Thursday/Friday (March 11-12) - Lew's Update

Hopefully, at some point this evening, I'll have the time to do a photo download - I'll probably make that a separate post with captioning. But here are the details from yesterday and today...


As Cliff said in the previous post, we spent Thursday with members of the Las Pinas and Multi-National Clubs. We got a bit of a later start than usual - we didn't have to meet up until 9:30, which meant I didn't need to get up before sunrise!


Las Pinas is one of the southernmost areas of Metro Manila (about 20 km south of Manila's center); the principle attraction is indeed the bamboo organ, the only one of its kind in the world. Conceived by Father Diego Cera, it took 5 years to complete, from the initial cutting of the bamboo for the pipes and selection of woods for the rest (case, bellows, etc) to the final main construction, with the exception of the final 122 reed pipes, which were added by 1824. The organ remained in operation for the next 56 years, until both organ and church were severly damaged by 3 earthquakes in 1880. The organ was disassembled and the pipes placed in storage. But 2 years later, a typhoon struck and completely destroyed the church roof, causing further damage to the organ's chest. By 1888, the church had been rebuilt, but the organ was forgotten. It was not until 1911 when a tourist happened upon the pipes and realized their significance; thus began a 62-year on-and-off-again project to reconstruct the bamboo organ. The largest and most significant steps were not made until 1972, when a German organ manufacturer was awarded the contract to complete the project. The parts were all shipped to Germany; the reconstruction took the next 3 years before it was flown back to the Philippines for its Inaugural Concert. Unfortunately, the only element missing from our visit was actually hearing the organ played--but I bought a CD recording featuring both the bamboo organ and the world-renowned Las Pinas Boys' Choir.


From Las Pinas, we continued into Cavite province, passing through Zapote, Kawit, and into Cavite City. Having thus far spent all of our time in the Metro Manila area, we had yet to see the reality of poverty among many Filipinos; the road to Cavite City showed that all too clearly. Lining the road were ramshackle huts with corrugated metal roofing, piles of trash clogging waterways...words fail to describe it. We took photos and video along the way--I'll make those available as soon as I can. Hopefully the quality is good enough. It was...stunning? Heartwrenching? I just can't imagine people living in those conditions. It's a sobering reminder of how good we have it--and how many people need help.


The plan had been to head straight up the thin finger of land that protrudes into Manila Bay to its very tip--Sangley Point, the location of the former US Naval Base, now a Philippines Navy Base. In the harbor between Cavite City and the mainland of Luzon, the US Navy (led by Admiral Dewey aboard the flagship Olympia--South Jerseyites and Philly folk will likely have been aboard her, as she has been at rest as a floating museum at Penn's Landing for many years now!) destroyed the Spanish Navy in 1898 during the Spanish-American War. Unfortunately, the guards at the gate into the base were not particularly interested in who we were or what we wanted to see - they refused to let us in.

So, with a tear in our eye we turned around and headed back down the peninsula toward Kawit, the site of the Aguinaldo Shrine. This was the place where the Philippines declared its independence from Spain, after hundreds of years of colonial rule, and where General Emilio Aguinaldo lived as the first President and after until his death in 1964. His 1924 Packard is on display in the yard; the bowling alley he had constructed for his children (the first in the nation) is intact on the first floor; all the secret passages and hiding places are clearly marked; his tomb is out back. Much like our own landmarks, one of our Rotary hosts thanked us - he had never been to see the shrine, and taking us there was as much an education for him as it was for us! He intends to bring his own children back for a visit.

Our daily tour finished, we stopped at our prearranged meeting location--the Palms Country Club, where Orly, my host, would be picking me up. We were early, so it was the perfect opportunity to relax for a little while at the poolside bar, and enjoy a few bottles of the Philippines' favorite and most popular beer, San Miguel ("San Mig" for short).

While the rest of the team headed off for the District Office, Orly and I drove into Makati to pick up his wife from her office. We had rather special plans that evening...

As Orly explained to me, it is Catholic Filipino tradition (and perhaps other Catholic nationalities' tradition as well) to hold a celebration on the 40th day following someone's death - the root of this practice is the belief that on that day, the deceased's soul ascends to heaven. That evening, was the 40th-day celebration for a close friend of the family, and they had received permission to bring me along. So, there I was, the American Jew at a funeral mass with a large roomful of Filipino Catholics! It was a truly lovely occasion, akin in some respects to the Irish wake - a celebration of the life and the certainty of eternal reward, rather than a mourning of loss. It was quite remarkable to watch - no tears shed, not even by the widow. In fact, as she announced during the dinner that followed mass, it was also her 76th birthday that day - so she called up family and friends to entertain the guests with songs and remembrances. It was a very special, warm moment, one I was honored to be able to witness and share.

After the dinner was over, we high-tailed it back to Alabang, because Friday would be another extra-early morning. I was up at 5am, and we were out the door at 6:30 - first, we dropped Orly's grandson off at his elementary school, before heading to our usual Starbucks rendezvous. Our early meeting time was necessary - we would again be leaving the city proper, but in a different direction. This time, we were heading east into the mountains under the guidance of the most excellent members of the RC of San Lorenzo for a combination of Project and Cultural visits.

Our first stop was Our Lady of the Annunciation church - a centuries-old adobo structure, made of fitted blocks held together with lime mixed with egg whites (it was built before the invention of cement!) pretty far off the beaten tourist path.

From there, we proceeded further into the mountains along a series of roads in variable conditions to reach the Calawis National High School, site of a Rotary 3H grant project. Rotary's efforts are truly impressive here--they're working to teach the students (many of whom come from farming families) how to grow, care for, harvest and market giant bamboo, an important natural resource in the Philippines. This will be a skill set they will be able to take with them after graduation, and use to improve their livelihood, as well as their family's. They are also working to establish vermicomposting (as previously described) which will also yield multiple benefits - fertilizer for their school's organic garden, with enough excess to sell in support of school programs, as well as the likelihood of an continuous abundance of excess worms to resell in an effort to encourage others in the Calawis area to start better waste management techniques. We were also privileged to witness the delivery of math textbooks and clothing sent by last year's GSE Team from Philadelphia.

Since Calawis is a school, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to talk to one of the classes. It was another group of bright, charming, enthusiastic students--43 in the class, by the way! I spoke with one of the teachers - he actually had been an English teacher, but had been hired here to teach Tagalog (the native Filipino language). He lamented that despite how exceptionally bright many of these students are, they will never have the chance to attend college; their parents are generally poor, many farmers, many others unemployed, without the means to afford tuition - no access to scholarship programs, and no "community college" system to provide limited advanced education beyond high school.

We drove back down the mountain to Eduardo's for lunch, and another wide array of traditional Filipino foods (I made sure to try everything--and enjoyed pretty much all of it!) Squid, vegetable rolls, a couple different kinds of fish, beef, chicken, pork, and a dessert I'm sure I wouldn't spell correctly.

After lunch, we continued onward to Antipolo, to the site of the Travellers' Pilgrimage Church - where those who are going on long journeys come to pray for safety and success. There is a huge pilgrimage traditionally attended by thousands in (February, I think?) each year, and of course the church is well-attended during Holy Week. Behind the altar is a stairway that leads up to a spot directly behind the statue of the Virgin Mary - pilgrims will climb up and touch a handkerchief to her, then rub the cloth on their faces as a blessing. Afterward, tradition calls for the pilgrims to emerge from the church and go down the steps into the marketplace below to break their fast with sticky rice wrapped in banana leaf, and handfuls of roasted cashews--all of which are sold by an aggressive array of merchants poised at the foot of the steps of the church mount (accompanied by a parade of beggars).

Our tour ended, we returned into Manila and went our separate ways - an early evening! I had a lovely ride home with Orly and his grandson Enzo, and a very enjoyable dinner with the family, including a dessert made from a particular variety of purple grub. Delicious with homemade custard!

Tomorrow is our first recreation day, although it has cultural elements as well - a 2 hour ride south to Villa Escudero, an operating coconut plantation that doubles as a resort. Looking forward to it!

Lew

PS. The computer is giving me grief about posting photos, so I gave up and posted them on Facebook instead:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=50069&id=1040949149&l=b385552de9
They might not all get on there tonight, but keep this link handy - I'll keep updating as I go.