Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas

I have been slow on writing and I am struggling to find the words to say merry Christmas. I hope the pictures will show the Christmas wishes I am having and will pass them onto you. Christmas is big and the city has been decorated for over a month. Dec 1 was opening night of the Christmas tree on capital square. It is celebrated with fireworks (not just a few, every half hour all evening and finishing with a blast), lots of lights and people; people all over. Every night the square is open to events like singing, concerts, a dramatized life sized puppet show, food, crafts, and people. Big christmas trees are done up (sorry about the sideways one :) I had a nice time at the party put on by the landlord. They invited us in like family. Yes Rick sang karaoke after a few Red horses! In true fillipino style the party invite said starts at 6:00. Rick and I were the only ones there for quite sometime, and by 8:00 the others arrived! There were a few jokes about our arrival time. The party was a great time to get to know my neighbors better and to get into the christmas spirit.
During the past week I have had some great holiday time. I took Rick to 2 of my favorite places here on Palawan. Cocoloco Beach (great sand for making sand cowboy hats! and swimming lots) and then in Sabang (I pushed one wrong button on the computer; now the great pictures of Sabang are floating in the world of lost computer stuff - like the picture of Ox on the beach, hike in the forest, Hanging on a vine like a less than graceful Jane, boat trip in the underwater river, Inukshuks made on the rock beach....)
Well, still have lots of pictures to entertain you all with when I come home. Like leg in the air (salt water is great for syncro), Rick and I posing on the beach, Pretending to be Bo Derek!...)
So have a very merry Christmas!! thinking of you at home :) Love from Angela in the Philippines

Well the picture taking has really slow down, many things seems just regular to me (rosters in the street, the tricycles, many people packed into a jeepney, everything green and growing.... I even saw a little bearcat yesterday (It's a bit like a badger, eats fruit). It was staying on an abandon lot by a friends place. somehow it ended up in town and hasn't found it's way back to the wild). The picture of the mountain and water is called the bay walk. They are just working on making it nice so I thought an early picture would be interesting to then compare it to before coming home. I'm hoping the trees will be well on their way to making a bit of shade. It is a very nice place to walk. In the evening it is fairly busy with people just hanging out to see the sun set and in the morning there are runners and walker strolling along. It's about a 15 minute walk from my place and right by the market so I usually can pick up something on my way by.
The little wooden bridge is a pathway to a patient's home. This young girl with CP lives with her family that farm rice. We went to see how things were going in her home . She is very motivated to go to school and had her family carry her (it's about 5 to 8k I'ld guess). We went to check on her because the clinic was able to provide her with a bike and carry cart that her father can use to take her to school. Much easier than the walk. Anyways it is very cool to do the home visits and see some remote places. little homes and a few animals in the yard. The trips seem to always end up somewhere peaceful and peaceful.
Well just had a bit excitement at work as a rat came running through the office...
I think it's very cool to come to work on rainy days and see all the umbrella out front. Instead of winter boots and coats and stuff, just umbrella's. the pretty blue one was mine till I lost it!! my count is 4. I've lost 2 and one broke since I've been here. (Umbrella update. number 4 is just starting it's quick slippery slide to coming apart after about 3 weeks!!)
I hear there is a storm coming to Palawan in the next day with 60K winds so that should finish off the umbrella!! Palawan doesn't get too many storms but the odd time it rains very hard I get a bit nervous (my fear is the the snakes will get desperate for a dry place to stay and make their way in. The other night I heard this hiss sound. nothing in the apartment but kept me wondering for a bit). Overall Palawan is a safe place with regards to natural disasters. Their are no active volcanoes or earthquakes on this Island and it is in fairly sheltered waters so the typhoons are mellowed down.
So life is different but now I am in the routine I will think things strange at home I'm sure.
A few weekends ago I went out to Sabang. It was a fun jeepney ride about 3 hours in a crowded jeepney (the only way to shift positions was to make a deal with the person beside and trade leaning forward or back. Well it isn't as bad as it sounds the drive was beautiful and there was a nice breeze. There were stops on the way and they sell food like deep fried sweet bananas or potatoes on a stick, rice cake things, pancakes in a bag (my favorite!!), peanuts and such. Then just when we got excited about 3 or 4 people getting off at the stop, 4 or 5 came on. I tried to take a picture but it's pretty hard to capture the moment.
The pictures of the scenery show the limestone cliffs that we pass on the way to sabang. there is a picture of the sun set and also the Peace Core volunteers that I travelled with. It was great to wake up in the morning and have the ocean waves to swim in. I also did a great hike the trees and by the ocean, reminded me to sign up for the west coast trail one day when I get back.
My evenings have been busy with drawing. I am making a few sketches for an art show in the local gallery in December. It's kind of exciting. My art teacher says to just slowly work away at a few pictures and we will get them framed and finished looking. I'm definite nervous about my drawings being in a gallery with professional artists but it's definitely a one in a life time opportunity and I'll get a bit of a right up to explain I've only been drawing for a month or so. The gallery show will be mostly local artist and the ones I have met are very nice. I don't have much to draw in my apartment so I have been creative in my still life sketches!! I have to update and make some of the pictures nicer for the showing but it's a start.
take care and hope to update you with some good stories in the next few weeks.

went to Narra

Blog 2
Earlier this month I went to visit a Mayline in Narra. We had a nice time. Even though puerto is not really big city, it sure felt different to be out in a more rural place. The picture of the sun rise was taken as we waited on the side of the road for a ride to the hot springs for a morning soak. (I was amazed that the hot springs were so good even though the air temp gets me sweating at the best of times) The man on his carabo also past and posted for my picture.
I also spent some time at the market - fish, fruit, veggies, close, almost anything you can get at walmart. Well I do get a bit overwhelmed in markets and unless I have someone to take me to their regular vendor, I tend to just walk on by. I'm not use to choosing from 10 to 20 different sales people for a few bananas, it's overwhelming to say the least.
Another thing that I haven't got use to is seeing heavily armed guards, police, military guys. They all seem to walk about very casually with a huge gun over their shoulders. Happily they posed for me and asked me to show their pictures to any of my single friends that might want a friend here (it still amazes me how many people I meet that want to immigrate).
Mayline and her little boy were great tour guides. Although Dodoy, the little boy was very scared of strangers and spent most of his time hiding from me, I did get a great typical Philipinno pose, smile included when the camera came out!
My latest hobby is drawing. I am taking lessons with a great artist, in a wonderful location. The pictures with the trees and pathways is the grounds of the art gallery I go to. If I'm not inspired here, I wouldn't think of trying anywhere else. The place is called Kamarinkutan and is a wonderful setting for viewing native art and having a sip of coffee. The place was recently featured in a travel magazine. It tells the story about the founder and shows some great shots. (I'll try googling it)
I have many pictures of flower but I thought I would post this one of the Papaya tree. It's kind of an original shot because the flower is about 15 feet up a tree. I was able to get this shot because the tree was beside a lookout platform and so

Blog
This is a bit of a late entry but it's the best part of my trip to Cagayan de Oro. On the last day before going home some of us stayed to do some canyontreking. The pictures kind of show how beautiful the valley was, much better in person (minus the fact that there were snakes, see the yellow one, the guides didn't really answer the question as to if there were many poisonous snakes around. I put it to faithe that I would survive). I t was an easy enough trek along the river with places where we had to jump, rapel, or slide down to the next level. The guides were great and for those that had to overcome fear of heights, it was a great challenge to jump 20 feet and rapel about 60. I realized that my fears were not so bad as some. I did have to take a big breath and mentally push myself to jump off the cliff. You can see in the picture where we are all on the ledge, what the view was like before jumping (if you looked down). The picture of the tracker shows the transport we took to the river. The guides were very good at giving the story of the forest plants and the history of the place. Some pretty big trees as you can see.

take care and I'll be updating soon (at least sooner than since my last post, oops too busy with my art lessons, and just lazing about, and work!!)

Cagayan de oro

Hi these pictures are only a month old now, time goes so fast. I was in Cagayan de oro for a conference. You can see how tough it is out here!! The sun set picture of the tree is from out room, the little cabin on the hill is our room (the upper one), there's also a picture of the harbor over my shoulder, the pool was great. We did some nature walks, and had a horse ride. Great place to go. Also got a shot of the real hard work happening in the conference room! I was thinking of work back home because we had lots of stairs to do to get from the room to the meals. (although the stairs were all natural rock surrounded by different plants, and in the fresh air; I was thinking of all you coworkers at home taking the 6 or 7 flights of stairs at the Mis. I better keep my stair climbing strength up)

(IN August) I had a visit up north on the island and saw some very interesting sights.
We visited some patients in their homes, went island hoping (I love being on the ocean; were is Edmonton again?), and enjoyed the fresh mountain and ocean air. It was a good way to recover some strength after feeling unwell.
I was amazed to find out that the birds nest soup, a specialty, is made from boiling the swift birds nests to get the bird saliva. It sounds very unappealing to me. I'm trying to imagine how this became a food item. One chef talking to another, I have a great idea for making soup. Lets boil a birds nest so we can get the flavor of the birds saliva into our soup. Other chef says, sounds like a great idea, I'll go get some birds nests!!
Well as amazed as I am with the whole thing about bird nest soup, I was even more taken a back by where we found the birds nesting. We came across the birds nest "in" the Taytay hospital. You will see in some of the pictures that Taytay is a great place to visit, just don't get sick. The part of the hospital has been neglected and next thing you know, bird nest soup on the hospital menu (if it had a menu). The whole state of the medical system here sure makes me appreciate what we have at home even if it is in the prairies.
Along the way we also stopped to see the project of Mylene. She is a social worker that advocates for persons with disabilities. She has been very successful in creating employment form a joint government and school project to provide chairs to schools in the rural areas. She has a work shop that employees persons with disabilities (PWD) to make the desk chairs. I really admire these dedicated people that are working hard to support a cause and make a difference. Even if it is a small scale local effect, it is the dedication and persistence of people like Mylene that is to be admired. In one picture you will see Mylene with the new chairs. The other picture is the old chairs that students had to make up for themselves before this program. The school doesn't have books, that's usual out in the rural places, I imagine the teachers get creative. (again we are lucky at home). There are 505 students and 14 teachers at this place.
If you look at the scenery pictures you will quickly see were life out here can be grand. I really enjoyed the little town of Taytay with the small homes on the water, a historic fort and a friendly welcome in the streets.
The picture of Ime on the white beach (Ime is an OT that works for Bahatala in the rural areas) was taken at a little island that was wonderful, no inhabitants, beach, trees, great rocks (worth contemplating selling the house and car in the prairies; for a moment on a sunny day).
Also on that boat trip we stopped at a resort for a tour of the facilities (Club Noah). The Resort is very posh so a day trip to see it was all we really needed. The island is limestone and in the bay the horizon is dotted with these grand island of different shapes. It is great to travel with a geologist (Dr Soc first had a geology degree before taking up medicine) and get the history of island formation and development. We stayed at the resort on the mountain overlooking the bay. It's called Casa Rosa and although it was a bit of a climb to get up, the view was well worth it (picture of me with the bay behind is from this place). The last picture of the little hut is a place we stayed on the way to taytay. It's on a little sand island. great to wake up in the morning and swim out a few feet to find all kinds of corals and fish (even nemo!)

I will say by for now. All is still well.