happy easter

well, i survived easter in the philippines. it's definately nothing like the states, with girls in pretty new dresses, easter egg hunts, pink bunnies, and jelly beans. here we celebrate the entire week - "holy week", starting with holy thursday -- fasting all day, and then eating "the last supper at sundown", and there is no meat until easter. then on good friday, they do the pagtaltal, which is the reinactment of the passion. we sat through a 2 1/2 hour passion play, which was totally in ilonggo and tagalog, and couldn't understand a word of it. finally, at the ending jesus walked his cross outside and was nailed. this year it was fake nailing, they put the nails between his fingers, and just tied him up there. i'm still not sure if i was relieved or dissapointed that i sat through a 2 1/2 hour play expecting to see someone nailed, and they just faked it. they actually nailed 19 people in pampangas, manila. friday is supposed to be a day of fasting and mourning, and the priest officiating the pagtaltal told everyone to "abstain from eating" for the entire day. that was actually funny, because there were vendors selling snacks and mango shakes outside of the pagtaltal, and there was a canteen set up for lunch, so everyone was eating. then saturday, well, i'm not exactly sure what we were supposed to do on saturday, so we went to the beach. then on sunday, i just stayed home. outside my house, my neighbors were killing some goats to eat. it was horrible, i heard a loud, non-human scream and i ran to the window and there were goats strung up by their back legs hanging outside my house. the men were standing around laughing and watching the goats struggle. i asked why they were hanging the goats, they say if they hang them they work up adrenaline and it makes the meat taste sweeter, i started crying a little and had to go back inside. but a bamboo house with open windows does little to muffle the sounds. so i watched out of my window. after about 20 minutes they bled the goats and shaved of all of their fur with a big knife. little kids started to gather around and were jumping in excitement, and all i could think is that would have traumatized me when i was a kid. i remembered when i was little and there was a bird dying in our yard, my dad hit it on the head with a shovel and burried it, i went to my room and cried. but these kids were cheering and laughing at the dying goats. one kid threw rocks at them. life is definately different when you don't have frozen tyson boneless, skinless, precut chicken breasts in a bag for $7.99 from publix. so that was easter in the philippines. it was an experience, but i still prefer pretty bunnies and chocolate eggs to slaughtered goats and people nailed on the cross. so everyone eat a cadburry egg for me. yummy chocolate.

actual crucifixion

so these are some pictures i found from last easter. this is pampangas, manila. these people actually volunteer for the reinactment -- and they actually get nailed (as you can see) to the cross. supposedly, they get a doctor to show where to nail, so as to not hit any major veins or ligaments. but still, these are some crazy bastards to get nailed to the cross. they believe that this act is pennance and will cleanse them of their sins. for a so-called christian, bible believing country, they sure do have it all wrong!!!!!

start of holy week

palms for sale on the side of the road so yesterday was palm sunday. i didn't realize this fact until the trike i was riding on had to stop due to the thousands of people in the roads with palm fronds. at first i thought it was a funeral, or just another of the hundred's of fiesta's we have here. i asked a few people what was going on, but in true filipino form, they just laughed at me and walked away. it was nice when we finally got to the city, because it was empty, and we could, for once, walk around in peace. wow, do i sound bitter. hmmm. so this is the start of "holy week". we have no office on thursday or friday, so a couple of volunteers are planning on coming down to guimaras and witnessing a real life crucifixion. i have to say, i'm a little intrigued as to what is going to happen, and when i say intrigued, i really mean scared and wierded out!!! so this should be an interesting week to say the least.

frustrated!!!!!!!!!!!

what a week. as i start to work more and more with filipino's, i just get so frustrated. my first class started yesterday, my 2 counterparts were supposed to meet me at the high school on friday to check out the venue and set up. after waiting an hour for them, i finally went home -- really pissed off. the next day they were supposed to meet me at my house at 7:45 to help me carry the supplies down to the school so we could set up before class started at 9:00 -- again they didn't show up. so at 8:30 i found someone else to help me carry the stuff down there to set up. i was stressing because the american in me thought we would be pressed for time with setting up and getting everything ready for class. nope. because noone showed up until 9:45, and we had to actually go get the people out of their houses to come. they really do expect a personal invitation. ahhhhh. half of the students decided not to come, they went to the beach instead. some of the students won't even talk to me, they are all so "ashamed". they say they are too "ashamed" to talk to an americana. so i keep asking myself the question, why am i here??? why did these people request me??? why do they want me to teach a class, when they give me no help and we have to go beg people to come??? i'm so frustrated. so erin, nicole and i are spending the night in the city -- just to vent, and take a hot shower.

???????

it's funny how your ideals change after being in a place for so long. i remember at the beginning, when i first got here, and i would get so angry at filipino's for being lazy, or using money designated for a project for personal use. so i am in the city now with 2 filipino counterparts, we are buying the supplies for my next class. i noticed when we got to the checout counter, there was alot more stuff in our basket than was on the supply list ......lotion, shampoo, chips. When i first began working here, i would have made a stink about that and told them how wrong it was, but now, it's just how it is. i mean if they don't think it's wrong, and the agency that is funding the project doesn't think it's wrong, then should i??? or should i do anything about it???? people here complain constantly about how corrupt the government is, but they don't see the it in themselves -- so how do i, an american girl, do anything to change something in a country to which i don't belong??? or is it even my place to try???

hot hot hot

hi everyone, i know my blogs have become far and few between, but everything seems to have slowed down. or atleast i have slowed down. friday was my 1 year anniversary of being in the philippines!!!! and looking back on the year, it really is amazing at everything i have learned, like, another language, how to barter at the market, how to travel, and how to truly depend upon myself. now it just seems that everything here is not quite as WOW as it was at first, and little things like the bucket shower, sleeping under the mosquito net, and transportation are just an everyday, normal occurence. not quite as blogworthy as it used to be. it's hot again, whew, is it hot again. a few friends came over to my island to hang out for the weekend. we went to the beach and got so sunburned, even with spf 30, just fried to a crisp. the sun is so strong here. so during the day, when it's too hot to move, i lay in my house with a cooling pad that my mom sent me(thank you), and the fan directly infront of me, and i melt. it's too hot to even eat during the day, so i just eat fruit trying to stay hydrated. so i go through a watermelon every other day -- they are alot smaller here, little round ones. and mango's are in season, so i go through a couple of kilo's a week; and i chug water -- atleast 2 gallons a day. i have to buy distilled water in the city to drink. so now dry season is in full effect, and our well is drying up. so i only have water for 1 hour in the morning now. i have a big garbage can that i keep filled with water, i keep the faucet on, so that when we have water i don't miss it. having water is my new exciting thing. i get so excited to wash my dishes from the night before, bathe, and pour water down my toilet to clear the line -- wow. erin is not so lucky, she only gets water every other day for 2 hours. next week is holy week here, so there will be lots of activities to write about. the philippines is a very devout catholic country, and the church pretty much runs everything. they actually nail people to the cross here on good friday, and whip people as pennance. so i'll bring my camera and take pictures of all of the craziness that is sure to ensue next week. love you all ~ lindsey