**this is my second attempt…i was told the first one didn’t work 🙁
9.26.10 Day 14
El Nido, Palawan, Philippines
Hey friends! Things here are going great! We have been busy here with different projects. Friday we spent the day building duplexes for families that will be transferred from the slums. These aren’t typical American duplexes and I’m pretty sure the bedroom I had in the last house I rented is larger than the only room they will have. But it’s definately a step up from the slums they are currently in. Friday was hot!…and we worked outside on the duplex all day! We got a little pink…and yes mom, we did put sunscreen on! Lots of it! 🙂 My favorite part was the 70 some-odd lady who came out to help us. She lifted bricks and set them on a wall taller than she was. She didn’t speak any English but I learned that she is one of the recipients of one of the duplexes.
We also had the awesome opportunity to visit a public high school…and pray over them! Not something you can get away with in the States 🙂 We visited a pre-school that is pretty remote and out in the middle of no where. It is part of ICM’s pre-school program. We had to take an hour long tric and then hike up the moutain 30 minutes. We weren’t told to bring our lunches with us that day…our contact apologized for that because we needed to. When we got to the pre-school and they found out we had no lunch…they killed a chicken for us so we could eat. It was awesome and tasted pretty good! We ended up hiking back down the mountain in the rain. We also visited 2 other pre-schools that morning. When we got there they asked us to sing a song for the kids at each school. We sang the song Father Abraham. I think they got a kick out of it. Some were too shy to participate but others jumped in. I think the next song we’ll try is I’m in the Lord’s Army. That should be fun!
at the high school…Andrew and Erin playing a game of Sipak Takraw-very popular in the Philippines
Yesterday (saturday) was our free day! All the locals have told us the best thing to do is go island hopping…so we did! We chartered a private boat that left at 10 am and wasn’t to return until after we saw the sunset from one of the islands. Our guide also cooked us lunch on one of the beaches. He grilled fish and chicken on a rock. And it was declicious! We got to visit 6 of the islands around Palawan (the island we are on). There are lots of little islands around here within a few miles of each other. We passed by Homer Simpson Island lol. We visited spots called the secret beach. It’s called that because it’s in the center of one of the islands and the only way to get there is to swim through a hole. We also visited the hidden beach and a few others whose names I can’t recall. My favorite part: snorkeling!!! I’ve never been snorkeling and it was pretty sweet to see so many fish right near the surface of the water. I got to use my underwater camera to get some really neat pictures! I’m sure you are all wondering what the cost was. We used our own personal money and ended up paying a total of 1,000 pisos/person. 1,000 pisos is right around $20!
the sunset from one of the islands
