Twenty Two Gone & Coming

Search for Mr. Ms. PYAP, Dec 27th
I was a judge for a pageant! 

This one is for JDW. This last Friday I’ve completed my 22^nd week in country, and my 10^th week at my permanent site and volunteering in the office. (That’s 10/104 – Koopa, that’s less than 10%). My girl, Lou, put it well “22 weeks here, 22 months to go”.

The last month or so was challenging to be away from family in Cali during the holidays. Having been here for five and half months I’m beginning to feel more at home; the initial novelty is almost at its end, but with that challenges begin to present themselves. 

My current host family and I had a few growing pains adjusting to different needs. The host nanay was finding herself very tired from cooking meals for me, but providing food is such a high priority in this culture that she was too ‘awod’ (one word to mean both ashamed and shy) to tell me this. The host tatay is very concerned with keeping his family and home safe, so is not comfortable giving me a key to the house.

Unfortunately, one weekend text messages were delayed and they did not know that I was waiting outside for a couple of hours. I’m not sure how internet contracts work here, but I was asked not to use the internet at my host house anymore. These are all minor things, but took adjustment and persistence on my end to find out what their issues were. Having asked a few times, they finally opened up to me and we settled that I’ll take care of my own meals, which I prefer since it gives me more freedom to eat as I please. In the next few weeks I’ll be moving to a new host family. I searched for an apartment, but they’re far too expensive in Tacloban City for my pc budget, and my work situation will be finalized, hopefully.

Luz, my awesome counterpart and I

My work environment has also required persistence and a lot of listening to learn how things work in my office and what my responsibilities are – this is still a learning process for me.

Okay, what’re all the awesome things in life?

Kevin, Celia, me, Jenna, Heather, Holly
NYE in Cebu City

I went to Cebu City for NYE with a few other volunteers. We spent the weekend lounging, eating amazing food, and strolling around the second biggest city in PI. I connected with a few couch surfers and went to a high rise apartment with my volunteers to meet locals and foreigners to mingle. When the clock struck midnight we were on the rooftop with a 360 view looking over the endless fireworks going up all around the city from individual households. It was a beautiful way to bring in the new year.

Eclectic mix of people. Rooftop at midnight. 

I spent a weekend in Manila, where I found good Chinese food! It’s surprisingly hard to find it here.

I’m fortunate that I have a great set of volunteer site mates near me that I see weekly, and an amazing host family just a town over in Baras, Palo from my city that give me so much support. I see them all weekly.

PYAP Youth Leaders, Teambuilding at San Jose Beach

I really adore my counterparts (coworkers). I’m looking forward to work picking up from the holiday season here and getting to know the youth leaders that I’m working with. I have barangay/community visits to look forward to in the coming weeks to recruit Out of School Youth (OSY) to join the PYAP youth association and SCALA, a basic computer literacy course.

Okay, what’re plans that I’m looking forward to?

Moving to a new host family (my current one is trying to get visas to go to the states to visit their kids). This is always a bit anxious ‘cause who knows what the family will be like?

I’m going to get dive certified in the next month =D

I’ll (fingers crossed) be traveling to Bicol to help with a training for a women’s organization that provides livelihood projects.

I’ll be sending out a longer email this week. Email me if you want in: xiumei(at)ucla(dot)edu

Did you know February 3^rd is the beginning of Chinese New Year? Family, mail me some red envelopes with new year cake! 

Dear Ms. P’s Class

Closing out Week 20 in this country, and finishing the first week of the new year. I have so much to share, both good and bad. But, in the mean time I want to share a letter that I wrote to a class I am having email/pen-pal exchanges with in Nevada through the Peace Corps World Wise Schools Correspondence Match program. Have you ever had a pen-pal? Want to be my pen-pal or want more details than this blog offers? Just email me and I'll add you to my email list: meixmc(at)gmail. Here's my mailing address too: Mei Chen, Peace Corps Vol. c/o Lili Baltazar CSWDO, Balyuan Bldg. Magsaysay Blvd. Tacloban City, Philippines 6500. Enjoy! 

Thursday, January 6, 2010
Computer Center, Tacloban City, Leyte, Philippines

Dear Ms. P’s Class,

Happy New Year! I hope your holidays were wonderful. I debated whether to answer your questions one by one, but decided I would answer them through two letters and let you find the answer to your own questions. All of your questions were about me or life here in the Philippines. There were quite a number of questions, so let’s get started.

I’ll start with a little bit more about myself. I was actually born in southern China and shortly immigrated to California. I grew up in San Francisco with my mom, dad, little sister and three older brothers.  My siblings and I have American citizenship, but my family is Chinese American, so I grew up speaking Chinese (Cantonese and Mandarin) and English.  I am currently learning the Filipino dialect, Waray-Waray.  I went to Westmoor High School in Daly City before I moved to Los Angeles to go to UCLA where I majored in International Development.

During my college studies I traveled abroad to teach English in China and studied abroad in Beijing. Some of my other travels include 5 weeks through New Zealand to volunteer and travel, and around the United States (I’ve visited Nevada, Arizona, Colorado, Ohio, Hawaii, New York, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee, Texas, Michigan, Washington DC, Oregon, and Washington State).

I love traveling to learn about different places and people. I enjoy how it makes me a better person and more able to understand people who are different from myself. When I’m not travelling I like snuggling with my cat, Penelope (who is being taken care of by my little sister) and partaking in my favorite hobbies: rock climbing, salsa dancing and playing ultimate frisbee. Some of my other favorites: color is green; food is dim sum; last favorite book read is The Secret Life of Bees.

After graduating from college I worked at a non-profit that assisted low-income and homeless people to build job-hunting skills with Americorps, a volunteering organization (which is quite different from Peace Corps which is the organization I am volunteering with now). I had many different jobs between college and coming to the Philippines for Peace Corps, mostly, working as an outdoor instructor on different camping and rock climbing trips. To name a few others, I worked at in an office, in a rock climbing gym, at science camp, as a tutor/babysitter and spent much of my time traveling in a car throughout California visiting national parks. I’ve had a wide range of jobs before that include offices and exploring.

I hope that this letter serves as a good introduction. If you didn’t find your question answered here, look for it in my letter number two. I look forward to more exchanges with you about my life serving as a volunteer in the Philippines. Again, happy new year and I hope it’s not too cold in Nevada!

Sincerely,

Mei Chen