Manila, Philippines

Its long overdue but I wanted to update everyone on my first trip to the Philippines. For the past few trips everyone has been telling me I have to get to Manila and finally the opportunity has come and I am so grateful. Never having been in the Philippines I didn't know what to expect, but I was amazed with the friendliness of the people and the beauty of the country. Metro Manila is made up of 13 cities, which combined is what people think of when they think Manila. While in the country we visited, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City, Binan, Brentwood, Makati and Manila. More than any other place I have been to the counselors at schools in Manila are here to stay. Unlike other cities the counselors describe Manila as maybe not a fun place to visit but a wonderful place to live. While I disagree with the first statement the second one is obvious as most of the counselors and teachers at the schools visited have been here 8, 10, or 38 years! While there might not be a lot of cultural or historical things to do in Manila, the city is a wonderful place to explore. One of the most shocking things about the city to me was that everyone spoke English! I mean everyone from the hotel staff to the taxi drivers, police officers and beggars. I have never been in a country like this where english is more widely spoken without being the official language. This added to the ease of travel and the stress of explaining directions. While Manila may not have many cultural opportunities we were still able to have fun! On day one we were asked by one of the counselors at our first school visit to participate in a full 90 minute, 11 on 11 soccer match against the varsity team. Being an international school the teams don't play too many matches against other schools and to start out they work up their skill and training by playing an aging staff team (which I was thoroughly a part of). While it was literally breath-taking it was also a lot of fun.



Finally our last night in Manila, Tom and I did get to have a little fun, we were able to fit in a round of golf at one of the best courses I have ever played in. Club Intramuros is an 18 hole golf course built into the relics of the old Spanish fort on Manila harbor. The walls of the fort acted as the boundaries of many holes and certain buildings throughout the compound added to the "hazards" along the way. It was also a unique experience because for the first time ever I played with a caddie who carried my clubs and made suggestions on each of my shots. It definitely was a fun way to end our time in Manila, up until the 15th hole when the nightly downpours began and unfortunately I had forgotten my umbrella! Fun times in Manila and I can't wait to return!

Back To Asia! Again...

Well its been a while since my last post, but its the time of year for me to return to Asia for my annual fall recruitment trip. Stops on this trip include: Taipei, Taiwan; Manila, Philippines; Yangon, Myanmar; Seoul, S. Korea; Tokyo, Japan; Jakarta, Indonesia; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Singapore; Bangkok and Phuket, Thailand; Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam; Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Shanghai and Beijing, China. This year I have decided to not do a marathon run of 8 straight weeks, instead I'll be spending 3 weeks in Southeast Asia and coming home for a bit before returning to Asia for 2 weeks in China.

I started my trip with a whirlwind tour of Taipei spending the beautiful hot and humid day in downtown Taipei. As usual my trip didn't last long as I spent less than 24 hours in the city. I always enjoy my trips to Taiwan but they are never long enough!

I am now in Manila for the first time ever looking forward to spending the next 2 days exploring a new city! From what I have seen so far it is a beautiful country and reminds me a lot of Bangkok, Thailand. I was really surprised to find out that while Tagalog is the official language EVERYONE speaks English which makes it really easy to get around.

Another new addition for this trip is my travel companions as I will be doing all my visits with other schools. This is always fun and makes it easier to explore new cities with friends.

I'll do my best to keep you updated on my travels and hope to have some pictures up soon!