Wednesday, October 28, 2015

RiceTerracesETCPLuzonOct2015

Last Two Weeks

Carol and I traveled to Manila on Monday, October 12. We were picked up by Daryl and Sharon Germaine. Sharon is Carol’s sister and they have lived just south of Manila for almost the same amount of time that we have been in the Philippines.

We traveled north of Manila, up into Northern Luzon to an area around Banaue where the people have built terraces that have been there for 100’s of years. They are truly amazing. You drive for many miles and they are going up the mountains. Many are still being used. I suggest that you go online and look at them. They truly are world famous, for good reason.

We spent four days traveling and just being tourists. It was so enjoyable. We stayed in simple accommodations and ate good local food (lots of rice). It was cold, saw my breath one evening, and it was so nice to not be sweating.

The Next Week

After going to church on Sunday (October 18) the four of us, Daryl, Sharon, Carol and I went our separate ways. Carol went to spend four days with her sister and brother-in-law out in the “province” and I stayed in Manila (along with twenty million other people).

I had received an invitation from our sister school in Manila to teach Church History to sixteen students. It was just delightful. They took good care of me in so many ways. The students, although nervous about their language ability, spoke to me in English all the time. They were even patient with me when I lapsed into Cebuano, not their language but the language of the people where I live.

We were in a small room with a whiteboard and fans for about seven hours a day. I planned on using my computer to show a presentation but my computer refused to cooperate so I shifted to the whiteboard, and it seemed to go very well.

I want to express my gratitude to all of you who pray for us, give generously and encourage us in so many other ways. The past two weeks would not have happened without you.

In His service and yours,

Vance and Carol Johnson

Serving with Reachglobal in the Philippines