Playing a little catsup....

So I've been trying to update some of my past blogs since I started trying this whole uploading picture thing. The problem is it takes quite a long time to upload them all and in the pauses between adding to different posts, I've been "busying" myself on things like Facebook, which just makes me stay here even longer. Unfortunately as I've said, Internet costs money here, and I don't have a lot to spare. So keep checking back for added photos in past blogs. And, hooray! Look forward to more pictures in upcoming posts. Whoo-hoo, right?

Some things I've overlooked....

1) I would like to please clarify the last post about the typhoon. I'm not sure of the media coverage in the states. I haven't really gotten any comments about it, but I have guilted myself about it. So to clear my conscience.... The lighthearted nature of the past post was only because it was a little funny to the eight of us that there was a level three typhoon going on and we had no idea. Beth and Sara, two of the other interns, had gone out that morning and were commenting on how oddly windy it was. I have to simply laugh at our oblivity. However, the storm was actually a very serious thing and, least of all, put many people out of electricity and water for days. How we were so lucky to get ours back the next day I'll never know, but most people only recently are able to see at night. The cable just returned last night, not that it's as important, but for reference, that's how long it's taking to rejuvenate the city. We were visited the other night by Jed from the Tondo community, who was telling us the damage caused to our friends in Parola and Beseco. I can only briefly imagine what the situation must be like for my host family who live right on the water; briefly because I can only think how horribly awful and indescribable it must be. Many people were also killed in this storm. Some reported dead weren't even from the storm. I overheard Becca explaining the other day that some people are "dissapeared" during natural disasters like this and use the destruction as a cover up for political killings. Yes, it is that horrendous. Also, a landslide in a town we have recently visited was a direct result of all the water from the rains. And my mother has informed me that another is potentially on its way.

2) I can't believe I never posted about Taal!!! Is this true? I was trying to upload photos and wondering where my blog about our trip to the volcano was. I read through past ones and couldn't find it anywhere. Could I be so careless? I guess it's better to describe so late afterwards because I refuse to spend much time on it. So here goes...(if I'm repeating myself, my apologies)

Pretty close to the beginning of orientation, even before our first immersion, we took a trip, with Ate Marie as our guide ("ate" means "older sister"), to the volcano of Taal. I heard a fact that you're never more than 30 km from a volcano in the Philippines, and after seeing the large Relief Map in Rizal park yesterday, I'm inclined to believe it. We travelled to the city of Tagaytay (side story: when I called Apple before I left about my ipod, a luxury here and I guess in the States as well, I spoke to a Filipino boy who told me to visit Tagaytay, weird), and rode down winding roads to the shore of a lake. Let me just say it was the first truly gorgeous site of the Philippines. There were moutain heads springing from the lake in every direction. We rode boats to one of the "islands" and proceeded to climb (after a brief rain delay) to the top of on of the islands. As we reached the top (which was actually quite the hike) we looked over a ridge to see another lake in the center of this island with another small island in the middle. Apparently it's one of Becca's favorite jokes to describe this view as "an island, in a lake, on an island, in a lake, on an island". The strangest thing to see was little vents of smoke rising randomly out of the ground everywhere. The sites were gorgeous, and the buco juice we were given complemented the view quite nicely.

So "quick" updates from past blogs. Sadly no one has posted any questions. I'm starting worry, readers. Not to discount the few comments left to me, which I can't even beginthere's my to describe the meaningful-ness of, but this makes twice my pleas for comments have been ignored. I'm kidding of course, but as Filipino kidding has the frequency of doing, there is a little truth in every joking jab. So again, I'm asking kindly, for some responses. Mostly because I'm a little too excited about the idea of a Q&A and would hate to be so pathetic as to make up the questions myself and pretend they have been sent from someone else.


Ok, so this great lovely weekend deserves a post. Even though it started off on a bad note, and there is still a little hurt residue from the effects of the beginnings, I would have to say it was a very fun and successful weekend.

So without further waiting....

I woke up Saturday morning feeling much, as the crude phrase goes, like shit. Unfortunately we were scheduled to leave quite early for a much anticipated weekend worshop of the theater variety at a UCCP church in Cubao. "Great," I thought. This was simply perfect for me. So I tried to push aside the feelings, which I hate to say got the better of me by the time we arrived at the church. So for most of the day we were supposed to be spending learning about the process of the church's theater group, I was busying sleeping in one of the pews. Truth be told, I spent most of the day in the pew, sleeping. So I missed all of the processing and the creating of an exhibition we were set to perform the next day. To my luck, I did feel much better that night when we started a seminar on "native instruments".

Now my friend and fellow intern, Beth, points out that I use "uneccessary air quotes" far too often, and apparently I'm using quotation marks here in quite the random fashion. But I always explain my rationale to her, even if I use them just for my own amusement, and I will explain why I use them here. I'm a little confused as to all of the intruments they showed us and taught us to play on their title as "native". Most of them it seemed to me obviously came from elsewhere. So I thought about it and again came to the realization that the Philippines is semi-colonial and most of its culture comes from the infulences of its colonizers. So the "native guitar" comes from the influence of Spain. They also showed us rain sticks (whose origins I'm not sure of), water chimes (goat horns suspended from a carved stick), bamboo flutes, and the ever popular and awesome djembe. Now I'm almost positive the djembe comes from Africa. So how it is "native" to the Philippines I don't know. But to let the point go, I don't really care, becasue I got a few free lessons in playing one, and got to play it frequently enough this weekend to develope not only a love, but some sore fingers. Let's just say that I was pretty amazing for a beginner and got to play throughout our entire performance, more due to my sickness the first day during the "acting" portions, than to any nautral abilities or at least learned abilities at the djembe. Oh well.

The reason I mention the residue from the weekend, which resulted from my sickness, is because it will give you a little itty-bitty view of Philippine culture. It can be quite easy for Filipinos to have their feeling hurt by foreigners. It is a Filipino cultural characteristic to be very hospitable. So it is quite insulting to have their hospitality or their culture insulted or devalued by foreigners. According to Becca, it has happened in the past where foreigners have "checked out" on their own accord without rhyme or reason. They have the mentality that listening to Filipinos is a choice and often a waste of time. So apparenlty it wasn't conveyed to a late-comer leader that not only I, but fellow intern Helen, were laying down because we were sick, not because we simply chose not to participate. And in typical Filipino fashion, this person went to talk to a third party, Becca, about her concern. Now, the difference is that typically there is a point of reconciliation from the "benefit of the doubt", but this person refused to accept our reasoning or believe our truthful circumstances enough to forgive us and gave us dirty looks through most of the performance.

The performance itself went very nicely and I have to say I had an amazing time. Saturday night was great, in spite of and maybe as a result of being plunged into almost darkness since the church was still without power from the typhoon. We played instruments in the candlelight and had quite the time. And most of the time on Sunday before our performance was spent simply hanging out and "jamming" to some familiar American folk rock tunes. (Read Eric Clapton). I have to say that I'm in love with a lot of the people at this church and really jealous of Martha, whose placement is working with this church and their drama program. I have met my favorite character thus far in the music director of the church named Provee. She is an insanely good time and I haven't laughed so hard in quite a long time.

We also got to celebrate another birthday yesterday. I can't even remember if I posted about celebrating Helen's before we left for Macalamcam, so if I didn't I apologize to her. But of course we would go back to the same restaurant, Don Henricos. The Italian pirate who loves Philippinized-Italian food. But as our luck would have it, it started to pour when we were planning on going home. So we were soaked, and me with my white shirt. That's typical Philippines during the rainy season, though. Always raining. Actually, its raining right now.

So that's been my life for awhile. We're getting some much needed rest since our next exposure has been cancelled. We were supposed to have a Moro (Muslim) immersion, returning to Beseco, but they are currently observing Ramadan, so working out the details and the times never really worked out. I will be harshly honest in saying that I am a little relieved. One because it means we have a lot of rest time before our next long immersion. We will have a smaller one here in the city with the 'Red Light' district, but of course we won't be spending the night anywhere and we won't be travelling far since we live right in the midst of such a sad situation. I'm sure there will be another slightly preachy, but hopefully informative blog will be soon on its way.

Until then....

Peace, I hope

(and post a comment!)