There are people absolutely everywhere... children too, which makes driving hairy scary for me. Not that I drive, I just sit in the front seat with my eyes squeezed shut and my imaginary break handy!!!! There are also dogs EVERYWHERE!!! They could care less about humans most of the time. They just lay around on the street and lazily move out of the way if you blow your horn or flash your lights at them.
One thing I find scarily funny about Borongan, which was similar in Peru, is that the power lines are all tangled together in the sort of way that would make Smokey the Bear all fired up . ;-) Seriously... about 35 lines or more all coming from different directions and massing together in one completely tangled mess. I would think major fires could ensue because of the frazzled confusion of lines, but no one here seems bothered by it. So... is this a when in Rome situation? Not much I can do about it, but it does make me shudder each time I pass a transformer that resembles a millipede!!! ( well, anything that resembles a millipede makes me shudder... not big news there!!)
The streets of Borongan are mostly paved and there is construction going on in the ones that aren't. It is so cool to be driving along the road, passing businesses and homes studded with palm trees, banana trees and exotic plants, when you get a glimpse of the great Pacific Ocean. Borongan lies right on the coast of the Pacific. It is just beautiful!!! I hope I get the chance to go in it and feel warm ocean water, much different from the freezing Atlantic Ocean up near New Hampshire.
In the center of the city is the church, Nativity of Mary. It is a HUGE blue church that has a dome in front of it for Eucharistic Adoration. It's doors are open in the front and on the sides... it actually has more doors than windows! It is quite a large church with a beautiful altar up about 15 stairs. There are two beautiful stained glass windows on either side of the altar. One is of the Baptism of Jesus and one is of the crowning of Mary as Queen of heaven and earth. The Bishop's residence is connected to the church and he has a small chapel upstairs in which, when he is in Borongan, he holds daily 6am mass (in English) for all of the religious in town. I am not a religious, of course, but since I hang with them, I am lucky to be included!! Every day at 6pm, the Angelus is prayed through loudspeakers.
One terrifying thing about Borongan streets is there are no stop signs or traffic signals!! This is no backwater hic town (I'm sorry if you live in a backwater hic town...no offense) This is a big city! So, when approaching an intersection, you simply inch your way through. There are motorcycles, cars and trucks of all kinds and tricycles. Imagine if a motorcycle and a one-wheeled golf cart were fused together... that is a tricycle. They have about 4 seats, plus a space behind the driver on the motorcycle. They are pretty cool... they can turn in the street without making a 3-point turn and they usually have a saying on them like "God Bless Your Trip" or "Immaculate Conception," or "The Little Flower". They are cute little vehicles, but they are fast and they don't like to slow down or stop! Anyways, when I said that you inch your way through the intersection... well, not everyone does that. Some just fly through. It is a defensive driving nightmare!!! And, by the way, pedestrians do not have right of way!! It's every man, woman, child and dog for himself on the streets of Borongan!!
With the bridges that take you over the rivers, majestic mountains, the Pacific Ocean and the rich tropical plant life, Borongan, although quite poor in most areas I've seen, is quite beautiful. Of course, I tend, as my father does, to focus on the positive. I am sure it is possible to be here and see the poor homes and tin-roved stores and feel a sense of desolation.. And although I am not turning a blind eye to the reality of the situation... I came here to live among the poor...I think it is infinitely more productive and healthier to see the beauty that God created around us. I believe He put it there just so we on earth can have a glimpse of paradise and have some motivation to live as Jesus did. As I said in Africa, in Peru, and even in Louisiana, I can't believe I get to be here!!! Even with the humid heat that makes me wet before I take 5 steps in the morning, the rain that comes almost every day but doesn't last long, the lizards and grasshoppers that come into my room and the crazy driving around Borongan, I am so grateful to be here and experience life in the Philippines with the Oikos Sisters!!! xxoo
