Archive for November, 2007
This made me laugh.
A US judge has been removed from the bench for jailing an entire courtroom audience after none of them admitted being responsible for a ringing phone.
The judge had been presiding over a domestic violence cases when he heard a mobile phone ring. It upset him so much that he threatened that every single person in the court was going to jail unless the offending mobile phone was handed in to him. When no-one came forward, the judge ordered that the 46 people in the audience be taken into custody.
From The Guardian.
Filipinos are great carnivores. They are not great lovers of vegetables. After spending three days with the fisheries guys on Siquijor with barely a fruit or vegetable in sight (on the third morning I politely declined the fish and rice for breakfast and bought mangoes and coffee), I was desperately craving vitamins. After kitting myself out with some pots and pans, I trotted of to the supermarket eagerly anticipating a few days of detox, nothing but fruit and delicious fresh veggies for me!
I was dismayed to find the ‘vegetable’ isle practically empty - I couldn’t even find any local tinned tomatoes, only ones imported from the US in what appears to be the ‘expensive expat’ isle! This single, manky piece of broccoli cost more than 60 pesos. To put that in perspective, 30 pesos will get you a bottle of beer, 48 pesos will do a weeks’ laundry (including towels) at Wishy Washy* and 100 pesos buys half a BBQ chicken, rice and a buko shake at Jo’s Chicken!
Today I shopped at the public market, which was a much more satisfying experience. Still not much in the vegetable department, but I picked up some yummy mangoes and bananas, fresh noodles and a half a chicken at bargain prices.
*Wishy Washy is my new favourite laundrette. In addition to washing your stuff, they sell the best brownies in Dumaguete and bottled water called ‘The Unthirstable Pure’. Perfect!
I’ve just got back from Siquijor, where I spent a few days helping out with the marine reserve monitoring program. The monitoring team was made up of staff from CCEF (Coastal Conservation and Education Foundation) and BFAR (Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources), local guys who have previously been trained in survey techniques, some enthusiastic Peace Corps volunteers and myself. The plan was to conduct biophysical surveys (count fish) at each of the marine reserves on the island. However, progress (already on ‘island time’) was hampered by the return of Lando, which meant we could only dive at the most sheltered sites. Most of our time was spent brainstorming how to make vital pieces of survey equipment left in Cebu from things which can be purchased on a small island, driving around the island (which is gorgeous) picking up dive gear and people from various places, and stopping for ’snacks’ or lunch.
I stayed at the BFAR office (they have a couple of rooms upstairs for staff / guests) with the guys from CCEF and JR, who is one half of the Siquijor Fisheries staff. The guys were all really friendly, and full of stories about the trials of fisheries management and coastal enforcement, but although they tried to translate the conversation as much as possible I was lost a lot of the time. I certainly have a new appreciation of being on the wrong side of the language barrier, after living with lots of Frenchies in Oz! When the storm came through the power was out right across the island and we were all scrambling around trying to find matches and candles in the dark. Two guys had gone into town on a motorbike to get dinner and came back nearly drowned!
Although it was interesting to see how the MPA monitoring works, that wasn’t my purpose for the trip. I’m hoping to do some research on the municipal fisheries of Siquijor for my PhD, so my main reason for going along was to network with local dignitaries, fisheries officers, and NGO staff who will (hopefully!) be able to help me organise some focus groups with the fishers there. In that respect the trip was definitely a success - I’ve made several contacts who I think will be really helpful when I go back to work there, and have a plan of action for what I need to do, although the thought of trying to get groups of fishers together to give the right answers to the questions I need to ask in a language I don’t understand is still pretty daunting! It was great to see more of the island too (I was there for a couple of days back in August), it’s a beautiful place with really friendly people, and I can’t wait to go back again in January to start my work there.
On the way back, the sea was still heaving from the storm and our tiny little ferry was getting tossed around. It’s always a worry when the lifejackets look as though they’ve been used a couple of times! Halfway across a man came rushing round offering sick bags.
I’m leaving for Siquijor island tonight, to meet some people working on the marine reserves there. I have no idea where I’m going, what I’m doing, or where I’m staying! Internet access is pretty scare on the island, so I’ll be incommunicado for the next few days. Back in Dumaguete on Thursday. I think.
I finally have a proper place to live! I’m officially an ex-ex-pat!Until now I’ve been staying at Harold’s Tourist Mansion - the back of the staff t-shirts reads: “Any cheaper and we would be sluts” ! It’s actually not as bad as it sounds, but I’ve been itching to move into a place where I can spread out and have a kitchen to cook in - it gets pretty tiring going out to eat every night, especially after a long day.
I seem to spend far too much of my life searching for houses. I found a lot of places that “accept lady lodgers”, but sadly no charming and affordable houses for rent. After looking at a few places, and ruling out a few others on location (one was next to the cock pit!), I eventually settled on an apartment on Rovira Drive. Well, two apartments. My landlord had a one bedroom place available, but on the 14th December a Korean girl in one of his two bedroom places wants to switch to the smaller one. So I’m in the one bedroom until December 14th, then in the two bedroom one! Luckily both apartments are off the same courtyard, so it won’t be too much hassle.
It’s more expensive than I would have liked, and less charming (I liked the idea of a nice little nipa hut by the beach…) but it’s really close to the marine lab, has a great kitchen (with an oven, which apparently is unheard of for a rental place in Duamguete, most just have stoves) and a night guard. Actually the apartment I’m in for the first few weeks is probably nicer than the one I’ll end up in, with wooden flooring from trees grown in my landlords orchard 18 years ago!
I’ll try and get some photos taken soon.
I woke up this morning to the delightful sound of a lot of pigs being slaughtered. Fiesta in Dumaguete tomorrow.
For the first part of this week, Dumaguete was under the influence of tropical depression storm ‘Lando’ (named, I presume, after the Family Guy episode where Peter goes back to school to convince the kids not to ‘do toad’). When it rains here, it really rains. Recently, it’s been raining a lot. My bright yellow, handbag sized umbrella has become my favourite possession ever, now that I’ve learnt never to leave home without it. The rain was then accompanied by wind, and repeated power cuts. Cyclone warnings are like snow days for the tropics - the schools all stay closed and public transport (ferries) is cancelled. Needless to say, these are not the best conditions for going diving, so I was office bound for a few days.
Fortunaely, Lando eventually made landfall up in Cebu somewhere, and Mira’s path is far north of here, so we’re back on track (it’s still raining, but without the wind and destruction). The last couple of days, I’ve been diving at Sumilon Island, sharing a boat with Garry (my supervisor). It’s crazy to think that he’s been doing surveys at that island since before I was born! His data sheets are still the same… made on a typewriter! Tomorrow I’m going back to the reserves at Dauin to learn how to use my U/W camera, so expect photos!
Becks is a marine ecology PhD student, living in Queensland (Australia), Dumaguete (Philippines) and London (UK). Marinegirl is her online alter-ego. She dreamt her up as as super-gorgeous superhero saving the underwater world (if you've seen Captain Planet, you get the idea). She is not, and never will be, in the marines.