Oh, and once again...you should also look at Kayla and Lindsey's blogs...because they have better pictures than me...and tell some creative stories. =)

Travel!

Here's the group of us who traveled up to Sagada. Myself, Lindsey, Melinda, Kayla and Sharon. These are the awesome ladies I will be mostly working with the next few months.





This is in Banaue, where the huge rice terraces are. These terraces are about 2,000 years old, and they have all been made by hand, by the tribal people who have lived in these mountains for years. They have been called the 8th Wonder of the World.

We drove to Banaue in a big bus,overnight from Manila, and then took a jeepney from there to Sagada...about a 3 hour trip. The jeepney is the way to travel up there, because you can really appreciate the incredible views.
Here's my Gatorade advertisement...=) I didn't do it on purpose, but I pulled it out to take a drink, and it just fit.

Hanging coffins

This is in the cave in Sagada. It's about an hour trip through the cave, and you go through water, and through a few small spaces, and then some bigger ones...it's beautiful. You hire a guide to take you through, and they have their oil latern and a rope, and they take you through it. Our guide has been doing this for 12 years, and you can tell he likes it. Most of the rock in the cave is sandstone I believe...so it is not slippery, and as you walk your feet can grasp it really well. We had our shoes on for the descent into the cave, and then you take them off for the next part where you go through water and get very wet. There is also a pool you can jump into and swim in, and we did that also.
I had gone through the cave a couple of years ago, when I was here before, so I knew what to expect, and I think I was able to enjoy it a bit more also. =)

Sagada is a beautiful little mountain town, that has a lot of tourists come through, but it is not very commercialized, and it's really peaceful and green.
We stayed one night in Baguio City on the way bag, and were able to pick fresh strawberries right from the field. That northern region of the Philippines is where most of the produce in the country comes from, and this is the season for strawberries! They were really wonderful, and it was so much fun.
Here's a shot of the jeepney that we rode to Sagada in. We had stopped on the side of the road to take some pictures of the view.
And these are the hanging coffins. Some of them are very old, and some more recent. It's a tribal tradition for the old people who die to be put up this way.

so long since....

So, I am slightly embarassed that I have not updated in so long. =) It's been an incredibly busy three weeks. The new midwives have arrived, we have done orientation, and moved to Manila, and now are in the middle of a rotation at one of the largest maternity hospitals in Asia. I haven't had much time for more that what it takes to live day to day. It has been a bit fun to be back in Manila, and to be able to go to the theater and see movies, and get ice cream when I want to. =)
I'm really glad to be here. There are neat things happening.

Since I haven't been updating, I thought I would send you to Kayla and Lindsey's blogs, because they have been updating....
Kayla's is, www.kaylamontana.blogspot.com
Lindsey's is, www.lindseyregehr.blogspot.com

I will do another update soon!
Much love