Friday, December 12, 2008
18-On Architecture
The first week of December was National Architecture week here in the Philippines. So this seems like appropriate time for a long overdue blog post on the Architecture of the Philippines. My research is predominantly based on a fabulous book I found in the library of the Architecture School here in Bacolod and have subsequently bought my own copy. It’s entitled “Lugar: essays on Philippine Heritage and Architecture”, by Augusto Villalon.
When the Spanish arrived in the Philippines, they found a society based on agriculture and seafaring. The people lived in clusters of single-room houses, known as Bahay kubo (square house) / Bahay na nipa (house of nipa palm). These structures were built of bamboo, rattan and palm with steep roofs and raised above the ground on stilts. These materials are readily available locally and are expertly woven and lashed together.
“The traditional house responded perfectly to the tropical island environment. It was a lightweight pliant structure that was easily replaced if it burnt or was blown away in the yearly monsoon rain and wind or if it collapsed helplessly with the massive upheavals of earthquakes that periodically ravaged the country. Designed as an impermanent structure, it was always at the mercy of the severe and demanding tropical environment. However, it was a structure with many lives. Soon after its destruction, the owner and his neighbours always rebuilt it. Working on the reconstruction together, they would rebuild each of the destroyed houses in their village swiftly and with ease, until the next calamity would again destroy their homes”.
Large stone structures for religious, civic, residential use were not built in the Philippines unlike neighbouring Asian countries (e.g. Angkor Wat in Cambodia, Great Wall of China) as the lifestyle and religious beliefs had no need for monuments.
“Filipino structures were not intended to last forever. Impermanence in architecture was a difficult concept for westerners to accept”.
The Spanish built churches to reinforce their presence and the Christianization of the colony. Stone construction was unknown in the Philippines before the 16th Century. The Churches were a product of collaborative work carried out by a group of highly skilled Filipino and Chinese artisans unfamiliar with western construction, directed by the parish priest (folk architecture:- cannot be ascribed to a single designer or architect). This Fusion of East and West became the Filipino style.
In terms of commercial architecture, before the American influenced mega malls, trade was conducted from private residences, which was the preferred method of conducting business in Asia.
“The head of the family held his office in a room on the ground level of his home. When necessary, storage areas for merchandise were accommodated on the ground level. Therefore, during the 18th and 19th Centuries, although Manila had its established commercial districts, the scale of the city remained residential”.
This can still be seen today in the form of sari sari stores fronting the street. They specialise in selling individual single use sachets of everything from shampoo to cooking oil.
When it came to residential architecture, the Spanish adapted the design of the Bahay na nipa (house of nipa palm) into the colonial Bahay na bato (house of stone).
“The non-load-bearing stone walls on the ground floor protect the house, but are not part of the overall structural system. Freestanding tree trunks, set a distance inside the stone walls, form a grid of main posts to support the upper floor and the heavy, high-pitched terra cotta tile roof. The entire structure is of simple basic post-and-beam construction. Vertical posts hold horizontal beams together, exactly as in the Bahay na nipa”.
The most unique element of the Bahay na bato is the layered window system, improving air circulation and handling light more efficiently while screening out heat.
“The principal layer, sliding panels of capiz shells framed in a wooden grid, kept rain out while allowing diffused, sepia-toned light to filter in. Inside the capiz layer, sliding panels of adjustable wooden louvres (persiana) screened away the heat of the sun while allowing currents or cooling air to enter the house”.
This layering of materials also transcends into the layering of spaces themselves:
“The Filipino culture traditionally regards space as a limitless series of layers that define, without totally enclosing, a series of volumes and spaces. These spaces extend from the most private that are situated deep within a structure, proceed outdoors to embrace the immediate environment, and finally reach towards the horizon to include the sky within its limitless bounds”.
One thing I’ve had difficulty accepting within GK is the perception that bamboo construction is parochial and ugly, and concrete hollow blocks and metal roof sheeting is beautiful and the way of the future. The cultural connotations of bamboo and nipa cannot be ignored. This is the material used by the slum dwellers to construct their shanties – the very thing that GK is trying to ‘fix’.
From a technical perspective, there are plenty of good arguments as to why bamboo should be avoided – the time and cost involved to cure it properly, it’s limited lifespan when exposed to the elements, it’s vulnerability to termites/borers. Yet there are equally plenty of good arguments why bamboo should be used – environmentally sustainable, locally available, culturally appropriate and maintaining the craftsmanship.
The choice of construction material for GK villages is obviously heavily influenced by cost as the priority is housing the most number of families for the least cost. However, the choice is also influenced by location. In some areas where there is a prevalence of lime in the soil, compressed earth blocks have been manufactured and used like bricks (and they don’t require render or paint). In other areas, particularly coastal locations prone to flooding, post and beam construction is more appropriate as a cost effective method to elevate the houses above the flood waters. In most cases a fibre cement sheeting is used to clad the timber framed structure. But from all the trial and error so far, hollow blocks with steel reinforcing bars, still remain the most economical, durable and practical. They are readily available, sometimes even made on site, although the quality is generally quite poor (ie crumbles in your hand). They are also a good option in terms of volunteer labourers with limited skills.
I have now visited about 15 existing GK villages and what interests me the most is going around the back of the houses and seeing how the families actually cook and wash. These activities are culturally and practically always a back of house thing and the cooking is more often than not done outside on wood stoves. GK provides the basic 1 room house with toilet and offers suggestions on how the occupant may wish to extend at the back (at their own cost), which must be approved by the sites project director before proceeding. But in my observation, this is an area where there is a lot of room for improvement.
This week I had the privilege of meeting and hosting in our house, Bebet Gozun, the former Secretary of the Philippines Department of Environment and Natural Resources who now is the full time head of “Green Kalinga”, GK’s Environment arm. She visited Bacolod for 2 days to advocate for better integration of environmental design in GK villages and to visit several of our sites. As I did my thesis on environmentally sustainable design I was particularly interested to hear what she had to say. Some of the initiatives that “Green Kalinga” is pushing include undertaking geohazard assessments and Environmental Impact Assessments on new sites, moving away from septic tanks and towards biodigesters, anaerobic baffled reactors or reed bed systems; improved passive ventilation in the house designs, rainwater harvesting instead of reliance on artesian wells, waste segregation, recycling, composting, parks, solar street lighting, retaining existing trees, planting indigenous species, agroforestry and organic farming.
Bebet’s visit gave me renewed enthusiasm and a clearer direction on what is feasible within the context of GK.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
17 – Bohol
My good friend Marj turned 33 on Friday 28th November. Aruna, Alison and I decided a few weeks ago that we should do something special for this beautiful girl who had helped us so much and become a really good friend to all of us. She works so hard, hadn’t had a holiday in ages and she’d never been to Bohol, 2 islands south of Negros, so we planned to take her there for a long weekend. When we told her our intensions a couple of weeks before, the expression on her face was priceless! And it all went without a hitch … (until the last day that is).
A former AYAD, Scott, who had been assigned in Bohol had recently returned and established a tour company in conjunction with a Filipino friend. So we contacted him and he planned our entire trip making sure we got to see the typical tourist attractions of the island as well as some of the not so well known places that he had discovered himself.
We left on Friday and flew to Cebu, the island between Negros and Bohol. We were met by Marj’s brother who lives there. They hadn’t seen each other for several months. He treated us all to lunch for his sister’s birthday before dropping us at the port to catch the ferry to Bohol. Scott met us off the ferry and had a green jeep and driver waiting to take us up into the hills where we spent the first night in Nuts Huts overlooking the Loboc River. He came back for us in the morning and we had a whole day of touring taking in the chocolate hills, the butterfly farm, a picnic by the river, the bamboo suspension bridge and the tarsier sanctuary. The pictures tell the story! And stay tuned for a movie Alison is planning to make and post on youtube.
As the sun was setting we were dropped at Alona beach and we checked into our bamboo cottages for 2 nights and booked a snorkelling trip for the following day. Then we settled back for some great seafood and cocktails on the beach!
The snorkelling was excellent. We dived off the side of the pumpboat into the flat crystal clear waters teaming with tropical fish and colourful corals.
Sunshine, seafood, mango shakes, fun and friends … we didn’t really want to leave. We were returning on Monday, a public holiday, by a different route – early morning ferry from Bohol to the bottom of Negros then 6 hr bus from Dumaguete to Bacolod. Alison and I had a meeting on the Wednesday in a town actually closer to Dumaguete than Bacolod and we were toying with the idea of just meeting them there so we could stay an extra day! But we thought we better not … and then …
We discovered that the 1 ATM in town had run out of cash. We didn’t have enough between us to settle the bill for our accommodation and they didn’t accept credit card. Despite Monday being a public holiday we were advised that the ATM should be restocked by lunchtime. So there was nothing for it, Alison and I would stay behind, fix up the bill in the afternoon, get the evening ferry instead, stay the night in Dumaguette and arrange to meet up with our colleagues at the Wednesday meeting.
In the end it was a blessing in disguise because it meant we could spend an extra day lazing on the beach, catch up with the AYADs in Dumaguette and also see a bit of what GK is doing in Dumaguette. The volunteers from the GK office in Dumaguette took us to see 4 of their 7 villages. The first one they showed us, which was built in 2003 using fibre cement sheeting and coconut timber framing, was in the process of being rebuilt with hollow block construction as there was a termite problem and they’d also found the sheeting had not been durable enough to resist impact. I found it very worthwhile to see and hear the lessons they’ve learned and meanwhile Alison was able to talk to the residents about the progress of their health programs.
The purpose of our Wednesday meeting in Bayowan was to inspect a reed bed water treatment facility that has been installed in the GK village there in partnership with a German water engineering company. We are keen to implement something similar in one of the villages on our side of the island. We stayed in Bayowan overnight. Our long drive back to Bacolod on Thursday was broken by a few side trips to inspect GK villages and one to inspect a propsed new site. A lady who owns a small island just off the coast wanted to donate the island to GK to build a village for the poor fishing families. On inspection we soon determined it was not going to be feasible to transport construction materials to this island, let alone the social ethics of putting a whole community on an isolated island and the environmental ethics of constructing a whole community on a pristine island. Through further discussions we ascertained that our donor happened to have a good relationship with the families that owned the land closer to the highway and would discuss with them the possibility of swapping her island for some of their land which would be a more appropriate location for a GK village.
I was eventually back in my apartment at 8.30pm Thursday evening - one week after I left for a weekend only to be gone for a week … but what a good week!
A former AYAD, Scott, who had been assigned in Bohol had recently returned and established a tour company in conjunction with a Filipino friend. So we contacted him and he planned our entire trip making sure we got to see the typical tourist attractions of the island as well as some of the not so well known places that he had discovered himself.
We left on Friday and flew to Cebu, the island between Negros and Bohol. We were met by Marj’s brother who lives there. They hadn’t seen each other for several months. He treated us all to lunch for his sister’s birthday before dropping us at the port to catch the ferry to Bohol. Scott met us off the ferry and had a green jeep and driver waiting to take us up into the hills where we spent the first night in Nuts Huts overlooking the Loboc River. He came back for us in the morning and we had a whole day of touring taking in the chocolate hills, the butterfly farm, a picnic by the river, the bamboo suspension bridge and the tarsier sanctuary. The pictures tell the story! And stay tuned for a movie Alison is planning to make and post on youtube.
As the sun was setting we were dropped at Alona beach and we checked into our bamboo cottages for 2 nights and booked a snorkelling trip for the following day. Then we settled back for some great seafood and cocktails on the beach!
The snorkelling was excellent. We dived off the side of the pumpboat into the flat crystal clear waters teaming with tropical fish and colourful corals.
Sunshine, seafood, mango shakes, fun and friends … we didn’t really want to leave. We were returning on Monday, a public holiday, by a different route – early morning ferry from Bohol to the bottom of Negros then 6 hr bus from Dumaguete to Bacolod. Alison and I had a meeting on the Wednesday in a town actually closer to Dumaguete than Bacolod and we were toying with the idea of just meeting them there so we could stay an extra day! But we thought we better not … and then …
We discovered that the 1 ATM in town had run out of cash. We didn’t have enough between us to settle the bill for our accommodation and they didn’t accept credit card. Despite Monday being a public holiday we were advised that the ATM should be restocked by lunchtime. So there was nothing for it, Alison and I would stay behind, fix up the bill in the afternoon, get the evening ferry instead, stay the night in Dumaguette and arrange to meet up with our colleagues at the Wednesday meeting.
In the end it was a blessing in disguise because it meant we could spend an extra day lazing on the beach, catch up with the AYADs in Dumaguette and also see a bit of what GK is doing in Dumaguette. The volunteers from the GK office in Dumaguette took us to see 4 of their 7 villages. The first one they showed us, which was built in 2003 using fibre cement sheeting and coconut timber framing, was in the process of being rebuilt with hollow block construction as there was a termite problem and they’d also found the sheeting had not been durable enough to resist impact. I found it very worthwhile to see and hear the lessons they’ve learned and meanwhile Alison was able to talk to the residents about the progress of their health programs.
The purpose of our Wednesday meeting in Bayowan was to inspect a reed bed water treatment facility that has been installed in the GK village there in partnership with a German water engineering company. We are keen to implement something similar in one of the villages on our side of the island. We stayed in Bayowan overnight. Our long drive back to Bacolod on Thursday was broken by a few side trips to inspect GK villages and one to inspect a propsed new site. A lady who owns a small island just off the coast wanted to donate the island to GK to build a village for the poor fishing families. On inspection we soon determined it was not going to be feasible to transport construction materials to this island, let alone the social ethics of putting a whole community on an isolated island and the environmental ethics of constructing a whole community on a pristine island. Through further discussions we ascertained that our donor happened to have a good relationship with the families that owned the land closer to the highway and would discuss with them the possibility of swapping her island for some of their land which would be a more appropriate location for a GK village.
I was eventually back in my apartment at 8.30pm Thursday evening - one week after I left for a weekend only to be gone for a week … but what a good week!
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
16 - Sharing
Filipinos are big on ‘sharing’. I don’t mean sharing a house or sharing food etc (although they do that a lot too). The word here is used to refer to talking in front of a group about a personal experience such that the group can either share in your joy and thereby derive inspiration from it or share in your sadness and thereby lessen your load.
It would seem that from a Filipino perspective, there’s nothing more inspiring than a foreigner who has given up their time to come and work for the poor in the Philippines. - particularly as so many Filipinos are so focused on finding an opportunity to work abroad. As such, I have found my role in GK has morphed slightly. On top of the ‘architecture’ stuff, myself and fellow American volunteer, Alison, are being ‘utilised’ to inspire more locals to volunteer with GK. This has in fact become the full-time role of Dylan, the English guy I stayed with in Manila, and he now gets invitations to speak internationally. While Alison and I are not quite in the same league! , we are asked to share on a regular basis locally – what inspired us to work for GK and our experience so far. Alison is a Filipino American also my age. She was born and bread in the U.S. and wanted to reconnect with her Filipino heritage while also serving a cause she believes in – GK’s health program.
“They’ll listen to you because you’re foreigners” they say. Both Alison and I agreed we were in two minds about this. Part of me is questioning whether this is simply perpetuating the colonial mentality but the other part of me thinks that if they really want me to do this and if it encourages more people to volunteer with GK for the betterment of this country isn’t that a good thing? I was also initially rather uncomfortable about getting up in front of a group of strangers and talking about myself – I’m a bit out of practice at public speaking, having not done it for a while, and coming from my own cultural perspective, it’s not really ‘cool’ to tell everyone about yourself (the tall poppy syndrome). I realised I would just have to ‘get over’ all this cultural baggage and just do it.
We have been doing the rounds of all the colleges in Bacolod, giving a GK Orientation to all the 1st year students. Louie, who is in charge of volunteer recruitment, facilitates. He is also our age, works full-time for GK and is very dedicated. He speaks a little about GK, we show some of the very slick videos put together by the GK Communication team in Manila, and then he calls on us to ‘share’. I have included my ‘sharing’ below as well as one I had the privilege of hearing a few weeks ago.
This week we have been involved in welcoming the first of a series of groups from Singapore, mostly students, who are coming for 1 week immersions in a GK village. They’ll do some building and learn a bit about the Philippines. Alison and I gave our ‘sharings’ as part of their GK orientation session and I was responsible for supervising them for the day they spent building with the beneficiaries at Handumanan. All 52 houses at my village in Handumanan are now at varying stages of construction! Construction began only 10 weeks ago. The village is due for completion in January.
____________________
My ‘sharing’ goes a little something like this:
Mayong aga sa tanan. Ako si Jen. Australian volunteer ako. Ako full time worker sa GK sa pulo (10) ka bulan. Apat (4) ka bulan na ako diri sa Bacolod. Architect ako. Venti ocho (28) anos ako. Naga-tuon ako ilonggo … so please bear with me.
But now in English!
I have been asked to briefly share with you my story – why I came here and my experience working with GK.
For some time I have wanted to do something to help those who are less fortunate than myself. I don’t have a lot of money to give away, but I do have my time and my talent that I can share. So I wanted to find a way that I could use my training as an Architect to help a developing country. That is when a friend told me about the AYAD program (Australian Youth Ambassadors for Development) run by the Australian government. It’s similar to the US Peace Corp. AYAD had identified GK as an organisation that was really making a difference in the Philippines. So they partnered with GK. Given the massive task ahead for Nation Building, GK identified the need for an Architect in Negros. So I applied, and here I am!
Of course, it is not easy – there are plenty of challenges being a volunteer in a foreign country. It is challenging to be away for so long from home, my family, my friends and in particular my boyfriend. It is also challenging working in a very different cultural context from what I’m used to.
But, the rewards far outweigh the challenges. I am learning so much (not just about the Philippines but also about myself) and meeting so many inspiring people. It makes it all worthwhile when I see the joy and gratitude on the face of a beneficiary when they are handed the keys to their first ever home and to know that I played some small part in that.
Who of you has already heard something about GK before today? Most of you – so you already have a headstart on me because I have to be honest with you, before I came to the Philippines I really didn’t know much about GK, or the Philippines. I was amazed to learn that more than half of all Filipinos are squatters in their own country. Over the last 4 months that I’ve been in the Philippines, I have come to realise what a huge and successful organisation GK is – with a strong vision and an ambitious goal. . I came here to design and build houses for the poor but I soon realised that GK is not just about building houses, it’s about building communities. The best thing about GK and the reason why I believe in the work is because the approach is wholistic and sustainable. We don’t just build houses and walk away. It is supported by a team of volunteers who guide the community to organise themselves into cooperatives etc and other volunteers who give their time at weekends to deliver programs on health, spend time with the kids or help establish livelihood programs etc. It very much relies on working together, bayanihan. I truly believe, if everyone comes together to play their small part, a slum free squatter free Philippines might just be achievable within our lifetime. So I encourage you all to volunteer with GK in whatever way you can even if it’s just a couple of hours per week. It is a very rewarding experience!
Salamat ___________________________
In turn, I have been inspired by others who have also ‘shared’. One such sharing was given by Anna Balcells, a local lady of Spanish decent who has made a commitment to raising the funds for a whole village. At the handover of the latest batch of 8 houses she gave the following sharing:
Good morning ladies and gentlemen, Mayor Eric Saratan and all Talisay City and Barangay Officials, all Gawad Kalinga and Couples for Christ Members, Family and Friends!
Today we turnover the next 8 houses of the Gawad Kalinga – Alberto Balcells Legacy Village. Every house in this village is a miracle and a labour of love.
My father, Alberto Balcells, who was born in Barcelona, Spain and lived in the country for 49 years, always said that Talisay and the island of Negros was his PARADISE and that he would rather live here than anywhere else in the world.
Yes, the Philippines was my father’s personal Paradise. BUT he would always tell me how it broke his heart to see so much poverty in such a beautiful country, especially the homeless and how he wished he had the money to help build everyone a house. I now clearly see that Papa would like us all to help make the Philippines a paradise for every single Filipino especially for the poorest of the poor.
After being inspired by Gawad Kalinga and in honor of my father, I set out to establish the Gawad Kalinga – Alberto Balcells Legacy Village last year. This would be my family’s way of THANKING the people of Talisay – and Negros Occidental – for making Papa one of their very own and taking such good care of him and his family.
I strongly ENCOURAGE all families in Negros to establish Gawad Kalinga communities IN HONOUR of a loved-one. If all families do this, we CAN eradicate homelessness.
So today we want to truly thank the families who so generously donated the funds required to build the next 8 houses of this village. This is primarily due to 4 houses from my nephew Daryll Lacson-Wilson from Vancouver, Canada, 2 houses from my good friends Joe & Tina Guingona and 2 houses also from my good friends George & Nena Ortoll. This brings us already to a total of 20 houses; almost halfway to our goal and commitment of 50 houses for the GK – Alberto Balcells village.
I also wish to extend our gratitude to the Mayor of Talisay City, Eric Saratan, and all the people of Talisay for their whole hearted support for this housing project. We hope that this successful partnership between the political leaders and the private business community will continue to prosper for the good of the City of Talisay. We need to work together to bring even bigger projects into our city. So we appeal to all of the people of Talisay City to work harmoniously for more projects like this to take place.
And most especially THANK YOU to Gawad Kalinga for successfully helping the lives of thousands across the nation by building not just homes but stable communities. So much can happen when Filipinos open their hearts to their countrymen. I encourage each of you to generously support Gawad Kalinga as they successfully change the lives of the poor.
My message to everyone, once again is that just as my father found paradise in this country let us all help MAKE IT A PARADISE FOR EVERY SINGLE FILIPINO, ESPECIALLY THE POOREST OF THE POOR. Most Filipinos think paradise is out there and yet we can find it right here. The poor, like all of us, deserve to have their own little piece of paradise in this beautiful country.
To the beneficiaries, I want you to know that these houses were built with love. I hope you will love them and take good care of them so that you may create a beautiful home and a wonderful community to live in.
Thank you and God bless you all abundantly! ________________________
It would seem that from a Filipino perspective, there’s nothing more inspiring than a foreigner who has given up their time to come and work for the poor in the Philippines. - particularly as so many Filipinos are so focused on finding an opportunity to work abroad. As such, I have found my role in GK has morphed slightly. On top of the ‘architecture’ stuff, myself and fellow American volunteer, Alison, are being ‘utilised’ to inspire more locals to volunteer with GK. This has in fact become the full-time role of Dylan, the English guy I stayed with in Manila, and he now gets invitations to speak internationally. While Alison and I are not quite in the same league! , we are asked to share on a regular basis locally – what inspired us to work for GK and our experience so far. Alison is a Filipino American also my age. She was born and bread in the U.S. and wanted to reconnect with her Filipino heritage while also serving a cause she believes in – GK’s health program.
“They’ll listen to you because you’re foreigners” they say. Both Alison and I agreed we were in two minds about this. Part of me is questioning whether this is simply perpetuating the colonial mentality but the other part of me thinks that if they really want me to do this and if it encourages more people to volunteer with GK for the betterment of this country isn’t that a good thing? I was also initially rather uncomfortable about getting up in front of a group of strangers and talking about myself – I’m a bit out of practice at public speaking, having not done it for a while, and coming from my own cultural perspective, it’s not really ‘cool’ to tell everyone about yourself (the tall poppy syndrome). I realised I would just have to ‘get over’ all this cultural baggage and just do it.
We have been doing the rounds of all the colleges in Bacolod, giving a GK Orientation to all the 1st year students. Louie, who is in charge of volunteer recruitment, facilitates. He is also our age, works full-time for GK and is very dedicated. He speaks a little about GK, we show some of the very slick videos put together by the GK Communication team in Manila, and then he calls on us to ‘share’. I have included my ‘sharing’ below as well as one I had the privilege of hearing a few weeks ago.
This week we have been involved in welcoming the first of a series of groups from Singapore, mostly students, who are coming for 1 week immersions in a GK village. They’ll do some building and learn a bit about the Philippines. Alison and I gave our ‘sharings’ as part of their GK orientation session and I was responsible for supervising them for the day they spent building with the beneficiaries at Handumanan. All 52 houses at my village in Handumanan are now at varying stages of construction! Construction began only 10 weeks ago. The village is due for completion in January.
____________________
My ‘sharing’ goes a little something like this:
Mayong aga sa tanan. Ako si Jen. Australian volunteer ako. Ako full time worker sa GK sa pulo (10) ka bulan. Apat (4) ka bulan na ako diri sa Bacolod. Architect ako. Venti ocho (28) anos ako. Naga-tuon ako ilonggo … so please bear with me.
But now in English!
I have been asked to briefly share with you my story – why I came here and my experience working with GK.
For some time I have wanted to do something to help those who are less fortunate than myself. I don’t have a lot of money to give away, but I do have my time and my talent that I can share. So I wanted to find a way that I could use my training as an Architect to help a developing country. That is when a friend told me about the AYAD program (Australian Youth Ambassadors for Development) run by the Australian government. It’s similar to the US Peace Corp. AYAD had identified GK as an organisation that was really making a difference in the Philippines. So they partnered with GK. Given the massive task ahead for Nation Building, GK identified the need for an Architect in Negros. So I applied, and here I am!
Of course, it is not easy – there are plenty of challenges being a volunteer in a foreign country. It is challenging to be away for so long from home, my family, my friends and in particular my boyfriend. It is also challenging working in a very different cultural context from what I’m used to.
But, the rewards far outweigh the challenges. I am learning so much (not just about the Philippines but also about myself) and meeting so many inspiring people. It makes it all worthwhile when I see the joy and gratitude on the face of a beneficiary when they are handed the keys to their first ever home and to know that I played some small part in that.
Who of you has already heard something about GK before today? Most of you – so you already have a headstart on me because I have to be honest with you, before I came to the Philippines I really didn’t know much about GK, or the Philippines. I was amazed to learn that more than half of all Filipinos are squatters in their own country. Over the last 4 months that I’ve been in the Philippines, I have come to realise what a huge and successful organisation GK is – with a strong vision and an ambitious goal. . I came here to design and build houses for the poor but I soon realised that GK is not just about building houses, it’s about building communities. The best thing about GK and the reason why I believe in the work is because the approach is wholistic and sustainable. We don’t just build houses and walk away. It is supported by a team of volunteers who guide the community to organise themselves into cooperatives etc and other volunteers who give their time at weekends to deliver programs on health, spend time with the kids or help establish livelihood programs etc. It very much relies on working together, bayanihan. I truly believe, if everyone comes together to play their small part, a slum free squatter free Philippines might just be achievable within our lifetime. So I encourage you all to volunteer with GK in whatever way you can even if it’s just a couple of hours per week. It is a very rewarding experience!
Salamat ___________________________
In turn, I have been inspired by others who have also ‘shared’. One such sharing was given by Anna Balcells, a local lady of Spanish decent who has made a commitment to raising the funds for a whole village. At the handover of the latest batch of 8 houses she gave the following sharing:
Good morning ladies and gentlemen, Mayor Eric Saratan and all Talisay City and Barangay Officials, all Gawad Kalinga and Couples for Christ Members, Family and Friends!
Today we turnover the next 8 houses of the Gawad Kalinga – Alberto Balcells Legacy Village. Every house in this village is a miracle and a labour of love.
My father, Alberto Balcells, who was born in Barcelona, Spain and lived in the country for 49 years, always said that Talisay and the island of Negros was his PARADISE and that he would rather live here than anywhere else in the world.
Yes, the Philippines was my father’s personal Paradise. BUT he would always tell me how it broke his heart to see so much poverty in such a beautiful country, especially the homeless and how he wished he had the money to help build everyone a house. I now clearly see that Papa would like us all to help make the Philippines a paradise for every single Filipino especially for the poorest of the poor.
After being inspired by Gawad Kalinga and in honor of my father, I set out to establish the Gawad Kalinga – Alberto Balcells Legacy Village last year. This would be my family’s way of THANKING the people of Talisay – and Negros Occidental – for making Papa one of their very own and taking such good care of him and his family.
I strongly ENCOURAGE all families in Negros to establish Gawad Kalinga communities IN HONOUR of a loved-one. If all families do this, we CAN eradicate homelessness.
So today we want to truly thank the families who so generously donated the funds required to build the next 8 houses of this village. This is primarily due to 4 houses from my nephew Daryll Lacson-Wilson from Vancouver, Canada, 2 houses from my good friends Joe & Tina Guingona and 2 houses also from my good friends George & Nena Ortoll. This brings us already to a total of 20 houses; almost halfway to our goal and commitment of 50 houses for the GK – Alberto Balcells village.
I also wish to extend our gratitude to the Mayor of Talisay City, Eric Saratan, and all the people of Talisay for their whole hearted support for this housing project. We hope that this successful partnership between the political leaders and the private business community will continue to prosper for the good of the City of Talisay. We need to work together to bring even bigger projects into our city. So we appeal to all of the people of Talisay City to work harmoniously for more projects like this to take place.
And most especially THANK YOU to Gawad Kalinga for successfully helping the lives of thousands across the nation by building not just homes but stable communities. So much can happen when Filipinos open their hearts to their countrymen. I encourage each of you to generously support Gawad Kalinga as they successfully change the lives of the poor.
My message to everyone, once again is that just as my father found paradise in this country let us all help MAKE IT A PARADISE FOR EVERY SINGLE FILIPINO, ESPECIALLY THE POOREST OF THE POOR. Most Filipinos think paradise is out there and yet we can find it right here. The poor, like all of us, deserve to have their own little piece of paradise in this beautiful country.
To the beneficiaries, I want you to know that these houses were built with love. I hope you will love them and take good care of them so that you may create a beautiful home and a wonderful community to live in.
Thank you and God bless you all abundantly! ________________________
Friday, November 14, 2008
15-Mt Pinatubo
A fellow AYAD, Meagan, has been working in an NGO in Manila for the past 12 months assisting in setting up their Human Resource Management systems (a similar role to my housemate Aruna). Her placement has come to an end and she is heading back to Australia, but to ensure she went out with a bang she organised a fantastic ‘despedida’ weekend. About 20 people joined in – mostly AYAD’s but also a couple of US Peace Corp volunteers, a couple of European volunteers and a Canadian volunteer. Aruna and I flew up to Manila on Friday night conveniently only a 1 hour flight. We were reminded how grateful we are to be based in Bacolod though when it then took us 3 hours to get across Manila to Meagan’s place where we stayed for the night.
On Saturday morning we all headed for a permaculture farm established and run by a Belgian guy 90km north of Manila. We had a tour of the farm and an introduction to the principles of permaculture which I found particularly appropriate for the work we’re doing in GK. And ironically, it is a system developed by a couple of Australian’s! The best part was walking barefoot through the rice fields, mud squelching between our toes! They cooked up a delicious meal of farm produce and we settled into the bamboo farmhouse for a night of Karaoke.
We were up bright and early Sunday morning (6am) for the highlight of the weekend – climbing the famous Mt. Pinatubo Volcano. Mt Pinatubo last erupted in 1991. At that time the slopes and foothills was home to some 30,000 indigenous Aeta people who had fled there to escape the Spanish in 1565. In April and May of 1991 they had to evacuate to the lowlands to flee the imminent eruption. More that 8000 homes were destroyed and a further 73,000 damaged. The ash in the atmosphere produced spectacular sunsets around the world for several months. Looking at the landscape now, it is hard to believe it was once covered in a dense jungle, scattered villages and rice fields.
In true Filipino style, the journey was an adventure, but when we eventually got there it was all worth it. We got away from the farm an hour later than planned because we were waiting for the jeepney Meagan had hired which we hadn’t realised had been sitting out the front for the past hour. Part way into the drive it became evident that the driver didn’t actually know how to get to the tourist office at the base of Mt Pinatubo. But after stopping to ask directions from several bystanders, we finally reached the place. From here you can hire guides for the walk. It was at this point we were told that due to a typhoon that ripped through recently, the track had been damaged and it was necessary to take a different route. So what is normally a 1.5hr return walk just became a 5hour return walk! But we’d come this far, there was no way we were turning back now! So we all piled in the 4WD’s for the 1 hour drive across the surreal and rugged volcanic landscape to the start of the walk. On the way, one of the 4WD’s broke down and after some deliberation, the passengers squashed into the other 3 vehicles while the driver remained behind to fix the broken one.
We commenced the walk at 12.30, at the height of the sun, on limited sleep, no lunch and only a few bottles of water between us. What were we thinking? But luckily, the temperature was very pleasant, the track was shaded by the steep ash deposits and everyone put mind over matter to enjoy the adventure. The track follows the river the whole way, requiring constant crossing and re-crossing through the refreshing and often knee deep water. In contrast to my expectations, it wasn’t actually steep – it was a gradual ascent all the way. That is, until the very end where there is a short steep section. On reaching the top of this short steep section, you are looking down into the crater and its breathtaking aqua blue lake.
The lake gets its surreal colour from the high mineral content and it feels kind of soapy to swim in. After a brief swim, we re-traced our steps to the awaiting 4WD’s. We were doing the last section of the walk in the dark aiming for the light of the fire the driver of the broken vehicle (now fixed) had lit. The drive back to the tourist office was taken cautiously in the dark across the rugged terrain but this time, one of the other vehicles broke down and again the passengers squashed into the other 3. Back at the tourist office the tables were spread with rice, vegetable dishes, chicken dishes and noodles and I can safely say it was the best meal we’d ever had!
Amazingly our trip back to Manila (jeepney then bus then taxi’s) after dinner was relatively smooth! We arrived at Meagan’s place exhausted but happy just after 11pm. Aruna and I were glad we’d had the foresight to change our return flight from Sunday night to Monday morning. Given our experience getting to Meagans on Friday night we got up at 5am to be on the safe side, but of course, it only took half an hour to get to the airport this time! At least that gave us time before our flight for some airport coffee’s to wake us up for a day at work once we arrived back in Bacolod! What a weekend!
On Saturday morning we all headed for a permaculture farm established and run by a Belgian guy 90km north of Manila. We had a tour of the farm and an introduction to the principles of permaculture which I found particularly appropriate for the work we’re doing in GK. And ironically, it is a system developed by a couple of Australian’s! The best part was walking barefoot through the rice fields, mud squelching between our toes! They cooked up a delicious meal of farm produce and we settled into the bamboo farmhouse for a night of Karaoke.
We were up bright and early Sunday morning (6am) for the highlight of the weekend – climbing the famous Mt. Pinatubo Volcano. Mt Pinatubo last erupted in 1991. At that time the slopes and foothills was home to some 30,000 indigenous Aeta people who had fled there to escape the Spanish in 1565. In April and May of 1991 they had to evacuate to the lowlands to flee the imminent eruption. More that 8000 homes were destroyed and a further 73,000 damaged. The ash in the atmosphere produced spectacular sunsets around the world for several months. Looking at the landscape now, it is hard to believe it was once covered in a dense jungle, scattered villages and rice fields.
In true Filipino style, the journey was an adventure, but when we eventually got there it was all worth it. We got away from the farm an hour later than planned because we were waiting for the jeepney Meagan had hired which we hadn’t realised had been sitting out the front for the past hour. Part way into the drive it became evident that the driver didn’t actually know how to get to the tourist office at the base of Mt Pinatubo. But after stopping to ask directions from several bystanders, we finally reached the place. From here you can hire guides for the walk. It was at this point we were told that due to a typhoon that ripped through recently, the track had been damaged and it was necessary to take a different route. So what is normally a 1.5hr return walk just became a 5hour return walk! But we’d come this far, there was no way we were turning back now! So we all piled in the 4WD’s for the 1 hour drive across the surreal and rugged volcanic landscape to the start of the walk. On the way, one of the 4WD’s broke down and after some deliberation, the passengers squashed into the other 3 vehicles while the driver remained behind to fix the broken one.
We commenced the walk at 12.30, at the height of the sun, on limited sleep, no lunch and only a few bottles of water between us. What were we thinking? But luckily, the temperature was very pleasant, the track was shaded by the steep ash deposits and everyone put mind over matter to enjoy the adventure. The track follows the river the whole way, requiring constant crossing and re-crossing through the refreshing and often knee deep water. In contrast to my expectations, it wasn’t actually steep – it was a gradual ascent all the way. That is, until the very end where there is a short steep section. On reaching the top of this short steep section, you are looking down into the crater and its breathtaking aqua blue lake.
The lake gets its surreal colour from the high mineral content and it feels kind of soapy to swim in. After a brief swim, we re-traced our steps to the awaiting 4WD’s. We were doing the last section of the walk in the dark aiming for the light of the fire the driver of the broken vehicle (now fixed) had lit. The drive back to the tourist office was taken cautiously in the dark across the rugged terrain but this time, one of the other vehicles broke down and again the passengers squashed into the other 3. Back at the tourist office the tables were spread with rice, vegetable dishes, chicken dishes and noodles and I can safely say it was the best meal we’d ever had!
Amazingly our trip back to Manila (jeepney then bus then taxi’s) after dinner was relatively smooth! We arrived at Meagan’s place exhausted but happy just after 11pm. Aruna and I were glad we’d had the foresight to change our return flight from Sunday night to Monday morning. Given our experience getting to Meagans on Friday night we got up at 5am to be on the safe side, but of course, it only took half an hour to get to the airport this time! At least that gave us time before our flight for some airport coffee’s to wake us up for a day at work once we arrived back in Bacolod! What a weekend!
Thursday, November 6, 2008
14 - Cultural Fatigue
Well, I’ve made it well into the 3rd month without getting sick or injured at all (touch wood!). I have to admit, however, that I have been experiencing a bit of what they call cultural fatigue which is common 3 months in. This is when the initial excitement of the new adventure is starting to wear off and the reality is setting in. Those cultural differences can provoke frustration rather than interest or amusement. And I guess this is compounded by the fact that it is my favourite time of year in Australia right now. Just coming into summer and I can imagine the jacarandas about to spread forth their purple haze heralding the start of the Festive Season. (by the way, the Festive Season in the Philippines is already in full swing having started 2 months ago!). And what I would do for a soy cap from Goldbergs on Darby St!
I’ve been doing some reading and I found the following quote particularly relevant. It’s taken from: Culture Shock – A Survival Guide to Customs and Etiquette in the Philippines by A & G Roces:
“The typical volunteer cherished directness, sincerity, efficiency and quality. Yet all these values were challenged by the foreign culture in which he worked, to the point where pursuit of them could be counter-productive. Realising this, the volunteer was likely to pose for himself some searching questions, such as “If all I do is play a part, adjusting my behaviour to my hosts, then what will I be contributing to the community?” And, “Should I be, and can I be, actor enough to be false to what I value as right and good?” And, ultimately, dormant identity problems were likely to reappear in the form of the question, “Can I not be myself?” – which inexorably led to the unnerving, “Who am I?”
For me, a ‘recipe’ person who’s fond of planning ahead I have had to learn how to surrender control somewhat and go with the flow. It has been a challenge to find the balance between going with the flow and initiating some forward planning such that I feel I’m making the most of my limited time here. The attitude to time is a much more fluid and flexible one in the Philippines compared to the western concept of time. Meetings rarely start on time and will generally proceed with half an hour or so of small talk before the meeting proper gets underway. But this is the Filipino way. It’s partly a legacy of the Spanish concept of “manana” and partly a focus on building personal relationships to make it easier to call on that person at a later date when an important decision needs to be made.
Communication in Filipino culture is all about creating harmony. It is not usual to contradict someone, and certainly not in a public forum. Being a naturally blunt person, I have had to temper my desire to blurt things out. I do miss a good debate though! In the same vain, ‘yes’ does not necessarily always mean ‘yes’. A positive response will be given in order to please the person, so it is important to develop the knack of reading the body language to determine whether the yes is actually a maybe or a no!
If something isn’t finished on time or not done it is more likely to be laughed off rather than an apology given as loosing face (or Amor Propio) is a big deal in the Philippines. This can be frustrating if I’m expecting something to be done but at the same time, if I fail to complete something myself, I know I’m not going to cop flack for it. If one needs to deliver negative feedback to others it is often disguised within a joke.
A lot of communication is non verbal. There is a lot of eyebrow raising, pointing with the lips and slight movements of the head. Often a whole conversation can be carried out without the use of words at all. This is the case now when I go to hail a trysicad each morning, a discrete nod is all it takes!
Another challenge I have faced is the expectation that I’m an instant expert. Far from it, I’m still learning and have a lot to learn from this culture. I have needed to explain that I first have to spend time observing and reflecting on the way buildings are constructed here, the way people live and utilise space and the history of Filipino architecture before I can have a considered opinion and make any meaningful suggestion for improvements to the GK designs.
Learning the language has been more of a challenge than first anticipated. Not because it’s difficult but because everyone speaks English and it’s so easy to be lazy. I can’t help but reflect on my experience in Poland 10 years ago. Three months in and I had had my first dream in Polish, which was such a memorable moment. I’m nowhere near that happening here in the Philippines. However, I have to remember that in Poland I had no work or study commitments so I could concentrate my time on learning the language. Secondly, by comparison, the cultural challenges were not as acute, Poland being a developed European country . And thirdly, with my blonde hair and blue eyes I could have been Polish, so everyone spoke to me in Polish and I got the practice. In the Philippines, firstly, everyone speaks to me in English as I’m obviously a foreigner and secondly after a day of work in a challengingly different cultural context, the last thing I feel like doing is coming home and studying my Ilonggo notes. It sounds like I’m making excuses. I will have to make more of an effort.
Standing out as a foreigner brings with it further challenges on a daily basis. Street beggars see the blonde hair and the white skin and think $$$. And you can’t blame them. Aruna, my housemate, being Indian/Australian doesn’t experience this as much as I do. Beggars in the Philippines don’t sit on the pavement with an outstretched tin can waiting for passers by to approach them, they approach passers by and walk with you tugging on your arm. Such is the desperation. I don’t give money as they are often linked to larger syndicates, but I do give food when I have some. I remind myself that I don’t have a lot of money to give, but I can give my time and my talent for the poor which is why I’m here.
While I was aware of most of these aspects of culture and life in the Philippines through our AYAD training and orientation sessions, it is always going to be a different thing living through it. However, through the challenges and frustrations, I have to step back and remember what an amazing opportunity it is to be here and to be having this experience. The challenges are most definitely counterbalanced with wonderful moments. I’ve been privileged to experience many interesting and wonderful aspects of local culture such as the warm and generous hospitality, the happy go lucky outlook on life, the strong sense of family and the resourcefulness of the Filipino. I’ll tell you about some of these experiences.
The warm hospitality
The invitation to lunch by Maria Theresa epitomises the warm and generous hospitality of the Filipino. Several weeks ago, my housemate Aruna was riding a Jeepney and smiled at a lady opposite who was looking at her. This lead to a 5 minute conversation in which they discovered that she had actually studied with an Indian cousin of Aruna’s! Small world. They exchanged numbers and she invited Aruna and friends to lunch the coming Sunday. Aruna invited Marj and I to go with her and we made the trip to EB Magalona, 3 towns north of Bacolod. She met us off the bus and took us to her humble home which in all honesty is not much more than an upmarket version of a GK house, but alive with the activity of her 5 children. Despite their humble means, she had prepared no less than 5 different dishes for lunch – local shrimp, fish and vegetable dishes with rice. It was a really lovely relaxing afternoon playing with her kids and then going for a walk to the pier.
The happy go lucky outlook
Through building alongside the St Johns Alumni batch of ’83 one Saturday at the Handumanan site, I struck up a friendship with Billy. He is the quintessential happy go lucky Filipino. He is part of a hiking group who regularly go on hikes up the nearby Kanlaon Volcano and its surrounding mountains. He invited me to go with them on their next hike and naturally I took Aruna also and her friend Dave who was visiting from Australia (thanks for the Tassie Pinot Noir Dave!). Half-way up we had to turn back as it had started to rain quite heavily and the steep jungle-like track had turned into a muddy cascade. It was quite an adventure. We were wading through shin deep water at some points and slipping and sliding down other parts getting thorns in our fingers and bruises on our bums but throughout it all Billy was still cracking jokes!
The strong sense of family
I was treated to an insight into the strong sense of family on the 1st of November (All Saints Day). Similar to Poland, also a strong Catholic country, the tradition is that the extended family visit the graves of their loved ones. The Filipinos make it quite an event. My gorgeous friend Marj invited Aruna and I to go with her family to Heaven’s Gate cemetery where her father is burried. Hundreds of families had set up tents and picnic tables next to the graves and spent time talking and eating. There was sticky rice, barbequed pork, chicken drum sticks, spring rolls and Aruna and I took along some noodles. Some families took games and most stayed all day and into the night. There was quite a festive atmosphere. As evening fell, the lit candles on all the grave stones created quite a pretty sight.
The atmosphere wasn’t quite as festive at the public cemetery adjacent to Heaven’s Gate, where graves are stacked on top of one another to save space. There was still plenty of activity going on though and it was fascinating to explore the maze of multi-story graves.
The resourcefulness
November 5th (Cinco de Noviembre) is Negros Day. It commemorates the uprising of the people of Negros against Spanish rule on this day in 1898. General Lacson (my supervisors Great Grandfather) lead the revolt from the north and General Araneta lead the revolt from the south converging on the Spanish who were trapped in the centre of Bacolod. The best part about the story is that only 2 people died. The revolutionaries used local materials to make it look as though they were armed – they painted palm fronds black to look like guns, they mounted painted bamboo on bull carts to look like cannons and they painted coconuts to look like cannon balls! And it worked! They tricked the Spanish into thinking there was a huge army coming for them. They surrendered and signed the constitution of Negros, declaring the island an autonomous state within the Philippines. This lasted 3 years until the Americans invaded.
My supervisor, Ricky Lacson, invited Aruna and I to be a present at the ceremony to recognise the legacy of the heroes of Negros Day. And later in the day we sat with him in the front row of the audience at the Provincial Capital Building for a dramatic re-enactment of that significant day in the history of the island.
So in summary, while there are challenges and I miss home from time to time, I am learning a lot, still having wonderful experiences, meeting inspiring people and hopefully making a positive difference in the work that I am doing, eventhough it often feels like I haven’t done much yet.
I’ve been doing some reading and I found the following quote particularly relevant. It’s taken from: Culture Shock – A Survival Guide to Customs and Etiquette in the Philippines by A & G Roces:
“The typical volunteer cherished directness, sincerity, efficiency and quality. Yet all these values were challenged by the foreign culture in which he worked, to the point where pursuit of them could be counter-productive. Realising this, the volunteer was likely to pose for himself some searching questions, such as “If all I do is play a part, adjusting my behaviour to my hosts, then what will I be contributing to the community?” And, “Should I be, and can I be, actor enough to be false to what I value as right and good?” And, ultimately, dormant identity problems were likely to reappear in the form of the question, “Can I not be myself?” – which inexorably led to the unnerving, “Who am I?”
For me, a ‘recipe’ person who’s fond of planning ahead I have had to learn how to surrender control somewhat and go with the flow. It has been a challenge to find the balance between going with the flow and initiating some forward planning such that I feel I’m making the most of my limited time here. The attitude to time is a much more fluid and flexible one in the Philippines compared to the western concept of time. Meetings rarely start on time and will generally proceed with half an hour or so of small talk before the meeting proper gets underway. But this is the Filipino way. It’s partly a legacy of the Spanish concept of “manana” and partly a focus on building personal relationships to make it easier to call on that person at a later date when an important decision needs to be made.
Communication in Filipino culture is all about creating harmony. It is not usual to contradict someone, and certainly not in a public forum. Being a naturally blunt person, I have had to temper my desire to blurt things out. I do miss a good debate though! In the same vain, ‘yes’ does not necessarily always mean ‘yes’. A positive response will be given in order to please the person, so it is important to develop the knack of reading the body language to determine whether the yes is actually a maybe or a no!
If something isn’t finished on time or not done it is more likely to be laughed off rather than an apology given as loosing face (or Amor Propio) is a big deal in the Philippines. This can be frustrating if I’m expecting something to be done but at the same time, if I fail to complete something myself, I know I’m not going to cop flack for it. If one needs to deliver negative feedback to others it is often disguised within a joke.
A lot of communication is non verbal. There is a lot of eyebrow raising, pointing with the lips and slight movements of the head. Often a whole conversation can be carried out without the use of words at all. This is the case now when I go to hail a trysicad each morning, a discrete nod is all it takes!
Another challenge I have faced is the expectation that I’m an instant expert. Far from it, I’m still learning and have a lot to learn from this culture. I have needed to explain that I first have to spend time observing and reflecting on the way buildings are constructed here, the way people live and utilise space and the history of Filipino architecture before I can have a considered opinion and make any meaningful suggestion for improvements to the GK designs.
Learning the language has been more of a challenge than first anticipated. Not because it’s difficult but because everyone speaks English and it’s so easy to be lazy. I can’t help but reflect on my experience in Poland 10 years ago. Three months in and I had had my first dream in Polish, which was such a memorable moment. I’m nowhere near that happening here in the Philippines. However, I have to remember that in Poland I had no work or study commitments so I could concentrate my time on learning the language. Secondly, by comparison, the cultural challenges were not as acute, Poland being a developed European country . And thirdly, with my blonde hair and blue eyes I could have been Polish, so everyone spoke to me in Polish and I got the practice. In the Philippines, firstly, everyone speaks to me in English as I’m obviously a foreigner and secondly after a day of work in a challengingly different cultural context, the last thing I feel like doing is coming home and studying my Ilonggo notes. It sounds like I’m making excuses. I will have to make more of an effort.
Standing out as a foreigner brings with it further challenges on a daily basis. Street beggars see the blonde hair and the white skin and think $$$. And you can’t blame them. Aruna, my housemate, being Indian/Australian doesn’t experience this as much as I do. Beggars in the Philippines don’t sit on the pavement with an outstretched tin can waiting for passers by to approach them, they approach passers by and walk with you tugging on your arm. Such is the desperation. I don’t give money as they are often linked to larger syndicates, but I do give food when I have some. I remind myself that I don’t have a lot of money to give, but I can give my time and my talent for the poor which is why I’m here.
While I was aware of most of these aspects of culture and life in the Philippines through our AYAD training and orientation sessions, it is always going to be a different thing living through it. However, through the challenges and frustrations, I have to step back and remember what an amazing opportunity it is to be here and to be having this experience. The challenges are most definitely counterbalanced with wonderful moments. I’ve been privileged to experience many interesting and wonderful aspects of local culture such as the warm and generous hospitality, the happy go lucky outlook on life, the strong sense of family and the resourcefulness of the Filipino. I’ll tell you about some of these experiences.
The warm hospitality
The invitation to lunch by Maria Theresa epitomises the warm and generous hospitality of the Filipino. Several weeks ago, my housemate Aruna was riding a Jeepney and smiled at a lady opposite who was looking at her. This lead to a 5 minute conversation in which they discovered that she had actually studied with an Indian cousin of Aruna’s! Small world. They exchanged numbers and she invited Aruna and friends to lunch the coming Sunday. Aruna invited Marj and I to go with her and we made the trip to EB Magalona, 3 towns north of Bacolod. She met us off the bus and took us to her humble home which in all honesty is not much more than an upmarket version of a GK house, but alive with the activity of her 5 children. Despite their humble means, she had prepared no less than 5 different dishes for lunch – local shrimp, fish and vegetable dishes with rice. It was a really lovely relaxing afternoon playing with her kids and then going for a walk to the pier.
The happy go lucky outlook
Through building alongside the St Johns Alumni batch of ’83 one Saturday at the Handumanan site, I struck up a friendship with Billy. He is the quintessential happy go lucky Filipino. He is part of a hiking group who regularly go on hikes up the nearby Kanlaon Volcano and its surrounding mountains. He invited me to go with them on their next hike and naturally I took Aruna also and her friend Dave who was visiting from Australia (thanks for the Tassie Pinot Noir Dave!). Half-way up we had to turn back as it had started to rain quite heavily and the steep jungle-like track had turned into a muddy cascade. It was quite an adventure. We were wading through shin deep water at some points and slipping and sliding down other parts getting thorns in our fingers and bruises on our bums but throughout it all Billy was still cracking jokes!
The strong sense of family
I was treated to an insight into the strong sense of family on the 1st of November (All Saints Day). Similar to Poland, also a strong Catholic country, the tradition is that the extended family visit the graves of their loved ones. The Filipinos make it quite an event. My gorgeous friend Marj invited Aruna and I to go with her family to Heaven’s Gate cemetery where her father is burried. Hundreds of families had set up tents and picnic tables next to the graves and spent time talking and eating. There was sticky rice, barbequed pork, chicken drum sticks, spring rolls and Aruna and I took along some noodles. Some families took games and most stayed all day and into the night. There was quite a festive atmosphere. As evening fell, the lit candles on all the grave stones created quite a pretty sight.
The atmosphere wasn’t quite as festive at the public cemetery adjacent to Heaven’s Gate, where graves are stacked on top of one another to save space. There was still plenty of activity going on though and it was fascinating to explore the maze of multi-story graves.
The resourcefulness
November 5th (Cinco de Noviembre) is Negros Day. It commemorates the uprising of the people of Negros against Spanish rule on this day in 1898. General Lacson (my supervisors Great Grandfather) lead the revolt from the north and General Araneta lead the revolt from the south converging on the Spanish who were trapped in the centre of Bacolod. The best part about the story is that only 2 people died. The revolutionaries used local materials to make it look as though they were armed – they painted palm fronds black to look like guns, they mounted painted bamboo on bull carts to look like cannons and they painted coconuts to look like cannon balls! And it worked! They tricked the Spanish into thinking there was a huge army coming for them. They surrendered and signed the constitution of Negros, declaring the island an autonomous state within the Philippines. This lasted 3 years until the Americans invaded.
My supervisor, Ricky Lacson, invited Aruna and I to be a present at the ceremony to recognise the legacy of the heroes of Negros Day. And later in the day we sat with him in the front row of the audience at the Provincial Capital Building for a dramatic re-enactment of that significant day in the history of the island.
So in summary, while there are challenges and I miss home from time to time, I am learning a lot, still having wonderful experiences, meeting inspiring people and hopefully making a positive difference in the work that I am doing, eventhough it often feels like I haven’t done much yet.
Saturday, November 1, 2008
13 – Nation Building
Back at work after 2 weeks in Manila followed by the MassKara festival weekend I was amazed at the progress on Handumanan village. Prior to going to Manila I had participated in the first build day where we laid out the first 8 houses and began digging the trenches for the footings. Every Saturday, volunteers from the St Johns alumni association build alongside the beneficiaries on site. It had only been a couple of weeks but already those first 8 houses had roof trusses and a further 8 houses had almost complete walls.
The village at Banago had also made great progress and met the deadline for handover of the first batch of 20 houses which occurred in a ceremony on Saturday 25th. Butch and I went to site at 7am to make sure the preparations for the 9am ceremony were on track. The stage was set, the sound system was being set up, as were the tents and chairs for the guests. I was approached by a man who had just pulled up in a truck, saying he had the lamb. I went to have a look in the back of his truck, thinking, oh yes, this must be the food for the lunch after the ceremony. But it was actually a live lamb with a pile of herbs next to him! They lead the poor beast across the site to an area behind the houses and I witnessed (along with all the curious children of the village) the slitting of its throat. The blood was used to mark signs of the cross over the doors of the 20 new houses (as in the Old Testament tale of the Passover), and then the lamb was prepared for the spit alongside the whole pig who was already roasting.
As this was the first 20 houses to be awarded on this site with many more to come, choosing who would be the first 20 beneficiaries was a very difficult job. This was undertaken by the Local Government Unit and based on criteria such as income, number of dependants etc but also attitude and sweat equity (or number of hours spent building). The first 20 beneficiaries were chosen but not allocated a particular house. The Mayor of Bacolod was the guest of honour and facilitated the lottery of the houses. 20 ping pong balls marked 1 to 20 were placed in a barrel and each beneficiary was asked to step up and pick a number.
As in every GK event, there was entertainment. A group of girls from the village entertained us with a dance and the beneficiaries all grouped together to sing the GK song. It was impossible to keep a dry eye when a representative of the beneficiaries gave a tearful thank you to all who had been involved in the project.
I’ve finally located an English translation of the GK song. It doesn’t sound quite as good as the Tagalog version but the sentiments are there. It goes a little something like this …
I am a poor child, at a young age I went astray
How long do I have to suffer like this?
I hope you will help me change
I am a rich child, all my desires are taken care of
However, I don’t want the country to suffer
I hope you will also help me
I am a true Filipino in thoughts, words and deeds
The blood flowing in my body I will offer to my beloved country
Giving love, giving care
This is needed to be united
The Filipino, when on the move, will bear it all
New home, new life, new country
I will strive to be true, to God and to the country of my birth
The youth today – hope of the future
Wake up and move for the country
Arms linked as neighbours
Let us move the suffering country
In the name of God everything is possible, poor and rich helping each other
Giving love, giving care
This is needed to be united
The Filipino, when on the move, will bear it all
New home, new life, new country
Help move forward, all of us should share
True love given to us by the Almighty One
I bring hammer and nails, let us build the nation
Poor or rich, the Filipino has dignity
Giving love, giving care
This is needed to be united
The Filipino, when on the move, will bear it all
New home, new life, new country x2
Gawad Kalinga (Giving Care)
Gawad Kalinga (Giving Care)
Gawad Kalinga (Giving Care)
Just this week I, along with some new volunteers, had a formal GK Orientation day. It would have been perfect 3 months ago! Better late than never though. While I had picked up most of it over the past 3 months, it was really useful in filling in the remaining gaps. It was delivered by a couple of young GK workers from the head office in Manila who are in the process of travelling throughout the Philippines to present this orientation. Bacolod was lucky enough to be the first. As GK is such a relatively young organisation, prior to this there hasn’t actually been a formal orientation in place. Now that the organisation is growing at a phenomenal rate, the need for an orientation was recognised. In fact, GK is the biggest movement in the Philippines right now.
The vision of GK is a slum free, squatter free Philippines. The mission is “Land for the landless, homes for the homeless and food for the hungry”. The main goal is known as GK777: 700,000 homes, in 7,000 communities, in 7 years (2003 – 2010)! So far, in the first 4 years 1,500 communities have been built. That’s an average of a village a day! To reach the target, within this year and the next 2, 5,500 villages need to be built. That’s an average of 5 villages a day!
GK doesn’t actively recruit/select workers or volunteers. The idea is “Build and they will come”. Anyone can be a GK volunteer or GK Bayani (Hero). But as I learned very early on, GK isn’t simply about building houses, it’s about building communities, and that is achieved collectively (the concept of Bayanihan). I was struck by something the presenter said “If you can do it alone, don’t do it. Bring everyone with you”. Regardless of whether you’re involved in the infrastructure team, the health team, the environment team etc advocacy is an expected part of your role also – to inspire more people to become involved. As such, I have just been informed that I will be presenting the orientation day to the next batch of volunteers arriving from Singapore next month! As someone I know likes to say: “See one, do one, teach one”!
The village at Banago had also made great progress and met the deadline for handover of the first batch of 20 houses which occurred in a ceremony on Saturday 25th. Butch and I went to site at 7am to make sure the preparations for the 9am ceremony were on track. The stage was set, the sound system was being set up, as were the tents and chairs for the guests. I was approached by a man who had just pulled up in a truck, saying he had the lamb. I went to have a look in the back of his truck, thinking, oh yes, this must be the food for the lunch after the ceremony. But it was actually a live lamb with a pile of herbs next to him! They lead the poor beast across the site to an area behind the houses and I witnessed (along with all the curious children of the village) the slitting of its throat. The blood was used to mark signs of the cross over the doors of the 20 new houses (as in the Old Testament tale of the Passover), and then the lamb was prepared for the spit alongside the whole pig who was already roasting.
As this was the first 20 houses to be awarded on this site with many more to come, choosing who would be the first 20 beneficiaries was a very difficult job. This was undertaken by the Local Government Unit and based on criteria such as income, number of dependants etc but also attitude and sweat equity (or number of hours spent building). The first 20 beneficiaries were chosen but not allocated a particular house. The Mayor of Bacolod was the guest of honour and facilitated the lottery of the houses. 20 ping pong balls marked 1 to 20 were placed in a barrel and each beneficiary was asked to step up and pick a number.
As in every GK event, there was entertainment. A group of girls from the village entertained us with a dance and the beneficiaries all grouped together to sing the GK song. It was impossible to keep a dry eye when a representative of the beneficiaries gave a tearful thank you to all who had been involved in the project.
I’ve finally located an English translation of the GK song. It doesn’t sound quite as good as the Tagalog version but the sentiments are there. It goes a little something like this …
I am a poor child, at a young age I went astray
How long do I have to suffer like this?
I hope you will help me change
I am a rich child, all my desires are taken care of
However, I don’t want the country to suffer
I hope you will also help me
I am a true Filipino in thoughts, words and deeds
The blood flowing in my body I will offer to my beloved country
Giving love, giving care
This is needed to be united
The Filipino, when on the move, will bear it all
New home, new life, new country
I will strive to be true, to God and to the country of my birth
The youth today – hope of the future
Wake up and move for the country
Arms linked as neighbours
Let us move the suffering country
In the name of God everything is possible, poor and rich helping each other
Giving love, giving care
This is needed to be united
The Filipino, when on the move, will bear it all
New home, new life, new country
Help move forward, all of us should share
True love given to us by the Almighty One
I bring hammer and nails, let us build the nation
Poor or rich, the Filipino has dignity
Giving love, giving care
This is needed to be united
The Filipino, when on the move, will bear it all
New home, new life, new country x2
Gawad Kalinga (Giving Care)
Gawad Kalinga (Giving Care)
Gawad Kalinga (Giving Care)
Just this week I, along with some new volunteers, had a formal GK Orientation day. It would have been perfect 3 months ago! Better late than never though. While I had picked up most of it over the past 3 months, it was really useful in filling in the remaining gaps. It was delivered by a couple of young GK workers from the head office in Manila who are in the process of travelling throughout the Philippines to present this orientation. Bacolod was lucky enough to be the first. As GK is such a relatively young organisation, prior to this there hasn’t actually been a formal orientation in place. Now that the organisation is growing at a phenomenal rate, the need for an orientation was recognised. In fact, GK is the biggest movement in the Philippines right now.
The vision of GK is a slum free, squatter free Philippines. The mission is “Land for the landless, homes for the homeless and food for the hungry”. The main goal is known as GK777: 700,000 homes, in 7,000 communities, in 7 years (2003 – 2010)! So far, in the first 4 years 1,500 communities have been built. That’s an average of a village a day! To reach the target, within this year and the next 2, 5,500 villages need to be built. That’s an average of 5 villages a day!
GK doesn’t actively recruit/select workers or volunteers. The idea is “Build and they will come”. Anyone can be a GK volunteer or GK Bayani (Hero). But as I learned very early on, GK isn’t simply about building houses, it’s about building communities, and that is achieved collectively (the concept of Bayanihan). I was struck by something the presenter said “If you can do it alone, don’t do it. Bring everyone with you”. Regardless of whether you’re involved in the infrastructure team, the health team, the environment team etc advocacy is an expected part of your role also – to inspire more people to become involved. As such, I have just been informed that I will be presenting the orientation day to the next batch of volunteers arriving from Singapore next month! As someone I know likes to say: “See one, do one, teach one”!
Saturday, October 25, 2008
12 – MassKara
Following the GK expo I remained in Manila for another week to welcome the next batch of AYADs and participate in their orientation. This actually helped to consolidate just how much we have learned culturally, professionally and personally in 3 months as we assisted in presenting some of the sessions. It was weird not being the new kids anymore! It was also great to catch up again with the other AYADs and compare experiences.
At the end of the week, most of the AYADs (except for the newbies) boarded the plane with us and came to Bacolod for its annual MassKara Festival which culminated in a 3 day street party over the weekend of the 17th/18th/19th October. This year’s theme was “Bacolod, City of the World”. We had 13 people sleeping at our place, mostly on makeshift matresses on the floor but we had an absolute ball! Bacolod certainly knows how to party!
The festival is the same age as me. It began as a reaction to the economic downturn of sugar cane in the early 80’s. As this province relies heavily on sugar cane for its livelihood, everyone was suffering hard times. To turn the mood around they decided to hold a festival. The concept of the festival is the wearing of smiling masks, to symbolise happiness in the face of adversity.
A long stretch of the main street near our place was closed off to traffic, strung with banners, lined with food stalls and dotted with stages for live music. The street was packed with people, especially when it was time for the evening street parade known as Electric MassKara (a concept only in its second year). The costumes were incredible – mostly made from found materials and designed to represent local produce or icons. Each troupe came from a particular suburb (Barangay) and were competing for the honour of being crowned winner of the street dancing competition of MassKara 2008. It brought back happy memories of High School Rock Eisteddford days!
Not content with merely watching the parade, us AYADs all bought matching masks and fabric sashes, choreographed some very daggy dancing and joined in! Everyone on the street was stopping to take photos of this crazy bunch of Aussies! The other AYADs had the luxury of going back to their respective towns and cities throughout the Philippines but Aruna and I still have to live here! In the days since the festival we have received a number of comments from colleagues and friends who apparently saw us dancing at MassKara, thankfully mostly positive that we were getting into the vibe of the festival!
Monday, October 20, 2008
11- GK Expo
On the 6th of October I went to Manila to assist with the preparations for the 5th annual GK expo on Saturday 11th. I was hosted for the week by a lovely couple in their early 30’s. Dylan is English and his story is a very inspirational one. He grew up in a poor area of Leeds but became the 9th richest man in the U.K. by age 25 thanks to the dotcom boom. But, while he was doing very well for himself, he found little fulfilment in his material wealth. On a visit to the Philippines he was so inspired by Tony Meloto (the founder of GK) he left his former life behind to work fulltime for GK. There’s one GK village called the BMW village because it was funded by the sale of his BMW in the UK! He ended up marrying Anna, the daughter of Tony Meloto and they now have two very cute little daughters.
Before the expo preparations got into full swing, Leonard, another AYAD working for GK in Manila, took me on a tour of some of the GK villages for a day. It was interesting and useful to compare the urban scale housing in Manila with the more rural scale villages we build in the province.
The site for the expo was situated on some yet-to-be-developed land in the midst of the richest area of Manila. There couldn’t have been a more poignant location to highlight the divide between rich and poor. As the preparations for the expo got underway, I began to realise just what a massive organisation GK is. 1,500 villages are now up and running throughout the country, a further 200 proposed or being built. Each village has an average of 50 houses. So that’s 75,000 families (375,000 men, women and children) that are no longer slum dwellers but own their own home and are functioning members of a community. And to make it all happen are the thousands of committed volunteers who donate their time and talents and the partners who provide the funding. 25 of the 1,500 villages have been funded by organisations, corporations or individuals in Australia. The goal is to build 7,000 GK communities by 2010.
During the expo preparations, I was tasked with supervising the construction of the 35x15 feet billboards to mark each of the 4 corners of the expo site. I was given a team of 16 volunteers (beneficiaries of GK houses), some scaffolding, steel poles, steel bar, wire, clamps and the 4 posters. Meanwhile, within these 4 corners, the site was a hive of activity with other teams of volunteers from all over the Philippines erecting tents, building model GK houses, laying paving, erecting displays, constructing a stage etc etc.
Participating in the preparation for the expo was a good opportunity to meet people who work for GK all over the Philippines and had also come early to help out. It was interesting that with each new person I met, more or less the conversation followed the same pattern. Firstly it was assumed that I’m part of Singles/Couples for Christ or at least a member of a partnering Catholic organisation. I explain that I’m actually not catholic, I was sent by the Australian government, on the Australian Youth Ambassador for Development Program. From the ‘youth’ in the title it was assumed I’m still studying. They find it hard to believe I’m already an Architect. So after we’ve established that I’m 28, but no I’m not married yet, and much to their astonishment, no I don’t have any brothers or sisters, the next question is, “so your parents were ok with you leaving them for 10 months to come to the Philippines?”. First I have to explain that I haven’t lived with my parents for about 6 years now. That causes more confusion because in the Philippines it’s rare to move out until you’re married and even then, your spouse will probably move in. Which usually leads to the question where do my parents live in Australia? Then I have to explain that my parents are divorced. This then leads to a discussion about how divorce is rare and frowned upon in the Philippines and the expression of pride in the Philippino family values. (Yes, the close family ties is a very admirable trait of the Philippinos, but neither does it mean that every marriage is rosy!) So then they want to know if I was not living with my parents, where was I living? I just say renting because by this point I’ll only make things worse by saying I live with my boyfriend! If they haven’t already asked by now, the next question will for certain be whether I have a boyfriend. When I say yes, we’ve been together for 4.5 years there’s outrage at why we’re not married yet, when are we getting married and how many children are we going to have?!
Anyway, getting back to the expo. On the big day itself, over 100,000 people attended travelling from all over the country and the world! They included residents of GK villages, builders, workers, volunteers, partners from the government, corporate sector, academia, NGOs, religious organizations and civil society. The intense heat neither drove them away nor lessened their enthusiasm. The day began with a fun run at 5.30am which I was registered to participate in only I overslept and missed it! I spent the morning walking around the exhibits. There were mock up GK houses. There was an environmental section with information on low cost sustainable waste water systems, solar lighting and ventilation. A model farm was also set up growing vegetables. There were market stalls selling products made in GK villages as part of their livelihood program, such as bags made from recycled juice packets and candles with the GK logo on them. There was also information for prospective new volunteers about how they could get involved in any of the 7 GK Programs (Community Infrastructure, Community Health, Child & Youth Development, Productivity, Environment, Hospitality, Community Empowerment). The 2 major mobile phone companies were also on hand to register people to receive text messages whenever there is an event happening in your area where volunteers are needed.
Meanwhile,for the kids, a continuous birthday party was being held in celebration of GK's 5th anniversary. Many of the kids who attended have never had a birthday party or a birthday cake before in their lives.
In the afternoon there was a play and a choral performance by groups of young performers from GK villages. The choir is a bit like the Philippino version of the Choir of hard knocks. These were kids that before GK came along had no prospects and condemned to a life of poverty. Now they are part of a world class choir. They recently returned from performing in Indonesia!
Later in the afternoon was the “March of Heros” where 40,000 rich and poor marched together. There were everything from companies who had donated funding, to volunteers who had spent their weekends building. Some even had decorated floats for the parade.
My new Manila friend, Imelda, came to the expo and brought a couple of friends with her. We had met on the plane from Bacolod and exchanged numbers. She travels around the Philippines regularly, selling a line of Philippino sandles to the department stores (and with a name like Imelda, being in the shoe industry seems very appropriate!) They were impressed by the expo and the work of GK and wanted to know how they could help. They said it was a little bit embarrassing for them that a foreigner like me comes here to help out the poor in their country and yet there are plenty of Philippino’s who have the time, talents or treasures but don’t share them. Imelda committed to donating sandals to all the children in a GK village near her home town.
As it got dark, everyone came together for a concert in celebration of the work and achievements of GK. Well known Philippino artists performed for free. The concert was streamed live via the internet worldwide. There was such a happy party atmosphere and the night culminated in a fireworks display.
We were all wearing the GK Expo T-shirts that had been printed for the occasion with the catch cry “Walang Iwanan” or “No-one is left behind”. So it was rather ironic that at the end of the night, my lift left without me and I had to catch a taxi!
All in all, the Expo was a great event to be a part of and a fitting celebration of a very successful organisation and its achievements … with plenty more work to be done!
Monday, October 6, 2008
10 – Jordi’s visit
The day that I had been counting down to for weeks finally arrived! It was fantastic, and also slightly surreal to be meeting my boyfriend at Bacolod Airport and introducing him to my new home town. It actually enabled me to view my surroundings afresh through tourists eyes and realise after only 2 months how many things I have already become accustomed to, such as the humidity, the crazy traffic, the population density and the stark contrast between the haves and the have nots. Jordi commented particularly on the glitzy modern malls abutting shanties constructed on sections of leftover pavement with whatever materials can be found.
I took him on a ‘day in the life of Jen’ (much like blog post 9!). At a café where I sometimes go to skype, one of the waitresses recognised him saying “you’re the one on the computer screen. You were eating ice-cream last time, I was the one waiving in the background!” True enough, he had been eating a bowl of ice-cream last time we skyped! How funny!
He met and had lunch with some of my work colleagues, which, like all the Philippinos he encountered, he found to be such friendly, smiling and welcoming people. He was roped into giving an on-the-spot appraisal, from his Water Engineering perspective, of a new ram pump system GK are contemplating trialing at one of the GK villages! Ironically, when we recently assessed GK’s priorities for future AYAD’s during the workshop in Manila, the No.1 priority is a Water Engineer! Perhaps we could have been posted to the same place after all. On the other hand, with me in the Philippines and Jordi soon to commence his assignment in Vietnam, it’s like getting “2 AYAD experiences for the price of 1” - with the opportunity to visit each others places and compare experiences.
Jordi’s 6 day visit also gave me a good excuse to be a tourist in my own province, and visit some of the local attractions I had not yet had the opportunity to see. At the Negros Museum we learned a bit more about the importance of sugar cane to the island. Then we had a night in the mountains and 2 nights on an island resort. As it is off-season at the moment, we had the places practically to ourselves. But, in both cases, it was the journeys, more so than the destination, that were the most memorable. We travelled everywhere by local transport allowing us to appreciate more intimately the impressive scenery - bamboo huts beside cane fields, rice terraces with a steep mountain backdrop, the odd caribow wallowing in a muddy creek beside the road, and palm fringed coastlines with more palm fringed islands on the horizon. It also allowed us to experience cultural quirks, such as the man who got on the jeepney, nonchalantly cradling a rooster under his arm, the rice out to dry on the roads creating an obstacle course for traffic, and the many cute school children calling out “Hey Joe” as we pass. (This is a throw back to the US Occupation and refers to GI Joe as it is assumed we are Americans). Initially this was slightly disconcerting for Jordi who sometimes gets called Jo by family and friends, and he was wondering how they all knew his name!
The main attraction at Mambukal Mountain Resort is the 7 falls walk. We hired a friendly guide to take us on the steep muddy climb. We were very impressed with his ability to nimbly scamper ahead in a pair of thongs, not drink any water and all the while weaving bracelets from rattan. He gave us one each when we reached the top. The falls were nice but the best part was coming back. Our guide said, “Well, we could back-track the way we came, or, I could take you across the river here, up this hill and onto a road that has a great view and, if we follow it, takes us through a village and back to the resort”. Great idea. And it just so happened to be school home time and all the children were highly amused by a pair of “Joes” walking through their village!
Costa Aguada Island Resort was not great for snorkelling and didn’t have much of a beach but it wasn’t really beach weather anyway. We got to experience a real tropical island storm! The curtains in our little bamboo cabin were being blown horizontal by the fierce wind. We were well looked after while we were there and the fresh fish was delicious. But most importantly we got to spend some quality time together after 2 months apart, with another 3 months of separation ahead before we see each other again at Christmas time.
Back in Bacolod, we rounded off Jordi’s visit with a Jazz concert at the Casino – again a first for me. Much to his disappointment, we didn’t fit in any Karaoke – next time for sure!
I took him on a ‘day in the life of Jen’ (much like blog post 9!). At a café where I sometimes go to skype, one of the waitresses recognised him saying “you’re the one on the computer screen. You were eating ice-cream last time, I was the one waiving in the background!” True enough, he had been eating a bowl of ice-cream last time we skyped! How funny!
He met and had lunch with some of my work colleagues, which, like all the Philippinos he encountered, he found to be such friendly, smiling and welcoming people. He was roped into giving an on-the-spot appraisal, from his Water Engineering perspective, of a new ram pump system GK are contemplating trialing at one of the GK villages! Ironically, when we recently assessed GK’s priorities for future AYAD’s during the workshop in Manila, the No.1 priority is a Water Engineer! Perhaps we could have been posted to the same place after all. On the other hand, with me in the Philippines and Jordi soon to commence his assignment in Vietnam, it’s like getting “2 AYAD experiences for the price of 1” - with the opportunity to visit each others places and compare experiences.
Jordi’s 6 day visit also gave me a good excuse to be a tourist in my own province, and visit some of the local attractions I had not yet had the opportunity to see. At the Negros Museum we learned a bit more about the importance of sugar cane to the island. Then we had a night in the mountains and 2 nights on an island resort. As it is off-season at the moment, we had the places practically to ourselves. But, in both cases, it was the journeys, more so than the destination, that were the most memorable. We travelled everywhere by local transport allowing us to appreciate more intimately the impressive scenery - bamboo huts beside cane fields, rice terraces with a steep mountain backdrop, the odd caribow wallowing in a muddy creek beside the road, and palm fringed coastlines with more palm fringed islands on the horizon. It also allowed us to experience cultural quirks, such as the man who got on the jeepney, nonchalantly cradling a rooster under his arm, the rice out to dry on the roads creating an obstacle course for traffic, and the many cute school children calling out “Hey Joe” as we pass. (This is a throw back to the US Occupation and refers to GI Joe as it is assumed we are Americans). Initially this was slightly disconcerting for Jordi who sometimes gets called Jo by family and friends, and he was wondering how they all knew his name!
The main attraction at Mambukal Mountain Resort is the 7 falls walk. We hired a friendly guide to take us on the steep muddy climb. We were very impressed with his ability to nimbly scamper ahead in a pair of thongs, not drink any water and all the while weaving bracelets from rattan. He gave us one each when we reached the top. The falls were nice but the best part was coming back. Our guide said, “Well, we could back-track the way we came, or, I could take you across the river here, up this hill and onto a road that has a great view and, if we follow it, takes us through a village and back to the resort”. Great idea. And it just so happened to be school home time and all the children were highly amused by a pair of “Joes” walking through their village!
Costa Aguada Island Resort was not great for snorkelling and didn’t have much of a beach but it wasn’t really beach weather anyway. We got to experience a real tropical island storm! The curtains in our little bamboo cabin were being blown horizontal by the fierce wind. We were well looked after while we were there and the fresh fish was delicious. But most importantly we got to spend some quality time together after 2 months apart, with another 3 months of separation ahead before we see each other again at Christmas time.
Back in Bacolod, we rounded off Jordi’s visit with a Jazz concert at the Casino – again a first for me. Much to his disappointment, we didn’t fit in any Karaoke – next time for sure!
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
9 - A Day in the Life
Now that I’ve been here 2 months (wow, time flies!) I thought it might be a good time to share with you what a typical day looks like (although, to be honest, no day in the Philippines is ever typical!).
My alarm wakes me at 6am and Aruna and I walk to the gym we have joined just down the road from our place. I work out for about an hour and a half to the program the trainer prepared for me. One thing we have come to understand is that Philippinos are quite open in talking about such things as weight, age etc, and the trainer had no qualms in telling me I need to loose weight! But I knew I should take it in the cultural context in which it was delivered! By the time I’m walking back home, a blonde foreigner in gym clothes seems to create quite a spectacle for the early morning commuters.
After a refreshing cold shower (fingers crossed that the water pressure allows more than just a trickle) I make myself a tropical fruit shake for breakfast while watching the news on channel news Asia. Before heading out the door I make sure I’ve packed my umbrella and toilet paper and then lather myself with suncream and insect repelant. Malaria is present in the Philippines but not a big issue in the urban areas, dengue however is, and that’s the daytime mozzie. Despite my daily ritual I’ve been bitten many times, but none as yet leading to a fever (touch wood!).
From the coffee shop on the corner, I grab a take-away espresso and jump in a trisikad (the Philippino answer to a rickshaw). For P10 (25c) he pedals me to the main road (1km) from where I get a jeepney to the office. Jeepneys are quite a unique Philippino icon. They actually began as surplus army vehicles left by the American troops after WWII which were modified to carry passengers and are flamboyantly decorated. It was an inexpensive way to re-establish public transportation which was virtually destroyed in the war. When they became widely used, the government began to impose specialised licences, regular routes and reasonably fixed fares. It costs me P8 (20c) for the 3km trip to the office. I’m still trying to work out the all routes and make myself a map.
The office is situated on the first floor of a commercial building. The space they ‘rent’ for P1 a year is actually the Couples for Christ Centre which GK uses as a base. It is also used by the Kids for Christ, Youth for Christ, Singles for Christ etc for prayer meetings and so on, so there are different groups coming and going all the time. It is open plan with simple wooden desks and plastic chairs. The minimal spend on admin related items in favour of channelling the funds directly to the poor where it is needed is very much in keeping with the GK motto “Less for self, more for others, enough for all”. My desk is in the middle of the main space that fronts the busy street, between Uncle Molo (the QS) and Marj (Singles for Christ Coordinator). Closer to the window sits the head of the health program (Uncle Russel), the head of partnerships (Aunty Mik Mik), the head of values formation (Uncle Johnny), and the head of shelter (Uncle Butch). There is one air conditioned room where the older workers sit.
As I walk in I say goodmorning to all the ‘Aunts’ and ‘Uncles’, turn the fan on and take out my laptop from my backpack. Despite the rustic appearance, the centre is actually Wi Fi enabled. I check my email and chat to my colleagues. I might work on a site plan or do some reading. By now the R&B music from the sound system will be mixing with the noises from the street of traffic, jeepney horns, barking dogs and street vendors calling out their wares. If there’s a prayer group in the other room, add to that the singing of songs of praise accompanied by acoustic guitar. And of course, the non-stop txt message alert tones, as everything is done by sms in the Philippines. It is about now, mid morning, that the lady comes around selling her basket of goodies for merienda. We might have some slices of pineapple or a caramalised banana on a stick (‘banana kew’) - yum!
Then it’s time for lunch! A group of us will go to either Margie’s down the road or head to the food court in the mall where P60 ($1.50) will buy you a serve of rice with a topping, a small bowl of soup and a soft drink. The lunch break is usually about 2 to 2.5 hours. We make the most of the air-conditioned mall and do a bit of shopping. When we head back to the centre we usually find the Aunts and Uncles having their siestas – heads down on their desks. At 2.30 or thereabouts the music and the lights are switched back on. If we’re lucky they will stay on for the rest of the afternoon, but most likely will be interrupted by brown outs.
In the afternoon, Butch and I might make a site visit to check on progress on one of the GK villages. Butch will drive us there in his well loved 4x4. I wouldn’t be game to attempt to drive in Bacolod – there’s no other way to describe the traffic but organised chaos! Alternatively, we might have a project meeting with a benefactor at one of the cafés in the uptown area. 4.30 and it’s time to pick up Marbie (Butch’s daughter) from school (school hours are 7.30am to 4.30pm!). Sometimes I’ll go with him and we’ll take her to have some pizza or an iced chocolate before they drop me home.
If it is a Wednesday, I’ll be heading to our language class at 6pm with Aruna. Our 1 hour lesson takes place in a tutorial space set up by one of the full time GK workers to earn some extra cash on the side. After class, if we don’t feel like cooking, we’ll probably grab some BBQ chicken with rice and kalamansi (small lime the size of a cumquot) which Bacolod is famous for. We might also drop into Café Bobs and use the Wi Fi to update our blogs or skype with family/friends. In the cool of the evening it’s a pleasant walk back to our apartment, although, we’ll be dodging the planter boxes, parked cars, fruit stalls etc that take over the pavement, and politely refusing multiple offers of taxi’s or trisikads to take us to our destination – why would we want to walk?
Sitting at our dinning table, we debrief on the days challenges, sharing the funny and the frustrating moments. And that was a typical day in my life in the Philippines!
My alarm wakes me at 6am and Aruna and I walk to the gym we have joined just down the road from our place. I work out for about an hour and a half to the program the trainer prepared for me. One thing we have come to understand is that Philippinos are quite open in talking about such things as weight, age etc, and the trainer had no qualms in telling me I need to loose weight! But I knew I should take it in the cultural context in which it was delivered! By the time I’m walking back home, a blonde foreigner in gym clothes seems to create quite a spectacle for the early morning commuters.
After a refreshing cold shower (fingers crossed that the water pressure allows more than just a trickle) I make myself a tropical fruit shake for breakfast while watching the news on channel news Asia. Before heading out the door I make sure I’ve packed my umbrella and toilet paper and then lather myself with suncream and insect repelant. Malaria is present in the Philippines but not a big issue in the urban areas, dengue however is, and that’s the daytime mozzie. Despite my daily ritual I’ve been bitten many times, but none as yet leading to a fever (touch wood!).
From the coffee shop on the corner, I grab a take-away espresso and jump in a trisikad (the Philippino answer to a rickshaw). For P10 (25c) he pedals me to the main road (1km) from where I get a jeepney to the office. Jeepneys are quite a unique Philippino icon. They actually began as surplus army vehicles left by the American troops after WWII which were modified to carry passengers and are flamboyantly decorated. It was an inexpensive way to re-establish public transportation which was virtually destroyed in the war. When they became widely used, the government began to impose specialised licences, regular routes and reasonably fixed fares. It costs me P8 (20c) for the 3km trip to the office. I’m still trying to work out the all routes and make myself a map.
The office is situated on the first floor of a commercial building. The space they ‘rent’ for P1 a year is actually the Couples for Christ Centre which GK uses as a base. It is also used by the Kids for Christ, Youth for Christ, Singles for Christ etc for prayer meetings and so on, so there are different groups coming and going all the time. It is open plan with simple wooden desks and plastic chairs. The minimal spend on admin related items in favour of channelling the funds directly to the poor where it is needed is very much in keeping with the GK motto “Less for self, more for others, enough for all”. My desk is in the middle of the main space that fronts the busy street, between Uncle Molo (the QS) and Marj (Singles for Christ Coordinator). Closer to the window sits the head of the health program (Uncle Russel), the head of partnerships (Aunty Mik Mik), the head of values formation (Uncle Johnny), and the head of shelter (Uncle Butch). There is one air conditioned room where the older workers sit.
As I walk in I say goodmorning to all the ‘Aunts’ and ‘Uncles’, turn the fan on and take out my laptop from my backpack. Despite the rustic appearance, the centre is actually Wi Fi enabled. I check my email and chat to my colleagues. I might work on a site plan or do some reading. By now the R&B music from the sound system will be mixing with the noises from the street of traffic, jeepney horns, barking dogs and street vendors calling out their wares. If there’s a prayer group in the other room, add to that the singing of songs of praise accompanied by acoustic guitar. And of course, the non-stop txt message alert tones, as everything is done by sms in the Philippines. It is about now, mid morning, that the lady comes around selling her basket of goodies for merienda. We might have some slices of pineapple or a caramalised banana on a stick (‘banana kew’) - yum!
Then it’s time for lunch! A group of us will go to either Margie’s down the road or head to the food court in the mall where P60 ($1.50) will buy you a serve of rice with a topping, a small bowl of soup and a soft drink. The lunch break is usually about 2 to 2.5 hours. We make the most of the air-conditioned mall and do a bit of shopping. When we head back to the centre we usually find the Aunts and Uncles having their siestas – heads down on their desks. At 2.30 or thereabouts the music and the lights are switched back on. If we’re lucky they will stay on for the rest of the afternoon, but most likely will be interrupted by brown outs.
In the afternoon, Butch and I might make a site visit to check on progress on one of the GK villages. Butch will drive us there in his well loved 4x4. I wouldn’t be game to attempt to drive in Bacolod – there’s no other way to describe the traffic but organised chaos! Alternatively, we might have a project meeting with a benefactor at one of the cafés in the uptown area. 4.30 and it’s time to pick up Marbie (Butch’s daughter) from school (school hours are 7.30am to 4.30pm!). Sometimes I’ll go with him and we’ll take her to have some pizza or an iced chocolate before they drop me home.
If it is a Wednesday, I’ll be heading to our language class at 6pm with Aruna. Our 1 hour lesson takes place in a tutorial space set up by one of the full time GK workers to earn some extra cash on the side. After class, if we don’t feel like cooking, we’ll probably grab some BBQ chicken with rice and kalamansi (small lime the size of a cumquot) which Bacolod is famous for. We might also drop into Café Bobs and use the Wi Fi to update our blogs or skype with family/friends. In the cool of the evening it’s a pleasant walk back to our apartment, although, we’ll be dodging the planter boxes, parked cars, fruit stalls etc that take over the pavement, and politely refusing multiple offers of taxi’s or trisikads to take us to our destination – why would we want to walk?
Sitting at our dinning table, we debrief on the days challenges, sharing the funny and the frustrating moments. And that was a typical day in my life in the Philippines!
Monday, September 15, 2008
8 - Groundbreaking
Saturday 13th September was the Groundbreaking Ceremony for the new GK village in Handumanan. It is very exciting to see my first project taking shape right from ground zero. Butch and I were on site for the few days leading up to the weekend ensuring that the preparations were on track. We really didn’t have to do much as the Project Director for the site had things under control and the Alumni of St Johns who are funding the project are very well organised. They are calling it the 50 homes for 50 years project – 1 house for every year that has graduated from the school to commemorate its 50th anniversary.
The first priority was to install the first of 4 artesian wells with hand pumps to supply water for the site. The pumps had been donated by the local lions club. It took 2 men 3 days to bore the well manually.
The tropical afternoon storms hindered the progress of the grader which was forging out the road network, but thankfully, the weather stayed fine for the big day on Saturday. A tent and chairs were set up for the audience. A stage was erected. Signs were planted to indicate the locations of where the school, basketball court, Multi-purpose hall, office and wellness centre will eventually stand. The sound system was strung up. Holes were dug for the border trees. And meanwhile, a hoard of curious local children had discovered that the site made a great new playground – forget OH&S!
Just before 3 in the afternoon the guests started arriving. There were teachers, students, staff and alumni of the school, the GK team, the media and various dignitaries. They numbered around 200 in all. The ceremony began with the singing of the Philippines National Anthem. Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri gave an address, and in the hype of the moment, quadrupled his commitment from P500,000 to P2 Million! With that we should be able to build not only the Multi-Purpose Hall but possibly the school as well. Still seeking donors for the basketball court, office and wellness centre.
The documents including the Site Development Plan and the Memorandum of Agreement were placed in a time capsule and ceremoniously lowered into the ground below where the entrance marker to the village will eventually be erected. It will be opened in 25 years time. So when I’m 53, I think I’ll have to make a trip back to this site for the occasion!
The priest blessed the site and after a few more speeches the ceremony concluded with the planting of trees along the site boundaries by the current students of St Johns. Then, of course, we all ate merienda!
The first priority was to install the first of 4 artesian wells with hand pumps to supply water for the site. The pumps had been donated by the local lions club. It took 2 men 3 days to bore the well manually.
The tropical afternoon storms hindered the progress of the grader which was forging out the road network, but thankfully, the weather stayed fine for the big day on Saturday. A tent and chairs were set up for the audience. A stage was erected. Signs were planted to indicate the locations of where the school, basketball court, Multi-purpose hall, office and wellness centre will eventually stand. The sound system was strung up. Holes were dug for the border trees. And meanwhile, a hoard of curious local children had discovered that the site made a great new playground – forget OH&S!
Just before 3 in the afternoon the guests started arriving. There were teachers, students, staff and alumni of the school, the GK team, the media and various dignitaries. They numbered around 200 in all. The ceremony began with the singing of the Philippines National Anthem. Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri gave an address, and in the hype of the moment, quadrupled his commitment from P500,000 to P2 Million! With that we should be able to build not only the Multi-Purpose Hall but possibly the school as well. Still seeking donors for the basketball court, office and wellness centre.
The documents including the Site Development Plan and the Memorandum of Agreement were placed in a time capsule and ceremoniously lowered into the ground below where the entrance marker to the village will eventually be erected. It will be opened in 25 years time. So when I’m 53, I think I’ll have to make a trip back to this site for the occasion!
The priest blessed the site and after a few more speeches the ceremony concluded with the planting of trees along the site boundaries by the current students of St Johns. Then, of course, we all ate merienda!
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
7 - Taal Volcano
With my first month up, I decided to call a meeting with my counterpart and my supervisor to reflect on the month past and review the objectives for the next 9. As we sat down, my supervisor asked “Is this an Australian style meeting? :-)”, as I had placed a 1 page agenda on the table. The meeting went well though, and I came away feeling a lot clearer about the goals for the next 9 months. During our meeting, various people breezed in and out again, Mik Mik being one of them and she looked over my shoulder for a while at the agenda on the table. Later that afternoon I attended a meeting Mik Mik had called to discuss the use of funds on projects. An agenda was distributed and the meeting ensued. Afterwards, I turned to Butch and said “So, agenda’s aren’t so unusual after all, Mik Mik prepared an agenda for this afternoon’s meeting”. “Actually, I was surprised, that’s the first time she’s done that” he replied. I couldn’t help feeling pleased that perhaps I’d had a small influence there, and, as we learned in Orientation week, it’s important to celebrate the small wins.
Another win was that we went to inspect the Handumanan site prior to the weekend, and the earthmoving was well underway. Apparently a small amount of compensation was given to the squatter who planted the rice crop on the site. Construction of the first lot of houses is scheduled to commence this coming Saturday!
I have now met the Dean of the School of Architecture in Bacolod. La Consolasion College is reputedly the second best Architecture School in the country after Manila. I have been invited to give some guest lectures in second semester. I will also be engaging the 4th year students in a project for a new GK village.
On the weekend, a selection of AYAD’s and their host organisations returned to Manila to participate in an AusAID workshop aimed at piloting a more programmatic approach to the placement of AYAD’s, which up to now has been on an ad hoc basis. This was the brainchild of Jonas, our fabulous In-Country Manager, and if successful, will be rolled out across all the countries in the Asia Pacific where AYAD’s are sent. GK was one of the chosen host organisations. We were all put up in a very nice hotel in Manila. It was funny the things we appreciated, such as the hot showers with water pressure and mixed salad leaves! It was a full-on 2 days and exciting to be a part of this new direction for the AYAD program.
Rather than returning to Bacolod straight after the workshop, Aruna and I decided to take the opportunity of making a side trip. So we delayed our return until Monday, and headed a couple of hours south of Manila to Taal Volcano. Lou, another AYAD, joined us and the 3 of us stayed 2 nights in a fabulous bamboo cottage on a ridge overlooking the volcano which sits in the centre of Lake Taal. On the Sunday we took a boat across the lake and climbed the volcano (which is still active by-the-way!). At various points along the walk there was sulphurous gas leaking from cracks in the earth! It was good to get some exercise after all the good food at the workshop, but locals took a lot of convincing that we really didn’t want a horse and we were quite happy to walk! When we reached the top, there was a lake within the crater and a tiny island in the middle of it – it looked spectacular – a lake within a lake! Very matrushka doll like.
Monday morning we relaxed in “Sonya’s Garden”, making the most of the pleasant mountain air and had a fabulous lunch of fresh garden produce. Then it was time to head back to Manila for our return flight to warm, humid Bacolod. But unlike the first time we took this flight, just over a month ago, it was nice to know we were going ‘home’ to our own place.
There’s now less than 2 weeks until Jordi comes to visit. I can’t wait to see him and show him around!
Another win was that we went to inspect the Handumanan site prior to the weekend, and the earthmoving was well underway. Apparently a small amount of compensation was given to the squatter who planted the rice crop on the site. Construction of the first lot of houses is scheduled to commence this coming Saturday!
I have now met the Dean of the School of Architecture in Bacolod. La Consolasion College is reputedly the second best Architecture School in the country after Manila. I have been invited to give some guest lectures in second semester. I will also be engaging the 4th year students in a project for a new GK village.
On the weekend, a selection of AYAD’s and their host organisations returned to Manila to participate in an AusAID workshop aimed at piloting a more programmatic approach to the placement of AYAD’s, which up to now has been on an ad hoc basis. This was the brainchild of Jonas, our fabulous In-Country Manager, and if successful, will be rolled out across all the countries in the Asia Pacific where AYAD’s are sent. GK was one of the chosen host organisations. We were all put up in a very nice hotel in Manila. It was funny the things we appreciated, such as the hot showers with water pressure and mixed salad leaves! It was a full-on 2 days and exciting to be a part of this new direction for the AYAD program.
Rather than returning to Bacolod straight after the workshop, Aruna and I decided to take the opportunity of making a side trip. So we delayed our return until Monday, and headed a couple of hours south of Manila to Taal Volcano. Lou, another AYAD, joined us and the 3 of us stayed 2 nights in a fabulous bamboo cottage on a ridge overlooking the volcano which sits in the centre of Lake Taal. On the Sunday we took a boat across the lake and climbed the volcano (which is still active by-the-way!). At various points along the walk there was sulphurous gas leaking from cracks in the earth! It was good to get some exercise after all the good food at the workshop, but locals took a lot of convincing that we really didn’t want a horse and we were quite happy to walk! When we reached the top, there was a lake within the crater and a tiny island in the middle of it – it looked spectacular – a lake within a lake! Very matrushka doll like.
Monday morning we relaxed in “Sonya’s Garden”, making the most of the pleasant mountain air and had a fabulous lunch of fresh garden produce. Then it was time to head back to Manila for our return flight to warm, humid Bacolod. But unlike the first time we took this flight, just over a month ago, it was nice to know we were going ‘home’ to our own place.
There’s now less than 2 weeks until Jordi comes to visit. I can’t wait to see him and show him around!
Saturday, August 30, 2008
6 - Housewarming
I feel I’m well into the swing of things now in the work I’m doing. I presented my site development plan for Handumanan village to the benefactors, (the alumni of St Johns) in a café meeting late last week and they loved it, so it’s full steam ahead. The roads were staked out by the surveyor in preparation for the earthmoving, only to be removed by a local who is opposed to the project. So the site was staked out a second time and a security guard employed to prevent it happening again, but to no avail. The stakes were removed again. Perhaps the guard was bribed? who knows. It turns out the perpetrator is a squatter who planted crops on the site and just wants 2 months so he can harvest them, but the benefactors are keen to get on with the project. So the strategy … do the staking out and the earth moving simultaneously. Risk management in a different cultural context!
Thursday 28th August was a big day. It was the 27th Birthday of my flatmate, Aruna, and the 48th Birthday of my counterpart, Butch! The following night we threw a party to celebrate Aruna’s birthday as well as our housewarming. It was a week of preparations, cleaning, shopping, cooking and decorating but in the end it was a great night. We had about 40 guests and it was really good to be able to return some of the hospitality that we have received. It was a multi-cultural menu: I made pumpkin soup and ANZAC slice, Aruna made Indian curry and fruit salad, and friends helped us make Kinilaw (Philippino fish salad) and Lumpia (Philippino spring rolls).
As you will see from the photos that accompany this blog post, we also gave the place an Aussie touch with green and gold balloons, we had Aussie music playing from my laptop and a continuous slide show of Australian scenes. Aruna’s colleagues had brought along a Karaoke machine and later in the night they cranked it up. Philippino’s are, almost without exception, all great singers. But eventhough they’re a hard act to follow, Aruna and I (the Downunder Duo) got up and sang a couple of songs! “When’s the next party?” the guests asked as they started to leave at around midnight.
It certainly is a good house for a party. It is 3 storeys. The ground floor consists of the garage and the maid’s quarters, and as we have neither a car nor a maid we don’t use the ground floor. The first floor is the Kitchen, open plan Lounge/Dining area and balcony – with pretty good cross ventilation. On the second floor are the 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. It is within a complex of 12 apartments with a 24hr security guard who made sure we didn’t get any random people wandering into our party! We’re really happy with the place and now that we’ve got a few candles and plants around, it feels a lot more like a home.
In the same week, I attended another housewarming of sorts. GK Smile Village in Murcia had the handover ceremony for the first batch of affordable housing for municipality employees (such as school teachers, fire fighters and police). This development model is the first of its kind in the Philippines, whereby the houses are constructed by the beneficiaries of GK houses who aquired the skills building their own homes as part of the GK Program. The wages of these workers and the building materials are funded by a Mutual Development Fund. Thanks to the elimination of a profit margin on wages and the discount on building materials attainable by GK, these costs are half to a third the cost of a conventional house of the same size. The municipality employees then pay off the cost of their home via a low interest housing loan provided by the Mutual Development Fund. One of the really positive aspects of this model is that GK Smile Village now has the poorest of the poor co-habitating with working class. Although, it hasn’t been completely smooth sailing. As you could imagine, the Construction and Real Estate Building Association was not too pleased as it meant loss of income for private builders. Perhaps with our current housing affordability crisis in Australia we could learn a thing or two from this project.
Thursday 28th August was a big day. It was the 27th Birthday of my flatmate, Aruna, and the 48th Birthday of my counterpart, Butch! The following night we threw a party to celebrate Aruna’s birthday as well as our housewarming. It was a week of preparations, cleaning, shopping, cooking and decorating but in the end it was a great night. We had about 40 guests and it was really good to be able to return some of the hospitality that we have received. It was a multi-cultural menu: I made pumpkin soup and ANZAC slice, Aruna made Indian curry and fruit salad, and friends helped us make Kinilaw (Philippino fish salad) and Lumpia (Philippino spring rolls).
As you will see from the photos that accompany this blog post, we also gave the place an Aussie touch with green and gold balloons, we had Aussie music playing from my laptop and a continuous slide show of Australian scenes. Aruna’s colleagues had brought along a Karaoke machine and later in the night they cranked it up. Philippino’s are, almost without exception, all great singers. But eventhough they’re a hard act to follow, Aruna and I (the Downunder Duo) got up and sang a couple of songs! “When’s the next party?” the guests asked as they started to leave at around midnight.
It certainly is a good house for a party. It is 3 storeys. The ground floor consists of the garage and the maid’s quarters, and as we have neither a car nor a maid we don’t use the ground floor. The first floor is the Kitchen, open plan Lounge/Dining area and balcony – with pretty good cross ventilation. On the second floor are the 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. It is within a complex of 12 apartments with a 24hr security guard who made sure we didn’t get any random people wandering into our party! We’re really happy with the place and now that we’ve got a few candles and plants around, it feels a lot more like a home.
In the same week, I attended another housewarming of sorts. GK Smile Village in Murcia had the handover ceremony for the first batch of affordable housing for municipality employees (such as school teachers, fire fighters and police). This development model is the first of its kind in the Philippines, whereby the houses are constructed by the beneficiaries of GK houses who aquired the skills building their own homes as part of the GK Program. The wages of these workers and the building materials are funded by a Mutual Development Fund. Thanks to the elimination of a profit margin on wages and the discount on building materials attainable by GK, these costs are half to a third the cost of a conventional house of the same size. The municipality employees then pay off the cost of their home via a low interest housing loan provided by the Mutual Development Fund. One of the really positive aspects of this model is that GK Smile Village now has the poorest of the poor co-habitating with working class. Although, it hasn’t been completely smooth sailing. As you could imagine, the Construction and Real Estate Building Association was not too pleased as it meant loss of income for private builders. Perhaps with our current housing affordability crisis in Australia we could learn a thing or two from this project.
5 - Dumaguete
Monday 25th August was a Public Holiday known as National Hero’s Day. So being a long weekend, a bunch of us AYADs from various places in the Philippines seized the opportunity, and descended on Dumaguete for a weekend of fun and sharing of experiences. Aruna and I had the least distance to travel. We took a bus for the 6 hour trip over the scenic mountains of Negros to the coastal city of Dumaguete on the other side of the island. The island of Negros is split into two provinces – Bacolod being the capital of West Negros and Dumaguete the capital of East Negros. There are two AYADs stationed in Dumaguete – the girls stayed with Anna and the guys with Dan. Aside from the fun we had seeing another part of the Philippines, it was great to reflect on and compare our experiences a month into our assignments. And particularly as our assignments are so diverse, ranging from human trafficking and orphaned children to sustainable agriculture and housing for the poor.
Dumaguete is a vibrant university town with a waterfront boulevard and backdrop of cloud covered mountains. On Saturday all 7 of us piled into one trike and ventured up the mountains to swim at the base of the Casaror Falls. Sunday Dan had arranged a boat trip to Apo island for diving or snorkelling. With the choppy seas we began to regret the number of drinks we’d had the night before! But that soon dissipated when a sea turtle swam right under me as I was snorkelling! Monday we bought our “pasalubong” (souvenirs for workmates), chilled out on the boulevard, had some lunch and it was time to head home …
… but that wasn’t so straight forward. We were waiting on the roadside for the bus when it took an unexpected turn (due to roadworks) before it reached us. Dan, who has a motorbike, calmly but firmly told us to “jump on, we have to chase this bus!.” So Aruna and I, before we really knew what was happening, were clinging on to Dan’s shoulders, one suitcase between Dan’s legs, the other in our hands hanging off one side while Dan negotiated the traffic in hot pursuit of the runaway bus! At a strategic moment, Dan was able to overtake the bus, while we released one arm to wave down the driver! He pulled over, and hearts racing, we boarded the bus … arriving safely back in Bacolod at 9pm.
Dumaguete is a vibrant university town with a waterfront boulevard and backdrop of cloud covered mountains. On Saturday all 7 of us piled into one trike and ventured up the mountains to swim at the base of the Casaror Falls. Sunday Dan had arranged a boat trip to Apo island for diving or snorkelling. With the choppy seas we began to regret the number of drinks we’d had the night before! But that soon dissipated when a sea turtle swam right under me as I was snorkelling! Monday we bought our “pasalubong” (souvenirs for workmates), chilled out on the boulevard, had some lunch and it was time to head home …
… but that wasn’t so straight forward. We were waiting on the roadside for the bus when it took an unexpected turn (due to roadworks) before it reached us. Dan, who has a motorbike, calmly but firmly told us to “jump on, we have to chase this bus!.” So Aruna and I, before we really knew what was happening, were clinging on to Dan’s shoulders, one suitcase between Dan’s legs, the other in our hands hanging off one side while Dan negotiated the traffic in hot pursuit of the runaway bus! At a strategic moment, Dan was able to overtake the bus, while we released one arm to wave down the driver! He pulled over, and hearts racing, we boarded the bus … arriving safely back in Bacolod at 9pm.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
4-Making Friends
My fellow AYAD companion in Bacolod, Aruna, and I had decided we would search for an apartment to share, as we are going to be in Bacolod for roughly the same amount of time and we get on really well. After a couple of weeks of house hunting, we found what we were looking for and have now moved in. The location was the clincher – close to restaurants and cafes in the uptown area and opposite Jo’s place, the other Aussie AYAD in Bacolod. The other big plus is that it is furnished. While it is a little more than we were budgeting on, it just so happened that the owner is a cousin of my supervisor and we got a discount! It is a 3 bedroom apartment so … our spare room is ready and waiting for visitors! (Photos next time after we’ve cleaned the place!)
Aruna and I have started formal evening classes in the local dialect, Hiligainon. Our teacher also works for GK – as a teacher in the primary school of one of the GK villages. We were keen to learn the local dialect, because the national language known as Tagalog (or Filipino) is rarely spoken in this area. School is taught in English and most business dealings are done in English but the everyday verbal communication is in Hiligainon, randomly interspersed with English words. While our teacher is used to teaching from Hiligainon to English, it is an unusual concept for him to be teaching it in reverse!
I have now been privileged enough to have met the founder of GK, Mr Tony Meloto, when he came to visit some of the sites in our province on the weekend. He is a very charismatic and humble leader, highly passionate and committed to nation building. It was both fascinating and inspirational to hear him speak with the rich and the poor, the priests and the politicians about the vision of GK. While he now lives and works from Manila, Tony originates from this province. The other reason for his visit was to attend the 95th Birthday celebration of his mother, which I was also fortunate to attend. A function room of a restaurant was booked out for the occasion and about 60 guests were invited. And what an amazing lady for 95 years old!
During our tour of sites with Tony on the weekend, we happened upon the annual Fiesta of Manapla, a town in the north. The mayor had invited us for lunch in the town hall (complete with a whole spit roast pig!). And afterwards, I had just enough time to watch the street parade before we had to leave for our next engagement. The street parade was made up of dance troupes – one from each suburb of the town, lead by their suburbs Fiesta Princess, sitting pretty on the back of a float. The costumes of each troupe represented local produce or delicacies. I don’t know how they were able to dance down the street under the sweltering midday sun wearing such costumes without passing out, but it certainly was a colourful and entertaining cultural experience!
I am also happy to say that I’m starting to make some local friends. At work I sit next to Marj who is my age and coordinator of the “Singles for Christ” for the Province. She invited me to her place on Sunday to meet her group of friends – a lovely bunch of fun loving young Philippinos. They took me to see the ruins of a former Hacienda (cane farm mansion built by the Spanish) which looked beautiful against the setting sun.
Workwise, I have been given my first project to concentrate on – a completely new village consisting of 50 houses, a hall, a school, an office, a basketball court and an area for agriculture on a 10,000sqm site in Handumanan, south of Bacolod. It is being funded by the alumni of the St Johns School in Bacolod to commemorate their 50 year anniversary.
Aruna and I have started formal evening classes in the local dialect, Hiligainon. Our teacher also works for GK – as a teacher in the primary school of one of the GK villages. We were keen to learn the local dialect, because the national language known as Tagalog (or Filipino) is rarely spoken in this area. School is taught in English and most business dealings are done in English but the everyday verbal communication is in Hiligainon, randomly interspersed with English words. While our teacher is used to teaching from Hiligainon to English, it is an unusual concept for him to be teaching it in reverse!
I have now been privileged enough to have met the founder of GK, Mr Tony Meloto, when he came to visit some of the sites in our province on the weekend. He is a very charismatic and humble leader, highly passionate and committed to nation building. It was both fascinating and inspirational to hear him speak with the rich and the poor, the priests and the politicians about the vision of GK. While he now lives and works from Manila, Tony originates from this province. The other reason for his visit was to attend the 95th Birthday celebration of his mother, which I was also fortunate to attend. A function room of a restaurant was booked out for the occasion and about 60 guests were invited. And what an amazing lady for 95 years old!
During our tour of sites with Tony on the weekend, we happened upon the annual Fiesta of Manapla, a town in the north. The mayor had invited us for lunch in the town hall (complete with a whole spit roast pig!). And afterwards, I had just enough time to watch the street parade before we had to leave for our next engagement. The street parade was made up of dance troupes – one from each suburb of the town, lead by their suburbs Fiesta Princess, sitting pretty on the back of a float. The costumes of each troupe represented local produce or delicacies. I don’t know how they were able to dance down the street under the sweltering midday sun wearing such costumes without passing out, but it certainly was a colourful and entertaining cultural experience!
I am also happy to say that I’m starting to make some local friends. At work I sit next to Marj who is my age and coordinator of the “Singles for Christ” for the Province. She invited me to her place on Sunday to meet her group of friends – a lovely bunch of fun loving young Philippinos. They took me to see the ruins of a former Hacienda (cane farm mansion built by the Spanish) which looked beautiful against the setting sun.
Workwise, I have been given my first project to concentrate on – a completely new village consisting of 50 houses, a hall, a school, an office, a basketball court and an area for agriculture on a 10,000sqm site in Handumanan, south of Bacolod. It is being funded by the alumni of the St Johns School in Bacolod to commemorate their 50 year anniversary.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
3-Weekend at the Beach
The past week I actually got my hands dirty and participated in some building at one of the GK villages. I joined the group of young people from Hong Kong who had come over for 10 days to do work on 10 new houses at the Banago site. We laid bricks one day and did cement rendering another day. It was quite a challenge in the intense heat but so much fun. Part of my AYAD assignment is to develop the design of the housing modules, and what better way to understand what is possible than to build some myself!
To soothe the building muscles I was dying for a massage. It just so happened that my fellow AYAD, Aruna, works at the Christian Foundation for the Deaf and Blind in Bacolod, where one of their programs is training blind masseurs. So I booked myself in … and I think I might become a regular customer!
Also this week, I was one of the party to meet an Australian Rotarian from Canberra and escort him around one of the GK sites. His Rotary club had provided the funding for the furniture, books and AV equipment for the school in the village.
When the weekend came around, I was very much looking forward to the planned roadtrip. Myself and Aruna had been invited by an English aid worker to join her, her daughters and some visitors from England on their trip to a beach resort 200km south of Bacolod. The 200km took about 4.5 hours due to the bumpy roads but the scenery was beautiful – cane fields lined the road with mountains on one side and the sea on the other, and every so often passing through a town or village. We arrived Friday evening in time for a dip in the warm tropical water before a delicious meal of rice with seafood and curry dishes was served in the bamboo pavilion overlooking the beach and the setting sun. The very well appointed cottages stepped up the hillside, each with a fantastic view through the palm trees to the turquoise waters below.
It was a very relaxing weekend of sunbathing, snorkelling, kayaking and devouring plenty of the delicious tropical shakes from the bar. The snorkelling was fabulous – beautiful corals and stunning tropical fish, accessible directly from the shore, no boat required. If anyone is interested, the resort at the other end of the beach is for sale: A$50,000 for the entire resort!
To soothe the building muscles I was dying for a massage. It just so happened that my fellow AYAD, Aruna, works at the Christian Foundation for the Deaf and Blind in Bacolod, where one of their programs is training blind masseurs. So I booked myself in … and I think I might become a regular customer!
Also this week, I was one of the party to meet an Australian Rotarian from Canberra and escort him around one of the GK sites. His Rotary club had provided the funding for the furniture, books and AV equipment for the school in the village.
When the weekend came around, I was very much looking forward to the planned roadtrip. Myself and Aruna had been invited by an English aid worker to join her, her daughters and some visitors from England on their trip to a beach resort 200km south of Bacolod. The 200km took about 4.5 hours due to the bumpy roads but the scenery was beautiful – cane fields lined the road with mountains on one side and the sea on the other, and every so often passing through a town or village. We arrived Friday evening in time for a dip in the warm tropical water before a delicious meal of rice with seafood and curry dishes was served in the bamboo pavilion overlooking the beach and the setting sun. The very well appointed cottages stepped up the hillside, each with a fantastic view through the palm trees to the turquoise waters below.
It was a very relaxing weekend of sunbathing, snorkelling, kayaking and devouring plenty of the delicious tropical shakes from the bar. The snorkelling was fabulous – beautiful corals and stunning tropical fish, accessible directly from the shore, no boat required. If anyone is interested, the resort at the other end of the beach is for sale: A$50,000 for the entire resort!
Sunday, August 3, 2008
2-Starting Work
Bacolod city has a population comparable to Newcastle which was a welcome change after the hustle and bustle of Metro Manila. It is situated in a beautiful setting - surrounded by cane fields, dotted with palm trees and lourded over by Kanlaon Volcano (which is still active!). The typhoon that ripped through the Philippines in the week before I left Australia luckily narrowly missed Bacolod, but this is typhoon season, and not uncommon for the Philippines to be hit by 20 typhoons a year. I have, however, experienced my first earthquake. While the epicentre was 60km away, it was apparently felt at level 4 on the Richter scale here in Bacolod at 2.15am … I don’t know how, but I slept right through it! No reports of any damage or injuries.
I was hosted for my first week with the family of my GK supervisor, a well known family in Bacolod. In fact the main street of the city was named after his great grandfather who led a bloodless rebellion against the Spanish at the time of occupation.
For my first week of work, I have tried to be a sponge and absorb the projects and how the organisation works. I think I’ve spent a total of about 2 hours in the office itself, in downtown Bacolod. Most of the week has been spent visiting various project sites, or meeting project stakeholders at one of the nice cafes in the more cosmopolitan ‘uptown’ area. Despite the lower population density in Bacolod compared to Manila, there is a very visible gap between the “haves” and the “have nots”.
What has become most apparent during my first week of work is that GK is not simply about providing housing for the poor, it is about building communities, of which housing is merely one part. The process begins with land acquisition. In some cases it is donated by wealthy land owners, in other cases an agreement is drawn up with the local municipality. This week, for example, we were invited to meet with the Mayor of a town in the north of the province who has recently purchased 7.5ha and wanted to talk with us about the process of creating a GK village on that site. The next step is securing the funding, which comes from a variety of sources. For example, this week we met with the alumni of one of the catholic high schools in the city. Next year it celebrates its 50th anniversary, and to commemorate the milestone, they are funding a house for every class that has graduated. But before any plans are drawn, the beneficiaries must be chosen from amongst the poorest of the poor. They are generally illegal squatters living in shanty towns on river banks or on private or government land. I was taken to visit one of the slum areas to gain an understanding of the living environment the people endure. In order to be accepted as beneficiaries, they must agree to certain values such as no gambolling, no drinking and no prostitution in the village and they must also agree to provide 200 hours of “sweat equity” to construct the houses. This is a major part of the process as it promotes the sense of community through working together and building each others houses.
Another aspect of the organisation that struck me is that the process doesn’t end when the houses are complete. Most villages will have a multi-purpose hall and some land set aside for productivity (e.g. growing crops or grazing goats etc). Some villages will have a school, and some will have a health clinic. And through the parallel programs for productivity, education, health etc, GK volunteers will visit the villages to run sessions with the community. At one of the villages, students of the local Medical College, do rounds twice a week as part of their training. At another village, the men who aquired the building skills through participating in the construction of their own homes, are now constructing more up-market versions of the standard design for purchase by local government workers, and getting paid for it.
Each GK village has a volunteer Project Director who overseas the whole process on the ground. These project directors report to the Provincial head office of GK. In this case, the Province is Negros Occidental – the western half of the Island of Negros. Negros Occidental is a long narrow province about 200km from top to bottom covering an area of almost 8000km2. Bacolod is its capital. In the head office there is a team for each of the aspects of the community development i.e. a productivity team, an education team, a health team, a shelter team and so on. And this is where I come in. I am part of the Shelter team, along with Bob (the provincial area head), Joe (the senior Architect), Butch (the full time Architect) and Mik Mik (the parternships coordinator). We oversee the planning, design, construction and ongoing maintenance of the 32 or so new and existing GK sites scattered throughout the province.
The standard home is a 6m x 4m room, with a toilet cubicle in one corner. The construction is hollow block walls, rendered and painted, opaque glass louvred windows, concrete infill slab, steel roof frame and corrugated iron roof sheeting. The budget per house for materials is A$1,750. The labour is provided by the beneficiaries as I mentioned plus assistance from volunteers. As a result, the construction must be simple to enable construction by unskilled hands. Everything is manual. From time to time, often on a weekend, volunteers are called on to participate in a build. They may be local church or school groups and sometimes international visitors who use it as an opportunity for a team building exercise. This week, a group of young people from Hong Kong arrived to assist on one of the sites north of Bacolod where 10 new houses are being constructed. When the houses are built, the beneficiaries are encouraged to plant food crops between the houses and ornamental plants in the front.
Visiting the GK sites and meeting the delightful beneficiaries has made me all the more determined to learn the local dialect so I can communicate more deeply with the people. In one village, when we arrived, Josephine, a mother of 5 proudly came to greet us and insisted on chaperoning me around the village shading my white skin from the sun with her umberella! It was so touching and she couldn’t express enough how happy she was to be part of a GK community. In another village, all the children came to greet us and touched our hands to their foreheads – a sign of respect.
On Saturday I was lucky enough to attend a handover ceremony at a village in the north of the province. The site had 42 houses and a further 8 had recently been completed. It was very moving to see the presentation of the keys to the 8 families by the benefactor, a local cane processing plant magnate who provided the land and funded the project. The beneficiaries themselves were former rebels from the mountains who had surrendered. The children all gathered and sang the GK song in appreciation.
Through these numerous site visits with my counterpart, Butch, we have also got to know each other better and discovered we share many common interests such as mountain biking, coffee and taste in music. I am really looking forward to working with him and the shelter team over the next 10 months.
It was a challenge I put myself up for, and already the experience has challenged my emotions, my perceptions, my professional views and my values.
I was hosted for my first week with the family of my GK supervisor, a well known family in Bacolod. In fact the main street of the city was named after his great grandfather who led a bloodless rebellion against the Spanish at the time of occupation.
For my first week of work, I have tried to be a sponge and absorb the projects and how the organisation works. I think I’ve spent a total of about 2 hours in the office itself, in downtown Bacolod. Most of the week has been spent visiting various project sites, or meeting project stakeholders at one of the nice cafes in the more cosmopolitan ‘uptown’ area. Despite the lower population density in Bacolod compared to Manila, there is a very visible gap between the “haves” and the “have nots”.
What has become most apparent during my first week of work is that GK is not simply about providing housing for the poor, it is about building communities, of which housing is merely one part. The process begins with land acquisition. In some cases it is donated by wealthy land owners, in other cases an agreement is drawn up with the local municipality. This week, for example, we were invited to meet with the Mayor of a town in the north of the province who has recently purchased 7.5ha and wanted to talk with us about the process of creating a GK village on that site. The next step is securing the funding, which comes from a variety of sources. For example, this week we met with the alumni of one of the catholic high schools in the city. Next year it celebrates its 50th anniversary, and to commemorate the milestone, they are funding a house for every class that has graduated. But before any plans are drawn, the beneficiaries must be chosen from amongst the poorest of the poor. They are generally illegal squatters living in shanty towns on river banks or on private or government land. I was taken to visit one of the slum areas to gain an understanding of the living environment the people endure. In order to be accepted as beneficiaries, they must agree to certain values such as no gambolling, no drinking and no prostitution in the village and they must also agree to provide 200 hours of “sweat equity” to construct the houses. This is a major part of the process as it promotes the sense of community through working together and building each others houses.
Another aspect of the organisation that struck me is that the process doesn’t end when the houses are complete. Most villages will have a multi-purpose hall and some land set aside for productivity (e.g. growing crops or grazing goats etc). Some villages will have a school, and some will have a health clinic. And through the parallel programs for productivity, education, health etc, GK volunteers will visit the villages to run sessions with the community. At one of the villages, students of the local Medical College, do rounds twice a week as part of their training. At another village, the men who aquired the building skills through participating in the construction of their own homes, are now constructing more up-market versions of the standard design for purchase by local government workers, and getting paid for it.
Each GK village has a volunteer Project Director who overseas the whole process on the ground. These project directors report to the Provincial head office of GK. In this case, the Province is Negros Occidental – the western half of the Island of Negros. Negros Occidental is a long narrow province about 200km from top to bottom covering an area of almost 8000km2. Bacolod is its capital. In the head office there is a team for each of the aspects of the community development i.e. a productivity team, an education team, a health team, a shelter team and so on. And this is where I come in. I am part of the Shelter team, along with Bob (the provincial area head), Joe (the senior Architect), Butch (the full time Architect) and Mik Mik (the parternships coordinator). We oversee the planning, design, construction and ongoing maintenance of the 32 or so new and existing GK sites scattered throughout the province.
The standard home is a 6m x 4m room, with a toilet cubicle in one corner. The construction is hollow block walls, rendered and painted, opaque glass louvred windows, concrete infill slab, steel roof frame and corrugated iron roof sheeting. The budget per house for materials is A$1,750. The labour is provided by the beneficiaries as I mentioned plus assistance from volunteers. As a result, the construction must be simple to enable construction by unskilled hands. Everything is manual. From time to time, often on a weekend, volunteers are called on to participate in a build. They may be local church or school groups and sometimes international visitors who use it as an opportunity for a team building exercise. This week, a group of young people from Hong Kong arrived to assist on one of the sites north of Bacolod where 10 new houses are being constructed. When the houses are built, the beneficiaries are encouraged to plant food crops between the houses and ornamental plants in the front.
Visiting the GK sites and meeting the delightful beneficiaries has made me all the more determined to learn the local dialect so I can communicate more deeply with the people. In one village, when we arrived, Josephine, a mother of 5 proudly came to greet us and insisted on chaperoning me around the village shading my white skin from the sun with her umberella! It was so touching and she couldn’t express enough how happy she was to be part of a GK community. In another village, all the children came to greet us and touched our hands to their foreheads – a sign of respect.
On Saturday I was lucky enough to attend a handover ceremony at a village in the north of the province. The site had 42 houses and a further 8 had recently been completed. It was very moving to see the presentation of the keys to the 8 families by the benefactor, a local cane processing plant magnate who provided the land and funded the project. The beneficiaries themselves were former rebels from the mountains who had surrendered. The children all gathered and sang the GK song in appreciation.
Through these numerous site visits with my counterpart, Butch, we have also got to know each other better and discovered we share many common interests such as mountain biking, coffee and taste in music. I am really looking forward to working with him and the shelter team over the next 10 months.
It was a challenge I put myself up for, and already the experience has challenged my emotions, my perceptions, my professional views and my values.
Sunday, July 27, 2008
1-Orientation Week
After a bittersweet farewell at Sydney airport, I boarded the flight to Manila along with the 7 other AYADs of intake 22 posted to the Philippines. As the flight progressed, my excitement for the adventure that lay ahead steadily increased. The first thing to hit us as we disembarked was the intense heat and humidity, and this was 7.30 in the evening! A welcome party was there to greet us and we were whisked off in a couple of vans to a resort on the outskirts of Manila. Here, our in-country manager and the current in-country AYAD’s were killing time singing karaoke (the national sport!) while they waited for us to arrive.
The resort was our home for a week as we had our orientation to the country and its people. While it felt a little like we were being cocooned from reality, we appreciated being eased into the madness that is Manila! During the day we had sessions on topics such as Filipino workplace culture, the history of the Philippines, our assignment expectations (with invaluable input from the current AYAD’s) and a crash course in the national language “Tagalog”. I was incredibly impressed with how well organised it was, yet at the same time, in true Filipino style, nothing was rushed and there was time to hang out by the resort’s pool. The only issue was brown-outs during the afternoon storms which wreaked havoc with the powerpoint presentations – but even that was not a problem as the presenter would call a break for “meryenda!” (snack time). I think eating is the second national sport! There seems to be a meal every couple of hours! Rice is an essential part of all of them (including breakfast), so it’s a good thing I love rice.
During the evenings we were treated to different Filipino restaurants around Manila to sample the local cuisine. This included fried crickets and bulls balls soup!
On our exposure day tour of the city itself (the population of Australia within an area the size of 5% of Sydney!), we experienced all the forms of public transport, from packed over-airconditioned trains to the infamous brightly couloured jeepneys to the 2-person tricycles. My first purchase was a much needed folding fan at the main market. We also explored Fort Santiago, which is part of the original walled city of Manila on the bank of the Pasig River. It was here that the National Hero, Jose Rizal was detained for inciting revolution against the Spanish prior to his execution in 1896 aged in his early 30’s. What I found particularly interesting to learn was that during WW2, Manila was the 2nd most destroyed city in the world, after Warsaw. But unlike Warsaw, where I spent a year 10 years ago, Manila was not re-built, and some say has never recovered since.
On the 5th day I met my supervisor and counterpart from my host organisation, who flew up from Bacolod to attend the 1 day workshop and I clarified with them the details of my assignment. I will be working closely with my counterpart, an experienced architect, in the planning, design and construction supervision of 7 proposed GK villages in the province as well as assisting with the 24 pre-existing villages that are in varying degrees of completion. The Filipionos have been nothing but friendly and smiling, and these guys are no exception. They have a keen sense of humour and quite evidently love what they do.
I am now very keen and excited to get started and intrigued to discover what has made the organisation such a national success. Everywhere we have been, including the Australian Embassy, there has been nothing but praise for the work GK is doing.
The resort was our home for a week as we had our orientation to the country and its people. While it felt a little like we were being cocooned from reality, we appreciated being eased into the madness that is Manila! During the day we had sessions on topics such as Filipino workplace culture, the history of the Philippines, our assignment expectations (with invaluable input from the current AYAD’s) and a crash course in the national language “Tagalog”. I was incredibly impressed with how well organised it was, yet at the same time, in true Filipino style, nothing was rushed and there was time to hang out by the resort’s pool. The only issue was brown-outs during the afternoon storms which wreaked havoc with the powerpoint presentations – but even that was not a problem as the presenter would call a break for “meryenda!” (snack time). I think eating is the second national sport! There seems to be a meal every couple of hours! Rice is an essential part of all of them (including breakfast), so it’s a good thing I love rice.
During the evenings we were treated to different Filipino restaurants around Manila to sample the local cuisine. This included fried crickets and bulls balls soup!
On our exposure day tour of the city itself (the population of Australia within an area the size of 5% of Sydney!), we experienced all the forms of public transport, from packed over-airconditioned trains to the infamous brightly couloured jeepneys to the 2-person tricycles. My first purchase was a much needed folding fan at the main market. We also explored Fort Santiago, which is part of the original walled city of Manila on the bank of the Pasig River. It was here that the National Hero, Jose Rizal was detained for inciting revolution against the Spanish prior to his execution in 1896 aged in his early 30’s. What I found particularly interesting to learn was that during WW2, Manila was the 2nd most destroyed city in the world, after Warsaw. But unlike Warsaw, where I spent a year 10 years ago, Manila was not re-built, and some say has never recovered since.
On the 5th day I met my supervisor and counterpart from my host organisation, who flew up from Bacolod to attend the 1 day workshop and I clarified with them the details of my assignment. I will be working closely with my counterpart, an experienced architect, in the planning, design and construction supervision of 7 proposed GK villages in the province as well as assisting with the 24 pre-existing villages that are in varying degrees of completion. The Filipionos have been nothing but friendly and smiling, and these guys are no exception. They have a keen sense of humour and quite evidently love what they do.
I am now very keen and excited to get started and intrigued to discover what has made the organisation such a national success. Everywhere we have been, including the Australian Embassy, there has been nothing but praise for the work GK is doing.