The Travel Geek in Me

Image by Aero Icarus | Flickr | Unaltered

For those of you who are interested in the geeky travel details of this trip, here are a few fun facts about the itinerary I have booked:

• I was able to cash in miles for my trip and only had to pay $61USD for my entire round trip ticket.
• I learned the hard way that the airlines are not allowed to book one way tickets out of the Philippines without in person government approval in Manila. The difficulty with this is that you cannot get into the country without a return ticket. So, when traveling to the Philippines, be sure to book the entire round trip at once rather than two one way segments!
• It was impossible for me to find a flight to avoid an overnight in Hong Kong.
• Hong Kong's hotels are expensive. I found a reasonable room on the airport Metro line for $175 USD (tax included). In comparison, I am staying three nights in Cebu for $122.
• Boats from Cebu to Ormoc have been cancelled the last week due to more rainy weather.
• The flight from LAX to HKG is 15:40 hours on a Boeing 777-300. This will be the longest long haul flight I have taken ever - thank goodness for individual entertainment centers and power adapters in each seat!
• This is a two Starbucks mug collection trip with locations in Hong Kong and Cebu, Philippines!
• Due to the length of my stay (just over 30 days), I received a Philippines 59 day tourist visa back from the Philippine Consulate General (always a relief when the passport is mailed back safely)!
• The All Hands Volunteer base occasionally moves locations. The new location right now is an hour away from Ormoc City where I was originally due to stay. I now have to take a bus or jeepney and habal habal or bicycle with a sidecar to the new location.
• I will be staying at a hospital (dorm style) for the first part of my stay on the Island of Leyte.
• Most of my immunizations are updated, but I will have to renew my typhoid vaccination this week. There is no vaccine for dengue fever that has been identified among some volunteers and staff across organizations working on the Island of Leyte. We have been instructed/required to wear long pants and long sleeved shirt to prevent mosquito bites. Bug spray is a hot commodity for All Hands right now!

More information to follow. My departure date is creeping closer!

Support Update

Secondhand work tshirts.

I am overwhelmed by the number of people who have sent me messages, asked me questions, and donated items and money to my trip to the Philippines. I feel remarkably blessed for having each supporter in my life.
I have been adjusting the numbers and updating the items that I have received (or received money for) in the information to the right of this post. There are only a few items left on my Amazon gift list. I have really loved the surprise deliveries that have been gifted to me from my list! Thank you to those who thoughtfully ordered items for me.
If you are still interested in sending money to help me out with the purchase of other items on my list, please use either paypal (message me for details) or my YouCaring site (note: this is not tax-deductible).
All Hands has provided a detailed information packet including a packing list of items that we are required to bring. Since most of my personal belongings are in boxes in Washington and somewhere in Colorado - left unpacked since my move, I am working on figuring out what I do have and what I need to search for, or purchase, so that when I arrive in Ormoc, I have what I need to get off to a great start on the Project.
So far, the most fun I had preparing for the trip was shopping for secondhand work clothes (that "will be destroyed") at Goodwill with Laura. I now have some fun and brightly colored "dispensable" tshirts for the work site!
I have also been working out my travel plans and am happy to report that I am able to cash in frequent flier miles for the air transportation to Cebu and back (saving more than $1500+). On the way to the Philippines I have two stops before I reach Ormoc including one night in Hong Kong and three additional days on Cebu. I am due to arrive at the Project Leyte base in Ormoc on 8 February. My return is an overnight(s) stopover in LA where I look forward to staying with friends.
It is my responsibility to sort out and fund my entire trip to Ormoc, so some thoughts and prayers would go a long way toward negotiating the logistics of booking the trip - and then sorting it out when I actually get there!
I also determined that I require a longer prearranged visa to stay longer than the allowed 30 days airport visa. I have finally pulled the information together for that and will be submitting my passport to the Philippines Consulate General in San Francisco to be processed this week.
Less than one month to go...

What Am I Doing?

Clean up in the Philippines. Image by Trocaire | Flickr | Unaltered

I have been asked several times what I will specifically be doing in the Philippines. While Project Leyte is ongoing and needs in the area can change, this project is operating with the following initiative:

Our initial work will focus on helping residents clear debris and salvage any materials that can be reused. We hope to have funding for a home repair program that involves supplying materials, labor, and volunteers. Ideally funding will also be available to create a transitional shelter program (t-shelters). The t-shelter design incorporates indigenous materials that are erected to provide a safe, dignified living space for 3-5 years. -Project Leyte Website-

So, what will I be doing in the Philippines? Lots of clean up and debri removal and supporting All Hands in whatever way they find to help out the people of Leyte. This could mean tromping through the mud to clear debris out of ditches, pitching plywood into a dumpster, salvaging metal for resale, or helping out with food distribution.
Regardless of the task, it will be hard and hot work. And, I hope that at the end of my 30 days, I feel like I made a little difference!

The Damage

Tacloban City, Island of Leyte, Philippines. Image by Trocaire | Flickr | Unaltered

Two months after Typhoon Yolanda destroyed everything in its Philippines path, it seems like people have already forgotten the destruction that the storm left behind. I even ran into someone today who asked, "Oh, the Philippines...wasn't there something that happened there recently?"

It is easy to observe, react, and move on from disasters when they are so far away - or even close by like the epic flooding that happened in Colorado several months ago. Often, we cannot do much to help out so we move on to the next big news story.

But, in the case of this disaster, I hope to keep you invested and praying for the people of Leyte who need help and support for months to come yet.

The pictures we saw in the the news of Tacloban City two months ago were devastating. The mess that Yolanda left behind does not just pick itself up. Part of the volunteer effort with All Hands Volunteers will be to clean up people's property, clear out ditches, and salvage materials that can be reused.

Image by  International  Labour Organization - ILO PHOTOS | Flickr | Unaltered

By the looks of these photos, it is evident why we are required to bring rubber boots, mosquito nets, and repellent - and have all our immunizations updated! The mud and yuck is an excellent breeding ground for disease and bugs.

Leyte Caught in the Eye

Image by Keith Edkins | Wikipedia | Public Domain

When Typhoon Yolanda (Filipino local name for Haiyan) started ramping up in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, the Island of Leyte (lay-tee) began preparing for the storm. Little did anyone know how terrifying this event would be.
Some reports have suggested that early preparation saved thousands of lives - even though more than 6,000 are confirmed dead now. Others say that the Filipino people should have taken more precautions for this storm. However, in an island nation, it is hard to say where all those people would have evacuated to - another island?
One unexpected event that happened as part of Yolanda was a massive storm surge. Whereas tsunami warnings would have indicated that people leave the coastal areas, a typhoon is known for extreme wind and is not as likely to force water so far inland. However, Yolanda whipped water six meters (20 feet) over Tacloban City which took the brunt of the storm damages. It is hard to imagine how anyone can be perfectly prepared for unruly and unpredictable storms like this.
The Leyte is All Hands' point of service to the Philippines. Yolanda ferociously hit land there first and left horrific damage in her path. Cleaning up and reestablishing infrastructure and livelihood will be a great deal more challenging that I can imagine. I will be working full days in the hot sticky equatorial weather. The mosquitoes have been reportedly awful and the accommodation is a basic bunking shelter with bucket baths. But, piece by piece, the Island will be picked up and put back together again. My resolve to lend my hands to patch up this little piece of land is getting stronger!