Friday, 24th September …..

It’s a pleasant run down from Naga to Kit’s Resort and you get the impression that not much has changed in the life of the local people in that area, even though those of us from the outside world are struggling to keep up.

Certainly there have been enormous changes at the resort – the main Casa Nipa has an extra four bedrooms, there are now three dormitories with a total of 99 beds, extra pavilions, outside toilets and showers, and so on. Still, she has managed to keep the rural feel and it is certainly not 5-star in western terms.

Kit’s team had worked hard to set up facilities for the expected 100 people. One of the pavilions was set up for dining, a stage had been built and sound equipment installed, kitchen facilities were provided and a place to wash up.

The beach was as delightful as we remembered. Marilyn and I had a swim before dinner but everyone else thought we were daft. Filipino Rotarians like nothing better than sitting around talking. I confess that I find this part of socializing hard and I avoid it if I can.

The main event of the reunion was held on Friday night. We were instructed to come dressed in our Hawaiian clothes. I looked suitably gormless in a tiny-bit-too-small orange shirt but Marilyn was the Belle of the Ball in her red muu-muu with flowers in her hair (note musical reference to San Franciso and/or Punk Rocker). We had decided that we would have a raffle to raise money for the local school. There were 12 or 14 prizes in the end, ranging from a hand-carved statue by Luis Ac-Ac to a giveaway plastic mug from the National Bookstore. Kit said it might be hard to get extra pesos out of Rotarians but she hadn’t taken Marilyn’s marketing magic into account.

She first started with hard sell: these are prizes you can’t afford to miss, etc. Then she moved into the bargain: one ticket for 100 pesos, 3 for 200 pesos, 8 for 500 pesos. She was mobbed. The customers flocked around the stage, waving notes and begging to give them away. After the first rush, she had just 8 tickets left so I handed over my 500 pesos, hoping that I wouldn’t win anything.

When it came to the prize-drawing, one forlorn voice called out, ‘Are there any more tickets? I missed out.’ Never one to miss an opportunity, I offered him my bundle of 8, the 500 pesos was handed over so, in effect, we sold those tickets twice. We ended up with 6200 pesos ($155) for the school and a lot of satisfied customers. The funds will add to other money we have raised to put insulation in the roof of the school.

Children from the school danced and there were two local student bands, one of which had won the regional Battle of the Bands. I wouldn’t have thought that a small village could produce 2 bands of this quality – 6 guitarists, 2 keyboard players, 2 drummers and 3 outstanding singers. One group started their set with Lady Gaga – brilliant. They were still bopping when we turned out our lights at about 11; they were starting to sound a bit ragged but lack of energy wasn’t the problem.

The stage was set up facing the sea and I think the whole village had turned out to stand on the beach, behind the barriers, to see the show. Many of the villagers were employed by Kit as cooks, bottle-washers, waiters, security guards and so on – a bit of income and a sense of being part of it. They were apparently very proud of their uniforms – colour-coded t-shirts.