Santo Domingo Orchards & More (Weeks 1)

Last post's summary would be that we didn't have much going on besides a major hunting experience. First for a place to stay and then for food. In the morning the troubles were forgotten. We had spent so much time looking for food the night before and mostly finding places that were closed; we knew just the place to go for breakfast. After food and some texts with the Farm owner, we just had to wait for a ride. A sleek silver truck pulled up and after a few looks back and forth we hopped in. I'm always excited to meet knew people, but I like to give myself a chance to figure out my impression of them before I let them drive me off somewhere. I usually can determine if someone is trust worthy after a few moments and a good look into their eyes...or just the one if that's all they have, which wasn't the case this time.

Mr. De La Paz or Mr. P, which I've never used until now, asked us the basics about our life and what we'd like to do on his farm. Maybe it was the heat, just waking up, or something I'm not aware of but I was drawing a lot of blanks about his farm at the time. After some inside information on their operations, Meg and I got an idea of what we wanted to do and what we could do. Helping with a banana harvest sounded excellent! The rest of the to-do items where to be determined.

The place we were staying at was amazing! The place was a bamboo/cement palace...okay, I'm exaggerating, but look at these photos!

And check out the plant life all around!

I believe this is the finished flower bed...we only planted the seeds, so no flowers yet.

Another bit of the lower bed before it was finished.

And look at some fun videos!

   

While I don't appreciate the “sport” of Cock Fighting, being next to a large Cock Fighting training ground was both noisy but also very cool to see all of the birds in person.

The first week was mostly spent figuring out the flow of the farm and what we were capable of doing. I learned a lot and I found my passion for farm work. I find something so rewarding in growing food. The something could be knowing that you helped feed someone by your hard work, not sure although it is a great feeling.

Hanging with Mr. P was both informative and fun. It was really nice to have some in-depth conversations. I love talking with Meg but a little tech, nerd, and geek talk is needed in my life :) Super nice guy and very generous. I'm not sure I can say enough nice things, but I have one more post on this farm, so I'm sure I'll have more opportunities!

Being on the farm was also a great experience because I had the privilege of talking with the other local farm hands and getting an insight into their life and dreams. Also, they helped make a mean/great papaya shake!

Hanging out with everyone after hours was a blast. On the night before their day off and after dinner, we'd gather at a near by home. Once the TV and speaker system was pulled outside, we Video-oke'd it up! Video-oke is the same as Karaoke, but people in the Philippines call it Video-oke.

By the end of the week I hadn't written much, but I had made some great friends and memories. The best part was I had another week there!

Oh, and here are some random ones from around the farm:

Everyone crowding around to look at the photos we took :)

Tip for the Day: Work on a farm for at least a week. It is an experience you need at least once in your life. Food doesn't get to your table by magic.

Cebu to Bago City

Coming from Manila to Cebu doesn't take long. Clocking the flight, it takes less than three hours but I remember it taking about two hours. From the airport we caught a cab to the house we would stay at. We stayed with a couple and their last name was North. The Norths were warm and very welcoming. We had a gracious meal and did some laundry. The next morning we were given a ride to the bus terminal.

Finding the bus to Bacolod was a breeze but had to wait to buy our tickets until comfortably in our seats. Luckily, the bus was almost empty on the way to the ferry. Meg and I played cards and listen to audiobooks. Before we got to the ferry the bus stopped and let everyone out for food. The line was so long that I had barely eaten half of my food before I was forced to abandon everything, because the bus was leaving. I made haste to the bus, as it was doing a stop and go routine that I'd seen before, which was bus-sign language for, “hurry up or I'll leave you!”

We made it to the ferry and had to get out again to purchase the terminal fees, which is common at ferries and airports, and usually isn't more than 100 P (about $3 USD). The ferry wasn't bad at all. There was a first class section to the ferry, which had air conditioning, and an economy section with long benches, such as those at some churches. Additionally, there was a mid-range ticket that we purchased and these tickets left you with your own bed to lay in or lounge how you please. Meg passed out shortly after laying down and I enjoyed the breeze, the sun, and some Harry Potter on audiobook. I believe I was into my 2^nd or 3^rd Harry Potter book at this point. After the ferry, we piled back into the bus and had picked up a few people at the port as the bus now became much more full.

Arriving into the Bacolod bus terminal in the late evening and with a few places for the night as options already picked out, we went to task on locating them and choosing one. None of our first picks that came from a guide book were very nice and some even had a pungent smell of mold. We walked around aimlessly and asked a few locals. We were coming up with null. Meg remembered a hotel we had passed on the tricycle ride to the first hotel that we had checked out. A new search began with the night fast approaching, and in the end we found a winner.

Dropping our things off at the place (Blue Roof Inn – Pension House) we'd found to be nice, comfortably cheap, and acceptably clean, we then headed out for a spot of food. Finding a place to eat was an equally time consuming task as we couldn't make up our minds on what we wanted, what was an acceptable price, and a restaurant that was still open. Some time later and hunger gnawing at us, we gave up and landed in a restaurant with no glee or smiles on our faces at the choice of the place.

Leaving the restaurant with our bellies full, we tackled one of the markets to get some mangoes and bandannas. With fresh fruit for the morning and no more choices to make for the night, we called it a night. The next morning we just had to wait for a ride to the farm that we'd be working on for the next two weeks.

Tip for the Day: Don't assume your shoes are up to snuff for a big hike or long walk without having given them at least a test run or two...your feet will be better off.

Just a short clip of some neat art while traveling on the bus: