Rural Health Unit

My second placement in the Philippines is at RHU Tanauan. It's a rural health unit that encompasses three communities. My first day there was quite stressful. I spent the whole day having to explain to the staff why I didn't know how to do anything. Now however, a week into my placement, I am amazed at how much I learned! I can take the patient's blood-pressure, measure the fetal height, dispense medication, admit and discharge patients... this is all due to the staff giving me so much freedom and confidence. If they had it their way I'd also be giving immunizations, checking the fetal position, taking out sutures (and perhaps even putting them in if the opportunity had presented itself!), and assisting in the birthing room!

My day now starts earlier than when I was in the orphanage since I have an hour commute to the clinic. Once there I help the four nurses with their morning tasks, which usually involves admitting patients and taking vital signs. Then once the morning rush is over, I help out at the medication counter where I fill prescriptions (if we have the stock -- which unfortunately is rare) and fill out the discharge records. The late mornings are quite long since there isn't much to do, and we are four doing it!

My afternoons have recently consisted of shopping for the orphanage using the generous donations I received after my "Helpful Ideas" post a couple of weeks ago. So far I've outfitted the orphanage with a bookshelf, 200+ books, a scooter, a tricycle, a basketball hoop, 2 walkers, and a bunch of medication. Still to be bought: another 100+ books, a second scooter (they LOVE the first one), a couple dictionaries, encyclopedias and atlases. I will also use some of the donated money to buy some much needed medication for the health clinic. Many thanks to all those who donated! I will soon post pictures of the kids with the various donations.

Field trip

Just a quick mention of my last day with the orphanage kids. Sponsored by my mom, A. and I brought them out of the town! The first stop was Family Park -- a big playground by the water. The kids had a great time playing on the see-saws, swings, slides, and fooling around on the animal statues that are found in the park.

The second stop was Robinson's Mall. I was surprised to learn that M. (the 15 year old who's birthday coincided with this field trip) had never been to Robinson's. I realized that this was the first time that most (if not all) the children had been in a mall, everything looked so clean to them, and the air-conditioning was a surprising experience as well.

Jeepeney ride over:

The next stop was lunch at Jollibee (the Filipino equivalent to McDonald's) where I ordered fried chicken and rice all around (and to my surprise watched as nobody ate the fries I'd ordered!). After enjoying an ice cream we proceeded to explore the mall -- escalators were a new experience for the kids as well. We then headed back to Missionaries, smiles all around. It was a great way to finish my placement there!

Thank's to Abby Courtney for the pictures!

Island paradise, Airport hell

Boracay! Surprisingly not overrated! A fellow volunteer J. and I went there for 3 days, at the end of her volunteering stay and in between my two placements. The beach is white, the sand is super fine, the water is incredibly turquoise, the people are friendly, the food is tasty, the sunsets are breath-taking, the happy hours are long, and the evenings are warm.

Day one: I'm happy to announce that I finally got to try my luck skim-boarding!! It was loads of fun and I think that I faired quite well for my first try. I look forward to trying it out at Tanauan beach after my placement some afternoon and again once I get back to Vancouver at Wreck beach. For supper: amazing Indian food savored while reclining on huge lush floor cushions.

Day two: I got to go snorkeling! We went on a 'fun tour' -- a day spent abroad a boat going around the island. We stopped twice for snorkeling (once I got to feed the fish, they pull really hard!), once for a buffet lunch (yum!), and twice more on beaches. This was also a great way to meet other travelers. We started the evening in a bar with live acoustic guitar with a bunch of people met on the tour. (J. and A. joined in the music for a couple of songs!) Then we went to Jungle Bar for the full-moon party -- a club on the beach where I got to dance with my feet in the ocean...

Day three: A long walk down the beach led J. and I to Arista Café. Our reward: a mango-split and an amazing view! We also went on a sunset sail with some of our new friends. It was probably the first time I was on a moving vehicle in the Philippines without an incessant drone in the background! The wind was strong and steady, the sun was huge, the clouds were beautiful. For supper: all-you-can-eat buffet!

Airport hell: Sunday started out really well. I had a good breakfast, we caught a tricycle, ferry, and mini-van without a hitch and reached Kalibo airport. Once inside the unpleasantness started. We waited in the chaotic lines for an hour, without moving. There was nobody checking people in and all the Zest Air staff looked frazzled and confused. We finally found out that the flights were delayed due to overbooking (we think) and so instead of flying out at 1pm we got put on a plane scheduled to leave at 3pm (after some firm talking on our part). However, they overbooked this flight as well and so we were stuck on the tarmac for 45mins while they sorted out that problem (they also gave us free sprites and fried rice from a local fast food branch Chow-King). Therefore, we didn't arrive in Manila until 5pm -- so I effectively missed my connecting flight that left at 4:35pm. The only other flight to Tacloban on the same night was at 7pm but since I was the only passenger on it, that flight was also cancelled. The next available departure was 4:20am the next morning... which I had to pay for! According to Zest Air policy, if I book a flight within 24hours of my scheduled arrival time and miss my connection they are not liable!?! Needless to say that I was less than thrilled to have to spend the night in Manila airport...

Sohotol Caves

Sunday was a long day, but a beautiful one! Early start, just to end up waiting over 30 minutes to get a jeepeney to the bus terminal. Then after much confusion we finally find an appropriate bus, but we again need to wait, over an hour this time, for it to leave. Upon our arrival in Basey, we wander and wander looking for the tourism office and I started to feel that the whole outing would be a dud... I could not have been more wrong!

The tourism office had our reservation (which is not a guarantee here). The boat was ready within minutes to take us to the caves. There even was a Spanish guy waiting around the office looking to join a party, filling the last seat on our boat!

To be honest, my favorite part of the whole day was the boat ride to and from the caves. Here's a little sample:

The ride took about an hour in each direction and I felt so lucky to be there. I felt that I was seeing a whole other side of Filipino life: villages and houses whose access point was not a road and a jeepeney but a river and a bangka. It was, in a word, lovely. The whole experienced was enhanced by The National -- incredible band! (I especially associated the scenery with the song Ada, if any of you are interested.)

The caves in themselves were impressive, though I'm a water girl (there's really no denying!).

Helpful ideas

I've recently received a couple emails from friends and family asking about different ways they might be able to help. After much thought, here is my reply. Please do not feel that you need to do any of this, or contribute any money or time. Quite simply, I am aware that one of the obstacles to giving is not knowing how to or what to give. I hope that I might be able to facilitate this process. If you are interested in one of the ideas that I am putting forward, please email me and I can give you more details!

Being here, surrounded by so much need, is quite difficult and I often feel myself closing up as to not get hurt by what I hear and see. I try to remind myself that I am helping the kids at the orphanage, that I'm helping the sponsored kids at the center, still it's hard. I've been thinking a lot about what can be done to help, what is the best way to make a difference. I don't know if the ideas that I've come up with are the best ones, but here they are.

Sponsorship Program

VFV is currently sponsoring over a hundred children in the area surrounding Tacloban City. The sponsored kids living within the city get a daily healthy feeding, usually breakfast. All sponsored kids receive the funds to go to school and receive after school tutoring. Activities are prepared for them on some weekend such as swimming lessons (that I should be giving in the next couple of weeks) or dancing lessons. Medical check-ups, and any medication is also provided. On your end, the donation is 25$ a month. You will receive a family history and picture of the child. You will be encouraged to get in touch with the child and their family via mail as often as you wish.

Starting a Library

A lot of the older kids at Missionaries can read but don't have any books. Every time I bring a book in I get flocked by children. Unfortunately, if I leave the book behind it gets lost or hidden or torn apart during a fight. There is so little toys and belongings to go around that the children claim objects and will fight off anyone that tries to take it away. I think that if I can buy enough books to donate all at once that this won't happen. Children would be allowed to look at one book at a time, and then exchange it for another at the "library". One of the older kids can be in charge of it. A big problem at the orphanage is the complete lack of stimulation. There is nothing for the kids to do. Reading would be a great activity! Buying used kids book here is quite cheap, about 4$ each, so any donation is very helpful!

Walker

The babies at the orphanage need to learn how to walk. My fellow volunteer A. and I try to spend time everyday to help them learn, but it's not enough. There is currently five babies there aged between one and four that cannot walk. Some cannot even stand up. A good walker, to encourage the babies to get around on their own would make a huge difference!

Multivitamins

For both the kids at the orphanage and the kids in the sponsorship program. The food here consists of carbs, carbs, and more carbs. Lunch at Missionaries is often rice with a side of pasta with a chunk of meat.

Food for thought: Here's a picture of me and a new arrival, a 4 year old girl, in the outside courtyard (and yes she really is as fragile as she looks -- holding her is scary)

Daily Routine

Since today is my last typical day at Missionaries of Charity I thought it would be appropriate to let you all know how I've been spending my days. Starting next week things will be different since I'll be working in a rural health clinic in the mornings and helping out on a house-building site in the afternoon. I will be helping to build a house for a sponsored kid using funds donated by my aunt E. and uncle B.!

6:45am - Wake up!

until 7:45 - Get ready, eat breakfast, quick bucket shower to ready myself for the day.

7:45-8ish - Walk to Missionaries

until 9:30ish - Welcome from the kids, morning prayers, snack time, play time

until 10:15ish - School time! My follow volunteer A. and I started a small school hour with the older kids. The first day it was hard to herd them into our makeshift school room, but ever since they bug me all morning to start the lessons! It's really great to see them all being stimulated and it's heartbreaking to see them really enthusiastic to learn, with so little opportunities to do so.

10:30 - Baby feeding time

11:00 - Kids feeding time

11:30ish - Put all the children to bed for their siesta and head out to find my own lunch.

At this point I'm free until around 5pm when I need to be back at the VFV community center to tutor a boy in 4th grade. Usually, after my morning at the orphanage, I head downtown to find food. After that my afternoon activities range from going to the climbing gym for a few hours, to going to Tanauan (a village about 45 mins away by jeepeney) for beach time, to going to a cafe to read or write or blog. Then:

5:00 - Go to VFV community center and check email etc. until J. arrives for his tutoring session

6:30 - Head back to my homestay for supper

8ish- Head to my favorite spot in Tacloban: Cafe Lucia, just 15 mins walk from home, near the water, away from loud techo music. (And if supper wasn't too late and I'm being good, I may pop over to the gym beforehand.)

11ish - Bed time!

That's about it! It's nice to have a routine and at the same time I'm grateful that I will soon have to learn a new one. 'Tis good to be kept on my toes!

Strange similarities

When thinking about the Filipino culture, I often find myself comparing it to the Inuit culture of Northern Quebec! These two cultures are literally worlds apart, however I have observed a bunch of small similarities between them that surprise me. For example,

• Lifting of the eyebrows -- means 'yes'
  
  
• Verbal yes: Inuktitut: aa vs. Tagalog: o-o
  
  
• Nutrition problems (So much instant food is consumed, coke is cheaper and more common than water, little to no spices are used in the cooking, carbs, carbs, and more carbs. Moreover, "deep-fried" seems to be the favorite way to cook everything here, including bananas!)
  
  
• Relationship to time (Very little forward thinking. Both cultures seem to have their feet firmly planted in the present, a lesson that I am trying to learn. An example of this is the overwhelming presence of individually packaged things such as toothpaste, sunblock, multivitamins, instant noodles, sugar, coffee, laundry soap...)
  
  
• Reluctance to walk (Filipinos will tend to take Jeepeneys for rides that are less than 100 meters, they will also get the driver to stop just 10 meters further down the road; Inuit drive everywhere in their very small village) -- to be fair it's smothering hot here at time or there's a torrential downpour and up north it's often bloody cold!
  
  
• Religion (Christianity is prevalent in both societies and is a big part of both cultures.)
  
  
• Children (So many kids are around in both places! They are often left on their own a lot more than I'm used to as well, the older ones looking out for the younger ones. They are nevertheless included in all aspects of life and widely loved by family and tolerated by strangers. Also, the mothers are often very young, leaving their children in the hands of the grandmothers.)

A typical Filipino tricycle ride

I took this video on Caticolan Island. It's a good representation of the average view of country-side Filipino roads, complete with giant potholes! The camera wasn't quite able to capture the constant drone of the tricycle. A Filipino tricycle is a motorcycle with a little side car (in which you can somehow cramp in a dozen Filipinos -- or 6 very squeezed foreigners!!).