Neighborhoods in Manila

It's always nice to get out and walk around the real neighborhoods.   You get to see how real people live.

 Manila has a lot of traffic, and busy streets. But when you get off the main streets, you can walk through some interesting neighborhoods.

There are sidewalk cafes.

With outdoor seating and lights in the trees.

And even corner religious shrines.

And when the neighborhood streets come out of the neighborhood, sometimes they end on a river.

You can see people riding on the motorized tricycles / motorbike sidecars.

There are little corner bakeries.



















With some tasty buns.

























And some snack places as well.

We had some yummy lumpia.

And another restaurant.

Of course you can buy different kinds of rice.

And lots of vegetables.

Every neighborhood seems to have several roosters.  Since cockfighting has been in the Philippines for many years it seems as though every neighborhood has their own champion.

Baguio

When we went on our recent Outreach to Bagiuo, we were fortunate to stay at the Ambassador's Summer Residence.

It's a beautiful place in the mountains around Bagiuo.   The air is fresh and cool year round and there are lots of trees.

I got to stay in General Yamashita's room - rumor has that it's haunted - although no one came to visit me.

The grounds are gorgeous!

It was even cool enough to go for a morning run! Something I haven't been able to do in hot and smoggy Manila.

In our free time, we explored the town on the top of the mountain.

I even got to dress up in native dress.  The Igorot people in this region are known for their weaving, amongst other things.


























There were also lots of places to shop - I got some great woven items.

They're also known for having the best local style brooms.

I love visiting local markets!

It's a beautiful place - I can't wait to go back with my family!

Outreach

One of the primary reasons for having Embassies and Consulates around the world is to provide services for American citizens. Usually the American citizens make the journey to the Embassy or Consulate for services. But - in a country with a significant amount of American citizens living in large communities further away, sometimes the government comes to them in the form of an outreach.






I was fortunate to go with a team of colleagues to Baguio for an outreach.



Baguio is a six hour drive from the Embassy, up in the mountains of Luzon Island.

Kennon Road winds it's way up the mountain and it's a rather treacherous stretch.  Rocky mountain walls on one side and a rushing river on the other.  We were very grateful to have a driver who was so experienced.  Especially when our car broke down on the way up to Baguio.

Some people would be upset about having to wait on the side of the road for several hours until a taxi could come down the mountain to get us.

But our great team just took it in stride and used it for photo ops - even though it was raining.













And one enterprising colleague whipped out her craft basket and made us a set of matching bracelets.  We call it the "Kennon Road Collection"!

Finally we got to our destination and had a well deserved relaxing meal together.

The next morning we were up bright and early to begin our day of providing services to American citizens.  We processed passports and Consular Reports of Birth Abroad, provided notary services and information about veterans affairs and social security.













It was a long and productive day.







We ended with some special cocktails and pizza!

The next day we headed back to Manila.  We again had cause to be grateful for our skilled driver.  We headed down the mountain - this time taking the Marcos Highway hoping for better luck.  But - once we got on the expressway, we blew a tire.  Thanks to our great driver, there were no injuries and the tire was quickly fixed.

All in all - quite an adventure!