After a late start we drove 2 hours south of Manila to a Filipino tourist destination, Villa Escudero. On arrival, one of our host, Rolle, gave us Lanzones and Mangosten fruit for us to have. The Mangosten was very sweet.
Villa Esudoro is now a coconut plantaion, but the park area had a number of attractions. There was a Water Buffalo cart ride. We ate our lunch of Filipino food at tables that were set up at the bottom of a spillway of a dam. The tables were set in the stream and so our feet were in about 6 to 8 inches of water while we were at the tables. This worked in the sense that you didn’t feel the heat and were quite comfortable. We rafted on a bamboo raft and the saw and amazing show which demonstrated a variety of dance and music from various regions of the Philippines and times in their history. Then we went to the museum on the property. There was an amazing collection of Filipino religious artifacts and floats for Holy week observances. There was a large collection of dried and stuffed animals and insects native to the area. There were some painting, furniture and textiles as well.
After the Villa, we went to a pottery artists shop and workshop. He made some very nice pieces of pottery of high quality.
Upon my return to Manila, I met up with my hosts, Conrad and Joji, at a restaurant called Sentro. They serve Filipino food which was very good. There Rotary friends were their as well. I met Ray Madrid and his wife. Lu, the president of their club, and her husband Edward. There were three others at the table and unfortunately, I cannot remember their names. We had a good time and stayed until almost 10:30 just talking and having fun.
For some reason I am unable to post any pictures right now and so I will do it later if I can
Monday, March 15, 2010
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Tim post 3...
Today we went about an hour and a half into the mountains to give textbooks to a national high school. This school also was home to the science and agricultural center for the province. The Rotary here is teaching the local children about organic farming with compost made from biodegradable waste from their homes. It is a really cool idea and from the sounds of things it is working quite well. In the opening remarks they introduced me as a soil scientist specialist and had me get up and talk in front of the group. I was unprepared and had no idea that they expected me to talk but I went up and gave a few words that went fairly well. It was the first time I had someone translate for me. It's funny; I am well respected here whereas in the states we are fought with. I think that is because here, they have country-wide problems involving landslides, sediment control, and flooding. The school is also home to a bamboo conservatory, which is used for erosion control on the mountainsides. The bamboo is a native species from China and is about 30 meters high with a root system of about 45 meters, which is excellent for erosion control to prevent landslides.
On our way we stopped at the oldest church in the country dating back to the 17th century; the stone blocks are held together with a mixture made from lime and egg whites. The church is located in a small village about an hour outside Manila.
After the national high school, we stopped for lunch for some Filipino food, which I must admit included foods that I had a hard time looking at and couldn't even think about stomaching. There should be pictures coming soon. After lunch we went to Antipolo to visit for the Catholic Church where many of the faithful come on pilgrimage in hopes of having safe travels.
That's about it for now; I'm heading to my host’s dance practice in a little while and then probably going to bed. We are going to Villa Escudaro tomorrow, which is about a two and a half hour drive south of Manila.
I never want to leave!
Another Tim post...
Today was another fun filled day. It started a little later, which was nice because I got to sleep in. Last night ran a little late due to a dance party for Rotarian President Ace. The dance party can be explained another time but for now let’s just say I danced the night away.
We met at another Starbucks and off we went. Not sure where we were going, I hopped into the van and hoped for the best. Through some shantytowns, past Manila Bay, then through some more shantytowns, finally arriving at a Catholic Church. The church was home to the only bamboo organ in the world. It was very impressive to see. While we were touring the church, we were accompanied by voices of angels. Pleasant and haunting at the same time, it was a blessing to hear in comparison to what was outside the church.
We did not spend much time in the church before we were off to our next destination. It is amazing to experience the drastic difference of classes in this country. I never felt as privileged as I did today. I shouldn’t admit this but from what I saw today, I should never complain about being “poor”. On several occasions we came across young children, no older than five coming up to us begging for money. The amount of pain that these children portray is indescribable. My world has been changed forever.
Moving on, we drove through a couple more shantytowns and arrived in Chinatown for lunch. The restaurant was nothing special on the outside, a nice establishment in the middle of what is described as a middle class town, middle class being loosely justified. Our hosts ordered vegetable soup, spring rolls, fried rice and white rice, fried chicken and boiled chicken, and pork (the pork still had the vertebrae attached to it), beef and veggies. This would be the first time I had authentic Chinese food in Asia and it was delicious.
After lunch we headed off to the Navy base. Our hosts were off in their own conversation and drove through the checkpoint right past the armed guards. Probably not the best idea—but they were nice enough about it. They stopped us about 75 meters past the checkpoint and made us turn around. Apparently the Filipino Navy did not want American visitors on their base.
Without an argument, for good reason, we turned around and headed to our next location. Through a couple more Shantytowns and an open market or two, we arrived at the Emilio Aguinaldo Shrine. He was, if I’m not mistaken, the general in control of the Revolutionary Army that fought the Spanish, and became the first president of the Philippines. We stayed for a nice tour of his house where we saw a lot of secret doors and hiding places for outlawed items of the times, such as the Filipino flag. Emilio, a freemason, had his own two-lane bowling alley, and had many mango trees throughout the property. The tour was amazing.
It's late but it's here...
Today is the day; the start of our journey is finally here. Buzz, buzz, buzz; my alarm goes off and I jump up in a panic. Like a child on Christmas morning, I’m filled with excitement accompanied by both anxiety and joy. I go through my checklist one last time before moving my luggage outside. Cliff and his wife show up a few minutes early but I’m already outside waiting.
We arrive at the airport early to check in. I didn’t realize the 50-pound luggage rule; I’m hoping that my bag will check in without a hitch. Fingers crossed and eyes closed, I put my bag on the scale and to my surprise it was under the allowed weight. With that out of the way, all we had to do was sit and wait for the other team members to arrive before we moved to our private conference room in the USAir members only club.
Time passes, and it’s time for us to board our first plane on this three-plane journey. Our first flight, to Detroit, went off without any problems. We boarded the plane and made our way to our assigned seats. While waiting in line to go to my seat (11E) I notice that I have a middle seat. I start to pray that I do not have to sit between two large people. But what do you know--I had to sit between two large people. With no arm room on either side, I contemplated the new rules for larger people. At first, I did not mind giving up my two arms rests but as the flight continued I began to grow a little annoyed at the rudeness of my armrest partners. Sitting there quietly reading “No Impact Man” I tried to ignore the inconvenience forced upon me. I got to a part of the book where the author, Colin Beavan, speaks about how we are people of convenience and in order to be happy we have to let go of that convenience and live our own lives. I continued reading until we landed in Detroit.
Once in Detroit, we had about 20 minutes until our connector flight took off. This flight would take us from Detroit to Japan. Before boarding the plane, Lew, Ben, and I decided to get cheeseburgers and french fries as one last “American” meal. Who knows when we will see a cheeseburger again? Chowing down on our American diets, we board the plan and again find our seats. Due to some techniqual problems, our flight was delayed as we sat on the plane. I’m not exactly sure how long our delay was, I dozed off for the entirety of the delay, upon waking up, we were ready to take off. Second in line, the pilot announces as we start backing up. Lights flicker, video screens come on, and we are airborne once again. It has now been a few hours on this leg of the trip and we already had a good meal and a glass of wine.
At the present we are flying over Canada. The flight will fly us over Canada, over Alaska, to the east coast of Russia, then down to Japan. In all, this portion of the flight is a total of 12 hours. Looking at the information screen located at the front of the cabin, it is -54 degrees F outside. Once we land in Japan, we will be able to stretch our legs for a hot second before boarding one more time for our final destination.
There is now an in-flight movie playing; I’m going to check this out, because it looks pretty awesome. It’s appears to be a clay-mation film staring two foxes who are up to no good. How can you trust a fox that dresses in a suit?
To be continued…
Friday, March 12, 2010
3 -H Project and other things
Today we were off to Antipolo. In particular we went to Calawis School to see the early stages of the 3-H Grant Project that the district has to improve self-sufficiency and the environment. Here they are growing seedlings of Giant Bamboo to give to the local people that live in the mountains. They will be able to plant the bamboo and in 5 years they will be able to harvest it as a crop. The bamboo grows to be very large and can be used in furniture making and construction. In addition, after harvesting the bamboo, it will grow back and make another crop. The program also includes a vermiculture project that will be used to reduce waste that needs to be disposed of for the local indigenous people. At this time, vermiculture compost is the most valuable type of compost because it is so nutritious for the soil. So there is another source of potential income for this very poor community. In addition, they will be able to use the compost for there own organic gardening needs.
Last year, District 3830 did a GSE with a Rotary Club in Philadelphia. As a result of the teams visit to this school and seeing the need for more math text books, they collected used text books from the US and shipped to the Rotary Club of Makati San Lorenzo, which is the lead club in this 3-H project. We were fortunate enough to be able to share in their delivery and see how excited the principal and teachers were to receive them.
At lunch we went to Eduardo’s. This type of eatery is called a turo turo, which means, point – point. And that is how you order the food, you point to what you like on the display and they will make it for you. No menu. The food was probably the most authentic Filipino food we have had so far and it was good.
We finished the day, by going to the Antipolo Church. People make an annual pilgrimage here to pray for safety in their travels. In the market outside the church property there was a display to honor the 65th anniversary of the liberation of the Philippines from the Japanese. Antipolo was the site of some of the bloodiest battles in that liberating fight. Much of the town was destroyed.
Traffic is still just crazy here. Still haven’t seen an accident though. Here is a new traffic pattern for you to think about. We were going down this avenue. There were 5 lanes with dashed lines, two way traffic with no center line. When we started on this road there were 3 lanes going one way and 2 going the other way. As soon as there was no oncoming traffic all 5 lanes were going our way. I’ll bet you can guess what happened next. Someone was coming the other way and wanted a lane. No accident occurred and everyone in the 5th lane just moved over a little to let the cars go by. No one got mad or honked their horns; they just did what they had to do. Intersections are still not a place for the faint of heart.
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.
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.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Thurday, March 11
Today we started our day at another Starbucks. We then traveled south to Las Piñas to see the Bamboo Organ, which is housed at St. Joseph Parish Church. This is the only pipe organ in the world whose pipes are made from bamboo. From there we traveled south to Cavite City where we had lunch at a local Chinese Restaurant called Chefoo. Upon our return we stopped at the shrine of General Emilio Aquinaldo. General Aquinaldo was the first president after the Spanish were defeated in 1898. It was in this building that the Filipino Declaration of Independence was proclaimed on June 12, 1898.
Our hosts for the day were from the Rotary Club of Las Piñas. They were all very friendly and gracious as everyone in the Philippines has been. For Ben, Tim and I we ended our day at the Rotary Offices in Makati. There they have a 3 story building and a parking lot for use by the Foundation and the District as well as the Rotary Club of Makati.
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