Sunday, July 29, 2012

April 12, 2012 Himamawo again, then plowing with water buffalo.



Halo-Halo on our way to Himamawo.  Halo-Halo means mix-mix , and is the name of this treat because  it is a spoonful of this and a spoonful of that (mostly fruits), shaved ice packed over that and sweetened milk poured over it all, then the recipient mixes it herself. This treat has become a tradition on our way to Himamawo. 
One of the many springs which trickle and run all over the banks around Himamawo. The water is clear and pure and we drank it straight from the ground.
Bamboo is a plant, not a tree, and is amazing for its multitude of uses, from when it is young and  it is eaten as a vegetable, all the way to its maturity when it can be used as you see above, split and serving as a conduit. 

My beloved, lovely Himamawo.
I'm  "Water Monster Who Torments Tubers"
Pare and Mare
Lunchtime! Our rice, wrapped in banana leaves which adds flavor and can serve as a plate.


Dario cutting bamboo to use as platform for the food and also as dishes.


Plate- boring. Food-delicious. Clockwise from rice: salted egg salad, pancit and pork adobo......

 
This is very different from driving a horse. For instance, you  pull when you want  to go forward.  I was very poor at it and the farmer, in the blue shirt, was probably very glad to get control again. But I fulfilled one of my preeminent goals while here, I got to drive! I really would like to ride one and also drive a cart. I'll be looking for some hapless farmer. It's not just Pennsylvania, Idaho and Minnesota farmers I'll have bothered before I'm through...

Rice.

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

July 3, 2012 Anniversary of Arrival in Philippines

Happy Anniversary to all of us Batch 270s who arrived in the Philippines 1 year ago today!
Hello, everyone. I'm back. I have been very busy. Gone 3 weeks our of May: Language Camp, Sports Camp and HIV/AIDS Training. Then I had my friendly Filipino "digestive complain" that visited me from something I ate or drank in Manila and this time it lasted 4 weeks. On top of which my computer crashed and that took several weeks to resolve. Furthermore, school began again with a lot of turmoil. Many of us teachers didn't even know what grade we'd be teaching for sure until after school started. It took weeks to readjust. Mam Rachiel and I are together and in the same positions and I've been assigned a (new) permanent room that we've been refurbishing for the Reading Resource Room. Amidst all this, Amy and I managed an awesome vacation to a remote and idyllic island. Then back to our towns and our work. So I'm back on track biologically, professionally, technologically and now blogilogically. I'll be posting soon.