Routine

Thanks for the comments everyone -- nice to hear from you.

Although I don't have a routine in the sense of 9-to-5 here, I'm getting used to things. The heat is merely background now, and actually it's kind of nice that it's never cold (outside at least). I went for a run last night for the first time, which was a sweaty affair, but it was wonderful to actually exercise. I've also been swimming in the youth centre pool at night, which is nice, especially with the dramatic sheet lightning at the horizon.

I'm also developing some strategies for dealing with all of the attention. People are always yelling out HEY JOE! and HEY BROTHER! and WHAT'S YOUR NAME? as witty conversation openers. Yesterday I had the following exchange with some boys across the street. By way of introduction, one of them shouted across traffic as I was invitingly walking away from them in the opposite direction, ARE YOU A FOREIGNER? to which I shouted back in a friendly way, HINDI, PINOY AKO (No, I'm a Filipino!), smiled, and walked on.

Busy with meetings, trying to get data from overworked underpaid civil servants, and interviewing all manner of people. We're trying to get and give some insight into the linked problems of transportation and land use here. I hope we manage to come up with something useful for them. The presentations are getting to be a bigger deal. First they were going to be for the planning department, then for anyone, and now they're going to be filmed by a local television station. We've already been interviewed on the radio twice, and in the newspaper at least once. Apparently we're quite the local event.