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Philippines Adventure
June - July 2012
by Janett
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A few photos from the first month or so in the Philippines

Foreigner in a foreign land

Consider the reality of being the only American in any number of situations for weeks on end. I can tell you it is sure interesting – I sit on a jeepney, in church, I go shopping at the local market – everywhere I am the one foreigner. Mostly I don’t think a lot about it –but on occasion I have the startling wake up call and I am reminded. One of the most interesting ways I am reminded of my minority status is when I am around children. When I leave the center and walk the ½ mile or so to the road I am often followed by young giggling children. They huddle together staring at me and most often ask what is your name? Or I walk past a group of children and they stop what they are doing and stare at me – I mean real hearty stares – but that is usually followed by me smiling and saying good morning or hello or something – and then they huddle together and giggle more and say hello back in this sing song kind of way. It is actually a lovely little exchange and I find it fun to smile at them and say hello – even knowing the reaction. Perhaps they don’t see many Americans – or foreigners – and I imagine I could find it unsettling or annoying – but mostly these interactions make me smile and feel joyous. I love to take the moment and say hello back and laugh with them – or say my name is Janett – as they huddle and giggle following me down the street.

I am in a small town and there are very few Americans here – maybe a hand full at any given time and most often I can spend a day in town and never see another – so I am quite aware of how much I stick out. I went to a mass today and was aware of the reality that of the hundreds of folks in the church I was the one –foreigner. Of course this ‘otherness’ has meant lots of adjusting to differences for me – and daily reminders of how privileged I am as an American but mostly I feel grateful to be able to witness the lives of these lovely people and to be allowed to be a part of their daily lives.

The other way this plays out is actually also kind of pleasant. I obviously am different – I don’t at all look Filipino – so it’s not like I can hide my American-ness. But total strangers will come up to me and say hello and ask me personal questions. I go to the bakery to get bread and the sweet young woman smiling asks me what I am doing here? Where am I from? – and seems to find great pleasure in the simple story that I am volunteering here for 6 months. This kind of think happens all the time. Like today on the jeepney home a nice older women came across the seat to greet me – she introduced herself and asked me where I was from and then proceeded to share with me her joy at just having been to the wedding yesterday of her oldest son. She held my hand and looked happily into my face and said how nice it was to meet me. And last night on the way home in another jeepney a man asked me where I am from and again I told him as most of the jeepney full of people listened on that I was a Peace Corps volunteer staying at the Drug Rehab program for 6 months. The great part of this and what seems so typical of Filipinos in the pouring rain I couldn’t see out the plastic windows very well – they pull down the sides in the rain- but he made sure the driver knew to stop at my road –and then announced “this is your stop.” He was taking care of me to make sure I got off at the right place. Pretty cool huh?

So being a foreigner in a foreign land is an infinitely humbling experience and in the Philippines it is an especially joy filled one.

40 days and 40 nights

Another week or so has gone by I can see how the time slips away as I’ve already been in the Philippines almost 6 weeks. I’m beginning to find a comfort level and the sharp differences I noticed early on are now more familiar and becoming even of my own routines. The pace is still a little slow for me, but I really wanted to shift down a few notches anyway given I am now ‘retired’. One thing I still don’t like though is squeezing in those trikes (motorcycles with side cars) but it is the main way to get around. I wait for jeepneys if I can, but since I’m in a small town things close up kind of early and transport options diminish. We have had a lot of rain over the past week or so – they call it a low pressure system here (the pre-cursor to a typhoon I think) but apparently compared to the weather and heat back east in the U.S. I am actually doing pretty well here. The humidity even seems a lot more bearable than it can be in Richmond in the summer.

Recently fifty High School students and their teachers from 8 surrounding communities came to the center to participate in a drug awareness event. The UN and Dangerous Drug Board proclaims 26th of June as a date recognized as the “International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking” This year’s focus was on health. The slogan was: ‘Kalusugan ay Kayamanan, Droga’ y Iwasan! So as part of this MTRC sponsored an Infomercial script writing and radio broadcasting challenge on July 18 and I got to be one of the judges. The students organized in teams and came up with some very creative messages and delivered them quite effectively – they clearly seemed to get the message about the dangers of drug use. Of course the cash prizes were a nice incentive too. We had a lot of fun with some props that allowed everyone to put on wigs and hats and take pictures. Many are posted on the Malinao Treatment and Rehabilitation Center Face Book page – check it out and like if you’re interested.

This past weekend I decided to go explore an area called Naga about 81. Km (50 miles) away. This meant finding a van in Tabaco and waiting for about an hour for enough people to come by to fill up the seats – then you leave. So much for a schedule huh? Two hours later I arrive to another bustling small town. The street life in the Philippines is amazing, filled with sounds and people and activity. It’s hard to capture or relay what this feels like. I also realized how compact things are – and this is likely because the towns are not set up for driving – everything is condensed into like a 10 or 20 block areas because people here don’t have private cars so they walk to the market and to shop. I had a chance to enjoy some good food (they have a Pizza Hut in this town) and a movie for about $3.00. Of course I am aware the chance to skip away for the weekend and stay in a hotel with hot water showers and internet ($16 a night) is a real luxury for many Philippines’ – something they wouldn’t be able to afford to do. A few of the staff at my site said they have only been to Naga once or twice ever – and it is 50 miles away.

A permanent position admin job was recently posted at my site. Most of the staff here has contract jobs – one year to the next with no job security. So from this discussion I am learning income in this area may be in the $200 to $450 a month range with the top range being unusual. Staff at my site earn probably between 9,000 to 13,000 pesos a month = around $210 to $300 a month and this is with college degrees. So this helps me understand more why so many things in the stores come in small packages and the necessity of some of their purchases such as powdered milk vs. real milk and processed cheese vs. ‘real’ cheese. Filipinos buy what they need each week – such as a small packet of washing soap, a small packet of crackers, or one roll of toilet paper at a time. When you don’t have a lot of money you can’t stock up the same way Americans do – buying in bulk. I am constantly reminded with these kinds of discussions and learning’s how much we have in the states and how little we really appreciate all our privilege.

I do miss my walks at the Cliffs and the daily chance to take in nature and feel its restorative energy, but I recently found a little place to escape at the center – a rooftop view of Mayon volcano and the surrounding area from above the palm trees. I’ve been going up to get a fresh breeze and a feeling of being connected to nature. Remember I’m in a closed in compound with 9’ walls and guards 24/7 and 35 pairs of eyes watching me all the time – so this little escape allows me a private chance to breathe in the air and relax. “…..I rest in the grace of the world and am free” Wendell Berry

Weekend in the Philippines

Even here I love weekends – a chance to start out slow, do something different and to explore. Saturday I took a bus (35 pesos = about 80 cents) the 18 miles into Legaspi. I imagine the locals find this boring, it’s like 1 ½ hour trip, but for me it was great fun – with big open bus windows – we drove though lots of small barangay’s (towns) past rice fields and lava fields, with views of Mayon Volcano at a variety of angles and glimpses of the water and mountains in the distance. Legaspi is the nearest large town – it is where I flew into the airport on June 29, but this was a chance to spend a little time there. Legaspi has two distinct parts the old town with City Hall and the new town area with a mall, cinema, small businesses and markets. I spent the day with Dr Tess and she drove me around starting with a trip just to the outskirts of town to an area called Daraga where we had a lovely lunch in an old restored home filled with natural wood and artifacts. We then went to an area along the Albay Gulf called Embarcadero which is a revitalized port area with shops, a grocery store and zip lines across the gulf to seduce both locals and tourists to take that step off into thin air. Nice day and fun to see something new.

Sunday got up early to join a few PCV’s at the 3K & 5 K race – a fundraiser for Children’s International Hospital. Things started at 5:30 in the morning – which I thought was ridiculously early until one realizes how hot it gets in the morning as the sun comes up. It was great to walk though town and to have a chance to talk to some of the other locals along the route. Given I had such an early start a few hours later I went back to the center and took a 3 hour nap. I love Sunday’s – only thing missing was the Sunday newspaper. So now I’ve got the bug and hope to start taking more trips on the weekends to explore the surrounding areas of Albay.

Meanwhile back to the ‘work’ week – the good thing is stuff is picking up and I can see where my project fits in a little more and am beginning to be asked to do things – like social work staff asking me to develop a seminar on counseling and case management and help with developing forms for their case files. So patience pays off ….

Looking to the differences and trying to enjoy them

Cultural differences - which is which???

Being - Doing

Emphasis on relationships - Emphasis on achievement

Risks are inherently unsettling because -Risk taking – experimentation
they involve the unknown

work as a functional necessity - work as part of identity

Fork and spoon - fork, spoon & knife

Rice 3 xx a day - rice occasionally

Yes means maybe - yes means yes

Indirect communication - direct communication

Communal – greater good - Privacy

Collective - Individualism

Harmony - Results

Differences in concept of time - Differences in concept of time

5 meals a day - 3 meals & snacks

Hierarchy - Egalitarianism
emphasizing distinctions between boss and
subordinates is the norm

Saving vs. losing face - directness at any cost

Family is center of social structure - “I” is center of everything

Respect for elders - ageism – age is not highly valued

Hospitable to guests – offering the best - Casual & informal (help yourself to…

Formality assures order - don’t stand on ceremony

Stability is sought and provided for; - New is better
change is threatening

Transportaton Trikes in Tabaco - imagine 6 people and the driver on this.

Tabaco City Saturday Shopping with Analyn & Owen - new friends

Week one at my site

Week one is wrapping up at my site – at this point lots of observing and getting a feel for things. I join the rest of the staff in all their activities and participated in a staff meeting. I’m also ‘working’ from 8 am till 5 pm – with prompt breaks for lunch at noon. The Malinao Treatment & Rehabilitation Center (MTRC) is a residential program and has about 40 male residents. They use a Therapeutic Community (TC) model here. Drugs of choice in the Philippines are alcohol, marijuana and methamphetamine commonly known as "shabu" the drug is considered “the poor man’s cocaine” although apparently prices are going higher. Lots to learn about the program and refreshing on my old days and knowledge from working in a CSB drug treatment program. Started outlining my work plan and project related tasks and goals, but things here go slower and I expect it to be a few more weeks before the project is more clearly defined.

Most interesting has been my visits to the nearest town – Tabaco – which is about 6 miles away. One travels around here via trike a motorcycle with a side car – generally fits 6 people – 3 in the side car and 3 on the motorcycle (sitting side saddle) and the driver – who sits up on the gas tank – UGH. oh yeah the drivers often have no shoes on… YIKES…the ride is about 20 minutes to Tabaco. Town seems to be one main street with a LCC mall which has several floors of goods with the first floor being groceries. Across the street is what they call a wet market – outside venders with all kinds of fruit and vegetables. I bought pineapple for 15 pesos (maybe about 10 cents and a watermelon for 60 pesos – about $1.25. There are no McDonalds in this small town, but the Philippines have something comparable called Jollibee. Food remains a challenge for a vegetarian – and I hope to come up with some more sources of protein, eating a lot of peanut butter sandwiches thus far. They have few dairy products here no milk, really no cheese, I do think I saw some yogurt and they have tofu. I found some kidney beans and they have a local mongo bean – just need to learn how to cook it.

I have been texting with some of the area PC volunteers, one works in Tabaco City and two in Legaspi (about 25 miles away) and of few others I connected with in Manila. Had an offer to go with a group heading up to Daet – a northern island of Bicol for the weekend – but decided it was too soon and the idea of 5-6 hour bus ride isn’t very appealing to me right now. I do look forward though to exploring things around this southern section of the Island of Luzon and to connecting with PCV’s. Next weekend is a 3 or 5K fun run in Tabaco – a fundraiser I believe for the Children’s International program a PCV is working with. So I hope to join them – probably walk, but it will be fun to participate.

As in any experience of truly living and learning a new culture there are challenges – everything is different – so adjustment can be a little bumpy and letting go of some of my American ways is both a challenge and a relief. I am learning to slow down and let go of so many expectations, it’s a wonderful opportunity to practice really being in the moment.

Shopping excursion 7-2-12

So I am learning about patience even more and about being cared for and protected by my hosts. I got to hang around the center from Friday to Monday evening – as travel alone to the small town was discouraged right off. I also think my introverted ‘do things on my own’ style isn’t going to work so well here. I am not likely going to get to do a lot of things alone. Filipinos are a communal people – so doing things together is the norm. And they want to do everything for me – which is hard – I feel like I am imposing, but they seem to genuinely want to do stuff for me to assure I am comfortable and have everything I need.

I was happy I got to leave the center on Monday evening for an excursion to Tabaco City – about 20 minutes away by trike (a motorcycle with a side car). Amazingly this small enough transport fits 6 passengers and the driver – and apparently in the morning on the way to school even more kids pile on. The cost is about 30 pesos. I was accompanied by an entourage of staff eager and happy that we waited till after 5 pm to make the trip so they could all join me. Quite fun being escorted up to the 3rd floor of the small department store to the households section and receiving recommendations on a pot and pan and the few other settling in items I wanted to purchase. Of course none of the gals cook – so they really had no idea what pot was best – but encouraged my decisions towards one brand over the other. They also helped at the grocery store and again I am guided to sections for different things I am looking for and one person pushes the cart, the other gets my produce items weighed etc.- they even carry my packages. I have a feeling I’m going to be really spoiled by the time I leave the Philippines.

Everything still remains new and interesting – so much more to see and learn – the days are filled with both a calm easy pace and the ongoing adjustment to new things. More to come…