Guest Blog Post: Joy on a Budget

Minnesotagal’s Note: This is a big day! The first-ever Guest Blog post from my current visitor and dear friend, Sarah Lynn Jansen. I hope you enjoy the varied perspective. If you’re a fan of the guest post, make sure and leave lots of ‘love’ in the comments section so that she feels inclined to do it again!

Today I got to join in the adventures at Friendship Home.  Smiling faces at the door, giddy with anticipation for the afternoon of fun greeted us upon arrival.  Sarah introduced me as her friend Sarah and that led to all sorts of debate as they tried to decide what to call us to simplify things.  ”Sarita” was suggested but couldn’t win over the ease of the “S1″ & “S2″ suggestion. Nothing had really started yet and already a few of the children were laughing themselves silly. There was no doubt that we were going to have a splendid time.

First up on the agenda was paper fortune tellers.  Thankfully S1 had the insight to prepare ideas to spark the kids’ imagination, as many struggled with the notion of writing down a wish or a hope for the future (even when they knew that the point of the game was to grant that wish to someone else). With some coaxing, they developed ideas like “you will be a doctor” and “you will have good luck.” I was pretty lucky today going 2 out of 3 games with “you will make a new friend.” We rounded out craft time with pinwheels which turned out beautifully, and later ended up decorating many of the gates and cars up and down the street.

Outdoor playtime drew a lot of attention from the neighbors, as we took over a good portion of the block for sidewalk chalk games.  After initiating one quick round of hopscotch, I stepped back and watched the energy and pure joy flow. Of course, the children were an absolute delight to watch, but the highlight for me was the brief moment of eye contact and subsequent nod of approval from a grandma watching the scene unfold from her balcony.  I thought we were working to bring some extra fun into the day of the kids, but it turns out that we were able to spread the love just a bit further.

The Evolution of a Great Haircut

Sarah Jansen arrived in town late last night for her 2 week visit!  Of course, the first two things on our docket were a great new haircut and a 90 minute massage.  Both were raving hits!

25 Screaming Children Take on WaterBoom

On Saturday Nick and I had the pleasure of accompanying 25 kids from Friendship Home to a local water park (along with a few other adults thankfully!).  As I’ve mentioned before, these kind of experiences are rare for them.  I took a poll and most of the kids had only been swimming 2-3 times in their life before.  I’m not kidding, you could feel the anticipation building throughout the entire car ride.  No lie, one little girl vomited almost as soon as we got there.  This was a B-I-G deal for these 11 and 12 year olds…

I had to appreciate the difference in perspectives when seeing things through the eye of a child.  Nick and I agreed that this was perhaps the saddest waterpark we had ever seen.  But looking at those kids wide-eyed and giggling, you would have thought were were at Disney World!  It was such fun to be around infectious joy of that nature.  I dare say they even got to Nick a bit!  :)

We ended up staying at the Waterpark for 4 hours roughly and I kid you not, they were in the water every minute of those 4 hours (except for the 15 minutes when they scarfed down their lunch).  The Wait-to-swim-until-1-hour-after-RULE kept popping into my head, but I quickly pushed it aside.  No way was I standing between these kids and their pool!

The kids managed to convince me to go down the slide with them (something I would NEVER even consider usually).  Let’s just say I was not too excited about this…  After I make it up to the top of the slide and start to push my way over the edge, I feel a kid glob on to my neck.  Guess he thought we were going down together?!  Nick managed to grab a fantastic shot of me grimacing while the kid has me in a choke hold.  PRICELESS!

I must say though, I love this shot the most.  Here is Nick being mobbed by a pack of hyper kiddos.  OMG, are we the whitest people ever?  Remind me not to get swimsuit shots taken again next to dark Filipino children!  It’s blinding…

As always, lots more great shots waiting for you at SMUGMUG!

A Newcomer’s Perspective

One of my blog readers named Jessica arrived at post this week.  We’re hoping to meet up for the first time in person once she and her family get settled in.  In the meantime, she posted a few of her initial reactions to Manila that I thought you’d enjoy.  I had forgotten the things that I once found crazy but now fail to even notice.  Here are her insights from her BLOG:

Things I need to get used to…

• Sweating constantly whenever I am outside.
• Marching bands roaming around the mall, complete with costumed dancers. Yes, bands–plural.
• Grocery stores in malls.
• Fearing for my life whenever I get into a car. There are lanes, street lights, and traffic cops–do people do as they are directed? NO.
• Paying $8 for one frozen pizza, but $3 for two weeks worth of fresh chicken.
• Eating a whole pineapple every day. YUM!!
• Lizards. (Hey, they eat spiders, so they are friends in my book!)
• Having a grocery bill that comes to $11,230. Doesn’t that sound like a lot of money??
• Having people hide behind bushes as they take pictures of my curly-headed daughter. (Really, I don’t mind the pictures. I’ve been warned, and I expect it now. But the hiding in the bushes part is creepy.)

A BIG,WARM welcome to you and your family Jessica!  We’re excited to have fun new people coming to post!

An Idyllic Afternoon in Bulacan with my Carewell Friends

Life doesn’t get much better than spending an afternoon in the country with my new-found Carewell friends.  And although the gathering was set up “just because,” there ended up being much to celebrate that day, including a cancer-free scan that had come back for one attendee!

Isn’t their place adorable?  I should start by saying that this is not at all what typical houses in the Philippines look like.  It reminds me more of a MN cabin than anything I’ve seen here… maybe that’s why I took an instant liking to it.  My absolute favorite part of the house was the SECRET BATHROOM, which was hidden behind the closet.  Ingenious space saver for the main floor!

And allow me to begin by introducing you to our gracious hosts, Remy and Danny (pictured above).  Remy truly was the “hostess with the most-est,” serving us a table full of Filipino delights.

And yes, that’s Kuya Rudy (our driver) partaking in the delicious fare.  On a side note, Rudy recently told me (with pride, mind you) that he is the second oldest expat driver (the 64 year old driver beat him out).  We couldn’t be more proud Rudy!  Enough of that… back to the party!

Filipinos love their food and they are MAJOR food-pushers.  Just as you’re about to puke, they’re kindly offering you another plate that they made up “just for you”.  I’m starting to set down some serious rules because a girl only needs so many calories a day… good thing I had a chance to work it off as I rocked the karoake mic for a solid hour!

I tell you, these women (and Danny) are pure joy to hang out with each week.  They have taught me so many lessons about gratitude, spirituality and living life to the fullest.  I mean, look at these pictures – would you guess that they all have cancer (with some even in stage 4)?  I think not!?!  They are vibrant and alive, eeking out every last moment until their final breath (whenever that may be).  Suffice to say, it’s intoxicating to be around them.

What I now understand is that you may not be able to control your circumstances, but you can ALWAYS control how you’re going to BE WITH your circumstances.  They may not have the full range of options on the table (no chance of getting that breast back), but they live each day as empowered individuals committed to living.  It is amazing to see how much power resides in letting go of the outcome and just focusing on being in the here and now.  Powerful lessons for this 29 year old…

To see the rest of this BEA-U-TIFUL gallery of pictures, head on over to SMUGMUG!

A Step Back in Time

OMG, this is a great way to start your Monday!  Check out this remarkable video shot from a streetcar traveling down Market Street in San Francisco in 1905.  This was just one year before the earthquake/fire of 1906 destroyed the area.  It is way fascinating to see what turn of the century life in California looked like!

Date Night with TED

For the last few years I’ve been hearing about these things called “TED” talks popping up in conversations and occasionally being circulated via Facebook and other social networking mediums.  I’d watched a few of the videos and knew they were high quality, but had never  taken the time to check out the site and understand the concept behind TED.

So today I thought I’d share a little background on it for those who are also unfamiliar.  Quite simply, TED is a non-profit devoted to sharing “Ideas Worth Spreading.”  Starting back in 1984, they created a conference that brought together people from the fields of Technology, Entertainment and Design.  Over the years more disciplines were integrated and the event expanded from one conference to four.  Of utmost importance at the conference is the fact that all talks must be recorded under a Creative Commons License, so that they can be freely shared across the internet.

Here’s a blip from their website that summarizes what they do:

“We believe passionately in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and ultimately, the world. So we’re building here a clearinghouse that offers free knowledge and inspiration from the world’s most inspired thinkers, and also a community of curious souls to engage with ideas and each other.”

To get a taste of what a TED Talk looks like, check out this 3 minute talk from Bobby McFerrin:

The Implications of Finding TED

Nick and I both love learning about random things, so discovering TED was a major find in our world.  In fact, we spent our entire Friday night watching Ted Talks that ranged from anywhere between 3 to 20 minutes.  We had a blast rotating back and forth, each choosing subjects that were of interest to us.  In the 90 minute span we would typically spend on a movie, we learned about:

• A family escaping the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia,
• Dan Pink talking about what motivates people,
• Malcolm Gladwell talking about innovations in Food science, and
• Jill Bolte talking about what happened to her brain function when she suffered a stroke.

All were equally captivating and when you add a little popcorn to the mix, you’ve pretty much got a perfect date night!  I recommend that you give it a try on your next designated “night in”.  I think you’ll find it a welcome change-up from the norm!

Summer in the City

I’ve come to a very important realization in the last few weeks.  Cold temps I can do, but extreme heat is an entirely different story.  And I’m not talking the 90′s here people.  Those were the good old days.  I’m talking 100+, high humidity, sweat-in-your-cleavage-in-2-seconds kind of hot.  I refuse to go out between the hours of 8 am and 8 pm because it makes me so miserable.  I’ve already found myself wishing for monsoon season, which is what we get come June.  I even taught Norma my head-in-the-freezer trick this week and it was an instant winner!

Brownouts

Since I’ve already described that it’s hotter than hell here, I should tell you what kind of impact that has on the city.  Allow me to introduce you to my new favorite term “Brownout”.  A brownout, for those who were only familiar with the “white” and “black” kind (like me), is a rotating power outage across the city.  In short, the electric company can’t meet the power demand, so they move the outage around the city for 2-3 hour blocks at a time.  So, for example, last week I went into a McDonald’s to get my afternoon Sundae and everyone’s sitting there in the dark, just waiting around.  I walk up to the counter and ask what’s going on, to which I’m told, “Brownout, mam.  No food available now.”  Grrrr.  Can you even imagine the riot that would ensue in the States if a back-up generator didn’t come on it .2 seconds?

Generators

So that brings us to the concept of generators, which pretty much don’t exist here.  I am so grateful that we are one of the few buildings that has a back-up generator!  It makes the Brownouts much more tolerable because the power only goes out for a few seconds before the generator kicks on.  The only part that’s started to annoy me is losing my unsaved documents on the computer and having to reset all the clocks multiple times daily.  Honestly, I’m not complaining though!  I’ve never been a bigger fan of AirCon, as they call it here!

In-Grown Toe Nail Surgery

Thanks to my Dad, I have grudgingly inherited the problem of in-grown toe nails.  Be happy if you’ve never gotten them, because this is my third affected toe and boy do they hurt.  The first two I actually had to go in and have a mini surgery (both big toes).  This most recent one is my second toe, which is currently inflamed, pussing and oh-so-painful!

Happily, Wonder Woman Norma came to the rescue.  She took one look at it and told me she could fix it.  So we did in-home surgery this morning.  She clipped and chipped with my pedicure tools and by jove, I’m pretty certain she got it out.  That woman is a Godsend.  Here’s the growing list of all the things she takes care of in this house:

1. Grocery Shopping
2. Cooking
3. Cleaning
4. Mending
5. Dishes
6. Laundry
7. Ironing
8. Pedicures/Manicures
9. Back massages when I tweak my back
10. In-grown toe nail surgery

Honestly, we are so screwed when she leaves.  We can’t even find cooking utensils in our kitchen anymore, let alone cook a meal!  We are so blessed to have her for this period but I’m already dreading the painful readjustment period back to Washington, D.C. in July 2011…

Everyone Could Use a Little 4-handed Guitar to Brighten their Day

A Modern-day Leader: Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution

I know that I have a tendency to over-hype things, but I tell you, this one merits the hype.  You see, in the last few weeks, Nick and I have become totally and completely addicted to Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution, a new U.S. show on ABC.  What makes it so great is a combination of two things: The insurmountable passion Jamie Oliver has for preventing obesity-related deaths AND the fact that this is a very real problem for a large percentage of the U.S. population.  It’s inspiring and relevant and should be a must-watch in your home.

Let’s start with a brief overview of the show.  Jamie has come in to Huntington, Virginia with the audacious goal of teaching all 50,000 people in that town to make simple, healthy meals from raw ingredients.  You might easily assume that it’s a cooking show, but it’s actually much more than that, it’s about saving lives.  You see, Huntington was chosen for the Food Revolution after being identified in a study as the most obese city in American in 2006 with 45.3% of its population being obese.  They are losing years of their life and Jamie is committed to reversing that trend.

Obviously this is an extremity, but the reality is that many US cities will continue to move rapidly toward this number without a major shift in thinking.  Take the picture above for example, in which Jamie cooked up everything that a family of 5 had in the previous week and dumped it all out on their kitchen table.  It was absolutely disgusting to look at…. but the thing is though, most of us eat many of these same things each week and that can become very frightening when we aggregate it over a week, month or a year.

What Jamie has helped me realize is that this is a VERY REAL problem and it will take a very conscious effort on all our parts to rewrite our old beliefs and habits.  I see now how critical it is to understand what’s in the food we eat and learn basic cooking skills that support healthier habits.  I am humbled by Jamie’s dedication to this cause and hope that I may display as much courage in my life’s work to create radical change.  He is truly a modern-day leader from which I am drawing great inspiration.

Get caught up on the first 4 episodes at: http://abc.go.com/shows/jamie-olivers-food-revolution/.  The show is on Fridays at 9/8 central on ABC.  Still undecided as to whether it’s worth your time?  Take 2 minutes and check out this short video:

Oh, and do let me know how this show is inspiring your life!  Is your family making any changes as a result of it?

Part 2: Easter Week in Batanes – Sabtang Island

Zoom in on me, looking VERY CRABBY as I waited to board our boat to Sabtang Island.  Here’s the back story…I woke up at 5:30 AM so that I could be ready to join the group at 6 AM to leave for our tour.  We drive 30 minutes to the boat dock and proceed to sit there for another 45 minutes, at which point we’re told that no boat is coming there today and we need to go to a different dock.   ARGH.

So I’m wishing and hoping that we’ll just waltz over to the other dock and hop right on the waiting boat.  WRONG – I should have known this would be a cluster-f***.  Our trip had gone too smoothly and whenever things go too smoothly, there’s bound to be something that explodes.  Zoom in on the new port where 70+ individuals are all waiting to get on a 30 person capacity boat.  I start digging through my memory banks to recall all the tragic stories I’ve read about Filipino ferries sinking after being overcrowded.  I make a decision that I will NOT get on an over-loaded boat and die at sea today.

Turns out I wouldn’t have the choice to get on that first boat trip.  I had the opportunity to wait two hours for the boat to go there and come back for us.  Warning: UGLY AMERICAN characteristics starting to come out.  I just couldn’t help it.  I had gotten up at the crack of dawn, waited at the wrong dock and was now told that it would be another 2 hours!  Beam me back to bed, Scotty…

We were encouraged to go to the Honesty Cafe instead, so I thought we might as well make the most of it and check it out.  Let me just tell you a bit about the Honesty Cafe – it’s owned by an elderly couple that stock the shop, but here’s the crazy part – no one mans the shop.  It’s an on-your-honor thing where each item has a price on it and you write it down in a ledger and deposit your money into a box.  And here’s the craziest part…it works here!  Why?  Because the island has a ZERO crime rate, a stat they are very, very proud of (who wouldn’t be)!  Can you imagine?  Oh, but you better have small bills for the honesty cafe, because no change is given.

Little did I know that the fun hadn’t even started yet…when we finally got on the boat at 10 AM with 30 other individuals, we were told that the ride would be a bit rough since we were out on the ocean.  A bit rough was a severe understatement.  The boat was more like Noah’s arc than a ferry.  It had a wide berth and would roll from side to side with the waves, so there were times when you’d be laying at a 45 degree angle with your back plastered against the ship’s side.  A good mental image to describe it: the pirate ship at Valleyfair.

The beginning was okay but when we reached the mid-way point it started to get rough.  The swells were astronomical.  There were several times when we’d be down in a trough between two major waves and I couldn’t see anything but water.  It was insanity…. I should probably tell you at this point that I am a bit of a puker.  I didn’t used to be, but since meeting Nick and starting our “high-adventure life” I’ve puked roughly 4 times at sea and 2 in the back of a van.  We now carry a puke bag for me every time we travel (sorry if this is too much information) so I reached out my hand and he knew to fish it out of the bag.  I had it  positioned right over my mouth, that’s how sure I was that I wasn’t going to survive this boat ride sans puking.  I am incredibly proud to say that somehow I managed.  It did come up the throat, but I held it down.  Yay me!  And now I think we’ll move on to a new topic… is that okay with you?

Now I mentioned yesterday that the main island was rustic, but this one was even more remote, with many more of the original Ivatan practices still being used.  In the above picture you’ll see the construction of their houses, which last close to 100 years.  The thatched roofs are still impressive, lasting 25 years.  The picture above shows me sporting the traditional Ivatan head-dress.  Sexy!  I think I look like Shakira…

Thankfully, the scenery was well worth all of the hassles it took to get there.  We spent 4 glorious hours enjoying the beauty of this island.  A must-do if you’re going to come all the way to Batanes…just don’t forget your puke bag for the boat ride!  I leave you with some great shots of our beach “photo shoot”!  PS – Did you check out the SMUGMUG gallery yet?  There are oh-so-many sensational pics you still haven’t seen…

Easter Week in Batanes – The Main Island

Honestly, I can’t say enough good things about our recent trip to Batanes.  What a stunning, remote location!  It was like something that time forgot, but in an oh-so-wonderful kind of way.  It reminded me most of Hawaii and what I imagine it would have looked like before all the hotels moved in and the lush, rolling hills disappeared.

Throughout the 4 days we were there, I vacillated between shock and delight.  Shock that the man we just passed is really riding on a Carabou (see above), delight that my cell phone gets reception, shock that I cannot get a drop of hot water to come out of the shower, delight that I had more animal subjects than humans on this trip, and so on.  It was by far the most remote location that I’ve ever visited on our travels abroad and it was a refreshing change of pace.

Highlights of my visit included:

• Wearing a light sweater!
• Breathing in crisp, clean air
• Driving with the windows open and the breeze blowing through my hair (in fact, they took it one step farther on our tour and drove with the side van door open – “Safety Sarah” had some initial issues with that but decided to just roll with it)
• Seeing the Big Dipper!
• Eating beef that was killed that morning

We arrived in Basco, Batanes at 10 AM on Wednesday morning.  We were able to check into our accommodations at Shanedel’s Inn, located right on the waterfront of Basco.  It was definitely not the most glamorous accommodations I’ve ever stayed in, but it was clean and we were taken very good care of by the family that ran it.  Not that there were many choices though!  This was one of only 5 places on the island (4 that are under $30 a night, 1 that is over $200).  I was quite happy that we ended up here- it was a good fit for us.  Very authentic and simple, a reflection of what life on the island was all about.

On Day 1 we went exploring on foot.  We walked around the town, taking in the beautiful Catholic church that was being readied for the Holy Week festivities.  The most common thing we saw on the streets were big, huge smiles.  I never thought this possible, but we got even more “love” here than in Manila.  Hellos, smiles, waves – we were practically celebrities.  Have I mentioned that I love the hospitality and warmth of Filipinos?  Because truly, it is SO INCREDIBLE to be treated that way!  Another surprise was all the English that was spoken.  So not only did the majority speak Ivatan (the local dialect), but many also knew Tagalog (spoken in Manila) and English.  I was floored!

We had also seen a lighthouse from the hotel and decided to try and hike to it.  15 minutes later we were enjoying the view from where it stood.  Lots of good photo ops here (which would be the first of many, I was soon to learn).  We hung out there for awhile and retired back to the hotel for a 3 hour afternoon nap and home-cooked meal.  It was a great way to start off the week.

Days 2 and 3 were spent on tours of the main island.  We were awed by the plunging views of “Marlborough Country” (pictured above) and fascinated by the daily life we observed.  In the picture below, you can see the traditional Ivatan farming method of segmenting plots with hedges to both keep animals contained and dictate boundaries.  Very ingenious, I thought…much easier than erecting fences everywhere!

There were no monuments our museums to see, only stunning natural wonders of the earth.  I couldn’t decide what to shoot first- the rolling hills, the dramatic cliffs or the churning seas!  And so I just took it all in.  I must say, these are easily the best travel photographs I’ve ever captured and they look even more vivid at the SMUGMUG site.  I narrowed it down to the best 250 shots I took and would love for you to enjoy them.  There were so many that I wanted to feature here, but couldn’t!

Tomorrow I’ll tell you about the adventure on our 4th day when we battled the fierce ocean to get to the neighboring island of Sabtang.  Let’s just say that I had a bit of trouble keeping my breakfast down…

Catholic Devotion Taken to the Extreme

I have mentioned before that the Philippines has a largely Catholic population, with roughly 83% practicing.  And these are not casual church-goers either, but devoted followers of Christ.  While the majority of the time I am inspired by the spiritual practices of the Filipinos around me, during Holy Week I was struck by the fact even Catholicism, when taken to the extreme, can rapidly become dangerous and self-serving.

I think Neal H. Cruz’ article The Filipino Culture of Masochism, published by the Philippines Enquirer on Sunday the 4th gives good insight into the minority of Filipino Catholics who bring a whole new level of realism to Holy Week.

“Last Good Friday, human blood flowed, literally, in many parts of the Philippines as flagellants flogged themselves bloody and had themselves nailed to crosses in imitation of Jesus Christ. This primitive practice is so widespread (and still spreading) that it portrays the Philippines as a nation of masochists.

Why do Filipinos inflict pain on themselves? The penitents believe that by hurting themselves in imitation of Jesus, they would be forgiven their sins—the more painful, the more forgiveness. Others do so to keep vows (panata) made to God—to do the masochistic act every Good Friday in exchange for making a sick family member get well, or to get a job in the Middle East, etc. They believe that if they break the vow, God would punish them. So they do it year after year against common sense.

And the voyeurs, Filipinos and foreigners alike, lap it up. They flock to the places where penitents have themselves nailed, literally, to crosses; or on the roads where lines of penitents pass while flogging themselves silly, or plod bearing heavy wooden crosses while being flogged by assistants. Tourists find it so quaint, so weird, so curious, so exciting, so primitive; and local government officials (and perhaps also the Department of Tourism) encourage the masochism to attract tourists every year. It is no different from white tourists ogling black tribesmen dancing to the beat of tom-toms in “Darkest Africa.” All that is missing is Tarzan’s ape-cry reverberating through the treetops. And mass media plaster the spectacle on their news pages and television screens…

…Alas, this is not the correct way to practice the Christian religion, or even to atone for and ask forgiveness for one’s sins. If one is truly sorry for his sins and resolves never to commit them again, he does not have to flog or hurt himself or get himself nailed to a cross.

To guide its faithful followers, the Catholic Church should educate and wean them away from this form of masochism. True, some bishops and priests issue press statements during Holy Week, advising penitents not to continue the practice. But they have little effect because the Church does not warn, preach and advise strongly enough as much as it fights, for example, the reproductive health bill and divorce.

To have any effect, the warning should be preached from the pulpits and discussed in Catholic schools, not only during Holy Week but as often as possible. Churches should have pamphlets distributed after the Sunday Masses. Local government officials should be told by the Church and the national government to discourage and ban the practice.

Likewise, mass media should not play up this barbaric practice because the penitents like to see their pictures in media. It gives them celebrity status and makes them heroes of their villages. Instead of teaching the out-of-school youth of their villages, Filipinos hungry for recognition just have themselves nailed to a cross once a year and they achieve the near-immortality that they hunger for.”

I have to admit, going into Holy Week some part of me was hoping to see the sensationalistic events that take place in the country.  I even envied some of my photographer colleagues who I knew were going to shoot the re-enactments (note: my friend took the shot above).  It seemed grounded in honor and devotion to God, so how could that be wrong, I thought.

Upon reading this article and reflecting on my initial feelings toward the event, I can see how we are in fact keeping this “circus” going each year.  It seems as if the original honorable intentions of the practice have been replaced by either spiritual guilt/obligation or a misconstrued sense of worth in being identified as one of those who is willing to do this for their faith, thereby garnering attention and praise.

Unfortunately, unless someone mandates that this practice end, it seems as if the individuals will be perpetually stuck in this unhealthy cycle due to the intrinsic benefits they get from the physical act (spiritual redemption, adoration, admiration, honor, etc).  But then again, don’t these individuals have a right to express their religious beliefs in whatever way they see fit (assuming they’re not harming anyone but themselves)?

What are your thoughts on this topic?  Should it be stopped or allowed to continue in its current form?  I’d love to have some discussion around this, as I’ve been thinking about it quite a bit over the last week…

Easter Preview: The Animals of Batanes

Happy Easter everyone!  I’m in the final stages of photo editing after 4 sensational days in Batanes.  I shot nearly 500 frames and narrowed it down to my best 250 for you to enjoy.  I think you’re really going to like them!  I should have something for you by tomorrow…

In the meantime, I thought I’d give you a taste of the diverse forms of wildlife we interacted with.  Let’s just say that I got a major scolding from Nicholas after going within 5 feet of this horned Carabao in shot 1.  But wasn’t my life worth it for such a great pic??  He looked tied up, even if that wasn’t actually the case!