We have arrived!

An update at last…

It’s Tuesday night, one week since we left home. We don’t have internet set up at home yet, so I’m actually writing this on my computer, not sure when I’ll get to an internet café to post it. I know we are on the other side of the world, I guess I didn’t think I would feel that far away from home. It almost feels like time must have stopped in Tampa, and in some ways it feels like I’ve been here a lot longer than one week. It’s 8pm, and I’m actually fighting to stay awake. The sun goes down here between 5:30 and 6 and comes up at the same time in the morning. It’s bright, too, so we have been waking up early, and feeling ready for bed by 8. It’s hard to know where to start with putting into words all the things I have taken in so far. Our flight over was fine. The whole trip, from doorstep to doorstep took about 33 hours. The longest leg was on China Airlines, where each seat had a personal TV with movies and games—the kids loved it, and I even got almost seven hours of sleep. We arrived around 10 am and crammed all 19 of us plus Joann’s aunt and a driver into a van that had 10 seats (which worked, prompting us to buy our own van to get around in). On the 1 ½ hour drive to our new home, I think the thing that stuck out to me the most was the clash of poverty and wealth, all mixed up. One minute you see the Mall of Asia (which is the largest mall in Asia) and the next you see rundown homes with tin roofs all crowded together. When we got home, we were greeted with large amounts of food put together by Joann’s family. Later in the day, Joann’s aunt, Ate Merli, took a few of us to the wet market. My body was already fighting exhaustion, so I felt overwhelmed at all there was to take in. We got there by tricycle—a motorcycle with a side car, one of the common modes of transportation. The market itself was filled with people, meat, fish, and vegetables. Some smells were good-like fresh fruit, but others weren’t so good-constant fumes from the hundreds of tricycles coming and going, and the smell of raw meat and fish. I looked above me at one point and was amazed at the number of power lines/cables stretching across the street. We bought some meat, thinking that being a vegetarian might not be such a bad idea (as we watched the butcher shoo the flies off the meat). But we ate it, and our stomachs are holding up! On my second trip to the market, I already was feeling much more comfortable. Our neighbors are wonderful, and on Sunday, Mark and Lorraine (brother and sister) came over and offered to take us to the market. They were wonderful. Everything I asked Mark, he would translate in Tagalog, and then teach me how to say it. They showed me how to buy fish (find the ones that are still alive, flopping around on the table, so that they are very fresh), and they offered to teach us how to steam them. In fact, that night, Mark came over to help us cook a Filipino chicken dish, and it ended up being him and his mom cooking dinner for us, bringing over their pots and spoons and even ingredients that we were missing. It was so nice. They have been so kind and welcoming. There is also a man across the street, named Boyet, who has taken us under his wing. He has fixed our van (which has its problems), fixed the few house things that have come up broken, and has filled us in on many cultural tidbits. It really feels like he’s just watching out for us. Yesterday, we went to Ate Merle’s house for Joann’s uncle’s birthday (Kuya Peter). The big event of the party was when their friends surprised Kuya Peter with a whole roasted pig, fresh of the fire. After getting over the fact that I looked the pig in the eye (dead, of course), I tasted some really juicy and delicious pork. I need to end this for now. I realize I am skipping all over the place, but there’s just so much to tell about. I’ll try to write again soon. Sige!