My New Friend

The building where I live is mostly a commercial building. There are shops outside (I go past a beauty salon to get in but I’m not sure what the other shops are; I might add that there’s a gate and a guard) and then a large open space for cars and trucks. For the past few days there has been a bustle in the early morning as people gather to do sampling for Del Monte and then get picked up by trucks so they can be deployed. Upstairs is the steel company that works with Habitat; people are going up and down the stairs all day long. But the only other person who lives there is Hanna, Sir Tony’s secretary – she’s alone in the on-site office all day and until now was alone in the building all night. She’s from the provinces and shy but wants to live here on her own for a while.

The first night, I noticed a truck that said California Pizza Kitchen when I was in the car with Sir Tony. Turns out there’s one in the nearby mall! So Hanna took me there - on my first jeepney ride. The jeepneys are modeled after WWII jeeps (some actually are), with long, low (I don’t know how tall people ride in them) rear extensions lined with benches that accommodate up to ten people per side; if crowded, people will stand in the back opening and hold on. Two people can sit up with the driver, too. The windows are small so it’s hard to see out of them and tell where you are – we’ll see when I do it for myself this week! The key is that they are all decorated, some quite elaborately – I sense a series coming on, a la the Morocco doors. It was fun to go to CPK, but I can’t do that all the time on my living allowance; I’ve had fast food for other dinners this week while I get everything set up; I can’t wait to cook for myself! Though I did find a nice Filipino pastry shop around the corner – it’s no Bilal, but the choco-bun might be a good way to start the day.

Hanna also took me to get the internet stick (it goes into a USB port and connects to the cell network, so I can use it anywhere where there’s cell coverage). She’ll practice language with me. And Sir Tony had her accompany me to the mall yesterday. I think I could have figured that out for myself, but it’s nice of them to take care of me. I’m not sure what to call her – housemate? Informal tutor? Shadow? For now, maybe BFF. She’s happy to practice English too, and it must be nice to have someone else living here.

The street where I live is not pleasant – it’s noisy and it has an inconsistent sidewalk – it’s okay for walking to the mall, but I don’t think I would walk on it just to take a walk. I’ll have to explore the neighborhood to see if there’s a nice place for an exercise walk or run (last week there was a charity run for Habitat – too bad I missed it!). In the meantime, I brought my yoga DVDs and am making that a part of my routine. But I have yet to develop a routine. All I know is that it’ll be very different from my routine in Morocco – and different from what the regular PCVs here experience – and probably very different from that of the other PRCVs!