Out of the Ordinary #3

A person could get used to the way the hotel workers treat their guests. I had problems connecting to the Shell net, I called and the computer butler came and tried to help. He suggested I call my help desk but I doubted they could help either. The ladies at the reception desk know my schedule and my room number by heart. The girls in the restaurant now know my name and room number also. This is special treatment but I miss my family and friends terribly.

The days have been all blending into one another. I go to work and then I sleep. Unfortunately now, I think I might be coming down with a cold. They have it so cold at work we are all shivering in our classroom. Today I put coffee into my water bottle and used it to warm me up. I did not bring warm enough clothes for work. The windows are fogged up because it is so cold inside and warm outside. Strange!

The trainees have come up with some interesting questions. They want to know if it snows every month. I say it could and has but it does not always. They asked me if we all drink wine to stay warm. I said we are not Russians; we can stay warm without alcohol. They wanted a description of the worst winter storm. I kept it down to three. They are fascinated by our cold weather.

I was asked where was the best place to visit in Canada, so I told them about the Stampede. They could not understand what was so interesting about riding a bull or a wagon with four horses pulling it. I told them that Esther and Lowen went camping for the weekend in a national park. No one would sleep outside here. There may be bears at home but a driver told me the rats here are bigger than the cats, and they are mean. I would not want to meet one either.

Out of the Ordinary #2

My driver today told me I looked like a Filipino. He was friendly and talkative. I took it as a compliment. Although I have been here long enough, maybe I am starting to look like everyone else around me.

The security guards at the hotel laugh at me every morning now as I come back from work. They have to search my bags before I can go in but my glasses are all fogged up and I can hardly see. One of the first days I made a joke about it and now they see me and start to laugh. I am glad I can bring some joy into their lives. They also remember that I am done for the day so they say good night to me, even though it is 6 AM. They also always have dogs that work and they smell for drugs and bombs. The dogs seem so nice.

The safety standards are definitely not the same here as it is at home. I saw a worker doing some welding on a joist that was at least 3 stories high. He was not tied to anything; he did not even have shoes on, never mind eye cover. I could not believe what I was seeing.

The building I am working in is just over a year old. I was in the ladies washroom and out of 6 faucets only one worked. It looks like it could be more like 10 years old. The floor is so bumpy you can feel the waves while walking across the carpet.

From here, they told us that we could not go anywhere alone. Now that I am alone, people tell me to go out. It is safe. I have second thoughts though. There was another kidnapping here just this week. I have been encouraged to take a tour, but what kind of tour is available from 9 PM to 6 AM? I do not think I would be interested in it.

I hope no one is expecting gifts! Sorry, I have not been to any stores here. There are a lot of stores but I have not had the time or the opportunity. Perhaps I can pick up some stuff at the airport.

Out of the Ordinary

I saw this sign in the elevator. I did not know that earthquakes were common here but I asked around and found out that they are. Oh well, I am on the 26th floor??

At home my glasses fog up when it is cold and I go from outside to inside. Now, here in Manila, my glasses fog up when I go from inside to outside. That was a surprise.

At the restaurant reception area I was second in line but because I was a foreigner, they ignored the first person and took me. I was shocked. Then at work, the security guard pulled out the people in the elevator so I could ride up on my own. I forget that I stand out here sometimes, but then there are occasions when it is a benefit.

I ordered the beef and broccoli at the cafeteria at work but there was no broccoli only beef. That made me laugh!!

Sunday

I slept in on Sunday. I woke up at 2 AM. It was raining and there was a lot of thunder.

I waited till 8 AM to have breakfast. Afterwards I spent some time at the pool. There were a lot of families there. I had a swim and then I crocheted. Several of the workers came by and commented. They wanted to know what I was making and they said it was pretty.

The people are very friendly and kind to me. I have noticed though, that they are not necessarily very nice to each other.

I came back to my room and got ready for bed. I am trying to keep my same schedule, so I don't have difficulties during the work week. I have booked a pedicure and manicure for Monday morning. So I have something to look forward to.

I work up again at 7PM. I knew I had a long time alone during the night so I rented a DVD player.

I went down for breakfast (dinner). The place was really busy. There were a lot of families celebrating Father's Day. It is a very nice buffet and the food is good but it is the same everyday.

So I am now catching up on my blog and watching DVDs and working on my blanket. I really wanted to get some work done but I cannot log onto the system. So I can't check my emails either. I will have breakfast and then my mani/pedicure and then go to bed again.

Tomorrow I work with just the Allocation team. This is when we start doing some hands on assignments.

Field Trip

Not everyone could go on the field trip. There were ten of us so we all fit into one van. We left around 6 AM. The drive took about 2 hours. We stopped for breakfast at a Shell station. There were a lot of fast food places to choose from. We ate at a place that had fresh bread. It was very good.

Along the way I saw banana and guava trees. There were lots of flowering trees but I do not know what they are called. Also fields of pineapple. Everything is green now. It is rainy season.

We also saw many kinds of homes. There were new suburbs and mansions and squatters. There are a lot of people and they are all very close together.

We stopped at a place where there is a volcano in a lake in a volcano. What an incredible view!! Check out the picture. Usually this place is cool but it was a warm day. It was so nice to be in the sun. I had not seen the sun since leaving home.

Then we went to a small zoo. There was a baby tiger and she reminded me of Cleo. I could see the resemblance. They also had a zip line. The kids wanted me to go on it but I told them to go first and then I would go. They just laughed. They did not want to go either.

We went to lunch at a fancy garden. They had lots of flowers and food was great. By this time everyone was getting really tired.

The trip back was really quiet. I had too much to look at but the others were sound asleep. The driver was good but aggressive. You have to be aggresive to get anywhere. The roads are so narrow and no one obeys the rules, if there are any?

The driver dropped me off at the hotel, so I was able to get to bed right away. I was tired because I had been awake for 20 hours. I had a very good and long sleep.

Work Day 3

These are the Application team and the Allocation team.

I came back to the hotel and was looking forward to good night sleep. My new room is on the 26th floor and has a great view of the skyline. I can even see some hills in the distance.
Finally in bed, then the yelling started. This can’t be happening! I thought someone outside my door was really angry but 15 minutes later they were still yelling. I got up and I realised the yelling was coming from the window. Outside and a few blocks away there was a demonstration about something. At least I knew what was happening! I put on my Ipod to drown out the yelling and I fell asleep.
At work we had the quiz. Then we discussed the answers and went over a few things. Some more chocolate and they were happy.
We divided the groups and continued training. I took one group and the other group was trained by someone back home over the phone.
We were all waiting for the day to be over so we could go on our field trip. It had been a long day but we had something fun to look forward too!!

After the rough first day of training, I really wanted to be prepared for the second day, so I stayed up late and studied. I also had to wake up two hours earlier because the team was getting together for breakfast (dinner).I did not take a sleeping pill because I was so tired. I thought for sure I would be asleep right away. When I kept waking up, I remembered the hammering I had heard the last two night "days"and it was to late to take one. It did not bother me as much the other days because of the sleeping pills. But last night I slept very little.

So I call first thing in the morning. They were so kind and understanding. While I was at work the staff moved all my belongings and put them in the same place but in a room on the other side and a different floor. I am looking forward to a good long sleep tonight. Another bonus is the better view from this side. I think I can see the ocean. I will have to wait for the sun to come up to be sure.

I met with the team at the building at 7 PM. We walked a few blocks to a small restaurant that had a variety of food. I just mentioned to Lai, the supervisor of the group, that it was warm in the restaurant that it was warm. The next thing I knew we were all moving to another room that was cooler. They treated me like an honoured guest. I will have to be careful what I say.

We chatted around the table about the weather and the scenery. They asked where I thought was the best place to go to in Canada. Of course I said Calgary. We do have a lot to offer, with the mountains and the Stampede. Many of the team have relatives in Canada and US and are very interested. I was very encouraged with the training today. It went a lot better. I gave them each a Canada pin and they really loved it. After the class I passed out chocolate and it was a hit. As I was walking out of the room after saying goodbye, I turned and asked if I should bring some more chocolate tomorrow. They all laughed and said YES!!

Tomorrow is the quiz and then we split up and start studying the individual jobs. Check out the fruit and flowers in my new room.

First Day of Training

Today started with a phone call yanking me out of a wonderfully deep sleep. It was Michelle, my coworker who was supposed to lead the training sessions for the first two days. She had spent the night having medical care and was unable to do the training.

It took a few minuets to sink in. I had to do the training alone and I was unprepared. I got dressed and went to see Michelle. The Doctor said she had a stomach infection. I picked up the manuals that she was going to train on and then went downstairs to have breakfast.

Since is was Dinner time I tried the sushi and found it very good. My stomach is really wondering though, about what I am doing to it. The resturant had cultural dancers and singers. I would have liked to have watched more of it but I had to get to my ride.

It was dark out already and hot. At the building there is a guard and you have to go through a metal detector. I of course was nervous and dropped my hotel card. The nice guard picked it up for me and I drop it again. I go through and pick up my briefcase and drop my scarf. They could make a comedy of this and make millions. I was past frustrated by now.

I made it to the right floor but had to wait for a little while before any one came for me.

The rest of the day had problems with the printed manuals and systems access. The photocopier ran out of paper and then out of ink. I was so tired after that day.

Since I was late getting to my driver, he had to wait on the street. I had to run past the various people that are on the street at 4AM. Scary. I apologised for making him wait for 10 min and he said that it was nothing. Some people have made him wait for an hour.

Now I have to try and get ready for tomorrow. Michelle is on her way home today. She is going home to recuperate.

I will have to do this alone. The people are so kind and that really helps. I am looking forward to coming home though!!

The Long Plane Ride

The trip to Manila was long and bumpy but the service on the plane was great. The people were so kind and friendly. Both Michelle and I were given seats on our own. They did not have a lot of leg room but I survived.

As soon as we took off we were served supper. We were able to make choices from a menu. They covered the tray with a table cloth and used real plates and cutlery. The presentaion of the food was excellent.

After supper they turned out the lights. We did not get a lot of sleep because it was so bumpy. They would make an announcement and tell us to put on our seat belts and it would wake us up. Then there was one man that slept really well and his snoring kept us awake.

They served us breakfast and we were also able to choose from a menu. I felt well cared for.

We made it though customs and collected our luggage. There was a man waiting for us from the hotel. He took us from there to the van and then it was a 25 min drive to the hotel. It was 5 in the morning so we did not see much.

The hotel has gates all around it and there are guards with dogs at the gate and at the hotel doors. We also had to be scanned with a metal detector before we could walk through the doors. I feel pretty safe here though.

I unpacked and then went to have some food at the buffet here at the hotel. It is really nice. I am going to enjoy all the fresh fruit.

Then I went to sleep. I slept for over 12 hours. I think I need to sleep for another 12.

I am trying to get set up and settled in now. Tomorrow we start the traning.

First day - Vancouver

I made it to Vancouver and I could really get used to Business class. I had a whole row to myself. The flight was bumpy but OK. We had a fancy cheese plate for the snack and a real cloth napkin.

Michelle, my coworker is not feeling well. I hope it is just nerves.

We are now in a VIP lounge. Very nice. I have half an hour to go. Next is the really long trip.

Good night for now.

Welcome

Hi folks!

I thought I'd start a blog so that I can record my travel adventures.

The trip I'm currently getting ready for is job related. I'm going to Manila to train people to do what I do. I'm leaving June 13 and will be there for 3 weeks.

I hope you'll enjoy this trip with me!!