Ouch!

Well, I'm sitting here in my room with some bloody gauze in my mouth. The good news is the operation only cost $68! Back in the states I'm guessing it would have been well over a grand, because it took almost two hours.

The bad news is this a procedure I wasn't totally expecting, and it isn't over by a long shot.  I knew I had a cavity under one of my crowns, but I didn't know how bad it was.  It was bad.  I remember being so optimistic when I got my first crowns.  I didn't realize my gums would recede.  The one they did today was my left upper rear molar, which used to have a shiny gold crown on it.  Once they pulled that crown off, it was very clear the tooth would need to be pulled.

 I use the word "pulled" euphemistically. They did a lot of pulling alright, but it came out in many many pieces, all the way up to my sinus cavity. It had been root canal'd and it was brittle and even though I prayed and tapped, it really wanted to stick around.

Anyway, it took forever, was very painful at times, and very stressful the entire time. Wish I'd asked for another Xanax. The gold crown is sitting here on my table, and will probably more than pay for todays two hour treatment, but I'm going to need another implant.  Damn.

And here I am in one of the great eating capitals of the world and I'm supposed to stick to scrambled eggs and yoghurt!  I know that I'm whining and I really have no right.  Hurricane Sandy hit land this morning and it doesn't look good for New York City and surrounds.  I'll stop complaining now and wish everyone back there love and light.

Some Dumaguete Photos

Filipinos are a bit obsessed with light skin. In this they are like the Thai, I believe. It seems such a shame, but then I think back to my 20's when I would try and get a tan! But I never stooped to using darkening soap. Alana told me it was hard to get any soap that didn't include bleaching agents! Uck.

  Before I got to the Philippines I was worried about eating well enough. Ha! Even though their native cuisine is a bit limited, the whole country seems to embrace western food. For breakfast I would usually just go to a little hole in the wall and get eggs for about 35 cents, and a few buns I got on the way for maybe 12 cents. The fancy meals like this one would set me back $3 to $5. This was one of the most gourmet meals I had my whole stay!

  The far back wall of LCP had a number of these...murals? PSAs? To me this was the most intense. There are recruiting companies that offer domestic service jobs, especially in rich countries like Dubai. I know they also prey on Africans from Kenya. Once the girls get there they are actual slaves, receiving no pay and no freedom whatsoever, living in squalid conditions and forced to work long hours 7 days a week. Probably there are legitimate companies as well. Alana told me that there are more Filipa overseas workers than from any other country right now. My dear hosts, Jacques and Alana, are hopefully enjoying a much deserved R&R vacation on the beach in Sri Lanka. I would never have taught in the Philippines at all, were it not for Alana. They delayed their own departure (and I think they were READY after 2 years) for two whole weeks and endured a second round of tearful goodbyes! What wonderful folks.

Can't Sleep So Here's Some More Photos...

Well, it's 2:30  am and I can't sleep, so I thought I'd catch up by posting some photos from Dumaguete.  The photo above is from my enthusiastic class at LCP - the Little Children of the Philippines, where Alana worked for two years in the Peace Corps.  Lovely folks.  Some of them are women who represent rural districts, as part of an empowerment program for women.
The gal in the front with two hands up on her head, she came back the next day and brought her niece who is still traumatized by a flood that wiped out her home.
We had an awesome session and then worked on the Aunt's Bell's Palsy.

Fun Facts on the Philippines:  If you squeezed the island nation into one land mass, it would be just slightly bigger than the state of Arizona, but would contain the population of our 5 biggest states: California, New York, Texas, Florida and that 5th one I can't remember.  That's a lot of folks.
Unfortunately, they've achieved a deforestation rate of about 95% and that's why the flooding is so horrific here.

And of course the cheapest land, or free land, is along the rivers.  Not good!



And here is my first, 2 day class at NORSU - Negro Oriental State University.  This was a much tougher class, with less participation.  Here I met the culture shock head on, and yet there were some folks here who I'm certain will take the teachings to their community in a very big way.  By the end I was so happy to be there.




Okay, this is a shopping mall in Manila.  I don't go to malls in the US much, so I'm not sure if this looks unusual or weird, but this is in a third world county, with beggars and families living on flattened cardboard on the sidewalk!  I saw them on the walk over to this place, which was super air conditioned, of course.
Alana, who has been here for two years, said "we still don't know who can afford to shop here".  We had a lovely dinner at one of the restaurants.  My first meal in the Philippines.  I took home leftovers and on the way back to our pension a little boy beggar tried to grab it from me!
Welcome to the third world, which is built upon vast disparity of income.

Banana Pancakes and Oral Surgery

It's a beautiful morning on Soi 5. Im guessing low 70s. I'm at one of my favorite restaurants, just steps from Kavil House, my new digs. My room there is a big improvement over the one at Harold's in Dumaguete. Much more spacious and big windows letting in the sunshine.

I had a rough night though. Woke up with a fever and chills and actually had to bundle up and turn the fan off. Whatever it is seems to have passed and even my sunburn is a little better today.

There is a joke about how you can tell Americans abroad: they're the one's who take pictures of their food! Guilty as charged.

I ordered a big breakfast because I'l be on soft foods for the next three days or so. So I got a vegetable omelette, banana pancakes and fresh coconut juice (which I LOVE). 120 Baht or about $4

So right after eating and brushing my teeth (of course) I walked over to Dental 4 You and signed in. It's quite a lovely waiting area, and there were lots of staff (I think I counted 9 of them!

The dentist is a tall (for a Thai) handsome young man, very soft spoken and polite. The took panoramic x-rays, and he explained everything to my satisfaction. But I was nervous as hell and asked for an oral sedative (they mentioned that in their literature). It was something called Xanax and I think it probably helped.

The implant process itself wasn't that big a deal, but on one side they had to drill into my sinus cavity and add bone graft material. Hang on...I think I'm going to faint. That part was MUCH more intense and horrible, but I got through it. Now I'm icing my face off and on and laying low.

I certainly wish (and not for the first time) that I'd taken better care of my teeth when I was a kid. Love and hugs, rob

Bye Bye Philippines

My Philippines adventure is over.  I'm high in the air on my way to Chiang Mai, with a quick stop in Bangkok.  I see a long muddy river winding below us, and I wonder if it's the Mekong.

Last night we had a final supper up on the rooftop of Harold's Mansion, all the Peace Corps folks who were leaving, and a few who were staying for a bit.  I was able to write a letter to Joy, which made me happy.  It will be delivered by Janet, who has been volunteering at LCP.

Some of them went out for karaoke--they rented a private room.  I guess that's really big  in the Philippines.  I would have loved to go with them, but I was feeling too wretched from my sunburn.  I was asleep by 8:30!

Four of us rode to the airport and flew to Manila.  My companions had been living there for two years and were happy to be moving on.  I felt a little sad.  But now I'm on my own.  I've been following them around like a puppy for two weeks, as they knew the territory so well.

If all goes to plan, tonight I'll be checked into my guest house on Soi 5 Ratchadamnoen and can stroll down the alley to the Sunday Walking Market!  Maybe I'll buy a lot of stuff!  In many ways it'll be great to be in Thailand.  The Thai are MUCH more friendly (it is the 'land of smiles' after all) and I'll be staying in a tourist ghetto, more or less, with ready internet access!

And tomorrow morning I meet my new dentist and he'll drill holes in my skull and screw in a couple of implants for new teeth!  Wish me luck!

Happy

This was a very good day, at the El Dorado resort.  The first time I was able to really just relax since arriving in Manila last week.  Dumaguete is so noisy and smoky and has so little to do or see, it really colored my outlook on the Philippines.  Turns out that a lot of travelers consider the Philippines to be a top destination, for diving, snorkling and beach play.

It certainly was beautiful along the beach there, and wonderful being in the ocean.  My friends went back there today to snorkle, but alas, I am so sunburned I'm staying put.  No outings for me, on this last day of my trip.  

Apo Island

Apo Island, a photo by Robbi Baba on Flickr.

It took about an hour to reach Apo. My diving guide grew up there! Tiny place with two tiny villages. I'm happy to say that it's now protected and one side is even a marine sanctuary.
All of the small ships here have outriggers made from bamboo. Adds a certain element of the exotic!