A bit of what I did and a little of what I can't wait to do.

The past two weeks haven't even felt like I'm traveling in another country. Being with family friends, who might as well be family, has really spoiled me and given me the taste of home I needed. Not even to mention that I'm living seven times as nice here as I would be in Maiden or in Raleigh!!

A quick (or attempt at quick) update on my/our time in the Philippines...
Well you know that Mama and Daddy flew out here last Saturday to share in this leg of the adventure with me. It was a wonderful reunion!!

Sunday and Monday were a mix of relaxing and shopping. You need the former to be able to do the latter- shopping at markets is hard work and wears me out even faster than shopping in America!!

Tuesday we got a tour of the U.S. Embassy. Unfortunately, they don't allow picture-taking inside (you know, top secret stuff ;P) but it was really cool to see the original arts of the "Chancellory" which is the original part of the building that withstood the war.

Wednesday we (John, Rosario, Mama, Daddy, and I) went to Tagaytay and hiked up to Taal Volcano. Taal is an active volcano in the middle of a lake with a lake in side of the volcano itself. Dad and John and I did the 4.5 kilometer hike up- and when I say up I mean UP. Mom and Rosario rode horses and met us at the top. The view was beautiful and well worth the hike. On the way home we stopped at some fruit stands so Mama and Daddy could see it and taste some of the local fruits. Rosario got us all sorts of free samples and we managed to bring home a could grocery bags of mangosteen, lancones, pineapples, and mangoes.

Thursday was a failed attempt to go to the market just the McChavez' (we talked Rosario into letting us navigate Manila on our own so we could have an outing just the 3 of us). Since the Philippines is such a heavily Catholic country, almost all places are closed during Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Sunday- who knew??
On Friday all of us, including Johnny, went to Pampangas to watch a reenactment of the Crucifixion- nails and all. I wasn't sure what I was getting myself into. John knows some important people so we got escorted by a PNP (Philippine National Police). On the way to San Fernando where the "play" actually takes place, there were lots of guys walking along the streets whipping themselves. Their backs were all bloody- apparently they do it every year to repent for sings and show thankfulness for God's blessing. Talk about an intense introduction to this experience!! The PNP pulled a few more strings and got us into the VIP section so we got to watch the play close up from under a tent. Like I said, living the high life over here. For the first two hours, it consisted of the guys whipping themselves coming up to the crosses at the top of the hill to lay down and pray before joining the crowd. Finally just before 2 pm, the "guards", "Mary", "the 2 thieves", and "Jesus" came to the crosses. The 2 thieves were tied to their crosses and once everything was ready, they literally put nails through the hands and feet of the guy playing Jesus. He stayed like that for maybe 10 minutes while the play continued. Finally one of the guards removed the nails and they rushed the man to meet the EMTs waiting with a stretcher so they could do their thing and get him better. It was a great thing to see once- very powerful- but the fact that lots of people treated it as a tourist attraction, taking pictures with the actors and buying souvenirs, really bothered me. However, I did make a friend (shocker I know). She is Japanese and our conversation started because she commented that we both were wearing Chacos. Who knew that shoes could be such a bonding opportunity?? (all of you Teva haters keep your thoughts to yourselves)

Saturday all of us, without Johnny this time because he had a soccer tournament, went to Batanngas to spend the day at the beach. We ended up getting to go to this small island with just a couple groups of people. We snorkeled with our own gear and saw all sorts of things- blue starfish, dragonfish, eel, clown fish, etc. Basically like being in Finding Nemo :) We were the last people to leave the beach that day and Captain Sammy took us back to the main island on a bangka (a little boat) that I thought might flip every time we hit even the smallest of waves.

Easter Sunday consisted of noon mass at their church, a much needed trip to the grocery store and a frantic search for a spare key when we found ourselves locked out of the condo with a bag full of ice cream.
Today was some last minute shopping, lunch at Subway (just for comparison purposes... American Subway is MUCH better), packing and getting ready to board a plane in 12 hours.

Being gone for 5 months has given me plenty of time to think about all of the things I miss and have grown to appreciate in the States. I didn't want to let myself dwell on them too much until I was close to coming home in order to avoid any unquenchable yearnings. I figured since I'll be home tomorrow, now's a good time to share...

Things I Miss Most About Home (in no particular order)

people obviously.

drinking water from the tap

being able to understand everyone, even strangers (language wise)

meet & greet time at FUMC- Maiden

chicken salad

Redbox

Southern accents

Jason's Deli

cooking

driving my own car (and knowing where I'm going)

walking/running around town & going to the gym

being able to call whoever I want whenever I want

not having to constantly convert currency, metric measurements, and timezones

wearing shorts without having my knees stared at

libraries

my pup!

I guess that's all for now. I'll have plenty of time to write up a very deep and reflective blog post on "my thoughts about the past 5 months" and "what I've learned" and all that jazz during the 24 hours of travel back home. Until then...

APRIL 2 IS FINALLY HERE GUYS!!! AMERICA, HERE I COME!!!!