Week 47--May 15-22, 2016
Sister Mepania and Sister De Leon joined us for dinner on Sunday, May 15. They serve in our Ward with us. Sister De Leon is a VISA waiter that will be going to the Hawaii Honolulu Mission soon where she will serve in the Visitors' Center at the Laie Temple. (Garnalee scrunched down so she isn't towering over the sisters.)
Twice a year the missionaries give their apartments a thorough cleaning. We call it a Power Scrub. Monday, May 16 was the first for this year. Sister Custodio has emptied the fridge and is giving it a good scrub. Elder Egbert is very talented as he can get rid of the cob webs on the ceiling and sweep the floor at the same time. The hope is if the missionaries keep their apartments clean they will be healthier. On our way home we purchase a watermelon from a roadside stand. It is hard to believe we buy a fresh watermelon in May.
One of the most swanky neighbors in the Philippines uses a goat to manage the weeds. With the speed that everything grows here this goat will have plenty to eat.
the security guards are friendly and helpful. They always salute us when we come and go from them gated community where the mission home is located. It is very typical to see guards here with guns.
This is one of the many "restaurants" in the Philippines. Any one can set up shop on the sidewalk and get a meal for a few pesos.
Are you ready to go Back to School? Summer vacation for students is April and May so that parents and children can enjoy the cooler weather before is gets too hot. School will start again on June 13.
We attended the Manila Temple on Thursday. We had to wait two and a half hours to attend an endowment session. We took the mail from our office to the mail room to be distributed to the other missions in the Philippines and to be flown to the US. We walked by the MTC with flags flying from various nations.
It is interesting to see how road construction allows for the trees that happen to be in the roadway. Never mind that they seriously impede the traffic flow.
The pedestrians have to make their way around the businesses that take up all of the sidewalk space. The Vulcanizing Shop changes the tires right out on the road which we view as dangerous with the cars going by in close proximity.
Saturday was Senior Couple Activity. We went to the Sarao Jeepney Factory. Tom stands next to a 1953 jeepney. Up until 2000 they were mass producing jeepneys on an assembly line system. In 2000 the laws changed and mass production wasn't allowed. So all the jeepneys, today, are hand made and no two are the same.
Jeepneys are made to order like this one for the Bellevue Resort.
This as close as Garnalee is going to get to riding in a jeepney. One that is nice and clean and empty except for her.
A jeepney in the early stages of construction.
The couples gather around one of the ornately decorated grills, Left to right: Sister and Elder Brady, Sister and Elder Harrington, Sister and Elder Swift, Sister and Elder Broadhead, Sister and Elder Jones, and Sister and Elder Rogers.
We left the jeepney factory and headed to our next destination. Along the way we passed this woman who was taking a bath along the side of the road. She would dip her bowl into what appeared to be a puddle and pour the water over her head or whatever part of her body she was cleaning. We decided that there was too much water for it to be a puddle and that water was flowing from a pipe.
Our next stop was St. Joseph's Parish Church which was built in 1792. Inside was housed a beautiful bamboo organ that was completed in 1824. The original black keys on the keyboard were made of carabao horns and the other keys were made of native wood and covered in plastic. The organ pipes are made almost entirely of bamboo. After age and disasters had rendered the organ unplayable for a long time it was restored in 1975. There is an annual International Bamboo Organ Festival held here each year to celebrate the music of the reborn instrument and its unique sound. One of the teachers played the organ for us.
The couples gather for a picture on the balcony above the organ. Left to right: Sister and Elder Jones, Sister and Elder Broadhead, Sister and Elder Harrington, Sister and Elder Rogers, Sister and Elder Swift, and Sister and Elder Brady.
Twice a year the missionaries give their apartments a thorough cleaning. We call it a Power Scrub. Monday, May 16 was the first for this year. Sister Custodio has emptied the fridge and is giving it a good scrub. Elder Egbert is very talented as he can get rid of the cob webs on the ceiling and sweep the floor at the same time. The hope is if the missionaries keep their apartments clean they will be healthier. On our way home we purchase a watermelon from a roadside stand. It is hard to believe we buy a fresh watermelon in May.
The pedestrians have to make their way around the businesses that take up all of the sidewalk space. The Vulcanizing Shop changes the tires right out on the road which we view as dangerous with the cars going by in close proximity.
The couples gather around one of the ornately decorated grills, Left to right: Sister and Elder Brady, Sister and Elder Harrington, Sister and Elder Swift, Sister and Elder Broadhead, Sister and Elder Jones, and Sister and Elder Rogers.
Our next stop was St. Joseph's Parish Church which was built in 1792. Inside was housed a beautiful bamboo organ that was completed in 1824. The original black keys on the keyboard were made of carabao horns and the other keys were made of native wood and covered in plastic. The organ pipes are made almost entirely of bamboo. After age and disasters had rendered the organ unplayable for a long time it was restored in 1975. There is an annual International Bamboo Organ Festival held here each year to celebrate the music of the reborn instrument and its unique sound. One of the teachers played the organ for us.
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