My second weekend in the Philippines, I accompanied Jeff to Cavite, a small town outside of Manila. He grew up in Cavite, and his family still lives there. In stark contrast to manila, it was extremely quiet. On the drive in we passed a basketball court near his house, which I got very excited about (I haven’t played any basketball since arriving in the Philippines). Two minutes after arriving I was out the door with my sneakers and a flattened basketball I found in the house. However, the guy at the gas station up the road informed me that he did not have a needle which was required to blow up my basketball. Duh, stupid american. Unphased, I walked to the basketball court with my flat basketball, only to find that the gate was locked and had large “Private Property, No Trespassing” signs all over it. So I went home. Good story, Danny. Then I found 20 dollars. I did end up buying some very nice basketball shoes later in the weekend at the sports store that Jeff’s parents own.
Spent that whole weekend lounging around Jeff’s parents house. I finished reading a book Jeff had lying around written by Jose Rizal called El Filibusterismo (the subversion). For those that aren’t familiar, Rizal is one of the foremost Filipino national heroes, and this book was one of two novels that led to his execution by the spanish colonialists in 1896. It was written in spanish, and is a fictional work depicting the lives of different castes and ethnicities living in Manila around the turn of the century. Fascinating book, obviously very critical of the greed and hypocrisy of Spanish friars.
Jeff’s parents have a live-in maid (pretty much everyone here does, I think my boss has 7) who made all of our meals. On sunday I went to their family lunch gathering, which is a very common Filipino custom, and ate more than I should have. I sat around that afternoon watching sports and chatting with Jeff’s dad and uncle, then drove home.
So that was weekend number 2. Enter Ken, the other PIA fellow living in Manila this year. Ken went to princeton, and has been an investment banker in new york for the past 2 years. He likes to party. One of his coworkers is a cambodian expat who brought us to this seafood restaurant called hongkong master chef. Before entering the restaurant we bought about 3 kilos of live seafood from a market immediately outside. Haggling over the price per kilo while three different vendors shove live crabs in your face is always good times. Afterwards, you bring that fresh seafood into the restaurant and tell them how you want it cooked.
After copious amounts of shrimp, crab, and beer, we went to meet a friend I had met through my roommate at Resorts World Casino. However, both Ken and I were wearing shorts, so were not allowed into either club. So we went home. And I found 20 dollars in my pocket. Kidding, Ken ends up hitting on one of the ladies working at the casino and gets her number (despite the fact that he is wearing shorts and a backwards polo golf hat). So we spent the rest of that night and saturday night clubbing with her and her friends, all of which claim to be models. Judging purely from the amount of makeup, outfits, and quality of conversation, I have no reason to doubt it. I read no books that weekend, but I did manage to make it out of the house on Sunday to watch Rise of Planet of the Apes.
Which lifestyle will Danny lead? Will he become well versed in Filipino history and traditions, or end up in clubs where shots cost more than in Seattle? Find out on the next episode of DannyPIAPhilippines.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Thoughts on Manila
Over the past two weeks I have often found myself comparing Manila to Shenzhen. They are similar in many ways, but have noticeable differences. While I am working and networking with mainly the rich and powerful (had dinner with 3 harvard grads on tuesday), Manila is far less developed. The level of poverty here is much more out in the open than what I saw in China. I haven’t had the chance to travel to a really impoverished area in the Philippines yet, although I am planning to in the next week. But even in Manila, entire neighborhoods consist of people essentially squatting in makeshift slums along the banks and overhanging the heavily polluted Pasig river. From what I have learned, they are totally undocumented and unregulated, and people just live there as long as the government will let them.
Because of the lack of development, particularly with roads and drainage systems, there is constant traffic. I didn’t think it was possible, but Manila is noticeably more crowded than Shenzhen. At rush hour it can take an hour and a half to drive from the office to our apartment, a drive that in the middle of the night would take 10-15 minutes. taking the Light Rail during rush hour is quite hectic, with lines stretching out into the street and train cars packed to the gills with passengers. It is currently the rainy season, and when it rains the streets and sidewalks flood. I’m talking water literally up to your knees, which just exacerbates the traffic issues.
Many people do speak english, far more than in Shenzhen, but not everyone. Even those that do know english often speak tagalog, and business meetings and general chatter around the office often jump back into Tagalog. I am picking it up pretty quickly, but obviously have trouble picking up the subtleties of long conversations about rural empowerment.
I stand out due to my physical appearance, but not near as much as in China. No one has asked to take a photo with me, and children do not point at me and shout “foreigner!” I am called Sir quite often, but that is very common even among Filipinos.
The culture is much more open. In the business world people are very laid back and prone to make inappropriate jokes. Apparently I live in an area with abundant prostitution, which people like to joke around about. One of the closest villages we work with apparently has many volunteers from France and other european countries, and at least two people have suggested that I hook up with some or all of them.
There is far less propaganda and much better television programming. Jeff (my so-worker and roommate) likes to cook, and I swear there is a cooking show on 24hrs a day.
I can’t say I am super into the food yet. Home-cooked meals have been great, and I have had some really excellent dishes at expensive restaurants. But the low budget spots and street food haven’t thrilled. Still looking for the equivalent of $.50 dumplings.
In general here I am much busier, working pretty long hours and spending at least an hour commuting every day. I am trying to use that commuting time in the car with Jeff to practice Tagalog, which he is pretty receptive to. He is an academic at heart, and tutors math and english as a side job, so enjoys teaching.
Because of the lack of development, particularly with roads and drainage systems, there is constant traffic. I didn’t think it was possible, but Manila is noticeably more crowded than Shenzhen. At rush hour it can take an hour and a half to drive from the office to our apartment, a drive that in the middle of the night would take 10-15 minutes. taking the Light Rail during rush hour is quite hectic, with lines stretching out into the street and train cars packed to the gills with passengers. It is currently the rainy season, and when it rains the streets and sidewalks flood. I’m talking water literally up to your knees, which just exacerbates the traffic issues.
Many people do speak english, far more than in Shenzhen, but not everyone. Even those that do know english often speak tagalog, and business meetings and general chatter around the office often jump back into Tagalog. I am picking it up pretty quickly, but obviously have trouble picking up the subtleties of long conversations about rural empowerment.
I stand out due to my physical appearance, but not near as much as in China. No one has asked to take a photo with me, and children do not point at me and shout “foreigner!” I am called Sir quite often, but that is very common even among Filipinos.
The culture is much more open. In the business world people are very laid back and prone to make inappropriate jokes. Apparently I live in an area with abundant prostitution, which people like to joke around about. One of the closest villages we work with apparently has many volunteers from France and other european countries, and at least two people have suggested that I hook up with some or all of them.
There is far less propaganda and much better television programming. Jeff (my so-worker and roommate) likes to cook, and I swear there is a cooking show on 24hrs a day.
I can’t say I am super into the food yet. Home-cooked meals have been great, and I have had some really excellent dishes at expensive restaurants. But the low budget spots and street food haven’t thrilled. Still looking for the equivalent of $.50 dumplings.
In general here I am much busier, working pretty long hours and spending at least an hour commuting every day. I am trying to use that commuting time in the car with Jeff to practice Tagalog, which he is pretty receptive to. He is an academic at heart, and tutors math and english as a side job, so enjoys teaching.
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Arrival in Manila
I arrived at the airport in Seattle and was asked if I had a return ticket to leave the Philippines. I did not, and told them so, and was informed that I would not be able to get on the flight without a return ticket. I argued with them briefly, telling them that I had bought the ticket from their Airline (Eva Air), and never been warned that I would not be able to board the flight if I didn’t have a return ticket in hand. They told me if I arrived in Manila without a return ticket the Philippine authorities would put me on a plane back to Seattle. As dubious as that assertion seemed, it quickly became clear that this was their airline policy. I relented and asked if I could use their computer to purchase a plane ticket. After searching for a while I found a cheap ticket to Hong Kong on CEBU pacific, a Filipino airline, and bought it. I probably will never use the ticket, and of course was never asked to show it at customs in Manila. But anyways, from that point on the flight went very smooth. I had a window seat, and the two seats between me and the aisle were empty, so I actually got some quality sleep on the plane. Eva air treated me very well, good movie selection, good food, comfortable seats. Once I arrived in Manila, a driver picked me up and brought me to the house of Jim Ayala, founder of Hybrid Social Solutions, Inc. and my boss for the next year.
I knew that I was to attend an event that afternoon, but still wasn’t sure exactly what to expect. Jim lives in a beautiful house that is also the offices of Hybrid Social Solutions (HSSI). They immediately set me up with lunch and a shower, and I had a chance to chat with Jim and another employee named Jo Jo, who I think I will be working with quite a bit over the next year. I also met Jeff, my new roommate and coworker, along with the rest of the members of the organization.
It sounds like my first task is to work with Jo Jo to get the water filtration line of business up and running. Jim is an investor in a company called Starfish Hong Kong, which has the patent on a water filtration method that, honestly, sounds too good to be true. Their device purifies water to an internationally recognized standard of purity for a fraction of the cost of reverse osmosis. It uses no chemicals, and the smaller versions can run on solar power. The inventors and owners of Starfish are a couple of Australian guys who I will meet this week. HSSI has the exclusive right to sell this product in the Philippines, and will keep 50% of the revenue from each sale. The customer base includes remote locations without access to clean drinking water, as well as businesses and manufacturing plants in Manila. HSSI’s cut of the revenue will be used to fund other less profitable lines of business, including solar lantern distribution (still operating at a loss). Jim believes that even setting up purified water filling stations in remote villages can be profitable, or at least operate at cost.
This partnership between HSSI and Starfish Hong Kong just developed in the last few months, and they do not currently have any paying customers in the Philippines. However, there are at least two water filtration devices in operation here, one of which is in Manila and I will be visiting on Tuesday. Jim also plans to install one in his backyard. At this point it is easiest for the water line of business to operate under the company Jim owns, HSSI, but he intends to break it off into a separate sister company that Jo Jo and I will set up. All of the details of how this will work, cash flow between the new company and HSSI, marketing outreach, sales efforts, the name of this new joint venture, are still to be determined, and will probably occupy the majority of my time over the next year.
So anyways, back to the event at Jim’s. The event was the culmination of a month of work by 11 interns from the local international school (highschool students). About 50 people were in attendance, including many of their parents and teachers. These students visited a number of villages in the Philippines and collected anecdotal stories as well as some statistical data on how people are using their solar lanterns. These presentations were really quite impressive, very high level work for highschool students. They set up a website for the company, and collected the only real survey data HSSI has gathered.
After the event, Jeff and I went back to his apartment. He lives on the 17th floor of an apartment building called Torre Lorenzo, right next to the Rizal sports compound where it appears most professional sports are played in Manila. My room is air-conditioned, we have a tv and kitchen, and I have my own bathroom. The apartment doesn’t have internet, but I am planning to locate a broadband USB stick which Jeff uses and is actually pretty quick. Jeff goes home most weekends (his family lives outside of Manila), so I have the place to myself. This weekend I am just unpacking, doing a bit of shopping, and lounging around the house. More to come.
I knew that I was to attend an event that afternoon, but still wasn’t sure exactly what to expect. Jim lives in a beautiful house that is also the offices of Hybrid Social Solutions (HSSI). They immediately set me up with lunch and a shower, and I had a chance to chat with Jim and another employee named Jo Jo, who I think I will be working with quite a bit over the next year. I also met Jeff, my new roommate and coworker, along with the rest of the members of the organization.
It sounds like my first task is to work with Jo Jo to get the water filtration line of business up and running. Jim is an investor in a company called Starfish Hong Kong, which has the patent on a water filtration method that, honestly, sounds too good to be true. Their device purifies water to an internationally recognized standard of purity for a fraction of the cost of reverse osmosis. It uses no chemicals, and the smaller versions can run on solar power. The inventors and owners of Starfish are a couple of Australian guys who I will meet this week. HSSI has the exclusive right to sell this product in the Philippines, and will keep 50% of the revenue from each sale. The customer base includes remote locations without access to clean drinking water, as well as businesses and manufacturing plants in Manila. HSSI’s cut of the revenue will be used to fund other less profitable lines of business, including solar lantern distribution (still operating at a loss). Jim believes that even setting up purified water filling stations in remote villages can be profitable, or at least operate at cost.
This partnership between HSSI and Starfish Hong Kong just developed in the last few months, and they do not currently have any paying customers in the Philippines. However, there are at least two water filtration devices in operation here, one of which is in Manila and I will be visiting on Tuesday. Jim also plans to install one in his backyard. At this point it is easiest for the water line of business to operate under the company Jim owns, HSSI, but he intends to break it off into a separate sister company that Jo Jo and I will set up. All of the details of how this will work, cash flow between the new company and HSSI, marketing outreach, sales efforts, the name of this new joint venture, are still to be determined, and will probably occupy the majority of my time over the next year.
So anyways, back to the event at Jim’s. The event was the culmination of a month of work by 11 interns from the local international school (highschool students). About 50 people were in attendance, including many of their parents and teachers. These students visited a number of villages in the Philippines and collected anecdotal stories as well as some statistical data on how people are using their solar lanterns. These presentations were really quite impressive, very high level work for highschool students. They set up a website for the company, and collected the only real survey data HSSI has gathered.
After the event, Jeff and I went back to his apartment. He lives on the 17th floor of an apartment building called Torre Lorenzo, right next to the Rizal sports compound where it appears most professional sports are played in Manila. My room is air-conditioned, we have a tv and kitchen, and I have my own bathroom. The apartment doesn’t have internet, but I am planning to locate a broadband USB stick which Jeff uses and is actually pretty quick. Jeff goes home most weekends (his family lives outside of Manila), so I have the place to myself. This weekend I am just unpacking, doing a bit of shopping, and lounging around the house. More to come.
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