Yes another entry starts with the title from a song in the last millennium - one of my fave dance tracks actually
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_Ydwvwyeqo one for the funeral procession I reckon :) Maybe could do a lap of honor around the M25 before having a party in muddy (cold) field :)
Anyways no I have not embarked on a new romance (or planing anyones funeral) very happy with the love I currently have BUT I HAVE GOT A JOB here in the Philippines. Timing wise could not have been more perfect as I really was beginning to despair. Job hunting here proved much harder than I anticipated particularly to get anything with a semi decent salary. The job is with the Woman's Global Network for Reproductive Rights http://www.wgnrr.org/
I got the call whilst at the top of cititower with friends which led to a bottle of champers overlooking the manila skyscrapers quite appropriate for a much awaited celebration!!
My role is co-ordinator and I have an office here in Manila and one in Amsterdam to co-ordinate. They are a campaigning organisation which is a new departure for me but having spent 25 years working in advice/information/help services issues relating to woman's health and contraception are very familiar. Its a major area in development at the moment as linked to the Millennium Development Goals - basically we can't improve the health of the poor if we do not start by improving woman and their children's health and to do that we need to address inequalities, lack of education , access medical care etc etc.
So all exciting stuff. I'm under no illusion it looks like a tough job - the team did not get on with the last co-ordinator and she left - there's a lot of mistrust so I'm not expecting a smooth ride. But what they don't know is how much I needed this job so I won't b easy to unseat and want it to make it work!!
The package is good not quite ADB standards but fantastic for here . We will be self sufficient and able to move house and finally buy a car. At the moment we are trying to decide whether we upgrade in Philam, where we live now, as we love it here, or whether we move nearer Marcs work and Gianna's school. The properties I have looked at so far are in Makati are all horrible and not as nice as we have now but twice as expensive - seems like we will have to pay a fortune to get something as nice and I don't want to over commit ourselves at least not till the dust settles on the new jobs . Our house current contract is however up at end of April so we don't want to get tied in here another year.
I am still so excited about the new job and new life I am sill waking up at night. The VSO adventure was always a temporary situation and we never knew what would happen at the end. This feels very different, that we are making a commitment to stay here and pursue careers - which may eventually lead back to UK but then again may not. I have said before that the last 2 years were frustrating as felt a little like camping or being on a long holiday in our own house - we can now put down some roots and take a longer view.
Yesterday was Angelica's birthday - 5 years since she was born and the house burnt down. She had a great day with her nanny went to the pool and her favorite playplace and had a birthday tea . The real action is on Saturday at Burger King where her class mates will join her in a BK frenzy. Its very tricky the whole birthday party thing here because the kids will usually turn up with siblings, parents and nannies in tow making a huge amount of people to feed for just 12 kids. However I just don' t have the mental capacity to arrange anything myself at the moment and will close my eyes when I sign on the dotted line. For my money I do get everything a party host, give aways, party bags, balloons decorations, banners we literally just have to turn up and at least I like BK whoppers. They give out free massages at BK here so I can distress at the same time as have the birthday party - now that's pretty unique
Angelica has now finished school and graduated (from one nursery class to another) in another round of pomp and ceremony wholly inappropriate for a 5 year old but there we go! The more challenging issue is that she is now off school for 3 months - Gianna finishes in 10 days but I have decided to pack her off to Europe for a month to keep her occupied. We have holiday plans in April so hopefully I can find suitable activities for the few weeks in between for her.
Life in the Philippines continues to amuse and amaze in equal measure - they are currently trying to reopen a nuclear power station positioned on an earthquake fault???? How cleaver is that? The local TV network shot footage of the assignation of 4 car by 14 police - their story was the robbers shot back whilst the footage showed the cops just walking up and firing in car where they sat! The usual bribery scandals going straight back to the palace although the administration is slowly realising that the new American administration is taking a very different view on the Philippines, and that the human rights abuses and corruption here means there ain't no special relationship any more
The horror stories of the impact of the recession play out daily on the TV but u would never realise there was a world recession walking around Manila . Buildings are still going up at dizzying speeds and the malls are full to the brim. There is talk of overseas workers loosing their jobs and Marc is seeing a sort of slow down on the recruitment side but at the same time many banks and outsourcing companies are actually coming here. The rate of sterling continues to be very depressing for those of us with savings in pounds - if I had bought my car this time last year I would have got one worth 25% more than the one I can afford today ouch! I get my end of service grant in May and it will be worth 30% less than what it was when I first arrived thats a lots of pesos when talking of over 2K pounds.
VSO is having to make big cuts in budgets as 75% of its income comes from UK government yet it funds its activities overseas - so costs here have increased by 25% just because of exchange rate. There is an emergency meeting at the office today to work out how to make 25% savings on an already stripped down budget.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_Ydwvwyeqo one for the funeral procession I reckon :) Maybe could do a lap of honor around the M25 before having a party in muddy (cold) field :)
Anyways no I have not embarked on a new romance (or planing anyones funeral) very happy with the love I currently have BUT I HAVE GOT A JOB here in the Philippines. Timing wise could not have been more perfect as I really was beginning to despair. Job hunting here proved much harder than I anticipated particularly to get anything with a semi decent salary. The job is with the Woman's Global Network for Reproductive Rights http://www.wgnrr.org/
I got the call whilst at the top of cititower with friends which led to a bottle of champers overlooking the manila skyscrapers quite appropriate for a much awaited celebration!!
My role is co-ordinator and I have an office here in Manila and one in Amsterdam to co-ordinate. They are a campaigning organisation which is a new departure for me but having spent 25 years working in advice/information/help services issues relating to woman's health and contraception are very familiar. Its a major area in development at the moment as linked to the Millennium Development Goals - basically we can't improve the health of the poor if we do not start by improving woman and their children's health and to do that we need to address inequalities, lack of education , access medical care etc etc.
So all exciting stuff. I'm under no illusion it looks like a tough job - the team did not get on with the last co-ordinator and she left - there's a lot of mistrust so I'm not expecting a smooth ride. But what they don't know is how much I needed this job so I won't b easy to unseat and want it to make it work!!
The package is good not quite ADB standards but fantastic for here . We will be self sufficient and able to move house and finally buy a car. At the moment we are trying to decide whether we upgrade in Philam, where we live now, as we love it here, or whether we move nearer Marcs work and Gianna's school. The properties I have looked at so far are in Makati are all horrible and not as nice as we have now but twice as expensive - seems like we will have to pay a fortune to get something as nice and I don't want to over commit ourselves at least not till the dust settles on the new jobs . Our house current contract is however up at end of April so we don't want to get tied in here another year.
I am still so excited about the new job and new life I am sill waking up at night. The VSO adventure was always a temporary situation and we never knew what would happen at the end. This feels very different, that we are making a commitment to stay here and pursue careers - which may eventually lead back to UK but then again may not. I have said before that the last 2 years were frustrating as felt a little like camping or being on a long holiday in our own house - we can now put down some roots and take a longer view.
Yesterday was Angelica's birthday - 5 years since she was born and the house burnt down. She had a great day with her nanny went to the pool and her favorite playplace and had a birthday tea . The real action is on Saturday at Burger King where her class mates will join her in a BK frenzy. Its very tricky the whole birthday party thing here because the kids will usually turn up with siblings, parents and nannies in tow making a huge amount of people to feed for just 12 kids. However I just don' t have the mental capacity to arrange anything myself at the moment and will close my eyes when I sign on the dotted line. For my money I do get everything a party host, give aways, party bags, balloons decorations, banners we literally just have to turn up and at least I like BK whoppers. They give out free massages at BK here so I can distress at the same time as have the birthday party - now that's pretty unique
Angelica has now finished school and graduated (from one nursery class to another) in another round of pomp and ceremony wholly inappropriate for a 5 year old but there we go! The more challenging issue is that she is now off school for 3 months - Gianna finishes in 10 days but I have decided to pack her off to Europe for a month to keep her occupied. We have holiday plans in April so hopefully I can find suitable activities for the few weeks in between for her.
Life in the Philippines continues to amuse and amaze in equal measure - they are currently trying to reopen a nuclear power station positioned on an earthquake fault???? How cleaver is that? The local TV network shot footage of the assignation of 4 car by 14 police - their story was the robbers shot back whilst the footage showed the cops just walking up and firing in car where they sat! The usual bribery scandals going straight back to the palace although the administration is slowly realising that the new American administration is taking a very different view on the Philippines, and that the human rights abuses and corruption here means there ain't no special relationship any more
The horror stories of the impact of the recession play out daily on the TV but u would never realise there was a world recession walking around Manila . Buildings are still going up at dizzying speeds and the malls are full to the brim. There is talk of overseas workers loosing their jobs and Marc is seeing a sort of slow down on the recruitment side but at the same time many banks and outsourcing companies are actually coming here. The rate of sterling continues to be very depressing for those of us with savings in pounds - if I had bought my car this time last year I would have got one worth 25% more than the one I can afford today ouch! I get my end of service grant in May and it will be worth 30% less than what it was when I first arrived thats a lots of pesos when talking of over 2K pounds.
VSO is having to make big cuts in budgets as 75% of its income comes from UK government yet it funds its activities overseas - so costs here have increased by 25% just because of exchange rate. There is an emergency meeting at the office today to work out how to make 25% savings on an already stripped down budget.
