Practicing Medicine Without a License . . .

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Sister Roundy has volunteered at the MTC to give shots to all the new missionaries. She goes there each Saturday for three or four hours. They all line up, and she stabs them with a sharp needle several times. She's really getting good at it. She loves meeting the missionaries. She processes all their applications so it's fun for her to meet the young people and for them to meet her.

However, she has gotten so good at it that she decided she would go right ahead and give a couple of shots to Elder Roundy. She said it it was a personality improvement shot - good for several weeks. (Just click on the picture to enlarge it and check out her personality; she's enjoying every minute of it.)

Didn't hurt a bit, but still . . . "I want my mama!"

The nice nurse gave Elder Roundy a kiss to make it all feel better.

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December 2008, a Month of Adventure

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The national president of the Philippines can declare a holiday at any time. We found out one Monday morning in December that it had been designated by her as a holiday. So we didn't go to work; we went to the Chinese Cemetery. This is a fairly large section where the Chinese have been burying their dead for centuries.

The rich Chinese built large tombs to house their dead. Some buildings were very ostentatious. Gold letters, crystal windows, several stories high. We were told that each year on All Saints (Halloween) their families come to celebrate. They hold parties (the drinking type, we understood) and they stay right in the sepulchre with the "residents." Some family members even live in the building permanently.

When the Japanese invaded the Philippines, the Chinese resisted. This monument commemorates that resistance and memorializes the Chinese who were killed. Our guide told us the Japanese visitors seldom stay long at this monument. (It seems to us that most Filipinos have a low regard for the Japanese, and most are not shy in expressing it.)

This is a typical burial room for a Chinese mother and father. The benches on the side are for visitors (family) when they come. Food is placed in there, and incense and money are burned.

There are blocks and blocks, row after row of burial chambers. The Chinese Association owns the cemetery and charges for its use. Rich people can lease or build their own building, but if the lease is not paid, then the body is removed and put into a crypt along the outer wall. We saw many elegant tombs and any number of them that were decrepit and wasting. Our Filipino guide told us he was born in the cemetery and that to be a guide one had to have that credential. He said there were only three guides. When Elder Roundy asked what would they do when all the legitimate guides passed on, he simply said, "Change the rules."

It appeared that some of the Chinese were Christians.


And some believed in angels.


Wherever you looked, block after block of sepulchres -- some fancy, some not so.


Some tombs were out in the open sky, covers were built over some.


We learned an interesting thing . . . Children are not interred in the tombs. Children are put in crypts along the walls, row upon row, along the outer streets. Silent vaults. We did not find out why families are not kept together in the Chinese culture.

We really do have work to do on our mission. But most of the things we do at work would not be of much interest to anyone else, so we enjoy sharing the diversions we take from time to time.

BACK TO BAGUIO . . .

In early December we went with the Area Presidency back to Baguio where we where one year ago. We stayed at the John Hay Hotel. Even though it was December, the mountain flowers looked lovely.


Sister Roundy, Sister Millett, and Sister Edwards spent the day shopping and sight-seeing around Baguio. The brothers all went off to meetings.

When we came back from Baguio, Sister Roundy undertook to decorate the Area Presidents' Office for the season. She bought this nice Naivety for display.

She and Morena and Ace put up an Christmas tree. Morena and Ace are secretaries in the APO.

And Elder Roundy had a birthday. Twenty or so people came up and sang songs and wished him well. They brought a cake and a long birthday card. The Filipinos had a hard time believing he was "almost 70."

BACK TO BANAUE . . .

The day after Christmas we took a bus ride back up to Banaue. We were there exactly one year ago, but decided to go again because many other senior couples were going, and we didn't want to be left alone for the holidays.

Banaue is north of Manila. It only took us 12 hours by bus. (Elder Roundy explained that this way: When you have one bus loaded with old grandmas and grandpas, you won't do anything quickly.) We stayed two nights. The ride back only took 11 hours, not counting the two hours we spent attending Church services in a branch. (Nearly scared the branch president to death, seeing 25 "white people" all at once.)

Banaue is an ancient site. Over 2000 years ago settlers came into these mountains, probably from China, and began terracing the mountainside. The Banaue Rice Terraces are one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The whole side of the hill is terraced, from near the top way down into the bottom of the valley. It was explained that the terraces were built on the mountain were water sources were available to drain from one paddy to another. Where there are not terraces there is no natural water running down. It rains a lot, so the mountains have plenty of water to shed.


The children grow up living right on the side of the road. This little girl walks along the narrow wall between the roadway and a 1000 foot plunge into the river below, seemingly unfazed.

Our guide said this was the hanging "coffin." People actually live in this house. While this is a unique view, many of the houses along the road are of similar construction. Be sure not to send your kids out in the backyard to play.

Sister Roundy decided to adopt this kid.

The caribao is the beast of burden in the Philippines. This man is plow up his terrace getting it ready for planting.

We hiked down into the village. We had to go down steep steps through the jungle. It was interesting that people lived in these huts along the trial.

Here you can see some of the treacherous steps we had to climb. The indigenous people run up and down these steps all day long.

The village was at the bottom of the mountain. We walked along the edges of the rice terraces to get down to where the house are.

It is always fascinating to see how many people will climb into one Jeepney. These folks were riding along the winding, narrow, muddy road, all happy and contented. We were told they were going into town to the market (it being Saturday). The standing joke is: "How many Filipinos can ride in one Jeepney?" The answer is: "One more."

The houses are built right on the steep mountain side. The people work the paddies near where they live.

OLD MANILA ~~ THE INTRAMORUS ...

On the last day of 2008, we went with some other senior missionaries down to the Old Manila neighborhood. This is where the Spanish settled in the Philippines back in the 1500s. They built a fortress with high, thick walls. Inside they built up a city. Later, England tried to conquer the Philippines, and eventually, as part of the settlement of the Spanish-American War, the country was "sold" to the United States (in 1900 or so). The Intramorus was used as a military base by the Americans, and later the Japanese. and eventually, when the Americans were recapturing Manila, many of the buildings were destroyed by bombs. Today the area is reconstructed and used as a visitors' park. We spent perhaps two hours wandering through the beautiful, Old Spanish buildings and ruins.
This is one of the main gates into Fort Santiago. (Sister Roundy is with the Spencers, a new couple.) There are several similar gates from the Intramorus leading out to the river or to the streets. Originally these were guarded by soldiers.

Fort Santiago is built next to the Pasig River. This is one section that shows the contrast between the Old Manila and the new.

Many of the old buildings have been left in their dilapidated condition. With the jungle foliage, it makes an attractive scene.

This is the gate from the Pasig River into the main fort area. When the Japanese conquered Manila, they used this gate to bring American and Filipino prisoners from the boats in the river into the dungeons under the court yard.

Notice the brass footsteps in the pavement. These represent the path of Dr. José Protasio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda (the Filipino national hero) tracing his trail from his prison cell through the fort out into the outer court yard where he was publicly executed by the Japanese. It so happened that we were there the day after a national holiday celebrating Dr. Rizal.

After we left the Intramorus, we walked down the street a couple of blocks to the big Catholic cathedral. It was first built when the Spanish came to Manila, but has since been restored and repaired. Many places were damaged during World War II.


The cathedral inside was ornate and fascinating. It was rather dark inside, however, so some of the pictures we took did not turn out as well as we would have liked.

The doors were made of heavy wood with brass works mounted in them. The doors were large, probably 12 or 15 feet tall.

All along both sides were alcoves with stained glass windows, bright and beautiful.

Then, trying to find our way back, we went through a section known as "China Town." We just had to show you how thoroughly modern things were there. These are the electric lines that power everything. The whole city has much the same arrangement. You have to see it to believe it.

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It started to rain, so we went on our way to the Manila Hotel for lunch. We enjoyed the day and the good company we had.

We actually do work on our mission assignment. But there's nothing much exciting about reporting all that here, so we just enjoy sharing some of our adventures.