Daily Diary: Day 5

Written by Lestari Hairul
Photographs by Sarah Chong and Lestari Hairul

A day of churches

    The day started out pretty late today as we had no special sessions in the morning, so most had taken the opportunity to sleep in while Sarah and I got up bright and early to make the trip to the various churches of Iloilo with one of the student guides, Noraisa. This is a record of our short adventure.

Video Diary Day 5

The Wedding

Written by Esther Ho

Photographs by Melissa Chia

   A coronation of a boy and a wedding of two pageant winners meets a Mass. A trip down to San Jose Church in downtown Iloilo reveals an evening of liveliness and sanctity that reflects a lot more than one extraordinary sunset Mass.

San Jose church

Tita Luvizminda – a lady who has been weaving for 50 years

Written by Traceline Choo

Photographs by Melissa Chia

Me (right) interviewing Tita Luvizminda with the help of Zherluck as a translator.

    I was honored to interview Tita Luvizminda Jacoba, a 61 year old weaver who has been weaving for more than 50 years.  She is currently working at Lola Rutina, Iloilo.  The weaving skills that Tita acquired could be best described as a “gift” that had been passed down from generation to generation since her grandmother’s years.  She as a mother of seven has also passed down her weaving skills to all seven of her children, one of whom is Ate Jovelyn Jacoba, also a weaver who works at Lola Rutina.

All You Need To Know About Jeepneys and Jeepney Drivers

Written by Emily Choong
Photographs by Melissa Chia

 
  I had the great opportunity to interview two jeepney drivers in Iloilo during the trip. With the help of the student guides, namely Zherluck and Paolo in translating, I managed to find out a little more about this particular form of public transport as well as the background of the two drivers.

An example of a jeepney

Gamot Cogon: An Education System for all Filipinos

Written by Gwyneth Liew

Pictures by Joyce Ng & Gamot Cogon Institute
            

     With a student population of 50:50 in terms of middle income versus lower income groups, the Gamot Cogon Institution is one of the few schools in the Waldorf education system offering education to children from lower income families. Also formally known as the Steiner education system, it endorses holistic education with an innovative method that acts as an alternative to mainstream education. Although it is registered as a private school with the Philippines Department of Education, it’s run as a non-profit and non-sectarian institution. It was established in the year 2005 with a start-up number of four students in a third grade classroom. Since then, new classes up till year 10 in high school have been added to the system, with a total student population of 168 students to date.