Hi, Mommy! I have arrived in Tacloban City, Philippines, and moved into my homestay! I will go into detail about my homestay and my family later. I don't have a lot of time to write this post, and I thought it would be more important to focus on other things.
The Philippines is incredible, Mom. The land is so beautiful, but the poverty is unbelievable. The life here is not fathomable in the US. The poor here literally have nothing. The people in the Philippines are the most beautiful people in the world, both in appearance and in spirit. They are the warmest, friendliest people you could ever meet. Everyone you cross paths with says hello to you with the brightest smile on their face. It's like nothing I've ever seen before. The children are especially adorable. They all come up to you asking, "What's your name??" and various other questions. Last night a large group of children crossed our path and one little boy kept yelling, "I love you! I love you!" We told him we had to go, and he replied, "Ok, I love you tomorrow!" It was the cutest thing I have ever seen.
I got oriented with Volunteer for the Visayans, which is the NGO that World Endeavors partners with here in Tacloban City. I thought that all of the volunteers here would be coming from World Endeavors, but that is not the case. In fact, I have only met one other girl from WE. People came here through lots of different organizations. Volunteer for the Visayans does a lot of programs for the community within Tacloban City, ranging from building houses and schools, to free health clinics, to nutrition programs, to women's shelters, to others. They also sponsor children in the area to provide them with an education, meals, clothing, shoes, etc. Volunteer for the Visayans is an amazing organization, and if you're interested more information can be found here.
During our free time, a lot of volunteers come and hang out at the VFV center because there's air conditioning and wifi. I've met a lot of the other volunteers and they're really great. A group of us went to lunch yesterday after I arrived, and it was a lot of fun. The food here is delicious. A lot of rice, pork, fish, fruit, veggies, etc.
I took my first bucket bath last night, and honestly, it wasn't that big of a deal. The bathroom is a tiled room with a drain in it, just like a shower. There is a huge bucket of water, and you scoop water out and pour it on yourself. It's really not bad. The toilets are different too. They don't flush on their own. You have to pour water in them, which works they same way as flushing does, you're just doing it manually. It is also not a big.
It is outrageously hot here. I have been sweating buckets since I arrived. Luckily my room has a fan in it for when I sleep. The heat is intense and drains you of your energy very easily. I have been making sure to drink a lot of water all the time.
This morning I had my orientation and city tour of Tacloban. It was all really good. Tacloban is definitely fascinating. My program coordinator told me that there was a mix up with my dates, and that I couldn't start working at the women's center (Regional Haven) for two weeks. In the mean time I can work on helping to build houses or float around to other projects. I really want to go to the rural health clinics! I've heard that the volunteers have gotten to help with births and other really neat things. I'm kind of excited that I have two weeks to do whatever I want before I settle down at the women's shelter for a month.
I've been thinking about you a lot, Mom. I think there is no better place for me to be right now than the Philippines. The people here are so poor, but they are the happiest people you could meet. I think that is exactly what I need right now...to learn to find the good things and happiness regardless of unfortunate circumstances in my life. I think my time spent here will be one of the most influential periods of my life. I love you so much, Mom. I miss your voice on the other end of the phone. I'm doing okay though. I'm hanging in there and appreciating the opportunities in front of me. I will get through this. You made me strong. I'll write more tomorrow.
The Philippines is incredible, Mom. The land is so beautiful, but the poverty is unbelievable. The life here is not fathomable in the US. The poor here literally have nothing. The people in the Philippines are the most beautiful people in the world, both in appearance and in spirit. They are the warmest, friendliest people you could ever meet. Everyone you cross paths with says hello to you with the brightest smile on their face. It's like nothing I've ever seen before. The children are especially adorable. They all come up to you asking, "What's your name??" and various other questions. Last night a large group of children crossed our path and one little boy kept yelling, "I love you! I love you!" We told him we had to go, and he replied, "Ok, I love you tomorrow!" It was the cutest thing I have ever seen.
I got oriented with Volunteer for the Visayans, which is the NGO that World Endeavors partners with here in Tacloban City. I thought that all of the volunteers here would be coming from World Endeavors, but that is not the case. In fact, I have only met one other girl from WE. People came here through lots of different organizations. Volunteer for the Visayans does a lot of programs for the community within Tacloban City, ranging from building houses and schools, to free health clinics, to nutrition programs, to women's shelters, to others. They also sponsor children in the area to provide them with an education, meals, clothing, shoes, etc. Volunteer for the Visayans is an amazing organization, and if you're interested more information can be found here.
During our free time, a lot of volunteers come and hang out at the VFV center because there's air conditioning and wifi. I've met a lot of the other volunteers and they're really great. A group of us went to lunch yesterday after I arrived, and it was a lot of fun. The food here is delicious. A lot of rice, pork, fish, fruit, veggies, etc.
I took my first bucket bath last night, and honestly, it wasn't that big of a deal. The bathroom is a tiled room with a drain in it, just like a shower. There is a huge bucket of water, and you scoop water out and pour it on yourself. It's really not bad. The toilets are different too. They don't flush on their own. You have to pour water in them, which works they same way as flushing does, you're just doing it manually. It is also not a big.
It is outrageously hot here. I have been sweating buckets since I arrived. Luckily my room has a fan in it for when I sleep. The heat is intense and drains you of your energy very easily. I have been making sure to drink a lot of water all the time.
This morning I had my orientation and city tour of Tacloban. It was all really good. Tacloban is definitely fascinating. My program coordinator told me that there was a mix up with my dates, and that I couldn't start working at the women's center (Regional Haven) for two weeks. In the mean time I can work on helping to build houses or float around to other projects. I really want to go to the rural health clinics! I've heard that the volunteers have gotten to help with births and other really neat things. I'm kind of excited that I have two weeks to do whatever I want before I settle down at the women's shelter for a month.
I've been thinking about you a lot, Mom. I think there is no better place for me to be right now than the Philippines. The people here are so poor, but they are the happiest people you could meet. I think that is exactly what I need right now...to learn to find the good things and happiness regardless of unfortunate circumstances in my life. I think my time spent here will be one of the most influential periods of my life. I love you so much, Mom. I miss your voice on the other end of the phone. I'm doing okay though. I'm hanging in there and appreciating the opportunities in front of me. I will get through this. You made me strong. I'll write more tomorrow.
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