The Wolfe Family Christmas

Christmas 2010 was an unique one for the Wolfe family.  The weather was hot and there was no snow.  We spent time scuba diving, eating and hanging out in Dumagette area of Negros Island for six days then returned to Manila for the second week of our two weeks together.  Here are some thoughts on our Philippine Christmas:

Chris: 

My experience in the Philippines and the Filipino atmosphere in general has been quite fascinating. For the entire time here I have been interested in this country. The dynamic here is such a contrast to Canada and western society. The people here are very nice (from what I've seen) and full of energy and pride for their country. I have had the pleasure of learning more about their country and their history and I now see why the people have such pride. The trip to Corregidor Island was such a great experience. This island was a major point in the Pacific war during WWII in the Philippines so being the history lover I am I was in my element. While taking in the new Filipino culture I have greatly enjoyed seeing my parents again and will greatly miss them when I return home. I have had many new experiences while on Christmas break here. One example of this was diving on Christmas Day which was new for multiple reasons and is an experience I will never forget as well. Overall a great time with family in an intriguing society that I must return to someday.

 

Sarah:

This Christmas break has definitely been different....other than Sarah has caught the normal Christmas Break cold (just started a couple of days ago).  Here is her Christmas in pictures!

 

 

(oh, and by the way, Sarah made many friends while she was in Manila...as we shopped and walked down the street, groups of young Filipino men would all wave and say hello to her! I think she could have returned to Canada married if she had wanted to)

Jeff:

It is often said that "home is where the heart is" .... well for us home is where family is.  It was such a wonderful pleasure to spend the Christmas vacation with our kids (actually interesting and mature young adults).  We missed our extended family and friends throughout the past year so it was a real treat to spend quality time talking, joking, laughing, sharing......  We were able to share the experience of scuba diving which has become a real favourite activity of both Linda and I during the last 12 months.  Living abroad in a different culture is a series of highs and lows and this past two weeks will act as a rejuvenating boast to my spirit.  Highlights for me were sharing good meals, conversations and swimming alongside my new friends the Sea Turtle.... miss you all.... all the best for 2011 !!

Linda:

Christmas in the Philippines arrived with a flight from Toronto via Hong Kong when Sarah and Chris fought their way through the crowds and emerged from the airport.  Not even security guards with large guns could keep me from getting to the middle of the street to give them HUGE hugs.  Two days later we took a 1 1/2 hour flight south and spent Dec 21-26th at the Atlantis Dive resort in Dumagette (click here to see it!)  Top Chef food, incredible diving, superb service - actually, I cannot say enough good things about this dive resort....but perhaps I was experiencing it all through my rose-coloured "kids are here!" glasses.  Sometime in the next few weeks I will share more from the resort and the dives.

Back to Manila for the last week together - we explored, shopped the mall of Asia (where this was taken),

ate in a variety of restaurants, more shopping, cancelled one walking tour because of a full day of hard rain, and much much more.  We spent one delightful dinner bringing our Philippine friends Guy, Linda and Gigi together with Sarah and Chris - dinner on the roof of Gigi's home overlooking the city - it was great to have all these people finally meet each other!

New Year's Eve we did the typical Wolfe thing and stayed in....fireworks from the 37th floor were the best we had ever seen....they went on for hours and hours, and at times we could count up to 20-30 different spots where fireworks were being set off. (pics of this later also)  New Year's Day we had our Christmas turkey meal, with Christmas napkins (thanks, Mom) and the fake pumpkin pie we discovered at Thanksgiving.

Christmas 2010 in one word?  Joy - joy in the simplicity of being together, joy in experiencing new things with people you love, joy in the greetings from family and friends far away, joy in technology that brought us from the beach to Christmas dinner in Ontario via Skype, joy in the memories of Christmas past, and joy in hope of the Christmases to come.  Joy - springing from the birth of Jesus Christ and what that gift of love means. As I have often said, it is the simple things in life that make the difference.  My simple thing that changed Christmas for me was being with my family....what was yours?

Love you all, really missed so many things from home this Christmas (wax dripping on our hands during the Christmas Eve service, shovelling, scrapping the cars, cold, etc)
Linda, Jeff, Sarah and Chris

What Colour is a Christmas Tree?

In a country where the fir or pine tree does not grow, there seems to be some confusion about the colour of the Christmas tree...for your viewing pleasure, here are just a few examples of what is decorating stores and malls, and for sale:

 

 



If you don't know what to do,
 hang flat screen tvs!




...or add any toy you can think of!



The typical Filipino decoration is a star in a circle like this one....

quite beautiful, actually








Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas full of the joy and hope of the gift of Jesus....we certainly did, and will share the pictures and stories soon of Christmas on the beach and under the water.

Miss you all, especially at this time of year,
Linda, Jeff, Sarah and Chris

an addition...they did get one tree right ! !

Christmas in our Neighbourhood

Hello All,

I must confess, though the calendar says it is December 11th, my heart has trouble believing it.  I have been hearing Christmas songs since September, singing them in church since advent started November 28th and singing them with my choir since December 2nd...here is a shot of the Asia Minors, a wonderful women's choir made up of people from all over the world (I am the only Canadian):

But as I walk around, though it is beautiful in our neighbourhood, things just do not seem right.  These are shots from the block or two around our condo - and they answer the age-old Canadian question "how do you decorate a palm tree?"

 

 

The answer is, quite beautifully !

From our window 37 stories up, this is what we see:

Spectacular, but not bringing me any closer to feeling like Christmas.  As I headed into the mall near us, I was greeted by huge Christmas trees both outside and inside (however, you must realize they are fake...no real pine tree to be seen anywhere)

 

In the mall, attempts were made to make it seem more winterly (we think), however not quite sure what white tigers, snow leopards and giant pandas have to do with Christmas?

 

Even the Santa display confused me with two standing Santas and one Santa head in the chimney......

The mall itself was beautifully and tastefully decorated....

 

 

Even Jolly Old Saint Nick was there !

 

 After wandering the mall, hearing the music, seeing Santa Claus, I felt like Christmas was seeping into my heart.  A text from Jeff reminded me that though he was in Hong Kong, he would be back here in five days.  That meant that Sarah and Chris would be here in eight days.  Okay...that really means Christmas is coming and my heart felt lighter.

I got back to our condo, sat down - less "grinchy" but still not quite in the joyful Christmas state of mind and heart I usually am at this time...and then it happened.....the hope and promise of Christmas

A reminder bought in Bolivia, kept in Canada and unwrapped in the Philippines, surrounded by angels that brought hope to Haiti.  The 'good news of great joy for all the people' was right here with me ! 

Christmas is arriving, and my heart truly and deeply believes it!



Christmas in Malaysia

I know we promised you pictures of Christmas decorations in Manila, but Jeff and I are just finishing spending the weekend in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and have pictures from here to share with you.  Jeff is part way through 17 days away from Manila, so I thought I would join him for the weekend and explore a new city. 

Malaysia is a mix  of religions - 60 % Islam, 19 % Buddhist, 9 % Christianity, 6% Hindu and the rest other.  The official religion is Islam, though they have freedom of belief here.  What we learned from a taxi driver today (who is Hindu) is that if he bought a house, he would put down 10% and borrow 90%.  If he followed Islam, then he could borrow 100% and get a 10% on the rate of borrowing.  Hmmmmm - this is when I greatly appreciate the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms where all are treated equally!

Anyway, seeing that Christianity is such a minority in this country, we did find a few Christmas decorations to share with you....have a look (they seemed rather sad and 'Charlie Brownish' to us:



Outside Mercedes Benz dealership



In Sentral Train Station





In store



In Central Market (huge shopping area)





With random Christmas decoration

To prove Jeff was out enjoying a well - needed break from work, here are some shots of him with random things:

With image of CN Tower (a taste of home)





With random cow outside steak house







At beginning of walk in the jungle in the
middle of the city







Holding up the roof of
the cave - my hero!



On the 272 stairs heading
into Batu Caves



Tomorrow I fly back to Manila and Jeff flies to Hong Kong until Dec 16th.  Next post - Christmas decorations from the Philippines (the only 'Christian' nation in Asia) 

Love you all, Happy Advent

Linda and Jeff