Magic(al) Realism

ASEAN

Day 1: Longest Bus Trip. Saigon Direct to Siem Reap

12:37 AM

“Of all the books in the world, the best stories are found between the pages of a passport.”

Fedora Cap Girls arrived in Ho Chi Minh.

For several days I AM A MILLIONAIRE BABY!

Kuya Rene, his wife and Rene Jr.

Rene shared the Goldilock's polvoron his granny gave him. Such a sweetie!

Ema is not thrilled to see us. Stranger anxiety!

Crossing the border of Vietnam and Cambodia

The number of motorbikes are overwhelming.

I like how bicycles thrive here. Kids go to school in bikes!

No the cows and the elephant are not real!

The altars in front of the house for blessings from the spirits

That's us with our friendly and reliable tuktuk driver, Mr. Nakim!

Contact Nakim if you will find yourself in Siem Reap.
Tell him of three fedora cap crazy girls and he will surely giggle. :)

The chill-out zone of HAPPY GUESTHOUSE!
Highly recommended place. Affordable. Very friendly staff. Organized info on all transport services.

Even cats know how to chill here!

We arrived at midnight in Tan Son Nhat International Airport Terminal 2. We have to wait at sunrise to go to the bus terminal going to Siem Reap. It will be a 12-hour grueling travel so we decided to take naps at the bench. It is my first time to sleep on the bench in the airport! We woke up at quarter to 5AM and the Sapaco Bus scheduled trip going to Siem Reap leaves at 6AM! And we can’t see any taxi. I’ve read several travel blogs and they only recommend VinaSun or Mai Linh. I tried calling their call center but it was a disaster. We’ve been talking for 10 minutes, but we can’t understand each other. I hang up when this taxi driver approached us. It is from the Saigon Tourist Taxi and we are quite adamant to take it but time is running fast. In simple English, we told him we need to go to Sapaco Terminal at 325 Pham Ngu Lao St, District 1. He nodded. Yes he understands.

We were already inside when he kept on talking on the phone, I suspected he was asking for directions. After paying the 1,000 Vietnamese dong (VND) toll fee, he stopped in a taxi’s line outside the airport. There were a lot of them there waiting! And he turned us over into another driver with a bigger taxi. We couldn’t understand it at first, alarmed when our bags are being transferred. Then the other driver explained that he got a customer waiting downtown so he will take us instead. Phew! It would take 15-20 minutes going to the bus terminal but since it is almost 6AM, the driver assured us he will get us there in time and he truly drove fast. And we’re too amazed he got the latest iPhone 6 at that! Aba sosyal si kuya! And he’s very helpful, even to a point of teaching me how to count properly the Vietnamese Dong in paying taxis.

We got on the bus terminal on time, purchased tickets and put our luggage. We are on our seats when the bus conductor asked for us passports. Still sleepy, we’re too slow to get the instructions. Then the man behind us talked to us in Tagalog. “Tandaan niyo yung conductor ng bus. Siya ang magbibigay niyan sa border. (Remember the bus conductor. They will be the ones who will give that to the border (patrols)"“ Holy kamote! Here is Kuya Renato (surname withheld) and his family. I remembered he was also in our flight from Manila. He lives in Phnom Penh for 11 years now and married a Khmer woman and they got an 8-year old son, Rene. His wife paid for our toilet usage since it is cheaper for locals and he helped us in the queue on crossing the border. He explained to us the process in crossing the border. There are bills attached to the passport. Lagay ba. Corruption is rampant. Hindi lang sa atin unique yan! In broad daylight, you can see compromises made in the name of convenience.

We stopped at one of the eateries after the border and Rene started saying “Kakain!” We laughed. He only knows Tagalog words like “kain”, “Tubig”, “tulog”. Kuya Rene hails from Lucena, Quezon and they went home to the Philippines for a month-long vacation. His son laughed at us when we could not understand the lady at the resto charging us “One dollah!”. He kept on imitating the lady’s voice and laughs. The one dollar is for the cold towel offered to us during lunch and we thought it was a complement from the bus company!

Kuya Rene gave us the number of Ate Grace, one of his friends in Siem Reap who is also from Davao and now works as a teacher there.

When we arrived in Phnom Penh, we have to transfer into a local bus company. We arranged earlier to meet Marj and her adorable baby Ema Ayeesha. Several of our friends and her sister sent padalas of clothes and vitamins. Marj is my college housemate and after- college roommate and she now lives in Phomn Penh with her chuwariwap. Goddamn this woman, how can she give birth to a child and still look like a teen-ager? Aside from the chatter on motherhood, she's still the good 'ol crazy roommate I knew. Ema was shocked probably by the onslaught of kisses from strangers that she wailed. Later Marj texted me that Ema was so anxious and also very hungry. We will be staying with them after two days and surely, Ema will see our awesome tita yaya skills.

We bade goodbye to Kuya Renato and his family. Also to Marj and her crying princess. We still have another 6 hours ride to Siem Reap and we were running late for an hour. We didn’t give some extra cash in the border so our passports were processed late. We are passing the countryside full of dark brown earth and thick dust that resembles the roads when you pass the towns of Carrascal and Claver in Surigao del Sur. Do they have mining also here?

Then we stopped in another eatery for merienda and hygienic needs. I noticed they got this altar in front of their houses and businesses. It is like our own tambara and there is an offering for the spirits for good luck.

We arrived in Siem Reap at half past 9pm. We already booked our accommodation with Happy Guesthouse with the help of Marj. She texted me that the bus terminal address where we will be arriving was incomplete so I need to call the hostel in order for them to gie instructions to the tuktuk driver who will fetch us. My cheapskate self is already worried of the several roaming texts I’ve been sending earlier and I’ve been scolding myself for not buying a local sim first thing at the border.

We’re beaten tired and everyone is rearing to get off the bus when a young man alongside other drivers holds a bond paper with my name on it. Oh Thank you God! Our tuktuk driver’s name is Mr. Nakim and his female friend Sophie tagged along. Sophie is trying to practice her English and we tried to make conversations with her. It is just a short ride from the Old Market to Happy Guesthouse, a homey hostel nestled at the center of a backpacker’s area! We arranged the next day’s tour that will start at 5AM with Nakim then checked in at the hostel.

After washing up, we decided to walk around. It’s a countdown to midnight for Nina’s birthday. We found a Hawaiian Pizza House and meet Ah Ti Juju. It is a family-owned business and he happily took our orders of noodles, tea, coconut shake (as recommended by another diner). There is no available cake so we ordered their house delight pizza and requested for candles. Ah Ti apologized since they only got one large candle. We told him it's okay; we will even accept vigil candle. After eating, they took out the pizza and the other local diners joined us in singing Happy Birthday. Ah Ti made us a generous helping of pizza and put some effort making a flower-shaped tomato on top and he managed to find more candles.

HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY KAPITAN! STAY AWESOME. :)

Nina is beaming, happy despite the lost Tab along the way (she can’t still figure out how and where she lost it). We just consoled her that probably the spirits wanted an offering. I lost my cellphone pouch and Xyza lost their office logbook. In life, we need to lose something in order to know its value (or non-value) and to be able to regain something better. I hope I can easily say this is also applicable to our love lives. #H U G O T! Eeeeeek! :D

Let’s choose to be happy instead of what we have. We can replace material things but not the memories and stories

We hope to create great memories here. And we're looking forward for the sunrise. ♥ ♡♥

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musing

Before the Trip Hullabaloo

8:30 AM

My week leave (Nov. 18-20) coincided with our 4 major activities! As we were making our organization’s plans, I was guilty for taking a leave in one of the busiest week. But this trip is already planned way ahead. I just never filed my leave earlier. But some of my colleagues already knew of my plans. Thankfully, I got a very supportive Deputy Country Manager and colleagues who know the tenacity of my Dora-like adventures. Travelling is a need. It invigorates me and for the past months, I was lost. I need a breather.

I made the necessary arrangements prior to the said events. I made all the checklists. And even on the day of my flight, I was still confirming guests for the forum launching in Cotabato. There was an input on conflict-sensitive resettlement (which is quite crucial for my planned MA thesis), trip of our Regional Area Manager and another forum at Asian Institute of Management (AIM).

And to top it all, Manins asked me to check possible itineraries and also updated hotel bookings and addresses! The preparations were in a daze. Months before it, we thought it was still far only to realize it is now around the corner. We crammed and panicked thinking of possible mishaps. When can I have a stress-free travel? But then again, we thrive in stress. We survive stress

Just last night as we were trying to add additional baggage, CebuPac’s website decided to be crappy. I only got 2 hours of sleep and there are people who just love to burst your happy bubble. I could make a nasty response but then I realize, we have to be prepared when things go wrong as we planned. I try to remember the goodness of other colleagues who are willing to take the burden of the work I will be leaving. We have to acknowledge that while we don’t have any hold of other people’s attitude, we can choose how to react.

Airport Drama by AJ Efondo
Photo source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/ajefondo/3012514813/

Airports are one long waiting game. I arrived from Davao at 12NN. Flight to Ho Chi Minh is at 10:50PM. I detest airports before as I associated it with tears and long goodbyes with loves ones. I never liked going to airport every time my mom goes back to Hongkong as OFW when I was young. Anyway, my work and these itchy feet gave me opportunities and I had made my peace with this place.

As I was lounging around, killing time when this young lady approached me. Janeth (surnamed withheld) , a 3^rd year BSEd Values Education approached me and tried to sell a beads keychain she made to support her studies. I am wary of these rackets; I know of an organization that requires its members “quotas” and the holidays are fast approaching. Janeth is nice and sincere. We talked for a while about the difficulty of balancing time for studies and finding some money to sustain the drill of getting a degree. She’s quite good in doing the marketing of her beads and approaching strangers requires a lot of guts and of course, self- confidence. She left and I have this on my hand:

Philippine-flag shaped bead keychain.

Then I continue reading Kafka on the Shore when an elderly woman, in her 50s approached me and asked if I was a frequent traveler. I said yes. She asked if I can help her and older sister regarding their flight to Kalibo.It's their first time. They were looking for the check-in counter. It is just 5:15PM and their flight is at 9:05PM. They traveled from Tagaytay and they got 2 big bags. They showed me their ticket and they got no check-in luggage. I told them they can purchase a prepaid baggage but they insisted that the person whom they purchased the ticket that they can just check-in their bags! Of course you can do it but with an exorbitant fee of P200/ kl and their bags is beyond 20 kgs, while you can only pay half of the price if you got a prepaid one. I convinced them and we marched to Cebu Pacific’s office but we were stopped. We missed the 4-hour before the flight purchase time limit by just a hairline (10 minutes). Sales office said sorry and they are strict with the time. Oh the irony of it (you know flight carriers are known for always being delayed but they are strict and will charge you several bucks for just being late for a minute). I wanted to raise my eyebrows. I was just there earlier when I purchased an add-on baggage and there was a long queue of disgruntled customers for the late advisory of cancelled flights to Tugegarao (2 flights) and Caticlan. Missed the time limit by the dot? I would really understand the guideline when there is an equal strict rule imposition when they also cause so much inconvenience with the passengers.

We all fall for this.

I am grateful for these flight carriers, Cebu Pacific for one for its annual promos (Pisofare and holiday discounts) but it seems these promos make us accept the crappy customer service as the collateral. And it is no wonder that another passenger break all loose when he demanded for his lost baggage. The ground crews said it was in another flight only to find out it was just left in the check-in lane. And it is not helping when these crews, just shrug their shoulders telling the passenger nonchalantly, “You can go home sir. We will just deliver it.” There is no time or date and when the passenger needs it badly, expect the curses. It is in these situations that a person who can empathize and communicate well is needed. Acknowledge the anger and the inconvenience your company caused and as its employee, you will do all what you can do to resolve it. Imagine the hassle of going thrice to the airport for the lost luggage in the midst of hurting traffic. Take responsibility. Company image is built not with just the promos, magazines and press releases. It is foremost, built by the employees to whom the passengers talk to. We know they are outsourced, employed through an agency and most of the time, they couldn't care less. Workers who are bonded by commitment and benefits will work efficiently. Contractualization, hiring employees through agencies lessens the burden from the employer. as they are no longer held liable for employee benefits like paid annual leaves, retirement benefits. And we have seen again and again how the employer-employee- customer relations have been strained.

I am not singling out Cebu Pacific here. I had my own share of whole-fucked-up-terminal-waiting-game experience with Philippine Airlines (PAL) last month. But nothing can compare to the no unfriendly passenger scenarios with CebuPac. Take note that because the tube used in ferrying passengers during boarding is paid, it is not used. Instead, everyone is asked to go down the long flight of stairs. That's very unfriendly especially to differently-abled passengers and mothers with children. My older sister's plight is worth telling. She got 2 kids in tow; flights were delayed until midnight and no assistance was given and no information when exactly they will be flying. And oh just last week, they lost one of my colleagues who is a frequent CebuPac flyer. There was a crack on one of the windows and they only realized it after they have already flown. They have to go back and the handling was nightmarish. There are still more stories of course of these crappy services we get. We can choose to boycott them but with only 2 airline carriers we have, do we have that much choice? I hope this ASEAN 2015 economic integration can really boost the competition and make these two airline companies improve their services.

Flight to Manila

Flight back to Davao.
ooooh sunset, how I love thee changing colors of the skies.

As our midnight flight to Ho Chi Minh is being called I heaved a big sigh of relief. The idea of flying over the clouds with the huge seascape underneath gives me a sense of freedom. Those fluffy white clouds remind me of cotton candies and warm childhood ceremonies. To fly on air is to dream. To wander and stay youthful. Truly Peter Pan knew how light one can be and to see the landscape in a macro perspective. And when I fly, I closed and my eyes and left the baggages of the long day at the terminal. So long worries.

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Photography

Meet the Backpackers of Vietnam-Cambodia Trip

1:08 PM

This is Ma. Nina Regina Quibod. The birthday girl.

The Fedora Cap Girls!

We embarked on an 8-day trip from Ho Chi Minh (Saigon) to Siem Reap and Phnom Penh (Cambodia). Read the next articles and let us share our story. :)

Nina, Ninya or Kapitan is a wildlife biologist, a lover of bats and a certified noisy traveler. I call her Manins or Kibodsky, Our first trip together was in Bangkok last 2012. It was our first Asian trip and our first time to travel together for her birthday. I booked the flights, she paid for it. I got a Couchsurfer friend said yes to host us both. I regaled her of my “travel agent’s skills’ only to realize too late she only got 3 days there as the flight back time is at midnight! I was embarrassed for the said booking mishap but Nina maximized her stay visiting temples.
Manins is a loner sometimes; She will disappear for several minutes because she's engrossed with other little details in the place you're visiting. She's a ratpack too. She collects postcards (and sends one for herself) and currencies in all denominations of each country she visits.

We have no strict itineraries and we like countryside trips. Being on the field for so long had taught us to love spontaneity. We have known each other for 10 years now and gladly, we have survived each other beyond college.

This is our second trip together since we already proved that we can survive each other in Bangkok. For this trip, we booked the flight as early as September last year on the much awaited Pisofare promo of CebuPac. In the middle of the night, I got a call from her of her plans and I am a kaladkarin (willing to be dragged). Besides she’s a willing sponsor. This trip has kept us excited for rest of the year.

This is Fei Xyza Asuncion. She’s a friend of Nina and we only met personally on the day of our flight to Ho Chi Minh. She texted me while I was charging my phone at one of the columns in Terminal 3.On the first glance, I knew we can travel together. Nina with her super busy schedule totally forgot to introduce us but it was an instant hit of talk and laughter between us. She’s sweet and has been mistaken as Cambodian when we crossed the border. She takes pictures of every food we partake.

And meet me, Dora and my pack. My backpack has been with me for 5 years now and I joke that my relationship with my backpack is even longer than my romantic ones. HAHA. Okay let's sing:

♫ ♪ Backpack, Backpack! I'm The Backpack Loaded Up With Things And Knickknack's Too. Anything That You Might Need I Got Inside For You. Backpack, Backpack! ♫ ♪

They say, you will learn a lot from a person when you lived with them and when you travel with them. You will know your idiosyncrasies and attitude that can either be endearing or very annoying. And it is best to really have a travel buddy who has the same personality like yours. Gladly, Nina and I have surpassed that. And Xyza is also a no-fuss traveler.

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Pilipinas

Dwarves in the Island of the Giants

10:00 AM

Restless feet syndrome, I don't need any cure.

Isla de Gigantes. Literally the Island of the Giants. It consists of about ten islands; with the two largest are Gigantes Norte (North Gigantes) and Gigantes Sur (South Gigantes).

The agenda of the trip to this hidden paradise is the team assessment of the TFM- HEKS Shelter Project and I (together with Ken) just joined. But since we're also Ilonggos, it's very easy mingling with the group. Our two-hour boat ride to the Isla from Estancia Port was full of laughter. We are all first timers and we can't wait for the adventure.

These cute puppy and its aggressive mom who doesn't want to be photographed

Entrance of Bakwitan/ Pawikan Cave

Longon: wooden coffin

Tugkay. It is a chicken or a maya? :p

The next itinenary is to Bakwitan Cave. Mambubulong (shamans) go here to collect balinsasayaw eggs to mix in their medicine concoctions. In olden times people believed that engkantos dwell in the cave and you can request and borrow any material thing. But this was lost when humans broke their promises with the engkanto such as the time of returning the borrowed items.
Some said it was called as Pawikan Cave because of the egg-shaped rock formation at the end of the chamber. Our guide said that it was also believed that these marker resembling giant turtle eggs was used by the Japanese for the treasures. Today, this egg-shape marker disappeared when a lot of treasure hunters for the infamous Yamashita Treasure came. It left several digging inside the cave. There are also a lot vandals made by some tourists and locals whose sense of "achievement" is to see their name on the walls. Such vanity and idiocy.

If you would like to explore the island and try a different adventure, you can stay at Gigantes Dwelling Place and Contact these very hospitable and knowledgeable people: Rene (based in Bacolod)- 0939. 893. 0248/ 0917.463.9470 or Margie: 0946.2850.457 or Neknek (0998.164.2588).

Urban legend says there was a giant called Tay-og who fell in love with a beautiful maiden but this maiden was abducted and killed by the pirates. In grief, Tay-og threw all the things he saw forming the islets. Another version is there was a couple of giants who lived there and the islets were there children (or the place where their children lived). The other version is, two giants a couple, fell out of love then started throwing rocks to each other forming the islets. This version is quite violent but it made me laugh so hard. They don't have divorce yet at that time. :p

A mountain of scallops

However, this cave is now called as Bakwitan Cave as this also served as an evacuation site during World War II and last Typhoon Yolanda. There were three families who sought refuge in the wide spacious chambers of the cave during the onslaught of the strong winds. .

Considered the Scallop Capital of Visayas, you will not be surprised with the high pile (a mountain) of scallop shells in different colors and sizes at the shoreline. During the 80s, when the scallop industry boomed, thousands of tonnes are delivered every day to Iloilo and Cebu. Now, after several typhoons and with not much other livelihood alternative, the harvest dwindled. Scallops are just sold for P140 per kilo here. Since you don't get it cheap most of the time, try the different ways it is cooked- fried (scallop omelette), grilled or steamed.

Electricity is just from 6PM up to 5AM the next day. So expect the wailing from the neighborhood videoke from sundown to midnight. There is no cellphone signal so for those who are regularly monitored by their partners, you've been warned.

We arrived late so we spent the night drinking and telling stories and some music swapping with Marcus, the Dutch supervisor of HEKS. The next day is our trip to the parola (lighthouse). But Ken and I was too busy talking to Miss Margie of Dwelling Place, a homestay type inn on the other side who shared to us stories and tourism mishap in the area. She shared how the supposedly tourism budget was misdirected by a former tourism officer and spent on the private resort he owns now, which ironically where we're booked. In the spirit of fairness, I wanted to interview the owner of Hideaway Inn but he's not around at that time.

The next stop after breakfast is the Cabugao Gamay Island. You can climb the rocks to have a vantage point of the island and neighboring islets. The combination of wide emerald green and dark to light blue seawater will surely make you say, "Ahhhh this is paradise's lost!' :D

Then we went to Antonia Beach for a game of volleyball, snorkeling, eating of wasay-wasay (another kind of shellfish you can eat soaked in vinegar) and drinking! Here in Antonia Beach, you can see rocks formed and balanced in unlikely ways, and suspended and looking like an installation art.

But there is nothing much to see underwater for snorkeling. The corals are dead for the relentless dynamite fishing. There is another group of filthy rich tourists who came with their speedboats and arrogance. Sad but the sea and its fishes are bound to dwindle with the dynamite fishing. And with tourism as possible alternative livelihood, you have to offer a better seascape. And farming (whether container or other parts of the island with agricultural potential) should be considered as an additional source of income. There is not much vegetables in the area so don't expect much greens for your fish tinola or scallop soup.

As much as we would like to stay for another night but we have to go back Jaro. Another companion has a flight back to Manila and Jan-jan, one of the student interns was stung by the jellyfish. Also heavy rain started and we have to get back to the Hideaway Inn for our things.

The end of this trip is even more adventurous. Heavy rain and strong winds made us all wet, (mga basang sisiw) and quiet. No one wanted to sit in front of the boat, except Marissa and I. And we have to contend with all of the waves spilling inside the boat. This whole affair with the (un)predictable weather made us call on the Almighty for safety and protection. Our saving grace? Prayers, our skilled boatmen and the large cellophane bag to keep all of our things dry.

Isla de Gigantes is full of potential in terms of research and archaeological find. And if I only have a lot of resources at my disposal, I wanted to stay longer here. Well, another island out of 1,707 islands in this blessed archipelago that we're able to explore. And we're blessed to set our foot here and return in Iloilo unscathed.

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foodtrip

Capiz: Shelter and Rebuilding Lives after Typhoon Yolanda

4:10 PM

New day. New beginning.

Our boatman to another barangay.

Today's catch.

Typhoons Ondoy. Sendong. Pablo. Yolanda. Glenda.

These are the names of the most destructive typhoons out of the regular 19 tropical cyclones/ storms that enter the Philippine Area of Responsibility annually.

And every year, we lament on the impact of disasters saying we are ill-prepared. And worse? We will be hearing stories of rotting rice in the warehouses and corruption in the construction of new homes. Time and again, we know that fraud and corruption are high in an emergency phase as the urgency and rapid inflows of aid can weaken the institution (and more so if it is already weak). Also, this will challenge coordination work between agencies to ensure all affected areas are covered- not too many relief in one area while those outside of the center are forgotten.

Take Typhoon Yolanda. For its magnitude of destruction last year, we received a lot of foreign aid (in cash and pledges). The government made a website of FAiTh, or the Foreign Aid Transparency Hub where foreign countries, multilateral organizations, NGOs, private individuals and anonymous donors are posted. Great initiative I think but here's the catch: You can't download the reports per aid. You can download the full report but you can't open it!

Remember the scandal hounding Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Region XI through its Kapit Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan-Comprehensive Integrated Delivery of
Social Services (Kalahi-CIDSS) report of forging of signatures and other anomalies on

construction of houses for Typhoon Pablo survivors? Do we need another disaster before we

get our acts together? Or how many more disasters do we need to be able to strengthen our

coordination work?

Creation of shelters is the first priority of families. because shelter is anchored on rootedness and sense of normalcy. Building new homes then should be durable (can withstand Signal #3 typhoon), comfortable and provide privacy for the family. It is not just about distributing money like P5,000 or GI sheets. It will entail a different community reorganizing wherein skilled labor and distribution of materials and other logistics have to be considered. We have a lot of indigenous materials like amakan and bamboo for rebuilding homes. In fact George Bankoff on his book, Cultures of Disaster in the Philippines, argued that our construction of nipa houses are a part of our adaptation for the disasters that we face annually.

My dear friend Mel was assigned to undertake the supervision of the Shelter Project in Capiz in partnership with HEKS (Hilfswerk der Evangelischen Kirchen Schweiz, the aid organization of the Protestant Churches of Switzerland). Task Force Mapalad, the local NGO conduit made an assessment and found out that Capiz Province specifically coastal towns in Capiz Province have not received any aid nor much media attention. Focus was in Tacloban, Leyte and Samar. So they started the work and after five months, they have now built 1, 817 houses in Panay (Brgy. Butacal, and Brgy. Bantigue), President Roxas (Brgy.Dulungan, Brgy. Binaobawan and Brgy. Rosario), Dao (Brgy. Manhoy, Brgy. Quinayoya, Doyuc and Matagnop), and Pontevedra (Brgy. Manapao).

Old and new braces. Rebuilding homes.

The shelter project made use of amakan (woven bamboo walls) and GI sheets but with additional braces (diagonal braces) for the roof and strengthened the posts by putting cement and iron braces. Workers are from the community and labor is a counterpart from each family. And the house including labor only costs P25,000 each. A far cry with the P550,00 bunkhouse made in Cateel by DSWD. Though Sec. Soliman said it was due to bigger floor area and more materials needed. Let's suspend judgement then until COA report will be released (when? We do not know exactly!). All I can say is, it's very appalling when the government agency and institutions you expect to help in bringing back the communities better will even victimize twice the victims.

For the turn-over ceremony, we went to Brgy. Binaobawan and stayed there for the night. We were greeted by laughing kids and smiling mothers. The program the next day started with a boat ride going to another barangay and sharing of food among different sitios and neighboring barangays, dancing and games. And boy, I never wanted to leave. The crabs, shrimps, sasing (seaworm) and tikhan (seashells) will always leave you wanting for more.

The people here know they will never be truly safe from more disasters coming. Relocation is not just about leaving and going to another place. Livelihood, memories and a familiar place are part of living. And in their case, they have started in-site relocation and rebuilt their homes to locations that are still near their livelihood, ready to face whatever the next day's challenge will be.