Friday, April 24, 2009

Going back home

It is time to go back to the USA. I have finished preparing my luggage for my 27-hour trip back home that will start in just a few hours.

This visit has allowed me to see different aspects and needs of ordinary people in remote regions. I know something can be done to improve it and I will meditate further in how to accomplish it. I believe this long term effort will yield positive results someday in the not-too distant future.

I am ready to go back home.

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Visit to Manado, Indonesia

Last week we went to visit a project in the village of Tomohom, in the island of North Sulawesi in Indonesia. The flight took almost 4 hours from Singapore. While in the city of Manado, we took a boat trip to snorkel in the beautiful bay of Manado.

There are shallow coral reefs with vertical walls almost 100 meter deep. The boat ride took 40 minutes and we saw flaying fish, tuna and even dolphins! Here are some pictures of out visit to the area.





Visiting a volcanic caldera in the forest of Tomohom. The flower collar was a present from the towship for visiting the area.





In a resort, having breakfast



I could't miss the plane in Manado's airport

Thursday, April 9, 2009

More Singapore Pictures

I have been visiting some sites and Marina Bay was one of my favorites. It is impressive the level of technological development required to have a better water control system.

I am visitng the Marina Bay project.








On our way to Johor Bharu, Malaysia


Singapore hardware pictures

This time I want to add some recent pictures about my travel. As usual, I will post airplane pictures! I love to fly!

Ready to board in O'Hare our 747-400 for the 16 hour trip to Hong Kong



Somewhere over the Artic


Landing at HK


En EVA Air 747 in HK. I was wating for my connection to Changi (Singapore)


Sometimes Singlish is "interesting"


A Lamborghini, a common sight here

Traveling incognito

After a few days of work, meetings and visits, today I decided to travel Singapore incognito. I put on an old Cornell t-shirt, cargo shorts, and tennis shoes and an old back-pack. I believe I now look like a regular tourist and I was secretly glad when a taxi driver asked me when I going back to my country. Perfect.

This disguise allows me to observe the routine lifestyle of this city state since most people simply continue with their normal activities when tourist are present but could be more self conscious of expatriates living among them.

According to Arabian ancient folk stories, the Caliph Harun al-Rashid often disguised himself as a commoner and, along with his Vizier, would visit at night the capital of his Persian kingdom. He wanted to directly observe the lives and strives of his subjects and thus have a better judgment when ruling his people for he knew that some of his advisers were less than forthcoming. He would often find his rulings were not implemented, some serious problems were not reported or some governors were abusing his positions. He would then inform his advisers of his findings or would take swift action against any incompetent or malicious governor.

For me, traveling as a naïve tourist opens that window into Singaporean society’s soul. It helps me better understand the motivations, desires and fears of this incredibly complex and driven multicultural society.

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Arriving to the Far East

As I prepare this note in a public internet cafe in Singapore, I am immersed in the Philippino world, surrounded by young women working as domestic help. The unfamiliar sound of Tagalog is everywhere and I certainly feel and seem to be out of place. I am writing in a shopping mall called Lucky Plaza on Sunday afternoon, the preferred time for helpers to meet here. There are literately thousands of people cramming the shopping mall since this is their only day off. Most of them have nothing else to do than to come here, gossip with friends and walk aimlessly before going back to their homes for another week of back-breaking labor. Theirs is a harsh existence to support their families back in their own country, a familiar story in many developing countries.

My long trip here was uneventfull but interesting nevertheless. Before boarding the initial flight out of Chicago I started to see the common cosmopolitan travelers to the Asian land: There were some American business executives in their mid-fifties, a few mixed racial couples (Invariable Western husbands and Asian wives), some obviously adventure travelers and a group of Japanese teenagers schoolchildren. The flight was suprisingly comfortable since I happened to be seating next to an emergency exit and I could stretch my legs during the 16 hour flight. The entire flight happened during daylight and we flew over the North Pole. The frozen Artic Ocean beneath us with its enourmous sheets of ice was an exciting view for several hours. Once again, I was amazed by the vastness and emptiness of Siberia and northen China.

Upon my arrival to Hong Kong I felt a familiar, though unexplained sense of belonging. I know I am an American originally from Mexico but in Asia I feel welcome and at home even though I could never pass as an Asian. It is strange that I lived only one year in Asia but I feel I can call it home. These feelings are not unique to me for I know that, for generations, Europeans and Americans have found the same attraction for this exotic and mysterious land.

Arriving in Singapore only intensified my sensation of belonging. On the way from the airport to my hotel I observed in silence the familiar sights of this nation-state: The multitude of HDBs (Tall buildings where most of the Singapore families live), the state-of-the-art highways and, above all, the ubiquos luxury cars that carpet the streets (Mercedes, BMWs, Ferraris, Masseraties, etc).

After a night of no more than 2 hours of sleep (due to my jet lag), on Sunday morning I attended church where I saw old friends. From there I went to the best known shopping quarters in Singapore: Orchard Road. I wanted to explore again the typical food courts, where unfamiliar foods mixed with strange smells create a unique Singaporean atmosphere. These places are mostly for locals and not very many foreigners go to. I was immersed again in the Chinese culture, where people spoke Mandarin all around me. I actually felt suprised since I could actually understand when people mentioned numbers in their conversation. I have now decided to devote some serious time to learn Mandarin Chinese, I believe it will be useful for the future plus it would be a fun personal challenge for me.

I can't wait to know what my schedule will be for my stay. We have decided to go to Johor Bahru in Malaysia, Manado City in the Indonesian island of Sulawesi and Bangkok, Thailand. There will be a dinner in my honor on Monday night to be introduced to the Singapore team of the venture. I am looking forward to that