Rolling into Year TWO!

It seems like it's been a long time since I've posted, an maybe it has. But it's not because things have been slow! In fact the last couple of months have been filled with one activity after another. I guess that's become the norm though, and so sometimes things don't seem special enough to post a blog about, but I'll do my best to update you on what's been happening in my life!

Our Mid-Service Training took place in Manila. Besides the expected information to help us with our projects, it was a chance for volunteers to gather together and share stories. Above all, it served as a reminder that we are more than half way through with our service. For some, that thought came as panic-that time is going too fast and they realized just how fast the last few months will go. For others, you could see heads roll back in realization that another whole year is left and that time is going SLOOOOOW. 

For me, it's a mixture of both, and i find myself feeling both ways depending on the day. Some days I think there can't possibly be enough time left to accomplish what I want. But then other times I feel like time is dragging by at an agonizing rate and that I can't wait to go home.

After training, I returned to the school to find them right in the thicket of the Bottle Brick project I had left them with. Basically, like in many areas of the Philippines, there is no place for trash to go. People throw it down mountains or burn it. One creative solution that has been circulating is to compact non-biodegradable waste into plastic bottles. The bottles can then be used like concrete blocks to build walls, benches, houses...anything you want.

The teachers were so excited about this idea that they have been requiring students to make bottle bricks since the beginning of school. When I returned, we had a bottle brick "party" to fill up extra bottles and clean up the last bit of trash from the community. Then the students went to work on their first bottle brick project: a concrete bench that will be part of our newly planned Student Park. The bottle bricks aren't slowing though...students are still bringing them everyday to school, so I'll keep you updated on their projects!

Because of my workload, my supervisor and I agreed if I cut back on teaching to focus more on other projects such as applying for grants, creating instructional materials, and assisting other teachers. One of my last projects with my class was holding a class debate. I was worried about this because it is difficult for native English speakers, let alone students who are still struggling to learn English as a third or fourth language. However, seeing the excitement in the class, we decided to go all out. The seniors table skirted and decorated, the students arrived wearing their best clothes, and the speeches they gave were really good! I was really proud of those kiddos. Since then I've been working on games, a College  Guide book, planning a sports camp, and guest teaching in the cooking class.

Our Feast!

Now for possibly the most exciting bit action that happened recently. THANKSGIVING. Every year Peace Corps Volunteers gather in Sagada ( only about an hour and a half from me) for a huge reunion. Last year most of my batch couldn't go because we were still confined to our sites during our few first months of service. This year however, our batch dominated the feast. About thirty volunteers joined in, cooking, preparing, and planning the event. We had all the traditional courses, except for the turkey (can you believe they are PETS here? No one would sell us one to eat! They have no problem eating dogs tho...), and cranberry sauce. But we made due with chicken and had plenty of other dishes to choose from including potatoes, green beans, stuffing, apple and pecan pie, salads, quiche, macaroni and cheese and lots of wine and beer!

That's all for now. Christmas season is well underway (since September) and next up will be our Christmas party. Still no plans for the holidays, but I'm excited nonetheless!


And for those who have been requesting pictures of my dog...let me introduce you to Siglat!

Siglat (Indigenous name meaning "quick-witted")

The Data Games

It's been a while since I've posted. It's the middle of Typhoon Season here, and we've already had 3 days cancelled due to the bad weather! It was exciting at first, kind of like when you find out there is a snow day, but I quickly discovered there isn't much fun you can have outside in a torrential downpour with wind blowing the tin roofs off of houses.

Thankfully though, when it came time for our school's scheduled intramural games, the sun shone down like a blessing of good luck for our athletes. The kids chose their sport and were ushered off to different areas to play. The best will represent our school in the District Athletic Meet, with the best of those moving on to the Provincial Meet. I was disappointed I didn't get to watch a single minute of the Olympics this year, but the spirit of our little school on the mountain made up for that.

WHO NEEDS SHOES TO RUN A RACE? In a land of steep rugged cliffs, deep gorges and slippery slopes, the Sawdust is the only place in Mt. Data  that the kids can run freely. Secluded by the hills and mountains, the screams and echos of laughter will guide anyone who wants to join in.

The Games began with the Search for Mt. and Miss Fit. This was a continuation of our Nutrition Month celebrations that got postponed. Each school club had a representative in the pageant which lasted all afternoon. 






Constants had to model different apparel, show a talent, and answer a question from the judges. 

There were ELEVEN different awards, from "Best Smile" to "Miss Coca-Cola" (body shape).

Friday morning began with a simple opening ceremony. They athletes took an oath and said a prayer to guide them through the games. After the formalities, the fun officially started with the cheer-dance competition. Each grade had to present a dance with full participation of every student. I quickly got over my  nervous feeling watching 11 year olds make three-tier pyramids on concrete, and sat back and enjoyed with the rest of the onlookers.

2nd Year

4th Year

3rd Year

"Grade 7"

Once the dancing was over (7th Grade won), the athletes all drained away to their various venues. Table-Tenis went to the 2nd year room, Chess players when to the 3rd year room. Badminton players headed up to the recreation hall, while the track participants climbed up the steep path to the Sawdust. Sepaktakraw players headed to the lower building and tennis players ran up to the elementary school. That left the rest of the students eagerly waiting for the most popular event and main attraction: Volleyball.

The favorite national sport of the Philippines, basketball, was removed from the district as a lost cause by teachers years ago. Despite the students passion for the sport, money just wasn't willing to be spent on a sport that the students couldn't advance in. As sad as that is, our students quickly found another sport to love. Attention turned to volleyball, with boys volleyball in particular raising the most spirit at our school.





Everyone waits for the upperclassmen to play. 3rd and 4th year boys attract the most spectators.

Of course, the fans stick around to see which of the girls will be most likely to represent our school at the Provincial Meet.

The younger classmen also take their turn to play. Although few of them advance, they hope one day to become a provincial athlete.

One of my favorite sports to watch is Sepaktakraw. It was hard for me to get good pictures so I encourage you to google it. The object is to get a small ball over a net that is a little smaller than the one used in badminton. There are three players to a team and once the ball is in play, a player may not use his hands or arms. While the game can be a little slow moving at times, it's incredible how they can use their feet to "spike" the ball over the net.

I enjoyed the days taking pictures and watching all of the athletes. I became DJ when students requested I bring out my laptop and play music over the loud speakers. They began requesting songs, and I soon had a huge pile of song requests and dedications written on every shred of scrap piece of paper that could be found. I assumed that only athletes would come on Saturday to play, but as it turned out, most of the students came to cheer on their classmates.

The Quest for the Enchanted Bamboo

Wild Orchid
overlooking Tipunan

.

At least, it should have been enchanted after what we went through to get it.


Let me back up and explain. One of my projects here is helping to build a Science Greenhouse. I planned this with one of my counterparts months ago. Our hopes are that we can build a greenhouse that can be used as a controlled environment to conduct experiments on plants and soil that are related to the science subjects. This is really great because it would relate to students interests as most of them are farmers. If we can show them that science can be useful for something in their personal lives, then hopefully they will become more eager to learn science. In order to build this thing as cheaply as possible, we decided to build the frame out of bamboo poles. And here begins Part II of Matt's Magical Adventures in the Philippines.


Of course, we could have just bought the poles. We were offered a set of bamboo for p100. Whoa! That's like $2.50! But if we could get it for free by walking, then that's what we would do. It would be worth a nice little hike if we could save some money. Or so we thought. It was told to us that if we were willing to walk a few kilometers, we could cut our own bamboo and carry it back for free.

See the peak in the distance? That's my house.

And so, one of the teachers told us to meet him one bright and sunny morning in the far-flung village of Tipunan. I met the students at the school and we started our trek. I assumed we would simply follow the national highway to the little road that wound its way down to Tipunan. It's a long walk but mostly down hill. There are no rides passing along the road, so anyone wishing to go to (or leave) Tipunan must hike.


Almost immediately the students veered off into the bushes along what revealed itself to be a narrow path. Down, down, down we went. Every now and then we would pop back out at the national highway before the students cut off onto another invisible pathway. As it turned out we were simply cutting the curves of the highway, saving us distance and time.

Arabica Coffee Beans

Eventually, the students who were leading (so much for my chaperoning) wound there way behind a house, down a slippery trail, and onto a dirt road. We walked for nearly 2 hours passing very few people along the way. Those we did see passed us slowly, hands clasped behind their backs, and dirty cloths around their necks to shield them from the sun. They seemed to be concentrating on putting one rubber boot in front of the other in absolutely no hurry whatsoever. We practically galloped by them as we charged down the mountain. 

Native bananas

After a while, we finally reached the bottom. A river rushed past and we crossed a rickety hanging bridge. Natural vegetation was scarce. Nearly everywhere I looked I saw rows and rows of cabbages or potatoes. We all resisted the temptation to jump into the river and cool off, and decided we had better keep moving so we could meet Mr. Pakipac and find the bamboo.


It took us a few more minutes to wind our way into the village of Tipunan. We found Mr. Pakipac's house which was nestled behind the high school. In order to finish our work before lunch, he offered to take us right away to the bamboo grove. I was pretty tired, but agreed we should just get it over with.

Mr. Pakipac shows us the bamboo.

And then we hiked what seemed to me another mountain just as tall as the one we just came down. Up, and up. And up and up. This time there was no road, or even a dry trail. We scrambled up slick mud stairs that had slowly given into a steep slope leading up to the peak. The sun beating at our backs, we climbed breathlessly to the top.


We nearly dropped once we reached the top, but Mr. Pakipac marched straight to a small clump of bamboo and started hacking away. We formed a sort of assembly line; some students cut, others removed the leaves, and the rest passed them down the mountain. After we cut 12 long bamboo poles we headed back down. 

Stripping the leaves off the poles.

At one point I slipped and instinctively grabbed for something to hold on to. However, the only thing around was razor sharp "knife" grass. One of my fingers was sliced open and started gushing blood. One of the students saw and ran and picked some leaves from the side of the trail. I'd seen these before because they are everywhere, and I had always assumed that they were just weeds. So, you can imagine my surprise when he mashed them up and pressed them to my finger. The bleeding stopped instantly!


However, before I could properly thank the student, my attention was caught by something even more amazing. We had reached the a break in the trail and decided to follow a road back to the village. It was longer but not as steep and slippery. Just as I was looking up to ask about this incredible plant that had saved my life, I caught a glimpse of a carnivorous pitcher plant hanging on the cliff above the road. I had never seen on before! And as I looked closer, I noticed there was an entire colony of them! Another student, seeing my interest, walked to the cliff and uprooted a small plant, and handed it to me to grow in my apartment.

Pitcher plants

While waiting for lunch, we decided to
help the community and add to our bottle bricks!
Demonstrated here is the "Igorot Squat."
See if YOU can sit with your butt suspended and
your heels flat on the ground...

After lunch came the hike back up the mountain. We decided to take the road, rather than the trail. Again, it took 2 hours, this time all uphill. I learned why the farmers I had seen before were walking so slowly. Near the end it was all I could do to place one foot in front of the other. But thankfully, just as I was regretting again and again under my breath for not forking over the p100, we reached the national road and it began to rain. The walk back home was easy after that.


By the time I got home, it was cold, and I promised my self I would heat some water for a warm bucket bath. Little did I know I was about to walk in on the beginning of a 3 day brownout and would have no electricity for the next few days.