Along The Edges

China Stop 5: Great Wall

2009-12-22T19:08:00.002-05:00

What can I say? It's pretty darn impressive. After jetting back to Beijing from Guilin we spent the evening with Carl and his family. The next day Carl drove us up to the Wall. Even in this ancient place, Subway had managed to open up a sandwich shop at the base which at first I found a little disappointing but then realized it was probably perfect for you to grab a little picnic lunch to take up to the Wall for the hike.

We elected for the gondola ride up the mountain vs. the 1 hour hike. It was cold and much easier. The Wall stretched for as far as the eye could see and we hiked along it for about 1 hour. On the return trip down, we took a 'tobaggon' ride down this metal slide. It was kitchy but absolutely a blast to essentially slide on our backsides down the mountain. There is a video of the ride at the bottom of the page.

China Stop 4: Yangshuo

2009-12-16T17:04:00.000-05:00

Got off the riverboat in the small town of Yangshuo which was nestled at the foothills of the mountains. The town is quite popular with European and North American expats that have setup little shops, restaurants, and cafes. We stayed right in the heart of town at the base of one of the walking/shopping streets. That night, I was on a mission to find a winter coat in the market. Luckily Yangshuo is also popular with rock climbers so the shops were filled with North Face and Columbia gear - either knockoffs or items that found their way out of the factory. Price negotiation is mandatory and usually done with each party typing a number into the calculator. You literally have to walk away from the deal in order to get the best price. I had vendors actually chase me down the street. In the end, I got the coat I wanted which originally started at 450 RMB (65 USD) down to 170 RMB (25 USD). Either way, the same coat in the US would cost closer to 200 USD retail.

The next morning we went on a bicycle tour of the countryside. Our guide lead us through small farms. Along the way you could see many farms being converted over to resorts. It was a nice way to end our tour.

China Stop 3: Li River

2009-12-09T16:41:00.000-05:00

The next adventure on the tour was a cruise down the Li River to Yangshuo. The riverboat was a double-decker and we were seated on the top deck with the other foreign tourist while locals, tour guides, and local tourists were on the lower deck. Although only about 85km, the cruise took 5 hours since the waters were very low and the boats had to move very slowly to navigate. As we went down the river, local farmers would paddle out to the boat on bamboo rafts to try to sell their goods to the passengers. It was quite a trick to time the approach alongside the moving riverboat and toss a hook to latch onto the side. The scenery was spectacular as we wound our way through gorgeous mountains with rounded tops that I don't think you can see anywhere else in the world. The pictures speak for themselves.

China Stop 2 - Guilin

2009-11-29T16:41:00.008-05:00

Arrived in Guilin late in the afternoon and went straight to the hotel. We had the rest of the day to explore the city ourselves before beginning the tour the following day. Although it was quite cold and windy out we wandered downtown from our hotel through some walking streets and around the 4 lakes and 2 rivers that surround the city.

For dinner we stopped in at a local restaurant that seemed quite full and lively thinking it would be a good pick. The waitress suggested the local tea which was an interesting mix of tea leaves, giant nuts and some flowers. It tastes great but sure looked like witch's brew in the pot.

Dinner itself was quite disappointing. The waitress suggested we try the signature dish of the area the "Li River Shrimp". While they looked great on the plate what you can't tell is that each shrimp is no bigger than a nickel with the shell on. Not much to actually "eat". The food in general in the south of China was pretty disappointing for me so I'm not really going to talk about food again until the Beijing part.

The next day the first stop was the Reed Flute Cave. Normally, I'm not a big fan of cave tours - they are usually cold, dark, wet, and smelly. This tour was quite different - these caves were truly 'cavernous' with ceilings that reached up 3 stories and a maze of rooms that went deep into the mountain. It was all very impressive although I found the neon colored lighting a bit distracting even though it lent itself to some pretty cool pictures.

The rest of the day was spent touring around the city including climbing up to the highest point in the city where we could see the surrounding landscape and a preview of things to come.

China Stop 1 - Xi'An

2009-11-25T08:59:00.005-05:00

After a quick overnight in Beijing with my cousin Carl and his family, Kim and I head out on our tour. First stop - Xi'an - the first capital of China. We went straight from the airport to the dig site for the Terracotta Warriors, fighting a tremendous amount of traffic, road construction, and other delays along the way. It is amazing to see how much development of going on - I counted over 100 cranes building skyscrapping condo towers on the outskirts of the metro area.

Upon arrival at the dig site the first thing that strike you is how big it is. You have to take a golf cart from the parking lot to the actual exhibition pits as they don't want road traffic disturbing the burial sites that may still remain uncovered. The site consists of 3 pits and they are huge. In the picture below you see me standing at the entrance to one pit.

Behind me you can see the rows and rows of uncovered terracotta warriors. They were originally created by Emperor Qin, the first emperor of China to protect him in the afterlife. Construction of this burial site is estimated to have begun around 240BC and involved 700,000 laborers. It is estimated that there are over 9000 pieces (warriors, chariots, horses) buried at this site. It was interesting to tour all the pits to see the archeological work in various stages from completely restored figures all the way to grids that they were just beginning to unearth.

The next day the tour took us to the Xi'an city wall that still surrounds the old city and is about 14km long and the Shaangxi museum which was one of the nicest museums I've ever visited.

Stepping back into life

2009-11-23T11:13:00.003-05:00

It's been too long since my last post. While I was in China, all the social media outlets were blocked so I have a lot saved up. I plan to release day-by-day updates on the China trip which was also amazing but today I wanted to reflect on readjusting to life back home and the reverse culture shock.

After I left Bacolod, I spent a day in Manila - actually Makati City - before my flight to China. The culture shock began immediately as I walked around the area surrounding my hotel. Yes there was still all the Jeepneys, crazy driving patterns, and Filipino food but something felt quite different. There were giants shopping malls filled with ex-pats from North America and Europe and all the familar brands from back home. Jaydip and I shared one last beer together at Bubba Gumps of all places.

Getting back to North Carolina was another adjustment. Yes I love being back with my family, having drinkable water out of the tap, having reliable power, traffic laws that are enforced, and a fast internet connection. It's great to kick back to watch TV (even if it is children's cartoons) and I love being back in my kitchen cooking again. It feels weird to have to drive everywhere after all the walking we did over the past month. The southern accent is throwing me for a serious loop after 6 weeks of Filipino, Finnish, Russian, Spanish, Brazilian, Belgian, Indian, Chinese, British, and Australian accents. It's also difficult to get back to the land of the 'super-size' whether it's the food, cars, or anything else. Americans are seriously overweight - particularly in the south! Of course I say this as we are all getting ready to pigout for Thanksgiving later this week. :)

Life at work seems to be business as usual. I gave me first post experience CSC briefing to my team today. They were quite impressed but completely grossed out by the Baloot!

It's So Hard To Say Goodbye

2009-11-06T09:55:00.002-05:00

We just got back from our final team dinner at our favorite restaurant IMAYS. After gorging ourselves on all of our favorites off the menu we returned to the hotel to say our goodbyes. It's been an unbelievable month that I will always remember. I feel so fortunate to have had this experience, especially with this group of people. We all know that while we may have opportunity to run into each other 1-on-1, it is highly unlikely that this group will be together as a whole again. We met as strangers 27 days ago and leave tomorrow as more than just coworkers, we leave as friends. I have learned so much from each of them and have so much respect for their talents. Most of all, I will miss the comradery having spent so much time together working, playing, talking and laughing. My home office will seem quite lonely after this. With some teary eyes and hugs all around, we said our farewells to go our separate ways back home or onto the next adventure.

Barangay 19

2009-11-05T20:48:00.003-05:00

While we were gone last weekend there was a fire in Barangay (District) 19 which is just a few blocks from our hotel. They area is tightly packed with small family homes and narrow alleyways. All in all, 62 residences were destroyed and 17 people died. The residents did not have much to begin with but all of it was lost in the fire.

Yesterday, Jaana and I took around town to snap a few last minute pictures before we leave tomorrow. Although the entrance to the barangay was closed off and guarded by the police we were able to visit an area where the displaced victims were being held and donations being accepted. Despite what had happened to them, the people still had smiles on their faces - their ability to deal with adversity is amazing. The children were running around an empty lot and playing games with each other. We ran over to a store and bought bags of candy to bring to them. I also had a small bag of toys that my boys had picked out from their stuff for me to bring with me. The kids were so excited! They swarmed around me and were dancing and cheering for the candy and toy cars. A small bit of excitement in an otherwise difficult time.

Ten Random Things I Didn't Blog About

2009-11-04T19:11:00.004-05:00

There is so much to this experience and I realize it's hard to capture everything into these short vignettes so here's my list of things that I forgot to mention:

#10 - Place Settings
The tradition here is to eat with a fork and spoon instead of a knife. It took some getting used to but by the end of the month we are all experts - who needs knives! Ironically, the only time they give you a knife is if you are eating pasta (I know all the Italians are crying about that!)

#9 - Paper
Seems to be a carefully guarded commodity here. The restaurants are all very frugal about giving you napkins even though most of the food can be eaten by hand. Toilet paper is also rationed in our hotel and housekeeping is reluctant to give you more than what is 'allowed'.

#8 - The Dust
I have been coughing for the entire month here. At first, I thought I just had come down with the cold or flu but after a round of antibiotics, OTC medicines, and allergy pills, I'm still coughing. I think it's primarily all the dust in the city combined with the constant in and out of air conditioning.

#7 - Walking
Most of our team generally doesn't mind walking from place to place. It's not that big a city and we are all fairly active people. The local Bacolodians are always surprised by that. The insist on arranging cars to take us places, even if it is only a few blocks away. Nobody walks here - if you have a short distance to go you take a trike which costs around 15 pesos. Longer hauls you can hop on one of the Jeepney routes for 7 pesos. At night we generally splurge and take taxis for around 50 pesos (1USD).

#6 - Dudos Rules!
There is only one Starbucks in town but it seems like there is a Dunkin' Donuts around every corner. Makes me feel more at home knowing there is coffee and donuts nearby.

#5 - Creature Comforts
Speaking of feeling at home, I have tried to go as 'local' as possible, eating the local cuisine at each meal and trying to experience the local culture. I broke down last weekend though as there was I think from home I just couldn't go without any longer - BOURBON. I actually found a bottle of Maker's Mark and took it with me to Danjugan Island. Ah.......

#4 - Match Making
I don't have a problem with this since I pretty much look like a Filipino Chinese but the rest of the team has received multiple almost daily inquiries about their marital status - particularly Guillermo and Jaana. Guillermo now has girls bringing him pictures that they took of him for him to autograph and Jaana has also had many young lads from the local colleges try to Facebook friend her after she presented her seminar. :)

#3 - The Meals
I know I've talked about all the wonderful food that we've had but what I failed to mention how often people here eat. At a minimum the meals are breakfast, morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack, and dinner but some people will eat as many as 8 meals a day!

#2 - Hospitality
Everyone here bent over backwards to make us feel at home and welcome during our stay. We are always greeted with warm smiles and a friend 'Good afternoon' or 'Good morning'. It's really the antithesis to Manhattan.

#1 - The Spas
Okay, so I have to admit I've not written about this before because it's a bit of a guilty pleasure. You can get a 60 minute full body massage here in any style you like (swedish, thai, shiatsu, pinoy, hawaiian, etc) for the equivalent of about $4 - 6 USD depending on if they are running a special or not. That's right folks, for the price of an Extra Value Meal at McDonalds you can get pampered for a full hour.

A fitting sendoff

2009-11-04T07:15:00.005-05:00

Last night we had our farewell party hosted my client BNeFIT. Once again, we gathered at the unbelievable house of Mr. & Mrs. Dumancas to celebrate the time we've spent together. Although there are still a few days left before we depart most of us are starting to wrap up our projects in advance of the provincial holiday this week.

It was nice for everyone to get together and say our parting words to our clients. The evening was once again filled with LOTS of food including lechon (whole roasted suckling pig) and a giant seafood paella. To top it all off, we put together a slideshow for our clients with pictures from our experience here in Bacolod and we wrapped up the evening with a little karaoke. I even broke out a little "Carolina On My Mind" as I'm missing home.

That was one delicious pig! Porkfat rules!

Russia & Canada Head-to-Head - it's like Olympic Hockey!

Alina, Jaana & Qiong with Mrs. Loida from West Negros U.

Just one glimpse of the water feature that surrounds their home.

Fantasy Island

2009-11-03T05:09:00.006-05:00

This past weekend was a long weekend here in the Philippines to honor All Saints and All Souls Day. The tradition here is that everyone gathers in a family reunion in the cemetaries - they bring a picnic and make a day of it. Since we had no one to visit, we were treated to a trip to Danjugan Island, a protected marine and wildlife sanctuary. Our ABV coordinator, Waya also brought some of her family along and the 16 of us had the run of our own private island for the weekend. AMAZING. The island is only 500 meters wide so you can easily hike to either side to watch both the sunrise and the sunset.

I took the opportunity to get in a few more dives. First we went down to about 24 meters along Manta Reef. We didn't spot the manta ray but I did see a big lobster tucked into a crevasse. It was hard to tell how long it was but the antennae from it's head were at least 15 inches long. We also saw lots of fish and a few sea cucumbers. On the second dive we passed a field of giant clams which has been planted a decade ago to help rebuild the reef. They muscles inside were bright purple and spectacular. It was really nice to see the conservation efforts at work and impressive to see how much to reef had rebuilt after years of overfishing and destruction.

For some people this was their first experience 'roughing it' but it was quite reasonable to me. We slepted in open air cabana huts under mosquito nets. There is no fresh water on the island so must be brought in daily from the mainland. The power is a few solar panels charging car batteries which means showers were limited and cold. I really could have stayed there a lot longer, there was so much to explore. All in all, a once in a lifetime experience!

Paradise Found

2009-10-30T05:48:00.002-04:00

Carben Reef outside Sagay City. A tiny strand of white sand in the middle of the ocean. Need I say more?

A matter of circumstance

2009-10-28T20:39:00.002-04:00

Each time we travel out of the city I get hit hard with the reality of the situation here. The main industry on the island is sugar cane farming. Most farms do not have tractors and the workers use water buffalo to plow the fields.

Next they will meticulously plant the fields by hand. Once the cane has grown the workers manually harvest the cane with machetes and bundle them. The bundles are loaded into trucks (usually manually) and stacked so high that I wonder how they do not tip over. It's hard work, there is little automation, and the workers get paid very little. It's a hard life just to subsist at the poverty line yet there are still smiles on the people's face.

What hits me the hardest is when I see the children. This little boy is probably the same age as my oldest son. I know my son will grow up, go to college, and do whatever he chooses with his life. I'm quite certain that in the not too distant future someone will put a machete in this boy's hand and he will be sent to the fields so that my boy will have sweetener for his drinks. The only difference between the two boys is a matter of circumstance and where they were brought into this world. And that realization brings me to tears.

Pinoy Cuisine Update

2009-10-27T09:30:00.003-04:00

Alright Foodies, this is where you start tuning in. I haven't updated my blog with the dining experiences lately but here is some highlights. We've tried a bunch of different restaurants around town but the group consensus is that Imay's is still the best. We can all go there, order up a full table of food with at least 1 family style dish per person and still walk out for under $6 each. TingTing's is also in the running because they have live seafood wells where you can pick your own fish, lobster, or crab and tell them how to prepare it. Overall, the food here remains awesome.

The drink on the left is a fresh mango shake. The mangoes here are the small yellow ones that we call champagne mangoes in the US. They are so super sweet. The drink on the right is Sago Gulaman. It's a fruit punch like drink with tapioca pearls and cut up pieces of red jelly. It's a drink and a dessert all in one!

This is a sampler platter from TingTings. It included grilled octopus, chicken, prawns, fish, steamed crab, and fresh raw oysters. It is served on the left there with cut up salted duck eggs and fresh tomatoes as an accompaniment.

Limes and little green chiles are also a popular condiment here to go with the food whether it's seafood, pork, or chicken. The limes are tiny - about the size of a walnut - and they remind me of key limes from Florida but the favor is a little different.

This is lapu-lapu - a fish in the grouper family. In this case I picked it out of the live well at TingTings and had it prepared chinese sweet and sour style. We demolished this fish head to tail in quick order thanks to my other chinese teammate Qiong and I. Love FRESH fish.

Grilled Managat - another local fish in the snapper family. Very simple preparation - the fish is gutted, butterflied, seasoned with lots of salt and pepper and thrown on a hot charcoal grill. Lots of nice flavor although sometime it is overcooked in my opinion.

Finally a nice sizzling cast iron plate of mixed seafood - prawns, clams, baby squid, and fish in a creamy sauce. That's it for now. I'm sure there is more to come! I still have to try the lechon.

Chillaxing

2009-10-25T23:31:00.003-04:00

This weekend our team took a trip to Sipalay on the south part of the island. It was about a 4 hour drive and along the way we passed through many small farming villages including sugar cane, rice, and fisheries. It was hard to see some of the lean-to shelters that the farmers lived in made out of nothing more than pieces of scrap wood and metal and thatched roofs - especially when we arrived at our 'luxury' dive resort called Artistic Diving. The level of poverty here is immense.

I am the only certified diver on the team and got in a couple of cool dives including a big reef full of lots of corals and several different species of fish. Some others tried the intro dive and the rest did some snorkeling. It was a nice way to get out of the city for the weekend and enjoy some fun in the sun.

Business Development Day

2009-10-25T09:56:00.002-04:00

Friday was the first of the seminar series that we are tasked to deliver. The event was sponsored by our client - BNeFIT and the audience was local business leaders that were looking to expand their skills and business. We prepared four topics that were of interest to the business community here:

Trends in E-Commerce
Marketing in the 21st Century
Creative Effective Proposals
BPM & BPO

I think the audience was definitely overwhelmed with the amount of information we crammed into one day and hopefully some of it will sink in. Everyone was really appreciative of our efforts and we've already made the local paper. Yah - another press impression!

For those of you reading my blog, you are only getting one view of our experience here. If you are interested, you should check out some of our other blogs from the team:

Gisele presenting Web Marketing

Jaana presenting Effective Proposal Writing

Class Picture

Time to get serious

2009-10-21T05:01:00.002-04:00

The first of the series of seminars that Jaana and I are responsible for delivering is this Friday. We've been working with the rest of the team on preparing the presentations and working with our clients on the event logistics. The first module is for the local business leaders to help them with business related topics. I'll be presenting a session on BPM (of course), Jaana will cover building effective proposals, Jaydip will cover eCommerce, and Gisele will cover Web Marketing.

Last night we were invited to dinner by Mr. and Mrs. Dumancas. They are members of the BNeFIT organization that is my client and local real estate developers. Words cannot describe their home - if I could dream of my ideal home it would look exactly like theirs. I couldn't even take pictures to do it justice, I'll just have to wait for it to come out one day in Architectural Digest! They treated us all to a huge buffet of local and western cuisine and a delightful evening of conversation. At the end of the night, they showed us their plans for a BPO Park that would include space for BPOs to establish their delivery centers, restaurants, condominiums, a medical center, and even an outdoor amphitheater. Once again - outrageous ambition - I LOVE IT!

Of course no update would be complete without a little cultural touring. On Monday evening at sunset we visited the Ruins in Talisay City. Quite spectacular to find this stone structure standing in the middle of sugar cane fields. There was also a percussion band with a fire-twirler performing on the grounds that I videoed.

Baloot!

2009-10-19T21:38:00.002-04:00

Yum...look some fresh eggs from a street vendor. WRONG! These are baloot or baluut, a half-hatched egg and popular in the local cuisine. Basically, it's an egg that is partially through the embryonic stage of development (15-16 days) that has been boiled and served with salt. Depending on how late they let the egg go you can start seeing features of the chick like the beak and even feathers. In my case, I think it was pretty early so blood vessels and organs starting to develop and appear along the yolk. You may have seen these on the reality TV show Fear Factor. Well, guess what? Fear is not a factor for me! Check out the pics and the videos below. Delicious!!!

Masskara Queen

2009-10-17T23:15:00.002-04:00

Our client invited us to join her at the Masskara Queen beauty pageant where we got to see the 10 finalists from around the city compete for the championship. I was blown away at the production quality that they were able to create - elaborate sets, beautiful costumes, and amazing live music. Unfortunately, we had a brown out during the show which brought back to reality some of the issues that the people here face. Still, an amazing show. The girl in the purple won.

Miscellaneous Activities

2009-10-17T21:58:00.002-04:00

Been a few days since I've had a chance to update but here are a few cool activities that we got to participate in. And yes, besides all the fun we are actually lots of work too! Hope to have a full update on all the Masskara Festival activities tonight after the big finale.

Global Handwashing Day
This is a key initiative that they are sponsoring here to teach school-aged children the importance of hygiene to prevent the spread of disease. We were at the mall with our client who also happens to be the president of the local Girl Scouts troop in addition to everything else she does in the community. Honestly, I don't know how she as time to sleep - definitely a Superwoman.

During the event there was also a performance by the winner of the local mall singing competition. She is such a little cuty and sang a BIG song for a little girl.

Mambukal Park
Our clients from University of St. La Salle took 4 of us up to Mambukal, a mountain park on the island. It was nice to get out of the city and see some of the countryside. Along the way we passed many sugar cane plantations and saw lots of people drying out the the rice from their fields on the side of the road.

Fruit Bat - "Flying Fox"

"Super Robert" on the Zipline

Waterfall #1 of 7 at the park
(we only made it to 2 on the hike)

Masskara!

2009-10-17T06:32:00.003-04:00

I love street festivals - whether its Mardi Gras in New Orleans, Memphis in May or Caribana in Toronto - they are always so much fun. Masskara is no exception - spanning a 19 day period with multiple types of events and venues. The people of Bacolod know how to have a good time!

Electric Masskara
Friday night was the electric light dance competition on the street. 4 stages, 7 teams competing for top prize. The dance troops looked like they ranged from 20-40 people and all the costumes were decorated with little LED lights. What a great party! The 10 of us walking around the streets of Bacolod also draw quite a lot of attention. Lots of people were taking pictures of us and with us - especially Jaana, the platinum blonde from Finland and Guillermo the Spanish George Clooney. Me, when I'm not with the rest of them, I can pretty much blend in with the locals but the 10 of us together are like a mini-UN complete with our own little paparazzi.

Parades & Dance Competition
On Sunday, the top teams performed as the city government plaza in the open category performance. Huge dance trooops, elaborate moving set pieces, and lots of energy. The troops are all made from school aged children from different barangay or districts. We were given guest passes to sit in the stands but outside the gates, tons of people pressed up against the barriers to try to get a glimpse of the performance. I felt a little bad as I watched the policemen eject the little children who were trying to sneak a peak from under the bleachers at our feet.

City Charter Day
The city of Bacolod turns 71 this year. The day started with a Catholic mass in the city government center. As part of the celebration, they received the official land transfer from the owners who donated the property for the new city government building. There were also several awards given. Interestingly enough, some of the awards were for the individuals and companies who paid the most taxes in the last year. I'm not sure this would be seen as an 'honor' back in the US.

Food, food, and more food!

2009-10-14T21:31:00.002-04:00

Imay's Restaurant

I really think I must have a little Filipino in my genes because I love the food here. Fresh ingredients, flavorful preparations, and beautiful presentations....oh and did I mention it is ridiculously cheap to eat here! Filipinos pride themselves on their food and just after a short amount of time here you can see why it is such a big part of their culture. Like many Asian cultures, the meal is the center of the social gathering.

Yesterday, Robert, Jaana, and I went to Imay's - a local seafood restaurant. Crazy cool vibe there - tikka hut architecture, fun looking drinks, swing lounge music, and an amazing menu. We tried five different dishes: spicy deep fried squid, grilled marlin, chili garlic shrimps, seafood chop suey, and scallops on a sizzling plate. Definitely will be a regular spot for me while I'm here.

A table full of fresh seafood for only 15 USD

Chili Shrimp

For dinner we went to Bob's Restaurant which had a mix of Filipino and Western food as well as delicious desserts. I had a rice ring with tender chunks of stewed beef and mushrooms in the center. Since it was getting late, we decided to take our first trike rides home instead of walking. These are motorcycles or bicycles with sidecars welded to them.

Day 2: Being an Ambassador

2009-10-13T22:01:00.005-04:00

New City Hall

After a leisurely start to the day, we were taken to the new Bacolod City Hall where I was asked to give brief remarks to the Vice Mayor and City Council members in the council chamber. The proceedings started out with prayer followed up by the singing of the city's anthem. It was quite lively - the staffers all came in to sing the song and there was even a guitar player! I don't know if this would happen at home. It was an honor to be able to speak with the council and represent my company, my team and the team that brought us here.

In the evening our client, BNeFIT hosted a dinner for the entire team. There were representatives from the city and provincial government, the universities, and real estate developers as well as two reporters from local papers who were covering our story. The food was delicious - including Crispy Pata (roast pork with crispy skin), Bangus (milk fish belly), and of course the dish that this city is known for, Chicken Inasal. There is no way I'm not going to gain weight here at this rate. I only hope I can learn some recipes along the way!

Bangus Belly

After dinner, each person got the chance to introduce themselves and how they are involved with either IBM or BNeFIT. We were also taught several illongo phrases during the event - of course I focused on the names of the food!

Dinner with BNeFIT

Day 1: Outrageous Ambitions

2009-10-12T05:40:00.004-04:00

Today we had the kickoff session with all of our clients hosted at the University of St. La Salle. After the opening remarks, each of our clients gave a presentation on their current challenges and how they would like to use our time here. We also gave a presentation on IBM, the Corporate Services Corps program, and our team background and skills. I love our clients here because they all have OUTRAGEOUS AMBITION. We could easily spend months here with all that they want to do. In particular, my client Councilor Jocelle Batapa Sigue is a force to be reckoned with.

Everyone here is so incredibly friendly and welcoming - they invite us to join in their celebrations, offer their help to organizing events for us, and want to ensure we enjoy our time in Bacolod. Hospitality is definitely a core part of the culture here.

In the afternoon, Jaana and I had the chance to attend a high school academic competition on the history of Bacolod. They have organized the event to encourage the students to learn more about their local history which had not previously been taught as part of the curriculum. It was great to see the focus on fostering education and the excitement of the students to participate in the 'quiz show'.

Planes Trains and Automobiles!

2009-10-11T09:30:00.002-04:00

Just a quick update. Finally made it to Bacolod after an unexpectedly long transit. I missed a connection in Beijing which led me to having to overnight there - not the worst place to be stranded. I took the opportunity for a quick visit with family, followed by a delicious dumpling lunch at Bao Yuan Jiaozi Wu which had dozens of different fresh, handmade varieties to choose from.

First Impressions of the Philippines

Manila was like most major metropolitan areas - big and crowded. The urban sprawl would rival LA, DC, or Miami. Bacolod on the other hand still has a very small town feel. On the way in we saw many 'lean-to' aluminum sheet dwellings in the farmlands. The standard of living was quite stunning until we got to town.

The people here are very friendly and helpful - particularly our coordinator Waya and her friend in town Maggie who seems to be one of those 'Connector' types that knows everyone in town. It's easy to see why they call this place the City of Smiles.

The price levels are also quite shocking. Dinner tonight including drinks and desert at a local BBQ place worked out to about 3 USD per person with a generous tip. A taxi ride across town cost 1 USD. A bottle of San Miguel Pale Ale is about 75 cents and a bottle of rum is about 5 USD. To get our laundry wash, pressed and folded is about 1 USD per kilo of clothes. I know that last one is making some people at home jealous!

Tomorrow, we meet our clients for the first time. I'm supposed to deliver the kickoff presentation for our team so I guess I better stop screwing around online and start practicing my pitch.

PS - It is freakin' humid here, more than I expected. Florida's got nothing on this place - the Philippines is definitely in a league of its own.