Adventures of Isabel

Kicking it old-school with Dr. Cullinane in the VIP lounge at Cebu-Mactan airport.
Sadly, here in Manila, where I’m waiting for my flight to Jakarta, the accommodations are a bit more basic. But I can’t win every time.
It’s been a short & sweet visit to Manila. Catching up with friends, visiting archives and libraries here, [...]

I’ve been a bit out of touch - internet access has been either difficult or unappealing lately, and my phone got stolen on the boat from Cagayan to Cebu, so twitter’s out for now too.
But I just figured I’d drop a line. I’ll be arriving in Manila Wednesday night, and should have better access.

The “road” to Carupay. More on this later…
I’m back in Cagayan de Oro, leaving for Cebu tomorrow evening. It was another eventful trip, but I’m too burnt out to write much more. So consider this the not-dismembered-in-motorbike-crash-or-kidnapped post, and I’ll fill in the details tomorrow.

Breakdancers, rocking it for the camera on Dipolog beach.
I’m leaving again for the mountains early tomorrow morning. This time, I’ll be well and truly off the grid — 12 km hike in, no cellphone signal — so I’ll be out of touch for at least the next 2 days.
Geeky digression: the only Tagalog [...]

*[Slightly under-edited sneak preview of a much larger project]*
Barangay Miatan is located deep in the hills outside of Katipunan, Zamboanga del Norte. The entrance to the barangay can be reached only by foot or the most rugged of motor vehicles, a long trip along jaw-rattling dirt and gravel roads lined with paddies where farmers [...]

Barangay Captain Bonifacio Cabasag, elected local official for Bgy. Miatan, Zamboanga del Norte.
With gold prices skyrocketing, mining companies are eager to expand their operations into previously untapped reserves. One such area is Barangay Miatan. Canadian firm Toronto Ventures Incorporated sent engineers and company officials to survey the area and negotiate an agreement with [...]

Barangay Miatan, Katipunan Municipality, Zamboanga del Norte.
(The picture I wish I had was me, wading through waist-deep water, holding my camera bag above my head. But, for obvious reasons, no such picture exists. I am playing with my lens cap in this one, though)
UPDATE: ha! how’s this for a diptych:
(14 years ago, Yellowstone [...]

I’m back in the city again (Dipolog) after visiting communities up in the mountains. I’m a bit worn out, especially after the trip down.I tagged along with people from 2 local NGOs working on implementing livelihood programs as part of the GRP-RPMM peace process. On the way back, we caught a ride down [...]

I’m leaving tomorrow for Zamboanga del Norte, and I’ll be in very remote areas for much of the next 6 days. I’ll do the best I can with blogging and email, but may not have much internet access until the 18th.