Thursday, February 28, 2008
Girls L.E.A.D. '08- tapos na!
Finally getting around to posting about our second Girls L.E.A.D. camp that went down in early February. Another success! This time around we included 2 more centers from Region 3 and two more 266 PCV's. We are hoping that by introducing them to the modules, our camp will be sustainable! We certainly hope they can continue to put on this 4-day forum (we call it a "camp", but it's really more of a conference) with DSWD after we are gone. (malapit na!) Thanks to everyone who donated to PCPP and helped us raise the money to do this! And an especially huge maraming, maraming salamat po to Mr. Welch, whose donation went a long way towards making this camp a successful one.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Sunday, February 10, 2008
busy
The past month has been a busy one. Matt was here for my birthday in January, and we traveled a bit up north to Sagada and trekked through the Banaue Rice Terraces. It was incredible. We also visited Batad, which is a breathtaking village, but was emotional to visit, after last year's tragedy with Julia. We then spent a couple days at my site, which all the girls at Haven LOVED (big crushes) and he was able to finish painting the mural he started when he was here in October. Here are some of Matt's killer pics from his visit:
After he left (boo), we had only a couple weeks to finish preparing for our second Girls LEAD camp. We did it last week and it was another success! I will post pictures and some stories about that later. I also became a godmother to beautiful little Iona recently. She is just precious (the daughter of my host cousin):
Saturday, February 02, 2008
36-hour circus
The past two days I have been on my center's annual "R & R" staff retreat. It was without a doubt my most comical day and a half in the Philippines, possibly in my life. I kept track of it all in my journal so as not to forget any of the gems. Here's the timeline:
THURSDAY
8:45am- I arrive at my center. Scheduled to leave for Laguna (4 hours south)at 9.
9:00am- No vehicle to transport our group of 13. We had asked our municipal hall to donate a vehicle, and it was all confirmed. This is in no way surprising.
10:00am- Staff go to munic. hall to see what happened.
11:15am- They return to the center with....are you ready for this...AN AMBULANCE. We are taking an ambulance to Laguna.
11:30- Trying to figure out how to fit 13 people plus all the food and everything into one ambulance. We can't remove the stretcher.
11:45am- We finally leave. We can't all fit so we are taking the ambulance plus our center's vehicle. But the only person who can legally drive the center vehicle is our driver, who has called out of work today because "his wife is sick".
12pm- Stop at the bank
12:15pm- We are on the side of the highway in San Fernando (only about 30 minutes from my center)
1pm- Still on side of the road. Some of the staff went to try to find our driver. He has no cell phone so they are just waiting at his house and hoping he comes home soon. Who knows how long this will take.
2:20pm- They all decide that my group, the ambulance group, will just leave and meet the others there when they find the driver.
3pm- Fried Spam and ketchup sandwiches are passed around
4pm- We try to eat chicken adobo in the back of the ambulance. This works out well (the driver treats the ambulance like its a race car).
5pm- We roll into Maam Precy's (our boss) parents' house in Batangas. Totally confused. Something about bypassing traffic. There is no air con in the ambulance, so all the windows are down (windows down in manila traffic is like...ugh, i don't even know what it's like. the dirtiest experience of your life)and people are sort of hiding in the back because we have too many people and dont want to get pulled over. I am curled up on the stretcher wishing someone was here to witness this scene. My face hurts from laughing.
5:30pm-We eat at Maam's parents house, they show us around the gardens, we get a tour of their piggery...
7pm-The ambulance had to return to Magalang so we unload all our crap and reload it into a jeepney. All of Maam Precy's relatives are coming with us too apparently...
7:10pm- Stop off at the market in the town proper so Tita Fely can fill up an empty jug of Carlo Rossi with vinegar, because, I'm told, the vinegar in Batangas is sweeter than the vinegar in Pampanga.
7:30- On the side of the road again. Waiting, again, for the other vehicle. Some kind of text miscommunication and they went to Maam's house after we had already left.
9pm- Arrive at the "resort"(certainly not the word I would use to describe the place.)We came to Laguna because it is known for it's hot springs so there are lots of these resorts with hot spring pools. I am sharing a room with ONE BED with maam precy and tita fely.
9:30- Party begins. Videoke, swimming, eating, San Mig. Never seen these ladies drink. One little cup of sweet wine and they are all loopy. Hilarious.
11pm- Power goes out. No more videoke, lights, or water. Sweet. I go to bed.
12am- Sharing a bed with 2 talking-at-full-volume Filipinas. I'm awake now and painfully aware of how hot it is with no fan (no power)
1am- They suggest we sleep outside because its cooler. So we sleep in the bahay kubo. I forgot my insect repellant. Can't sleep because I'm getting eaten alive by mosquitos and I'm sweating my ass off.
4am- Power back on. Come back to room, finally able to sleep with the fan.
FRIDAY
7am- Someone in the group in belting out "Part-time Lover" on the videoke.
7:30am- Tita Glady comes in. "Carrie!! Lets eat!!!" Sopas (creamy pasta with hot dogs)for breakfast
7:45- Our security guard tells me to get ready, we will be leaving at 7. Um, thanks.
9am- Tita Fely is singing YMCA and everyone is up dancing.
10am- Someone (they think from the press)snaps a picture of our center vehicle's license plate. Maam worries that they will report it being used for unofficial business.
10:30- We start walking. Hot as hell. Walk to a gas station to wait on vehicle #2.
11am- Waiting at gas station. I buy the group popsicles, which melt before we can finish them.
11:20- Vehicle #2 arrives. (Again, we were scheduled to leave at 7).
12:30pm- LOST. Stop for directions.
12:45- Arrive at Chosen Children orphanage. The kids are sleeping so we are asked to come back later. I don't even know why we're here. Back in the car. Now we are going on a "picnic". This should be good.
12:55- Stop to buy tomatoes
12:57- Stop for directions
1pm- Arrive at Villa de Oro- a resort, conference center type of place. I am so out of the loop.WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE?? We tour the facility, staff want their pics taken in the great room on the fancy chairs,i keep asking, "Is this a museum? Do people live here?" All they keep saying is that its a "mansion house" and isnt it beautiful. We eat our leftovers from the day before in their dining hall.
2:15pm- We leave, head back to orphanage.
2:20pm- See a coffee shop and pull over. (Its a real coffee shop...no Nescafe)so we pull over because they want to see if they have any pasalubong. There is a cute coffee shop next door also so I run in for a caffeine fix and come back over to find my group getting free samples. For the rest of the trip, I have to hear about how i wasted P30 on coffee when i could have gotten it for free
2:40- Back to orphanage. Get a tour. Really impressive facility, but again, WHY ARE WE HERE? I get no anxwers.
4pm- Back in vehicle
5pm- Drop off Maam's brother at work
5:10- Arrive at Maam's brothers house. I am told we have to wait here for the ambulance to come back for us, and it should be here by 8.
9pm- Here we are, still waiting. Ambulance would have been here by now but there was another miscommunicaiton and it went all the way to Laguna. We are 2 hours away, in Cavite. Unbelieveable.
10:15- Group prayer
10:30- I leave with the first vehicle. Ambulance still en route.
12:10am- Drop off Tita Marion in Bulacan, a neighboring province. Jeeps have stopped running so now we have to take everyone home.
12:30- Drop off tita fely and kuya jinggoy in san fernando.
1:30am- HOME SWEET HOME. Man, do I feel relaxed! Time well spent.
THURSDAY
8:45am- I arrive at my center. Scheduled to leave for Laguna (4 hours south)at 9.
9:00am- No vehicle to transport our group of 13. We had asked our municipal hall to donate a vehicle, and it was all confirmed. This is in no way surprising.
10:00am- Staff go to munic. hall to see what happened.
11:15am- They return to the center with....are you ready for this...AN AMBULANCE. We are taking an ambulance to Laguna.
11:30- Trying to figure out how to fit 13 people plus all the food and everything into one ambulance. We can't remove the stretcher.
11:45am- We finally leave. We can't all fit so we are taking the ambulance plus our center's vehicle. But the only person who can legally drive the center vehicle is our driver, who has called out of work today because "his wife is sick".
12pm- Stop at the bank
12:15pm- We are on the side of the highway in San Fernando (only about 30 minutes from my center)
1pm- Still on side of the road. Some of the staff went to try to find our driver. He has no cell phone so they are just waiting at his house and hoping he comes home soon. Who knows how long this will take.
2:20pm- They all decide that my group, the ambulance group, will just leave and meet the others there when they find the driver.
3pm- Fried Spam and ketchup sandwiches are passed around
4pm- We try to eat chicken adobo in the back of the ambulance. This works out well (the driver treats the ambulance like its a race car).
5pm- We roll into Maam Precy's (our boss) parents' house in Batangas. Totally confused. Something about bypassing traffic. There is no air con in the ambulance, so all the windows are down (windows down in manila traffic is like...ugh, i don't even know what it's like. the dirtiest experience of your life)and people are sort of hiding in the back because we have too many people and dont want to get pulled over. I am curled up on the stretcher wishing someone was here to witness this scene. My face hurts from laughing.
5:30pm-We eat at Maam's parents house, they show us around the gardens, we get a tour of their piggery...
7pm-The ambulance had to return to Magalang so we unload all our crap and reload it into a jeepney. All of Maam Precy's relatives are coming with us too apparently...
7:10pm- Stop off at the market in the town proper so Tita Fely can fill up an empty jug of Carlo Rossi with vinegar, because, I'm told, the vinegar in Batangas is sweeter than the vinegar in Pampanga.
7:30- On the side of the road again. Waiting, again, for the other vehicle. Some kind of text miscommunication and they went to Maam's house after we had already left.
9pm- Arrive at the "resort"(certainly not the word I would use to describe the place.)We came to Laguna because it is known for it's hot springs so there are lots of these resorts with hot spring pools. I am sharing a room with ONE BED with maam precy and tita fely.
9:30- Party begins. Videoke, swimming, eating, San Mig. Never seen these ladies drink. One little cup of sweet wine and they are all loopy. Hilarious.
11pm- Power goes out. No more videoke, lights, or water. Sweet. I go to bed.
12am- Sharing a bed with 2 talking-at-full-volume Filipinas. I'm awake now and painfully aware of how hot it is with no fan (no power)
1am- They suggest we sleep outside because its cooler. So we sleep in the bahay kubo. I forgot my insect repellant. Can't sleep because I'm getting eaten alive by mosquitos and I'm sweating my ass off.
4am- Power back on. Come back to room, finally able to sleep with the fan.
FRIDAY
7am- Someone in the group in belting out "Part-time Lover" on the videoke.
7:30am- Tita Glady comes in. "Carrie!! Lets eat!!!" Sopas (creamy pasta with hot dogs)for breakfast
7:45- Our security guard tells me to get ready, we will be leaving at 7. Um, thanks.
9am- Tita Fely is singing YMCA and everyone is up dancing.
10am- Someone (they think from the press)snaps a picture of our center vehicle's license plate. Maam worries that they will report it being used for unofficial business.
10:30- We start walking. Hot as hell. Walk to a gas station to wait on vehicle #2.
11am- Waiting at gas station. I buy the group popsicles, which melt before we can finish them.
11:20- Vehicle #2 arrives. (Again, we were scheduled to leave at 7).
12:30pm- LOST. Stop for directions.
12:45- Arrive at Chosen Children orphanage. The kids are sleeping so we are asked to come back later. I don't even know why we're here. Back in the car. Now we are going on a "picnic". This should be good.
12:55- Stop to buy tomatoes
12:57- Stop for directions
1pm- Arrive at Villa de Oro- a resort, conference center type of place. I am so out of the loop.WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE?? We tour the facility, staff want their pics taken in the great room on the fancy chairs,i keep asking, "Is this a museum? Do people live here?" All they keep saying is that its a "mansion house" and isnt it beautiful. We eat our leftovers from the day before in their dining hall.
2:15pm- We leave, head back to orphanage.
2:20pm- See a coffee shop and pull over. (Its a real coffee shop...no Nescafe)so we pull over because they want to see if they have any pasalubong. There is a cute coffee shop next door also so I run in for a caffeine fix and come back over to find my group getting free samples. For the rest of the trip, I have to hear about how i wasted P30 on coffee when i could have gotten it for free
2:40- Back to orphanage. Get a tour. Really impressive facility, but again, WHY ARE WE HERE? I get no anxwers.
4pm- Back in vehicle
5pm- Drop off Maam's brother at work
5:10- Arrive at Maam's brothers house. I am told we have to wait here for the ambulance to come back for us, and it should be here by 8.
9pm- Here we are, still waiting. Ambulance would have been here by now but there was another miscommunicaiton and it went all the way to Laguna. We are 2 hours away, in Cavite. Unbelieveable.
10:15- Group prayer
10:30- I leave with the first vehicle. Ambulance still en route.
12:10am- Drop off Tita Marion in Bulacan, a neighboring province. Jeeps have stopped running so now we have to take everyone home.
12:30- Drop off tita fely and kuya jinggoy in san fernando.
1:30am- HOME SWEET HOME. Man, do I feel relaxed! Time well spent.
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