The Philippine Military Academy: A City Within a City

The Philippine Military Academy, Baguio City, Philippines

It's not all the time you visit a school with its own road signs and public transportation vehicles that expands a land area that would equal most of the small cities in the country.  Then again, it's no ordinary school - it's the Philippine Military Academy, the one and only training field for our country's heroes.

A 3-hour tour doesn't even cover half of what is to see here.  Old war planes and artillery are candidly situated throughout the grounds, as if you were in previous-day Philippines fighting for that long-awaited freedom.  The place is spic-and-span, too, and the grounds are very well tended.  During my visit there a couple of activities were happening in a localized section of the academy. Foundation Day, they said.  But I didn't get a chance to see how they celebrated that day - I was too busy touring the place. 

As for the site, I would say that Baguio City is the best place for the military to train.  First of all with its high terrain, if you can work out and breathe at that altitude, then keeping peace in the city where the oxygen is abundant will be a piece of cake.  Secondly, since Baguio is the Summer Capital of the country, and the temperature here drops to at most 13 Centigrade, doing all those push ups and jogs and all that stuff would literally be "no sweat" compared to when you're training down under.

The place is open to visitors.  It's a good thing the government isn't keeping all this glory from us. In fact, there are dozens of souvenir shops inside.  All you need is a valid identification card, which you leave at the entrance, and you're good to go. 

NAIA in 12 Hours: The Ninoy Aquino International Airport Can be a Place to Live in, Only That...

 It was four o'clock in the morning when I arrived at Ninoy Aquino International Airport to wait for my flight from Manila back to my hometown after a week-long lecture.  Because of some scheduling issues, my plane had to be the one that left at four in the afternoon and so I had no other choice but to spend the entire day at the airport.

I couldn't go out even if I wanted to, first of all, because of all my luggage.  Secondly, I knew nobody in Manila and I didn't want to get lost in such a big city just when I was about to go home. And last - this is the most important - I had not much money left.

Well, one word that describes NAIA when we venture into their souvenir shops, fashion stores, clothes and apparel, food stations, and all the other glistening luxuries you would want to get your hands on: Crazy.  I mean expensive crazy.  Take this for example.. even a local food chain, that's got all its food and prices in an exclusive, confined standard all over the country, nearly doubles its prices here.  Well you would understand why such an increase in cost without an increase in value would only be reasonable in such a place as an airport - to keep the dollars coming - but to the local Filipino, it's not such a friendly notion.

Don't get me wrong, the services are good.  The floors are mirror-shined, the elevators good enough to be bedrooms if you put in the right furniture, and the ventilation cold enough to cause hypothermia if you don't have the right amount of fat for insulation.  All in all it was a grand place to be.  The government did a real good job in maintaining it.  But whether I was able to maximize my stay or enjoy my 12 hours at NAIA, I still cannot figure out.

A Few Known Facts About the Islamic City of Marawi, Philippines

Islamic mosque on the way to Marawi City

I happened to pay a visit to Marawi City in one of my business trips to the area.  I could have taken a detour from the main road and visited there before when I was on vacation with my family, but we didn't have the guts to go out of fear for our lives.  Rumors had already created walls around that city, making it virtually off-limits to Christians.

Marawi City is a Muslim city in the province of Lanao del Sur in the Philippines. It is the capital city of Lanao del Sur in Mindanao. The people from Marawi speak a dialect called Maranao language, the name originated from a lake which is known as Lake Lanao, which is also called as Ranao in Maranao.

Starting the Trip
The journey to Marawi starts with a fork on the road.  There is a huge stone landmark in the middle that reads, "This way to Marawi City" and points to the left, while the main road is to the right.  The moment you turn left, it's an hour-long ride until you finally reach your destination.

Along the way you pass through small towns - Muslim towns - along wide, neatly cemented roads traversing the mountain.  It's a long way up, but the terrain isn't so steep.  About thirty minutes away, you will be overlooking Lake Lanao, which practically looks like an ocean what with its vastness and placidity.

Before reaching the city, you pass approximately six checkpoints - there's one of the Army, another of the local police, and a few more.  They didn't let us out or open the trunk or anything; we just had to zigzag through alternately blocked points on the road where guys in fatigues with guns were on guard.

Army Checkpoint

The City of Streamers
Another thing you'd notice along the way is that every 2 meters or so, there are banners screaming congratulations to certain graduates and licensure exam passers - new Muslim professionals.  And when you reach the city proper, there are even more of these "tiny billboards" with a lot more smiling faces reflecting the honor and joy that comes with a professional degree or title.  Marawi City: The City of Streamers, they call it.

You'll know you've reached your destination when you see a huge landmark that says, "Welcome to the Islamic City of Marawi."  Since it is situated at the top of a mountain, the air is always chilly.  The wind is cold 24 hours a day, even at the middle of the day.  And even when the sun shines on a hot, lazy afternoon, there always is a cool sting whenever a gust of wind traverses the scene.

Food
Practically all businesses in the city are owned by Muslims.  And most of the food you order in locally-owned restaurants and foodstops will either be hot or spicy - that's the way they like it.  There are no fast food chains - no McDonald's, no Dunkin' Donuts, no Jollibee - anywhere.  Local businesses thrive in the city.

Evening Prayers
At around 6 P.M., the silent air is broken with the thin, soft sounds of distant worship and praises to Allah.  I could not, of course, understand what the prayers were about, but as we made our way down the mountain and approached a mosque or two, the chants became louder and more vivid.  When we turned on the car radio, a man was chanting prayers on air.  We turned it off instead.

Peace?
Even when I was there, I heard a few stories about kidnapping, robbery, shooting, etc.  However, thank God, I didn't get to see these stories materialize before my eyes.  That's all the fear I had - from those stories.  The entire time I was there it was as if I was always holding my breath and waiting for something to happen - but nothing ever did, thank goodness.

The stories surrounding Marawi City will always be there, and whether they are good or bad ones, they will always be part of the culture that colors the place.  The city is like a haven to the Muslim community, considered a minority in the Philippines.  It is the one place where THEY make the population.

The Games Children Play

In one of my trips to Marawi, I came across this child pulling around a little toy truck.  The thing was moving steadily, its wheels rolling smoothly against the rocky pavement.  From far away I could see that it was gray, strangely shaped, and was tied at the front end with a length of straw.  The little girl ran around, with the pull toy trailing behind.  She finally ran towards me, and I finally saw the truck up close.  It was made from an empty container of what I think was either gasoline or motor oil, with a sturdy wooden stick piercing through from underneath it where the rubber wheels were attached.  When scrutinized, you'd see that the wheels were carved from heels of old rubber slippers.  Ingenious, I thought.

A Day in the Life of the Staff

Early in the morning the review center staff wake up and make sure the lecturer has taken her intended flight to make it early to the day's class.  They either fetch her at the airport, or wait for her at the site.  When she arrives, they carry her bags, lead her to the bathroom to get changed, take care of breakfast, and set up her laptop and the projector before the lecture begins.

The moment she starts it's minute after minute of either sitting down or doing paperwork.  They also make sure that the sound system is working right, that the microphones don't echo too much, and that the air conditioning keeps the room cool enough.  They should have had anticipated to ask her about food choices for the morning break, so that snacks would be ready by 10A.M.  And before she resumes the lecture, they should have already asked her about lunch.  The same thing happens during the afternoon break.  Dinner, however, is a different story.  When the lecture ends at around 5 P.M., there's fairly ample time to wait for supper.

If the lecturer has to be someplace else by the next day, they accompany her to the bus terminal and facilitate her trip either by riding with her, or simply coordinating with the next branch to make sure somebody meets her there when she arrives.

Today I had my very first chance to do staff duty.  The branch at our place was lacking manpower because some of them had to do marketing someplace else.  My boss called me up the night before and asked if I could fill in, and so I did.  It was also supposed to be a chance for me to sit in at the lecture - which was all about Community Health Nursing - as part of my training for the subject.  In the near future, I might get a chance to handle it.

Working on the other side of the ship made me realize a lot of things:  First, that staff work wasn't a piece of cake.  Just because they don't do the lectures doesn't mean they don't feel worn out at the end of the day.  Second, taking into consideration that some of the staff are also nurses brought to light the realization that somehow, the work that they do could also be seen as a form of underemployment.  It's not easy serving your fellow nurses in such a manner, but the task can still be gratifying depending on how you see it.  And last, aside from handling classes, I will definitely want to do more of this someday.

What to Pack to Keep Yourself Entertained on a Long Trip

Traveling with friends and family has its advantages – you can hardly get a spare moment of boredom. There is always room for conversation or just laughs. Traveling alone, however, often isolates you from the rest of the crowd unless you are truly socially adept at introducing yourself and mingling with strangers.

Being a solo traveler myself, here are a few things I always keep inside my backpack to keep boredom from crawling in:

An iPod, mp3 player, or any media device always comes in handy.  Listening to music can keep your thoughts running and speed up travel time.  Also, having earphones on keeps away unwanted advances and conversations from strangers.

A novel, pocketbook, or anything to read is always useful, especially when your iPod runs out of batteries.  If you enjoy literature and the written work, indulge yourself in a story and you’ll get caught up in no time. Some advice: Avoid reading while you’re on the bus or the train or any moving vehicle, specifically during road trips.  This may cause you unwanted headaches.

Crossword puzzles and the like are really good if you want some brain activity.  Sudoku would be a good idea, too. 

Laptops and such portable computers are extremely good boredom killers. However, bring them only if you necessarily have to – for instance, on business trips where you make corporate presentations – and not only for the purpose of entertaining yourself.  They are much too bulky and might bring you unwanted attention from muggers.

Food should never be taken out of the list. Finger foods are best when you are traveling.  High carbohydrates and proteins keep you energized for the rest of the trip.  Don’t forget to bring along some water, too.

Pen and paper are the ideal time killers for writers.  Scribble some poetry or a short story when you catch an inspiring scenery or something that interests you.  You could also keep a travelogue to document your journey.

 

Back to Iligan

October 20-21, 2010

Instead of the usual schedule (Cagayan de Oro after Pagadian), my boss decided to make some changes and told me to go to Iligan instead.  After all, on the way to Cagayan from Pagadian, I would have to pass Iligan City.  So for the next two days, my lectures were in Iligan.

Among all my classes, the students here threw the most questions at me.  It's a good thing, though, that I knew the answer to them, and I thanked God every single time. It was here, however, that I learned about the release of the new CPR and ECC Guidelines released by the American Heart Association just 2 days ago, on October 18.