Autumn Has Arrived.

So, it is September 28th, and this morning the sun rose on a whole new school year. And as I sit here in my little dorm room and it is already noon, I still haven't gone to class, but I'm listening to Norah Jones and relaxing and soaking in my last few hours before homework, tests, papers, and general craziness takes over my life.

I'm a Peer Advisor now, in charge of a whole floor of girls. They are so great, and I'm really excited for this year. It's going to be such an experience! I have already been pushed out of my box, I've done uncomfortable and embarrassing things, I've led 3 floor meetings, and I've been up until 1 AM or later doing rounds.

So, welcome, new year. You will be full of challenges and joys, I'm sure. Hopefully you'll also be filled with fun and friends and family and all those other good things that start with 'f' (floor hockey?). And maybe, just maybe, there will be a little sleep tossed in there as well.

Puerto Galera

Welcome to the beach, as Alex and Chris would say.

Puerto Galera was wonderful. The picture above was taken when we first arrived, while I was still on the boat (called a banca) that took us across the rough waters from Batangas to Puerto Galera. For some reason (aka, it's our summer), we decided to plan this trip to a tropical beach in the middle of the rainy season here in the Philippines, and as a result we experienced a lot of rain and not so much sun. It didn't really matter though because it's the BEACH! Overall, the trip was relaxing and fun.

Here are the highlights:
- Heading up the Aninuan village and meeting the bracelet makers for Threads of Hope
- Meeting Alona, the first bracelet maker for Threads of Hope
- Swimming in the warm, tropical ocean
- Drinking as many mango shakes as possible
- Shopping and bargaining and getting cheap stuff!
- Being with the team, playing cards, talking, debriefing, and discussing John (in the Bible, not some random guy)
- Getting to know Alex Kuhlow, founder of Threads of Hope, and hearing his insight into the community and the ministry there
- Brainstorming for ways to sell more bracelets next year!
- Going to the best Italian restaurant ever
- Having another nice dinner at some brand new, spiffy resort place
- Discovering I do not get sea sick
- Snorkeling!

There ya go, the highlights. There is SO much more to write about, especially about Threads of Hope, but it is past my bedtime! Goodnight to all in Manila, and good morning to all in America! :)

Hello, Filipino Public Transit

Welcome to the fascinating world of Filipino public transit:

This picture is looking up at the top of a tricycle, one of the many forms of public transportation that I have experienced thus far in the Philippines. A tricycle is basically a bike with a side cart attached and an umbrella above. The tricycle driver rides the bike which pulls the passengers in the side car (or one or two can sit on the back of the bike) and the umbrella keeps off the rain.

A tricycle is almost the same thing as a trike, except you replace bike with motorcycle. Trikes are pretty handy and I've been in quite a few over the past couple days. My favorite trike driver was a funny old man who picked up me, Charis, Michael, and Mrs Jones around 11:45 the night after we went to the spa. He promptly chastised us for walking alone at night...apparently even with 4 people, we were alone. However, he did excitedly accept our 20 pesos for the ride (that's not even 50 cents in American money - rides can be quite cheap here!).

I finally got to experience riding in a jeepney today. Jeepneys are one of the most unique types of vehicles that I have ever seen. They originated from old Jeeps after WWII that were expanded, manipulated, and decorated so that lots of people can squish on the inside, like in a bus. They play load music a lot of times and sometimes they have funny-sounding horns, like the horn on a little kid's bike or a creepy laugh or something. Today I was in one that was really blasting the rap music. The main downside to this form of public transportation that I noticed is that the windows are open and there can be a lot of pollution or the smell might bother some people.

FX'es are the other unique kind of transportation. They are a kind of car - Tamaraw FX's, to be exact - that people just squish into, and they run on routes like buses, so you just have to find one that is going where you want to go. That's one thing that is different about the Philippinos: you can't just type in Metro Trip Planner and figure out what bus stop to go to and what time the next bus will be there because the public transportation (for the most part) is run by private individuals, not the city itself. It's different, but it works quite well here. I think I like it, but it would be harder if I didn't have such awesome guides that already knew the city!

Tomorrow I am heading out to Puerto Galera for a fantastic weekend visting Threads of Hope, painting a basketball court, swimming, snorkling, processing with the team, eating great food, hiking in the rainforest, and resting before I come home! I'm very excited and a little sad that this is truly the end of my summer, and I'm a little nervous looking ahead to all my transitions (not to mention jetlag!). I won't have internet access there, so no blog updates, and I come home the morning after I get back. Pray for safe travels for me, please! I will be coming back before my team, and traveling internationally alone makes me a bit nervous. :)

Villages, Crosses, Shopping, Oh My!

Oh my goodness, so much has happened since my last post! The short version is that we went to an Ayta village from Friday to Saturday, to a Filipino church in Bataan on Sunday and toured a little bit (with the vice mayor at that!), Monday we shopped, and today we were back with the kids!

The village was an absolutely incredible and unique experience. I feel so blessed to have been able to be in that place because it is so very different from American life. The people were beautiful, dark-skinned, and curly-haired. They looked similar to African people groups, and they actually are the indigenous people group here in the Philippines. They are often discriminated against and looked down on by other Filipinos, and they have actually taken on the mindset that they are worth less. But I couldn't disagree more because they were some of the most incredible and gifted people that I have met in the Philippines! They treated our group with such honor and respect. It was a huge deal for us to visit them because their last visitors came in February and other than that, they just live among themselves, although the children do go to school - some in the community and some a little farther away for high school. I don't have time to tell their whole history now, but it is very interesting, and you should ask me later if you want to know. Two of the girls, Jubilyn and Marta, really liked to hang out with me. They introduced themselves as cousins and best friends, and I told them Charis was my best friend, so they would take Ate Sarah and Ate Charis to explore the river or play games or sing. Also, the food was great and it sure felt like we were eating real Filipino food! I even had dried fish that was the complete fish - eyeballs and all! :)

Saturday night we left the village and went to a town in Bataan (for you WWII history buffs, this is where the Bataan Death March took place - very, very interesting for me, as I remember studying this in AP US History). We spent the night in an elementary school (with air conditioning, or air con, as they call it here), and went to church in the morning. After church we got a personal tour from the vice mayor of some of the area around Bataan, including this HUUUUGE cross on top of a mountain. That is what the picture above is from. Since you are on top of a mountain, you are already kinda in the clouds, and then you can go to the top of the cross (or, where the two beams meet) and then you might be surrounded by clouds, or if it clears up, there is a FANTASTIC view. It was gorgeous, and I have great pictures, but they would take too long to upload now. After the tour we came back to Manila (but not without a pit stop at McDonalds, although I only had some fries).

Monday we got to go shopping! This was pretty fun because we went to a market where we could haggle! Sometimes I like haggling, because I really enjoy getting good deals, but I don't always like arguing about prices because it makes me feel bad, so I made sure to stick close to my good friend Michael Frank, and he helped me out a lot. He basically turns into another person when he is haggling, saying things like no, no, no, she is a poor college student, how could she pay for that! Haha, it was great. I got lots of stuff that I had been looking for, and since I will be leaving the team early, it was pretty much my only day to shop. Also, Monday night Charis and Mrs Jones and I went to a spa and got manicures and pedicures! That was fun, although it did take a long time. But, manicure, pedicure, and foot scrub/massage thing only cost $4! Beat that, America!

Today I was with the kids again in the nursery. They are so cute! Tomorrow will be my last day with them because on Thursday we are going to Puerto Galera and coming back Sunday, and I leave bright and early on Monday.

This trip is going by so quickly, but it has been fantastic so far. Thank you for all your prayers!

Oh, and P.S., my infection is healing quite nicely. :)