On Connections....

I made a really good connection with a Filipino... Or shall I say he made a really good connection with me. Here is how it went.
It was 7:30 at night and I was heading home from dinner at the big house. The quickest way home is through a dark alley lined with tethered roosters, playful kittens, smoking men (Meaning men who are smoking.... as in cigarets), children of all shapes and sizes, and MahJong players. There is also a semi-open sewer/gutter, and the leavings of all animals. Televisions blare from every shack you pass, and each person greats you. A dog yips from behind a closed gate. You duck under laundry lines, and step over the water pipe. Even though you cannot see much, there is a street light somewhere in the distance, beckoning you. Suddenly, I heard a little voice greeting the girls in front of me... "Hah-low!  Hah-low!"
Giggles from the girls in front of me. A little face appears, beside me now. A round faced little boy with buzz cut head. "Hah-low!" Oh! Is this one ever cute! And suddenly,
                 I get the urge....
                             the one all of us know....
                                                 to rub the top of that cute fuzzy little head.
Smiling his ever-ready smile, the little boy looked up at me. Then suddenly, he drew back and threw a punch! He made contact too... right on.....the place upon which I am accustomed to sitting! I was a bit startled, as you may imagine, and I said "Wow!" He responded by repeating the connection (a very well made connection, I assure you) and running off!
 In his defense, that is probably about as high as he could reach.

As you can see, I am developing some connections here in the Philippines.
Night = Made.

On Things I Miss...

I'm just going to come right out and say it.... I miss public restrooms.
I can't say which part of them I miss most. But let me assure you, there are days when even the raunchiest of public restrooms in the states seems like a welcome upgrade. Maybe it is the fact that they usually have toilet paper. Or perhaps it is the fact that there is usually an actual toilet (not a squatty potty) WITH a TOILET SEAT! Maybe it is being able to flush the toilet paper. Or perhaps it is being able to flush them at all. Is it that the stalls don't usually have standing water/fluid? Is it the ability to flush without dumping dippers full of water down the toilet? Or is it the fact that soap and hand driers are so often available in the states? Maybe it is just having a stall that is tall enough for privacy. I'm not sure. But whatever the reason, I find that I miss public restrooms.
Having said that, the bathroom in my house is rather nice, cockroaches, avacado green, and all!

I miss load and run laundry. 
Please don't get me wrong. I am SO THANKFUL for our washing machine. It frees me from the hand washing that would otherwise be my fate. But allow me to explain how my idea of a washing machine differs from yours. Our wash machine is hooked up to the hose bib out the back of the house.

When you want to start laundry, you first turn on the hose. About 7-10 minutes later, you add your soap and laundry and start the machine agitating. The agitating takes about 15 minutes.
 At the end of this period, you flip a switch and wait a few minutes for the machine to drain. Once drained, flip the switch back to closed, and fill the machine again...7-10 minutes. When the machine is again full, agitate for about 10 minutes. This is the rinse cycle, and should be repeated twice or until the water runs clean.

When laundry is deemed clean, load it carefully (it must be balanced) into the spinner. Start the spinner and wait a few minutes while the spinner 'wrings' out your clothes. Oh, and I forgot to mention.... the spinner only takes about half of the load of laundry at a time.

At the end of your spinning process, you are welcome to hang your laundry on the line. Most likely, sometime in the afternoon when your clothes are almost dry and you are away from home, a tropical rainstorm will suddenly come up, and re-wet your clothes. Leave clothes on the line for 1-1.5 days, or until completely dry.

Oh, and also, most delicates, undergarments, or anything with tassels, sequins, or the like still must be hand washed. On the bright side, there are lots of cute geckos and a HUGE toad that will keep you company while you wash!

I miss sidewalks.
Really, it would be nice if I could just walk places without fearing for my life, health, and well-being. I think that it is rather fun and adventurous to walk here. One of the issues is my height. You see, while for most people watching each step, watching your back, avoiding the open ditches full of grey, sludgy liquid, stepping over animal deposits, stepping over animals, avoiding vehicles(moving and parked) and dodging puddles would be enough. However, because I am quite a bit taller than a majority of Filipinos, I also have to watch my head. All this while dodging traffic itself. Pretty exciting, eh?
I also miss all of you. Talk to me, people!

On Firsts...

I'm beginning to feel at home here. And it is wonderful!
The city is beginning to make sense in my head. Most of the time I know where I am. I am now picking out a few words in most Visayan conversations... So I know I'm getting somewhere with the language. Monday I will start a huge project, so I know I am making progress with learning. These are happy, happy days for me.

Today was a day worth a post all on its own. We had our introduction to Filipino culture with some of the people we will be working with regularly at the clinic. There were many firsts.

My first time trying balut:
              Balut is duck egg that has been incubated for some time. This was 16 day balut. It is then hardboiled. Read about Balut here.  I am not a fan. I did, however, eat and keep down about half of an egg. I think I got yolk, some veins, and maybe the stomach region of the duck fetus. Pictures will follow.

My first time to do videoke: Same basic principle as kerioke.

My first time to try fresh durian:
               Durian is a fruit that Davao City is famous for. On the outside, it is poky, stinky, and large. On the inside it has the texture of mayonnaise, and tastes like a mix between cantaloupe and rotten onions. I liked one kind, but the other wasn't my favorite. The fruit is so strong that it can raise blood pressure, and bring on contractions for a pregnant woman. Read more about Durian here.

My first Filipino all-you-can-eat buffet:
          Just like a regular all-you-can-eat, but with fried fish, pig parts in gravy, raw fish chunks, seaweed, and gelatin in condensed milk as some of the interesting options. I tried everything, though some were much tastier than others.

My Heart's first roots here:
          This one is harder to explain. I felt today, growing in my heart, the little infant roots of love for these people. As we drove on the windy roads, crazy traffic, and through all sorts of small towns, I felt my heart lurch. It was the type of feeling that means you will never, ever forget a place. The feeling that says these people begin to hold a piece of your heart. The feeling that you are growing a little bit of God's love in you.
          It's not that I haven't loved the people and the culture before now... but this is different. This is something new and deep. I want to give myself for these people. Until they know Jesus.
    These were a few of today's firsts. I expect many more in the weeks and years to come. How thankful I am that God is allowing me to experience a part of His creativity in the form of people who are unlike myself.

On the Hokey Pokey and Cold Showers....

You put your right arm in, you put your right arm out, you put your right arm in, and you soap it all about…. 

Pretty much, taking a shower in cold water is a lot like doing the Hokey Pokey. The only difference is, it takes a lot more courage to put your whole self in.Thankfully, the weather is so warm that you don't really notice. We have a wonderful avacado green bathroom, so that makes up for the cold water while showering.

 

This little fellow showed up in my bathroom the other morning. Not to worry though, the ants were trying to take him away.

My travels, post train, were long and arduous. I met up with the group of girls who will become my 'family' in this far country. During orientation in Portland, we climbed a mountain, dipped our feet in the Pacific, and took advantage of the local Bluegrass Festival. Monday, we took to the air, managing the numerous bags that contained all of our earthly belongings. We took turns watching luggage, trying to rest, and listening for our flight announcements. Few hours of sleep (three to be precise) and lots of security lines were the things that stood out to me most. Somehow, we ended up going through security for each of our four flights. God was merciful, however, and I got through without any difficulty.

 

 Rombutan: Delicious once that hairy outside is removed.

 Following our arrival, we spent a night at a nearby island resort/beach. It was beautiful, and good to recover from jet lag and bond with the other girls and some of our staff. We had 4-7 hours of orientation both days there, but in our free time we caught starfish, swam, napped, and got to know each other. If any of you come to visit me, I can now recommend an inexpensive little resort.

I am settling into a sweet little three bedroom house, complete with 8 other women. Our neighbor's chicken likes to visit us in the morning, and especially loves to climb into our windows. Her rooster really loves mornings, and he is trying to encourage the entire neighborhood to get up and enjoy them with him. Because it is light from about 5 am to 6 pm, mornings are actually a really good time to be awake. I'm loving it.

Our humble Kitchen area.

Various forms of transportation.

I'm still getting the hang of public transportation. Basically, everyone thinks that I want a ride on whatever they're driving, so when I walk places, I get beeped at constantly. Although pedestrians technically have the right of way, we are the smallest thing on the road (or even the sidewalk if there is one... It's fair game for most vehicles from my experience) so we have to watch our backs quite literally. That's a taste of some of my first impressions and experiences. Feel free to comment, ask questions, and request pictures of certain things. I'll do my best to please!

On The Way...

I rode past the apartments where grandma used to live. Years ago, when I was a tiny girl, I was scared when the train whistled… For many years after that, I was petrified by trains. Mom says trains are about the only thing I was ever scared of. And here I go, riding one for the next two days. Past my hometown, past the DMV where I passed my drivers test, past the college that hosted so many music camps I attended. Beginning an adventure that will take me to who-knows-where. And I am excited.

If this isn’t adventure, I’m not sure what is. I’m seeing a whole new side to my country… from sea to shining sea (well, not quite)! Fields of sunflowers, amazing rock formations, tall mountains, and wide rivers. There was the extra-long trailer that had a front porch, and proudly sported the name ‘Hotel’.  The families that live in the dumpiest trailer home you ever did see, but had a RV worth tens of thousands of dollars stored in their yard. Small, quaint tons, and huge railroad grounds, trestles that have no rails, and you feel as though you were flying. Tiny, shack-like houses and giant farming operations. This country is full of adventure… new sights to be seen around every curve.

There are friends to be made too. The sweet Amish family, traveling as far as Montana. I remind them of their Aunt Beth, they say… you know, she’s their favorite aunt. The look of surprise on the children’s faces when I pulled out, of all things, Dutch Blitz…. an Amish game. That priceless night of fun I had with three cheerful Amish kids as we played Blitz, Human Uno, and told silly stories. 

Then there was the Mennonite family that joined me at 5am. Sweet, sweet kids, and a 7month old bouncing baby boy to boot! Dear me! The jolly times we’ve had. Sitting four girlies in a seat built for two…. Perfect for telling all the silly jokes and stories that appeal to little girls. Such happy giggling as the bone-weariness of two days on a train set in.

Then there was the bus transfer… Totally unplanned. I guess the rails were messed up. Hello 6 hour bus ride! The good news was, I got a free sub out of the deal. Free food is always good news. After that, Larissa, one of my co-students, and I took the Portland light rail. What a sight we made! Bag and baggage quite literally as both of us sported two large suitcases, two carry-ons, and a bag of food. And Here I am, finally, safe and sound, ready for the next leg of my journey!