To go back to the first blog, click on this link or copy it into your browser: http://mymacaustory.blogspot.com/2012/01/manila-lessons-take-1.html
Second blog: http://mymacaustory.blogspot.com/2012/01/manila-lessons-take-2.html
Third blog: http://mymacaustory.blogspot.com/2012/01/manila-lessons-take-3.html
50 Lessons I learned (or was reminded of) in the Philippines [continued]
31. You might see young boys or grown men digging/playing in rubble along the side of the road. I did on my taxi cab ride to meet Brit somewhere. Poverty is a big issue in Manila. The older man was digging through what looked like torn up pieces of black top with a stick. I’m not sure what he was looking for. The little boys were digging in rocks near a major road.
32. There are both extremes of rich and poor in Manila, but there is a huge gap that seems to separate them. I met Brit at Robinson’s Ermita, a mall in a nicer area of town. This mall had luxury brands, Starbucks, and even Krispy Kreme!
33. Hillsong college exists. It’s in Australia, and 2 young women came from there to see what working in the orphanage was like for a week. One woman was German, the other was raised in the Philippines and was half German, half Filipino. She was nice to have around for the kids who spoke Tagalog and no English.
34. The Chief Justice in the Philippines is on trial for corruption. Or at least that’s what I gathered from the radio program I listened to in the taxi cab on the way to meet Brit. It was a pretty intense hearing, but it wasn’t the first time I’d heard that the government has problems with corruption.
35. People like consistency. This is the message I gather from seeing Starbucks all around the world. Most people will admit to me that they’re not huge fans of their coffee or they they’re pricey, but people can pretty much guess what they’ll get no matter if it’s in Macau, Manila, or Massachusetts.
36. There is a beautiful HUGE painting in the National Art Gallery that is the most valuable painting in Manila (and perhaps the Philippines). It is maybe 15x20 feet and a brutal scene of soldiers from somewhere. Having painted some myself and know the time detail can take, I was amazed by the marvelous painting and just thinking of the time invested in the results.
37. The LRT (one of 2 above ground train systems in Manila) has a section for women only. When you’re crammed in super close to people, it’s nice to know it’s females only.
38. When taxis ‘make you a deal,’ it’s probably not a deal if they offer first. The driver on my way to Robinson’s Ermita tried to offer me 300Pesos off meter. Fortunately Brit told me it should only cost about 200 or 250. On meter, I saved 85 Pesos—enough for a Mango Black Tea at Starbucks while I waited for Brit.
39. Toddlers should come equipped with Velcro. When you have a room of 12 or so toddlers that need to brush their teeth and get into their tiny adorable beds, they’re worst than toaster pastries—they just keep popping up! I did minor help with putting the toddlers down one night, and it was an amazing feat (which I do not take credit for) getting them to bed. I did get kisses from 2 of the munchkins though. Too sweet. Here’s an idea of the smiles I got to work with this week (and yes, this one tried to stroke the smile every time she did something wrong too):
40. We require variety only when we know it is an option. Children can watch movies over and over and over, and especially these kids. Each night while I was there, they watched Little Mermaid before bed with the same excitement and response to the suspense as the night before.
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