On Sunday, June 12, it was the Philippine independence day, so there were flags everywhere!
Everywhere you look in Batangas (and in the Philippines in general, it seems!), there are people selling all kinds of things. Here are beautiful flower arrangements being sold near the basilica.
See this woman tying the bows? They were preparing for two weddings that day. What a beautiful place to get married! We were able to crash one of the weddings and there were approximately 20 bridesmaids!
My host took us to her university, the University of Batangas for a tour. She seems to know so many people and was introducing us in all of the different offices. They're preparing to use some of the classrooms for Senior High School (grade 11), so they're updating with large TVs.
Maybe we should get uniforms at our school? They're very common here, even for teachers!
For lunch, I accomplished my goal of trying Jollibee, the Filipino fast food that seems to be everywhere. I had fried chicken and spaghetti with hot dogs! It was surprisingly delicious!
On Sunday we traveled to a town called Taal and went to a basilica built by the Spanish in 1516. It is incredibly beautiful.
In Taal, I got to ride on my first tricycle! It's like the Filipino version of a taxi. A motorcycle is hooked up to a little sidecar for the passengers to ride in.
We went to a GREAT museum about the woman who sewed the first Philippines flag, Marcela Marino de Agoncillo. In the museum they have a great tech lab where students can come to do research. Our tour guide, Mark, studied history in college and told me that he was doing his "dream job" in working at the museum. And he was awesome at it! He knew every detail inside and out.
Around every corner is another amazing view. This is from the bell tower of the basilica.
In the afternoon, we went to Tagaytay, a place where you can see the Taal volcano. This volcano is awesome because it's a little volcano in the middle of a lake in the crater of a big volcano. Fortunately, we got to see it and take some pictures before it started to rain because when it rains, it pours in the Philippines!
I can't wait to see what other adventures I will find here in Batangas!
All of these pictures are amazing! My favorites are of the basilica. It looks so cool. I wish I could be seeing it with my own eyes! That rain looks awesome! Were you still in the motorcycle when you took the rainy shots? If so, did you get wet? The view from the bell tower is so beautiful! I think that it is cool that there is a volcano in a lake formed in another, bigger volcano. Are either of them active? I have to admit though, the guy in front of the fast food place is kind of creepy. What a strange combination of food, too! I have never eaten chicken, spaghetti, and hot dogs at the same meal. What religion is the majority of the country, or area? Do you like Manila or Batangas better? Are they somewhat similar, or are they completely different? Will you continue to post things after school ends? (I am assuming that you will.) Hope you continue to have a great time!
ReplyDeleteTate Hostetler :)
Hi Tate!
ReplyDeleteOf course I will continue to blog! I have so much that I want to share :) I hope you will keep up with me even after school ends.
All of the churches here have been amazing. Most of the people here (about 85%) are Catholic, so they are very dedicated to keeping up the religious places. Each city is organized around a patron saint and has a special festival each year on that saint's feast day.
When it was raining so hard, I was inside a jeepney, which is a kind of bus. It had closed windows, so I didn't get wet, but the back is open and water was pouring in there!
The volcanoes are really cool! The small volcano (called the Taal volcano) is still active. Next week I am going to take a boat to the volcano and climb part of it!
Jollibee is a very unique fast food restaurant! Everything on the menu has "jolly" or "joy" in the name!
I definitely like Batangas better than Manila. Manila is too big of a city for me! It really could be any big city around the world -- it has many chain restaurants, hotels, and office buildings. Batangas is much more unique and special. And I have had the chance to really meet some people here, which makes it feel more like home!