots of fun. I sat with my parents in the “seats” of honor and watched and laughed as they played. The next two days included lots of swimming and playing, some cock fights, much more eating, hikes were accomplished, native products where purchased, landmarks were seen. It was good.

(Above left: Cake made for my family and Jen, obviously I wansn't welcomed.)
(Above right: My Sister and Dad enjoying there first Cockfight.)

(Above: Mom and Dad on a hike to go visit waterfalls in Miag-ao.)
(Below: My sister getting to know the local Carabao, water buffalo)

(Below: Tricia with her new friends)

After only two days, that were far too short, we relocated to the town proper of Miag-ao, to stay at my other host families home. Needless to say my Mother loved the change in accommodation; we all stayed at my host father’s brother’s house. It had all the need traveling accessories; air con, hot water, flushing toilets. My Mommy was at ease. This was also the time that she got to see one of my good friends play guitar and sing classic folk and country songs at a local bar. After his performance he sat at our table and continued a private concert for another two hours. I believe my mother put it best by saying he is a “national treasure.” If you were to hear Bobot Tisoro you would agree. He is brilliant. (Below: Bobot Tisoro performing at the Casa Monticlaro.)

(Below: My dad watching the performance)

(Below: The day before Mikey and Gwenyth left they had a going away party and Gwenyth's Parent's House. We all got together one last time.)

So with four quick days under our belts in Miag-ao, two in my Barangay and two in the town proper we were on the road again. This time to another Island. The fourth one in 8 days. This was to be a bit different than previously. It was the real Philippines, minus all the people I know. At a small resort, with limited electricity (four hours a day). But what the resort lacks in electricity it makes up for in location. Set in a small cove overlooking a number of deserted white sand beaches. I don’t think you could ask for a more tranquil spot. My Parents may differ, but I am the one who had been adjusted to the heat and bugs. Regardless they enjoyed it. The fresh food was amazing, sunsets stunning. My favorite part, for two days we had nothing to do. No ones house to go to eat, no appointment to meet, nothing to go see, only lay around, read, drink, eat, swim.

(Below: Jen on the way to Gimaras Island)

Of course we had one more cultural interaction to attend to. The day before my parents left we headed back to Miag-ao. You see they departure in the Philippines was timed very well. The night before they flew out, Miag-ao was hosting the cultural presentation for the provinces “Culture Month.” There my parents got to see native dances, tribe competitions and singers. It was an excellent way to leave there trip.

It was great, beyond what I am capable of writing in words, to see my family and spend two weeks with them here in my new home. Nothing would make me happier than to have them come back.

(Below: A Native Tribe Performance)

Once my family had returned to the States I had asked each write a brief synopsis of their feelings, experiences, and thoughts of the time they spent here. I wanted to post them on my blog to give a more rounded impression of their time in the Filipinas. Upon receiving them the other day in my email I read them and at the thought of posting them on my blog I was overcome with a very Filipino feeling. I tried to explain this feeling to my family when they were here. It is difficult for westerners to understand. I would say in the dialect, "huya ko." The literal translation meaning Ashamed. Now an easier word for most westerners to understand, or grasp, would be Shy. Shy was how I defined it for my first 6 months here, but I have come to believe that Ashamed is a better translation. I am going to post my Parent's and Sister's writings, however Huya Huya Ko. Now to throw in my bit of westerner sarcasm....no I didn't pay them to write what they wrote. No I didn't blackmail them. I couldn't, everyone knows the dirt on my Dad, I think my Mom hides hers better, and my Sister is the good child of the family with none what-so-ever. So with no further delay....My family; Doug, Patty, and Tricia.

My Lil' Sister......Tricia

Family vacation, a usual destination for the typical American family: Disney world, Grand Canyon, the beach, now for the Banwart family we only like to travel short distances like Iloilo, Philippines. Maybe not the shortest of distances for a vacation but a well worth it travel. This vacation/travel was more then the typical vacation it was a life time opportunity because of the reason as to why this opportunity arose. That reason being my older brother Lloyd and his new home in the Philippines as a Peace Corps volunteer. A year since the last I saw my brother has shown me his maturity and thirst for knowledge. Living and breathing in a new culture and society and truly adapting and becoming a loved individual are exactly what my brother has come to do. Though our trip was 2 weeks long the experiences and traveling in the Philippines was only the tip of what my brother has undertaken, yet this small sampling was magnificent and heart warming. I can truly say of the entire trip some of my most treasured times were in the small barangay Damilison were my brother lives. Just sitting around and talking with residents and playing with the little kids was incredible. My favorite observation, or even envy, lies in my brother’s capability to have learned and continue to educate himself in the local language. I loved to listen to my brother talk to locals and sometimes to see there faces in peer astonishment of his ability to speak so fluently. Seeing how Lloyd was taken in by this large group of loving and caring people, as though he was one of there own, was exceedingly moving. This only begins to speak of the generosity and caring people I had the true pleasure and honor to spend some great moments with. Though Lloyd's neighbors and friends were very excited to meet us, I really don't know if they knew how excited we were to meet them, and how much they truly have touched us. On this lovely vacation the views and scenery were breath taking, the food amazing, but I have to say that the true beauty was in the people. I think of my trip has an honor, an honor that my brother can be one of those truly rare individuals that can take on such a role and excel so well at it, honored to travel to such a breath taking part of the world, and honored to meet so many loving people. It may be another year or more till I see my brother again but a visit back to the Philippines may be in order!

My Father......Doug

Hello there. Well my boy finally got me to leave the U.S. and see part of the world. We decided if we were to see our son that we would have to fly to the Philippines and visit him on his turf after 14 months. Lloyd met us at the airport in Manila, after 24hrs of flying it was really good to see him; he looked very content and well adjusted to his new home land. We all began our 2 week stint in the Philippines with Lloyd being our guide and interpreter for the Island of Panay. It started with four days in Boracay; a beautiful resort Island with soft white sand beaches. Lloyd didn’t seem much different at first but the more we were around him he really impressed me. His maturity and independence was almost overwhelming. Lloyd has grown up to be a fine, conscientious young man with a great ability to interact with all types of people. He really got our attention with is ability to communicate with the local population in their own language (Illongo). After the adjustment time at the resort we proceeded to see his Island of Panay by going and staying with host families and friends of Lloyd's. The people were extremely friendly to us and were extremely hospitable with air con rooms to sleep in and exorbitant meals fit for kings. The genuine respect, friendship, and complete acceptance of Lloyd and his family really impressed me on how well Lloyd has created a new and loyal loving family within the Philippines. Everyone we meet genuinely seemed to love and respect him, but wished he would allow them to do more for him. He is very independent but at the same time shows great respect, love and friendship to all the people that have helped him, work with him and just enjoy his company. His gift of becoming part of the community in which he lives and works really impressed me and showed me how great of a man, humanitarian, and loving person my son has turned out to be. This was an exceptionally and loving (quality time) trip that I totally enjoyed and hope if things work out that we could do it again.

My Mommy.....Patty

Well what can I say that Doug already hasn’t about Lloyd. We are both so very proud of him. To say the least my experiences were varied. You all must understand that my idea of roughing it is not being pool side. To say the least I loved Boracay. With much trepidation we headed inlands to meet the people that have become so much a part of Lloyd’s life & ours. The hospitality provide us was overwhelming! I can not begin to put into words the concern for our well being that was expressed by all that know Lloyd. Lloyd did share with us that of a fish bowl feeling most apparent when we went to a local market in Capiz, at first I was very uncomfortable; however after a few minutes & Lloyd speaking the language to the locals it became less intimidating to me. I really enjoyed watching the children watch us, curiosity is universal. In retrospect I am very glad we took the trip as a family. The country is breathtakingly beautiful, rugged, and hot and not what most Americans would even consider a vacation (other than Boracay). Never the less we were afforded opportunities to see & do things most others can only imagine; from riding in a dump truck up to a mountain village & hiking into waterfalls to our very own private late night concert by the local folk singer in Miag-ao. I wish he put out a CD, it was mesmerizing. The trip to Gimaras was rugged but I would not have missed it for anything. It was truly the Philippines at her most pristine. I know that Lloyd is safe, loved & looked out for, and doing what he loves, what more could a mother ask for? It is very hard as a parent to let your children go, Doug & I read some were that the two greatest gifts (& Hardest) you can give a child are “roots of responsibility & wings of independence.” Lloyd has great roots and we love watching him fly!
______________________________________________________________
To my family, thank you. Nothing makes me happier than being able to do the things in my life that make me happy and to have that kind of support from my family.
__________________________________________________________________

Upon the Departure of my family I still had one more week of vacation left with Mrs. Jennifer. The same day my family left Jen and I headed back to my Barangay. They following day there was a Disco, with the uber loud speakers, and lots of drunk guys. I sat on the sidelines and watched the Dance, but Jen and all her new found friends, for she had many, busted their groove until 4:30 in the morning. At which point I was awoken and told we had to leave, the first trip to Boracay would be passing my house at anytime.

So me on less then 2 hours a sleep, and Jen on zero, headed to Boracay. My second time in 3 weeks. We had a fun two days of relaxation there, well mine was relaxation, I think Jen’s was spent shopping. Of course we had some fun nights out, and just a word of warning on the Long Island Ice Teas. Watch out. Than for the last night of my vacation, and Jen’s, we headed to a going away party of one of my friends. It was very relaxed and enjoyable.

(Above and Below: Jen with her new friends)

Of course the next day getting Jen’s flight was not. It is the Philippines and Flights do get randomly cancelled…I guess. After a little bit of panic mode we straightened everything out. Jen was on a flight to Manila and I was on a bus home. I loved having all my guests over that 3 week period. It was brilliant. Most volunteers don’t get one or two people to visit them in two years.. I’m very lucky in that respect. I will also add that of the 7 people to visit me at my new home here in the Philippines all 7 have expressed serious idea’s of returning. That’s the Philippines for you. I’ve had friends from Europe and my family come visit, mind you I’m yet to have a friend from the States come and visit…..nudge nudge.

Quick Update

2006-06-05T15:30:00.000+08:00

Hello all! I have not posted in quite some time. For those of you who have sent me emails I have not responded in quite some time. I want to say, I'm working on remedying both of these things. I have been on leave from work for 3 weeks because my lovely family; Mother, Father, and Sister came out to the Philippines to visit me. I had 3 great friends visit in that period as well, Mikey and Gwenyth from England and Jen from Switzerland. Needless to say it was a great 3 weeks, but I have a lot to catch up on. I will be working on a full, complete report for my blog that will have lots of pictures. Hope to have it up early next week. Also if you wrote me an email and I haven't responded yet, I will.

Hope Everyone is Great!

In the Pursuit of God

2006-05-10T12:17:00.000+08:00

I have had these pictures uploaded for some time now. As you all know Easter was some time ago. However I have been neglecting writing a blog on my Holy Week experience in the Philippines. This is for a number of reasons; the most glaring is it may lead me to discussing the religion here. This is one of the few things, I grudgingly admit, I don’t enjoy in the Philippines. It is also the topic of which I would like to choose my words very carefully so as to not overtly offend any person. So up to this point in time I still don’t know what I want to write regarding it all. You may notice a lack of anything poignant in this blog for that very reason. However I realized I had to post these pictures sooner or later or they would be left in the proverbial dust.

This blog will focus on Good Friday, however Holy Week as a whole was full of parades, and activities, and of course lots of Masses. I participated in very little of Holy Week, I kept my distance as a consciences observer.

On Good Friday I went to the Island of Gimaras to witness the celebrations in the Municipality of Jordan. I must admit at first I was grotesquely excited for this experience. People had been telling me for the past year that on Good Friday in Gimaras they actually crucify people. Not to the death of course, but the act itself is recreated. I had a hard time believing they still actually nailed people to the cross, so I took it upon myself to witness this to be sure.

There was a play of the days before the crucifixion of Christ. Through out the play, which was in Illonggo, I kept wondering are they really going to nail a living person to the cross. The overall local consensus was yes, but I was still quite skeptical. Then came the part in the play were Christ was flailed with a whip, there was very little acting. I repeat. Flailed. I than asked did this person volunteer to act as the Christian savior Jesus Christ. Sure enough, he volunteered.

It came to the end. This was what I was waiting for through the two hours of the play. Now that the time had come, I wasn’t sure I wanted to watch. I wasn’t sure I wanted to be there. I wasn’t at all aware of how a person could volunteer to have nails driven through his extremities.

For the actual crucifixion the play changed venues from the plaza pavilion to the top of a hill a short walk away, all the while Christ carrying his cross. This was a time of mad rushing of people to get “good” seats. I decided I would hang back; I have a camera with good optical zoom. I’m glad I did stay back. I’m upset I didn’t get closer. I still don’t know which it is.

After it was finished I talked to a number of locals about it. They saw I was clearly a little perplexed by this whole celebration. I than voiced my concern for the volunteer. I mentioned his physical wounds to the people. They all told me not to worry, that the wounds of the person who volunteered would heal very quickly. They assured me that all the wounds of volunteers in the past healed in a matter of days. I didn’t voice my very real skepticism, but I did ask why did they heal so quickly? They told me, “Because he did it for God.”

What did he do?

Where do these belong?

2006-05-07T12:24:00.000+08:00

Ah. It has been some time, almost a month. A lot has happened in the past month and more will be happening in the next month. It is the month of May where fiestas are a plenty, school is just around the corner (it starts in June here), and I have a plethora of visitors to come. Excitement is building.

I have mentioned to some of you how my work here has wave like characteristics; there is an ebb and flow to things. The past weeks, and this current week, are on the flow side. For all the times I may have mentioned work was slow in the first quarter of this year, I am now seeking my retribution. The women’s cooperative I am working with continues to surprise me, and they are gaining confidence in themselves and their ideas every day. As stated, school is just around the corner, and my counterpart and I have come up with some interesting new ideas to continue student environmental advocacy in schools and with out of school youth. I’m excited to distribute the books, which I was lucky enough to find funding to duplicate, to all the schools regarding environmental education. The composting project is steadily growing. I have learned some new methods through a German NGO on producing Vermi-Tea, which is an organic spray fertilizer that can be produced at a tenth of the cost of the price of chemical spray fertilizers, and I’m trying to develop ways to increase the private business sector in Miag-ao to participate in a number of environmental programs.

My life isn’t as crazy as that may make it sound, but I am trying to get a little ahead due to the influx of visitors I have coming this month. My friends Mikey and Gwyneth will be arriving in the Philippines this coming Friday from England. Through interesting twists of fate four years after meeting Gwyneth I ended up living in the Philippines twenty minutes from where she was born. Her parents, Filipinos, recently returned to their home town here to retire. A week after they arrive my Parents and Sister arrive, followed a week later by my friend Jennifer from Switzerland. I’ll note again, I’m excited. It’s going to be a good month.

So that brings me to these pictures. I have had some of these for a while now, but I never had a blog to put them in. So this is a Sari Sari (mixter) of pictures. The first three are of kids I met just yesterday at my house, they were to cute not to put up. I know I say it a lot, but I'm such a sucker for the kids here, they are so damn cute.

(Above) This is looking across the street from my house out over the plaza. The sky really was gorgeous this evening. To bad I was to lazy to walk the 30 seconds to my beach and get shots there of this sunset. Susunod na lang.

(Below) These were hanging up all over Iloilo city in the past six months. This is just one view of the interesting, and never boring politics, of the Philippines.

(Above) Ooops, Dropped something? No worries here, if you ever need an M16 you can just find one laying around anywhere. I’m only slightly joking.

(Below) These are Takas. That is the sound the make at night. TA KA. It is the only time I have seen two like this here, and you could get very close to them. They had a tug of war style battle for over two hours on the floor of my neighbor’s house.

Mt. Napulak

2006-04-10T16:15:00.000+08:00

This past weekend was one of the most fun and enjoyable weekends I have had in a long time. Through meeting various people in the city, I was connected with the Iloilo Mountaineers. They were doing a fun climb to Mt. Napulak, which is located in the Provence north of Iloilo Provence. The thing about Mt. Napulak is that ever since my first visit to Miag-ao, I saw this mountain in the distance, it is very distinctive. It is the tallest in the area and has, what appears to be, a giant boulder at the top. So after be given the opportunity to spend a few days hiking and camping over the weekend, I of course accepted. I realize as I am writing this that I have failed to take a picture of the mountain from its base. I will try to get a picture up soon so all can see it. These pictures are all taken from the summit.

Now I don't want any of you did get any mis-conceptions. By now means was this a difficult climb, or technical in anyway. Just a lot of fun. A few spots along the way could have been considered a bit "hairy." As long as you kept your concentration and didn't fall off a path you were fine. It took a little under 7 hours for myself to get to the top with the first group of people. Other people took quite a few hours longer. The decent was much faster, for obvious reasons and we took a different route down. We did it in 3 hours.

It was great to be able to see islands off in the distance that I never could see from my beach. I could see 3 or the 4 major coasts of Panay island which was very interesting as well. When we arrived in the afternoon clouds were steadily rolling through, and visibility was fairly limited. However I woke up rather early, climbed to the top of the "Boulder" at the peak (which is much more like a huge rock formation once you are at its base, about 30-40 meters high and the same in width, great fun to boulder on) and watched the sun rise over Panay's neighboring island of Gimaras. It was stunning.

Below: Me, posing for all of you

Below: Dusk at the top of Napulak

Above: The left side of the picture, on the coast, is roughly where my house and beach are located

Above: Our campsite

Below: The ridge we hiked to reach the top

Above: Me posing one more time for all of you

Below: The "Boulder" at the top of Mt. Napulak. From my understanding the cross is a very recent, and not very visually aesthetic, addition to this gorgeous piece of nature.

Workin'

2006-04-10T15:44:00.000+08:00

Holy Week starts this Thursday in the Philippines. Well all over the world really however they don't mess around here. I can assure you of that. The upcoming 4 day weekend is really a 7 day weekend, due heavily on the fact that from today (Monday) till Wednesday there will be no "working" done in my office what so ever. That’s fine, I have paperwork to catch up on and blogs to write. Quite a few, I think I will post 3 or 4 this week, or before Wednesday. I have to go speak at some training sessions for the new Volunteers who just arrived. Oh can you all believe I have been here for over a year now?.....me neither.

I am looking forward to the Holy Week celebration, mostly to experience it in this setting. I'm trying to plan a couple days at the nearby island of Gimaras, were the Good Friday celebrations are rather well known. I'll get back to you all on how it was at the end of April.

I mention briefly in a comment I left on my blog to my friend Brian Meyer that I had some recent success with the women's group I'm working with. I thought I would elaborate on that briefly. A few weeks ago was the 2 year anniversary of the Bocalad Center Economic Alliance. I have been working a lot with this organization (both with livelihood and with student leadership through environmentalism), which is located in one of the more rural sections of Miag-ao. I had been having my second thoughts on the women's co-op and how successful it would realistically be. Than they surprised me and decided to open a store in the BCEA Market, and to correspond with the grand opening of the store with the Anniversary celebration. The store will be selling medicine (which I have arranged for them to get at cost from an Iloilo co-op) and electrical supplies. Both items are very hard to get in the rural barangays and very expensive to get due to the high cost to travel to town or the city. In the future they hope to produce and sell banana and peanut candies. The latter I'm in the process of trying to arrange trainings for. I don't feel that the opening of the store counters all my previous thoughts; however it shows a motivation of some sorts that I didn't think existed. As the saying goes here, Simplyanay or in English simply first. It’s also a great example of how much English is blending into the local dialects (At ATM's the even have an option for TAGLISH, English and Tagalog). Below are a few pictures of the Anniversary day and its events. In all the typical Filipino style there was lots of food, speeches that went long, a church mass, dances, singing, and competitions of all sorts.

On another quick note about my work, seeing more of you are interested in it then I originally thought, I have found a German NGO to fund the replication of Environmental lesson plans (hard copy and digital) I have obtained for the 9 schools I worked with on Solid Waste Management and Environmental Education. I will be distributing the lesson plans to schools at the beginning of the next school year.

Above: The white guy with long hair is me, bowing my head during Mass. Yes Mass is held for everything. Especially during the Lenton Season.

Below: The local school arranged some dance numbers to entertain all during the celebration. This guy is bustin' his moves.

Below: The Mayor of Miag-ao cutting the ribbon for the grand opening of 11-B Dev Co's Grand Opening. There was also a blessing by the priest to ward of spirits and aswang (Witches). Yes, Cathoolicism and anceint beliefs are blended quite often in the Philippines.

Dugay Gid Na

2006-04-10T15:04:00.000+08:00

That's a Long Time!

I recently experienced the longest ceremony of any sorts that I have ever been a part of. My neighbor’s daughter and friend of mine, Caren, recently graduated from nursing school in Iloilo. They not only have a graduation ceremony but also a Ring and Pin Ceremony. In all essence it’s the same thing, but it happens 2 days before graduation. I have become very close with her family, her dad is in my barcada, her uncle is my landlord, her Mom does my wash, her sister is my favorite little kid in the Philippines (Sy Sy), and of course she is my friend. I was asked to present her with her graduation ring for the ceremony. I was a bit reluctant at first but her family, including her, genuinely wanted me to take part, so I agreed. Little did I know that the ceremony would be almost 8 hours. I won't get into logistics to much, but ceremonies are drawn out here, and if you throw in a mass with communion, you get to eight hours rather quickly. It was interesting to take part of, and of course I can't say I minded having nothing to do for 8 hours than to watch young Filipina nurses walk around in their uniforms all day. Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of me presenting Caren her ring, however here are some pictures from the day.

Above is Myself, Caren's Mother and Lady. Lady is another cute little kid here. She is my landlords daugher and Caren and Sy Sy's first cousin.

Below is Sy Sy and Caren having a laugh after the trials of spending a day sitting

Above is Me, Lola (Grandmother), and Caren. Lola couldn't make because she is not in the best condition, but I took lots of pictures and videos so she could enjoy.

Below is Caren and I snapping one of ourselfs because everyone else was busy eating.

Normal Randomness

2006-03-21T12:24:00.000+08:00

It has been sometime since I have posted a new blog. This is not entirely my fault. Last week I spent about 2 hours working on one. Than, literally as I went to click "post", a brownout occurred. Of course I was not smart enough to "Save" my work. So away went that blog. It contained an article I had written for a local magazine here, by the name of iTravel. They are doing an issue on travel destinations of Panay Island (my island) and I wrote a brief article on Miag-ao. I have decided to not post it now. I hope to wait until it is published next month and scan a copy onto my blog instead. So that is my lackadaisical excuse.

To help further facilitate the belief among most of you that I do little to no work here, I will continue to post on "the good times" today. However to not completely leave it out, here is my update on work. Since Christmas my work as been in a "slow patch." I'm working on addressing this, it is somewhat awkward however. Many volunteers have the opposite problem as I have had. They start with little to no work, and than try to get more. I started with more work than I could deal with, and now am left with less than I would prefer. The school year is done next week, leaving my project with schools in a state of "limbo" till the next year begins again. Mind you there is some small planning issues to address, but nothing time consuming. My women’s group project continues to give me the most difficulty. I don't like failing at things, however I have a hard time thinking positively regarding this project as of lately. I have done all I can do in terms of issue the needed trainings, arrange for capital and a location. Their initiative regarding the co-op seems to be decreasing, and that is one thing I can't force upon them. I'm scared that the group as a whole may dissolve. Time will tell. I am starting to work on a third project at the moment. We are still in the planning stages, but I think it could be have the greatest impact on my community. It is working with local farmers groups and addressing their continually increasing need of fertilizer and blending that with the Municipality’s surplus of unused biodegradable waste. I may actually be applying for a small grant, depending on the Municipality’s budget. So in a brief nutshell that’s where I'm at regarding my work in the Municipality.

So in the past month I have done, and attempted some fun little adventures and side trips. I went to the island of Gimaras for a day to do research on a German Funded Vermi-Composting Center there. While I was there I stopped by a fellow Volunteers and friends house and checked it out. To give you an idea of what other volunteers are living in here are two pictures of two of my friends houses. The first is my friend Erin's home on Gimaras, the second is on a small island in a bay on the north end of Panay and belongs to my friend Nate. Yes I'll be the first to admit it. I am jealous of the homes they have. Enough said. :-D

The volunteer in the picture above is my friend Nate, one of the most dedicated people you will ever meet. He broke is leg (femur...ouch!) in an accident here, got sent home to the States, and managed to work through the bureaucracy to come back and finish his service. Not something a lot of people have the dedication to do, let along with a broken femur. He does enjoy it here. That is obvious. It was his fiesta this past weekend and I went to his site to visit him, say welcome "home," and of course enjoy the fiesta. His island is gorgeous, it is what a volunteer imagines when they think "Philippines." It is less than 800 people, small, no cars, no motorcycles, only footpaths. While I was there we hiked to the top point on his island and I took pictures overlooking the bay. It is beautiful scenery, however if you look closely the bay is littered with Fish Ponds, and as a result the fish catch is very low due to such large amounts of over fishing. That is what Nate is working with, increasing fisher folk’s livelihoods.

These two guys were carrying tuba (coconut wine), most likely to be consumed by them and their bercada for that day's fiesta.

Before I made it to Nate’s house on Saturday, I stopped by my first host Family's house on Friday. Just to say hi to them and my other friends there, eat a great meal, and of course celebrate St. Patrick’s Day (oh by the way Happy B-day to BA :-D). I splurged and got a bottle of Irish Whiskey in the city, what’s St. Paddy's without Jamo?.....We sang videoky and had a great time.

My host brother busting it down, reggae style.

A few weekends ago I decided to take a little alone time and do a day trip to some Hot Springs in the mountains about 2 hours from me. I woke early to catch the first bus going there (there are only 2 buses that go that way each day). After about an hour trip my bus, low and behold, got stuck. The next trip passing by was at noon, it was still another hour to get to the springs, and the last trip back is at 2pm. Do the math. Thus I ended up not going, but just heading home on the next ride I could find. But I did manage to get a couple good pictures out of it, including the little girl chillin' in the front of the Bus while everyone sat around.

My last picture has no real story, I just find Sy Sy to be a cutie pie and I like this picture of us. Most little girls here are super shy, but not Sy, she has attitude and a crazy personality to go with it. You have seen her picture before on previous blogs as well, she is my neighbors daughter.

Well that wraps this one up. Its the begining of tag-init (hot season) here. It is getting hotter and hotter day by day. Soon I think I will find myself sleeping outside in my Hammock. My house is like an oven, literally, because of the tin roof. I can't sleep past the sun coming up, or i just bake, regardless of how high the fan is turned up and how close it is to me. So what I'm say is enjoy the spring weather....I know I rubbed the warmth in here to some of you during the winter, but now I'm starting to feel jelouse.

Fear and Loathing in the Philippines

2006-02-25T12:32:00.000+08:00

The title of this blog is applicable on a number of different levels. All of which have taken place over the last 3 weeks here in the Philippines. Hope you got a bit of time, sit back and relax, this could be a long blog. We even have a guest writer. I'll begin with the serious and move to the playful.

Firstly, as many of you have read and or seen, there were major landslides that occurred February 17th on the island of Leyte, in the province of St. Bernard, here in the Philippines. They were cause by weeks of continues rain that was an effect of the "La Nina weather pattern." The massive amount of relentless rain, and years of illegal logging produced the conditions for this disaster, which has left 200 dead and a 1000 still missing. As of today they have officially called off the search for survivors. The saddest thing about this tragedy is that it is the 3rd of its kind in the Philippines in the last 15 years, with the largest happening in 1991, killing close to 8000 people. This was called ORMAC and occurred on Leyte Island as well. The deadly combination for ORMAC was also heavy rains on an area that had experienced massive illegal logging.

The second event that lead me to the title, Fear and Loathing in the Philippines, occurred less than 24 hours after my friend Tin Tin had left to go home to England. I heard about it early in the morning of the 24th of February. Quickly a little background. The 24th of February was the 20 year anniversary of ESDA 1 or People Power 1. This was the event that removed than President Ferdinand Marcos from office in 1986 after 14 years of Marshal Law (there was also a People Power 2 that removed Presidant Estrada in 2001). Exactly 20 years after the removal of Marcos many people where once again very unhappy with the current president, GMA, or Gloria M. Arroyo. This unhappiness stems from a number of reasons, but some of the largest reasons are quite clear. One is in late 2005 it was discovered that GMA had attempted to rig the past election. Tapes were discovered and released to the media with her speaking about "routes of action" with a high ranking election official. She admitted what she did was wrong, but refused to step down from office. There was impeachment proceedings that followed, however GMA had to much support in Congress for them to work. The other major reason, however underlying, is also late last year a 10% EVAT (tax) was added to almost everything in the country. In one of the most corrupt countries in the world, and the most corrupt country in Asia, the people are quite leery of where 10% of their expenditures will now be going. Most people work paycheck to paycheck with little or no savings so you could make the argument that the tax takes a 10th of there income. Okay, back on track sorry. So Friday the 24th, it was released to the media that the government discovered an attempted coup attempt, involving high ranking military officers and politicians. These members where "detained" and the President announced a state of emergency. The state of emergency gives the President very expanded powers and limits the rights of the people. For example the right to assemble is withdrawn and free speech is heavily monitored. The best way to describe it is like a "light" marshal law. Fitting seeing it was 20 years to the day that Marcos was removed.......

Before I go on, I'm quite safe and these political events have a very small impact on my everyday life, just as they have a small impact on the everyday lifes of the people around me. So basically what I'm saying is don't worry about me.

So that’s what is going on in the Philippines that warrants the title Fear and Loathing. However I’d like to think that my 2 week vacation with my friend Tin Tin (Stuart Skinner) from England warranted it slightly as well. We did a little tour de "Visayas" and had a blast. I'm going to let Tints tell you about our trip though. For those of you who don't know, I met Tin Tin back went I studied abroad at the University of Kent at Canterbury. He is English, but was born in and spent the first 15 years of his life in Hong Kong. At Kent we played on the American football team together. Five years later we have become very close friends. If you have never met Tints the best way to describe Tin Tin is to have you read the following quote by Jack Kerouac. That’s Tints in a nutshell.

"The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn, like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars and in the middle you see the blue centerlight pop and everybody goes "Awww!" --Jack Kerouac

On to the playful....here's Stuart Skinner.
___________________________________________________________________

What an honour I have bestowed upon me! Unsurprisingly, it’s cold wet and miserable outside as I write this. Unsurprisingly, I’d rather be back in the Philippines… despite the stampede, mudslides and the recently declared national state of emergency after a thwarted coup. When Lloyd was assigned to the Philippines, I knew it would only be a matter of time before I took advantage to go back to the area of the world I was born and raised. After my antics in Milwaukee, I’m sure a few people thought mayhem would ensue, but amazingly, I spent a lot of the time in silence, absorbing some of the most spectacular surroundings and dreaming of possibilities that would allow me to escape the nonsense of big city life.

Two weeks after booking my ticket, a delayed flight later and an enforced night in Manila, I was reunited with my dear friend and it felt completely normal that we were doing so in the other side of the world. First port of call was three nights in Lloyds town of Miagao. I had arrived for the latter stages of the Salakayan festival, which is a celebration and commemoration of their ancestor’s efforts at repelling the evil Moro raiders who first pillaged Miag-ao ten years after the town was founded (1731). The festival was marked by several re-enactments of the town’s heroics and we can all be rest assured that those evil Muslims will not be returning to the town of Miag-ao.

It was all very entertaining if not somewhat bemusing. The Miagaowonans had obviously put a lot of effort and passion into the festival and it really highlighted the pride that these people felt as a community for their past. Accompanying the festival was a lot of food, boozing and dancing and that is of course when I am in my element. I was completely blown away by Lloyd’s command of the local dialect, Illonggo. It was very entertaining to watch Lloyd converse in Illonggo and to see the often very surprised look on the unsuspecting locals face. I grinned like an unwitting idiot, feeling a lot of pride for Lloyd, not knowing that he was using it is an opportunity to tell those he was introducing me to as “single and available” and that I was “uncircumcised”… cheers mate!

The community spirit of Miag-ao and the Philippine nation as a whole, really blew me away. The average Philippino survives on under $2 a day and therefore, Westerners are the subject of envy for the wealth we have and the luxuries that are afforded to it. However, it is perhaps their lack of wealth that has created a community of open doors and open hearts. I can’t help but feel that it is a tremendous shame that our two “great” nations place so much emphasis on individualism at the expense of the community and I know we are worse off for it. Lloyd is slightly revered by his community and this is testimony to his strength of personality and his acknowledgement that learning the language is imperative to integration and his subsequent effort in learning Illonggo. This does however, mean that he is frequently mobbed and the next stage of my trip undoubtedly proved a welcome break for him.

It is not uncommon to witness Philippinos pray as they get onto public transport and not long into our 6 hour journey to the port of Dumaguete, I was beginning to wish I had a God to pray to. It didn’t help Lloyd informing me that he sometimes thought there was a problem with bus drivers using crack and I quickly began to wish I had some form of substance to alleviate the terrifying fear that was beginning to grip me. The bus journey did take us through some spectacular scenery, particularly through the mountainous region which I did enjoy when I could avert my eyes from staring death directly in the face. After a quick stopover in Dumaguete, it was off to the bloody gorgeous island of Apo.

(Apo Island, view from Negros Island)

Apo is a 72 hectare island of pure beauty, untainted by the conveniences of Western life. I felt a huge weight lifted off my shoulders as I stepped on the sandy shores and breathed in the fresh, salty air. Apo has a population of around 700 and fishing provides the main commercial revenue for the people. The local people are striving to create a harmonious co-existence with the environment that allows for commercial activity without the expense of the local habitat. In fact, they benefit as the conserved area provides an increasing abundance of fish, which in turn, they are permitted to catch. Apo serves as an exemplary example that conservation does not mean financial hardship and by upholding the areas outstanding natural beauty, tourists and locals benefit alike. Upon arrival we immediately made way for the protected area for a spot of snorkeling that was truly breathtaking.

On our way to the site, we were distracted by the sound of cheering and we decided to investigate. I was in luck. We had stumbled upon a cock fight, something that I had been eagerly anticipating after my first night. After a journey that saw me leave London and not arrive at Lloyd’s for some 36 hours later, I was all to ready to get a good nights sleep. However, the devil in disguise decided to wake and keep me so with some incessantly raucous crowing. It is now my belief that the devil is a cock. I must admit to having some slight reservations about cockfighting, but after that first night I asked Lloyd’s neighbours and keen cockfight spectators if the cocks “die a slow and painful death” as I hoped they did. Any of you who have ever eaten chicken or eggs that are non free range, then I’m afraid you forfeit the right to pass any judgment on cockfighting for I know which of the two I find more disgusting

(Apo Island beach from our balcony)

We spent our evenings there hanging out with the very talented and friendly local artist “Elbaens”. It was really satisfying that three men of the same age, from completely different backgrounds were able to hang out, united by our mutual appreciation of good music and of course, beer. The next day saw me do some diving where I hung out with the cast of “Finding Nemo” whilst Lloyd was working very hard on becoming the first person to make an ass-groove in a hammock. We were there for Valentines and there is perhaps very few other places more romantic than Apo island, and as much as I love Lloyd, I did wish that there was someone of the opposite sex to share the double bed with me that overlooked the ocean abyss… sorry, after having been the subject of desires for some local homosexuals, I feel it important to re-iterate my heterosexuality… especially as Lloyd tried to convince me it was culturally acceptable (which it is)… again, cheers mate!

(Photo by Tommy Shultz, taken at Apo Island)

It was perhaps be-fitting that after Apo we traveled to another area of outstanding beauty, though this time, it was inland. Located on the island of Bohol, Nuts Huts consists of nipa huts clustered on the banks of the river at the base of the hills, cloistered from civilization. Again, it was truly breathtaking and I was mesmerized by the pure tranquility of it all.

(Loboc River, heading to Nutz Hutz)

Whilst there, we visited the freakish geological occurrence, the “chocolate hills”, swimming in the river with local kids, hiking amongst the hills with most inadequate footwear, and visiting some of the local bats. I was however, at my happiest there, whilst swaying in the hammock, overlooking the river on the backdrop of the hills, enjoying some quiet, introspective time… and sipping on some quite delightful banana shakes with generous lashings of rum.

(Chocolate Hills)

(Monitor Lizard that we spotted while sipping on our Bannana and Rum shakes)

(Entrance to the first of two caves we entered. Many bats awaited us on the inside)

The only downside was sharing this wonderfully sublime time with a load of French people and not the two hot chicks of any nationality bar French, that Lloyd and I constantly wished were waiting for us at every destination. Alas, no such luck so we had to make do with using the homemade sauna with just each other for company again.

We forfeited a night in the very Westernized island of Cebu for another night in Utopia and I really found it difficult to leave… especially as this entailed a 13 hour boat trip. We arrived back in Iloilo feeling the strain of a week on the move and it seemed apt that we go for a massage. Our final night saw us meet up with some of Lloyd’s fellow Peace-Corps and finally, we had our night of mayhem. I don’t really know quite what happened and at what point the mayhem started but it was all very messy and a good way to send me off.

So that’s that really. I feel rejuvenated and revitalized after a fantastically wonderful time. My mind is filled with future possibilities and I know for certainty that one day, Lloyd and I will have our own heaven on earth and that it will be commercially viable. A lot of hard work is needed before hand to ensure this and I am more prepared for this now than I was before. I left Philippines feeling a lot of pride for my mate and all that he is doing with himself. I can’t wait for the next time we meet up, whenever and wherever that may be........

Brief Update

2006-02-21T13:16:00.000+08:00

I just wanted to note to everyone I am well and healthy. I was unaffected (physically) by the landslides that occurred on Leyte Island. It is a great tragedy here in the Philippines. They came such a short time after the stampede deaths in Manila. Its a difficult time for so many people here in the Philippines. Thank you to everyone who called or wrote me regarding my well being at this time.

On a lighter note, I have been on vacation traveling around the last 10 days with my mate Tin Tin from England. It has been a very enjoyable vacation, pictures and stories will follow within the next week. Tin Tin will be writing one of the posts for my blog as well.

Attemptfull Sophistication

2006-01-30T14:07:00.000+08:00

First and most important I want to wish a very very very HAPPY 21st BIRTHDAY to my little sister, Tricia. I love you and I am so proud of you and the person you have become!

I just spent a week in Dumagettee for a seminar on project writing and grant proposals. I have no current intention of applying for grants. The seminar, put on by Peace Corps, included working 3.5 days with our counterpart from our site. I found this aspect to be very rewarding. I would assume even more so for my counterpart. My counterpart tends to be very busy (not the norm for PC counterparts) so spending a full 3 days talking about projects, the proper way to introduce them, implement them, and follow them up proved to be very beneficial. I learned some new stuff too.

On my way home from Dumagettee, Negros Island, (about a 6 hour bus and a 1.5 hour boat) I decided to stop for the weekend in Iloilo city and enjoy yet another festival. This one being Dinagyan. I do have some pics from it that I hope to post another time, but I defiantly took fewer pictures this time around. I was there with a bunch of Pinoy friends and I wasn't so much in the mood for pictures. I will say that Dinagyan included many more people, with Iloilo being a larger city. But Ati Atian was more fun in terms of dancing and crowd interaction. With a crazy Friday and Saturday night at the bars I came home on Sunday very worn down, but still oddly restless. I started going through some papers and what not and realized I had been writing more then I realized since I arrived in the Philippines. At my seminar this previous week I wrote some random stuff, mostly poems. Well I’ve decided to post a couple here. Well see what the responses to them are. This may be the only time you get to read them, perhaps I'll put some more up. Depends on if I write better or worse than a Vogon*, It is, as my title to this blog states, my attemptfull sophistication.

That and I can't draw, so when I get bored I doodle poems instead of pictures.

TRAINING

Fuse them. Confuse them.
Tactful trickery
talks the walk
but
walk the talk?
Oh hell thee
audience is
health-y. Won
hopes

to win them
but how and
win.
You have the merit
write?
down the credentials
of knew.

Just

Has the walk taken
you?

STANDUNDER

Understand?
No
We simply stood.
under
stood
nothing.
Thoughts tearing
away.
Away at what?
away at us?
Away at tears
at THEIR tears
falling
gasping
Grasping at the next
not holding the last
in tranquil transition lingering
lost. Plausible
tranquil and torn?
Perhaps perhaps
simply miss
under
stood.

Well I hope that wasn't too bad on you, or mabey you just skipped it and came right to this paragraph. Eitherway i'll keep the poems limited and put some more pictures up soon. My friend Tin Tin from England, who most of you know, will be coming to visit me for a couple weeks in Febuary. I'm takeing 2 weeks vaction to "escort" him around the Philippines and see how much trouble the two of us can stay out of. I'm sure well have some good pictures from that.

*Vogon poetry is of course, the third worst in the universe. The second worst is that of the Azgoths of Kria. During a recitation by their poet master Grunthos the Flatulent of his poem "Ode to a Small Lump of Green Putty I Found in My Armpit One Midsummer Morning" four of his audience died of internal haemorrhaging and the president of the Mid-Galactic Arts Nobbling Council survived by gnawing one of his own legs off. Grunthos was reported to have been "disappointed" by the poem's reception, and was about to embark on a reading of his 12-book epic entitled "My Favourite Bathtime Gurgles" when his own major intestine, in a desperate attempt to save humanity, leapt straight up through his neck and throttled his brain. The very worst poetry of all perished along with its creator, Paul Neil Milne Johnstone of Redbridge, in the destruction of the planet Earth. Vogon poetry is mild by comparison. --(Douglas Adams, The Hitchhikers Guide To the Galaxy)

Ati Atihan!

2006-01-16T12:37:00.000+08:00

Boom Boom Boom Boom Boom Boom Boom!

That’s how is started, the next thing I know it was 2 days later, and I had danced a lot, seen a festival of the likes I had never experienced before in my life, and had a fabulous time.

Legend has it that over 800 years ago Malaysians, from what is now Borneo, came on boats to the Island of Panay (the island I live on) to find a new place to live. Of those that came, their were10 tribes. They had a meeting with, the then currant inhabitants of Panay, the Ati. What happened next was the “Barter of Panay.” The Ati agreed to leave most of the island to the Malaysians and head to the mountains, for no more than a golden hat and necklace for the tribal chief. Before they left they had a celebration of epic proportions.

That is what Ati Atihan celebrates. There are tribal competitions, with dancing and drums. And I mean DRUMS, all day and all night, DRUMS DRUMS DRUMS. You can’t help but feel the rhythm inside you. There are other festivals in the area that celebrate the same thing, but Ati Atihan is unique. Firstly it is the original, second the others you just watch, at Ati Ati, you participate. You sat sat. You Dance around behind a band of drummers all through the city and square with thousands of other people just grooving to the drums. It’s like a nine hundred year old traditional rave. It is fun.

The whole celebration lasts a week, yet the biggest days are the last 3. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. I went for Friday night, Saturday, and Sunday morning. Next year I go all week. Being there is like mixing State Street in Madison on Halloween, with Mardi Gra, with a rave. There are costumes of all sorts, crazy people, beautiful people, drunk people, happy people, and on and on and on.

It was a people watching paradise, I hope you’ll agree…………

And lastly my friend Eric, groving with two Baklas (dragqueens).....hehehe

Its My Birthday and I'll Cry if I Want to.......

2006-01-10T14:45:00.000+08:00

Excuse my french, but hell yea I'll cry if I want to. I'm 25 years old damn it! I can't believe I have been alive a quarter of a century. Its a shocker, as all of you know from your own experiances with birthdays, I don't feel 25. How am I in my mid twentys?......I can't even spell.

Well Its becoming a trend, of my last 5 birthdays I have been out of the country for 4 of them. And I don't forsee it being much differant for the next 2. That means when I turn 27, 6 of my last 7 birthdays will have been oversees. I can deal with that, mabey its keeping my younger....at least thats what I hope.

So birthdays in the Philippines. I'll start with saying I had a blast, BUT......Western Style birthdays definatly have there advantages. The tradition here is when its your birthday, you pay for everything. This sucks. My officemates expect food, either lunch or snack. My barcada (friends) expect booze, either whiskey or beer. My host families expect dinner. Starting alive and ending up dead. On and On. It was an expensive weekend. Good thing I won 1,500 pesos at the cockfights that friday.....must have been a lucky birthday weekend thing. There is nothing like celebrating another year of my life by watching chickens kill eachother. Oh we'll get to more killing here in a seccond.

So for my officesmates I took the ones I hangout with most to a local resterant for lunch. It was good. But the real fun started after lunch when I went home to prepare for my berkada, and other friends in Damilisan (my barangay). I had bought 3 chickens and a friend in the barangay gave me a turkey (most filipinos don't like turkey). Oh all of them were alive by the way. You don't go to the corner supermarket and by a dressed chcken here. Well in the city you could, but why would you do that, its not fresh?....Anyways, we killed em, and chopped two up for adobo. Adoba is a local dish here that is really good, its a unique sauce with chopped up chicken or pork. The other chicken and the turkey we lechoned. Look below to see what Lechon is. I'll tell you its good.

Yep, less then 4 hours ago, they were running around outside my house.

I cooked up some other stuff to, and we drank some beer and a bit of good whiskey. All and all a good time. Below is inside my "kitchen area" and the next picute is right outside my door.

Oh, this is Sy Sy. Her dad is the brother of my landlords wife. She is another shinning example of cute filipino children. She loves my hammock, even if unproperly used. She chilled there most of the night of my birthday, getting up occasionally for soda or to grab some more chicken or turkey.

So my birthday wish?........That the Bears win this sunday and than win two more games after that. Thats my wish. Its not so much of a wish, cause its so plausable....but it is what i'm choosing to use my birthday luck for regardless. I just hope I didn't wear it out with Liverpool having to pull one of your there arses in the FA Cup.

Hope you all are bringing in the first weeks of the new year in great fashion! Miss ya all!

Playa, Bay Bay, Beach

2006-01-10T14:42:00.000+08:00

Spanish, Illonggo, English. Upon my arrival home from New Years in Boracay (just google it) I started playing around with my new camera. I started taking all sorts of shots. Most weren't turning out, but that is due to my own inexperiance with photography and not a shortcoming of my camera. I am slowly starting to figure it out. I've shunned the "scene" settings and I'm forcing myself to learn what situations call for what exposers, apature, iso, ect.

So I figured what better place to go play around with my new toy than my beach. Well not my beach, but it may as well be. I'm there enough. So I bought a nalgene bottle full of Tuba, I have recently had a liking for tuba (the coconut wine that comes from coconut trees, just tap the tree and out comes alcohol), and sat to take pictures. These are some of the ones that turned out okay. I hope to keep getting better ones as time goes on.

This is the traditional Filipino boat, it is called a Banca boat. When I first arrived to the Philippines I was convinced I would purchase one once I got to site, maby even outrig it with a small sail. Yet I choose not to. Mostly becausue I don't need to buy one. I"m friends with a lot of the fisherman in my barangay and I can use thier bancas whenever I would like. Its fun to take them out paddling, or to a fish pen and just go swimming.

You may recognize these two from some other pictures I have taken. They hang around my house a lot, specially on the weekends when I am there. If you look at the top right of the picture in the water, that is a fishpen. The pop up all over in the ocean around December. There was one before December I could see from my beach and now there are six. They are anywhere from 50 meters to mabey 150 meters from the beach. Men go out and use nets to collect whats in them early in the morning, around 4 am, and in the evening around 7 or 8.

While the men are collecting fish the kids normally swim and play on the beach. Women will either be in the house preparing dinner or on the beach brushing up piles of leaves and burning them, it keeps the beach clean looking but its mostly to keep the mosquitos down.

I think I took about 20 pictures of this sunset. 3 or 4 turned out really good. I ultimitly choose this one cause it was the only one I took that was vertical instead of horozontal and I liked the capture of the clouds. I don't think I have posted a picture of the sunset from where I live, but this is it, almost every night. I'm sure you will all see more pictures of that scene in the next 18 months.

Wait....thats not the beach, but his little doggy hat is cute.

What a Christmas Eve Dinner!

2006-01-05T12:03:00.000+08:00

I hope you all had a great Christmas and New Years! My Christmas was spent with various host families, with lots and lots of good food. As you will see below. New Years was a blast on Boracay, and I got my new camera as well. These are the last pictures you will see from my old one. In the next week or two i'll get pictures up from my new one. I've been going crazy the past couple days taking pictures, I really like the camera I ended up choosing.

So Christmas day was spent in Damilisan, my barangay. My Peace Corps friend, Shawn, happened to be traveling through Iloilo so he stopped at my place for Christmas day. My Landlords family spent the day before shopping for the meal.....so much food. Yet my favorite was the 2 items below, the giant prawns and fresh crabs. We spent the morning washing and cleaning them, and started cooking around 3 or 4. The crabs where good, but the prawns were AMAZING. We also had pork, chicken, a specialtiy in the area called cajuice, made with local beans, kinylaw (Filipino style sushi), and lots more....but dont forget the rice too!

Yea these were big prawns......and colorful too. (Above and Below)

Jesus (Above) and Jo Jo (Below) got the crabs ready, most of them had their claws wrapped up but a couple got to Jesus later, it was funny.

The next day I ate at my friends house in the town, he had a whole roasted pig. I think over the course of the week following that day I was at three other "occasions" with Lechon (Roasted Pig). It is definatly the same here as in the States when it comes the the holiday foods being in abundance.

This Blogg is a brief one, I am really looking forward to getting some pics up from my new camera and I'll write more then. Today I'm in the city, I just got done with a meeting at the Provincial Government and now i'm off to my Language Lesson. I hired a tutor to help me once a week. Its my version of a New Years resolution, but not really. I made a resolution 5 years ago to not make New Years resolutions......

Merry Christmas!!!

2005-12-22T10:54:00.000+08:00

Well I hope everyone is checking this on Christmas! Specially my family! I can just see you all gathered around the computer, reading this blogg....probably very cold....or at least it is outside. If its at my parants house I'm sure the fireplace is stoked to the max, with Dad to hot, and Mom still to cold. That is one of the things I miss the most, but I missed it when I was living in Milwaukee too. The fireplace. Believe it or not I miss the cold also. No, not the brutal cold, but just being able to cuddle up in a blanket or where a hoody sweater, and be comfortable.

For my Christmas I will be spending it in my Barangay, Damilisan. I'll be eating dinner at friends house Christmas Eve than at my Landlords house on Christmas Day. With the Cockfights in the afternoon. Yes, for Christmas I will be going to watch chickens kill eachother (If you have an issue with this refer to the blog titled Miagao Site Visit). I'm very much so looking forward to the Bulang (cockfight). There is no sarcasm there, I really am! I am also looking forward to hearing from all of you late on my Christmas night or the morning of the 26th. I'll keep my phone charged!

While I've been here for these 9 months thus far. I have probably already changed more than I know, and definatly learned more than I can define. One of the things that I have seen here that has had a hugely positive affect on me is the since of family. Its impossible to define. I know that each one of you is thinking "yes, we know, the Asian since of family." Yet it is so much more than that. I have said this to a number of people already, but it shows a lot about the Philippines that while I have been here for these 9 months I am a fully welcomed member of not just one but three families. Imagine a person coming from abroad to America and meeting that same reception......you can't. Its not a bad thing, its simply a differance between and individual culture and a community based culture. Yet its somthing to keep in mind. It has been very warming to have that welcome here. It has taught me a lot as well, and made me realize each or yours importance to me, much more so than I ever realized before. Its been a realazation of the sorts of carrying around gold for years not knowing its worth. Than one day, a person comes up to you and tells you its true value. Even 15,000 miles away that is what each one of you is to me. Gold. I just keep it stored in my heart instead of my pocket.

Its my hope that for the remainder of the day you can all realize how great it is that your all together, and really enjoy eachothers company......fully. How often is the Family really all there, or at least mostly....hehe. I miss you all so much, my friends too! I hope you all have the best and Merryest of Christmas's and a Great New Years. I will be thinking about you all!

Merry Christmas

THANKSGIVING!!!!

2005-12-12T18:06:00.000+08:00

It is almost Christmas, but here is my Thanksgiving! I hope Christmas or New Years can be half as fun as Thanksgiving was! It was nice to meet up with a bunch of other Americans for thanksgiving and share our holiday. Most Philippinos don't know about it or understand it, but I just told them it was the closest thing in America to their Fiesta. They then told me "Dapat makadto ka!" Or another words "You have to go!" So I went down to the same island I was at at a couple of months ago, Bohol, with the Chocolate hills and the Tarsier (See Side Trips). We stayed at really nice tucked away resort, right on a river with a rainforst overlooking it. We had turkey (pinoy style), mashed patatos, cranberrys, cheese, and even yams! Oh it was so yummy. It may have been made even yummier because I managed to find all the "real" ingrediants to make "real" bloody marys. It took 3 island to get them all, but I got them. Thus when I woke up at 7 a.m. that day, I was preparing them....and drinking them......we ate at 4 pm. I was feeling good by then.

There were 24 of us, from all over the Visayas (central philippines), both my batch and the batch before me. Everyone stayed at the resort that night, some people stayed the next day, but by sat eveyone had left to head to the city on bohol or to Cebu city. I didn't want to go to either, so i stayed a 3rd night their. I had the whole place to myself and really enjoyed it, it was nice and relaxing after 2 fun nights filled with food, beer, bloodys, and Eucher! Yes there are 4 of us volunteers from Wiscony and we all play the loved game. We spent HOURS playing it those two days.

Alright enough....onto the pictures (By the way, Erin Stotz, a fellow volunteer and Wiscony took these pics, I wasn't to concerned with pictures at the time, to many bloodys and to much food kept me destracted). This first one is one of our 2 tables all set with Beautifal Thanksgiving Decorations, thanks very much to Shawnas mom!

These next two our us us siiting down to our grand meal. Like I said before it was GOOD!
(Table 1)

(Table 2)

This last picture is of me and Kyle preparing round ?? of Bloodys. He is one of the pre-said Wisconsin Eucher freaks and was my kickin' partner. In two days and over 20 games we only lost 3. Our opponants, Melissa (Kyle's wife) and Erin took it rather bitterly.......

Meet the People I'm Working With

2005-12-12T18:02:00.000+08:00

Hello all this one will be brief, just giving you some pictures of me out at work. The first two pictures are of me and some of the people I have been working with. Both were taken in early December. The first of me at a school I'm working with on Solid Waste Managment. They organized a great event, "Miss Kalikasan" (Miss Nature). In the morning the school did an area clean up and in the afternoon had the contest. The contestents dresses were made of all recycled material (they were truely amazing) and the criteria was on the Dress, amount of recycled goods over the past month, question, and than the regular presance and beauty. I was one of the judges. The picture is before the clean up.

The next picture is with the women I am working on organizing into a cooperative. It was during one of the trainings I had organized. I brought in a professor from the University of the Philippines to do a two day training on basic business, managment, and financial skills. Followed by a third day on the technical skills of banana chip making. I'm not the most thrilled about them producing banana chips for a number of reasons, but it was the training they wanted, and it is thier group. (the picture is from the banana chip training) There have also been some leadership trainings as well as a co-op formation training. On January 4th it is the goal to register them with the National Co-op offices and obtain an account at the local bank for there savings program.

This below picture was taken durning one of the trainings. Its the daughter of one of the women in the group. I am not conducting the trainings so I read, listen, or take pictures during the day. I found her to be rather cute and loved the picture so here she is.

I should be a few bloggs this week, I really have no work at the momment. The schools are on break and the women are not meeting again till the 4th of Jan. I am planning on going camping next week for 3 days then heading to Boracay for New Years. I was going to spend Christmas with my first host family but I was just there last weekend for the fiesta in the nearby city (which was a ton of fun). It would be to difficult for me to camp and visit them, and I really want to go camping. So i'm staying at my site for Christmas.

(Oh and a note, I made it possible to leave comments now without regestering, so leave your comments! It may take a couple days to post cause I have them sent to my email first than I will approve them to post. The reason I do this is because of a lot of "SPAM" postings that occur if i don't moderate it.)

The Unexpected Disco

2005-12-12T17:59:00.000+08:00

So upon coming home from Thanksgiving I was tired. I had what was to be the most busy week of work yet in front of me (it was that busy, but it left me with nothing to do the following weeks). All week I had to wake up early for trainings and meetings. On Monday, while I was coming home from the office, I was just thinking of how I was going to cook dinner, read and go to bed very very early.

A little bit more than a kilometer from my Barangay I heard it. My head dropped. I wasn't angry but I was upset with myself for forgeting. My weekend away eating turkey had lead me to forget that this Monday and Tuesday my Barangay was haveing a Disco, for the National Holiday "Benifacio Day." (That, and up until 5 years ago these were the days of the Fiesta till it got changed.) So are you asking yet "what did he hear?" Look below. It is the Philippino sound system, with all the shake, rattle and distortian of the car of a 16 year old with to much money. But this is way way way louder, and located less than 30 meters from my house. Did I mention discos don't end till 2 or 3 in the morning, if i'm lucky. So what was I do do...no reading could be done, no relaxing, and surely no sleeping. Ear plugs have the same effect against that sound system as a of a flyswatter against a dragon.

So I joined in the fun, I figured I would be tired for my meetings regardless, I might as well go knowing I had fun the night before.

Below is "uncle Eddie." He is one of the guys in my barcada (group of friends). He had a grand ol' time, mind you the multipal bottles Tanduay wiskey may have helped. He may have even been seeing those trails at that point.

Now I would much rather have a filipina than a filipino sharing my hammock with me, but I can't begin to explain the differance in culture between the philippines and the states regarding male friendship. As I type that I can hear some of you laughing already. Its true though. It is nothing to see two guys walking down the street, either holding hand or with ones arm around the other. They are not gay, its just a much closer culture. When I meet other men often they will just hold my hand through the whole begining of the conversation. Anyways......the guy in the hammock with me is my neighbor, Jo Jo. He has borrowed my hammock almost every night since the Disco, and uses it for his bed now....(yes, without me)

This last picture is of Mike. Mike is very very funny. Doesn't speak the best English but he is funny. He has a crippled leg and is always about town, I give him some cigs or money once in a while, as does everyone in town when they can afford it. If you havn't gathered up to now, I like Mike. He was one of the first guys in town I met, and he sits at the waiting shed by my house all day, almost everyday. So its a bonus that one of my friends is always there to watch my place. If you look behind Mike that is were my barcada sit, drinks, and eats most nights. The house on the right is Jo Jo's and to the left is where mine is.

Well I think that is all for today. I am heading to the market to get some food for dinner and will probably go home to start cooking and mabey do some reading. I'm currently reading "Atlas Shrugged" by Ayn Rand. I have had the book for a long time and was intimidated to start a 1100 page, small print book. I was mistaken. It is great thusfar. I have had a good string of reads. While I am talking about books I will suggest two more for you all. The first I rate as one of the better books I have read, "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver. The other is good as well, I found it theraputic. I think it would give you a good idea of some of the concepts of my experiance thus far. It was written by a Peace Corps Volunteer in China in the late 90's about his service. Its another country but many of the themes are eirily similar to what I have experianced at times, its call "River Town" by Peter Hessler

Halong Kamo Permi!

Faces in the Crowd

2005-11-16T16:47:00.000+08:00

I actually think the name of the title for this blogg is from a regular section in Sports Illustraited. I havn't read it in years. Well I'm still in good condition, no relapse into that fun little adventure from October, typhoid. Work has continued to go well, with my solid waste managment project for schools in full motion now, I start the trainings in December. I think there are 7 schools to conduct trainings at in 4 days. That should be a fun week. I am looking forward to next week, Thanksgiving. I think myself and some other volunteers are going to roast up, pinoy style of course, 3 turkeys. Hmmmm.....and Sam Miguel......the only thing missing will be the football, but I can imagine the Packers loosing in my head just as well as watching it.

The last couple weeks I have started to find myself getting very settled. I like that. The constant new "imputs" that have become a daily, weekly, and monthly norm over the past 7 1/2 months have began to slow down a bit. I'm starting to develop a bit of a routine, and sitting back and observing life a little more around me. Not to say I havn't been observing it up till now. Just now I'm starting to see it in a differant light, perhaps you could say I'm starting to understand it. At least a little. I have no grand observations to make, or conclusions to come to, I don't know what the collage in my brain means. I have found myself in the past couple weeks taking pictures of more people, than of the scenery around me. Some of the people in the following pictures I know, and in fact I'm becoming close with. Others I don't know at all, and it was just in passing that I took thier picture. I am not going to note who is who, I'll leave it to your imagination. The people that I don't know I would look at the picture and try to imagine what the past events that person had endured or been through, or in the case of children the beauty of innocense. I am throwing a title on each picture, just for fun. My next blogg I hope to write a bit more about my life here, from a more cultural stand point. As always I hope everyone is well and healthy.

"The scale read 'Cute' "

"If you only knew"

"You know what we did!!!"

"Go Away"

"Are they calling me?"

"Where you been?"

"SuperMan"

Typhoid Fever = NO FUN!

2005-11-02T15:54:00.000+08:00

As you can guess from that title of this blogg, I got typhoid. Well at least that is what the doctors tell me. All I know is whatever I had, for two weeks of my life I wanted nothing more than better drugs than they were giving me, my mom, my bed, and home. It wasn't fun. Every bone, joint, and partical in my body hurt. Nothing hurt more than my eyes, they felt like someone was taking a dull knife and digging them out. All of this while my fever jumped from normal to 1o3+ every 8 hours. I spent the first 4 days of this suffering in my bed at home, thinking how much I hated hospitals. Come monday morning I was left with little choice, I headed to the hospital. As mentioned before I don't like hospitals. I like them even less when I have typhoid and I'm in the Philippines. They require you to do many of the mundane tasks that you normally don't think of when your sick. Like pick up your own lab results, arrange for all your billing in advance, and arrange for your own admitance into the hospital including your room. Well I guess they don't mean for ME to, but for someone besides the people working at the hospital to do all this. Most people have someone with them when they go to the hospitals here. I did eventially get a "kasama," (a fellow volunteer who took a week out of her life to babysit me, bring me ediable food, and accomplish these tasks on my behalf) but for my first 5 hours at the hospital I didn't have someone to take care of these tasks. Thus it was left to me and my little friend typhoid to take care of. It wasn't enjoyable, but I think I have stressed that point enough. I spent 5 days in the hospital. Really the worst of what I had was over before I actually went to the hospital, but my white blood cell count was ridiculously low, so the doctor was not letting me go anywhere till it went back to somewhat normal levels. From what i'm told I recovered remarkably quick for having typhoid......it was too long for me.

That is somewhat of my excuse for the delay of this blogg. I have no new pics to add. Well I do but I don't have them with me to post now. I'm in the city, I just got through having a check-up with the doctor, and having more lab tests done to make sure i'm all in the clear. Before I got sick, it was an interesting and fun month at work and home. After getting done with my month of training I had lots of ideas and lots of built up motivation to get things going and underway at work. I was all moved into my own house. I also had my fiesta. I didn't get as many pics as I had wanted from my fiesta but it was a lot of fun. No sleep, but lots of fun. My house, which is about 15 meters from the basketball court didn't stop vibrating for 2 days. They Philippinos like there music loud, and they get LOTS and LOTS of BIG speakers for fiesta. You can hear them up to a kilometer away, and my house is 15 meters away, think about it. I got wrangled into judging a singing contest, which i was looking forward to. Most Philippinos can sing so well, but I think they found some of the worst singers in the Barangay and put them in the contest. It was easy to pick the top three though that was for sure. It wasn't easy crushing young girls dreams though. The actual night of fiesta the Disco went till 4:30 in the morning, so of course i was up till 4:30 in the morning, with previously mentioned speakers sleep isn't so much of an option. Seeing the fiesta was only 1 week after I move to the Barangay it was a good opportunity to meet lots of the people from the village.

As I mentioned before I had a lot of motivation built up for work after being away for almost a whole month. I am starting to see small amounts of progress here and there, which is satisfying. I wasn't expecting to see any at all for a long time. I'm not expecting to see more, but it was nice to see any at all. The first school that I implamented my "pilot" project at for Solid Waste Managment organized there own "eco" beauty contest. I was extreemly impressed and proud that they where incorporating so much already into thier school. The contest includes a total amount that each contestent can collect in recycled goods, as well as the gowns and sashes are made of recycled waste. With other enviromental componants as wel. One is the Eco-Club, that I assisted in creating with another teacher, is organizing a clean up of a area the morning of the contest. The project has been changed a bit, but we are working on implamenting it at 5 more schools in the next 2-3 months. The new project includes a way for the schools to obtain small amounts of income from thier recycled waste. It also includes acutal enviromental lesson plans to be distributed to each school to make it more sustainable.

I was also assigned another project from my supervisor. This one consists of organizing a women's livlihood group amoung a cluster of 11 barangays. 5 women from each baranagay, so 55 women in all. It is still underway but I have held a meeting with the women and they are intrested in creating food produce. First we are holding values and leadership training for the women. We have had 2 of the 6 trainings on those topics. The other trainings will be managerial (basic skills), a training on what type of group they want i.e. co-op, society, group, ect. The last will be technical training on the area they choose to start with. They are considering banana chips, penut butter, and other items. I think they will start with banana chips, which I do think will have a marginal success, but it has to be their choice. Later I will suggest they differentiating there products. I think the best chance of local sucsess they have is their penut butter. The nice thing about this projet is it is under the "Secondary Growth Economic Alliance" that my office is working with, so the women have funding available and the Alliance is willing to purchase all produce from the women (pending quality) package it under the alliance name (also creating more jobs) and sell it to the public. The woment don't have to sell to the alliance if they find better prices for their goods, but it is a nice safety net for them as well.

Well I feel like I just wrote a book, I will try to get more pics up for you all once I get some good ones. For Thanksgiving I am taking that thur. and fri. off of work and meeting some other volunteers on another island for turkeys and stuffing. I also will be picking up my new gutiar. I'm excited for both these things. Now I just need to learn to play, or at least pluck and strum...:-D I do want to say hello to my mom and a thanks to all her friends at Alloc for keeping her sain and not letting her worry about me to much. I also want to say a very special hello to Heidi and Elijah! Congrats Heidi, I hear from everyone he is a cute-i-pie, but than again I knew he would be!

Side Trips

2005-09-30T11:00:00.000+08:00

So I had my training for a couple weeks. In all honosty it was like a nice vacation from site, just read my other blogg on volunteer fun. Mind you I am all to happy to be back at site, its already gaining the home feeling. When I returned from my training I let out that sigh of, ahhhh its good to be home. Just a place you know, and are comfortable with. I'm really happy I have gained that, without it I feel that I would be having a much more difficult time settling in. So below is a picture of me just kicking back during training, taking it all in.

Before training started I left site a couple days early to do a little site seeing. I left Iloilo City on an over night boat to Cebu City. The next morning while arriving to port I went on deck to check out the view of the city. The scene that followed was difficult to watch, yet it forces you to put things into more of a perspective. As our ship came into port families would bring there boats along side the ship and were begging for money. Whole families; babys, kids, teenagers, parents, and grandparents. They had construced "nets" to catch the money people would throw. I sat watching this thinking a lot of differant things. I wondered if the money the collected was even enough to cover the gas they used to get to, and keep up next to the ship. I don't know why, but the scene affeced me more than seeing a begger on the street, where in all essance they are one in the same, just a differant venue. I still havn't figured out why....It could have been it was my first time seeing it in this form. I remember one thing in particular making me quite upset. Some people, as opposed to thorowing money in or towards the nets, would throw the money intentional in the ocean and make the children, parents, and sometimes grandparents dive and swim for it, like it was their small payment for entertainment. I had an urge to throw those people in after their money.

On to happier topics. Cebu City was fun, but after two days I had to get out. In the cities here is just Malls, Malls, Malls. I hate malls. At nights we got some good meals and enjoyed the scene of actual bars and clubs. I found an amazing sushi place in Cebu City and spent a 1/4 of my monthly stipen on sushi and saki....it was worth every peso. Regardless after two days I was onto the island of Bohol. Famous for the Chocolate Hills and the Tarsier. In the two days I was there I went and saw both, and I ordered a handmade, jackfruit wood, tuba stained, mother of peral inlay, martin style acustic gutiar. I will be picking that up in November and pictures will surely follow. The first night on Bohol I went ot see the Chocolate Hills, a interesting act of mother nature and geology. They are the reslut of ancient coral beds. However the local myth is that they are the result of over active bowls of a giant carabao (water buffalo used by farmers). Whatever you believe the were interesting to see.

The next day I went to see the Tarsier, an endangered animal native only to 3 islands in the philippines. It is unfortanite but you can see these little guys all over bohol in road side cages. The problem with Tarsiers is that they can't live in cages, they go insane and basically commit suicide, specially if they are touched by a human. Which many of these roadside venues allow. I went to the Tarsier Sanctuary, a foundation founded to preserve them in a gaurded area. A couple volunteers were assigned there 3-4 years ago as well. Many of the Tarsiers in the santuary are used to people now, and you can get quite close. As I am doing below, but don't worry, I didn't touch him.

After seeing the Tarsier up close I was convinced they were the real life form of Mogwai's from The Gremlins. Besides the real life rule of not touching them I was compelled to not get it wet, not feed it after midnight, and have it avoid all bright lights.

After Bohol it was onto training. While at training I saw two of the most naturally amazing, stunning, and georgeous places I have ever encountered in my life. One I have no pics of because it was all underwater. I went to Apo island for a day of praticums and got to sneek away for 2 hours and snorkal the coral reef there. The Shed in Chicago has an exhibit on Apo. It is one of the most amazing coarl reefs in the Philippines and it is a visual bananza to witness. The other amazing place I did get pictures of, but they don't come near to doing the place justice, the place being Casaroro falls. They are tucked away at the end of a river, with walls of rainforest going up one to two hundred feet on all sides. The best way for me to describe the place would be spritual. I did shoot some video on my camera that turned out well and gives a better "feeling'' of the falls, but unfortanitly I can't, or better don't know how, to post that on the internet.

Hope everyone is doing well! Take care of yourselfs and I look forward to hearing from you!

Volunteer Fun

2005-09-29T14:38:00.000+08:00

Yep, training. We had lessons, lectures, field trips, hands on activities, practicums, but we also had the nights. They were some good times. Put a whole bunch of Volunteers in a resort with hot water, cable TV, Air Con, and a Pool (even though most of us live within walking distance of the ocean) and what do we do......WE SING.....

WE SWIM.......(this one was fun, you can see me at the base, but thats 4 people tall, and we didn't even have the engineers in on that one.)

WE LAUGH.....(Thats Andy, he can bust the videoky country songs and normally he is the one making all of us laugh)

WE DANCE....(In dumagette, the place of our training, there are a lot of clubs/bars and we took advantage of those this night. The girl in the back is Mellissa, another Wiscony, from Rhienlander, however you spell that.)

Home Sweet Home...

2005-09-29T14:29:00.000+08:00

WOW, it has been over a month sense an update. Thats how things go, I've been busy. As I'm sure all of you have been busy as well. I plan on putting three bloggs up today. So all one big blogg really, just slightly differant topics, its easier to load pictures a few at a time at these internet cafes. Well as I will get to later, (or as i got to earlier depending on how you read these bloggs) I was at a training for 3 weeks. Well a 2 1/2 weeks of training and 4 days of quick site seeing. Upon my arrivial home there was the municipality fiesta, which unfortanitly, I have no pics from. I was to busy eating and enjoying refeshing beverages to snap pics....BUT...I have my Brgy fiesta coming up....I plan on having pics from that. Speaking of my Brgy, which is Damilisan, I just moved. No more host fam, just Me, Myslef, and I......or at least until I find that bride. (Joke Joke Mom!....but realy who knows) So my own place...it is concrete, plywood, tin, nippa, bamboo...really a mix of all worlds. Just look at the Pic below to check it out.

The next two pics of of my cooking/washing/CR (oh CR means Comfort Room aka Bathroom) Area, it is located directly behind the house if your looking at the pic above. The water pump (hand pump) is just behind the CR. I will get pics of the inside up, i'm just waiting till i finish unpacking and organizing my stuff. The inside is two rooms, one big are split by a 3/4 wall dividing it. I have turned oneside into my bedroom, and the other into a kitchen area (i got a small personal fridge, and the person i'm renting from is letting me use a LP stove, I can also cook with wood in the outer cooking area), and a study/work/relax area. I have the plan of trying to
build my own bamboo furniture. I got some tools already, it will be a little hobby/experment. Working with bamboo isn't like working with other woods, i have seen that already, but well see what I can come up with.

cooking/washing area

C.R.

The below picture has nothing to do with my new house, just an added pic that I wanted to throw in somewhere. The girl on the left is the daughter of the house help at my host fams in Miagao, her name is Vanassa, and she is possible the cutest little girl in the world. The little boy on the right is Andrew, her best friend. While I was at my host family, these two were my language tutors, the best ones anyone could have at that! Leaving them to move was kinda hard, but i'll be visiting often, thats for sure...I'll still need help with
the language.

Delije Tree Planting

2005-08-22T11:37:00.000+08:00

Well i'm behind on updating stuff, these pictures are from about 3 weeks ago, mabey a month. Anyways I'll begin with an update of what I have been doing and working on. The past week has been one of my best weeks at site yet. This is due to many reasons. I began meeting more people, I'm considering joining the biking club here in Miagao, the past week I have attended two rides with the members, one 65k and one 50k, both were on roads. It is currently to wet to go riding on trails, what the members tell me but I think they just don't like mud. I have been told there are some really good mountain trails in Miagao. I guess I will just have to wait till after monsoon season for them to show me. I am also on a basketball team for my LGU, (local gov. unit) and we had 3 games last week, we won all three. There are some really really good players here, and as most of you will know I'm not the most gifted b-ball player but I can hold my own. I look at myself as a good role player, good defence and good passing. It works well here cause defence is noones fortay, as a matter of fact they play mostly zone even in pick up games. I normally get to luxury of guarding the big or fast guys.....like I said, I hold my own. I also have gone to a couple cockfights in the past week, yes it has been a busy week, and I won at both, nice to get a little extra pocket money. Work wise another volunteer came to my LGU and gave a presentation on a technology on converting rice hulls to charcole which my mayor seemed very interested in. I am excited about it, but the technology was developed for sugar cane so we have to do testing to see if it will work for rice hulls. If it does work it would limit the logging of trees in the area, increase income for farmers, and provide a disposal for one of the largest solid waste problems in the area, rice hulls. It is still up in the air, and I'm not diving into it until I return from a 3 week training I have coming up in Sept. Anyways so thats enough blabbing for me....

Like I started with saying, about 3 weeks ago I organized a small reforestation program with the H.S. I have been working with on Solid Waste Managment and starting a youth ecology club. I got the local Dept. of Agraculture to donate 350 seedlings and the students collected almost 100 more. We met on an early Sun. morning near the highschool, along with member from the Miagao bikers club, and the University of the Philippines Green Thumbs club. From there we hiked about 4 or 5k to a watershed area and proceded to plant the seedlings. It was a fun poject, I learned a lot from it, and the children appeard to have a really good time as well. I had one of my fellow volunteers come from his site and assist as well, you'll note him in the first and last picture as the other white person.

This picture is before we left on our hike to Delije.

Once we reached Delije we had to hike through a seris of rice fields.

The children had differant jobs, these were two of the boys running around digging small holes for the seedlings.

This picture was taken once we finished planting all the seedlings. There are some of the H.S. children as well as the local Brgy officials.

Well thats all for now, I leave next week for my 3 week training. I'm sure i'll have some fun pictures of that once I return. I'm also stopping by Cebu City on the way to my training for 2 nights. It is the second largest city in the Philippines and is known for the amazing hand made guitars that the locals produce, I will be purchasing one. Not that I know how to play, but I got time to learn.

Metting the Governor of ILOILO

2005-08-10T11:11:00.000+08:00

The ground breaking for the Secondary Growth Alliance Market I have been working with took place about 3 weeks ago. The Mayor had invited the Governor because he had assisted in the funding for the High School construction as well as for the market. Below is the picture of the stage he and other guests spoke at later in the day. Unfortanitly most the day was plauged with rain, but it is that time of year. Either way I thought the backdrop was a nice picture.

The below picture is during the ceremony for the ground breaking of the Market. I've been to some other ground breakings in the Philippines and it is very much the same at each. The man holding on to the string is the Governor, the man to his left is the Mayor. You'll see me tucked to the back on the right hand side.

Below is a picture of the mountains that day, from the site of the future market. Obviously rain was in the "air." On our way back to the town that early evening, the gov. was late due to a land slide blocking his way, we ourselfs got a flat tire in some of the hardest rain I have ever experianced in my life. You might say its just rain, but i wish I could convey its magnitude to you. I was inpressed with nature, very wet, but impressed none the less.

A days work

2005-07-28T17:26:00.000+08:00

As soon as I wake up in the morning at my host family's house in Miag-ao I take a nice cold shower, out of a bucket of course (it sure wakes you up fast, I assure you that). After that I eat my pomahow (breakfast, and its also the word for snack, so there are lots of pomahows each day for the Philippinos). It is also sitting there waiting for me as soon as I go to the kitchen, neatly prepared by the maid of my host family. Yea this peace corps stuff is rough, let me tell you. In all honosty the having a maid/cook and laundry women has been one of the most difficult things for me to deal with each day. It is difficult to explain but I assure you it isn't comfortable to have these luxurys when A.) you have never had them before in yourlife, and B). When many days I go to very rural villages and see the disporportion of wealth in this country, and I feel I'm taking part in the unfair side of it. Other volunteers have this issue as well in the philippines, others do not. It all depends on your site placement. It is part of Philippino hospitality to give you the best of what is around. This hospitality is great to a point, but it can be overwelming at times. With all that said I do enjoy my host family, and they are a great assist to getting to know the community. My host dad is the head of the population commision in Region VI of the Philippines, and was once a professor at the University near by. My host mom sells "load" for phones, it is their form of top up for cell phones without contracts. There are always people from all age groups and sectors of the
population stopping by to pick up load. So yes, through them I get to know a large part of the community. With that said, I can not wait till Sept. That is when I am moving to my own accomidation. No more coming home and being berated with "Kaon Ka, Ano Gusto Mo?" (You eat, what do you want?). I will be able to cook my own food, what I want and when. Just be able to enjoy privacy. I have found a nippa house about 5k from the banwa (town). It is a two room hut with a poored concrete floor (nice and sturdy for the coming typhoons) It has two outdoor coverings. Either can be used for a kitchen, and the other for just sitting around, perhaps a hammock will be hung there? It has a CR (Comfort Room aka Bathroom) outside as well, along with a waterpump very close by for water. I assure you I am much more comfortable with these accomidations. The great thing is it is about 100 meters, perhaps less, to the ocean. It isn't ocean view, but it is ocean access. I'm happy about this. The reason I'm not building my own anymore, like i mentioned on a previous blogg is the PC is changing there policy, making it much more difficult to do. My officemate had this house, his family just moved out, into a larger, newer house and it was available.

Well I just went back and re-read all that and I realized I went off on a bit more of a tangent than I originally had planned. Lets start over, I wake up in the morning, eat breakfast, than head to work. On Mondays I get to work about 7:30 for the flag Cerimony. (These are held every Monday, at every Gov. office in the country that I am aware of. The employees sing the national anythom, and the municipality song. They than listen to a guest speaker, and the mayor, as well as take oaths to serve to the best of there ability.) The other days I go to the office between 8 and 9. Most days that I head to rural brgy's (villages) we leave around 9 a.m. Tangent again, sorry, ......ANYWAYS....when I go to work, the building below is the one I go to. Its a LONG walk from my host family's. Mabey 50 feet. If you look at the picture imagine a house to the left of the building, as close as can be there without being in the picture, that is my house. (I'll get a picture up next time of my host fams for all of you.) Anyways on with my day..............

On the days that I head to the mountains, the fun and interesting days i'll add, I ride in any assortment of vehicals. Trucks like the one above in front of the Municipal building, Large all wheel drivedump trucks (the only ones that are capable of making some trips), L300's (a type of large passanger minivan), trikes, and sometimes a VW Beatle of one of my co-workers. The roads quickly become roads only by a loose, very loose definition. Up until about 2 weeks ago, the most commonly used road to one area we have been heading to often has been the dried up riverbed. Now that the rain has come, it is a very sketchy road. The picture below is of it, and I think this day was one of the last days that anyone passed on it. We got stuck 2 or 3 times that day. Fun. I passed that way today actually, in a very large dump and we had to turn around. After the past 4 days of continuis rain, that small stream you see below has become a full fledged river.

So thats the roads......well at least the rural roads in the mountains, particually valleys. Don't want you to think they are all like that. As a matter of fact, the hut I will be renting is very close to the national highway. It is like a county road back home. Thats about the tops on the island of Panay. I can't comment on the rest of the philippines yet. Anyways when we head to some of the brgys (thats an abriviation by the way, for Barangay) there are no roads to take us there, that is when we hike. This is my faviorte part of any visit or trip. Some hikes are short, perhaps 20 minutes, some are a couple hours. There is one Brgy we havn't went to yet at the very top of one of the mountains in the municipality, i guess it is a 3 plus hour hike, i'm stoked for that. The picture below is of my office mates, and the brgy captian of the particular brgy we were heading to that particular day. (Obviously I took the picture) The 3rd man from the left is my supervisor, the 4th and 6th are my counterparts. They are great. I have been able to do a lot already for the short time I have been in Miagao and this is due almost entirely to my supervisor giving me the freedom to do as I please and the complete support of my two counterparts. I have already learned a tremendous amount from all three of them.

Once we get to the Brgys we set up, if they have electricity we bring a projector and screen to give a powerpoint presentation. Sometimes this fails even if they do have electricity due to brownouts. But it isn't to much hassle to bring the equipment, and the municipality does have it, so it would be waste to not use it to our advantage. The picture below is of a General Assembly meeting for the Seconday Growth Markets were working on. It is basically giving the members of the brgy and overview of what the program is and how it will beinifit them. I speak as well, normally on youth organization, solid waste managment, and livelihood technologies (the second and third I have learned what I know almost entirely while I have been here in the Philippines, and still have a tremendous amount to learn. Good thing i have a 3 week training on the two coming up in Sept). I speak in Illong-ish (Illonggo and english). My Illonggo isn't near good enough to give any type of presentation, mostly it is still English, but i try. The local's first language is Kinara-ay, but I'm not even close to knowing as much Kinara-ay as Illonggo (and I'm finding my illonggo isn't much either, no matter how much I try), and they can all understand Illonggo, and english as well, if i speak slow enough, pernunciate, and use basic words. Afterwards we are always invited to Panyaga (lunch). Almost always in the mountains this consistis of rice and chicken, once in a while a local veg.

The next picture is of a training on solid waste managment we gave to the high school we have been working with. This is one of 5 classrooms they have, and they all resemble this one. I didn't do to much presenting in this lecture. Jerome, my one counterpart, is an enviromental engineer. He has been the source of a large portion of my new found knowledge on solid waste mangment. He has been giving solid waste managment lectures for the past year to vendors and store owners in the town proper of Miag-ao. I let him take control of this one.

The man in the below picture to the left is the Mayor of Miag-ao. He is a retired General in the Military. He has been great to me as well, he has supported the S.W.M. program fully thus far, with funding, with infastructure support for the project, as well as always apporving my requests for transportation. That is a lot more that can be said for the Mayors of other municipalitys that I have heard of. This particular day we were visitying the construction site of a new high school in another section of the mountains. It is the next school I hope to implement the S.W.M. program.

The last picture I have is of what I have found to be an interesting fact of life in any brgy in the Philippines thus far. No matter HOW remote you go, they always have basketball courts, that is the passion for this game over here. I asked how the concrete is brought, it driven as far as it can, than carried. To get to this court you see below, it would have had to have been carried about 5 or 6k, up very steep paths. I keep telling them to get interested in soccer, its a lot easier to find a place to play. They are not interested.

Well this may be the longest blog I have written yet. To end the theme off, a day's work, the trips back from these sites have always proved more interesting than the trip there. This is because the rains come in the afternoons. I have been drenched, particularly when I have been riding in the back of the dump truck, been stuck a good handfull of times, had to find new "routes" home due to land slides over upper mountain roads, and of course the ever possible flat tire. Always an adventure. My evenings at site consist of various activities. I was really ill for 3 weeks so during that time I just laid around and read a lot. Outside of those three weeks I have found myself playing a lot of Basketball (imagine that here?), drinking a couple beers (you must be thinking...not Lloyd.), mountain biking (at least the last two weeks since I bought my bike, yeah it rocks), and yes I even found some Korens and a couple Philippinos at the University to play soccer. Today....hmmm.....its 5:30 now, and raining. Thus I think today will be a beer day. As my counterparts say, "5:Thirsty"

Random Pics

2005-07-27T12:53:00.000+08:00

Well I have been bad about pics, but what you going to do. These
are from my random weekends i've taken away from site. The First is the sunset in Boracay on the 4th of July. The house I stayed in there was amazing, perched atop a large hill overlooking White Beach. You can't see them to well in this pic but if you look close at the top you can see little black dots. Those little black dots
are actually huge bats, and I mean HUGE. Wing spans of upwards of 1 1/2 meters. They are called flying foxes. At sunset everday they fly from where they sleep, in Boracay, to the next island to eat, Panay, in the province of Aklan. There "migration" is amazing to watch, it takes upwards of an hour and it is continues "flock" (of lack of a better term) of bats moving the entire time.

The following two pictures are of the Fiesta at Sigma that I attended at the end of June. I really enjoyed returning to visit my original host family. I am already looking fwd to my next visit. The fiest was really a lot of fun, and as I stated on my previous blog, i don't think i have ever eaten that much in my entire life. The first pic is of a boat in the native boat competition. Out of the 21 Brgys in Sigma, 20 built native boats for a competition. They were floated down the river, through the middle of Sigma to be judged. A lot of originality when into many of the boats that i couldn't capture on film, like fireworks and explosives, as well as small props, and lots of Tanduay! (the local rum)

The next pic is also from the Sigma fiesta, in addition to the boat competition, there was also a Nippa Hut building competition. All 21 brgy's plus local coops and organizations built nippas for the competition. They all brought there small nipas to the Sigma square for display. The nippas ended up encircling the plaza and it was quite the site.

Well I do have more pics to put up on here, I have them upload to the internet but havn't had time to write about them or post them. They will come soon. I will add that in the past 3 days here I have seen at LOT of rain. The monsoon rains are in full effect currently, it hasn't stopped for 3 days, and I'm talking about some hard downpoors. On my journys to the mountains I have been stuck in the river (which is commonly used as a road when water isn't in it, a problem due to overlogging) after we drove to a rural brgy, it than poored down rain and made the trip back "interesting" to say the least. With the getting stuck numours times and me getting quite muddy in the process. Yesterday as a matter of fact I was at a ground breaking cerimony for a secondary growth market and the blessing of a new high school (everything here must be blessed before it is opened). Of course it rained almost the entire day, on the way back from the mountains the truck i was riding in got a flat, more fun changing that in mountains in the pooring rain. Anyways the next group of pics will be of meetings and what not from work, as well as a pic of the office I work at. I assure you it isn't what you think!

Sako gid ko

2005-07-10T10:42:00.000+08:00

(I'm really busy!) Well I was told that the first 3 months at site would be a more laid back, relaxed time.. Up to this point i have not found that. Mind you some of what i'm busy with has been my own deliberate doing.. I am the one who took a long weekend to go back to my original host family and enjoy their fiesta. I am also the one who made the choice to go to Boracay for the 4th of July. Besides those two adventures I have been really busy with work however. It is a differant kind of busy however. Some days, when i have no meetings to go to or barungys to visit, I find myself with not much work to do, it is mostly planning work, (but in the next week i see this changing drastically). Those are the days that I try to walk around the town and meet as many people as I can. At times this gets to be more difficult that one would think and i find myself instead finding a quite place by myself and escaping into a novel. I have never read more in my entire life than i have been reading since i have been in the Philippines. Now may be the point where you say, "how can he be that busy if he has time to sit and read that much?" Well if i didn't take the time to escape and read, i think i would go insane. It is my normal time, I can zone out, not have to process what people are saying in another language, try to translate what i want to say in another language, not worry about my actions and if they are somehow being offensive in a way i didn't know, and relms of other things......Those are the days i don't have meetings however. Up to this point at least 2 or 3 days a week i find myself in the back of a truck, going up the mountain to villages to meet with village officials, or school officials. The sites are beutiful, and stunning, and when i get there that is when i really realize how much i love what i'm doing. Many times i feel underqualified or unprepared (even though i know i prepared as much as I could have), people look at me for anwsers that I have no clue what the solution to is. It gets overwelming, but I try to take my step back and take it one thing at a time. The past month at site (first month i will add) I have been working with a H.S. in the mountains to try and implament Solid Waste Mang. into there curriculum, as well as full implamentation at school. Through this i'm trying to get the funding to have a truck from the municipality come up once a month (depending on volume), to pick up the segragated recycled materials, as well as locate a residual waste dump for the H.S. (currently anywhere is there dump, that or burn). Also we are orginizing the construction of a composte pit. Going into the school the S.W.M was the project i was most exceited about working on, yet i quickly found out the children are very excited about reforestation and tree planting. So in conjuction with the S.W.M. I'm working on organizing a vol. ecology club, it is already well underway to being organized, and in 2 weeks it will be holding its first reforestation day, 500 seedlings in a selected watershed area near the H.S. In addition to working at Bacolod H.S, i'm currently working with the Municipal planning and Development Office on the satalite growth markets. Which, as i have mentioned before on my blogg, is the setting up of Satalite Farmers markets away from the town proper. To cut down on transperation costs, as well as to create livelhoods, incorporate S.W.M. and a number of other things that are key to the Municipality. Enough blabbing about office talk.

So before i mentioned i went to my first host fams for their fiesta. It was a blast, the most interesting fiesta i've been to yet in the Philippines, mind you the really big ones are in Jan and Feb. They had a parade, with floats all made of local products, mostly nippa and bamboo, some were pulled by caribo, some where even built around trikes and drove in. After the parade was an amazing local dance production with bamboo insturments, I wish i could tape the whole thing for you all to see, it was brillant. My camera was out of batteries on this day, which was a huge bummer, but i did get new ones for the next day, which was a parade again, but this time in the river. All bamboo boats and rafts, 21 in all, and once again just brillant to watch. The last day of fiesta was the eating day.....oh man i have never ate more in my entire life. I think i had 3 lunches and 2 dinners, each with its own whole roasted pig. Everyone host there own lunch or dinner, and if you are invited you best go, and at least eat a little somthing. It was intense to say the least, i thought i was going to pop, good thing later i had plenty of ol' Sam Mig's to help the digestive process!! To see more pics of this i suggest checking out the pics labeled Sigma Fiesta on Karen's photobucket http://photobucket.com/albums/y49/dubulet/ I'll try to get some of my own up but she is much more motiviated than i when it comes to the taking of, and posting of pictures. You also may want to check out the pics from the weekend of the 4th of july in Boracay. It was a good good time, lots of good food, lots of good drinks, to bad it was pricy. At least for us, if we were living on the dollar it would have been cheap, but alas were not anymore. Well I think thats enough for today, i hope you are all well, I'll work on getting some pics up, mabey in the next week i'll add some,, but i have a rather hetic schedual this week as well. No later than next weekend have put up more pictures. Take Care and I miss you all!

Saying Goodbyes and Hellos

2005-06-14T13:40:00.000+08:00

Well the last week and half have been quite intense. First I had to say goodbye to my first host family. It is amazing how close you get to complete strangers in only 2 months time. We hosted a Halad for them which is a type of "Thank you for having us party." My last night there I also got them a cake and some other little gifts, and we had a huge meal and a couple ol' Sam Migs. It wasn't all that bad, i'm going to be returning later this month for 3 days to go to the twon fiesta, so i'm all ready looking foward to that. Below is a piture of me and my host fam the last night I was there. The left two are my host brothers, Dino and Jesse, then Nanay Lankit, and of course me.

After leaving my host family all the trainees met up and headed to Iloilo for our swearing in ceremony. This was also a bittersweet event. It was great to have the intensity of 6-7 days a week of training come to an end and know we would be actual volunteers, yet we all know there will be larger challanges to overcome in the future. Also besides getting close with all our first host familys, we have as a group gotten very close with one another. With the start of service we won't be seeing eachother on the regular basis that we have for the past 2 months. Needless to say we all had a great time in Iloilo celebrating our swearing in. Below is a piture of the 15 people in my training hub. The piture below that is of myslef and Ana, my LCF (Language and Cultural Facilitator). She is the person who put up with me 6 days a week, 4 hours a day, teaching me illonggo, she is a saint and a great teacher and I don't know what I would have done without her.

Before I went to my perm. site, myself and a couple friends decided to take a little time away. The resoning was to gather our thoughts, from training and before work starts, and relax. We found a gorgeous little resort on an Island off of Panay and went there for 3 days. It was very quite, and had beutiful little nippas for rent. Below is the sunset on the 2nd night from our balcony.

The picture below is during the day of our balcony, from inside the Nippa. It was on a cliff about 40 ft above the water and if you were to walk out on it and look around you would see 3 or 4 small secluded white sand beachs. Across the water you can see one in this picture.

The below picture is of the moon. It is an observation that my friend Lindsey made that seems so obvious but once it was pointed out I found it facinating to look at. Back home we were used to seeing the moon cresant on the left and right. Here they are on the top and bottom.

The below two pictures are of some of my companions on my little vaction, the top one is of Erin (left) and Karen (right). I sent most of you their picture links to look at. The bottom one was taken on the first night there, it is Me, Lindsey, Erin, and Karen.

Once again I hope this finds everyone well. I'm posting this blogg on my first day of work during my lunch break. I must admit I was very nervious about today up until now, it has gone pretty well so far. First thing this morning I had to get up during the flag ceremony (held on the first work day of each week) and introduce myself to over 100 people in Illonggo. That was fun, I wasn't told I would be doing it either so it was free lance style. My job still seems a bit overwelming, at the very least intimidating, but one day at a time I guess. Nagkato ko diri kay man gusto ko mga challange, Halong! (I came here because I like challanges, take care)

Last week of Training

2005-06-01T16:12:00.000+08:00

Hello all, well I have less than a week of training left. I swear in next Tuesday and then I will be off to my site. I must say i'm excited, I wish i knew the language better, but i'm not bad. I guess I really wouldn't be happy no matter how well i knew it, there is only so much you can learn in 2 months. My training cluster mate and I had to implament a small community activity for the end of our training and we did an environmental poster contest with a local church group, the one from the previous blogg pictures. It went over well but still was a great learning experiance. It took place in the Barangay hall, which is kinda like a town hall. We had prizes and candy for the participants as well as a snack for everyone. The following four pictures are from the activity, the first two are of the group and the second two are just ones i really like of two super cute kids (K.K. those are mostly for you), anyways enjoy.

The next three picture are from a religous celebration that my clustermate and I went to (she is obviously the white girl below). It was quite interesting and really fun. The day began with us being introduced to everyone, and the men getting me to sit for a while and partake in a bit of "Tuba" drinking. It is the local coconut wine. It is basically the sap from a coconut tree, and when they tap it out of the tree it is all ready fermented and ready to drink. After a bit of that they all piled in this small room and sang songs in Illonggo while an older lady played guitar. We than ate a huge lunch, and then, as it seems to be the time of year, it rained and rained. They then brought in the Videoke equipment and we all rocked out for a while, Nicole and I did a killer version of Hotel California. For those of you who don't know videoke is the number 1 passtime here, everyone loves it, and someone in the barangay always has the equipment. The third picture is of all the men, mostly the ones who were roping me into drinking the Tuba, like it was that hard, oh and a bit of Tanduay (local rum, runs about 80cents for a liter).

The below picture is of my hub training group while we were touring a coffee farm, learning the basic methods of coffee farming and harvesting.

This picture is of a production I went to about 1 month ago, it was in the town of Sigma, in the plaza. It is a local out of school youth theater group. The performance was accompanied by a band of all local bamboo insturments. It sounded amazing.

Miagao Site Visit Pictures

2005-05-18T15:34:00.000+08:00

Well i promised some nice pics from my site visit so here they are, I wish i had a higher megapixal camera now, but it will have to do. I consider dropping Funds on an Cannon Elf but ultimatly decided against it for the time being, mabey Christmas from the family.....hmmmmm..... Anyways my site visit ended up great and I can't wait to start my assignment now in 3 more weeks, I just got to get this language thing down. People think i speak pretty well, till they talk to me for more then 5 min. than it is all down hill. Anyways i guess i got two more years to practice, oh wait, at my site they speak another language, the one i'm learning is the common language in the region (illongo), but they have there own Dialect (Kinaraya), oh well, should be fun.

Well I went to a couple cock fights last week, actually 3. I won money in the first two, you better believe I bet. It is crazy, so much screaming, hand signals, odds betting, 9-10, 8-10, 3-4, it is nuts. All in the local dialect language, I got it down pretty well now. The third time i went, (all differant cities) I went with another Volunteer and she is a 65 yr old lady, it was so fun! She bet with me and we lost, had a blast though. Some may think this whole cockfighting this is cruwl because yes, at least one cock dies, many times both, but i look at it this way. This birds are treated like kings up until they fight, best foods, vitamins, housing, space to move, massages the whole works, way better then the billions of chickens killed each day for human consumption, and at least these guys get a fighting chance..............

The below pictures was taken at about 5 thousand feet, in a village with no electricity in the municipality of miagao, it took us about 2 or 3 hours in an offroad truck, on roads that will be completely impassable come rainseason, to get there. The people with me are the burungay capts. from each of the sourounding villages (burungays) they were my guides for the day. After this picture was taken I went into the house of this particular villages burungy capt. and had fresh coconut juice for a mid morning snack, her son had climbed a tree and picked them while we took this picture.

I couldn't get a good pic of it, but off that dirt road (above) is about a drop of 3 or 4 houndred feet, i was just praying the driver wasn't drunk from the night befores fiesta..........The below pic is of some of the rice terraces near Miagao. Once the rain season comes they will get even more bright green

(Below)This is a typical nippa hut, hopfully i'll get one in 3 or 4 months too, but this was takin' in one of the burungays near miagao that speciallizes in the making of pottery, they have been doing it for hundreds of years in the exact same way. The picture under it, is of a Filapina working on her pottery.

The below picture is taken from a hanging bridge as I leave the pottery burungay, you'll see the locals are doing there wash in the creek. I have also learned to handwash my clothes, and it takes a slightly bit longer then machine washing does. Wash, Rinse, Rinse, Rinse, Dry.....oh good times for now, i think once training is done i may spring to have mine clothes washed for me.

Below is the world famous Miagao church, it is on the World Heritage List. It is about 100 yards from where i'll be staying when I move to Miagao. It was built over 200 years ago, and you'll notice the carvings on the front aren't the ones you would see in America, or in Europe.

The below picture is taken out of the top left tower of the church, twoards the mountains, the fog is a bit bad to see the whole of them, but regardless I thought it was pretty kuwl, the other driection you an see the ocean, next time i'll post one of those.

The next two pictures are simply of Filipino children. I'm doing a small project with a Sunday School type class during my training. It will be focusing on simple enviromental ideas, this was the first time I went to the class. I really enjoyed these pictures, mabey some of you will as well. The game they are playing in the 2nd bottom picture is called "I love you." One of the children simply takes off a sandle and throughs it over his/her head twoards the others, and if the same person catches the sandle three times, they get to through their sandle next....name has nothing to do with the game, and you can see many of them really don't have money for balls or toys, but they sure had a blast doing it.

This picture was taken right in the midst of Roxas city, on the river. I had to use digital zoom to get it this close, that is why it is a little blurry. This is simply a local trying to catch fish in the river, out of a tube. Lets put it this way, I would much rather catch a fish on the shore of lake Michigan and eat it rather than out of this river.

The next two pictures are for those of you asking how i got around. The two main types of transportation are Jeepneys (longer and shorter distances) and Trikes, simply for shorter distances. On any given jeepney you can fit way more people then in the one pitured below, and almost as many on a trike, believe me, i have seen over 15 kids and people on one single trike, it is amazing. Unfortanitly everytime I see it i don't have my camera, or they go by by the time I get my camera out, I promise a piture of it soon however.

2nd set of pics.

2005-05-11T16:36:00.000+08:00

The above pic is of Boracay when i was there for water safter, the lower is of a tree worm found in the rotted branches at Mangrove forests, and....well if your starving you can eat them.

The lower pic is another of the tree worm, i just loved the kids face in this one.

Yes I tried them, not a big one, but I still tried it, I can't say i tasted it, it just slid right on down.

The above and below pics are of the mangroove forest I visited during training. The bamboo walkway lead through the forest about 4 or 5 hundred yards, mabey more, all the way out to the ocean.

First pics (many you may have seen already)

2005-05-11T16:29:00.000+08:00

Well these are pictures I'm posting to my blogg, i will try to update them as much as possible, and enclose captions where it may be interesting. I have a lot more excellant ones of my site visit but I won't be able to upload them till i return to my training cluster cause that is where my compact flash drive is. It is a couple of days into my site visit now and i'm not as overwelmed as before, i'm starting to feel really lucky, my site is really killer, my job will be fully challanging and that is more than i can say for other PCV's i have talked to. THe housing thing will change drastically in 4 months, I have already talked to my counterpart at the Municipal hall i am working and he has a small piece of land on the ocean i went and checked out, and as long as it doesn't sell he is going to let me build a nippa on it overlooking the ocean, the PC pays for that and then i just leave it with him when i'm done for the use of the land. The awsome thing is that on his property there is a valley with a direct view of the ocean, with palm trees, and coconut trees lining both sides and the nippa I would build would hang over the valley and extend from the top of each side, thus leaving under the nippa as the walkway to the beach, it would be beutifal, I just have my fingers crossed it works out, one is it is a bit of a ways away from my job so the PC may not allow it, but Like i said i have my fingers crossed. If it doens't work out I will def. work for ocean front (sea front tech.) somewhere else. Anyways enjoy the pics all and instead of posting comments to this write me emails please, unless your that lazzy than i'll read the comments...lol. Take care all.

The above pic is an owl at the mangrove forest I visited during training, unfortanitly it wasn't in the wild but really cuwl none the less, the lower picture is me my first week in the Philipines while i was still in manila for initial orientation. It was a giant chess set that you could play, it was fun and i felt like harry potter.

The above is one of the pics from the sunset my first night in the philippines, the lower is at a wedding I attended, i sat at the head table, and didn't know the bride or groom, just the brides aunt, but that is the attention i get here. Anyways it was a pig they roasted for the dinner, (Eric I hope the head doesn't scare you)

The upper and the next two lower pics are from Boracay when I was there for my water saftey training.

Perminant Site Visit

2005-05-10T11:21:00.000+08:00

Well I got to my perm. site yesterday for my site visit, and I must admit I was overwelmed by a number of things to start off with. Firstly my host family's house is really nice, nicer than i would have ever thought i would be staying in when I joined, including a maid and laundry woman. At first I had some major issues with it, but i'm sorting em' out in my head now, either way I hope to have my own place in 3-4 months anyways. In terms of my job it is very intimidating, i have a lot to learn, and that is in addition to learning 2 languages, illongo and kinaria. I am working in the Municipal gov. and as the past two days have went on I am learning more what my job will entail. Lots of planning and orginazation of a project called "economic alliance" Which consists of a lot a implemantation of public markets, livelihood trainings, job growth and job creation, ect in all the burungays in Miagao, there are a 119 burungays and each Alliance is made up of 11 burungays, with one of each 11 being the center of commerace for that area/region. One "test" alliance has been implemented, my job consists of creating the others. I will also be working with other secondary projects as well including the marketing of their tourists sites, one is a world heratige church, and also with bio-diversity, mostly with planting of trees in key enviormental areas to help facilitate longer water supplies throughout the dry season. Like I said I have so much to learn, but that is why I came here, i just hope i can provide a fraction of the benfit I will be recieving from all this.

First Blogg

2005-05-05T14:00:00.000+08:00

Well this is my first attempt at blogging, and to get off to a start I'll say that I will do my best to keep it somewhat updated but I highly doubt it will be on any regular basis. I'm going to try to link pics to it so you can see those as well. I leave for my site visit this up coming weekend and i'm feeling pretty stoked. This past week I went and learned to plant mangrooves, and to be honost it was really easy but a good time and they are just amazing to wander through, totally beutiful. I got some sweet pics that I hope to be able to link to this. I also found out that if you are ever in the mangroove forests and starving you can it tree worms that live in rotted branches, they get rather large, of course we had to taste them and I tried a small one, but a couple of my friends ate some rather larger ones. I didn't really get a solid taste, they were so slimy that it just slid right on down.

It is pretty crazy how quickly i'm adjusting to it over here, it is just an everyday thing for me to jump on a jeepney or trike and go haulin' along dirt roads, many times just packed with more people than you can possible imagine to the middle of knowwhere to attend this thing or that, or to be at the mayors office talking to him about waste disposal and next thing you know i'm in his truck going to some meeting child rights seminar, all with tropical scenire.

The training is getting to be a bit old, big brother and all, along with many things that I find just mind numbing but i hope the tech training, that takes place after my first three months of service is better. The only thing I like is the language, which i wish there was more of, it gets really frusterating at times, but i know I need it more than anything right now.