Some Other Beginning's End

Filipino English

2010-03-03T05:22:00.000-08:00

I have several topics that I wanted to post about, but I think that this one is needed as a sort of introduction to the wonderful world that is the English of the Philippines.

At least once a semester I find myself stopping my lesson in order to have a conversation with my students about the English of the Philippines. This especially happens during my favorite lesson of the year, when we practice sounding like Americans. I teach this lesson because my city has many call centers that have attractive salaries that my students long for. Before delving into sounding like an American I like to preface the discussion by assuring my students that I consider their form of English on the same level that I would treat British English or Australian English.

When I studied in Singapore there was much debate about Singlish and its validity as a respected form of communication. The government of Singapore had put up signs around the city encouraging residents to "Speak Good English". It is much the same here, where many Filipinos assume that their English is not good enough to interact with a native speaker.

While the English of the Philippines is not as "pidgin-ized" as Singlish, it does take some time to adapt to some of different word choices. One of the biggest things to get used to is that Filipino English on the whole is very literal and very exact. Because of the heavy use of dictionaries, many words are locked into a single meaning and usage that does not allow for many linguistic nuances.

The other thing that effects English is the nature of Filipino vowels and this is something that is true in Hiligaynon, but I'm totally sure if it true of other dialects. In Hiligaynon the vowels I and E are interchangeable as are O and U. The vowels are also only one sound that is of a consistent length. In English though, we have long and short vowels.

The most devastating effect of this can be seen in the word "beaches". Because the vowel sound of long E is not usual in dialect it is often replaced by a short E/I type sound. This changes the word to something like "biches" which is pronounced something like "bitches". So after a vacation my students asked me where I had been and I told them where and then they said, "Oh sir that place has very beautiful bitches." Obviously I was taken aback by this and alerted them to that dangerous misunderstanding.

I'll finish this post with a list of some of my favorite "Filipinisms"
1. Avail- I think the only time I would have used this word in America is if something "was to no avail". Here, you avail when you take advantage of something, like a sale. Signs all over Bacolod encourage customers to "avail of promo rates!"
2. Transfer- During training I had a really bad student who always needed to be moved to a new seat because he annoyed his neighbors so much. But here you don't ask someone to move seats you ask them to transfer. You also don't move houses, because that would imply that the house moves too. Instead you transfer to a new house.
3. Be the one- In general the passive voice is really popular in the Philippines, which is probably an incite into the culture in and of itself. Instead of saying "I'll do X" you would say "I will be the one to do X".
4. A while- Rather than asking someone to wait a moment, or a minute, or even just a second Filipinos will often say, "For a while". This underscores the difference in how Filipinos and Americans view time.
5. The CR- There are so many words for the bathroom around the world, but CR is probably one of my favorite. CR stands for Comfort Room. A bathroom would be a room only for bathing and a restroom would be for resting. Obviously when you use the CR you get comfortable.
6. Ref- Ref is short for refrigerator.
7. Air Con- Shorter than air conditioning, but longer that A/C.

I could probably keep going with more things, but those are the ones that I personally like. Its time to stop writing now because my episode of LOST just finished downloading! Yay!

Language

2010-02-05T08:12:00.000-08:00

This story in the BBC has been making me think a lot over the last two days.

In summary, this woman (Boa Sr) on a small island off of India died, which is not particularly interesting in and of itself. She was important though because she was the final speaker of a language thought to be 70,000 years old. Her home, the Andaman Islands south of India, are full of languages that are on the verge of extinction.

The researcher, K. David Harrison, who brought all this to attention is a linguist who says that these languages are something special to be preserved as they hold vasts amounts of untapped knowledge that non-speakers won't understand. This interview has a lot of good stuff in it--if you can sit through the idiotic interviewer. He talks a lot about the link between culture and language and the sort of colonialist mentality we (Westerners) still carry with us when we "discover" something that other people already knew about. Good stuff if you like languages or have to teach another language in a foreign land.

Boa Sr's influence on me is that she has made me re-examine my Peace Corps language experience. In some way I am envious of volunteers in other places who have learned what might be thought of as "more useful languages" (ex. South American volunteers learning Spanish, or French is Western Africa). Wiki says that about 500 million people speak French to some degree. Compare that to the estimated 11 million that speak my dialect--Hiligaynon. My command of the Hiligaynon language probably isn't going to put me on the top of any hiring stacks. I can imagine the interview now:

HR Guy: Well let's see your resume here...Dean's list, grad school, Peace Corps. Oh! Hiligaynon huh? well we've been in demand of a Hiligaynon speaker for years. Thank god we found you!

Yeah right.

But the longer I stay here, and the more I am entrenched in the culture of the Philippines the more I come to love my language. It impresses people that I know what they're saying and it gives me a leg up when meeting new people. My original expectation when I found out that I was coming to the Philippines was that I would learn Tagalog, which serves as the basis for the "national language" Filipino. Kaelin was there with me with my silly Roseta Stone practicing my "batang lalaki" and "Nakasakay sa kabayo ang lalaki".

If I had indeed learned Tagalog instead of Hiligaynon all those months ago in training, and then tried to go around Bacolod speaking to people, they would have thought I was crazy. Even I do it. This girl got on my jeep the other day and started "Po-ing" the jeep driver (Po is the blanket respect word in Tagalog). She may as well have been wearing a sign that said, "I'm not from here." And when the white guy knows that it means everyone must be thinking it.

I could probably spend hours going on about language, but I will wrap up this post so I can get some sleep. Sadly, Ms. Boa's death has brought an end to her noble tongue and the deep culture that I'm sure was associated with it. But it has brought me closer to my own small language and made me cherish it that much more.

Back Again

2010-02-05T03:10:00.000-08:00

I'M BACK!!!

Wow! its been a long time since that last post about Thanksgiving.

I guess I've been staying away from the blog in order to recollect my thoughts, get some new material, and re-evaluate why I'm keeping this account. For about a week I've actually been WANTING to write something, which stands as a drastic change from before when it was a sort of obligatory gesture to some audience I am probably pretending myself into having...

More to come soon

Thanksgiving

2009-12-02T17:51:00.000-08:00

This plan for Thanksgiving had been, for many weeks, to travel way up north to Sagada. Sagada is know for its cool air, good food, and being home to some of the Ifugao people. Sadly, because of some poor planning a few were unable to go up there, and so we made the best of it down in the Visayas.

The three of us had a great time in Dumaguete though. We met some wonderful people including two Americans living in Korea, two Swedes, and a group of Filipino singer/songwriters. They were the ones who really made the weekend so memorable. I think if we had been up north with the other volunteers we would have gone through the same range of topics that we invariably always do: work, struggles at work, stupid people at work, things we don't like about being in the Philippines. I am in full support of volunteers being sounding boards for their fellow volunteers, but after a year its time to move to some new conversations.

While in Dumaguete we went snorkeling, which was absolutely amazing. My favorite part about snorkeling is that you pull up to this island and the water is beautiful and see through and all that. But looking at the water I would never have guessed the kind of party going on below. While snorkeling we saw lots of "Nemo fish" some big angel fish, beautiful corals in all the colors of the rainbow. But the best by far was seeing two sea turtles. We saw one and starting following after it, and while moving we saw this huge turtle just hanging out on the seabed. This second turtle was probably around 4 feet long and probably weighed a lot, but it moved through the water like it was flying. It was an unexpected surprise to see something so large move so quickly and so gracefully.

Anyhow, here are some pictures:
The Boulevard in Dumaguete from Silliman University

Getting ready to jump in!
You wouldn't guess it, but there's turtles in these watersOur last adventure was a short hike to see another beautiful waterfall

A Year at Site and Nothing To Say

2009-11-14T00:18:00.000-08:00

I've reached me real one year mark now. On November 7th 2008 I was sworn in as a real Peace Corps Volunteer. On that same date one year later what was I doing? Watching old Seinfeld episodes in marathon. A week after the date I'm sitting in the office of my supervisor listening to essentially the Filipino version of Kids Say the Darndest Things (which is even less funny when you only get 80% of the conversation). In between stories she says, "Oh Justin, you know your one year anniversary just passed?" I say, yes I did realized that. She goes one with her stories.

The unceremonious passing of this day at work kind of seems to encapsulate the feeling of one year in the Philippines. In the first year I was learning new things, going new places, and making new friends. Everyday there was something new.

Even when I meet new people now (like the lady who lives down the street from me and has seen me in the neighborhood for the last 9 months, but finally got the courage to ask me something) react differently to my one year. When you've been here less than a year they're always so interested to make sure you're having fun, enjoying, or making observations. At a year though you'd better have your act together.

I wish I had more to say but life here is just life. Sadly that consists right now of nothing blog-worthy.

MassKara 2.0

2009-10-19T22:10:00.000-07:00

MassKara 2009 has come and gone. This year's theme was "30 Years of Smiles". This being the 30th MassKara Festival in Bacolod I was expecting something bigger than last year. Certain group were way more amazing than last year. Others were incredibly bad. One thing that was cool this year was that I knew more about the folk songs that were used in the music. The song this year was SO much better than last year's too. Maybe because last year was our first year and we were still in training we were more excited and awed by the whole experience. This year, as insiders we had higher expectations. It was still a great weekend though. Below are some of my better shots from this year.
This is probably my favorite mask. Brngy. Mandalagan

Good action shot

These guys def. win the award for most disturbing costume. It was like someone had thrown up a bag of Skittles all over a 1970s Cher costume.

My favorite shot of the day. A picture of my barangay's dancers!

Some Pics

2009-10-14T02:49:00.000-07:00

So I was a little complain-y in the last posts. So here are some pictures of my more fun and productive ventures:

Several of us went for a hike to see the 7 waterfalls at a resort named Mambukal. We met these three 9 year olds who were our tour guides. They were so funny and great.

Shortly thereafter my students in speech class had their culminating activity. A culminating activity is a program where the students will apply what they've learned in lieu of a written final.
This is a picture of my students doing verse choir. They take poems and other texts and then recite them as a group with actions. Its a very Filipino thing.
A beach I went to near Roxas City. It was very pretty until it started raining.

A rare post on the struggles of a teacher trainer

2009-10-05T01:09:00.000-07:00

I was recently doing some work with some high level teachers to prepare for a teaching methodology training that I will be facilitating in the coming month. Between the 6 of us we were asked to lead 12 session. We had 11 all picked out and so there was room for one more. On the table was the redundant (but often wanted) remedial reading --we were already doing a session on teaching reading in general-- and my suggestion of a session on reflective practices.

In my humble opinion, the reflective aspect of teaching is one that is crucial to becoming a better teacher. It is through reflection that we see into our successes and failures within the classroom. Often times I hear that an activity test or assignment was failed by the majority of students because "they're the slow section" or "they didn't study enough because they're lazy". Besides being horrible things to say about your students it also takes the blame off of the teacher, who, after all is the one guiding learning. Any number of things leading up to the assessment could have been the reason that students were not able to succeed on it. I view the need for remedial reading programs in this country as a direct stem from poor teaching practices, not student ability.

I was turned down from my idea because the Filipino had no idea what the session would look like. They tried to assure me that its in the teacher's nature to reflect.

I've been here a year. I know that its not. Filipinos want to come back from a training and tell their supervisor they learned how to help those non-readers, not that they learned how to think about how other people think and why you weren't able to meet that need. The teacher at the training may not even have the initiative of want to teach those non-readers, but dammit she's trained to do it now. Reflection is something that everyone can do, its easy, and doesn't require a lot of work.

Teaching these teachers (yet again) about how to do remedial reading in a classroom is like watching a drag show--its flashy and sounds fun, but its really just trannys dancing around and singing the same songs as usual. However without reflecting on their poor practices they can't see that all they're doing is the same Tina Turner routine over and over again.

With a reflective personality and better "regular" reading activities I think the quality of teaching could be improved. But even if you fixed this one thing you'd hit the brick walls of lack of flexibility perceived in lesson planning, poor resources, and a management hierarchy that holds the best teachers down.

I don't really like posting about the nature of the Filipino educational system because it is such a complicated issue with no clear solution, other than a complete overhaul, that at this point I try to avoid even thinking about it on a day to day.

As a reflective person, I've been thinking about my observations from the past year. I've seen that the teachers of the Philippines need something new. The ideas that we're peddling have reached a wall and there needs to be some new pieces added to reach new conclusions. In my future sessions I'm going to try include some new topics that all teachers could use, but I know I'm going to hit more resistance....

A Travel Nightmare

2009-09-22T02:14:00.001-07:00

I have the worst luck when it comes to getting to the Bacolod Airport. Because of poor transportation timing I have had to change flights, sit at the airport for 10 hours, and pay cabbies far too much for their services. The main problem is that our airport is not actually in Bacolod but 30 minutes north in Silay. This means that to get to the airport you have to ride a shuttle van. As far as I can tell though, there is no set schedule for the vans. They just leave to get you to your flight on time.

Because I refuse to pray at the beginning of my classes with my Catholic students, God hates me, and thus will not allow me to get to the shuttle on time. So I missed my shuttle and had to pay a driver to take me to the airport (at double the cost of the normal shuttle price). Not only that but in negotiating the ride I was getting dangerously close to missing the check in time for my flight. Thank goodness for my driver who drove like a demon and made our 35 minute drive in 20.

So I'm at the airport in time waiting with everyone else who is trying to go to Manila. Because its the Philippines everyone is carrying giant boxes of pasalubong (like souvenirs, but food) and are all over the baggage limit. So the line is long and not moving; and because I freak out about missing flights I'm about to have a conniption in line and start yelling at the mother who won't keep her morbidly obese child on a tighter leash.

And then because I don't even bother to stand up during the school prayers, and God likes to play tricks on my kind of people, my plane decides to board early. So I'm stuck behind super-mom and her zeppelin-like son while they're calling for all passengers to board. So then I get the ticket, get through the minimalist security, and am power walking my way to the plane thinking about how nice it will be to get a nice little nap on the plane to take the edge off of the last hours of horrendous mishaps.

But because I blatantly don't pray, and I'm sure my students are praying for their poor, evil, Sir Tabor's soul, God has other intentions for this flight. The first thing being that I am greeted on the plane by Christmas music. The fact that Christmas music is even a genre of music makes me upset, let alone playing it in September. It is not beginning to look a lot like Christmas, and I don't want to hear music about it, thank you. Only slightly more annoying than the Christmas music is the sound of not one, but three infants crying. And this wasn't plaintive "Mom, I need a new diaper" crying, but the loud, intense "there's something wrong with me!!!!" crying of a baby in pain. The three babies seated within four aisles of my seat take turns crying for the entire hour and half flight, making sure that the cabin is never quiet enough for anyone to rest, relax, have awkward conversation with their neighbor, or even enjoy their Skymall in the peace which they are accustomed to.

So then we land and I bolt out the door of the plane to get away from these people who have clearly been sent by God on behalf of my worried pupils to set me on a right path. But just be sure that the point is clearly made my bag is the last one on the merry-go-round.

What my return trip will be like....I shudder to think.

Batch 268, Butterfliles, and Dancing Prisoners

2009-08-31T02:52:00.000-07:00

Last week, while I was celebrating my one year anniversary away from home, I was also in Manila as part of the welcoming committee for our new batch of volunteers. 10 current volunteers were chosen to spend the week in Manila to act as resources for our 68 new trainees. As a group of resource volunteers our biggest revelation was that the only thing more boring than filling out visa paperwork, is watching other people fill out visa paperwork. Besides sitting in on info sessions on policy and culture we also got to answer hundreds of fun questions. Overall, it was a really fun week and one that I hope will be of value to our new batch.

P.S. every time someone calls them the "new batch" I'm reminded of this classic movie:
From there I went with a few of my friends down to Cebu to see what is slowly gaining a cult following, The Dancing Prisoners. They're gaining popularity through YouTube, especially because of their excellent Thriller dance and the Death of Michael Jackson. At this prison and rehab center they've hired a choreographer who teaches the inmates new dances and every month they present a show. They were so amazing! We all thought that there would be lots of distance (and bars) between us and the dancers, but instead we were within arms reach of them. After the dance they all line up for a photo op. By the end of the show you kind of forget that most of them have killed someone or something equally bad.
We had some extra time so we also went to a butterfly garden in the middle of the city. It is run by a man whose father was an ardent butterfly lover, artist, and explorer. His son has inherited the family house and continues to expand on his father's work. Besides seeing some beautiful butterflies we also got to see his father's art projects. His father was an avid painter and combined his love of butterflies and art and starting making art out of the wings of dead butterflies. He did 11 portraits of famous men out of small snipits of butterfly wings. The intricate details and tedious nature of working with butterfly wings made the art really special to see.
Needless to say I'm happy to be back home resting and prepping for my school's foundation week. Sept. 6-12 we are pulling out all the stops to put on a week of programs and dinner and speeches to celebrate our 12th year of operation. Its going to be something special. I'll let you know how it goes.

A Year Ago

2009-08-14T03:03:00.000-07:00

A year ago....

It seems like another lifetime ago. Another world. A different person. But that's the way all my sentences seem to start this week.

Can you believe a year ago...?
Seems like it was just a year ago...
Where were you a year ago?

After a year in the Philippines (August 17th we landed I think) I've done a lot of new and fun things, met some amazing people, and done enough work for people to think I'm effective. I think at this time last year I was at my going away party drinking way too much and saying goodbyes to my old friends.

Time has been such a strange thing since I went abroad. In terms of Peace Corps I don't feel like I've been here that long. Every month there has been something new to keep me moving forward. In my work I feel like I've only just begun to be effective and doing the kind of things that I came here for. But a year is also long enough to start talking about America as "the old life" that I lived with "my old friends".

I don't know how I feel about this. On the one hand I see another year ahead in which I can accomplish so much more. I've got a calendar full of both work and play lined up all the way to December. At the same time I've got a year away the "old times". I think that one challenge maybe all volunteers feel is the feeling that for every step we take towards our new cultures and families abroad it takes us one step away from what we left behind. Its not fair to either group though to remain stationary for two years.

I hope that in the coming months I can keep the balance between old and new, America and Philippines, and work and play balanced.

Mid-Terms

2009-08-09T02:52:00.000-07:00

This week was mid-terms. It went off without a hitch, minus the fact that most of my students failed. I don't know how I feel about this. A good teacher would probably attribute this to poor teaching on their part, regroup, and review the things they messed up on. I'm not feeling so generous to take the responsibility totally on myself though. Seeing as how I only made half the exam, and only taught half the class it can't be totally my fault, surely my counterpart can take some blame.

I also see a lot of issues with the students' performance on the test. After giving 7 exams this week I've noticed a few things about Filipino test taking. Most students will start off strong and go through the test, answer everything they can with their own knowledge and then go back to the top. I'm a very linear test taker and don't like to move on until I've finished a section so I applaud their flexibility. However, once they go back to the top that's when they start cheating. This is when eyes start wandering and mouths start to open. Because of a generally collective culture cheating is not so much considered "cheating" as it is "helping my friend". You should help your friends...even if you're helping them in a bad way.

What happens is everyone has one smart friend, and the smart friend is in charge of answering all the questions. Then they share their answers with the dumb friends. The dumb friends, because they're inherently dumb, don't think that maybe...just maybe, the smart kid doesn't know either. So then they all have the same wrong answers instead of right answers. Based on the answers to test questions I can tell who was sitting by who and who is friends with who (not that those things don't go together anyhow).

Then they don't think that things on the test may give them answers to other parts. You know how when you do a math test and you fill in the equations in the first part and then have to DO the equations in the second part? And then between the parts you just copy and paste the ideas from part one to part two? Yeah that is a connection that is missing. They'll get things right the first time, then not the second time. If you knew it once why not twice??

So I don't think I'm going to go back over IPA symbols, because its a fairly worthless skill in my opinion. But we're def. going to to some discussion on test taking skills and logical thinking.

No Longer Cute

2009-07-15T03:03:00.001-07:00

During student teaching I tried so hard to make sure that I always looked very trendy and fashionable when I went into school. I'd like to hope that even those older teacher who wear the seasonal sweater vests and mom jeans started off a twenty-something, fun, "cute teacher". I'm sure we've all even had a "cute teacher"-- a teacher who not only teaches well but looks nice too--at some point in our academic careers. I realized this past week that I've lost my status as a "cute teacher".

I've turned into the teacher that I've avoided so hard. I have about 6 teaching outfits that I rotate through, all of which don't fit me right because of all the weight I've lost. So I typically roll into school in over-sized jeans and an un-tucked shirt (because tucking just makes you too hot). I wear my favorite flip-flops, which are not slightly colored have have about 1/4th an inch left of the sole. My trusty Kenneth Cole teacher bag is starting to come unsewn from overuse now too. Basically I look like a mess.

By the end of the day I've pulled my hand through my hair so much that its all messed up, I'm covered in chalk dust, and my feet have gotten dirty from the mud. I probably smell a little too from all the sweating, but that's not so much the case now in rainy season.

Although I know I could go lower, I think I need a make over before to stop my slow descent into ugliness.

Rainy Season

2009-07-13T02:21:00.000-07:00

As I am constantly reminded by my students, the Philippines only has two "seasons"-- the wet and the dry. We're in the middle of the wet one and oh is it fun. During the day its pretty sunny but starting at 2pm it gets really humid and by 4 it rains. The rain stops around 5 or 6, just in time for me to walk home. During the night it usually rains too. This is nice because the rain keeps the temperature really nice and bearable.

The bad thing about the rain is that everything is always wet. My ceiling leaks a little bit and so there's now a puddle in the bedroom every morning when I wake up. On several occasions my pillow has gotten soaked too, which sucks big ones. The worst though is that I can't get sunlight to dry my laundry.

This week in my preparations for my trip to manila I had a lot of clothes to wash. After being washed, they sat outside under our overhang for three days and were still wet. In an act of desperation I had to pull out the big guns and use my "pinoy dryer". This involves taking a curtain off the rod, putting the rod across two chairs and then turning my electric fan on full blast. It took a full day, but my clothes were finally dry. Below is the proof so that you don't think i'm joking. Have fun!

WOW

2009-06-30T01:47:00.001-07:00

I'm only on the second week of school and I am beat. I'm teaching a very full class load that keeps me at school a lot more than I was last semester. Last school year I had no Friday classes, now I have 6 hours of class on fridays. LAME. Besides that all of my classes are a straight three hours long.

Besides the marathon of knowledge that is my schedule I've also stepped up my involvement during class. In our new set-up the first hour of class is mine. I've developed a 100 word program for my students where they learn 10 new words every week. If they learn all the words and pass their quizzes they get a snazzy prize (like dinner at my house). They're not doing as great as I want...but how is that surprising? At least they're trying is my motto, and that gets me through the days.

My other fun task is working with speech training. I'm using all my summer research and work to give my students the gift of understandable spoken English. They're excited to learn this too, but there are some big hurdles. Like in music, my students have bad speaking habits that i have to break them of. One of the worst is getting them to make -TH- sounds correctly. The TH sounds only exists in English and Greek so I've been told a lot of people have issues with it. I feel good about this challenge though, and its re-energized my care for teaching English.

I'm also really excited because this coming weekend we're having a 4th of July party in Bacolod. other volunteers are coming to the area to celebrate with us! Although I'm not the biggest patriot, this 4th of July I'll proudly celebrate things like hamburgers, hotdogs, and potato salad. Can't wait!

False Start

2009-06-17T01:02:00.000-07:00

I'm halfway through my first week of school. We were supposed to start a week earlier, but everything was postponed a week because of swine flu. My take is that the president says that since college students travel more they might have the virus and carry it to a campus. As such we complied, and everyone got an extra week of summer. My students barely have money to leave their houses, so it was silly for us, but we didn't really have a choice.

I'm happy though to be back at school. I have a very full course load (7 classes) but I'm excited to teach the sections. 4 of my classes are on speaking properly, which is what I spent my summer researching and getting ready for. My other 3 classes are "Study and Thinking Skills" classes. This is the freshman class on how to use the library and do basic scholarship. I'm less happy to be teaching these sections, but its good for them to get exposure to me, and there are no other courses for me to teach.

Well that's life for now. I'll update more soon. A lot has happened in the past weeks that will make for good posts, but no point using all my material at once.

The Barber Shop

2009-05-30T23:07:00.000-07:00

I've been going to the same barber shop as Marlo now for 4 months. Its a nice little place 10 steps down the street from our market. Inside there are 5 chairs, 2 TVs, and lots of mirrors. The walls are cream colored, as are the tiles on the floor. Its in a row of 5 barber shops and it seems like most people just pass ours by. Maybe its facilities aren't as nice, or maybe people just don't like the guys who work there, or maybe they just have a small and devoted clientele. For whatever reason there's never a line.

It may be small and stuffy and is certainly no salon, but the barber shop is constantly one of my favorite places here. When I walk in, my barber is always available and quick to get me into the chair. He knows exactly how I want my hair cut, and goes straight to work. He doesn't know my name and I don't know his. He doesn't ask me questions about my work, where I live, what I do, why I'm here. I don't have to speak in another language. I don't have to speak in English. The most communication is when I give a slight nod to indicate that my bangs are even.

When he's satisfied with his work he dusts off my neck and gives my shoulders a little massage. We both silently agree that my hair is as good as its going to get on this occasion. I pay. I walk out the door and hope my hair grows fast.

What Do You Think?

2009-05-26T01:39:00.000-07:00

I'm used to the "Hey Joes" by now. Everywhere I go some Filipino thinks its cute to yell "Hey Joe" at me. That's cool. I get it...whatever.

Recently though they've stopped with the Joe and have moved onto American movie stars. Because I have brown hair and glasses I've gotten Harry Potter, Spiderman, and as always-- Superman. My students back in the US called me Superman, and so I'm sort of okay with that...maybe that's a weird ego thing. I would love a second opinion. Which is most like me??

A Special Summer Promo

2009-05-18T02:36:00.000-07:00

I live near a hospital. On the gates to the hospital entrance are several banners congratulating new nurses, or some doctor for doing this or that...who really cares? Well recently I was riding my jeep home from the market and noticed a new fun yellow sign. The new sign had a cartoony sun in one corner and a palm tree down the other side. In the middle written cute, green, dancing lettering were the words that so many Filipinos I'm sure were dying to hear:

Summer Circumcision Promo
500 peso all inclusive!

500 pesos is roughly $10 so I'm not totally sure what "all inclusive" would entail. So yeah...awesome.

Boracay

2009-05-12T05:44:00.000-07:00

Just went on a very short trip to Boracay. Boracay is Philippines' answer to Miami. It is a very long beach with lots of little dance clubs and restaurants along the beach. Its absolutely beautiful, but def. designed for tourists. Sadly, it is slightly out of the volunteers' budget in some ways.

Happy Birthday To Me

2009-05-06T21:29:00.000-07:00

My first birthday here has come and gone. I didn't do anything too big because in Filipino traditions the birthday boy gets to pay for everything...and that wasn't about to happen.

Another volunteer used her connections to get us into a very nice resort located in the foothills of our volcano. It was beautiful, but rainy so we weren't able to really take advantage of the fresh, cold-water pool. We did have a cook out though with some of our Australian friends.

The next day there was the Pasalamat Festival in La Carlotta City, about an hour from Bacolod. My coworkers took me to a party where there was lots of great food. Then we all watched the big fight. Only after the fight could we watch the parade and lots of street dancing. The costumes were very exciting.This is my favorite shot from the day. She's really selling it, even in the rain.
On my actual birthday I was a little sad that I couldn't spend it with my friends back home, but that's okay. There'll be other years for that. It was kind of the first time I've really really missed home though.

Anyhow, thanks to all for the birthday wishes!

I Will Trade Your Picture for a Chicken

2009-04-24T22:24:00.000-07:00

I just got back in from a 10 day conference in Cebu. During the conference I got to catch up with many volunteers and find out about their projects and adventures in the Philippines. There were volunteers who were doing a lot of great things already in their first 5 months, and others who feel underused and unneeded at their sites. I feel somewhere in the middle. I haven't done a whole lot, but my site needs me. I took my first 5 months slow on purpose and am now ready to hit next year full throttle.

Our first two days were spent in language camp where we just reviewed what we learned months ago in training. After that we had two days of sector-based seminar where I learned a few new things. The last few days were spent in a project designing workshop that I attended with my counterpart. By the time she got there I was pretty much ready to be back at home. For her though it was an exciting experience and so I felt like a bit of a Debbie Downer. Throughout the workshop she was taking pictures of anything she thought might be worth remembering. I asked her what she would do with all these pictures of me and her filling out worksheets on needs assessment. She told me directly, "I will take the ones of you and trade them for a chicken in the mountains."

I know she said it in jest...but I'm still a little worried my picture's going to be posted on some mountain-girl's wall, while my teacher will have one more chicken.

2009-04-11T00:56:00.000-07:00

Here are pictures of the house now that its sort of decorated and what not. Enjoy! At a conference all of next week so I'll be either really busy or really bored...

Random Trip

2009-04-05T22:47:00.000-07:00

This weekend I went on a spur of the moment trip with my friend Caitlin. She got dive certified and while she was doing that I took a small trip to Bohol. It was wonderful. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Manila

2009-03-22T00:59:00.000-07:00

I just returned on Thursday from a three day trip to Manila. I ostensibly went there to help with a language proctor licensing (at the end of training we take a language interview to gauge or abilities and the proctors must be US certified every 5 years). I really went to Manila, though, to get my clarinet fixed and eat Wendy’s.

I had my apprehensions about going to Manila for its seedy reputation. Although not so blatantly thrown in your face as it is in Bangkok, Manila is a hotbed for sex tourism. Being a port it also has its share of lonely seamen…and their semen. Walking around our part of Manila it was pretty common to see what could be compared to a Hooter’s Girl every 50 feet trying to entice those in need.

Besides this, Manila is also rumored to have some crazy pickpockets. Rumors abound about men who can slice open your pocket and catch your falling wallet without you noticing. They’ll also cut necklaces off your body. You always have to lock your cab doors because they could open them during a red light and run off with your bag. Recently a volunteer had her phone taken out of her hand and the nabber didn’t even run away but taunted her to get it back from him.

What Manila taught me is that everything I’ve observed here in Bacolod is carried out on a much larger scale there. If the scale of not-having to having is 1-10 then Bacolod is something like 3-8; Manila is 1-10. It’s maddening to see people with bags full of things I can’t afford in the states walking past children who are playing with a used tire that they found. As a volunteer there’s a natural want to try and fix this. To right such a terrible wrong. The wrong is so systematic though that there’s nothing I can do to fix the whole problem. That is the difficulty of this job, there is so much that needs fixing that one must be realistic in terms of what actual results they can achieve.

The biggest thing I took away from Manila is the fact that I can’t go back to the states during my service. Because it is summer here a lot of people are making plans to go back for a visit in the coming months. I wonder how smart a move it is for some of them. I know that I was willing once to say, “Sure send me anywhere and don’t pay me much to work at a really hard job.” But I would I be willing to say that again if I had my old life back?

Creepy Crawlies

2009-03-11T03:48:00.000-07:00

I don't know if its because its starting to heat up, we're not competent cleaners, or that our ceiling doesn't always touch the walls but our house is being invaded by bugs. The bugs are very smart though, they've come in innocuous waves until now where the problem has elevated to an unbearable level.

The attack began with a small stream of ants. I didn't really mind the ants at first because they clean the food off the floor and eat cockroaches after you squish them. Then the ants went from stream to class V rapids. The garbage can and counter top were their stomping ground. It was only until now that we've gotten smart and put our garbage can in a bucket of water so they can't get to it.

We also have cockroaches about the size of the palm of your hand. They've rare, but gross. They also splatter all over the place and leave a mess. I'm in charge of the ants, Marlo get the roaches.

The ones I hate the most are the spiders. They're really large and scary and hide in dark places (like under the chair you're sitting in...). They're not at all dangerous, but still I don't want them in the house. They supposedly are good to keep because they hunt other bugs, but I don't think pro outweighs their complete lack of aesthetic appeal.

As if it wasn't enough, last night we had a mouse! Before, I was all about sending them outside and letting bygones be bygones. But I'm over that now. Cleaning alone will no longer do. This weekend its time for big shoes and chemicals.

The ATM

2009-02-28T04:58:00.000-08:00

I can’t figure out why, but Filipinos have to be some of the worst ATM operators in the world. Every trip I make to the ATMs is a trial of my patience for the people I am supposed to be graciously helping. The largest cause is the old women, who, to save their lives, could not operate the machine. I’ve not tried using the ATM in Tagalog, but unless there are some serious mistranslations I think the directions are pretty straight forward. Eventually someone in line will get tired enough of the incompetent operator and take control of the machine for them. In the time that this one has gotten her money her replacement is already filed into line and is waiting to make everyone else’s day just a little bit slower.

The other major ATM issue is that no one remembers their account balance. Every transaction demands an account inquiry, which means two rounds of them trying to figure out which buttons to press. And do they save the print out of their balance? No, of course not. That wonderful piece of paper which documents exactly how much they have is immediately thrown away, thus enabling them to forget the balance by their next trip. Maybe it’s an American cultural trait to want to know exactly how much you have in the bank at all times but I would have thought that most people could track their money.

Besides the delay in getting my money I have little to complain about. The house is wonderful, school is nearly over, and I've found a counterpart for next year that I'm very excited to be working with. My next task is finding some reliable internet service for the house. While not essential to life, I think its worth the investment.

Lame February

2009-02-22T00:18:00.000-08:00

I've officially been away for over 6 months now!

Moving into the house pretty much wiped out my budget for the month. We had just enough money to buy enough furniture to get by, and enough utensils for the kitchen. There is one week one February remaining, and I will probably be totally broke by payday on March 1st. And while the house has drained me financially, it has also revived my spirits and given me new life that I didn't have before.

I understand why Peace Corps thinks that it is important for us to have a second host family stay in the Philippines. One of the challenges here is that local cultures are very powerful, and unique. What I see on this island may not carry through onto the next island. Because of this, our training island may not have the same culture as our permanent island. In exchange for the theoretical community integration we gain, we lose much of our agency for a total of 6 months. This leads to a debate I've been having for these last six months: how much of being an American do I really want to give up? The struggle here is between the Pinoy obsession with hospitality and the intense American individualism. I want my colleagues to be happy, which means letting them take care of me, but at the same time it was killing me to let them do so much with nothing in return.

With the house I now feel that I'm on stronger footing. Every time my supervisor gives me a little goody I'm able to counter with my own snack for her to try. I'm also using my language more. I spent so long trying to learn it then had to stay with a host family who wouldn't let me shop with them (and buying food is one of the few topics I can really expound on). I'm cooking again and learning a lot about how to prepare Filipino food. I messed up my first pot of rice, but I'm determined to get better.

Work is winding down for the summer. We'll have final exams in two weeks and then I'm all finished. This summer I'll hopefully be on the road for a month going from a 10 day conference to a really cool teacher training program. I'm interviewing this week and REALLY hope I make the cut. I've submitted a proposal to start up English club, and in the coming week will be requesting a seminar series. This seminar series is basically a year long compilation of my RA programs. It'll be boring for me to repeat the same topics I was doing with undergrads at UNC, but if they needed it in America then they really need it here.

Anyhow, sorry for the delay in updating. When you're poor and it gets dark at 6:30 then it really limits the type of interesting things one can do. Hope all is well with you. Comments welcome.

Pictures of the New House

2009-01-27T21:58:00.000-08:00

I move into my new house on Sunday! I can't wait! here are some pictures. There's an extra guest room so you're always welcome to come visit.

Forget moving trucks! All you need is some string and a trike

Our kitchen and crazy blue fridge

Bedroom and bed

Our sala or living room

The deck area.

I'm a Prince!

2009-01-24T20:42:00.000-08:00

I have 150 exams to partially grade this week. My co-teacher will be handling the multiple choice parts while i get the essays and application questions. This division of the labor not only underscores our daily routine, but also our basic differences in proper assessment techniques. I admit that grading 150 essays is not fun, however, only multiple choice questions in a writing class is just not gonna cut it for me and my performance based background.

I gave my students two topics to write about that exemplified various forms of discourse:
1. Argue you opinion of legalization of gay marriage.
2. Describe the most beautiful thing you've ever seen.

I've gotten some very touching, and well thought out responses to both prompts. Also, their ability to write has gotten much better from their work in the first week (Oh my gosh I might actually be reaching them!!).

Below are the words one student so lovingly wrote about the most beautiful thing she's ever seen. I haven't changed the words at all.

The most beautiful person I’ve ever seen is my sir Justin. He’s my professor in the English subject. He’s tall, white complexion and a handsome too. He’s an American citizen. He always wears his black eye glasses and a smile in his face. I admire him so much because of his eyes, which is so blue, his nose which is tall, and of course he’s pinky and kissable lips. Sir Justin is a Peace Corps volunteer. He looks like a prince when he enters our room because of his glamorous appearance.

Now isn't that just the creepies...I mean sweetest thing. I guess through my glasses my brown eyes start to look blue, or something like that... This little gem though made 4 hours of essay reading pretty much worthwhile.

Housing and Menial Tasks

2009-01-13T22:10:00.000-08:00

In 17 days (not that's i'm anxious....) I move out of my host family and into a house that I'll be happily sharing with Marlo. As that number gets lower I'm constantly thinking about all the accouterments that will make our little house a home. What a better way to introduce you to the slightly nutty world that is that Filipino home, than by talking through mine, right?

We'll start with the garden. For the sake of this conversation I'm going to mean that a typical house is something less than a mansion but more than a nipa (like bamboo) hut. This typical house usually has some sort of garden area. Garden may be giving too much credit to certain homeowners however. Here you can put anything in the ground and its pretty much assured to grow. It rare to see those old ladies in their straw hats, elbow deep in dirt, weeding the tulips. Gardening here takes more of the form of making sure the coconut tree is far enough from the house so it won't put a dent in the roof when they fall off the tree. Anyhows, our house has a beautiful garden and we don't have to do anything to it, which makes it that much better.

The sala is the first room you enter in our house. The sala is something like a living room. For most families its where the TV and couch are. It also serves as the reception area for guests and thus an area of business too. THis is also where you'll see the most family memorabilia. Cameras and picture development are both a little costly so any and all pictures the family have acquired are probably displayed.

Next on our tour are the bedrooms. This is where things can really start to vary from house to house. Filipinos, being a very people-oriented group, don't really like to sleep alone. I shared a bedroom with my brother until I was about 10, and after that got my own room. Sharing a room--and probably a bed-- with siblings will probably continue as long as they're not opposite genders and not married. Marlo's sisters are both 20ish and still share a bed and don't really mind. Usually in a house there will also be only one big cabinet type thing and so all the clothing will be stored in that one place, probably the parents' bedroom. Bedrooms may also be used to store the dishes, medicines, or really anything that doesn't have its own space.

The bathroom (known here as the CR--Comfort Room) can also be a space that can be different from house to house. There are two prevailing ideas for the CR. You either cherish your time there and so you have a fancy CR with tiles and flushing toilet, or you reduce it to its function and go with something a step above a hole in the ground. Either way there's bound to be some buckets involved. I haven't brought up the topics of buckets yet, but if someone wanted to make some quick money, it would be selling buckets in Philippines. In the bathroom you usually find (at the very least) the following buckets:

Shower bucket- this is a big big bucket that stores the water that everyone bathes with.

Flush bucket- this is a medium sized bucket that gets filled from the shower bucket in order to dump enough water in the toilet to make your "business" "go away"--i won't use flush on purpose.

Dipper- the dipper is your best friend in the bathroom. In the morning you use the dipper to pour the water on yourself for a shower. The dipper is also used in place of toilet paper (this takes a certain amount of technique and placement to really feel clean, but it can be done). The dipper is also for washing hands, wetting the toothbrush, and cleaning a razor.

Finally, the kitchen. A Filipino kitchen can look suprisingly barren. Its usually a few cabinets, some counterspace, and a sink. The gas tank and burners may have a place in the house, but only in larger kitchens. Most famies have an outdoor kitchen, lovingly called the Dirty Kitchen. Its dirty because this is where you get the joy of cooking everything by fire and so everything is sooty. Cooking with charcoal is fun, but takes some practice. Their charcoal is made by processing some kind of wood in a little bamboo hut thing--i don't fully understand it yet. As such it doesn't last nearly as long as our charcoal brickettes. Some families will also have a gas operated burner, but since gas is expensive the fire way is preferred.

The other domestic duty to be covered is laundry. Again buckets are needed. I usually take 4 buckets to wash my clothes. First you fill a bucket with clean water and soap and rinse your light colors (i think ideally you soak them overnight to get them really white, but who has the time for that?). By hand you take little sections and rub them together to get them clean. This rubbing is done with a technique, that like the dipper, takes time and practice to get down. The first few times i did my own laundry i was laughed at, but i've got it down now. The most important areas to hit are the necks, pits, and crotches of your clothes. Its not surprising then that these are the first areas to start deteriorating and stretching. Then you have to rinse the clothes three times in clean water. On the third rinse the water shouldn't have soap in it any more. Then you wring out the clothes and line dry them. I'm getting faster and what used to take 2 hours now takes around 1.

Sorry I don't have pictures of the house. We'll be painting the walls next weekend so i'll try to get some shots then. Suggestions for the next topic are always welcome!

On Family

2009-01-06T22:18:00.000-08:00

**Disclaimer: All my following culture talks come directly from my own observations. What I see is totally subjective to me and shouldn't be considered at all representative to the whole of Filipino culture. I live in a city on a fairly small island so it can hardly be indicative of the culture as a whole.**

Probably the most important aspect to understanding the rest of Filipino culture is to be aware of the power of the family. In all things Filipino, family should come first. Tardiness is totally excused if caused by a family issue. Being a good son or daughter takes precedent over all other responsibilities. This doesn't just extent to a maternal and paternal bond, but a deep concern for even far flung relatives like second cousins.

Because of this, Filipinos want to live with their family for as long as possible. A typical household probably has three generations under one roof, and if the grandparents are dead then maybe some aunts or cousins live in the house. In my current house I live with a mother and father, their three grown sons, their wives, and two grandchildren--a third's on the way. The sons probably don't have plans to move to their own homes, and probably wouldn't want to anyways. Part of this relates back to the Filipino way of using everything to its optimal level. Even if a son moved out, another relative would move in because otherwise its a waste of space. In America we take our ability to all have our own space as a given; if you think about it, that's a pretty nice luxury.

To underscore the power of the family they've developed a much larger vocabulary for family members than we have in the states. In English we have words like Grandfather and grandmother or daughter-in-law and son-in-law. We take our immediate family words (mother, daughter) and attach something to make it a different relation (grand, in-law). In Hiligaynon all these people have a different single word.

To make matters even more complicated you add in the godparent relationship. By being a godparent to a child you are also adopted into the child's family. There's even a word for two people who are the godparents to the same child but come from different families. This system is used much like intermarriages amongst the royal families of Europe. At baptisms a favorite guest is the mayor, because then your child is linked to a person who wields local power.

During our New Years out in the province, Marlo and I were walking around his barangay. To me it seemed that every third person was in some way related to him, his godchild, or a godparent to him. I see the value in this. The large family network means you have more resources to draw upon and a supportive community at your disposal. It has taken time for me to adjust to this system and some times I still have questions about it.

Marlo, because he is the oldest son and his father is retired, has to be the breadwinner for his family. He works at a job that pays more money than teaching (what he'd rather do) because most of his paycheck goes to funding his two sisters as they finish college. In exchange his family treats him like a prince. In my American mind I admire him for being so supportive, but its hard not to percieve the sisters as leeches to his resources. Maybe its just my family, but I would have a hard time in giving up my dream to pay for Jared's tuition, when he's capable of working and going to school.

Filipinos think that all Americans are thrown out of their homes at 18 and forced out onto the hard streets to work for themselves. They call this being "liberated". Its hard to convince them otherwise, especially when I explain I left home at 18 to go to college and worked two jobs to make it through. I also like that they call our lifestyle "liberated". To me it shows an underlying unease with the status quo. When we discuss family differences I tell them I don't consider myself liberated from my family, but that I'm supposed to be as self-sufficient as possible so that my siblings can have more. They understand and respect that answer a lot.

I hope that serves as a good start to the culture of the Philippines. I'm working on a food post, but I need to take my camera out and get pictures of the food.

New Years...New Spin

2009-01-03T21:07:00.000-08:00

It is the end of Christmas break, and yes they still say Christmas Break here. Tomorrow I go back to work ready for a fun week of midterm exams. My students are great besides for the fact that they like to cheat. Filipino culture is built around cooperation and so for them it only seems natural to give the answer to their struggling classmates. This means that for the next week I either have to feign ignorance or be the cheating-Nazi with my students, goody!!

For New Years I went to Marlo's hometown of Ma-ao (pronounced Ma-OW). Its about 45 minutes away from the city and is pretty rural. The town used to have a big sugar mill, but it has closed down. It now stands as a looming monument of the "old days". The sugar is now trucked several kilometers away to be milled, mostly because there's not enough sugar made in Ma-ao to warrant its own mill. I spent the days meeting his friends and family and trying to explain why I'm in Philippines. I tried using my Hiligaynon as much as possible but, like my students and their English, quickly got frustrated.

New Years for Marlo's family is a very big holiday, even outranking Christmas. On New Years Eve they prepare a huge meal around 4 or 5 pm then nap. The nap is crucial because starting at 11:30 they don't plan to sleep until 4 or 5 am. At midnight everyone makes as much noise as possible to drive the evil spirits away. Fireworks, which are heard intermittently in the days prior to New Years, are lit at a furious pace to help with the exorcisms.

So for the next few posts I thought I'd detail some of the finer points of Filipino culture. I've gotten several emails from friends and family asking cultural questions and realize I haven't done a very good job at that with the blog.

Blatent Consumerism

2008-12-19T19:46:00.001-08:00

I think I commented before on the simple beauty of Filipino life. I probably made this comment back when I was living in Granada though. The Filipino are very adept at using every part of everything to its ultimate end. If you look at their cooking, dishes like dinuguan (pig intestines with a blood gravy—which is actually pretty yummy if you don’t think about it) show their utilization of things that we consider garbage. Whether out of love of the environment or just a penchant for penny-pinching, lights are always turned off when not in use, and only utilized when the sun is not bright enough. In America I was taking 10 minute showers of constant running water. Here I take a bucket shower that maybe uses a gallon of water (I don’t feel as clean afterwards, but then again I never really feel clean here).

Taking into account this new lifestyle, the blatant consumption that is Christmas is a little depressing. The same Filipinos who were only using what they need have gone crazy buying crap they don’t really need. The usage of crap cannot be emphasized enough in this case either. On a Christmas shopping trip that I recently made with my counterpart teacher to buy gift exchange gifts I asked her to show me what would be some typical gifts. Her first choice was some flowery cups. Choice number two was a flashlight; finally, Looney Tunes towels. I kept saying, “If I got this gift I would not be happy…Would you?” She agreed, but only after some pushing. I ended up buying a wall clock and a watch as my two gifts. If nothing else those two people will be on time to things.

As much as I complain about all these things, I can’t say I’m doing much better. Last weekend I went out with Marlo and Rachael to his office Christmas party then out until 4am. I basked in the luxury of sleeping in until 11, got up and went to the new Starbucks. That’s right; my city just got its first Starbucks. This is a pretty big deal in that only two or three cities in Philippines have a store. I’ve already been trying to justify indulging in weekly high priced cups of coffee at other establishments, but the prices at our new Starbucks push the limit of my delusion. This week I also dropped some big PHP on a bike. This bike is great because I can get where i need to for free. But with that and the coffee and christmas presents the cash has been flowing.

Not sure of a way to end this post except to say that this Christmas I received a flashlight and a porcelain puppy statue thing. The puppy is also holding what I think is supposed to be a green key, but looks like a green penis... MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

Actually Doing Work

2008-12-09T02:08:00.000-08:00

Many of the volunteers from batch 266 gave us the advice to take our first weeks slow. For many of us there is the temptation to jump right in. We only have two years at our sites, which really isn't that long when you take into account the slow bureaucracy we're up against. I'm really glad that I followed the advice because I've taken the time to get myself embedded in my school. My students are beginning to warm up to me and it seems like they're just as excited to get some things started at the school as I am. My favorite class right now is I-B. My A level kids are very smart and don't really need my help. They're pretty confident in their abilities and as such aren't as startstruck by me. I-C needs the most work, and requires a lot more bilingual education. But I-B is perfectly poised in the middle. They WANT to know more about English, but they've got a solid enough foundation. They're made up of some fun personalities and potential leaders for activities.

This week I started using my PACA tools. These are PC developed tools that help to gauge what your site actually needs/wants. Doing it with my students has given me a long list of things that they would really like to do. Most immediately I'm looking to start some English and Math clubs to provide support for my students. They also gave me some good ideas for drama, dance, sport, outings, and seminars. Just off of their suggestions I probably have enough to do for the next two years.

The sad part is that I can't immediately implement. I have to run these ideas by my many supervisors to make sure that I contact all the necessary important people. I'm used to being in who-you-know situations, and think I usually do pretty well in them, but in Philippines this is more pronounced than anywhere else I've been. I'll be pretty lucky if I can get a club or two set up for next year and maybe a seminar or two. At least I feel like I'm doint something though. The last two weeks have been pretty slow and I was feeling a little down. Now that I'm in action I feel more hopeful for the future.

Our First Thanksgiving

2008-12-03T00:44:00.000-08:00

I returned Monday afternoon from a 4 day trip to Guimaras Island with most of my training group. Guimaras island is a smallish island halfway between my island and the next big one, Panay. To get there involves either a safe, but expensive ferry ride or the more adventurous and cheaper pump boat ride. A pump boat is a fairly large motor boat that travels the short distances between islands. It derives its name from the pump that is located by the motor that keeps the water intake in check. We didn't have that...I spent most of the day soaking wet from the frist boat ride.

Me, Marlo, Shauna, and Rachael decided to make the trek from Negros to Guimaras together. Our going trip was frustrating because thought people kept ripping us off in our times of need. First, we tried to take the boat on the incoming trip to Guimaras, but the schedule was cancelled for the day and so we were forced to rent a small motor boat for the journey. It took us about an hour to cross the choppy sea in our little boat, but we had some beautiful views. At 1000 pesos we thought the price was a little steep. Once we landed we found out we were 40 kilometers from where we needed to be and that no forms of transport were coming until the next day. Our only option was to rent a trike for 400 pesos. Again we thought this was a little steep. An hour later we arrived in one of Guimaras’ two big towns. There we just happened to bump into a host parent who assured us that we were not ripped off and that the resort would be beautiful.

By nightfall we arrived at our beautiful beach resort located in the middle of nowhere. I think that only pictures can capture the beauty of this place. It was my first time to be at a beach with clear water and coral. Swimming around you could see everything below you. The scenery was absolutely amazing.

On Thanksgiving Day we got up and hung out on the beach, swam, and played some volleyball. After lunch time we started the preparation of the live turkey! Sir Turkey, as we called him, was bought from a local family and carried with us by boat to the resort. During his final hours of freedom he played with a new friend turkey around the kitchen area a sort of ironic way. I held his feet while he was killed then helped in plucking and gutting him with Marlo and Becky. There’s something satisfying about eating something that you helped prepare so intimately. Needless to say, Sir Turkey tasted amazing as did the stuffing and powered mashed potatoes we had for dinner.

The trip was a great because it was our first chance to do something that WE wanted to do. During training our time was mapped out for us, down to the hour. In the last three weeks since training we’ve been at the whim of our new host families and organizations. We’ve been wearing big smiles and just trying to get established. This was perfectly timed to give us a chance to get away from all of that and just have some fun, American time. There’s no way that you can beat 4 days of good food, good friends, and good fun. Hope your Thanksgiving was good too!

City Living

2008-11-18T01:32:00.000-08:00

I made it through my first week with the only issues being my aforementioned mentioned gastrointestinal setbacks. My new host family is very different than my last family. In a way I have gotten two family's that are exactly what I needed at the moment. The first one gave me just enough attention, beer, love, and space. They came on strong and then loosened up. The new family is very different. They've had two Americans before, so they understand the differences. They don't think its weird that I get up at 6am to run, that I don't like fish for breakfast, or that sometimes I just want to sit in my room alone. They don't seem to care when or if I'm home. They trust me to take care of myself. I choose the food I want to eat at each meal and text my timbang (the one who helped with the toilet) if I'm going to be out late (she then texts me back and tells me where the key will be hidden).

If training was designed to teach me about Filipino culture then I certainly saw a good glimpse of a typical middle class family. Now that I'm on my own I'm really cherishing spending time with my new Filipino friends. My new friends are also crucial because my time with them is my only time with people my own age. At school are all 17-19, but act much younger. The Filipino educational system only has 10 years so they're a little behind in terms of social development in some regards.

My school is great for many reasons. It offers the most affordable education in my city, which means that I am working with students of limited means. Most of them are working hard just to pay the small tuition asked by my school. They all really want to be there and are thrilled to have me as a resource for them. They're very sweet and eager to learn. We'll get along very well. My concern is with the faculty. The school keeps its costs down my only hiring a small amount of full time staff. Many of the teachers are part timers or retired teachers who are volunteers. They're also all old, which is cool. I love old people. I just would like some more interaction with people who are of my generation. I'm assured that there are younger teachers in other departments, but am not sure that my supervisor is going to be open to letting me out of the educ. dept. I may have to tough it out this semester, meet the whole staff, and then sweet talk my way to be with others.

I'm teaching 3 first year writing classes, one class on letter writing, and two literature classes. They've also given me a "Cross Cultural Communications" class. I have no idea what this means except that it meets on Saturday, which I'm not happy about. The only thing that makes it better is that I don't have Friday classes! My schedule is also good for me doing side projects. Right now I'm thinking about doing an English speaking club, a reading club (they read garbage here and I want them to get some good English lit in), and maybe some music or drama or something creative. I need to do some work to see if there are some bigger projects I could do in the city or my barangay. I've got a lot of time to kill, but I can fill it as I see fit, which is the cool part about this job.

I also just bought a guitar and am learning how to play! My clarinet is really unhappy here and will probably be shipped back home soon. Please drop me a note or something, let me know you're alive. Also if you love something make sure you put a ring on it (that's for you clines). OH! and I'm going to try and make your Tuesday/Thursday evenings (10-11pm for you east coasters) when I skype/AIM home. I'll be more available in February when I get my own place. So reserve that time. I'll give you my skype name too if you'd like and we can chat for reals. Love you all!

The Unexpected

2008-11-11T22:28:00.000-08:00

Just a small personal anecdote for today to prove that you really can't have any expectations when serving in the Peace Corps. This may be graphic for young readers or total losers, so be warned.

In May I was invited to serve in Philippines with PC. I think to myself, "Okay, I can deal with this. It'll be like Malaysia. The worst I'll have to worry about is some loose stool." When I actually got here I was constipated like woah. Probably from adjusting to a totally new diet and whatnot. Understandable. Got to training and eventually got regular. When I say regular I also mean the most regular I have ever been (15 min after breakfast). There's a kind of pride this level of regularity brings.

So this last week we were at a conference, eating hotel food. The change of diet totally backed me up for 4 days--but no pain. No pain until I got to my new host family. Then my body decides to unclamp. Now, I'm also lucky because my new house has a flushing toilet with toilet paper. This is a big deal. Sadly, my little toilet was not prepared for all that I was packing and backed up. I've not fixed this kind of problem here so I have to ask for help from my timbang (housekeeper). It was a sort of disgusting bonding experience.

Coming here I was prepared to be pooping every hour. In training they prepare us for all kinds of worms and amoebas, but the idea of constipation rarely crosses their minds. I'm feeling better, but am also taking metamucil every night before bed. Who'd have thought? I love this country, but it is never what you expect it to be.

DONE!

2008-11-06T19:14:00.000-08:00

I've made it through training! Today is the day of our swearing in ceremony. We've spent the last week in a final birth-like push towards today. Everything that I've written about up until now has been in preparation for this moment. The language training and practice teaching has all been so that I could be prepared for my actual service. I'll be moving out of the hotel tomorrow and into my new host family. My nearest PCVs will all be 20 minutes away. I have my first day of real PC work on Monday. I already feel like I've done so much work in the last 12 weeks that its crazy to think that my real 2 years of work don't even start until today. I'm feeling a strange mix of excitement and apprehension. Its similar to the feelings at a high school graduation (again high school emotions). I know I'm ready for the future, scared of what that means, but ready for something new. Time to get dressed so I can give my speech in front of the ambassador!

MassKara

2008-10-21T04:19:00.000-07:00

This weekend marked the biggest event that the people of Bacolod celebrate. In other parts of the the Philippines the San Mig brewing company will sponsor Oktoberfest events, but in Bacolod MassKara dominates the month. The festival coincides with the founding of the city, but remembers a point in the city's history when the sugar industry almost failed. Supposedly the people of Bacolod weren't about to let a failing economy get in their way. So instead they put on silly masks, got drunk, and had a three day party.

Decades later there is a whole month of mask-themed events. The culmination of which is on the three days before October 20th. For those three days there are dance competitions to see which schools and barangays have the best dances and masks. First there is a street dancing competition which ends in the plaza, where the troupes perform a full 10 minute dance sequence. The troupes spend weeks and hundreds of hours preparing their routine and a lot of pride rests on being a winner. The city is dedicated to making the event famous the world around and dishes out 150,000 pesos per barangay entry, on top of which there will also be additional corporate sponsors. The dances are a sight to see, especially if you like being hot, hearing the same song 50+ times, and outrageous colors.

After all the dancing is done the locals close the major streets, have dinner, drink, and dance. The party starts around 9PM and most people get home around 5AM. We ventured out to see what everything was about. Needless to say, we stayed out late and had a great (but safe time). I'm still a little pooped out from all my adventures, but staying up for 24 hours and then having class the next day will do that to you. Overall, its a really cool cultural experience and something that I'll get to see at least two more times. It definitely lifted my sagging spirits. Two more weeks of training and then its time for the real deal!

Wound up/Winding Down

2008-10-15T03:23:00.000-07:00

So I got back from site visit to find that my whole host family had, while I was away for a week, all gotten sick. I walked in the door, threw down my bags, and we caught up. Sitting there with them it was like the whole bad experience that was site visit was washed away.

But that was last week, and in PC Training every week is totally different...

This week I'm still not back to 100%. I've still got a Gollum-like cough and some sinus stuff. I'm sleeping lots and taking my vitamins (thanks Rachel). Despite the cold I've got a lot of responsibilities to attend to this week:

1. Swearing In Speech- By winning a daring game of rock-paper-scissors against my esteemed colleague John I was selected to represent all 18 Bacolodians(?) during our "graduation" ceremony. I'll be giving a portion of a speech in Hiligaynon! The stressful part is that my collaborators are hundreds of miles away.

2. Community Project- We're putting on two fairly large programs at our host-schools to say thanks. PC lost my paperwork and so I got to do it twice. Awesome.

3. Language Interview- In two weeks we have our final language exam. I really want to do well, because I can speak this language and want to have that acknowledged. Here's hoping I learn how to compare the US to Philippines in Hiligaynon.

4. MassKara- This week is also the MAJOR festival in Bacolod. Every night there is lots to do. I'm trying to strike that balance between work and play.

Busy week means I need to run. Missing everyone lots, but still loving it here! MassKara pictures coming next week.

Family Matters

2008-10-03T00:18:00.000-07:00

In the last 36 hours I have had something of an epiphany. I've moved in with my new host family while I am on what PC calls Site Visit. During site visit we are all shipped off to meet the people we will be working and living with for the next two years. We are given three days to make our first introductions, understand the basics of our organization, meet our co-teachers, and meet the new host family. Theoretically, that's a lot to do in three days. In actuality its been really boring and awkward. My first day to meet people was lost due to a national holiday. Instead of being productive I took a three hour nap and then watched TV that I don't understand for 6 hours. Yesterday I achieved all my objectives at the college so today I also have nothing to do (hence two posts in one week).

I've also developed a sore throat which kept me up all last night. So I had plenty of time to reflect on the past 6 weeks. Sitting under my mosquito net (which is used to keep the big roaches off of me, not mosquitos) I realized that I love my first host family. I think my first interaction with my host father is the best example of why they are my favorite.

Host Father: So what's your name?
Me: Justin
HF: Do you have a girlfriend back home?
Me: No
HF: Do you like to drink?
Me: Yes
HF: Do you want to go to a cock fight?
Me: UM YES.

I'm not even making this up. After this short round of questioning there was a good minute of silence while we contemplated each other. After that its been all fun. Its not just been my host father either, but my mother and two brothers too. Our schedules line up really well so that I get time by myself in the afternoon and then spend the evening talking, drinking, and singing with them. Its an environment where cultural exchange is welcome and a source of interest. At times I'm like their American toy, at others just another member of the family. They told me before I left for this week away that they were going to miss me because "lving with you is like living with a Filipino."

Maybe its because I have something so good that I'm having a hard time with the new family...Or really it could just be the mice and roaches, let's be honest. I'm not ruling out a positive experience with the new family, but the relationship is not going to come as easily as the first. Maybe I'm also down because I'm exhausted and sick. Anyways, I reached my first wonky moment of PC.

Site Placement

2008-10-01T02:47:00.000-07:00

Wednesday was the day that we all found out where we will be spending the rest of our two years. The last two weeks have been filled with lots of chika-chika about where we’ll be placed, who will be our neighbors (closest PCVs really this can range from 10 minute walk to 2 hour bus ride), and expected jobs. We had the chance to give as many specific requests as we liked, but we were not guaranteed any of our requests would be filled. If you read the previous post you’ll already be aware that PC is basically a big rumor mill. Even before this week’s conference we were pretty sure that we had figured out about 10/18 placements, including mine.

So then we actually find out where we’re for sure going. There was a lot of build up and a surprising amount of emotions. In typical PC fashion we played a little game to discover our sites. Our facilitators would list off fun facts about our region then we’d guess where it is and then they would list out who is in that province. Many of the rumors turned out to be true, but there were also plenty of people who were shocked by their sites. My rumor turned out to be true, but I was pretty much assured of that by some very well certified chika.

DRRRRRRRRUMROOLLLLLLL!

I’ll be spending the next two years here in Bacolod City. I’ve already been living in a barangay 20 minutes outside the city proper. In a month I will be moving into the city with a new host family. I will be teaching 2-3 classes at a local teaching college. I’m not totally sure what classes I’ll be teaching yet, but my supervisor assures me that I will like my co-teachers. I can't really be anymore specific than that, so if you want more details let me know.

This is the beginning of the end of training. I'm excited to be a full volunteer and get down to actual, useful work. Even though I'm living in a city that I feel like I know pretty well it is still daunting to think about not seeing my clustermates everyday. The closest volunteer to me will be 30 minutes away in the barangay I was living in. Sitting at home in my new host family's house it is very clear to me that I will need to get out in the city and make some friends to make this a good experience. Immersion into local culture is a PC goal, but also a necessary part of keeping one's sanity.

One of the girls who lives near my new host family has introduced me to her sister and the sister's group of friends. They're really cool and exactly what I need in my life right now. I think these friends will probably merit their own post at some point. I think that things in Bacolod are going to be great and I foresee a positive two years!

I totally heard about your trip to the beach…

2008-09-22T23:15:00.000-07:00

Peace Corps Philippines batch 267 started off with 69 trainees. We now have 68. From what I’ve heard from other returned volunteers our group is doing well. There isn’t really a formula, but maybe 10% of trainees leave in the first few months.

The fact that one person went home really isn’t that exciting on the whole but it highlights how starved we are for things to talk about. The 68 of us are spread out between 3 islands and hundreds of miles, but because of our handy PC funded cell phones we can know exactly who left, who is dating who, who got bitten by what animal (a rat), who has a triple ear infection, and who has amoebas (all true, P to the S). My training group has so far has managed to steer clear of hook-ups and major sicknesses. In many ways it’s like going back to high school: rumors flying, overprotective parents, can’t drive, and new things happening to our bodies.

This past week my group was also visited by three current volunteers. One helped us to understand more about our jobs as teachers and some of the challenges to expect from that. The other two helped us with a special water safety training that we did at the beach. Water safety training was a two part activity. First we were loaded onto a boat that would be used to transport us from islands that are about 1 hour apart. We took the boat out to sea and then jumped into the water--with life vests on. We then had to pull ourselves—with vests on—back onto the boat. Then jump back out of the boat, swim to a smaller boat pull ourselves onto that one, jump back in, swim to the big boat, and finally climb back in. Two of my group members can’t swim so that made it a slightly stressful event. They made it through very well despite their disadvantage and passed handedly. After we got back to shallow waters we learned how to drag a floating body through the water—I guess in case we feel the desire to save someone. Overall it was a lot of fun. We didn’t get any sun because there’s a typhoon messing up the weather here currently, but it was still nice to get a day at the beach and away from school and class.

Going back to the gossip though…

I hosted a little get together at my house where a few of us made chika-chika (Hiligaynon for chit-chat) with our swimming instructors. We got out the PC “yearbook”—a book with all our pictures—and talked about all the drama from batch 266 as compared to 267. In such a captive population I suppose that this is the inevitable outcome. Makes me wonder if this is unique to PC Philippines or is a universal PC past time.

On Sunday I will be learning where I will be teaching for the next two years. Rumor has it that I may be staying here in my current city, but again that’s all rumors. I know that I’ll be moving up to a college level position, but that’s about all I know. I’ll fill you all in next week when I know more.

Calen-Daring

2008-09-15T23:46:00.000-07:00

A lot of this past week has been spent thinking about the daily lives of Filipinos. I'm a little out of the ordinary, but here's how my day goes:

5:30am Get up to jog--on those ambitious days.
6:30am Get up on those less ambitious days to prep for the day
7:00am Breakfast--Usually eggs, corned beef, rice, and maybe a fruit
7:45am Off to Hiligaynon class
8:00am Class with my clustermates
12 noon Lunch--again rice, maybe chicken or pork
1:00pm Teach at my school
3:00pm Finish teaching a walk home
3:30pm Get home, change, and fill the void. I've spent a lot of time just waiting. its hard to know what is going to happen from day to day and so after I'm done with my responsibilities I usually just hang out and wait for something to happen. I've already read 4 books in this time--I only brought 6!
7:30pm Dinner. This is the only time where my whole family is together. Usually 7 of us eat together with the TV on. Because we eat late, we also have to make sure we don't miss shows like Pinoy Dream Academy (like American Idol) and Dyosa--my least favorite show. Its the idiotic adventures of a girl who has god-like powers. There's as lot of crappy special effects and faux-cgi.
8:30pm We finish dinner and then hang out. Sometimes I drink with my host father-always just two bottles (PC Rules)! We also do a lot of videokee. Filipinos love to sing, so of course they love kareokee. My mother is a very good singer and likes to rub it in that her score is always higher than mine, even though i have a "master's in music".
9:30-10 Bed. Its sad to say, but if I'm up past 10 I'm pretty much useless the next day.

And that's how it goes. As you can see, life is fairly uneventful. If i want to spice things up I can take the 30 minute jeep ride into the city and go to the mall or see the americans who live in the city. I love where I live because I have the relaxed country lifestyle, but the city is close at hand. Life is simple right now and I'm certainly relishing in it. Something more interesting and topical for next post. Promise!

2008-09-11T01:10:00.000-07:00

As soon as you stepped off that plane you instantly became a rock star. Just remember you're not actually hotter than you were in America. -Host PCV Grant

I am two days away from being away for a full month. To think about the changes that I've made to myself and my habits in the last 4 weeks I get a little dizzy. One of our main goals as volunteers is to integrate as much as possible into local culture. There are some obvious obstacles to meeting that goal like being taller than 5'4", not having black hair, not wanting to eat rice at every meal, and my skin. This week though I have started "getting my tan".

I didn't really take notice of the difference until people began to comment on it, but I am getting tanner. To my Filipino colleagues this is a sad state, because my beautiful white skin is being destroyed by the sun. Despite several "cultural moments" where I explain that tan is better in American they still say a little prayer for my complexion.

I had a cool experience yesterday when one of the ladies who ownes the store that is connected to my house said hello to me.

Her: Oh Justin? Is that you?
Me: Yeah! How are you doing?
Her: I'm good. I didn't recognize you. You look so slim and tan. Like us!
Me: Thanks!

Clearly the tanning is not enough to make me one of them, but it is a visible sign of the devotion that I have for my new position.

At home this has made me my host father's favorite toy. He loves to get me to try new foods. I've kept my mind open to any and all foods...even the ones I know that I won't like. So far I've tried:

Balut- A Filipino delacacy where an egg is allowed to be incubated for 16 days and is THEN hardboiled. The result is a hardboiled egg with crunch bits. Not horrible as long as you don't look at it.
Sisig- Chopped up and seasoned pig head.
Coconut- Not only do you drink the juice but also scrape out the meat.
Fish for Breakfast- Not my favorite

Generally the food is good. We eat a lot of pork and chicken. At every meal there is rice. Filipinos eat all the time, and could eat a meal's worth of food, but don't consider it a meal unless there's rice. Okay my hour is up. Hope all is well with you too!

Getting My Tan

2008-09-11T00:48:00.000-07:00

As soon as you stepped off that plane you instantly became a rock star. Just remember you're not actually hotter than you were in America. -Host PCV Grant

I am two days away from being away for a full month. To think about the changes that I've made to myself and my habits in the last 4 weeks I get a little dizzy. One of our main goals as volunteers is to integrate as much as possible into local culture. There are some obvious obstacles to meeting that goal like being taller than 5'4", not having black hair, not wanting to eat rice at every meal, and my skin. This week though I have started "getting my tan".

I didn't really take notice of the difference until people began to comment on it, but I am getting tanner. To my Filipino colleagues this is a sad state, because my beautiful white skin is being destroyed by the sun. Despite several "cultural moments" where I explain that tan is better in American they still say a little prayer for my complexion.

I had a cool experience yesterday when one of the ladies who ownes the store that is connected to my house said hello to me.

Her: Oh Justin? Is that you?

Me: Yeah! How are you doing?

Her: I'm good. I didn't recognize you. You look so slim and tan. Like us!

Me: Thanks!

Clearly the tanning is not enough to make me one of them, but it is a visible sign of the devotion that I have for my new position.

At home this has made me my host father's favorite toy. He loves to get me to try new foods. I've kept my mind open to any and all foods...even the ones I know that I won't like. So far I've tried:

Balut- A Filipino delacacy where an egg is allowed to be incubated for 16 days and is THEN hardboiled. The result is a hardboiled egg with crunch bits. Not horrible as long as you don't look at it.

Sisig- Chopped up and seasoned pig head.

Coconut- Not only do you drink the juice but also scrape out the meat.

Fish for Breakfast- Not my favorite

Generally the food is good. We eat a lot of pork and chicken. At every meal there is rice. Filipinos eat all the time, and could eat a meal's worth of food, but don't consider it a meal unless there's rice. Okay my hour is up. Hope all is well with you too!

A little more on what I do

2008-09-02T01:52:00.012-07:00

I've just started my third week of PC training here in the lovely Philippines. On a typical day I get up early, run, go to a 4 hour language class, have lunch, then do educational stuff in the afternoon. My evenings are filled with eating, chika-chika (chatting), "sing a longs" (videokee), and relaxing. Today was my first day in a Filipino classroom. Of course there are some very big differences, but in teaching these children I have taken on a much bigger task than I originally thought. Much of my time is going to be spent jazzing up pre-packaged lesson plan and firguring out how to make people comprehend English, YIKES!

2008-08-27T03:48:00.000-07:00

This is where I live. It is beautiful. I'm not allowed to tell you where this is through the blog. If you want to know ask. All is well.

Leaving Manila

2008-08-27T03:46:00.001-07:00

One hurdle stands between me and my official status as an actual PC volunteer: A rigorous three month training process. PC has taken our group of 70 and split us into three groups, scattered throughout the country. My group is a wonderful mix of people who I’ve already gotten to know well, and others who I am lucky enough to meet over the next three months. We are a very dynamic group and one that I am quite excited about.

My cluster of 12 is located about 20 minutes outside of the city proper in a charming little barangay. The barangay is the smallest unit of government. My barangay is divided into two large sections—the downtown area and then the newer subdivision located a short walk away. The houses that line the streets are the image of squalor on the outside, largely, but reveal surprising luxury on the inside. The thatched roofs, rusted iron, and family gardens of their exteriors give way to beautiful tiled floors, electric lights, and TVs. And despite many of the comforts that Americans take for granted, these people cherish and conserve them as much as possible.

Throughout the barangay there are three things one is sure to see. The first are the small vendors located at the front of many homes. There is no separation between commercial districts and residential areas in these areas. Some set ups are quite elaborate store fronts with large displays, others are simply an old woman with a table, chair, and the bananas that fell off her tree that day.

The other two things that are everywhere are semi-stray dogs and roosters. Many of the dogs are not kept as indoor pets, but rather exchange territorial rights with food from a willing family. Some families (mine included) do have caged dogs as a means of alarm. In opposition to the skinny, malnourished dogs stand the prized roosters. In this area cockfighting is a very big industry that many men take up as a hobby. The cocks are fed very well, given steroids, and protected from dangers. Between the dogs barking and roosters cock-a-doodle-doodling, getting a full night’s sleep is quite difficult.

In the coming weeks it is my goal, and the goal of the other trainees, to get as integrated into the barangay as possible. I think this will be easier as my language abilities get better. I have a busy weekend ahead so I must away! Salamat (thanks)!

Opening Ceremonies

2008-08-16T18:20:00.000-07:00

Local time in Manila is currently 9:20AM--12 hours ahead of EST. We landed a little ahead of schedule at 4:45PM. Before we even got our bags we were greeted with what I am assured was the first of many long lines. Immigration was a slow process but also a good chance to observe some Filipinos. Once through the immigration stand, we were greeted with big smiles and some flowers from current volunteers and staff members. A group of volunteers left a few months ago to return home, and so group 266 (I'm in group 267) has been eagerly awaiting some new friends. After being greeted we went to find our bags. AS far as I know all our bags made the trip with us and no one was left without clothing. I have a few pictures of the mountain of luggage that we created to help visualize 70 peoples' worth of baggage. Pictures on the blog are a little sketch right now and can get me in trouble, so they'll be forthcoming.

Currently I am sitting with a few other volunteers in the lounge area of our compound. We are about an hours outside of Manila proper. The weather is currently 79 degress and a little humid, with just enough breeze to be bearable. Some volunteers are making a stink about the humidity, but its not any worse than NC.

We spend the next four days getting inundated with information and meeting our staff. At the end of the four days we will be split into groups and head out for three months of training. We meet our Country Director (CD) in 20 minutes so I need to run. Thanks for checking in on me!

Staging

2008-08-14T19:07:00.000-07:00

I made it LA just fine after an interesting set of flights. Luckily, I had a travel partner in one of the girls who is also from UNC. We boldly tried to take a full row to ourselves, but were thwarted by an evil banker. He took his middle seat proudly, and as soon as he was allowed, he broke out the laptop and began working away. I innocently asked a question of my traveling partner and he gave me the evil eye. Clearly no talking would be accepted. I listened to some music and did crossword puzzles to pass the three hours.

On our second flight we were still on the ends of the row but a nice 17 year old moved over for us. He really impressed me because he was reading One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. And by reading, I mean the highlighting, underlining, and writing notes about the plot. It was pretty cool to see a little kid doing more active reading than I ever have. Then we land.

Kid: So where you from?
Me: North Carolina
Kid: Oh cool. LA must be really different for you.
Me: ...
Kid: You know because everything is so close together. (Thanks 17 year old for calling me a yokel.)
Me: Oh yeah (dismissal)

Granted that yes, things in NC are not so close together. But no, that doesn't mean I've never seen city blocks before. But thanks for being friendly, right? The funny thing is though, that I'm going to a place where everyone is going to assume that I'm rich and cultured and from something like a city. Not really sure I know which is right to assume about me.

Once in LA more adventures ensued. We couldn't find our shuttle bus to the hotel and had the Radisson guy take us from the hotel. He was sweet. Immediately we checked in and turned in all our forms. After that it was the first of our ICE BREAKERS! We did so MANY ice breakers. I love ice breakers more than the average person, but we played all the wrong ones: People Bingo, Change 5 things, Silent Sort. Granted, they're the low budget ones but I like a little variety in ice breakers.

Our two days of discussion covered topics such as personal safety, unwanted attention, and fears. The best was definitely the fears and aspirations work we did. I found out that all the big things I was scared about, were also fears of my companions. I'm really happy that we're pretty much all scared of explosive diarrhea and ready to tackel that issue with their 'help'.

That's pretty much the gist of the last two days. We're leaving SUPER early tomorrow morning to go to the airport. Since there are 70 of us it is going to take soooooo long just to do simple things like check in. I am a group leader and so I'm in charge of 18 people and making sure they don't get lost. I also have to get the airline people in gear when we get there so they can do their job as quickly as possible. Basically, group three is going to be the place to be.

Okay I need food and sleep and Olympics. Next post will be from PHILIPPINES!

UNICORNS!

2008-08-05T17:13:00.000-07:00

"The unicorn is the only fabulous beast that does not seem to have been conceived out of human fears. In even the earliest references he is fierce yet good, selfless yet solitary, but always mysteriously beautiful. He could be captured only by unfair means, and his single horn was said to neutralize poison." ~Marianna Mayer

Because I'm leaving in a week and nothing PC related has happened I thought I'd do something a little more topical (and amazing). For my first of such posts I have decided to write on unicorns. Unicorns are a topic of discussion that is rarely breached in our Puritanical society. In many cultures, unicorns are symbols for healing, rebirth, and strength. I mostly think they're hilarious, which is where this post is going.

This gem of a post was inspired by this wonderful little cartoon called, "10 reasons it would rule to date a unicorn". Would I date a unicorn? Heck yes!

What would a unicorn do??
How about chase a rainbow??
YES!

Another oldy but goody is Charlie The Unicorn.

Every time I watch Charlie's adventure I always get a little sad. A sequel recently came out and it is also pretty awesome (and slightly less dark).

My very favorite will always be Planet Unicorn. Planet Unicorn is the delightful adventures of three ridonculously gay unicorns. If for no other reason the theme song makes the whole experience worthwhile. Hope this first one gets you addicted. There are 5 in the series if you can't get enough now. Enjoy!

12 Days

2008-07-31T15:36:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the long delay, but I was busy getting myself together for the big move. I spent the bigger part of yesterday moving out of my apartment and into my little brother's bedroom. Except for a box of clothes, my two PC bags, and some other odds and ends my life has been packed away. I had some pretty good finds during the excavation of my room, including:
$42 in change
6 pairs of handbell gloves
My old passport- Thank goodness, I was worried I had lost all my cool stamps.

For the next 10 days will be sharing an 8 year old's bedroom, which is really a dining room. My family has a habit of buying houses that are one bedroom too small and converting the dining room into a bedroom. I spent most of high school in the dining-bedroom, and have come back to a similar chandelier-ed sleeping environment.

I've pretty much given up the dream of 40 hours of Tagalog training. The Rosetta Stone was really fun for a while. The idea of spending 20 hours of my last days in America clicking icons of cats and small children is just not appealing. I've gotten down the numbers, colors, and some basic verbage so I fell okay.

I have been watching this video. It is the Discovery Channel guy who goes places and eats the crazy food. NOT Anothony Bourdain!! As you can see I hate him a lot. Bourdain is a pretensious jerk who thinks that eating crazy stuff is bad-ass. The show I've been watching is hosted by a pleasant fat man named Zimmerman. Where Bourdain feels that eating animal testicles is a boo-yow to Western culinary traditions, Zimmermann sees it as an opportunity to experience a new culture. I'll take the more anthropological approach any day. If you'd like to see the more extreme end of what I'll be eating over the next two years please feel free to enjoy.

A good day

2008-07-15T13:31:00.000-07:00

My new laptop came today! While I will love the new mobility it has to offer, I will miss the awesome processing power that my desktop has.

If that wasn't enough reason to be excited about today i stumbledupon (should that be stumbleupon-ed or just stumbled? either way if you're not stumbling you really should start) a great resource for any man. I've seen a few other sites where you are taught how to tie a tie. Many are mediocre. Gentleman Joe does a very good job showing each step and has the best pictures I've seen. It even has a know that I've not seen before. I just tied my first Pratt knot and it is pretty much amazing.

Can't decide which is better: computing options or sartorial know how.

The Perfect Bag

2008-07-13T18:17:00.000-07:00

We're living in an America where a woman is now accepted as a feasible presidential candidate (Philippines already has one...just saying). Its funny to me now that the world of hiking bags is littered with traditional sexist leanings. I was at a local outdoors store looking through their amazing bag sell. At this point I'd been looking for a nice bag for about 4 months. Finally, a sale! The best candidate was a little red bag that was untagged. I waved down a friendly, Teva-clad associate to help me price and fit the bag. He tells me the bag was $200 and is now $100. LOVE IT! I put on the bag and he pulls some chords and ta-da, fits great.

So he says, "I'm sure you already know this, son," I hate it when people call me son, "but this is a woman's bag."
I didn't, "Well yes, but how much does that really matter," I say.
"True enough." Disdain.
"Well I think it would be too small anyhow...I've got a lot of clothes to take." True, but the dream is still crushed.

I leave the store. There's nothing else there I really like. Go to REI. I eventually got my bag from REI, but still do not like their loosey-goosey bag organization system. Everything is just kind of all thrown together in no logical order. There are no "Women's Bags" section and "Men's Bags" sections, so how does one tell if you need a penis or vagina to appropriatly use the bag? From my oberservations there are two ways:

1. Color- Because this is an outdoors product there's really only 5 colors to begin with. Black, red, blue, green, and grey. And of course only earth tones of those colors. Occasionally you might find some orange or yellow, but clearly no real hiker would use those since they're outliers. Boy bags are generally darker and/or more primary-toned than their girly counterparts.

2. The Model Name- This, more than color, will lead you to the correct bag. Male bags have hardcore names like Trekker, Eagle, Convoy, Caravan, other minivan names, etc... Female bags have names like Aura, Deva, Energy, etc... Clearly men are hiking to feel strong while women hike to become one with nature. John Smith and Pocahontas would be proud.

The whole idea is silly because you're probably using these bags to go hiking in the woods for extended periods of time. That means lots of sweat, no showers, wool socks, and other general unsexyness (maybe just a me thing). I guess in the wilderness the bag becomes the woman's bastion of feminimity. And yes I know there are subtle differences that a hiking enthusiast would actually care about, but let's be honest. I'm suggesting the name for the first unisex pack should be "The bag that's there with you when you crap in the woods." Maybe long winded, but realistic.

Anyhow, I got a new bag. I love it and it is the perfect size to fit just about all my clothing. It carries the weight really well and I think it will be a great bag to explore Southeast Asia with. It is of German origin and does not seem to be specifically gendered (although it is a very nice shade of cobalt, so I'm leaning towards a man).

It is also exactly one month until I leave!

Staging=Its actually real!

2008-07-03T16:16:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, everybody in my program got our further set of instructions, called the staging kit. My staging will be August 13-16 and be in LA, which I didn't know until yesterday. There were a couple of other pieces of paperwork that needed to be filled out. More importantly, it awoke me from my post-graduation stupor. I'm starting to think that I should put some stuff in boxes....wait, wait I should go get some boxes--order of operations.

Staging looks like it is going to be a lot similar to RA training. Several hours in the morning of this topic, a lunch break, then some more talking about something else. Finish up at 8 or 9 and then crash. And its kinda sad, but i love things like that (when they're new). RA training got a little old after the 3rd year, but I can still remember the fun of all the group bonding and camaraderie. I guess I like the fact that everyone is new, and waiting to be discovered. I am 40 days away from a new set of friends, rivals, lovahs, and colleagues--could i be more excited? NO!

51 Days Away

2008-06-22T11:12:00.000-07:00

In furthering my knowledge of the Philippines I was reading about some of the not so great aspects. The islands are frequented by typhoons (same as hurricanes), earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions. Most notably is yesterday typhoon that capsized and ferry carrying some 700 passengers. The BBC is covering the story. Pretty sad stuff.
I'm also working on getting my new backpack sent in. I'm looking at a 65 liter Dueter pack that'll hold about 3-4 days worth of stuff. Its pretty snazzy! The next big task is working out all this student loan stuff. I am not anticipating fun. Anyone already dealt with this?

I have a master's degree

2008-06-15T18:02:00.000-07:00

I am officially no longer an enrolled student at UNC. It feels really weird to think that on Monday I don't have to go to class. When I came into UNC I knew that I wanted to get my MAT and have spent the last five years making that goal happen. It feels so good to have met such a long term goal. Leaving here with a higher degree makes me proud of myself and my education. I have two months now of living in limbo and then I leave. Plans are to get a job and make as much money as possible while still having fun and saying goodbye. Its just kind of crazy to think about though.

Navigating an end

2008-06-08T18:34:00.001-07:00

I've been thinking a lot lately on how the next two months are going to pan out. Yesterday we had an open house to get the place rented starting in August. I think we got it rented out, which is nice because I don't really want to clean in that detail again until I leave. But of course I'm now trying to figure out the time line for getting bills closed, and packing all my stuff, and leaving the country. I also did some financial planning and without a really banging job for the next two months I'm probably going to be putting the dream of travel outside of the Philippines on hold until after the Peace Corps. This is probably a good idea because it'll allow me a chance to see everything in the Philippines and maybe do some traveling with new friends.

Life lesson learned this week: Starting a new part of your life is fun; wrapping up the old part is tricky.

Great song.
Been listening to it a lot.

new friends, old friends, and signs from above

2008-05-26T21:12:00.000-07:00

Its been awhile since the last time i went to church. Because of a lot of changes in personnel at my home church i have been really disinterested in attending, not to mention my general skepticism about the whole thing. I guess to use a cliche I would say that I am spiritual, but not religious. For example, on the day I found out I was going to the Philippines I ran into an old co-worker who is Filipino who then introduced me to another Filipino who was passing by. I hadn't spoken with her in many months and then shaazam! I take that to be a fairly loud cosmic "YES, DO IT!"
And then there is last night. I am hanging out with my newly made MAT friends. I have technically been in class with these people for a year and am sadly just now getting to know them. Which has made me think about my old friends a lot this week. I've met a lot of really amazing people over the last five years, but I definitely have not held up my end of the bargain. So we're at a bar and I drop my ring. Of course it goes between the slats of the patio and is gone forever. But I didn't say anything about it, and didn't make a fuss.
I didn't say anything because that ring was a symbol of an experience that goes are beyond a physical reminder. My study abroad experiences are the reasons I became who I am today. Losing a physical thing that I will always have the memory of is no big deal. And that's the cosmic message I think I was supposed to get. I need to be okay with letting go of the things that physically tie me to Chapel Hill and focus on creating a strong set of memories to carry with me always.

To balance out the sap of this post here's something a little lighter.

I'm kind of like a spy now

2008-05-24T22:39:00.000-07:00

Today I spent about four hours getting together my international paperwork. Because I'll be a government employee, the Peace Corp has asked that I get a second passport. In my mind this is a much cooler thing than it will be in practice. A recent episode of LOST has Benjamin Linus, the main antagonist, rummaging through a stack of passports in a frantic hurry. I think it'd be cool to also have the enjoyment of picking your own identity every time you wanted to travel. Part of the reason for me to go on this trip is to escape my American culture for a while. I think this goal will be hard to meet when I'm double-fisting two of the new, hyper-American passports (which have scenes of Americana in them like this jewel).

People who have passports are clearly trying to leave America, is it necessary to remind them of what they're missing? The only positive I can see is that every time I get a new stamp it can cover up a dead president's head, or one of these nice cowboys.

In this NYT article I the author is clearly trying their hardest to present the changes in their best light. At the bottom a lady is quoted as saying,

“It seems to represent an idealized version of a country that is far from ideal right now.“ Amen to that sister girl!

The Peace Corp

2008-05-21T18:40:00.000-07:00

As of now I am officially accepted into the Peace Corp! On August 13th I will be leaving for the Philippines.
The Philippines are an island consisting of over 7000 islands, although most populations reside on the largest islands. Language of the Filipinos is Tagalog which is related to the languages of Indonesia and Malaysia. The Philippines has an interesting past in that it was colonized by the Spanish and then transferred to America after the Spanish-American War. There was initial resistance, but by 1913 most of the fighting was over. Starting in 1935 America started giving the country more autonomy until 1946, when the country was made independent. Because of this the country has a rich blend of cultures, which should make for an interesting comparison to Singapore.

My path to the Peace Corp has also been a long process. Last summer I started thinking about what I wanted to do post-UNC. I knew that travel and service were very important things for me. During my time at UNC I had a great time, but was so focused on my own experience I did little to help others. Service has always been important to me and so I started looking into the Peace Corp. The more I read about the service the more I really wanted to do it.

First, all applicants fill out a very extensive on-line application that took me about a month to get fully completed. After that I had an interview with a recruiter to basically make sure that I was worth their time. Then I got medically cleared, which meant several doctors appointments, shots, tests, and the removal of my wisdom teeth! This whole process started in August and I just found out where I am going this last week. Needless to say, the turn around is fairly slow, but I think the benefits will certainly be worth the effort.

So that's a little bit of information for now, there's certainly more to come. Thanks for stopping by!

Oh God, A Blog

2008-05-18T21:09:00.000-07:00

Its a situation I think we've all been in. The over-zealous traveler wants a sort of cyber-umbilical cord to connect them to the mother of their previous, untraveled, life. In four years as an undergrad I was easily on ten different email lists of people leaving for study abroad, summer camps, or other only slightly interesting endeavors. I probably got about ten emails from those lists combined. That's cool, I get it. Traveling is actually a lot more fun that writing about traveling.
I can't say for sure that I can do much better than what I've encountered before, but I figure it won't hurt anyone to try. The goal is to get a few months of practice in before I leave the country. That way, by the time I get there I'll be used to keeping up with this thing, and it won't die out once I realize I have better things to do.
Anyhow, I guess that's what you can expect out of me: nothing too fancy, a decent amount of effort, and some honesty. I'm positive the next two years are going to be fun and interesting and challenging, so if you're into that kind of thing maybe come along for the ride.