Daily Diary: Day One

Written by Helen Jambunathan 

Pictures by Emily Choong & Sarah Chong 

            Having left Monash University at 10 pm on Friday night, we travelers found ourselves arriving in Iloilo City after nearly 12 hours of being on the move. In between, some of us had managed to catch some shut-eye sleeping on three plane seats with the armrests up, but for the most part we were all bleary-eyed, having missed a night’s worth of sleep.

 The sun glinting off the plane wing.

Session 1: Philanthropy in Iloilo

Written & Photographed by Jonathan Lim

The quest of discovering Iloilo City begins with the conclusion of its first session, entitled Philanthropy in Iloilo. 

Professor Bruce Hall

      In addressing this topic, Professor Bruce Hall, lecturer of American History at the University of the Philippines Visayas, dove into the history of the Philippines and how pre-Hispanic structures were instrumental in shaping its society of today. Convenience stores that are attached to village homes, more commonly known as sari-sari in Tagalog, are a long-standing example of a structure that was a part of the community back then and one that still plays a big role now. Apart from being an important economic location that provides basic needs for the people, sari-sari stores also serve as a place of informal exchanges – benches set outside these stores allow the people to socialize and forge friendships. Sari-sari stores remain an important backbone of the grassroots economy and the Philippines culture. Professor Hall then explained the bayanihan tradition, which described any communal act of helping families within the community, such as move their homes by literally carrying houses, building barns communally and how that helped to foster solidarity within communities.