The activity was also fun because I got to meet many talented and dedicated American optometrists (eye doctors) that traveled to the Philippines to support the clinic. Getting to share Filipino culture with Americans was so special after more than six months of getting to know it myself!
I do not go anywhere without my Kindle e-reader! I love to read and recently started a book called Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver. Kingsolver is an American novelist that went to my college, too! Many of her books focus on American social and environmental issues while also spinning interesting stories with adventurous characters.
While I did not play any games myself this week, I got to watch my community’s “Bancaton” (bank-uh-thon), or boat race. Local fishermen competed in short rowboat sprints and relay races, then in longer races in motorized pump-boats. I also got to watch students compete in fencing and dance competitions, which they have been preparing for since November! All of these fun sporting events were part of the week-long community fiesta!
One day, during my Iloilo City trip, my group took a ferry boat to Bacolod, a city on the island next to Iloilo. Our eye clinic ended early, so we stopped by a restaurant to eat halo-halo (hollow-hollow). This Filipino dessert is like an ice cream parfait, with shaved ice, sweet coconut milk, purple ice cream and lots of fun toppings mixed in. My halo-halo had banana, corn, ube (purple yam) jam and sweet beans!
