The Philippines was an incredible introduction to Asia. I ended up spending six weeks in the Philippines, instead of the normal four, due to flooding in Thailand (our original month 4 destination). So from the beginning of November to the middle of December, our teams lived, breathed, worked, and loved in the Philippines.
I was lucky enough to spend three weeks in the southern island of Mindanao, in a quiet city called Malaybalay. We got to love on kids there, then headed back up to Manila for our remaining time in the Philippines.
This month was the one time I really experienced heavy culture shock. And it wasn't in the way you would think it would happen. Our teams arrived to Manila the first time from Africa, there were Christmas lights everywhere, Christmas music (which, for those of you who do not know, I love Christmas). Manila was a bustling city filled with millions of people, (what seemed like) thousands of malls and shops, and more jeepneys (public transportation) than you ever thought were possible to exist.
