And the Marinduque Adventures Begin...

Maniwaya Sunset.

Maniwaya: Paddling in a small boat off the coast.

Rock Climbing up to Tarug Caves and High Stone. I did this yesterday, today my body is almost as sore as it was after I ran a marathon. I guess clinging for your life off a cliff is strenuous on your muscles... Don't tell my mother I did this. More to come!

I am becoming good friends with students here who attending the School of Tourism in Santa Cruz, Marinduque. They enjoy thrill and adventure as much as I do which excites me. We are planning more adventures at various spots in Marinduque. It is nice to have gotten to know a group of people who are experienced and educated about the amazing sights and adventures that exist in Marinduque. Where will we go next?.....

I Promise to Write More This Year...

2012. So far in 2012 I have spent three weeks with my bestfriend and boyfriend, discovered a great tasting burger in town that I actually crave all the time, started warming up water every day so I can take a warm bucket bath (how miraculous), finished my seventh month of Peace Corps, fell in love again, found paradise in paradise, ate sea urchin, and I feel more energized and excited about this coming year than I ever imagined.

Paradise in Paradise? When Joe was here we made the decision to go to the small island of Maniwaya off the coast of Santa Cruz, Marinduque. Catherine and I heard many positive and attention grabbing things about Maniwaya so… this trip became our first trip together. There were a few things I had to do to coordinate the trip – trip times, what to bring, find out what food is available on the island, but every detail fell into place rather perfectly.

                                                                                                                                            

When we got to the port, we were lucky because we made it just in time for the ordinary trip. The ordinary trip is cheaper than hiring a seaman to take you to the island on a special trip. After twenty minutes of staring at how mountainous and picturesque Marinduque is my eyes caught sight of Maniwaya. The island is only 5 hectors so from a far you can see the entire half of the island- the glowing white beaches and the vibrant green flora at the center.

When we got to the island we walked down the wooden ramp and onto the small manmade pier. Sir Constantino, the man who we were going to rent a cottage from told us to look for his niece, Sarah Jane. We started walking in the direction around the island that we thought was towards Sir Constantino’s cottage. As I was walking I could not decide where to look: up, down, straight ahead, towards the sea… everything was beautiful. The beach made me think of my Grandma Judy because there was a splendid assortment of shells- my Grandma was always showing me her shell collection when I was young. I hand selected a few delights that I will attempt to turn into jewelry… current and future project of mine. Back to the island…

The cottage we stayed at was on Wawie’s beach. As we were walking we noticed someone was following us, this someone turned out to be exactly who we were looking for. She showed us to the rooms, her friendly personality made the first impression of Wawie’s a great one. The adventure started right away- we suited up and hit the ocean for some snorkeling. There were thousands of sea urchins so luckily for me my ability to skull across the top of the water came in handy. Sea urchins do taste pretty good though! We learned that you have to search for the orange ones if you are planning to eat them because the orange ones are pregnant. When you eat them, you eat the eggs. Joe opened one up so we could have a taste! We washed the sea urchin down with some fresh coconut water! Nice afternoon delight.

A while late, Sarah Jane let us take her families small boat out for a little cruise off the coast. It was cool to see the coral, schools of fish, starfish and more from up above. The water was pristine. Snack time and beer drinking was to follow. For dinner Sarah and her mother cooked us fish and rice- best fish I’ve tasted so far! At night, we were invited to the neighbors for a birthday party. We spent the next hours watching the sunset, drinking coconut wine- maybe a little too much, having a dance competition, playing tag with the kids on the beach, and doing cartwheels in the sand. I slept like a baby that night.

In the morning we had to wake up early to catch the ordinary boat trip back home. We ate banana bread for breakfast, packed our things, and went for a stroll around the island before jumping into the boat. We had such a good time that we went back the following weekend too!

School Life.

This week is the first week of 4^th quarter. The school year here is from June-March. The end of this school year is approaching fast but I have lots planned for my students. There is always a theme for the quarter- 4^th quarter is essay. Some of my students struggle to write a paragraph in English, I have began to plan out a step by step process to help my students reach the quarter goal of writing a five paragraph essay- Wish us luck!

Last quarter we studied poetry, one of my projects for this was creating a poetry wall where I could display the student’s imagination at work. I am beginning a similar project now. Stacey sent me some classroom decoration supplies so I am eager to get some of it up on the walls. I am going to make a “Superstar Student” bulletin board. I will choose a variety of examples of exemplary work to pin up on the board with bright, shiny stars! Each month there will be a new batch of stars, the previous stars will become part of the Wall of Fame. Where they will forever be recognized for their hard work and talent!

I recently became an addict to Pinterest which is just another reason why I wish I had internet on a regular basis. Pinterest is a one of a kind network of useful and intriguing things! Sometimes I forget to “Pin” some things because my brain craves more too fast so I just keep clicking away at new ideas and photos that catch my attention. One of my favorites is a chalkboard wall titled “Things I want to do Before I Die.” After painting a wall with chalkboard paint (which I already found a recipe for) you permanently write the title and rows of lines where participants can write their personal hopes for the future. This is an activity that all of my students could enjoy over and over again. I think it will also be inspiring for students to read the dreams of their peers. This will be on my work plan for my summer projects.

February Goals:

1.      Create summer work plan

2.      Do 20 pushups every day

3.      Write more

4.      Watch my sister get married

5.      Make jewelry

6.      Learn how to make more Filipino foods

7.      *This on is a secret

8.      Plan a trip

I wrote this many weeks ago and forgot to post it...

Christmas vacation is well underway. Even though my activities are a bit, okay a lot, different than the normal adventures back in Wisconsin- this vacation is indubitably memorable!

I started my vacation by packing up my room at my host family’s house to prepare to move into my new house. I must say, packing it not as overwhelming when you only have two suitcases of belongings. Normally I dread moving day- it is always a hassle, it normally rains even though you pray that it doesn’t, and something is always lost or broken. This time, it was hassle free. Many of my new friends came to help. We ate first, of course, and then loaded up the tricycle with everything. My new home is only about a three minute tricycle ride away! What a breeze.

That night, after everyone left, there I was standing in my room inside a big yellow house. I thought to myself, “Wow, six months have come and gone so fast!” I feel lucky to have had such wonderful host families but it did feel good to finally be independent. That night for dinner I had milk and cookies.

Due to the fact that I am an independent woman again, shopping in the market, washing my own clothes, trying to cook Filipino delights, singing in the shower, and drinking coffee whenever I want have become part of my weekly routine. My host mother did offer to continue to wash my clothes but she has not been feeling good and I will admit it that I kind of wanted to have a go at it. I have been washing my own under garment since I have been here but I imagine that washing a pair of jeans is different from washing a pair of undies! Dontcha think? Washing jeans and other large garments is A LOT, I repeat, A LOT more difficult. Good thing my newly engaged best friend (** Yay, I am so happy for you!!!**) sent me some Reeses peanut butter cup trees because this was my reward for finishing.  There is a care taker who lives with me. Her name is Tita Angel. The owners of the house live in a different part of the Philippines so she takes care of their animals, fish pond, rice field, island, and I am sure other things that the family owns. I like it because it feels like I have a roommate. I have never lived alone before so there was anxiety among my emotions. Independency is fun. Washing clothes is difficult. I definitely drink too much coffee.

After a few days of buying odds and ends that I need to get by I had to prepare for my first visitors. Amy, Catherine, and Karen (other Peace Corps Volunteers) were coming to visit for the holiday. I must say that many of the Christmassy things that my family sent me crept into the festivities, a lot! Karen and Amy live a city in Batangas. There first reaction when Catherine and I picked them up at the fort was something like, “Wow, this is already very different than what we experience.” There are no malls, no restaurants, no stop lights, and few cars. There are plenty of gorgeous views and beaches. One thing the girls wanted to do was go to the beach so that was priority for the get together.