Paradise Found

Carben Reef outside Sagay City. A tiny strand of white sand in the middle of the ocean. Need I say more?

A matter of circumstance

Each time we travel out of the city I get hit hard with the reality of the situation here. The main industry on the island is sugar cane farming. Most farms do not have tractors and the workers use water buffalo to plow the fields.

Next they will meticulously plant the fields by hand. Once the cane has grown the workers manually harvest the cane with machetes and bundle them. The bundles are loaded into trucks (usually manually) and stacked so high that I wonder how they do not tip over. It's hard work, there is little automation, and the workers get paid very little. It's a hard life just to subsist at the poverty line yet there are still smiles on the people's face.

What hits me the hardest is when I see the children. This little boy is probably the same age as my oldest son. I know my son will grow up, go to college, and do whatever he chooses with his life. I'm quite certain that in the not too distant future someone will put a machete in this boy's hand and he will be sent to the fields so that my boy will have sweetener for his drinks. The only difference between the two boys is a matter of circumstance and where they were brought into this world. And that realization brings me to tears.

Pinoy Cuisine Update

Alright Foodies, this is where you start tuning in. I haven't updated my blog with the dining experiences lately but here is some highlights. We've tried a bunch of different restaurants around town but the group consensus is that Imay's is still the best. We can all go there, order up a full table of food with at least 1 family style dish per person and still walk out for under $6 each. TingTing's is also in the running because they have live seafood wells where you can pick your own fish, lobster, or crab and tell them how to prepare it. Overall, the food here remains awesome.


The drink on the left is a fresh mango shake. The mangoes here are the small yellow ones that we call champagne mangoes in the US. They are so super sweet. The drink on the right is Sago Gulaman. It's a fruit punch like drink with tapioca pearls and cut up pieces of red jelly. It's a drink and a dessert all in one!


This is a sampler platter from TingTings. It included grilled octopus, chicken, prawns, fish, steamed crab, and fresh raw oysters. It is served on the left there with cut up salted duck eggs and fresh tomatoes as an accompaniment.

Limes and little green chiles are also a popular condiment here to go with the food whether it's seafood, pork, or chicken. The limes are tiny - about the size of a walnut - and they remind me of key limes from Florida but the favor is a little different.


This is lapu-lapu - a fish in the grouper family. In this case I picked it out of the live well at TingTings and had it prepared chinese sweet and sour style. We demolished this fish head to tail in quick order thanks to my other chinese teammate Qiong and I. Love FRESH fish.


Grilled Managat - another local fish in the snapper family. Very simple preparation - the fish is gutted, butterflied, seasoned with lots of salt and pepper and thrown on a hot charcoal grill. Lots of nice flavor although sometime it is overcooked in my opinion.

Finally a nice sizzling cast iron plate of mixed seafood - prawns, clams, baby squid, and fish in a creamy sauce. That's it for now. I'm sure there is more to come! I still have to try the lechon.

Chillaxing

This weekend our team took a trip to Sipalay on the south part of the island. It was about a 4 hour drive and along the way we passed through many small farming villages including sugar cane, rice, and fisheries. It was hard to see some of the lean-to shelters that the farmers lived in made out of nothing more than pieces of scrap wood and metal and thatched roofs - especially when we arrived at our 'luxury' dive resort called Artistic Diving. The level of poverty here is immense.

I am the only certified diver on the team and got in a couple of cool dives including a big reef full of lots of corals and several different species of fish. Some others tried the intro dive and the rest did some snorkeling. It was a nice way to get out of the city for the weekend and enjoy some fun in the sun.

Business Development Day

Friday was the first of the seminar series that we are tasked to deliver. The event was sponsored by our client - BNeFIT and the audience was local business leaders that were looking to expand their skills and business. We prepared four topics that were of interest to the business community here:

• Trends in E-Commerce
• Marketing in the 21st Century
• Creative Effective Proposals
• BPM & BPO

I think the audience was definitely overwhelmed with the amount of information we crammed into one day and hopefully some of it will sink in. Everyone was really appreciative of our efforts and we've already made the local paper. Yah - another press impression!

For those of you reading my blog, you are only getting one view of our experience here. If you are interested, you should check out some of our other blogs from the team:

• Jaana
• Robert
• Gisele (Portuguese only)
• Alina (Russian, German, English)
• Guillermo

Gisele presenting Web Marketing

Jaana presenting Effective Proposal Writing

Class Picture

Time to get serious

The first of the series of seminars that Jaana and I are responsible for delivering is this Friday. We've been working with the rest of the team on preparing the presentations and working with our clients on the event logistics. The first module is for the local business leaders to help them with business related topics. I'll be presenting a session on BPM (of course), Jaana will cover building effective proposals, Jaydip will cover eCommerce, and Gisele will cover Web Marketing.

Last night we were invited to dinner by Mr. and Mrs. Dumancas. They are members of the BNeFIT organization that is my client and local real estate developers. Words cannot describe their home - if I could dream of my ideal home it would look exactly like theirs. I couldn't even take pictures to do it justice, I'll just have to wait for it to come out one day in Architectural Digest! They treated us all to a huge buffet of local and western cuisine and a delightful evening of conversation. At the end of the night, they showed us their plans for a BPO Park that would include space for BPOs to establish their delivery centers, restaurants, condominiums, a medical center, and even an outdoor amphitheater. Once again - outrageous ambition - I LOVE IT!

Of course no update would be complete without a little cultural touring. On Monday evening at sunset we visited the Ruins in Talisay City. Quite spectacular to find this stone structure standing in the middle of sugar cane fields. There was also a percussion band with a fire-twirler performing on the grounds that I videoed.

Baloot!

Yum...look some fresh eggs from a street vendor. WRONG! These are baloot or baluut, a half-hatched egg and popular in the local cuisine. Basically, it's an egg that is partially through the embryonic stage of development (15-16 days) that has been boiled and served with salt. Depending on how late they let the egg go you can start seeing features of the chick like the beak and even feathers. In my case, I think it was pretty early so blood vessels and organs starting to develop and appear along the yolk. You may have seen these on the reality TV show Fear Factor. Well, guess what? Fear is not a factor for me! Check out the pics and the videos below. Delicious!!!

Masskara Queen

Our client invited us to join her at the Masskara Queen beauty pageant where we got to see the 10 finalists from around the city compete for the championship. I was blown away at the production quality that they were able to create - elaborate sets, beautiful costumes, and amazing live music. Unfortunately, we had a brown out during the show which brought back to reality some of the issues that the people here face. Still, an amazing show. The girl in the purple won.

Miscellaneous Activities

Been a few days since I've had a chance to update but here are a few cool activities that we got to participate in. And yes, besides all the fun we are actually lots of work too! Hope to have a full update on all the Masskara Festival activities tonight after the big finale.

Global Handwashing Day
This is a key initiative that they are sponsoring here to teach school-aged children the importance of hygiene to prevent the spread of disease. We were at the mall with our client who also happens to be the president of the local Girl Scouts troop in addition to everything else she does in the community. Honestly, I don't know how she as time to sleep - definitely a Superwoman.


During the event there was also a performance by the winner of the local mall singing competition. She is such a little cuty and sang a BIG song for a little girl.



Mambukal Park
Our clients from University of St. La Salle took 4 of us up to Mambukal, a mountain park on the island. It was nice to get out of the city and see some of the countryside. Along the way we passed many sugar cane plantations and saw lots of people drying out the the rice from their fields on the side of the road.

Fruit Bat - "Flying Fox"

"Super Robert" on the Zipline

Waterfall #1 of 7 at the park
(we only made it to 2 on the hike)

Masskara!

I love street festivals - whether its Mardi Gras in New Orleans, Memphis in May or Caribana in Toronto - they are always so much fun. Masskara is no exception - spanning a 19 day period with multiple types of events and venues. The people of Bacolod know how to have a good time!

Electric Masskara
Friday night was the electric light dance competition on the street. 4 stages, 7 teams competing for top prize. The dance troops looked like they ranged from 20-40 people and all the costumes were decorated with little LED lights. What a great party! The 10 of us walking around the streets of Bacolod also draw quite a lot of attention. Lots of people were taking pictures of us and with us - especially Jaana, the platinum blonde from Finland and Guillermo the Spanish George Clooney. Me, when I'm not with the rest of them, I can pretty much blend in with the locals but the 10 of us together are like a mini-UN complete with our own little paparazzi.

Parades & Dance Competition
On Sunday, the top teams performed as the city government plaza in the open category performance. Huge dance trooops, elaborate moving set pieces, and lots of energy. The troops are all made from school aged children from different barangay or districts. We were given guest passes to sit in the stands but outside the gates, tons of people pressed up against the barriers to try to get a glimpse of the performance. I felt a little bad as I watched the policemen eject the little children who were trying to sneak a peak from under the bleachers at our feet.

City Charter Day
The city of Bacolod turns 71 this year. The day started with a Catholic mass in the city government center. As part of the celebration, they received the official land transfer from the owners who donated the property for the new city government building. There were also several awards given. Interestingly enough, some of the awards were for the individuals and companies who paid the most taxes in the last year. I'm not sure this would be seen as an 'honor' back in the US.

Food, food, and more food!

Imay's Restaurant

I really think I must have a little Filipino in my genes because I love the food here. Fresh ingredients, flavorful preparations, and beautiful presentations....oh and did I mention it is ridiculously cheap to eat here! Filipinos pride themselves on their food and just after a short amount of time here you can see why it is such a big part of their culture. Like many Asian cultures, the meal is the center of the social gathering.

Yesterday, Robert, Jaana, and I went to Imay's - a local seafood restaurant. Crazy cool vibe there - tikka hut architecture, fun looking drinks, swing lounge music, and an amazing menu. We tried five different dishes: spicy deep fried squid, grilled marlin, chili garlic shrimps, seafood chop suey, and scallops on a sizzling plate. Definitely will be a regular spot for me while I'm here.

A table full of fresh seafood for only 15 USD

Chili Shrimp

For dinner we went to Bob's Restaurant which had a mix of Filipino and Western food as well as delicious desserts. I had a rice ring with tender chunks of stewed beef and mushrooms in the center. Since it was getting late, we decided to take our first trike rides home instead of walking. These are motorcycles or bicycles with sidecars welded to them.

Day 2: Being an Ambassador

New City Hall

After a leisurely start to the day, we were taken to the new Bacolod City Hall where I was asked to give brief remarks to the Vice Mayor and City Council members in the council chamber. The proceedings started out with prayer followed up by the singing of the city's anthem. It was quite lively - the staffers all came in to sing the song and there was even a guitar player! I don't know if this would happen at home. It was an honor to be able to speak with the council and represent my company, my team and the team that brought us here.

In the evening our client, BNeFIT hosted a dinner for the entire team. There were representatives from the city and provincial government, the universities, and real estate developers as well as two reporters from local papers who were covering our story. The food was delicious - including Crispy Pata (roast pork with crispy skin), Bangus (milk fish belly), and of course the dish that this city is known for, Chicken Inasal. There is no way I'm not going to gain weight here at this rate. I only hope I can learn some recipes along the way!

Bangus Belly

After dinner, each person got the chance to introduce themselves and how they are involved with either IBM or BNeFIT. We were also taught several illongo phrases during the event - of course I focused on the names of the food!

Dinner with BNeFIT

Day 1: Outrageous Ambitions

Today we had the kickoff session with all of our clients hosted at the University of St. La Salle. After the opening remarks, each of our clients gave a presentation on their current challenges and how they would like to use our time here. We also gave a presentation on IBM, the Corporate Services Corps program, and our team background and skills. I love our clients here because they all have OUTRAGEOUS AMBITION. We could easily spend months here with all that they want to do. In particular, my client Councilor Jocelle Batapa Sigue is a force to be reckoned with.

Everyone here is so incredibly friendly and welcoming - they invite us to join in their celebrations, offer their help to organizing events for us, and want to ensure we enjoy our time in Bacolod. Hospitality is definitely a core part of the culture here.



In the afternoon, Jaana and I had the chance to attend a high school academic competition on the history of Bacolod. They have organized the event to encourage the students to learn more about their local history which had not previously been taught as part of the curriculum. It was great to see the focus on fostering education and the excitement of the students to participate in the 'quiz show'.

Planes Trains and Automobiles!

Just a quick update. Finally made it to Bacolod after an unexpectedly long transit. I missed a connection in Beijing which led me to having to overnight there - not the worst place to be stranded. I took the opportunity for a quick visit with family, followed by a delicious dumpling lunch at Bao Yuan Jiaozi Wu which had dozens of different fresh, handmade varieties to choose from.

First Impressions of the Philippines

Manila was like most major metropolitan areas - big and crowded. The urban sprawl would rival LA, DC, or Miami. Bacolod on the other hand still has a very small town feel. On the way in we saw many 'lean-to' aluminum sheet dwellings in the farmlands. The standard of living was quite stunning until we got to town.

The people here are very friendly and helpful - particularly our coordinator Waya and her friend in town Maggie who seems to be one of those 'Connector' types that knows everyone in town. It's easy to see why they call this place the City of Smiles.

The price levels are also quite shocking. Dinner tonight including drinks and desert at a local BBQ place worked out to about 3 USD per person with a generous tip. A taxi ride across town cost 1 USD. A bottle of San Miguel Pale Ale is about 75 cents and a bottle of rum is about 5 USD. To get our laundry wash, pressed and folded is about 1 USD per kilo of clothes. I know that last one is making some people at home jealous!

Tomorrow, we meet our clients for the first time. I'm supposed to deliver the kickoff presentation for our team so I guess I better stop screwing around online and start practicing my pitch.

PS - It is freakin' humid here, more than I expected. Florida's got nothing on this place - the Philippines is definitely in a league of its own.

Disaster Relief

The adventure continues! In my last post, I mentioned that IBM was donating some emergency management kits as part of the response to the typhoons that hit the Philippines. Late last week the corporate team organizing the response ask me and another team member from the US to personally transport the donation to expedite delivery. So, now we are each bringing a 60lb Pelican Case full of gear with us - satellite phones, wireless networking gear, solar blankets, etc. I'm told by my friend Dianne that this is a similar concept to a "jump kit" in the military although I hope I don't have to jump anywhere with it.

I'm equally amazed that we're actually doing this and that we have these kits ready-to-go. Pretty cool stuff!