Manila - Observations & Oddities

For those of you interested in different cultures and viewing the world though a different lens... I thought I would share some observations.

1. Roosters are at home virtually anywhere in Manila (railway tracks, streets, riding carts..). They sell them in pet stores.... cock fighting is also a past time so there are probably more than a few roosters shocked to find they are not going home to a loving family.


2. They have tiny horses here... not ponies... tiny horses. They pull carts around the Intramuros area... The men driving them "offer" a ride to visible minorities like us roughly every 10 seconds. This is quite annoying after an hour as that works out to 360 "no thank you" reponses. The tiny horses are cute though.


3. The Canadian Friendship Garden does not appear very friendly... I hope this scraggly bush flowers or something....




4. I don't think that the "Wall of Martyrs" needs a picnic ground.... this seems wrong somehow... or there is a deeper, beautiful meaning that I am incapable of getting.





5. The museum had a section with wonderful treasure from a shipwreck. It was labeled as "Junk that was found"... this seemed amusing to me.

A Day Out - Jan 30

Yesterday we went down to Manila Bay and spent time in Intramuros, the original fort built in the late 1500s. It was a beautiful, hot and sunny day (sorry to hear about your -20 degrees plight). The history of this city was little known to us (as with most of North America I believe) so we certainly learned a lot. I felt a bit like I was in a WW II movie, and expected General MacArthur to come out of some of these bushes

This fort was originally built by the Spanish and was attacked over the years by Chinese pirates and the Dutch, and was conquered by the British, Americans and Japanese over the years. The most recent was the Japanese in the last few years of WW II. Have a look at this picture of a building that has not been touched since that time.

There was also a lot of information about the "atrocities" (their wording on the signs) by the Japanese during this time period which again I think is never quite taught to North America as much as the Europe part of WW II.

Also in this area (Fort Santiago specifically) is the cell that Dr. Jose Rizal was held in before he was executed in 1896 by Spanish firing squad. He is considered a martyr in their fight for independance. They have brass foot prints that lead from his cell out of the fort that represent his last steps.

And what do you think of this? This is his cell....we came around the corner and were actually quite started to see this life size statue of him in his cell - what do you think?

There is much more, but we don't want to bore you.....when you come visit we will take you to it and the National Museum of the Filipino People that we also visted.

One last thing, here are pictures across the Pasig River to give you a feel for parts of the city.

The best part of the day for me was that taxi rides through the little back streets that showed how the majority of the millions in Manila live.

That was our day out. An exploration of a whole other part of the city that is becoming home...

A Little More Settled - Jan 24

The title says it all - we are a little more settled. Today is Sunday, and we did normal Sunday things.....church, lunch out, afternoon movie and general relaxation.

We went to the contemporary service (8:30 am) at Union Church of Manila, established in 1914. It is an English speaking, non-denominational church that sees there mission as one to those who are from other countries. We were happy to see many ethnic groups (including lots of Philippinos) at the service. Worship was as we love it (or as close as we can hope to find here), sermon was good, and we felt very welcome. They had first timers stand up, we had to introduce ourselves and we received a necklace made from shells so that people would know we were new. A few Canadians came up and spoke to us afterwards, which was a wonderful taste of home. If you want to have a look, click here for their website. There are many many things happening at this church (including Thursdays at different charities, a Henri Nouwen seminar in February, small groups and much more). We both feel this is the place we are to be - at least for now.

The lead pastor works hard on a Sunday - preaches at all three services in the morning, and this week they were holding their annual meeting at 2:30. So one sermon doesn't sound too bad, eh Bill?!

Later we finally saw Avatar (and yes, you were all right - it is amazing!) We stood in line to buy our tickets and got to choose our specific seats. How civilized...no pushing and rushing to get the best seat, just calm walking to your seat. Actually, all movie goers were usured in by people in dark shirts and red ties, who used a little flashlight to show you your seat (this was before the movie started). This theatre was really nice - large seats, twice as much leg room compared to Canada, and no sticky floors.

We have spent three afternoons this past week searching for home, and we are almost there. The process here is a little more complicated - first a letter of intent that we are interested, waiting to hear their response, then the contract negotiations. We have been blessed with amazing support by a woman named Yvonne (who works for a company that does this as their business). She knows all about moving to Manila, and had a trusted real estate person, Joyce, showing us many places. Once we have a home for sure, we will tell you about it and post some pictures.

So, does that sound more settled? We know the grocery store well, we have found our church, Jeff got his haircut and we are very comfortable walking our neighbourhhod. Life is good

Jet Lag - Jan 18

Well, Jeff is well settled in this time zone (13 hours ahead of EST), but I am still in this weird limbo-land. Asleep by 8pm and awake around 6:30 am....what a fun date I am! Manila itself works on the same timing as Jeff - sleep in late and stay up late. Because so many in this city work in support fields for the North American world, they work EST hours. I look out the window in the morning and rush hour does not appear until 10 am or later. A very different ebb and flow than in Canada's cities.

We are in a nice area of town and have enjoyed walking around exploring this little neighbourhood. The megamall is too big and busy...people head to the malls to get some relief from the heat in the airconditioning. Of course, I am not used to walking through a metal detector, having my bag searched and myself patted down as I enter the mall, but that is day to day life in Manila. Lots of little food areas on the streets that we will explore more of next.

On Sunday, Jeff and I took a ride on the MRT - the metro, an elevated train system which is very efficient, and even on a Sunday mid-day is pretty crowded. And yet, as always, the Philippino people are polite. On this ride, we saw the real Manila that is not within the little neighbourhood we are living in right now. The blocks of shacks interspersed between blocks of highrises and megamalls. The contrast is extreme.

So - that is the first few days in Manila, our new home. The search is on for a permanent home, then some Filipino lessons (everyone speaks English, but we have a deep desire to speak with them in their language also), and along the way, find somewhere for me to serve.

And the jet lag? You may have noticed by the time on this post that I am forcing myself to stay up later to try and get myself switched around. Another day or two and I will in this time zone. The adventure begins...