Category Archives: Local Culture

Kitchen Table

Posted on 16 June 2015 by sheg4184

Twenty years ago we bought a kitchen table. We bought it in Kuala Lumpur, as our family expanded to five, and it is made from the local rubberwood. Rubberwood is, according to Wikipedia, high quality, hardwood timber with a tight … Continue reading →

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The Whirling Dervishes

Posted on 7 April 2015 by sheg4184

A different city. A different dance. Not London but Istanbul. Not Sadler’s Wells but the Galata Mevlevihanesi. Not a ballet, but a timeless, hypnotic ritual dance created by Persian poet, prophet, philosopher and mystic, Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Balkhi-Rumi. The Mevlevi … Continue reading →

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Exploring Corregidor

Posted on 7 March 2015 by sheg4184

Corregidor Island is one of those Must-Do trips on the tourist trail around Manila. But it requires a ridiculously early start, at which I have baulked for years. Recently, however, I jumped at the opportunity to join a small group … Continue reading →

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A Manila Christmas Carol

Posted on 31 December 2014 by sheg4184

                Lechon roasting on an open fire, Parum-papum-pum, spinning slowly over glowing coals until glossy copper skin snaps and cracks like toffee, promising juicy, fragrant flesh beneath. The traffic churns, thick and smoky … Continue reading →

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Talking to the Birds

Posted on 3 August 2014 by sheg4184

After almost two months in Adelaide, one of the things I realized I really miss about Australia is the wildlife. From our living room window in Manila I occasionally see a  team of four racing pigeons, looping round and round the apartment … Continue reading →

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Manila Interational Schools: part I

Posted on 17 May 2014 by sheg4184

As the expatriate community in Metro Manila continues to expand, many of the better known International Schools are bursting at the seams, waiting lists are growing longer and parents are struggling to find places for their children. So I have … Continue reading →

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Easter: More Fun in the Philippines

Posted on 24 April 2014 by sheg4184

As a Protestant child growing up in Australia, I remember Easter as a fairly dull affair. The shops were shut for days, friends went away, and my mother always insisted we went to Church on Easter Day, so she had … Continue reading →

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Just Another Manic Monday at TNK

Posted on 18 April 2014 by sheg4184

Another Monday morning in Manila, and a group of regular volunteers is en route to Tulay Ng Kabataan, a home for street kids, armed with crafts and books and merienda.  We arrive to the usual excited welcomes and so many kids … Continue reading →

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The Science of Rice

Posted on 12 March 2014 by sheg4184

“The greatest gift they’ll get this year is life”  ~Bob Geldof, Do they know it’s Christmas? As an Anglo-Australian, I grew up on a diet of meat and three veg. Potatoes were my staple carbohydrate, and rice was simply Calrose. … Continue reading →

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A Life’s Work

Posted on 26 February 2014 by sheg4184

Jeri Gunderson is a tall, slim, wiry American on a mission. Warm and enthusiastic, she talks easily about her life and work in the Philippines. Huddling in a corner of the Shiphrah Birthing Home on the rim of Metro Manila, … Continue reading →

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