After a great visit from the family, I settled back into working a normal work schedule without holiday parties every week. I have been teaching more and more and am now pretty confident in front of the class. As I teach though I realize how little grammar I retained from all my years of living in the States. The English language is tough, there are rules but then there are always exceptions which make no sense at all.

My students studying outside after being kicked out of our classroom.

I have been lucky enough to get free internet from Harold a local neighbor who owns a hostel around the corner from my house. There have been many Skype sessions with Nuni, Malia, Josh, Mara, Uncle and Aunt Julie. If anybody has Skype addresses look me up and we can chat. There is something about seeing people while you are talking that is reaffirming, especially seeing little Malia who has lots to say but not necessarily in conversation format.

Harold and Blessie

I am still tutoring my elementary girls at Little Children of the Philippines twice a week and loving it. The love that these girls share with me every time I see them melts my heart.

Glad to know that I am not the only one with a mustache here.

I got to go to a Rotary Dumaguete social with my old host family the Amasulas. It was a night of catered food, lots of attempts at entertainment and dancing the night away. Caloy and Babie were the stars of the floor with their boogie woogies and cha chas. An inspiration to all to be as healthy and stylish on the dance floor at their age. I also got to sit in the same room as the big Kahuna's here in dumaguete like the mayor, the governor, and all those other important higher ups who would normally not pay me any mind, but since I was with Rotary I got recognized......thank you Rotary! Caloy and Babie dancing it up!

There was also an unexpected trip to Sagay (North Negros) for a family reunion of my current host mom. Evelyn and I were persuaded in a five minute conversation to join Mrs. and Mr. Sison on their trip. An air-conditioned van had been rented and hotel rooms already booked we just needed to pack our bags and we were off. The North of this island is mostly sugarcane fields as their are two refineries in the town we were in. The landscape is vast plains filled with sugarcane and huge mountains towering over them in the distance. Mrs. Sison and I at the reunion.

Summer vacation is fast approaching here in Dumaguete with my birthday, April 7th, being the last day of school. There are a few things lined up this summer like a trip to the White Sand beaches on the other side of the island, around the island teacher trainings, a language camp with Peace Corps to refine my skills, and lots of beach time.

I’m planning on moving to a new apartment this week. I’m psyched to have my own place, cook my own food and not live with any animals (I live with five dogs, one crazy cat, and a few neighborhood rats and cockroaches). I will have an extra room so when you all come visit you can stay with me. I also have a little gardening space to work with and a beach about 300 yards down the road.

The best picture of my new place, dog not included.

I’ve been slowly creating a community here. Larissa is a doctoral student from The University of Illinois at Chicago who is here doing Archeological field work for a few months. I get to help her out on a few excavations here and also with some oral interviews of the Indigenous people here, the Aetas. There is also Andrea a Peace Corps volunteer working in Coastal Resource Management who comes down from her town a lot and stays with me and vice versa. Evelyn is another Peace Corps volunteer who is satying about 45 minutes north of here so she comes to the city to hang out a lot also.

Larissa (Anthropology doctoral student) from Chicago, Andrea (Peace Corps), and Evelyn (Peace Corps)

I took part in a feeding program last weekend with Harold and some of his guests. We went to another Peace Corps Barangay (neighborhood) and brought breakfast. We were an instant hit with the kids. Here are some of our fans.Harold's feeding program, barangay Talay

I hope you are all doing well, much love to you from the Philippines!