It comes down to this

Oh my. Time sure has flown by. Here it is, September 17, 2012. My last day in Davao. In fact, our flight is scheduled to leave from Davao in less than 4 hours. Wow! Has it been two years already?

Well, just to inform you all, here is a rough outline of our upcoming travels:

• Leaving Davao around 9:00pm (9:00am EDT Monday morning)
• Going to Manila and "sleeping" in the airport before leaving Tuesday morning around 7:30am (7:30pm EDT Monday evening)
• Then on to Japan with a layover of a few hours (I don't even know what time it will be there)
• Then to Seattle where we go through customs (it will be Tuesday morning there, not sure about the exact time)
• Then from Seattle we fly to San Francisco, arriving about 2:00pm Pacific time (5:00pm EDT)

We'll be there for about three weeks before returning to PA in early October.

Well, time for one last shower in the Philippines (and the last one for quite a few hours!).

Ayo ayo Davao! Until we meet again. It's been a wonderful time. But for now...

Leaving on a jet plane. Don't know when I'll be back again!

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One week ago today...Part 5

The following is taken from my journal of our experience in Tabuk, Kalinga province in the northern Philippines. Here are a few things you'll need to know:

Tabuk - a city in Kalinga province, northern Philippines, a few hours north of Manila

Bugnay - a remote tribal village in the mountains a few hours away from Tabuk

Sagada - a city in Mountain province that attracts international tourists

Achao & Georgia Macad - husband and wife who started a maternity clinic in Tabuk (Achao is from Bugnay)

Crystal Meeks - a midwife who started a maternity clinic in Bugnay, a remote village in the mountains

Sara & Fonda - friends from the clinic in Davao

Sagada to Tabuk

July 11, 2012

We woke up around 5:00am and finished packing all of our clothing and gear. Sara made pancakes and the strawberry preserves we had bought were a great complement to them. So we grabbed all of our stuff and headed down to the multicab. Kuya Ligaya then drove us into town to the jeepneys.

One week ago today...Part 4

The following is taken from my journal of our experience in Tabuk, Kalinga province in the northern Philippines. Here are a few things you'll need to know:

Tabuk - a city in Kalinga province, northern Philippines, a few hours north of Manila

Bugnay - a remote tribal village in the mountains a few hours away from Tabuk

Sagada - a city in Mountain province that attracts international tourists

Achao & Georgia Macad - husband and wife who started a maternity clinic in Tabuk (Achao is from Bugnay)

Crystal Meeks - a midwife who started a maternity clinic in Bugnay, a remote village in the mountains

Sara & Fonda - friends from the clinic in Davao

Sagada – cave and town

July 10, 2012

We woke up in the cool mountain air of Sagada (still about 70°F inside). We made a breakfast of eggs and hot drinks. Around 9:00am we met Kuya Ligaya to take us to Sumaging Cave. We stopped in town to register as foreign tourists and pay a small fee. Then we picked up a guide recommended by the Ligayas. We stopped again so Jayson, our guide, could pick up his supplies, including a large gas lantern, which proved to be much better than using flashlights and headlamps (which we personally had with us).

One week ago today...Part 3

The following is taken from my journal of our experience in Tabuk, Kalinga province in the northern Philippines. Here are a few things you'll need to know:

Tabuk - a city in Kalinga province, northern Philippines, a few hours north of Manila

Bugnay - a remote tribal village in the mountains a few hours away from Tabuk

Sagada - a city in Mountain province that attracts international tourists

Achao & Georgia Macad - husband and wife who started a maternity clinic in Tabuk (Achao is from Bugnay)

Crystal Meeks - a midwife who started a maternity clinic in Bugnay, a remote village in the mountains

Sara & Fonda - friends from the clinic in Davao

To Sagada

July 9, 2012

We were up by 6:00am and finished packing our last few things. We went down and made and ate our breakfast of pancakes. We carried all of our things to the front door to be ready for the jeepney. We visited with a few locals until the jeepney arrived. But it was full! A few more people got on, but there was not enough room for all of us. Sara talked with someone to arrange other transportation.

One week ago today...Part 2

The following is taken from my journal of our experience in Tabuk, Kalinga province in the northern Philippines. Here are a few things you'll need to know:

Tabuk - a city in Kalinga province, northern Philippines, a few hours north of Manila

Bugnay - a remote tribal village in the mountains a few hours away from Tabuk

Sagada - a city in Mountain province that attracts international tourists

Achao & Georgia Macad - husband and wife who started a maternity clinic in Tabuk (Achao is from Bugnay)

Crystal Meeks - a midwife who started a maternity clinic in Bugnay, a remote village in the mountains

Sara & Fonda - friends from the clinic in Davao

Bugnay

July 8, 2012

On Sunday morning we got up about 5:45am. We made coffee and sat outside looking at our pictures from the jeepney ride. The temp outside was 71°F before we received direct sunlight, because of the high mountains. With the sun it quickly climbed above 80°F.

One week ago today...Part 1

The following is taken from my journal of our experience in Tabuk, Kalinga province in the northern Philippines. Here are a few things you'll need to know:

Tabuk - a city in Kalinga province, northern Philippines, a few hours north of Manila

Bugnay - a remote tribal village in the mountains a few hours away from Tabuk

Sagada - a city in Mountain province that attracts international tourists

Achao & Georgia Macad - husband and wife who started a maternity clinic in Tabuk (Achao is from Bugnay)

Crystal Meeks - a midwife who started a maternity clinic in Bugnay, a remote village in the mountains

Sara & Fonda - friends from the clinic in Davao

Trip to Bugnay

July 7, 2012

We woke up around 6:00am and finished our packing, then ate breakfast. Achao then drove us to Bulanao to get a jeepney going to Bugnay. After a little confusion, Sara and Fonda joined us. We all climbed on top of the jeepney, with all of our bags. We had to climb over 3 baskets of chickens! The inside and top were both very full. The top had metal bars to sit on, and a raised metal bar around the edge to help keep you on top.