Thank you...

SALAMAT. (thank you: english; merci:french; gracias:spanish; shukran:arabic;  asanti:swahili): 

Ang dami ko pala dapat pasalamatan sa buhay ko. God thank you for the gift of life and the free will power. Thank you to my father and specially to my mother who nurtured me to what I am today. To my dear teachers from grade school to university, who gave me the knowledge and molded me to become a better leader and better citizen of the world. My sibings who are my inspirations in all my undertakings. My peers and staff for all the support and guidance in my day to day activities in the Mission areas. My friends who knows my strengths and weaknesses. And of course to my lovedude who is always there  to comfort and to inspire. Thank you to all of you!....

Farewell Dinner in Goma At Les Chalets Resto

Farewell Dinner at Les Chalets Resto in Goma, DRC with senior African officers and staff. Merci beaucoup......

Thanks Ate Beth for the delicious Pinoy Foods! Miss you ate Beth (Kinshasa), Marife (Dominican Republic), Genesis (Afghanistan & Iraq) etc....

WELCOME TO GOMA......

Goma City, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Due to the exigency of the service, I was redeployed to the Region East to supervise the operations of the Mission. I was lucky then that there were Pinoys in the duty station. So every week, we usually visited the landmarks of the Region. Hindi ako nalungkot sa duty station na ito. My office here is near the Lake Kivu (one of the biggest lake in the world) as in katabi ng lake. Then nandito rin sa Goma ang active volcano - Mt. Nyaragonggu na sa gabi makikita mo na nag aapoy ang craters. One time sinadya ko daanan ang bunganga ng bulkan on my flight from Bunia, one of the sectors in Region East. Nakakatuwa na nakakatakot kasi makikita mo talaga na nag aapoy ang bulkan as in apoy parang impyerno sa bibliya. Galit na galit ang apoy sa bunganga ng bulkan. What an experience! and I remembered the steward announced on the PABX " We are now passing to the crater of the famous and most active volcano of DRC".....The passengers were amazed of what they saw. Goma is like Baguio  in the Philippines. The

the weather is cool and sometimes very cold. During my stay here, I don't need an airconditioner. I only had an electric fan for the good circulation of the air inside my bedroom. I always used a circular mosquito net for malaria protection and to avoid the insect Nkunda (poisonous insect that produces acid and when u accidentally pressed in your skin it will swell and become infected). I love Goma not because of the weather but because of my work environment. My staff were supportive and knowledgeable on their area of expertise. They were very fluent in French and Swahili. They learned from me and I learned from them as well. To be honest, When the New York advised me that I need to come back to HQ. Masakit sa loob ko na umalis sa Goma. Bakit naman kamo? Una, the work environment. Pangalawa, I was living in the Pinoy Big Brother House in Avenue Volcanes, then lahat ng foods ay Pinoy style. Natuto na kasi yun Congolese cook na magluto ng Pinoy na lutuin. Pangatlo, parang nasa Laguna lang ako. Pang apat, basta okey na ko sa duty station ko kasi 5 meters away lang ang bahay ko sa opisina ko. Palibhasa mission assignment, ang opisina ko dito ay container, modular baga na pag umulan ay halos mabingi ako sa loob ng container. Pero masaya. Marami akong staff pero walang Pinoy huhuhu. They were from US, Canada, Cameeron, Kenya, Sierra Leone, Thailand, Japan, Uganda, DRC, Georgia, Timor Leste etc. Lahat sila ay natuto sa akin and vice cersa. Francophone (french speaker) nga pala ang DRC so dapat matatas din ako mag francais! Kasi ang mga national staff halos ay hindi marunong magsalita ng English. Everday maririnig mo "Bonjour" "Bon soir" "cava"  "merci". Siguro sa isang araw mga more than a thousand mo maririnig ang 4 na salita na yan sa french speaking countries. Kaya ang dila ko ang napilipit narin mula ng madeploy ako dito. Buti na lang nag aral ako sa France.

Malapit ang border ng Republic of Rwanda sa Goma. Mga 1km away from my office kaya during weekend pumupunta kami sa Serena Hotel para mag kape. May 3 maayos na hotel sa Goma pero walang star rated. Basta hotel na rin un kc may swimming pool, resto, tennis court. Minsan kumakain rin kami sa hotel. The security risk when I was in Goma is level 3. Sa pag stay ko sa Goma hindi ko kinatakutan ang mga rebelde. Natakot ako sa Nkunda insects kc one time nasa office ako  I was busy reviewing the multimillion dollar contract, syempre seryoso ako wala ko pakiaalam sa paligid. My office is locked para tahimik baga. Then hindi ko napansin na may nahulog na Nkunda insect sa braso ko. Maliit lang ang Nkunda para sya hantik (langgam) pero hindi nangangagat ang Nkunda. Nagulat ako bigla ko sya napisa sa braso ko. Syempre hinugasan ko kaagad nun nalaman ko na Nkunda pala sya. OMG! after 5 seconds nag swell na ang skin ko huhuhuhuhu..... ang hapdi. parang napaso ng kumukulong mantika. Pangalawa, I afraid of the lizards na ibat ibang kulay na binebenta sa Cartimar sa Maynila na dinadayo ng mga kaklase ko sa La Salle dati. Palibhasa nasa Africa ako, bawat daanan mo makakita ka ng mga lizards na yan na nakakatakot. Pangatlo, ang mga monkeys na kahit saan ka pumunta ay nakasunod sayo. Na pagmay hawak ka na pagkain ay kailangan mo na ibigay hahahahaha. Yan jan ako takot - Nkunda, lizards and monkeys. Hindi ako takot sa snake kc ang snake pagnakita ka or naramdaman nila na padating ka aalis na cla. I remember pumunta pala kami sa lake sa  Kinshasa - un marami anacondas. Exciting!. 

Dito nga pala sa Goma popular un TSUKUDO. Ito un sasakyan nila dito to transfer goods to the market. Parang scooter na gawa sa malaking kahoy na may gulong. Dito rin sa Goma maraming diamonds kaso bawal kami bumili huhuhuhu. Yun mga bata nag titinda ng diamonds sa kalsada. Kung pwede sana tuwing uwi ko sa Pinas every 2 months marami na ko dalang diamonds na pagbinenta kay Monique Lhuillier ay billion pesos na kaagad. Hehehe sorry bawal kasi... our role is to protect them.

Base food ng mga taga Goma ay ang fufu na gawa sa cassava and bulanglang na grasshopper (tipaklong). Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee tipaklong! oo tipaklong! at hinuhuli nila un hehehe at niluluto hehehe. yummy sa kanila..... Ang dami pala uwak dito sa Goma. Sa umaga gigisingin ako ng mga huni ng uwak. Sa Pinas ang uwak ay kulay itim sa Goma ang uwak ay itim at puti (hehe)....Sabi ng matatanda - pagputi ng uwak.Sa Goma pumuti na ang mga  uwak hehehe.

May naging kaibigan akong Congolese na taga Goma, sya si krantian--- sya ang nagturo sa akin ng salitang swahili - halimbawa asanti sana (thak you)! Matangkad, guapito, xempre itim, nag aaral sa Rwanda University, french speaker at mabait. Lagi sya sa apartment ko. Nakikinood ng tv. Minsan nakikikain na rin ng Pinoy foods. Sa mga Pinoy na rin natuto ang paliligo. Kasi palibhasa malamig sa Goma baka tamad sila maligo so syempre may amoy. Pero ito tinuruan namin ng proper hygiene hehehe. Gusto nya raw makarating sa Pinas kaso mag iipon pa daw sya ng pera kc US$7500 full economy to travel to Manila via Emirates.

Conclusion: My stay in Goma was challenging and mutually rewarding. Thanks to the beautiful memories.....

My Colleagues

My colleagues and staff in the mission Area in the Democratic of the Congo representing the World Food Program (WFP). Football players during the IVD...

MY FIRST MISSION ASSIGNMENT IN AFRICA IN THE PEACEKEEPING OPERATIONS

After receipt of several communications with New York HQ, series of interviews (telephonic panel, videocon panel), written assessment, complete medical check –up and fitness assessment to be in the field mission, I finally accepted the offer of the Secretary General to be an international civil servant of the world.  I informed the COO of the NGO that I am serving with, and he was happy to know that I accepted the offer from the Secretary General. At first I was hesitant to sign the offer as there was the clause in the conditions of service that I will be assigned to different duty stations and stating that mission is a unique experience, will likely be exposed to conditions and cultures very different from those which I am accustomed.

I will be facing with many challenging situations, both physically and mentally, and perhaps required to perform duties beyond the typical parameters of the job descriptions and outside the schedule of standard workday and the performance and overall suitability for mission service will be subject to review within the context of these demands. The salary, allowances and benefits are higher than what I am receiving in the NGO that I was serving with.

In short, due to my eagerness to serve the world to maintain international peace and security; develop friendly relations among nations; promoting social progress, better living standards and human rights; and due to its unique international character, and the powers vested in its founding Charter, and touches every corner of the globe and focuses on a broad range of fundamental issues, like sustainable development, protection of the environment and refugees, disaster relief and mitigation, counter terrorism, as well as disarmament and non-proliferation, I SIGNED THE OFFER.

After three (3) weeks I received my blue passport and my travel tickets to the Logistics Base in Italia and HQ in New York, after a month, the Department of Field Support deployed me to the biggest mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo as Chief of one of the Units under the Department of Administration.

Pwede na ba ko mag-Tagalog? hehehe. Ito na ang kwento ko na nakakatuwa, nakakatakot, nakakaiyak, nakakalungkot at higit sa lahat masasabi kong memorable experience. Araw ng aking paglipad patungong Brindisi, excited kasi, it was my first time to be in Brindisi via Cathay Airlines (Manila-Hongkong-Rome) then via Airone to Brindisi.  Malungkot ako kasi December yon at it was my first Christmas to be out of the country. I arrived in Italia and sinalubong kami sa airport ng mga tauhan ng Travel Unit ng base. Nag check – in ako sa Barsotti Hotel at Euro100/day. Then the following day I attended the series of trainings related to the field missions. Can you imagine I finished and completed 30 trainings in Brindisi for less than a month kasi I wanted to finish quickly for me to travel to New York for my immediate deployment na to the field assignment (sobrang excited na kasi ako sa Africa! hehehe). And besides medyo mahal na ang gastos ko sa hotel and foods (mahal foods sa Brindisi pero masarap!). Brindisi has lots of things to offer kaso mga resto boutiques malls are sarado sa umaga and they open only at night. I think 7pm onwards. Sa paggala ko sa Brindisi kasama ko yong nagging kaibigan kong Japanese and from Ghana. Yong Japanese is a Democratization  Officer incharge sa democratization ng mga bansang may digmaan and un Ghanian naman ay isang Security Officer.

Mas mataas position ko sa kanila kasi nasa ika-10 level ako at pang-12 bahagdan. Ako mas senior sa kanila pero mind you mas bata ako sa kanila hehehe. Natuwa ako kasi un Japanese eh mahilig din pala sa gala so sinama nya ko sa lahat ng gala niya sa Puglia territory via train. I loved Lecce, Martina Franca  etc etc.  Natapos ko ang trainings ko sa Brindisi at last lumipad na ko papunta New York. I looked for an apartment sa Queens – Long Island City and reported to the HQ.

Excitement! – Sa Congo ang una kong Mission assignment and take note – one of the poorest countries in Africa. I landed at the Ndijili Airport in Kinshasa. Dito ako natakot, kinabahan, dumugo ang ilong (literally) and hindi tumigil ang pawis ko. Oh My GodI Ito na pala ang simula ng mission life ko ang time na pumasok ako sa kanilang paliparan.

Pumasok ako ng Imigration. Madali ang processing ko kasi VIP daw ako. Derecho ako sa baggage counter: hala eto na ang simula ng kalbaryo! 99% puro itim, malalaking tao, babae at lalaki halos pareho ang sukat, malalaking boses, malalakas na boses na kala mo nag aaway, nagsisigawan, may nag-aaway, takbuhan, sigawan ulit. Minsan hindi ko maintindihan ang salita nila kasi minsan FRENCH tapos biglang Lingala naman. Ang gulo! Hindi ko maintindihan ang sinasabi maliban sa French words. Ang ingay! Ang gulo…..ako lang ang Asian national na nasa baggage counter. Natakot ako kasi hindi ko makita ang bagahe ko huhuhuhuhu.

Tatlong oras na ako sa baggage counter na sobrang gulo - walang kaayusan, walang sistema, wala lahat. May mga  pulis na nakatingin lang.

Nasambit ko sa sarili ko, this international airport is uncomparable sa mga airport sa Pilipinas. Mas maganda pa ang domestic airport ng Pinas na nasa liblib na lugar ng Kabisayaan at Mindanao. Alam ko kc napuntahan ko na lahat ng lugar sa Pilipinas mula Batanes hanggang Jolo dahil sa nature ng job ko sa NGO official. In short, hindi ko maikumpara ang airport na ito sa ating airport na nasa liblib na lugar. Naunawaan ko naman ang dahilan kung bakit ganun ang kondisyun. Naisip ko talaga na ito marahil ang tunay na dahilan kung bakit kailangan kami dito sa bansang ito - Upang  tumulong at gabayan sila after the war.

Salamat sa Diyos at last nakita ko na ang bagahe ko at sinalubong na ako ng Travel Assistant parang dalhin sa Main Office na almost 3 hours ang layo from the airport. Dahil siguro ito ang una kong punta sa African country at kakatapos palang ng civil war dito for more than a decade tagalang nakakatakot, cultural shock ako! Nakita ko sa paligid ang kaibahan ng Pilipinas sa bansang ito. Bigla ako nagpasalamat sa Diyos for all the blessings my country has!  

Habang naglalakbay nakapako ang tingin ko sa paligid ng siyudad, halos maiyak ako sa nakita kong kahirapan at kalagayan ng bansa na marahil sanhi ng mahabang panahon ng digmaan.  Ang daming tao sa paligid, overpopulated, sa tingin ko kulang sa pagkain. Magulo ang paligid. Muli nagpasalamat ako sa Diyos sa kaginhawaang tinatamasa ng aking pamilya sa Pilipinas. Marami ring mayaman sa DRC ngunit ang agwat ng mayaman sa mahirap ay sobrang taas. Sobrang dami ng naghihikahos.  Mayaman ang bansang ito. Marami silang natural resources kabilang ang diamonds and golds.   

“Excerpts of the Facts of DRC:

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (French: République démocratique du Congo) is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world. With a population of over 71 million,^[1] the Democratic Republic of the Congo is the eighteenth most populous nation in the world, and the fourth most populous nation in Africa, as well as the most populous officially Francophone country.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is often referred to as Congo. However, in order to distinguish it from the neighbouring Republic of the Congo to the west, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is sometimes referred to as DR Congo, DRC, or RDC (from its French abbreviation), or is called Congo-Kinshasa after the capital of Kinshasa (in contrast to Congo-Brazzaville for its neighbour). It also borders the Central African Republic and South Sudan to the north; Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi in the east; Zambia and Angola to the south; the Atlantic Ocean to the west; and is separated from Tanzania by Lake Tanganyika in the east.^[1] The country has access to the ocean through a 40-kilometre (25 mi) stretch of Atlantic coastline at Muanda and the roughly 9 km wide mouth of the Congo River which opens into the Gulf of Guinea.

The Second Congo War, beginning in 1998, devastated the country, involved seven foreign armies and is sometimes referred to as the "African World War".^[4] Despite the signing of peace accords in 2003, fighting continues in the east of the country. In eastern Congo, the prevalence of rape and other sexual violence is described as the worst in the world.^[5] The war is the world's deadliest conflict since World War II, killing 5.4 million people since 1998.^[6][7] The vast majority died from malaria, diarrhea, pneumonia and malnutrition.^[8]

The Democratic Republic of the Congo was formerly, in chronological order, the Congo Free State, Belgian Congo, Congo-Léopoldville, Congo-Kinshasa, and Zaire (Zaïre in French).^[1] Though it is located in the Central African UN subregion, the nation is also economically and regionally affiliated with Southern Africa as a member of the Southern African Development Community (SADC).”

January. I started my job officially as an International civil servant in the country discharging my duties in support to the peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Kinshasa in the Western Region. After six (6) months, I was promoted and selected to be reassigned to the Region East in Goma. I will make a separate story about Kinshasa, Goma, Bukavu, Lubumbashi, Bunia, Uvira, Kisangani, Dungu and other towns/cities of DRC. I will share also my experience in Kigali, Rwanda (remember the movie Hotel Rwanda about the genocide killing hundreds of thousands people), Entebbe & Kampala, Uganda; Nairobi, Kenya, Accra, Ghana, Monrovia, Liberia; Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and other African countries I served with …….

Hanggang sa muli!  

The Photo

During the International Volunteers Day 2011, DRC

The photo on the main page was taken during the International Volunteers Day (IVD) in Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo during the International Volunteers Week with a series of activities organized starting from 4 December to promote volunteerism towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in the country.

I was there during the activity.....

Sino ba ako? Who Am I?

Isang simpleng nilalang na pinanganak noong panahon ng Martial Law  between 1972 - 1986. martial law baby sa panahon ni Pangulong Marcos. anak ng isang pulitiko. bihasa sa buhay bukid at buhay sa siyudad. nag aral ng dalawang taon sa probinsya at tinapos ang grade school sa maynila. dahil kailangang bumalik sa probinsya doon ulit tinapos ang high school at balik maynila na naman upang tapusin ang kolehiyo at pagkadalubhasa. Pinangarap na maging doktor at abogado pero naging piloto at naging isang bangkero na ngaun ay isang sugo para tumulong sa mga suliranin ng mundo. Lumaking sanay sa lahat ng bagay. Naging independent mula high school hanggang kolehiyo. Pinapasok ng hayskul na malayo sa tahanan at tumira sa isang dormitoryo. Mula sa mahirap na angkan pero lumaki na  may gintong kutchara....hehehe (ano kaya un...basta mahabang kwento). Naging bisor ng bangko sa edad na 22 at naging manager at the age of 25. naging opisyal ng international NGO sa Pinas. At ngaun ay kasama ako sa organisasyon na nangangalaga sa katahimikan ng mundo, umaalalay sa problema ng mga bata sa mundo, climate change issues, political issues ng iba't ibang bansa, pangangailang pinansiyal ng mga bansa at kung anu ano pang issues ng mundo/

Masaya ba ako? Oo dahil sabi nila maswerte daw ako sa propesyon ko kasi naabot ko daw ang mga pangarap ko. Basta jan kang kayo ha. Marami pa ko sasabihin sa inyo. Kapit lang....hehehe antok na ....

Welcome Message

Bonjour! Welcome to my blogsite.I created this blog because I was inspired by a friend. Hoping that this will be an avenue to share my ideas and my life experiences.
Merci beaucoup.!!!