Thursday, March 5th, 2009-“A Full Day for Good Times”

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.

Saturday, February 28th, 2009-“Rain, Rain, Go Away”

Today was a great day (now that I am writing this on Wednesday)!  At the time I may not have had the same sentiments, but time has given me some perspective.  But really, the day was great even when it was happening!  Julian and I received a text from one of the Hina Branch employees that they were thinking of going to the beach that day.  I was worried that I was not going to have the proper attire for the beach, as I still do not have any swim trunks… then I remembered the “proper” beach outing included anything BUT swimming.  So, we saddled up and we went to Duncalen Beach (the same beach that we went to with Mme Juneth).

Did I mention that I drove the motorbike there?  Cause I did.  It was the first true test of my skills.  I drove for about 25 minutes straight and only managed to terrify onlookers a handful of time (joking).  We made it there and we joined, unbeknownst to us, with the Branch Manager of Bobon Branch, Laarni.  This is the person’s birthday party I attended earlier in the week and the beach party was nothing short of the birthday party.  Complete with pancit (local noodle that is eaten during birthdays to promote long life… it also happens to promote the satisfaction of the palate… very delicious and I have it frequently, I have extended my life at least 20 years by the amount of pancit I eat), fish, chicken, rice, deserts and, the staple, San Miguel beer… not to mention great company.  I met Laarni’s uncle, Albert, who was in town for vacation, but was currently working in the Middle East as a chiropractor.  He spoke very good English  and was a pleasure to talk to.

Upon arrival, the Hina Branch pawned us off to Laarni (they did not really pawn us off, they were going to get supplies).  I was then formally introduced to the Filipino tradition of sharing one glass between the group during drinking sessions.  I have not really received the formal reasoning behind this, but I do have my theories.  First of all, I have not received the formal reasoning because I usually start drinking and after a couple, I just don’t care… but one of these days I will get it out of them!  Alright, here is Jon’s ideas of why this occurs, there are many:

1.     The use of one glass keeps the dishes down to a minimum and makes drinking sessions much more enjoyable to clean up… i.e. it would not be a big deal to just throw the cup away.

2.     It puts pressure on the person who is drinking to finish quickly because other people are waiting, causing the drinking time to be significantly enhanced.

3.     It also promotes responsibility between the group, nobody can drink more than their lot… they are given a drink and then it passes to the next person, you cannot take seconds.

4.     Taking your time is not an option (see number 2)

5.     It is a sense of community where you only share one glass, and it really does spark more conversation for some reason, I don’t know why (see previous comment regarding “after having a couple”)

The real reason is probably due to something a bit more dramatic, like symbolizing the passing of the one cup at the last supper or something like that… I will get to the bottom of it (the reason, not the glass) and let you know.

After the drinking session, I decided it was time to swim, in my khaki shorts… so I did.  After going out into the ocean about 50 meters and still with the water only up to my waist, I grew tired and turned around.  It was quite refreshing and I had to swim while I was in the Philippines or I am sure I would get made fun of if this did not occur (getting made fun of is something I am willing to accept, as it occurs daily).

After the beach, we decided that it was time to, what else, go to Video-Cinqo (videoke).  Filipinos call videoke “Video-Cinqo” because it costs five (Cinqo) pesos to play a song.  I am not sure what they will call it when the price goes up, probably just video-cinqo still.  We went to a town that was fairly close, San Jose.  It is the hometown of one of the Hina Branch staff, Albert, so he know his way around.  I had also spent a few days in San Jose, but by no means could navigate… I was still driving (don’t worry, the “drinking session” above included actually two-beer and took place over the span of three hours).  Video-Cinqo was fun and I actually found a couple of songs that I could sing… fairly well… not possible, I know.

We departed San Jose around 11 o’clock and headed back to Catarman (approximately 45 minutes away).  When we left, I noticed the gas-light was on and so I stopped the Loan Officers in front of me (Diana and Donna)… Diana cordially turned the gas-intake valve to the “emergency” stash… little did we know that she “accidentally” turned it to the “off” stash… why this is even an option I do not know… but Julian and I puttered out after about 5 meters… causing me to honk the horn continuously, praying that Donna would turn around and come save us in the middle of the pitch-black highway.  Well, it wasn’t quite pitch-black… we managed to run out of gas right in front of the only house within 100 meters that had a group of about 20 people standing outside, wondering what the h*ll these two foreigners were even doing on their street (just kidding, they didn’t say anything, but they did chuckle a bit at us… I have to admit, even I was laughing… terrified of being left, but laughing nonetheless).  As if our troubles couldn’t have gotten worse, we had more to come…

I could think of a hundred things that would be worse than what happened next, but it was still quite comical and miserable at the same time.  It started pouring down rain as we reached the halfway point.  It was raining so hard that the wallet in my back pocket was drenched by the time we got home (even the money was soaking wet… and, yes, I took my wallet out when I went swimming).  It was quite funny and Julian let me borrow his hat so I could see while I drove, it was a life saver, considering I could not see a thing before he put it on my head.  We arrived back in Catarman drenching wet and, for the first time in the Philippines, I was cold.

Saturday and Sunday, February 20-21, 2009-“I Am Getting Old”

There were the days when a week of travel and different foods would not get me down and I was raring to go for the next adventure, but I am growing accustomed to this “getting older” thing that I hear so much about.  Granted, I still have a lot of energy, but I definitely need the weekends to rest.  It was a very relaxing weekend and I learned a lot about Northern Samar and the history it has in the Philippines.  Paul, the owner of the Coffee Hub, is a bit of a history buff and seems to know a lot about Filipino history and the role America plays in the forming of independence for the Philippines.

As I have stated before, the Philippines were “discovered” by Magellan (even though it was already occupied by the natives) in the early 1500’s.  After this, the Spanish decided to colonize the country and the many islands and introduce the European culture to this part of the world.  Magellan was then killed by Lapu Lapu (the national fish) one of the Filipino national heroes.

After many years of trying to gain independence (I need to probably research this a bit, because there are a lot of eras I am missing), the Philippines gained some sovereignty from the Spanish around World War I.  At this time, it was the United States that had a major hold on the Philippines and Filipinos waged war on the United States to gain their clear independence.  Unfortunately for the Filipinos, the American technology was too much at the time and the Philippines would have to wait to become their own nation.  During World War II the Philippines played a key role in the war between the Americans and the Japanese.  The Philippines were allies with the United States and fought side by side with Americans (just 30 years after the war between the United States and Philippines).  After World War II the Philippines were granted sovereignty and became their own nation.

 As a sign of respect to the role that the United States played in their independence, not to say the respect was needed (as the U.S. did have a war with the Philippines in their own territory), but the 100 peso bill has an American flag on it.  I did not particularly take note of this when I looked at the bill, but Julian pointed it out on his first day here and thought it was strange.  I was happy to find out the answer to why it was there and was proud of our recent history with the Philippines.

NOTE:  Not all of the statements above may not be true facts or the proper timeline, I am just going off of memory here people!  Give me a break!  Just kidding, enjoy!

Sunday, I introduced Julian to “two-beer” for the first time.  It was not the same “two-beer” that I was introduced to, but he is only 18, so we will have to work our way up to the actual two-beer.  It was a good time and Julian is definitely noticing how nice the local population is.  Until next time…

Friday, February 19, 2009-“Is it 200 degrees in Here or is it Just Me?”

Friday morning was a great morning filled with food and Center Meetings and Client visits.  I only attended one Center Meeting, but it was a great one.  Again, I am starting to open up with the clients and am really getting an understanding of what they want out of the program.  I also am appreciative of them being so open and understanding.  Of course, everyone wants more out of services they receive, but there is a related cost to these services.  I tell them that their suggestions are great, but we will have to look at what the costs will be for that added service.  They agree and continue with suggestions and are very polite and equate all services to their personal lives.

At the Center Meeting, it was one of the client’s birthdays, so they had a mini-fiesta for their friend.  They had cokes and pancit (for long life) and they even broke out the tuba for me (it was quite early).  The food was delicious, but I was starting to feel the effects of the crabs the night before.  I fought through it and had a great time at the meeting.  We then went on to visit a client who was in the business of hog fattening.  She was on her first cycle (Php 4,000) and was stating that this was not enough to raise an entire litter of hogs to their maximum potential.  She has to sell off half-fattened pigs at a lesser price in order to cover her costs for raising additional pigs.  This is the dichotomy of the Grameen way.  While they want to give as much as they can to the poor (one side), they do not require collateral, so they don’t want to give too much too soon if a client is unable to pay the larger amount (other side).  This is a struggle that any microcredit organization has, especially one as new as FGP.

After the meeting, I started to feel the sickness coming on, but needed to fight through it until we got back to Catarman, which, I luckily was able to do.  I got Julian and I some more antibiotics and continued back to the Branch where it was approximately 250 degrees… I am not sure I have sweat so much in my life.  One of my friends from the provencial government saw me on the street and said hi, he commented on how much I was sweating, that is pretty bad.  So, I recovered the rest of the day.  It only took me a day to recover this time, maybe I am starting to get used to the food here!  Since I am writing this on Sunday, I can tell you that I am fully recovered now… aside from the 10 pounds I probably lost in the last two days… in due time!

I got back to the Hina Branch to find the Hina Branch Staff doing some Spring-cleaning.  They were trimming their trees and vines and by the time they were done I am not sure they had any vines or trees left, but they did do it!  I got some pictures of them hard at work… I also (since it is my home) grabbed a broom and helped sweep for a bit, I didn’t get any pictures of that, but one of the Loan Officers did… so if you really want proof, I could probably get it for you.

Thursday, February 19th, 2009-“Filipino Energy=7x American Energy”

I have had long days in my existence, days that I probably should have cut in half by sleeping for a few hours or sitting down for five minutes… today was not one of those days.  Julian and I had a great day with the assistance of the FGP employees.  The day began at 5 a.m. with sweet and sour fish and coffee for breakfast.  We needed to take a Jeepney to the town of Allen and then head to Victoria via tricycle… with our travel companion, Am.  It was about an hour and a half ride, which was not short on entertainment.  First of all, the Jeepneys are not meant for people over 5’ 8” and Julian is probably 6’ 2”, so while I am quite uncomfortable in a Jeepney, I could not get over how hunched over Julian was the whole ride.  I will skip to the good stuff, because this is going to be a long post.

We arrived at the Victoria Branch to open arms and, of course, smiles.  They were all very nice people and all stayed at the Branch every night.  One item to note, the atmosphere at NSCAP is one of camaraderie and friendship.  It is almost like the workers were friends’ first and then co-workers second.  They all stay in the same living quarters and see each other every day, all day, and don’t seem to mind it the least... quite spectacular.  They enjoy having guests and at Victoria Branch they scheduled a “day of fun” for Julian and me.  And fun it was.

First, Julian and I boarded a boat that took us to the island of San Antonio.  The boat ride was on the same type of boat that we were on before on the way to Biri Island and was a very pleasant ride.  We arrived at the island and there were many people waiting on shore (not for us, but waiting for something, I would assume).  The tone of the island was a bit different from the rest of Philippines because the people waiting on shore, males, did not have the warm, open look on their faces (but by no means disgustful) that the rest of the Philippines has.  I have a theory why:  First, the island of San Antonio is a resort island and typically the persons that come to the island that are foreigners on vacation.  The foreigners that typically come to the island, I can only assume, do not pay the same respect to the locals that they deserve, but rather just come and spend money and sit on the resorts all day… not meaning to be disrespectful, but some people may take offense to this “invasionism”. 

Like I stated before, San Antonio is a resort town and this was to be where Julian, Bembooy and I were to spend our weekend, at a resort.  I believe I have already stated that I was a bit weary of going to stay at a resort, but my feelings were confirmed right when we stepped onto the resort.  It was extremely nice, don’t get me wrong, but that was part of the problem.  Julian agreed (in a discussion later), that this was not the purpose of our trip.  The resort had a very nice beach and cabanas (air conditioned).  It had a staff waiting on you and all of the amenities that you would expect at a beach resort.  Within about 10 seconds I had made up my mind that maybe this was not the best way to spend one of my weekends trying to alleviate poverty… I do not regret my decision one bit (although it would have been nice to sit on the beach for a bit… but I can do that in Catarman, or anywhere on the island).  I am very happy that the thought of Julian and I staying there was in the plans and appreciate that Mme Juneth wanted us to see a resort while we were here, but in the long run, I think we would have been cheating ourselves if we decided to take the offer.

Next, we went to a Center Meeting and learned the most at a Center Meeting that I had learned yet.  I finally opened up and asked the right questions, such as, “What would you like to see offered by FGP?”  It was extremely rewarding and I learned what the clients of FGP truly want out of the program.  After the meeting, we continued back to the Branch and thought we had the remainder of the day to rest and take it easy… again… wrong.  We got back to the Branch and we had another adventure in store.

Some of the Loan Officers had already returned from their morning meetings and had the day planned for us.  The ringleader, Abba, told me and Julian to get ready because we were going to get some “boku”, or baby coconuts.  I thought that just meant we were going to the market and were going to pick up a couple to eat for the day… you guessed it, I was wrong.

We boarded the tiny boats in the same fashion as we board tricycles and habal-habals (dirt bikes), with way more people than there are seats for.  Abba, who I dubbed in my mind as my Filipino Maria, was our tour guide to the remote residence where we were going to get boku.  For those of you that don’t know Maria, she is a spark plug, full of energy and extremely nice, all of the time, Abba was exactly the same.  She was also about the same size as Maria and had the same look to her… anyways; I thought it was kind of funny.  We got to the remote residence and watched one of the guys climb the coconut tree to claim our prize… he climbed it barefoot and it was very impressive.

We ate baby coconut, which isn’t as sad as I thought it was going to be (if you don’t get it, that was a joke).  The juice of the coconut (or milk) is very good for the kidneys and I had a swig, it was sweet and I can already feel the difference!  There were a couple of kids there that were very interested in the size of Julian and me, but when I would approach one, they would scamper away and then come back when we weren’t looking.  Eventually, they warmed up to me and I gave one of the kids my sunglasses to wear for a bit, it was a highlight.

Post-boku we went back to the branch and prepared for our next endeavor.  We were going to a client’s site to see what they were using their loan for (a standard process for new loans).  This client had a fish and crab farm, which she used the loan to purchase baby crabs to put into the farm.  It sounded very exciting and, as they say, half of the excitement is getting there!  Whoever “they” are, they are typically correct.  We boarded a tricycle (a motorcycle with a side car) to get to San Isidro. 

Did I mention that the entire Branch (and then some) went to the meeting?  I don’t think I did.  We fit 10 people onto the tricycle (which “comfortably” seats 3).  We had three people in the sidecar, three people on the back seat of the motorbike (not including the driver), two people on top of the sidecar and one person hanging of the back.  It was impressive to say the least.  When we arrived at San Isidro, I asked one of the Loan Officers if that was some sort of record (it had to be!), he hesitated to answer and then pointed at a tricycle and said, “No”.  The tricycle heading towards us was filled with school children.  Based on my estimate, there had to be at least 13 people on the tricycle.  There were three children on top and two children hanging off of the back, three on the back seat, the driver and at least four in the sidecar… I was no longer impressed with our feat, but wanted to recruit four more people to our efforts just to say we held the record… we had bigger fish to fry though.

We arrived at the entrance of the client’s business to see my worst nightmare.  There was a pen of about eight roosters all lined up next to eachother (I definitely got a picture).  As near as I can tell, roosters pretty much feed off of eachother.  When one crows, another crows to show off for the hens.  So, since these roosters were in such close proximity of each other, I could hardly imagine that they were doing a “round” every morning to wake up the locals.  I kept my distance and prayed for sweet dreams that night.

We went to the client’s business via a bamboo raft.  The bamboo raft was one of those rafts that you might see Huckleberry Finn riding on.  There were no seats however, and you had to stand while the driver pushed a long bamboo stick into the ground to propel us.  It was a balancing act and, since Julian and I had cameras in our pockets, was a bit nerve-wracking.  I gained my steady and actually had enough balance (which, if you know me, is quite impressive that I had any) to become the assistant driver.  Once we reached the other side of the “pond” and we trekked along man-made “dams” between the river and the fish farms.  The dams are about three feet wide and three feet above the water with random palm trees that have to be maneuvered during the trek.  This walk was at least a kilometer and half, but was well worth it.  At the end we got to watch the client’s husband fish for crabs and one of the client’s children took a liking to my camera and me.  I would like to say it was just me, but I think he was definitely more intrigued by my camera.  He wanted me to take a picture of everything… so many pictures that my battery died halfway through the journey, but I still got a lot of pictures.  On the way back, the kid tried to teach me some tagalo, but I am not sure that I retained any of it.  I humored him and repeated everything that he said, I think he enjoyed it and it took my mind off of potentially falling into the river.

The next part of the journey was back to the Branch for a rest, so I thought.  There had been mention of going to the beach, but since it was dark at this point, I was pretty sure that we weren’t going to the beach (I gotta stop doing that… thinking).  We arrived back at the branch and within 5 minutes the Loan Officers and Branch Manager were ready to go again… to the beach!  It was another 10-person tricycle ride to Buenos Aires to a “resort-type” beach.  I am not sure it was actually a resort, but there were very nice cabanas and lights on the beach, so I think it was.  The experience and scenery were breathtaking to say the least.  We got into the water and, even in the dark, I could see the bottom of the ocean.  I floated on my back and could see hundreds of stars in the sky.  It was an experience unlike any other.  I tried to take a picture of the stars, but the aperture of my camera is not as adjustable as some (allowing you to take very good night time pictures).  This is a memory that I will take with me for a long, long time.

At the beach we played some games and Julian introduced us to a game that I still have no idea who is the winner… I can’t explain.  Also, something to note, I am not sure the consistency of this, but the majority of the Loan Officers could not swim, so they stayed relatively close to the shore.  Julian made a comment that it is ironic that I am about 2,000 kilometers from the nearest ocean and I know how to swim, but they are an island nation and the majority of them don’t know how to swim.  I am not sure why this is the case, maybe it is because the water is so salty and buoyant that it would be near-impossible to drown if you were paying attention (knock on wood).

We went back to the Branch and had a bucket shower and changed into some dry clothes.  We also had some crabs for dinner and Julian ended up getting sick (like I was the first week I was here) and I was short to follow the next day.  I am not sure if it was the crab that made us sick, but whatever it was, it did not feel good… more on that later.  It was a great day and I was looking forward to what Friday had in store!

Wednesday, February 18th, 2009-“Cooking In the Philippines… Check”

Wednesday was a fairly uneventful day, I did not go to any center meetings and I did a lot of work, but I did aid in the completion of dinner!  I was in charge of cooking the fish (fish is called “isda”, but the name of the fish was Lapu Lapu, the famous guy that killed Magellan)!  It was very good and the girl that was in charge of making dinner made it into sweet and sour fish.  It was very good and I have pictures to prove that I did something.  Other than that, there was not a whole lot going on during my Wednesday… we ate and talked.

It was a very good dinner, but, unfortunately, Julian was still feeling the effects of not sleeping for two days and he retired early.  At dinner, the Lavezares Branch Staff continued to probe me with questions and ask me about various parts regarding my culture, including if we had anything that was similar to a “fiesta” in the United States.  Here, a Fiesta is a gathering of the entire municipality to celebrate for a week.  The timing of the Fiesta is the same week as their respective municipality’s patron saint (which I am not sure how this is determined).  There are 24 provinces in Northern Samar, so there are quite a few parties that happen in a year!  Just to give you an idea of the structure of the country and the similarities to the U.S.

Philippines            United States

Country            Country

Province            State

Municipality            County

Barangay            City/Town/Village

 

So, Fiesta Time equals Party Time, no doubt about it.  The most equivalent event I could think of was that of a County Fair (at least in the Midwest).  The more notable differences between a Fiesta and a Country Fair is that EVERYONE attends a Fiesta and only a select amount of the population attends County Fairs.  Since the distance is much greater for the areas between towns in the U.S. it is much less likely for someone to make a trip to a County Fair.

The staff told me of the various aspects of a Fiesta, which is a weeklong event to celebrate their patron saint.  There are many mini-fiestas within the Fiesta that are parties at familial houses.  This can include lechon (roasted pig), fish, fruits, baked goods and much song and dance, but more importantly, catching up with family and friends (which seems to happen frequently here).  There are parades and the streets are full of people and excitement.  Since fiesta-time is such a big deal, there is much preparation and expense involved with the festivities.

Every family in the municipality feels obligated to throw a mini-fiesta for their family.  This can come as a great burden for the family and can be a cause of concern for FGP/NSCAP and clients.  In order to properly mitigate the use of funds for fiestas (much against the 10 decisions), NSCAP does not loan to persons in that district for a few weeks prior to and after the respective Fiesta date.  In addition, there are many other concerns for staff including: trying to collect payments during fiesta (they try to collect the week before or after), invitations to fiestas (up to the staff member to accept or not, but typically don’t), safety during fiesta time (bank workers mush be back to the Branch by no later than 12), etc.  The staff workers spoke very highly of the Fiestas and they told me to be careful about attending one (if I did), as I am obviously not part of the barangay and people are very protective of their traditions, but if you are good friends with a person that invited you, then it would be okay and you should have a great time.

It was a great cultural lesson and I look forward to learning much more!  In addition, one of the Loan Officers (Kristel) proceeded to beat me handily again at that card game she taught me the previous night, not very nice of her, but it was fun.  Julian and I are off to Victoria Branch tomorrow morning and I am looking forward to another Branch visit, but have had a great time in Lavazares.  I wish I could spend a week at each Branch, but time does not allow.

Tuesday, February 17th, 2009-“Truly a Day to Remember and an Item I Forgot”

Mme Juneth escorted Julian and me to the province Lavezares, and the Branch that is located in the province.  We arrived at 8:30 to a smiling staff and “sweet-potatoque”… yes it is as good as it sounds and especially good for breakfast.  It is essentially a sweet potato (although not a sweet potato) quartered and then covered in a brown sugar glaze… then grilled… it is fantastic.  Needless to say, the day started off great.  After some discussions about micro-finance and the region (which I will discuss in a different post), Julian and I, along with the Branch Manager (Am) and Loan Officer (Fe), were off to the Biri Islands…. And a very popular site called “the Rock Formations” (I am not sure the actual name, but that is all the locals have called it).

The Lavezares branch is located approximately 50 meters from the boat taxi station so we walked to the dock to arrive at our boat.  The boat taxis, called “Island Express”, are about 10 meters long (or as long as a palm tree, because that is what they are made of) and a meter and a half wide.  They are a bit like a catamaran because they have buoy-type “skis” that extend out to the outside of the boat to ensure the boat won’t tip over.  They have an inboard motor and it does not lack in noise.  In order to get onto the boat you must balance on the bow of the boat for about one meter and the area is no wider than three-times the width of my foot.  You may be thinking this isn’t very far, but when you have your phone and camera in your pocket and the boat is bobbing up and down, you may have nerves kick in a bit.  I felt even more like a weenie when the crew-members, somehow, got a motorbike onto the boat with no problem at all…  it was impressive.

The boat ride to the island was extremely scenic and loud, but more scenic.  There were islands and palm trees everywhere.  I tried to take multiple pictures, but when I turned on my camera I had realized my battery light was flashing at me (an item I forgot).  I was quite mad at myself, but I figured I wouldn’t let this ruin my trip.  Plus, I was not too worried because the Branch Manager, Am, had a camera and Julian had a camera.  So, even though I wished I had mine, I figured everything was going to be okay.  On our way to Biri, about an hour boat ride, Am told me that they went to these Center Meetings (as they do every week) in January and the waves on the ocean were three times as high as the boat.  I am pretty adventurous, but I was hoping this was not the case for our trip.  The sea was calm that day and we were fine, so I just sat back, relaxed and took it all in.  One item to note, as many pictures as I can take and as much as I can describe this place (all of the Philippines), it can not even hold a candle to how beautiful everything is, or how nice the people are in person.  It is simply amazing how green and plush everything is, everywhere.  The water is a clean blue that you would only see in a painting (and you wouldn’t even believe it was real in a painting) and the hillsides are covered in palm trees and tropical greenery.

There were also some other items to see on the boat ride, like other people and a statue that looked like it was a statue of Mary helping Jesus out of the ocean.  It was impressive and looked to be a tribute to keep travelers safe in passage and a sign of respect to Jesus (again, it did not surprise me that there was a statue of this, as the culture is very religious).  I was surprised, however, to see this nearly a kilometer away from the nearest shoreline, just another surprise in how dedicated to faith Filipinos are. 

The people we saw were mainly on the docks when we would arrive at the different ports.  The first group we saw were about 10 kids jumping off of the dock into the water.  They all kind of looked our way (not knowing who was on the boat, nor did they care) and then sprinted to the other end of the dock.  They then turned around and sprinted to the water-end of the dock and did canon balls and dove into the water, waving their hands about in a manner that only kids do.  When the boat arrived, the kids dangled off of the sides of the buoys and climbed on board, just to inspect the oncoming goods (various feeds, snacks, vegetables, water, and a motorbike).  Once they were finished, the boat pulled away and the kids stayed on until they jumped off and swam back to the dock… I was entertained to say the least.

We went to three Center Meetings in Biri, all of which we travelled to by boat, and all of which I will describe in a later post.  It was quite an experience and we got a taste of a true island nation.  After our second Center Meeting, we went to the Biri “Rock Formations”.  The rock formations are situated in a remote part of one of the islands and are only accessible by dirt bike.  Our driver was extremely talkative and very nice.  He was also very good and, with me and Julian as passengers, did numerous fishtails and traversed through muddy waters and even the beach.  We stopped at the end of the beach and we could see the rock formations, I assumed we were just going to take a look from there, but (darn it, I am always thinking) Am immediately told me to take my shoes off and get in the water.  I took my shoes off and got in the water, then, our driver, gave me his sandals and said that I would need them… we walked to the rock formations, wading in knee-deep water.  I was not prepared for that, but we did it anyway and it was a great time.  Like I said before, pictures cannot do anything here justice, the same held true for this instance.  Julian and Am took a lot of pictures, but now that I have the pictures on my computer, it just isn’t the same.  I will post some so you all can see them!

At the rock formations, the rocks were very slippery and first I ate it (fell down) and then Julian slipped and fell, twice.  I commented to Am, “stupid foreigners” making fun of myself and Julian.  Both of us are fine, but our pride is tarnished.  After the rock formation we got back on the dirt-bikes and headed back to the town proper.  We arrived at the next center meeting (our final one) and I gave our driver my mailing address.  He was a very nice guy and invited Julian and me into his home before the Center Meeting for some water.  His home was very nice and I enjoyed his company. 

On our way to the final Center Meeting there was a basketball court with a few local young men playing basketball.  I was feeling risky after my endeavors at the Rock Formations, so I spotted up for a 12-foot jump shot (jumping is not my strong suit), one of the guys passed me the ball and I nailed it!  So, currently, I am 100% from the field while in the Philippines.  That was the first time I have shot a basketball in about 3 months, but I plan on playing a lot more when we get back to Catarman… maybe I should just try to stay at 100%?  Nah, I won’t.

Upon returning to the Branch, in which we arrived at 5:30, we sat down and Julian and I talked about various social and popular issues for a moment.  I was starting to tire, but could only imagine how tired Julian was.  We ate dinner and Julian retired.  I stayed up and talked with the Loan Officers.  All of them were very nice and spoke very good English.  We discussed various issues including Barack Obama and his policies and the differences between Republicans and Democrats.  We also talked about Missouri a bit and the “wealth” of the United States (more on that in a bit).  One of the loan officers, Christine, had heard that I was coming to the branch and Sir Bembooy told her I was from Missouri (which I was surprised he remembered).  She surprised me when she asked, “You are from Missouri, right?... and the Capital is Jefferson City?”  Wow.

The rest of the night was spent playing a new card game that I learned from one of the other loan officers, Kristel.  I think it was called “I win”, but I am not sure… just kidding.  It was fun and I have had a great time at the Branch so far.  One of the most enjoyable parts is my new “nickname”.  It is only a “nickname” (in quotes) because it is a term that everyone uses for their older brother (everyone is a brother or sister), and since I outdate most everyone here by a few years, they call me by “kooyah”.  It is endearing that they call me this, I feel like the culture is growing more and more on me everyday, with every little part added each day.

Monday, February 15th, 2009-“Jon Scares Grameen Employees… and the new Intern Arrives”

Hello everyone, today was a pretty uneventful day, other than me striking fear into the hearts of the NSCAP employees and the new Intern arriving.  First things first.  I had mentioned that I had done a cost analysis, well the cost analysis that I preformed was based on a program that Grameen offers.  Without getting into details, in about 10 years this program could be costing NSCAP a lot of money (based on some assumptions, obviously).  The Grameen employees told me later that this scared them, much in line with any work I have done in the United States.  It was a good day and I think they liked the discussion we had, but there is still some discussion that needs to be made and some conclusions to be reached (as I said before, we have some time to work with, but the sooner the better).

Before I left everyone’s heart palpitating, I met the new intern with Grameen, Julian.  He is from Australia and is 18 years old.  He just finished his high school education and was going on to try to attend university in the United States… pending acceptance.  He is extremely smart, but also extremely tired.  He had stayed in the Manila Airport Hotel and agreed with me that he would have been better off just staying in the airport itself, because he didn’t get a wink of sleep.  He has been up for two days straight and, even at 18 that can wear on someone.  He definitely has energy about learning micro-finance and offering various insights into the program.  He has read quite a bit about micro-finance and I look forward to learning from him, and hope I can teach him a few things… but, as he is probably smarter than me, that may be minimal.

Julian and I attended my favorite local hot-spot and conversed about many things, including the intricacies of cricket.  As I may have mentioned, I watch cricket quite a bit on the TV, but didn’t really know the rules.  I was enlightened.  All in all a good day, but I can’t wait for tomorrow when we make the trek to Lavezares and the islands of Biri… more to come!

Sunday, February 15, 2009-“Day of Rest…?”

Well, the day started off normal… double Yum and fries at Jollibee… but ended very differently.  I was sitting in my office at Hina and minding my own business, getting some work done… and Sir Vivencio comes knocking at my door.  He asked me if I wanted to enjoy a drink with him and Bembooy?  I happily abliged but went to church first, of course.

We had a local Brandy at Bembooy’s mother’s restaurant and I thought the night was over… I should stop thinking for the remainder of my trip (when I am not at work, of course).  I thought I had the Filipino culture down, at least the drinking… Go out for two-beer and have an appetizer… well, I was introduced to six-beer!  Yeah, I said it… six-beer!  You get six beers (or three two-beers) and an appetizer for 280 pesos (or about $6)… it is phenomenal.  They didn’t have the calamaris so we had to get the pig intestine again… it was fantastic.  Some of my fellow co-workers joined me and Vivencio at the bar (Bembooy was grounded) and we proceeded to stay out until Richard crowed… that is my equivalent of “till the cows come home”… and kind of rythmes.

It was a rather fun evening even though there was no videoke (now I am asking for it!).  I had to present my cost analysis on Monday, so it was a bit rough, but it was worth it and I had a good time.

Also, to note, today was the first day the it hasn’t rained since I have been here… I kind of hope it rains again… it was about 95 degrees with humidity… I was sweating quite a bit (more than my typical).

Saturday, February 14, 2009-“Valentine’s Schmalentine’s”

Well, the day started off great!  I slept in (until 6) and decided today was the day that I was going to get a lot of work done… well, I did… then I got sick again… but am okay now.  Since the day had really nothing to note, I will comment on some of the other things that I have been meaning to get to in prior posts.

Tv-More of the Usual, with a Philippino Twist

Soap Oprahs here are the same as in the United States.  There are long dramatic pauses after something “monumental” happens.  Riddle me this:  If it is so monumental to stop the show and play climatic music, then why does it happen every 10 minutes?  If it is monumental, then it probably doesn’t happen that much… but it does on TV.

Of the 20 channels I get, four are American movie channels (I should say movie, because they don’t all play American movies, I am watching Wayne’s World right now however).  Six are music channels, including an “audio only” channel.  It is great to hear David Cook on four-second delay also.  Just kidding, I love how music is a central part of their culture, it seems to make people happy all the time… side note: there is NO Nickelback or Slipknot here, which I am very thankful for… so no hate music, so that is a major plus.

There are a few channels that always play basketball, local and NBA.  It is either basketball or sport fishing for sports.  Other than there is one channel that constantly has India vs. Sri Lanka in cricket… I think I have watched it 20 times already and still have no idea what is going on.

There are American sitcoms and Filipino sitcoms; they have Deal or No Deal and Pinoy Fear Factor.  The do have this one game show that, whether the name is this or not I don’t care, is called “Hip, Hip, Hooray”… I don’t care because that is the whole game… it is very entertaining.  One person says “Hip, Hip” and then they move the microphone to the next person and they have to say “Hooray” (with hand gestures).  There is not method to the madness, but there are about 20 people that start the game and only one winner… I am anticipating Brett’s would take this country by storm (I shall try to introduce it at my next two-beer).

To round out the viewing pleasure are about 5 channels that are Christian stations.  If I haven’t already heard (bird is the word), the Philippines is 90% Christian, and they are active practitioners.  I was at church and the whole mass was full of people (about 1,000 people).  So, it is no surprise that a major percentage of their television stations are Christian stations.  I watch them sometimes, one is a Christian Music station by the way (blending the two most popular things in the Philippines), when I am working… but usually watch the Die Hard Quadrilogy which is on frequently.

So, that was my day… pretty eventful… naaaat!

Friday, February 13, 2009-“Testing the Limits of Friday the 13th”

The day started off with a poor twist.  I closed the door behind me at Hina Branch and realized I didn’t have my keys so I was locked out.  I knew it was only a matter of time before this happened.  I always have about 40 pesos in my pocket (which are change) so I always think that I have my keys… and I usually check before closing the door, but today was the first day I hadn’t.  So, I had to text some co-workers to come let me into the branch.  The morning, other than that, was pretty eventful, I had caribou (water buffalo) for breakfast, with rice.  I rode in a Jeepney again to San Jose (which is a gorgeous place).  And we rode in a “haka-haka” (I am not sure that is the name, so if someone from here could correct me that would be great!).

The “haka-haka” is a dirt bike that has an extended seat so you can have more than one passenger.  In our case, there were three passengers on the dirt bike, and the driver!  It was a typical motorbike ride for the first few minutes… then it got interesting… the road ended.  I thought that this meant that we were arrived at the center meeting… assumptions are killing me here.  We ended up going through the mud road for about 20 minutes and occasionally exiting the dirt bike so the driver could get unstuck and we would walk to the next “dry area” and get back on and we would proceed until we got stuck again.

Until this point, I had seen these dirt bikes all over the place and wondered why the drivers were all wearing galoshes while riding the bike.  These questions were answered rather quickly when, on the first “dump” of the passengers, I ended up with mud halfway up my pant leg.  It was quite fun and I hope I get to do it again while I am here.  I have video of it and am not sure if I can post it on here, but I will try.  We arrived at the center meeting to a group of women and a few children.

At the meeting, the women were all rice farmers or sari-sari store owners… or both.  In addition to these businesses, some women were hog-fatteners.  This became apparent as soon as we arrived.  A pig, who was not having a good Friday the 13^th, was squeeling and trying to shake loose from the three men who were holding it down.  I will spare you the details, but it was quite a welcome at the meeting… I got a few pictures… I will not post those.  The women were some of the best clients for Grameen and all were present and paid their loans.  They were all very nice and I enjoyed their company.

The children that were there were the three cutest kids I have seen since being in Northern Samar, and all of the kids are pretty flipping cute.  One of them, who I dubbed as the cutest, I tried to get a picture of him (I did get one), ran from me as soon as I made eye contact with him and then hid behind his mother the entire time during the center meeting.  He would poke his head out and make eye contact with me again and then hide again, as if to play peek-a-boo.  I am keeping up my reputation for scaring small children… even across the globe.

The rest of the day consisted of eating, working and raining.  I did go out with a friend from the Provencial Government and enjoyed some barbeque, beer and singing.  This was not videoke, it was the real deal.  I got on stage and sang to the crowd, who was very involved with making me a better singer, because anything helps.  I sang “Leaving on a Jet Plane” (again) and “Country Road”… I enjoyed “Country Road” much more because I could really get into it and I have sang “Jet Plane” four times since being here… I freeze up when people ask me what I want to sing and I choke and say…”Leaving on a Jet Plane!”  I will do some research and find some songs that I would enjoy singing… and I will take suggestions!

Thursday, February 12, 2009-“I Celebrate Stephen’s (my brother) Birthday in Style… Among Other Things”

First off, this post is going to be long, I am stating that now, because today was just a full day… and I am not even done with it!... yet.  Well, if you may or may not know, which I would assume the majority of you reading this already know, but today is my brother’s birthday… very exciting… especially if I was in Sydney, but I am not so I celebrate without him anyways.  I went to the local liquor store and purchased a bottle of the finest they had… Johnny Walker Black and am having some currently (another reason why this post may be a little long).  Additionally, yesterday was my pal Bembooy’s birthday, I told him he was in good company.  Or maybe my brother is in good company, the latter is probably more accurate.  So, tonight Bembooy (pending his wife’s approval) and I are going to have two beer and I am going to introduce him to American whisky… or Scotch.  Before I get to that, however, I have to tell you about my day… very exciting.

With cock fighting, motor bike riding, videoke singing and having two-beer it is hard to believe that the people of Northern Samar have time to have more kicks… but they do.  It is called bus-riding.  A bus here is called a Jeepney (I will include a picture at some point), but it is just a Jeep front with a bus back.  You may say, “what fun is this?”  I can answer.  First of all, the bus is loaded to the gills, then, if you are so daring, they overflow the bus.  People are crawling all over the outside of the bus like ants, really big ants.  They are on top of the bus, they are hanging from the back and the sides, it is very impressive.  The last equation to this “Jeepney Riding”, which I equate to volcano leuging (spelling?), would be that the bus does not stop.  It slows down, but does not stop for experienced riders.  Luckily for me, they stoped and I was able to board the bus and have a seat inside.  The operators of the bus are the bus driver and the token collector.  The token collector reminded me of those train operators you see in the movies that hangs off the side and checks up and down the track while people board at the last second.  Except this train operator hangs off of the back of the Jeepney with one arm.

Other than that, the day was a typical day (later in this post I will discuss about my night of debauchery with the fellas).  I went to a center meeting with some of the people of the San Jose Branch.  It was very interesting and my first experience with a disgruntled customer (I couldn’t understand what she was saying, but I could tell she was perturbed about something).  We also had a spectacular view from the top of the San Jose Branch.  San Jose is a very small town, probably half of the size of Catarman, but it has a very proper looking “main” street.  It had buildings up and down the street that were about two stories high and it reminded me of New Orleans’ French Quarter (ironic that the Philippines was mainly developed by Spanish).  I learned a lot about the branch and what types of issues and successes they have had over the past year.  I look forward to tomorrow and going to another center meeting, as well as riding in another Jeepney!

Also, on my way to getting water, I was greeted by approximately 20 little kids who I had met a few days prior.  These were different kids than the “peso” kids, but they were just as enthusiastic.  When I had met them, they just said, “Hello, what’s your name?” and I responded, “Jon”; a frenzy again.  Then today, when I was walking on the street, they all gathered around me and yelled, “Hi Jon! Hi Jon!”  I asked how they were in tagalo and they laughed and responded, “Good.”  They could probably tell I was still learning.  It was a treat and I appreciated that they remembered my name.

Well, the night wasn’t like previous nights out in Catarman.  I actually got home at a reasonable time.  I did take over the bottle of Johnny Walker to Bembooy’s mother’s restaurant.  I met one of Bembooy’s long-time friends, Noah, who worked as a salesman for Nestle Corporation.  He was happy to join us for a few drinks, but admitted he had to work the next day, so Bembooy and I finished out the night… and the bottle.  I met Bembooy’s mother and family, very nice people and I will visit her restaurant again!

Wednesday, February 11, 2009-"I Blush"

Today has been much of the same.  I went to a Center Meeting this morning and was, again, greeted with open arms.  It is funny to visit different centers because they all have their own personalities.  For instance, today was much different than yesterday.  Yesterday, all of the woman would ask me questions yesterday.  Today, they all said they were very shy and did not want to ask questions.  They were shy?!  I didn’t notice, but I am extremely shy when it comes to center meetings.  While they are all very nice, I would rather them open up to me than me ask, what may be, intruding questions.  However, one thing is very consistent at every meeting… they all ask me within the first two questions if I am single.  I smile and am flattered, but happily answer that I am, but am committed.  The look of disappointment is widespread (just kidding).

I did get a lot of work done, and plan on posting more about the center meetings and the various people I have met, but right now I really have to think about going to bed.  It has been a long week and I have much more to come.  I hope all is well with everyone.  Email me or comment if you get a chance!

Tuesday, February 10, 2009-“Scooter Riding does not equal Motorcycle Riding”

In my days, I have encountered some pretty intense and uncomfortable situations.  I have (not to toot my horn, but…) skydived, cliff jumped, spalunked, driven a motorcycle and driven in Ireland, but I am not sure I was prepared for this.  Motorbiking!  I don’t think that I would have been so bad initially at it if it weren’t different from a motorcycle, but, much to my dismay, it is.  There is no clutch and the gears (which are on the same side as a motorcycle, luckily) work a bit differently.  The starter is a kick-starter and the wheels (most importantly) are about 2 inches wide (not the most stable, kind of like an oversized mountain-bike tire).  Also, when driving a motorbike, honking is much like breathing… at least it occurs as often.  Now, I ride a bike quite a bit and I ride a motorcycle quite a bit, but NEVER combine the two… that, in combination of the driving “rules” in the Philippines, could have equaled disaster.  Did I mention that I had a passenger too?  Well, I did, and I have never had a passenger on my motorcycle before, the person didn’t know that at the time, but I informed her later… she was surprised to be alive… just kidding.

It was a bit, we’ll say, sketchy at first, but after about 5 minutes I got the hang of it… and it was smooth sailing.  Now that I was used to driving the motorbike, why not really test my skills and start drinking?  Cause that is what we did next, at 10:30 in the morning.  Since arriving in the Philippines, in Manila, I had been introduced to many types of alcohol… actually only San Miguel, but was interested in finding out what the locals drank… turns out it’s San Miguel.  When they run out of San Miguel, they drink their native alcohol called “tuba”.  I had heard of this tuba and thought it was strange that a culture so enamered with pop-culture music would enjoy the tuba (instrument) so much.  Again (9-year-old birthday), I was way off.  Tuba is a locally processed drink that involves the fermenting of coconut milk (which is rather abundant here).  While fermenting the milk they put some of the husk of the coconut tree into the milk, givin it a reddish color.

Seeing that the tuba was a red color, my brain immediately associated it with a cranberry juice taste (again, in my mind I was thinking that is what it was going to taste like).  Also, in my mind, I was thinking that this was going to taste a lot like coconut milk, with a sweet and smooth taste.  I should stop assuming anything while in the Philippines, or just think the exact opposite.  The tuba tasted kind of like a cranberry juice with a majority of vodka in it.  Mme Juneth later told me that she drinks tuba sometimes, but she mixes it with Coca-Cola… I could see why.  It was pretty good, but I am not sure I could drink a gallon of it (tuba comes in three sizes… gallon, three gallons and six gallons).  I joked with the vendor (who is a NSCAP client) that I was going to buy one six-gallon container and work would be easier.

One thing I forgot to mention was that I visited another branch today, Bobon Branch.  It was very nice and the staff are just as cordial as anyone else in NSCAP.  I also went to Center Meetings and, again, was welcomed with open arms and took a lot of pictures.  On the way to one of the meetings, I saw one of the cousins of Mme Juneth, who I had met at the beach, I waived and said hello, he waived back with a big smile.  I was on a motorbike (passenger) so I couldn’t stop, but it was nice to see him.

The Bobon Branch residence is very nice as well and I think that I am going to stay there in a couple of days while visiting another branch.  We had some very good food for lunch and I had my first banana since I have been here.  Jeffrey, a loan officer, informed me that they are the largest exporter of bananas in the world… I smiled and thought to myself “well this one won’t be exported”… I devoured it.

Monday, February 9, 2009-Is That Rain or a Waterfall?

Monday has been eventful thus far.  I woke up to constant rain, it stopped for about two hours (luckily, that was the time I was touring clients houses) and now it is just a constant down pour.  I went to the Jollibee for lunch and as I was walking to the Internet cafe, approximately 100 meters, and it started a torrential down pour.  When it really started coming down, I was in front of a pig-feed and rooster-feed store.  I hid under the overhang so I would not experience swimming home.  Once I stuck my head underneath the overhang, the owner told me to come all the way inside of the store (about 15 feet by 10 feet).  I stepped inside and he immediately offered me a chair (there were only two in the store) and some lunch.  We started talking for a bit and he told me that he enjoyed cock-fighting and it would never be allowed in the U.S. due to the cruelty of animals... I noticed.  Cock-fighting is televised on one of the stations and I watch it sometimes.  It is pretty brutal, but not as bad as I thought it would be.  Some of the roosters have the act of playing dead down pat.  So, when the rooster is "done" fighting, the "judge" picks up both roosters and drops them simultaneously on the ground.  Before the judge touches the roosters, they are both lively and spritely, but for some reason when he drops them, one, or even both roosters fall to the ground like a back of rocks.  Then the rooster returns to it's owner and the rooster begins picking fights with the other roosters, even though he may have lost... very pesky animals... especially at 4 in the morning... I am sure I will be revisiting this subject multiple times over the next few weeks.  I am actually surprised that it took this long to get to my first breach.

 

Once the rain settled to a "gentle pour", I walked to the Internet cafe, my shoes still got completely soaked.  The rest of the day consisted of working and catching up on some emails... I won't bore you with the details... unless I already have.

 

Again, thank you for reading my blog!  I just wanted to let you all know that it means a lot to get comments on the posts!  Even though I include a lot in the blog, there is still so much that I would love to discuss with everyone when I get back, or if you are reading this and you are in the Philippines, I can discuss with you now!

Sunday, February 8, 2009-There is a Reason I Don't Sing... at the Beach?

I was invited to attend the Beach with Mme Juneth and Sir June at the previous Fiesta... an offer I happly accepted.  Bembooy was still in the Dog House (see previous post).  I was under the impression we were going to the beach and it was like going to the beach in San Diego.  You get there, you lie out a blanket, you jump in the water for a little bit, you read, you relax... again, like the gift for the nine-year-old, I was way off.  I brought a book... I didn't need a book.  I was worried about not having swim trunks... I didn't need swim trunks.  I ate before we left... I didn't need to eat.  I didn't warm up my singing voice before arriving at the beach... I need to sing "Mommy Made Me Mash My M&M's".  I should have expected it, I should have used some deductive reasoning, I should have... but didn't.  They had Videoke at the beach!  Not only that, but it was the center of attention.  Not only that, but their entire family was there!  There were approximately 30 people related to one-another that made the trek to the beach... it was fantastic.

 

About 20 minutes into the party, I already had a beer in hand and was "threatened" by Mme Juneth.  "If you don't sing videoke, we won't give you a ride home."  I know she was only joking, but I did need an excuse.  For my first song... "Hound Dog" by Elvis for my pops... I sang with the accent and everything.  Sir June's uncle was enjoying it, so I even did the hip-shake...  I rounded out my selections by singing "Leaving on a Jet Plane" for Haley and "All out of Love" originally performed by Air Supply for Andy and Jenny and my college roommates who watched Van Wilder with me at least 56 times Junior year (Robert, Megan, Mike, and What's the Deihl with Ryan Deihl).

 

The fiesta included many of the same treats as the night before, but more beer for me and less brandy... at the beach.  I took a walk along the coast and got some pretty good pictures.  It was a bit cloudy and, of course, rainy, but it was fun nonetheless.  I was able to speak with lot of the family members of Sir June (his side of the family is from Northern Samar and Mme Juneth's family is from a different island and unable to attend).  They were all extremely nice and entertaining.  They were already planning my next trip here and offering for me to stay with them and have dinner with them.  Much in line with everyone I have met so far, the family member's of acquaintences are even more hospitable than strangers (even though strangers are also hospitable).

 

I declined on getting into the ocean, but will do so before I leave.  The party was next to a hotel beach resort and was very nice (both the resort and the venue we had the fiesta).  One of these weekends I may have to visit a couple of the beach resorts.  It seems out of line with my trip, but I figure I might as well do it once to have a relaxing weekend without Richard waking me up every morning... but we shall see.

Saturday, February 7, 2009-Party Time, Excellent!

Last week I had spoken of a Fiesta that I was going to attend for the daughter's birthday of the President of NSCAP.  Let me tell you about a little thing called "due-dilligence".  First of all, I was a bit caught off-guard by being invited to the party in the first place.  So, I was a little absent-minded in the first place.  Second, when the father of the children was spouting off ages of the children he was going through their ages (16, 14, 9 and 7).  I was under the impression that the girl's birthday was for her 9th birthday... I was waaay off.  She was the one turning 16.  This would have not been a problem if I was to just show up to the party and have a good time (which I did anyways), but I brought a gift... for a 9-year-old.  It is a good thing that I am clueless about gifts becuase it turns out what I got was pretty universal (although maybe more geared to a 9-year-old), a diary and some colored pencils.  So, you could say that I was making an impression!  This is why I retired from auditing... not really, but still funny.

 

The party was very fun and I made multiple observations regarding the party (or Fiesta).  Fiestas here are very similar to fiestas for people of Hispanic cultures.  The entire family is invited and the honored guests are always the eldest of the party.  The party cannot start without them being there.  There is food everywhere, including, but not limited to, Lechon (a whole, and I mean whole, roasted pig), noodles, rice, sweet pork, fried chicken, sweet potatoes, shrimp, crab, etc.  It was a feast at a fiesta.  I had my lot of food and then had more.  It was fantastic food and the company was very nice.  I know that it can be tough for people of different origins and languages to converse and find things to talk about, but the people of Catarman and NSCAP have been very nice.  One of the relatives of Juneth and Sir June (President and Husband of the President) had spent substantial time in Australia and Amsterdam studying so he was quite fluent in English.  He and Bembooy kept me company for the party as well as frequent appearances from Mme Juneth and Sir June.  Another thing to note was the responsibility of the hosts. 

 

The hosts of the party are very involved with everything.  They ensure that everyone is having enough to eat and conversing and, more importantly, drinking enough.  The hosts (at least in this case) are of the utmost hospitality and courtesy.  It is the same in the U.S., but here it is done with much more care. 

 

One thing that must be mentioned is that Bembooy, who had stayed out with me earlier in the week for an inordinate amount of time (which I am thankful for), was unable to stay at the party too late (still pretty late however) because he was in the "dog house".  In this regard, Filipino women are the same as American women... very protective and the price on redemption is quite steep... including, but not limited to, doing the dishes, cleaning the house, cooking, baby sitting, etc.  However, one item to make a point of (Shannon) is the duration of the stay in the dog house.  Bembooy had said the longest is a week and typically he can come out and play after a couple days... this is a lesson for all of you back home (sorry Haley... this is also one thing to note, I am never in the dog house, or maybe I am always in the dog house... I'm not sure).

 

Other than that, my Saturday prior to the Fiesta was uneventful.  I was working on some items for NSCAP among other things... it rained too.

Friday, February 6, 2009-“Sam Wise Gamgee to the Rescue”

Well, you may think that I caould go consecutive posts withough mentioning Mark Teahen (1), Chipotle or LOTR (Lord of the Rings), but I couldn’t resist.  This occurrence really happened on Thursday, but I will tell you now.  I was lying in my bed, reading, and I saw something moving on the wall.  I thought nothing of it, thinking it was really Lary the Lizard (I later came to find out that Larry had been another victim of my inhumane treatment and was stiff as a bord next to the bathroom… only a coincidence, I swear).  I looked to my left non-chalantly, wondering why Larry was coming within six inches of my hand… very uncharacteristic of Larry.  Now, Leo, in his later days, would come up to me and sit in the palm of my hand (kind of like Gipetto), but those days were short-lived and neigher of them will be with us in the future… moment of silence please…

I digress.  So, I looked to my left and it was a two-beer version of a lizard (it had eight legs as opposed to four… it was a spider… if haven’t caught on by now).  Now, I am not one to get all goosey about a spider, but upon further inspection, I couldn’t help but notice that this spider was the size of my hand… it was the largest “non-caged” spider I have ever seen.  I immediately grabbed a shoe and THWAP!  I missed!  Let me tell you a little bit about the creatures in the Philippines… they are extremely fast.  I don’t know what it is, maybe I have lost a step, but I have only gotten two mosquitoes since my arrival.  The things are just elusive… plain and simple.  In Kansas City, I could get at least two a day if I tried (I could also throw a football over that mountain).  I am not sure the lizards deaths were my fault, but it wasn’t due to my quickness.  They are now in lizard heaven having plenty of two-mosquito and two-cricket.

The spider must have been of the same breed as the mosquitoes, it was quick, I had to find a way to contain him/her and ATTACK!  By this point the spider scurried to the corner, trapped!  Luckily the plunger was right there.  There are a lot of ways I would not want to go and death-by-plunger is up there.  Getting hit in the head with a Royals’ game-winning home run by Mark Teahen, choking on Chipotle/Ramiro’s Burritos, excessive Guinness… these are all things that I could live with (contrary-pun intended).  Death-by-plunger… not one of them.

Peso to Dollar Comparisons

P44 for a liter of gas or $3.41 for a gallon

P20 for a Coke at a Restaurant or $0.43

P350 for a nice hotel room or $7.45

P115 for a combo meal at Jollibee or $2.45

P180 for lunch for four people or $3.83

P30 for one beer or P60 for two-beer or $0.64 and $1.28

Thursday, February 4, 2009-“More Kids than I ever want to have”

I didn’t know what to expect out of the day, but I did solidify what I was going to do the rest of the time I am going to be here.  Without getting into the mundane detail, I am going to be looking at some controls and learning more of the process that is associated with the bank.  I have a lot of little projects on my plate, including a cost-benefit analysis, brochure for potential clients, website set-up (I am more a person on the sidelines here, Rusty is the brains of the operations), automating a bit of the system… etc.  You know, little kids stuff.

Speaking of little kids (David, get your mind out of the gutter), I went to a local stand and got some fried bananas (they are bananas that are rolled in some sort of fila dough and then fried… extremely good… I am trying to eat four right now just so I get sick from them and don’t eat them anymore.  That is beside the point.  I was standing and waiting for the bananas and I sat down for a second.  The children outside were playing and having a great time (again, I am not sure what they were doing, but they were having fun nonetheless). 

On that note, it was quite interesting when reading the book written by Yunus he had talked about his time growing up.  He was just like any middle class kid in Bangladesh.  For fun, he would play guns and watch the people in the market place and comment with his friends regarding them.  Maybe this is what the children do all day long… my thoughts would soon be answered.

One child approached me and asked me for a peso (I respectfully declined, it wasn’t that I didn’t want to give her one, but she was doing it to just approach me, not to ask for a peso).  She giggled and asked me my name.  In that span, the children seemed to have multiplied from one to about twenty.  All of them staring at me, I smiled and said hello in Tagalo (local dialect), “Hello.”  The children laughed and ran around in a frenzy, like I had just shocked them with a taser-gun, there little arms flayling everywhere and voices screaming.  This went on for approximately two minutes and one kid, my unofficial translator, asked me if I thought the little girls were funny (I was laughing)… I said yes and the children laughed (flailing ensued)… After about two minutes the children calmed down and then they realized I was just another person with a different face.  They lost interest rather quickly and went about there business.  I had a great time.