Usually when I have a title like that it means one of two things… this post is going to be really long because a lot happened, or a post that is really short because I had too good of a time at videoke… well, unfortunately for you, this is going to be both!
The day started off with an hour motorbike ride to the Province of Laoang, the branch I was at for the previous two days. The trip included a stop at one of the centers for Laoang to perform a CGT. I am not sure what CGT stands for, but it is basically an overview of the history of NSCAP/FGP and the various products offered by NSCAP. A CGT is performed for new clients and is used as a teaching tool for the clients to make sure they know what they are getting into, so there are no surprises… on either end. It was the first CGT that I had attended, while it was in Tagalo, there was a cheat sheet that was in English, so I could follow.
After the CGT, Dexter took me another 45 minutes or so to the town of Catubig. Catubig is a bit different than the other Provinces because it is a land-locked province, unlike all of the other provinces I have visited, which have been coastal communities. Due to the geography of the province, the livelihoods (or businesses) of clients were a bit different than those of coastal communities (more on that tomorrow). The day was filled with many exciting adventures (all normal day-to-day operations for NSCAP employees), including a hanging bridge. I don’t know if any of you out there have seen the second Indian Jones and the Temple of Doom (I only saw it once, not as good as the others and I refuse to even admit the newest one as an Indiana Jones), but there is a bridge that goes across a crevasse that is about a 100-foot span with a 100 foot drop… we did that! Except there was water at the bottom of my drop, only about 20 feet to fall first… The loan officers “let” me go first and I was off. When I got to the middle, there were kids that were swaying the bridge back and forth, I could have sworn that I was going to flip over… but I stayed in one piece and my camera lived to fight another day.
After the bridge, we visited some clients and I asked them what they did with their loans and how it has helped them. It was a good experience and I am grateful that the employees took me on the journey. After the hanging bridge, we went to one of the Loan Officer’s house to have halo-halo. Halo-halo is a staple in the Philippines when it is hot out (and it is always hot out). It is a mixture of fruit, what seems to be jello/tapioca, ice, coconut, coconut milk, beans (yes, beans) and corn (yes, I said corn). It is pretty good, but I would prefer a milk shake (no offense to the halo-halo, just my preference).
We got back to the branch and had a rest for a bit, Andy (the Branch Manager) took me out on his cousin’s scooter to show me the area and a bit of the town. It was very nice and I am extremely happy that everyone is so accommodating. I would not be able to see all of the various intricacies Northern Samar has to offer without all of their hospitality. On the “tour” we went to a developing highway that is supposed to be completed soon. It was a Thursday, but for some reason, there was no-one working. There were, however, about 12 very large trucks ready for work, with no operators (you are probably picturing Thomas the Train right now, with the trucks as part people and part machine… it was kind of like that).
At the branch, the power went out and the workers were very worried for me because it was very hot in the branch during a brown out. So, in order to cool off, I sat outside. There were two kids that sat and talked to me for about 45 minutes and tried teaching me Tagalo. One kid, who said he was in sixth grade, was very good at English and we had a complete conversation (as much as you can with a 10 year-old at least). He taught me a few words and he was entertained by me, but not as much as I was entertained as I was… it was a good time. Since it was about six and some of the branch workers needed to get some work done, they completed their work via candlelight, it was quite industrious (a word Andy used)… I told them it was a good way to cut costs at the branch, not to mention morale. We went and had dinner a bit later by candlelight, it was very romantic (me and three guys and a girl).
After dinner, we went back to the branch for a bit and sat around and coversed. I was about five seconds from saying I was ready to go to bed when Andy walked outside, closed and locked the door and said, “Are you ready to go?” I guess so? We ended up going to a client’s house that had videoke (she used the loan to purchase the machine). She was extremely nice and obliged to me even when I wanted to sing. I was a singing fool. The first song I chose was “Country Road” by James Taylor. I thought it was “Country Road” by John Denver, I was very wrong and made a fool of myself. I followed with much more impressive renditions of “Hound Dog”, “Angels” and “Always a Woman”. We had a couple beers (“one-glass” observed).
Two terms I will use going forward... in the same sentence… “Would you like to join me for two-beer and one-glass?”
The power came back on and we all rejoiced.
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