Visit to the Red Cross

A visit to Quezon City’s Chapter of the Philippine Red Cross involved another serious conference setting and a presentation including all their volunteers dressed up in uniform. Kindly arranged by a Rotarian I met at one of the meetings a long presentation didn’t even begin to cover the amazing work they do in the Philippines.

I think sometimes we forget in the UK how spoilt we are. If we have an emergency, a fire or a car accident we call the emergency services and know they will come. In Manila that might not be the case. While the Chairmen wasn’t critical of the government provision of emergency service it was clear that these were not meeting the need and the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) were filling in the gap.

In addition to the services that are remarkably similar to the British Red Cross (BRC) in terms of support for the homeless, first aid training and family tracing to name a few, there is also an additional massive scope to their work in Manila. As well as the disaster relief, a vital service with the Philippines being the top most disaster prone country, there is massive work in capacity building for communities as well as filling in for the emergency services. If this wasn’t impressive enough the fact that there are almost no paid staff and this work is carried out by volunteers should do it.

Although they do have an emergency number and a call centre is manned 27/7 they are also called out by the Philippine National Police when they attend emergencies. But the main point of contact with the public is through their astonishingly comprehensive network of volunteers. Ambulances, dinghys and fire engines are donated by their supporters.

Recognising that the usual support systems we rely on in the UK might not be available or affordable to most of the population the PRC, like the MMDA and other organisations we’ve seen focus on training people to help themselves in an emergency. Thousands of members of the public are trained in not only first aid but disaster preparedness an water rescue and they have a great volunteer retention rate with the volunteers around the table averaging a seven year involvement.

Each chapter fundraises and is given a target and a budget. Quezon City’s is 65m pesos and they regularly exceed fundraising expectations. Each chapter has its own board of trustees and paid staff and the national PRC sits over the top with its own board. Interestingly this board includes 6 representatives appointed by the president perhaps representing the key role the organisation plays in the country. However the staff we spoke to were keen to assure that they didn’t see this as compromising the independence of the organisation as with them representing only 20% these six could not have a majority vote.

Following the visit to the Quezon City Chapter we were lucky enough to be able to visit the national headquarters where after the rest of the group made it clear my list of questions was too long the briefing session was cut short and we went for a look at their monitoring centre where everything from the levels of La Mesa Dam to the levels of deportees from Saba. All this work is done on simple excel spreadsheets regularly updated by staff.

To put into context the severity of the risk the PRC are facing an overflow at La Mesa Dam could kill two million people if evacuation is not quick enough. 

Like most organisations we’ve seen whilst we’re here this type of risk gives so much more significance to their work. With so few resources the work done here is stunning and I’ve written in previous posts really simple, practical economic solutions go so far to mitigating these risks.

Following my donations

It’s not often you get to know how the money you donate to charity is actually spent but today I was able to meet Jun Perez, President of SEED Finance, the Filipino partner of Lendwithcare. I’ve always thought the whole concept of Lendwithcare is fantastic and was keen to find out more about how the scheme actually operates on the ground.

I didn’t think when I emailed the general email address that they’d actually be able to arrange the visit but within a couple of days they’d put me in touch with Jun. It’s always a concern that when you learn more about an organisation you find out about the issues and problems but nothing was further from the truth with SEED Finance. At the risk that I’m beginning to sound like this is written by their PR company I can assure you that I’m fairly cynical generally and have this week been accused of cross examining the Chairmen of the Quezon City Red Cross in a manner that was apparently more like an interrogation than a Q&A session.

So at the SEED offices we were shown to the small meeting room and given a history of their involvement with CARE International. Jun was friendly, well informed and enthusiastic as well as keen to talk about their work. Photos on the wall have the caption ‘Micro no more’ underneath and a map has pins showing their coverage of the country.

For anyone else who lends with Lendwithcare I can assure you from what I’ve heard your money is being well spent. The individuals we see on the website are all members of co-operatives in the provinces and this is how their loans are administered. Jun made it clear that their loans were not the cheapest in the market but that they offer an extensive support service that extends beyond the loans themselves. This includes technical assistance and training so not only are the loans protected but a sustainable business is created. It seems like these measures are helping contribute to their 97% overall repayment rate, up 57%.

Loans are targeted in the most deprived regions and in places where mainstream banking is difficult to access. Practicalities such as having to get a boat to another island can mean entrepreneurs have to take time away from their business to carry out simple administrative tasks. Mobile banking has been utilised incredibly effectively to address this issue and people can now order supplies, pay utility bills and send money to kid overseas all through their mobile phone and the co-op money card. This is backed my Mastercard and linked to their phone account.

Having introduced this scheme in a fishing village a complaint was made by an entrepreneur that he was unable to access his money one weekend when the cash desk was closed and the ATM wasn’t working. SEED and the co-operative decided to address this by installing mobile card swipe machines in small businesses on the island. This meant there was no need for people to withdraw cash in order to buy materials for their business. Simple solutions like this and utilising the latest technology mean are great for making the lives of the beneficiaries easier and allowing them to maximise productivity.

Another example of this is how it allows the organisation itself to work more efficiently. At a conference a request was made for funds for a co-op to Jun. He text someone in the office, they made the necessary approvals and the money was available in around 2 hours.

The governance of the organisation reflects the client focus and on the Executive Committee two out of the five members represent clients. There is regular dialogue with area, regional and national conferences to share ideas and best practice.

One of the clever engagement tools used by Lendwithcare is the updates from the entrepreneurs. Being of a sceptical nature I’m not sure I quite believed before that these were so accurate as to be about your money. Having heard about their systems and the fact that each beneficiary is visited monthly I’ll now be much more interested in these updates.

Currently only 5% of their income is from individuals with the majority of investment coming from companies. I know after visiting SEED I’ll be happy to put more money in and be confident it’s being well spent.

Printing, waste management and kids. Just another day at the office

Our final ‘proper’ day starts with a trip to a publishing company owned by one of the members of our host club and an introduction to their integrated approach from printing the books to training the teachers. The visit included our shortest drive yet – the previous record was set driving across the street – maybe 70 yards. This was into the van, out of the gate and into the gate next door. To the same building.

Next in true  varied form it was off to the city dump for some briefings.

Its easy to think that waste management might not be that interesting but as with all these visits once someone starts talking we suddenly become fascinated with the talk. Work on the site began after 250 people were killed in trash slide 11 years ago. The city council got involved and engineering solutions were put in place to ensure this wouldn’t be repeated. As with every initiative here the work being carried out is founded on extreme necessity and the risk of loss of human life giving each project an urgency that might not be found elsewhere.

Despite this there are ambitious plans for the future taking the project forward and including incorporating the government tree planting programme, an eco park and a housing scheme.

A large proportion of the waste is processed by hand with 490 trucks a day coming into the plant from around Quezon City. 8 groups of 75 scavengers  go through the waste sorting for reusable or recyclable materials. The workers are not paid and instead split the income from the materials that are sold from their work.

A savings scheme endorsed by the government is a rack of tiny piggy banks where once a week workers put in 15 pesos or more if they can afford.

Another income generator is the refuse derived fuel produced from the organic waste. James from Harrogate showed us round the plant in which the material is autosegmented before the metal is manually picked out. Organic waste is then baled and sold as fuel for use in place of fossil fuels. When James arrived in August last year the plant was non existent and has been designed, built and made operational in this time in an indication of how quickly things move here.

Similarly the Biogas project began 2008 and now has 90 gas wells over the site producing electricity for 3500 families and generating income for the city.

Although this is a government project there is still a CSR angle. This covers all the key areas and is delivered in partnership with their private sector partner. As with most we’ve seen so far there is a holistic approach covering education, livelihoods, housing and disaster management as well as healthcare and nutrition through the Patayas Poverty Alleviation Foundation.  

Welding courses are offered with employment opportunities with the private secor partner after completion and ‘jumpers’, the kids that climb onto rubbish trucks looking for things to sell have been organised into a football team to get them off the streets.

Another massive lunch and then onto a feeding programme (ironically) where the Rotary club hosting us have created a community corps with resident to create a partnership and feed the local children. Having picked up some tricks from the Aussies we took along sweets, pens, chalk and bubbles and were mobbed by the children once they realised what we had. After some awkward conversation where I tried miming to the kids and writing and drawing in chalk on the pavement they revealed they actually spoke perfect English and I think were laughing at me a little. Or a lot. Basically at four they can speak two languages and I couldn’t even remember the Tagalog word for pretty. 

Leadership skills and a month to remember

I’m not sure how it comes across in the blog but as well as being fantastic this trip has been bizarre. Simple things like staying in other people’s homes, spending massive amounts of time with team mates you’ve just met and having your photo taken about 100 times a day all contribute to this. It’s been great having the Aussie team around and meeting people here who’ve also done GSE and understand how intense it is.

The Australian team is on a slightly different programme and are called a Vocational Training Team rather than a Group Study Exchange team. They are all teachers and have had a more vocational focus including delivering workshops and sharing knowledge as well as the cultural aspects. It’s been really interesting to get to know them and see how they work as a team under their team leader Jacqui.

I seem to remember that part of this trip was about developing as leaders and watching how Jacqui has led their team has been really interesting. Being a bit bossy and a bit of a control freak it’s been great to observe such good leadership. From my perspective Jacqui has completely got the difference between leading a team and managing one. The team as a whole have a fantastic relationship and are close with them providing support to her as well as vice versa. It seems that respect built up between her and the team members has provided a great base for her to be able to lead effectively.

It would be easy in this stressful and alien situation to be issuing orders to get the team to do things but Jacqui has a great knack for just giving people the option to do the right thing. For example on the way up to Baguio not all the car seats had seatbelts as people often don’t bother with them here. Instead of telling her team they had to buckle up she just quietly arranged for them to get seats with belts available so they had the option should they want to.

Another example of the respect afforded to her team members is in her assumption that they will do the right thing. In Boracay we were on a night out and Kerrin went to let her know she was off to find a ‘comfort room’. Rather than lecturing her about not going off on her own or telling her to take someone with her she assumed that Kerrin would already have thought of this and that because I was standing nearby I’d be going with her (which I was).

There is some assumption on this trip that on our return we might join Rotary and some people we’ve had contact with have made us feel obliged to do so. Although clearly committed to Rotary and their work Jacqui has reassured us that this is not the aim of the trip and we shouldn’t feel under any pressure. She also allowed us and her own team space to not have to take Rotary so seriously even extending to the slightly drunken ‘Rotary meeting’ held on the beach in the dark complete with fake bell ‘dinging’ the meeting to order.

On this trip we are chaperoned pretty much 27/7 and it would be tempting as team leader to treat us like children on a school trip. Jacqui’s leadership is so effective in keeping her team on track and ultimately safe and I hope I can take back what I’ve learned from her and apply it at home. 

Big presentation and the governor's ball

The day of the big presentation dawned and I went down to the conference centre to catch the Aussie’s 9am slot. As always they gave an impressive performance although with it being their last day this had a sadder element than normal with the sections on their highlights drawing tears from three of the five team members.

Having sussed the logistics and picked up some tips for our own slot later in the day I headed back to the hotel for some finishing touches which turned out to be a complete rewrite as the WiFi failed to let us download Prezi at the last minute.

Blazers on and back to the auditorium for our slot. Excited by our surprise finale we scanned the audience for people we knew. The presentation went almost exactly to plan but sadly our final video – worked on until the early hours of the morning failed to play correctly. Luckily the audience didn’t know that we’d spent hours making the footage in time with the music and enjoyed it anyway.

Our first free time was unfortunately spent in a fruitless search for Dan’s iPhone before it was time to get ready for the ball.

Some faffing, photo taking and stops at the off licence made us pretty late an awkwardly there didn’t seem to be a table for us. However one was hastily put together and we made attempts to disguise the excessive amounts of wine by hiding half the bottles under the table. It being the Aussie’s last night we snuck out to get some group pictures taken of the 10 of us and get a final Gangnam filming in. Duties over it was back into the ball for some final ‘fellowship’.

As always entertainment was provided and it was lovely to spend time with my first host family, Dennis and Karen and also to see Dennis take part in the performance with his classmates. Never people to leave a party early we were the last to leave with our hosts from the first week, Camp Crame. It seems difficult to believe that a month ago we’d never even met these people and as it was when the Aussie’s left it will be sad to leave them. 

International relations and 'inspirational' speakers

Discon 2013 got off to an unexpectedly exciting start with a parade of various groups of Rotarians led in by men wearing traditional dress consisting of a piece of cloth barely covering their crotch and not covering their bums.

Concerned that we didn’t have enough time to have finished our presentation for the next day we were anxious to leave and get on with our work. After watching a lively dance display the urge to leave was increased by the guest speaker Dr Carl. His ‘inspirational’ speech was nothing of the kind and included some bady put together pneumonics.

The final insult was in his reference to Kristel Tejada a student at a Manila University who committed suicide due to being unable to afford her tuition fees. He used her death to illustrate his point on ‘Tenacity of Purpose’ – apparently she didn’t have any. Given how recent her death was and the likelihood that someone in the three hundred people watching knew her it seemed at the very least insensitive and at worst arrogant and condescending.

To give him the benefit of the doubt I will concede that I can’t confirm he didn’t know her and her family and have sought their permission to discuss her in this way. But I’m guessing he didn’t.

Anyway we were rescued by Dan and taken to see Sally and Homer on the family stall. After dressing up in some more traditional dress for a photo opportunity (over our suits) we had a quick break for some games before dutifully heading back to the hotel to finish our work.

Presentation almost completed it was a quick change and back out to the first fellowship event an ‘international evening’.  Held in a marquee behind the conference centre the ‘international’ element was in the form of fancy dress with clubs having a theme and a parade for best costume. The event got off to a shaky start when it was beginning to look like there was no bar. A quick surveillance exercise revealed that ironically the table dressed as Arabs were the only ones drinking wine.

Entertainment followed the parade and the Aussie team performed the coconut dance and held an auction to raise money for the district’s End Polio Now fund. Not wanting to be outdone we got up for some Zumba and with Natalie in the lead and her three uncoordinated back up dancers doing their best to keep up we led the room in some Zumba.

We were rescued from our ‘dry spell’ when one of the guys we’d been drinking with in Boracay with invited us to his table for some whiskey and soon the evening got into full swing as we caught up with people we’d met over the last three weeks and showed how Brits and Aussies can hold their own on the dance floor. Assuming that they consider enthusiasm to mean more than rhythm.

As my team mates went home early I stayed out with the Aussies and carried on the drinking with a nightcap with Steale at the piano bar in the hotel next door. Heading back to the hotel my knocking failed to wake Natalie and I had to seek the help of the night porter who showed massive concern at my having bare feet. He showed visible relief when we got to the bedroom door where I’d left my heels but sadly couldn’t open the door with any of his keycards. It took quite a bit more time before finally I was able to get in and get to bed.

Off to Baguio and a defeat for Dan's van

After the heat of Manila we're off to Baguio for the district conference. After some logistics by Dan G (our co-ordinator) and an extended breakfast in McDonalds we piled into his van with our luggage for the six hour drive. Always making use of our very scarce spare time we all got out or laptops, iPads and phones to get on with some blogging, photo sharing and work on the presentations.

After some stops for snacks and to use the 'comfort room' along the way we unloaded the extra Aussie team members into alternative transport so we could stretch out and headed for the mountains. The landscape here is spectacular with the steep mountains rising quickly out of the flat flat fields. As we'd all had a quick nap the sight of the mountains increased the enthusiasm although the 'cold' weather had not yet showed itself.

The mountain roads proved challenging to the van and despite a stirling effort it finally gave up and broke down  9km from Baguio. Luckily it chose a picturesque spot which handily had a snack stop and a store selling furniture which was an ideal place to have a light lunch (probably a snack by Filipino standards) provided by Marby, Natalie's host. As Dan G and the driver poured water into the overheated engine we made some attempts to befriend the child sorting runner beans and a younger observer. Sharing our lunch with them didn't seem to work neither did playing peekaboo or our attempts at Tagalog. Dan G explained that they didn't speak Tagalog (possibly why that wasn't  working) and that they were part of the indigenous population.

After our impromptu picnic the other van came to pick us up and we 'negotiated' Baguio's complex one way system with some complex moves including a three point term on a two lane one way street and some indecisiveness at a sign saying 'Turn right only' which involved a little reversing. The narrative throughout the journey was about the lack of a comprehensive driving test or licencing system in the Philippines and the possibility of paying for your licence if you fail the test. We also encountered what we thought to be our first roundabout - I hope it wasn't as we went round it the wrong way...

Instead of arriving at the hotel as we were expected we were delivered to a 50's diner for some mango shakes and confusion over transport arrangements with the Aussie team. Not wanting to miss out on the new 'set' we did some quick filming much to the amusement of the staff.

Arriving at the hotel the cooler weather made an appearance although our bags did not for some time. Always working hard we began filming and work on our presentation and worked long into the night albeit with a few beers to keep us company.

Special action forces and cheese

A change of pace today from housing to the Special Action Forces (SAF). Natalie and I got in a jeep driven by two uniformed police officers making us feel like celebrities and set off on the long trip the Philippine National Police camp where the SAF are based.

I don’t know whether it was our uniformed escorts but we were admitted to the camp with no checking of our identities or bags. There’s a law here making joking about terrorism an offence but it is difficult not to at times. The presentation on their work was a bit overwhelming for someone who knows very little about the SAS at home. Again the questions were tricky as we were presented with an impressive array of uniformed officers but thanks to Dan and Natalie we managed a good showing before getting off to some presentations of their skills.

First presentation slightly uncomfortable with some serious guns displayed on a table including a grenade launcher and some machine guns. Although it’s really interesting it’s easy to forget what these are actually used for and the situations that these people face in their routine work. It’s also difficult to forget some of the human rights issues I’ve heard discussed around the PNP and their practice although this seems ungrateful to the people who are giving up their time to show us around.             

 Next was the explosive sniffing dogs, their first ‘trick’ was finding the explosives under plant pots. To ensure a fair test the dog was taken away whilst the little pot (probably of actual explosive here!) was hidden. The dog was quick and efficient but even more impressive was the trick where he was able to pick out the pot that had had the explosive in it previously.

On to the unit shows and a great effort with a tank on show and two units in full uniform standing in the baking sun. Each team member introduced themselves and their roles – one of which seemed to mainly involve wearing an outfit resembling leaves. He seemed a bit bashful – I don’t know if they have to draw straws or something to decide who gets this position. Getting in next to them for the photos I asked one of them whether his assault rifle was loaded. He nodded smiled and encouraged me to stand closer. When he turned his back I did quietly step back a step away from the muzzle whilst the pictures were taken.

Photos taken with the tank and then off to the shooting range where they’d discussed letting us shoot all manner of weapons making me really nervous. Having never been to a shooting range before I don’t really have a point of reference but I would say security was lax. Bearing in mind they’d checked no ID there were guns, unloaded but with bullets on the table ready for loading. One alarming moment was when one of the Rotarians we were with picked up an M4 and started pretending to fire. I’m going to pretend she was sure it wasn’t loaded but I’m not sure that’s true.

Having expressed an interest in shooting I decided a handgun was as far as I was going and after no instruction I was pointed towards a target by a guy dressed in gym kit and given 17 shots. After realising I wasn’t going to accidentally shoot myself or anyone else it was quite fun although better if you try not to think about what they’re actually used for.

A quick round of burgers and then back in with our policemen for a trip to an organic farm. One of them Robert, had been on a the return leg of the GSE to the UK and understood how we felt so after showing us some sights told us to get a much needed hours sleep on the drive. At the farm our second lunch was organic  and accompanied by some slightly dubious medical advice. Its common here to not really know what in your food but the fruit salad at the end of the meal had something very strange in it. Waiting for a break in conversation to ask about this new and ‘interesting’ fruit I tried to work out what it was until Dan piped up with ‘Is there cheese in this?’ to which our host replied ‘Yes its organic cheddar’ as if it was completely expected. Getting down to the bottom of the bowl there was something that looked suspiciously like squid. Deciding that might be too much of a surprise I waited to check it was coconut before eating it!

Then off to a local police station where again open access to photograph logs of reported crimes, their paperwork and people in the cells. You haven’t felt uncomfortable until you’ve stood in front of prisoners in cells whilst the custody officer tells you what they’ve done. Basically within touching distance I wasn’t sure how close to get and was picturing the scene in Silence of the Lambs when she’s grabbed through the bars of the cell.

Anyway on from that mixed day to a lovely meal with my amazing host family who I’ve had such a good time with. It makes such a difference being able to come home, chat and feel able to relax and I really appreciated the chance to do this at Jorjie’s house with her family. 

Lessons in social media and community self sufficiency from MMDA

Back to 'reality'after our holiday and weekend off. Well the kind of reality where we get invited to meet the General Manager of the Metro Manila Development Agency in a room that looks more suited to a meeting of the UN. And a brass band meets us at the front door with some Katy Perry covers and Gangnam Style.

The scope of the MMDA (not to be confused with MDMA as this caused much amusement last night with my host family) is quite wide and includes seven key areas or mandates. However over all these areas the most interesting aspect for me is the use of social media. Here the matrix signs point motorists to a Twitter account for traffic updates and in a briefing on their work social media is discussed as a mainstream tool.

Like at Bolton at Home the comms strategy focuses in part on sharing the good work done by staff at the agency and communicating the key issues in a variety of ways to meet the needs of the younger audience As part of the drive to encourage good driver behaviour viral videos of road rage and bad driving are posted onto social media to show the public the kinds of situations the MMDA deal with every day.

In the control room a member of staff sits alongside the camera operators in the navigation sections to tweet congestion updates and suggest alternative routes in a truly integrated way of working. Response time is impressive with my thankyou tweet responded to within the hour and favourited shortly afterwards.

There is a lot of talk in housing about the need for management 'buy in' when implementing a social media strategy and this is more than evident here. During our briefing with some fairly high level operational staff social media was often raised as being key to their communication. Not only raised but discussed in the way that 'experts' do in the UK showing awareness of listening to customers and responding, engaging and responding promptly, creating conversations and trust and most of all having a sense of humour. If Bolton at Home directors could speak like this in a years time I'd be happy to have achieved something in my time there.

An example of the trust placed in the account is people tweeting crime and emergencies. Rather than telling the enquirer to go elsewhere their enquiry is instead passed to the relevant agency. This means they are seen as an authoritative source of information and raises their levels of repeat interactions. Perhaps something Bolton at Home could be looking at for their contact centre?

Not having had access to people anywhere near this high up in strategic development at home I guess I don't have a lot to compare the conversation to but it seemed that in this agency, as with others here in Manila, common sense ideas were implemented to provide cost effective solutions to the problems they face.

Their coding system for traffic is a great example. Faced with massively over populated and congested roads a solution is to ban 20% of the cars on each working day. So on Monday licence plates numbered 1 and 2 are not allowed to travel, on Tuesday 3 and 4 and so on. On Thursday the roads are particularly light as the Chinese population favour the plates with 7 and 8 on as lucky. This leads to increased demand for these and less traffic. (They estimate this is a 4% increase over the normal 20%)

I do have to say that almost every household I've stayed in has had a number of cars with different coding to avoid the ban. And many people I spoke to had ignored the ban and driven anyway. A great example of their Twitter skills though was given to me by my current host's daughter Reggie. Her friend had driven to work on a banned day and tweeted how happy she was to have made it through. MMDA replied saying they were glad she'd got to work on time but warning her she could be caught if she did it again.

Among other fascinating work one idea really stood out; the training of normal people in disaster response. We've already seen in communities children being taught to be first aid responders but this training extends further to cover how to deal with flooding, fire and earthquakes among other things. In a perfect example of the joined up thinking displayed here people who violate minor rules such as jay walking and cannot pay the fine are sent on this training instead.

As has been pointed out to me so many times we are lucky in the UK. We know we can call 999 and help will come. We know someone will be there to help if there is an emergency. But as we face further cuts to services maybe we should be looking further afield for how we can respond to this. Great initiatives such as this allow people to help themselves and their community and would work just as well in heavy snow or a power cut as they would in an earthquake.

Salubo at 4am and rice two ways for breakfast

Earliest start yet at 3.30am for my first Salubong (the encounter). 

Yesterday Virgin Mary was taken from the shrine next to the lounge at home and loaded onto a cart to be lit and beautifully decorated with fresh flowers before being safely stored away for her trip the next day. So after dinner and karaoke it was an ‘early’ night ready for the 3.30am start.

Which turned out to be more like a 3.50am start with just enough time to make myself look decent before meeting my host Jean and her daughters in the street to watch as the statue was slowly pushed up the street by the helpers as a few neighbours followed. My third cockroach passed in front of me but steeled by the previous day I stepped over and avoided a commotion.

The meeting place to ‘get behind’ Mary was the local Petron station where a larger crowd had gathered. Even at this ungodly hour (!) the butchers and veg stall was doing a roaring trade and trikes and vans were forced to manoeuvre their way around the cart. After my initial self-consciousness at being the token tourist I managed to get some bleary pictures (reflecting how I was feeling) and noted the irony as a member of the church carefully avoided stepping on a couple of homeless people sleeping on the street as he took pictures of the lavish float on his iPad.

At some unknown signal the cart was pushed off to meet the Jesus statue for the re-enactment of the resurrection. All I can say is that the service was in Tagalog, it was standing room only and it was 28 degrees at 5am.

On the way back there was some discussion around getting a trike for the 500m back to the house but after some jokes about Filipinos and walking we made the long walk home in time for breakfast of coloured rice cake and rice porridge in the street before home for a nap. 

Close encounter with nature

Another amazing day out with Sally and Homer and their kids. This time we went for a more relaxing take on volcanic activity with a trip to the Hidden Valley Hot Springs. We were warned there would be a hike up to the waterfall but as Filipino style hiking goes this was along a signposted walkway and only about half a kilometre easily done in flip flops, or slippers as we've now all begun to call them.

As you can see from the photos the scenery was stunning and jungle like bar the lack of any nasty creepy crawlies. The waterfall was worth the walk and we made our way up to underneath rescuing stray flip flops a they cam off on the rocks and got washed downstream. At this point Richard left the group and after few minutes of playing 'Where's Richard?' it was agreed we he's probably wandered off rather than perishing in the foot deep slow moving water. On the return journey was a bit of an 'incident' and some shrieking from Harvey and Sharney. Startled by the sudden attack by nature there was much commotion and thrashing of bags to remove the killer cockroach from Sally's back. Water bottles went everywhere and sun cream flew off the bridge until Dan stepped in to remove the completely harmless insect with his hand. Following his success he saved the empty sun cream bottle from the wilds of the grassy ditch and we carried on along the path unscathed.

After this deeply traumatic expedition we were forced to spend the rest of the trip relaxing in the many pools nestled in the forest. Starting in the unexpectedly warm 'cold' pool we moved on to the 'soda' pools, which to Richard's disappointment didn't taste like Fanta (Thanks again to Dan our resident taste tester of water pools) and finally to the 'warm' pools where little plumes(?) of warm water rose through the volcanic gravel of the pool floor. If you've not experienced it its a little like someone's had a wee in the water. But nicer because you know there is good bathroom provision and this is not the case.

As always we were delighted to see salad at lunch and stocked up on vegetables - before a quick dip and then back to Quezon City. Returning home to my host family the statue of the Virgin Mary was being decorated in preparation for the 4am procession followed by my first Catholic Mass. Looking forward to dinner with the family, karaoke and hopefully an early night before the early start tomorrow!

Planes, trucks, jeeps and boats

Off to Boracay for our mid tour ‘break’. Billed as paradise the reality was a long drive to the airport, an hour on the plane, an hour and a half driving and a boat ride to reach the island. This was followed by a cosy drive in a small van type minibus and a walk to the hotel. If you Google Boracay you’ll see what we were expecting and in reality the stunning scenery is set off by a strip of shops (including Starbucks and McDonalds) and music blaring from stalls along the front.

Children begging along the front remind you that you are still in a third world country and add that element of guilt at how privileged we are generally and to be here and treated so well by our hosts.

As with many of the things we do here there was a cloud of mystery around the plane / check in / airport protocol. The first checkpoint made sure you weren’t bringing guns into the airport. At check in it was decided we would not check bags and have two as hand luggage. A quick boarding pass check and we were in security. Where aerosols and liquids over 100ml were not allowed. Unless you had two aerosols in which case only one was confiscated or if you pleaded your case for being able to take shower gel and sun cream in which case you were told it wouldn’t be allowed next time.

I think we were all relieved at the plane being to quote the Aussie team ‘a proper size’ having heard some rumours about their airlines and talk of a ‘small plane’.

An inspirational vist to a Rotary housing project

All housing today with a trip to see Brookside, a joint development with the Rotary and Kawad Kalinga. Worlds away from the estates we see in the UK the exotic plants and palms were carefully planted between brightly painted houses and people worked alongside children playing in the street.

Residents pay around 300 pesos (£6) for their property and the land is owned by a church group.  There are community facilities on site with a library and boards in the public space showing the photographs of the area before the construction, through the build and now.

Work with the residents is continuous and residents can be removed for ‘antisocial’ behaviour. From what I understand this is largely governed by the religious principles of the site and grounds for eviction would be activities such as drugs and prostitution.

The school overlooks a wooden chapel and basketball court in the main area and is well kept. I was shown around by the Grade 6 teacher who had a great passion for the children and the work of the school later breaking down when she described her gratitude to the Australian team for their solidarity in the problems faced in the school. A great emphasis was placed on getting the children a good standard of education and parents pay a reduced 50 pesos a month (£1) and help out with cleaning and the cooking the breakfasts provided to give the children a good start to the day.

In 2009 the area flood waters rose over the roofs of the houses and families came to the first floor of the school for shelter. But the water rose higher and reached that level and children had to be passed along a rope to the community centre up the hill where they were safe. Families belongings brought to the school for safe keeping and the schools books and records were all destroyed. I notice now there are no offices on the ground floor. The local Rotary club worked with a sister club in Singapore to provide food for families over the two or three days it took for the floodwater to subside.

The teacher was genuinely proud as she told me how the solid construction of the houses in this project had meant that there had been no deaths from the flooding as there had been in other areas.

Like in Bolton work is being done to provide employment opportunities and income for families on the project. Following the flooding the sister rotary club in Singapore was keen to do more and with RC Holy Spirit they developed a scheme where women in the project were provided with materials to do quilting, candle making and sewing and now produce items to be sold in Singapore. This is a fantastic example of what rotary is like in Manila.

Projects here are targeted to meet specific needs in local areas and inventive sustainable schemes allow the work they do to have great long term effects. In principle they focus on the basics as we do, education, training and employment to allow people to lift themselves out of poverty. When they walk through the estates they are greeted by workers and the residents recognise the badge demonstrating what looks like a really meaningful relationship with the communities and their beneficiaries. 

Links are also maintained with the children through the Rotaract club within the school which is partnered with the club that supports the project.

If anyone does want to know more about this my driver from the host club, Angel, has offered to answer any questions I might have about their work. 

Hiking the Filipino way

Hiking in the Philippines involves getting up at 3am. After four hours sleep. A McDonalds McMuffin to give us some energy(!) and we’re off to Tagatay to the mountains. Having not really left Metro Manila before the trip up was great and the views down onto the lake spectacular.

Dan’s host family and their club had done a great job of planning every detail and leaving the car in a tiny village we set off with enough water for a few weeks and flip flops for the people living in the houses on the way up. It was pretty hot considering it was still only around 7am and our guide put us to shame as he ambled ahead over the rocks smoking.

By UK standards it wasn’t a hard walk although not good for the clumsy people with a fear of heights. The trek included 11 little peaks on the way to the final summit which did seem a bit daunting in the heat until we realised we’d skipped from 2 to 4 without noticing that we’d done 3!

Filipino climbing also involved a rest area about every half a kilometre in case you change your mind when you see the path presumably. There were some slightly hairy bits for those not accustomed to clambering over rocks although on the way back it emerged that there was actually another path. Perhaps our guide just fancied a laugh. On the way down he was seen miming someone falling over and laughing with his friends. As we’d all fallen at some point I won’t take that too personally.

I think the only way to describe the scenery is through the pictures below and to say that my photography skills don’t anywhere near do it justice.

By the bottom we were all covered in the orange dust, fingernails, legs, face and later discovered inside my socks. Dan’s host Sally had arranged for us to take a ‘bucket shower’ in the outhouse of a house in the village and we did our best to get looking respectable before lunch and the new host families.

Lunch overlooking the lake was another overwhelming feast of Filipino dishes although I think we are all getting better at taking very tiny amounts of food so you don’t have to refuse second, third or fourth helpings. And revitalised by our fresh air and exercise we even managed to work on our secret project for our presentation. All will be revealed (technology allowing) later. 

Fiesta at a housing project and gangnam style the Filipino way

A slightly hungover start to Saturday with another early start. At breakfast in Jollybee (Filipino McDonalds) I knocked over two juices, a coffee and my pancakes. A promising start to the day as we discussed the traditional games we’d be playing later. I hoped they wouldn’t require too much coordination!

Today’s activity was a fiesta at a housing project on a relocation site in San Matteo outside the city. The informal settlers are encouraged the leave the city slum areas and are provided with a house in return for 500 hours labour. Schools and community spaces are built and a livelihood provided in the form of a mango grove. With mains electricity not available in the local area power is provided through solar panels on the roofs of the homes.

Getting out of the car the second thing you notice after the scorching heat is the stunning panoramic view of Metro Manila. Our guide told us that next to the site millionaires pay above the odds for the privilege of having this view.

Workers from one of the partner organisations Christians for Christ mix easily with the families who welcomed us into their houses to show off their carefully put together interiors. Constructed of concrete blocks and Styrofoam the units come finished with a  white painted cement interior and brightly painted outside in a terrace formation. Each consists of one room and a small kitchen area and bathroom to the back.

One owner, a carpenter, had, in his spare time, constructed an intricate shelving system that wouldn’t be out of place in an English country kitchen and the living area had been painted bright blue to match the exterior. All the properties were immaculately kept and tide. Richard, off meeting the voters had made a friend whose mother was providing the rich rice cakes for the fiesta and the whole room was covered in wide plates containing the carefully decorated cakes.

The development is not a government one and is a partnership project with Rotary, ANCORP (I’ll try and remember what that stands for) and Couples for Christ.

After a minor panic from our team leader when we once again lost Richard (he was of course in someone’s house chatting) the fiesta kicked off with a brief introduction to the project and thanks to all the partners involved. Some traditional Filipino dancing was performed by students from a local school and included one that involved balancing on an upright piece of bamboo – not exactly easy on the uneven ground but they persevered and didn’t let it get out of time.

The majorettes performed what we at first thought to be local music played on drums but later we recognised Katy Perry’s ‘Fireworks’ and the Gangnam Style dancing. Dan went down well with the female dancers although was oblivious to the attention he was getting!

I was lucky enough to be able to go with my hosts to their daughter, Ella’s graduation – at three! It was a wonderful experience although the logistics of lining up small children on the stage and getting them to follow direction looked challenging to say the least. The graduation ceremony as we would expect, complete with caps and gowns, was followed by some musical numbers recognisable as the end of term play we’d see at home. Although with it being ‘more fun in the Philippines’ there was a great emphasis on the fun and a fantastic showing from the parents with the retro dancing.

Afterwards some more photos and then off for a ride in a Kalasa (apologies on spelling) with Kassie. It’s so good that the girls have finally started to open up to me, my knowledge of Disney princesses is much improved, and its such a shame that I have to leave so soon.

My final meal with my hosts where unfortunately I was dropping off slightly on the energy levels and worrying about my 3am start was a great finale. Going to the fish market, selecting the fresh fish from the stalls, choosing your cooking method and eating in a canteen style restaurant was fantastic. The food was amazing and as always there were vast amounts with the leftovers taken home for tomorrow. On the way home it was maybe the tiredness or I just genuinely couldn’t believe that after the amount of food anyone would want to go for ice cream. But this is Manila so we did.

As I packed to go to my next host I was further overwhelmed by receiving gifts from hosts that have already been so generous. The hospitality I have had this week has been amazing. I would like to say a massive thankyou to my wonderful hosts for the first week for making me feel so at home and welcome in their home. It was sad to leave and I am already looking forward to seeing them again at the district conference. 

Philippine National Housing Authority, tree planting and a much needed night out

Our first all female club were a stylish group and we went to the National Housing Authority to find out about their work with the housing projects.

I have to say when I got back to my host family for a one hour ‘rest’ before heading out to see some nightlife (which I have to say I did request) I was struggling to write this post. Even though what we’re seeing here is amazing it feels like writing doesn’t do it justice. Either that or I need a few beers and a quick dance before I can write.

So on the way home from the bar with Dennis and Karen he asks how my day was at the National Housing Authority. As he works there he knew when I described my hosts office that he was in fact the head of the organisation. When he mentioned him having he trust of the president further questioning revealed the man I had been given more than two hours with was actually the man for housing in the Philippines.

Sadly not being armed with this knowledge and having already been to see the city planning authority a lot of my enthusiasm was used up and although I managed to cover the causes of housing issues, their work, architecture, social mobility, customer engagement, planning legislation, rent collection, partnership working, breeze blocks, welfare reform and incest I wish I’d had some more intelligent questions.

As everyone here is too polite to wind up a conversation when your time is up by the time I left there was a queue of five people outside waiting. Still I managed to go from the economics of urban migration to the provision of piggy banks so feel I’ve at least got the main points.

After the first vegetarian meal of the trip and some heated discussion around whether my job was pointless and the major issues facing the recruitment problems Rotary have in the UK (maybe related to people thinking my job is irrelevant?) we went on to meet someone in the Department for the Environment and Natural Resources. Again slightly underprepared as a group we managed to pull together what I hope were some passable and meaningful questions. As always the conversation was fascinating despite the pressure to come up with intelligent points on a subject I’d struggle to discuss in the UK. Richard of course saved the day after seeming not to be listening he piped up with questions that sounded well prepared and thoughtful. 

A brief trip and presentation at the tree planting headquarters allowed us to do some planting of saplings in the type of token gesture / photo op sequence favoured by politicians. Some shaking of muddy hands later and our duty was done. 

On the way home I went for my first pearl milk tea with the ladies from RC Acropolis and then off for some drinks at the Rotary Centre with my host family (adults only) and then to watch and try some salsa dancing. Try being the operative word for everyone except Natalie! After our brief and slightly inept performance we went outside for pictures to discover that footage from the dance floor was being streamed throughout the hotel... one to remember for next time!

Mobile surgery, home for 'foundlings' and spa

A move away from housing and tourism to some of the projects today’s host club are involved with; a school, mobile surgery and home for abandoned children.

After feeling very guilty about not being able to finish the second breakfast of the day provided by our hosts at the school we had a tour. Children are on summer break now but we met some by the gate and Richard was able to get his politician’s handshake out. Not sure the handshake went down that well with the baby!

A great innovation from the club is a mobile surgery housed in a shipping container. Two patients can be treated at once using a special local anaesthetic and we were invited into the operating room to see how it works. Not all of us were that comfortable watching the live hernia surgery especially as the child was awake and not looking all that keen to have us there. Her sister was in the waiting area looking very well especially as it emerged that she had only just left surgery herself for the same thing. The type of hernia is apparently common in malnourished children and there is a lot of need in the area for this type of operation.

Another quick stop to get involved in some campaigning going on behind the theatre and yet more photos taken.

Boystown, the home for ‘foundlings’ was a trip back to Marikina City where my host family live. Rundown but well kept and clean I think meeting these children has had the biggest impact on everyone so far. Following Dan’s lead we got in and talked to the kids who were shy at first but then keen to ask questions although sometimes in Tagalog and I’m not sure they understood why we couldn’t answer. Getting the camera out was the biggest hit and my deputy photographer did a very good job despite wanting to get me in the pictures.

More photos and a demonstration of their superiority in doing  Gangam style we had a quick tour of their sleeping quarters and the work the Rotary have done in improving the home.  There are around 40 children living in the area for boys under 6 and a home of this type in every city around Manila. In total around 300 children live in this home. Back in the car I think we were all fighting back tears as we pulled away but luckily Dan was there to make us laugh or in my case just confuse me.

Our schedule for the afternoon changed and instead of visiting their centre for children involved in criminal proceedings we went to the spa. Not sure we felt entirely comfortable with the contrast but were soon distracted by a very vigorous Thai massage which involved being hauled over the head of the masseuse and suspended over the floor. A bit of a shock when all she’d said she was doing was stretching my arms!

A much appreciated opportunity for beer, shower and change of clothes before the club meeting with the day’s host club and their baby club, that of my host Dennis. A lively meeting and a much improved presentation with the inclusion of some of Natalie’s zumba moves to give people a break from endless powerpoint. 

Housing projects, construction elevators and being outdone by the Australian team

A lie in until 7 it was off for our first day of ‘real work’ and Ed from the Camp Craume club took me to the Urban Planning department where they gave us a faultlessly relevant presentation on their housing plan and projects. (You will later see why this was impressive)

Great to see what they’re up to and the process of providing ‘socialized’ housing in the city. The focus is on areas where there are Informal Settler Families (ISF) and ‘blighted’ areas. Some polite questioning revealed these were what we would call slum areas. Housing projects are developed by the city in these areas in partnership with other bodies for the finance and development and involves use of charities such as Habitat for Humanity.

Instead of renting people are assessed on their ability to take out a 40,000 peso mortgage and make the 2500 (£50) peso a month repayments. This is affordable to street vendors, drivers and other workers making around minimum wage. No benefits back up the system and if you are living in a slum that is being developed and can’t afford to pay you can choose to be relocated to a cheaper development paying around 200 peso a month or find another vacant lot to rebuild. Relocation areas are generally further outside the city and further from jobs, schools and their communities. A lot like our overspill estates really.

When housing is allocated there is no points based system. If you are an existing occupant on the site you have priority, then those in danger zones, those affected by government infrastructure projects and then those whose homes have been demolished. Although many people in the slums are undocumented city surveys provide evidence on these claims.

Housing projects are championed by the current major who’s nickname is Bisket – hence the housing projects being named Bisketville 1 -12. Perhaps a naming system we should be looking into for our developments?

Quickly back to the police headquarters where Natalie and Dan were on their visit and some great discussion with Ed on social issues and what exactly my job involves. Too much good food again followed by birthday cake and plans for nights out then off for the afternoon visits.

After making it clear that if there were any more trips to the firing range I’d want to be involved first stop was one of the housing projects from the presentation and a slightly voyeuristic photo taking session of people living in slum housing. Then on to one of Eds projects, a high end apartment development. As we went up the first few flights of stairs some jokes were made about using the construction lift and when we left the stairwell to use the car parking ramp I was very relieved.

Sadly this was just the way to the lift, for those that haven’t seen its basically a lift with no walls, shaft or enclosure over the top that climbs precariously up the side of the 36 floors. To prolong the stress we had to wait a good 10 minutes for the lift operator by which time I’d had time to assess the situation as being less than felt safe! Eyes glued to the floor and holding on tight the worst part was stepping over the gap to the 34^th floor, the two flights of unfinished stairs (and climbing through scaffold on breeze block stands) to the roof and the two flights of open tread stairs to the top of the plant room.

Admittedly Ed was right and the view was stunning, a 360 view on Metro Manila. Lots of photos were taken and the only way to do this justice. On the way down he tells me the previous GSE team had refused to go up. If only I’d realised that was an option!

Back to police headquarters for a museum trip and the surreal experience of 5 police officers photographing us next to some mannequins then our first multi club rotary meeting.

Our presentation went OK until we saw the Australian team’s one  and a brief intro to us and our vocational areas was put to shame by one of the club’s rendition of a Filipino love song complete with handing out roses in the club pink to us at the end. An auction for the End Polio Now campaign was livened up by Steale’s Greek dancing, Natalie’s zumba solo and then a poor attempt at our whole team zumba(ing?). Definitely a lot to learn from the Aussie teachers on engaging an audience!

At the meeting Dan our fixer was worried I had not made today’s vocational visit. I explained how good it had been and how well it worked out. Apparently it was not the Urban Planning department I was supposed to meet but the Department for the Urban Poor.

Hats off to the planning department for their ability to whip together a presentation and pretend they expected me all along! 

Flag raising, meeting the major and Rotary Hour

Our first proper day began with a very early start. (although apparently 5am is normal to allow Filippinos to get through the traffic to begin work at 8). The flag raising ceremony at City Hall was attended by hundreds of workers in their purple shirt uniforms and we were ushered onto the stage as the mayors guests with our host families.

This ceremony takes place every Monday morning and included and address from the Chairperson on Women and Family Relations which I think was linked to women’s month being celebrated here at the moment. A documentary filmaker was awarded a scroll and the best performing TB task forces were presented with certificates. As the ceremony was almost entirely in Tagalog it wasn’t always that easy to understand the standing up / sitting down / applauding ettiquette but as we were on the second row I hope the crowd didn’t notice our confusion.

When the mayor arrived on stage I think he was slightly overlooked by the UK team who were expecting him to be older and more formally dressed. No suits, chain or minder here, just a youthful looking man in his early 40s happy to be sorting his own chair out for the signing of a paper on TB. Perhaps our mayors could pick up some tips here although perhaps it is representative of the younger demographic; 40% of the Quezon City are under 20.

After a short breakfast where I managed to knock the table and spill four cups of coffee simultaneously onto the white table cloth it was off for tours of the memorial and museum (I’ll get Dan to write something interesting about the architecture here as he completely outdid me on this)

A whirlwind tour with our host club South Triangle included a drive round the university where there was a student demonstration about tuition fees following the suicide of a student over this recently and lunch in a rice restarant where we has (I later discovered from my host) what basically is pork scratchings in blood. I’ll have to check the details on this but tasted good before I knew what it was!

It was then off to UNTV to film a segment for the ‘Rotary Hour’ programme. It was the first outing for our formal group uniforms (yes that is the blazers and no there are no pictures) and I think given that we weren’t given any advance warning of the questions I think it went pretty well. Dan the ‘media face’ of policing and Richard’s smooth policians answers definitely helped us out.

Final trip of the day was to the mall and for a type of exercise I seem to remember being described as ‘mall walking’ in Modern Family. The malls are endless and include every shop you would see on the British high street and I imagine every chain you’d find in the US as well. If you’re struggling on scale think of the Trafford Centre stacked over 5 floors with a fairground in the top.

Tomorrow a lie in for a 9am start and a cultutural tour.