Baguio Hotel Ambassador

... all, it was an important day in the rich history of the city.
During our short stay in what I call the "home in the clouds", we were to meet some very interesting people. One such person, was an ex-pat named 'Chris Mitchel' from the city of Adelaide in Australia. Chris with his easy smile and welcoming nature was a wealth of information on the history and local politics of Baguio . Chris had retired years earlier and had settled in Baguio, as it had appealed to ...

... maybe she saw it on my face. And simply from that kind gesture, my fragile state and spirit was lifted..and to appreicate where i am - the Phillipines!! May not seem like much but i am soooo up and down liek a yo-yo at times that is truly the little things that matter... So i may feel some uncertainty in this mysterious place but i'm hoping i will be able to achieve some comfort and calmness as i venture onward and upward...and see it for what it is!

... so many foreign men come here to marry. At first I thought "women" like Kevin were a severe blight on Filipina beauty. Here and there I see women with paunches, knobby knees, receding hairlines and big shoulders, who don't look that pretty. But then I realise they are men. One worries that a man can be "sorrowfully disappointed" after a drunken night on the town when he finally realises he's brought home a lady-boy. However, perhaps I've not noticed them all. Apparently ...

... her pictures from my wedding and talked about Danielle and what she did. We did walk around the house and my grandmother told me where my mum and her brothers and sister slept and there were some pictures of my mum's family that I looked at as well. The other cool thing about the visit is that Roy, the gentleman who joined us in the excursion who works for the company we are working with out here, he's my cousin! His grandmother and my grandmother are ...

... those 10 days back home, we headed out on a 2 week tour up into central and northern Luzon, first to San Jose, where we did programs at 2 Christian schools, and a Sunday morning church program. We really enjoyed our time there staying in Filipino homes, and getting to know the culture. We even got to ride a water buffalo. We are now up in the mountains in Baguio City where our team will do ministry for the next 5 days until we move onto our ...

... I headed to the farm to do trail work. Tom (PCV) was a trail boss for Student Conservation Association as well as the National Park Service so has years of experience and knowledge to share. The main trail leading to the farm is working for now but when it rains the trail washes out in areas and is extremely wet! The weather, as far as getting a lot of work done, did not entirely corporate with us; it rained pretty hard the first two days we were there. However, this was ...

... lady boy. So the next day we set out to go walking, probably heading out at midday was a little wrong. Despite being in the mountains it was still really hot here and we ended up in a cafe having a drink instead. We did get to coffins in a cave and hanging coffins. We took a guide to show us some coffins and he took us for a hike through the undergrowth. We came back muddly and scared. That night we tried again to find the friendly atmosphere ...

... water was so dirty it was incredible so the last few things I had to wash weren't helped too much. The market was nice, i bought a few necklaces and a pair of light pants that almost everyone on our trip bought as well, and people watched. I found a nice little shop that I bought some woodcarvings and weavings from. The older people from the mountains come down into town for the market. It was interesting to see their bodies out of the rice feilds becuase ...

... pig for the party (traditional practice but very expensive). I felt really bad about it but there was no stopping them, pig was the last thing I wanted to eat but I enjoyed with a big B-day smile none the less!! I hired a videokee machine and we sang the night away which was really fun and all the little cousins loved it. My host sister Melody also gave a me a beautiful silver bracelet which was a huge surprise and too sweet!! I am including some photos of my ...

So I went to Baguio a few weekends ago. Baguio is known as the summer capital of the Philippines, because it is cooler than most areas. There are also many pine trees there and all the American amenities like McDonalds and Starbucks. Another volunteer and I went by bus which took six hours to get there and a surprising ten to get back to Lagawe. Before we got on the bus to return to site I was very worried. It could have been from the huge coffee ...