Day 30 Dalaguete, Philippines

I've been here for a total of 30 days! I really can't believe it because it's gone by so fast and I've been having such a great time here. It's Saturday so I was off-duty all day. Tomorrow is the feeding program so I spent the day preparing with my group. The hospital separated us into groups and wants us to present basic healthcare information before giving out the food. Our group will be focusing on basic hygiene (hand washing, brushing teeth, bathing) and the other groups will focus on high-blood pressure, diabetes, and proper nutrition. I'm a little bit nervous because I'll be speaking in Bisaya, but my group-mates will be writing down what I'm supposed to say so I can refer to that if I get stuck.

Anyway, I just hung out at the hospital, worked on preparing for tomorrow, and loaded a few syringes. It's funny here because, even when people have time off, they normally just stay at the hospital and help out because the town is so small and most of the nurses live here since their homes are too far away to go to every night. Sometimes when I'm taking a tricicad to work, I'll see familiar faces because they were patients at the hospital and they'll stop and wave.

This is the most common way to get around in Dalaguete, other than walking. It's called a tricicad. The amount it costs to ride one here is about $0.06 per trip. Yes, you read that correctly, six cents to get just about anywhere in Dalaguete. However, if you're ever in the Philippines, please give more than six cents per trip. Most of the people that do this type of work are supporting a family. Besides, it's also hard work biking around in the heat all day!