It is hard to believe it is September and fall is beginning in Vermont. It is so different living in a tropical climate with little variation in seasonal temperatures and precipitation. There have been a few showers lately, some which are strong and we love the sound and feel of the rain. These pictures are of our new host family's house. We live in the house on the left, and hanging out front are our very clean, hand washed, sun drying clothes. Steve is an exceptional guy
because he and I wash the clothes together. Usually wives do all the laundry by themselves, although single men will clean their own clothes. The house on the left belongs to our family's relatives. They are a young couple with two sons who often come over to play.
The small house in the front of this second photo is a bahay kubo (or nipa hut) that our host dad uses to store his nets (it is also where our family stayed when we came to visit them in July before they had divided the bedroom). The yellow part of the house on the right is where our bedroom is.
This is a picture of us in our room after a walk along the beach and a nearby mangrove forest. The sun is so bright and intense here! It is definitely a lot for our pasty Vermont skin.

Last weekend we woke up early to watch these birds in their daily migration. The sunrise was amazing and we both love the ocean in the morning. We are not sure what kind of bird they are, but it was impressive sitting on the beach watching them cross the sky.
After our birdwatching we rode a bangka (local boat) along the coast to a river that flows into the ocean. Along the way we stopped to see a turtle egg nest that had been protected by a local nonprofit.

We also stopped in one of the local barrios (villages) to watch the community help the fishermen with the catch they had just brought in. It seemed like the whole village was on the beach helping to get the fish out of the nets and prepare them for eating or a trip to the market.













The river we traveled up was one of the most beautiful places we have seen here in the Philippines. The river was lined with different mangrove trees, nipas (the small palm trees poking out of the water) and other greenery. We saw colorful birds and butterflies. It was a relaxing quiet place that felt quite isolated.
Steve has been working in the mountain communities recently. Earlier this week he was shoveling goat waste and mixing it with plant debris to help with the vermiculture (worm and fertilizer) project at the municipal dump site. Many families live in very isolated areas in the mountains, far from electricity, running water and any schools. This is the view from one of our mountains looking across to the next province.