American Portions

What is the deal with the huge portions of food and drinks in America!!?? It is absolutely mind- boggling. A couple of days ago I was with someone who went through the drive-thru at Wendy's just to get a medium-sized soda. Can you believe it was 32 ounces!!?? 32 ounces for a medium! This amount of regular soda is the equivalent of nearly 27 teaspoons of sugar and is devoid of nutrients. I was in shock. It seems that unrealistically-large serving sizes are everywhere. I realize it has been this way for some time but after being in Asia where serving sizes are much smaller, I am now more aware than ever at how big our portions truly are.

In my life I am thankful that I have finally learned how to eat when I'm hungry and stop when I'm full. I have learned that if I listen to my body, it tells me that I need to eat relatively small amounts in order to nourish my body. But I must say it is more difficult to do this when eating out and a large portion is put in front of you. Even today at Panera bread, I felt full after eating 1/2 of my turkey sandwich but despite the clear message my body was giving me, I kept going just because it was in front of me and I didn't want to waste it. Hours later I am regretting this because I still feel stuffed.

This is a big problem for our culture whose level of busy-ness requires eating on the go and spending very little time in the kitchen where portions and ingredients can be controlled. I realize that doing what it takes to truly care of ourselves (which goes far beyond healthy eating but must start here) is counter-cultural. In order for us to make healthy choices we end up having to go against the grain of our busy society.

I love travelling but I do not enjoy how difficult it is to maintain a healthy lifestyle while travelling.

Enjoying DC

Andrey and I are currently spending time in northern Virginia. Andrey is at a work-related retreat this week and I am so happy to be spending quality time with our good friends Sean & Shannon and their two kids. Sean & Shannon were some of our closest friends in Thailand until late last year when they moved to the DC area. We've missed them.

My mom and Andrey's parents were here to see us for a few days. My mom flew in from Alabama and The Sawchenkos "stopped by" on the their cross-the-continent trip from the Vancouver area to the east coast of Canada. They are on quite the road trip, getting to know their new motor home. A day was spent at the Arlington National Cemetary where my cousin is buried. We picked the best day for being outside as it got up to the 80s and was sunny and clear. The cherry blossoms and dogwoods are in bloom and are truly magnificent this time of year. It was wonderful to spend quality time with our parents (minus my dad who couldn't make it - we missed you Dad!). We are so grateful for their love, generosity and support in our lives.

We'll be here for another week before heading to Seattle for a few days. We can't wait to see our good friends there and visit our favorite coffee shops.

Back in Chiang Mai

After a very long day of travel and time spent in both the Manila and Bangkok airports, we arrived in Chiang Mai last night. Just being back here makes us feel sad to be leaving soon. We realize how good we've had it here. The air feels cooler, our neighborhood is quiet, and we have fantastic friends who seem very happy to have us back. We were greeted by friends at the airport and spent the evening catching up. Today we made it to church and then spent the afternoon BBQ'ing and experiencing Song Kran (Thai New Year water fight) by piling into the back of our truck with buckets of water, splashing people as we drove around the city. Our friends decorated our truck in true Song Kran fashion. The Song Kran experience lasted about 2 hours. We decided that was enough. We're only here for a couple of days. On Tuesday, we'll be heading to America for a few weeks for some annual meetings related to Andrey's work. Here are a few photos from today. Not the best as they had to be taken from inside the truck while driving but hopefully give you an idea of what this Thai holiday is like.

Traveling again

Tomorrow at 0500 we will board a plane headed back to Thailand. We have moved out of the temporary home we have been using and have put some stuff at the house we'll be staying in once we return to the Philippines. Both of us are really looking forward to being in Chiang Mai for a few days before we head to the States for 3 weeks. We'll be coming into Chiang Mai during the biggest holiday of the year, Songkran. Songkran is how the Thai New Year is spent. It is basically the hugest and craziest country-wide water fight you could ever imagine. Chiang Mai is the center of the celebration. Thousands of people from all over Thailand will travel to Chiang Mai to celebrate Songkran. Most people we know plan to stay in-doors during the 5 day fest because if you plan to go anywhere you can pretty much bet on getting soaked. On every road there are people packed in the back of trucks with barrels of water, which gets tossed on anyone and everyone. People on motorbikes, pedestrians, other people in the back of other trucks, and especially forgeiners are targetted. There are even people on the side of the roads throwing water on passers by, sometimes with hoses. Well, we hope to get out and see a bit of it and maybe take a few photos (from the inside of our locked truck). The best part is that we have plans to hang out with friends this weekend until we leave for the US on Tuesday. We'll let you know how it goes and I will try and get some good photos that capture Songkran so you can see the madness for yourselves. For now, we are saying see you later to Cebu. We'll be back at the end of May. Happy Songkran!

Beach Trip Summary

Last week, since the office was closed for Holy Week, Andrey and I took a trip to the beach, 90 km (55 miles) away from Cebu City in Moalboal. With use of the office van, we decided to drive. Normally a 2.5 hour trip, it took us 6 hours. Lesson learned? Buy a map and don’t depend on the tiny Lonely Planet map that lacked a few very essential details, like the “National Highway” turning into a gravel road that really no one travels on. Needless to say, there were a few disappointments about the trip. If only I could get rid of ALL my expectations then I'd never be disappointed! At the risk of sounding negative, I'm going to list the disappointing aspects (because it's reality!) before I give you the highlights.

Disappointments:-The National Highway that we ended up on unexpectedly, aka “the rough road” -average speed: 10 km/hr (6 mph). The road was like this for ~2 hours taking us 20 km (12 miles) closer to our destination. -The last 4 hours of the 6 hour drive was in the dark which made it difficult to find our way.

-The few moments of marital tension during the frustrating drive

-Finally arriving at our destination but needing another hour to find our guest house in the dark at 10:30 pm.

-Waking up the next day to discover that the “beach” isn’t really a beach after all. There are tons of small guest houses and restaurants crammed into a very small strip of oceanfront property, literally built on the ocean so that whatever small amounts of sand existed, was totally inaccessible.
-Rain on both days
-The traumatic experience thinking I had lost Andrey forever when he went for a walk in the rain to check out the rest of the beach (I didn’t feel like getting wet). He said he’d be back soon. Over an hour later, after imagining his disappearance, drowning, and/or death, I found him talking to a co-worker he ran into on the beach. I embarrassed myself by crying like a small child who got lost in the mall and couldn’t find her mommy.
-Feeling sick from eating too many Cheetos. I learned that Andrey doesn’t like Cheetos, leaving more for me to eat. I have very little self control when it comes to Pringles & Cheetos. For this reason I only allow myself to eat them on trips like this. Next time I’ll get the smaller bag or buy Doritos so Andrey can eat at least half of them.

Highlights:
-Taking the “scenic route” actually was quite beautiful for the first 2 hours, as the road took us over the tallest mountains on the island.

-Smelling fresh cool air as we passed over the top of the mountain
-Getting out of the city for a few days
-Having the ability to travel to an actual beach nearby
-The sun finally shining in the afternoon on the last day

-Pulling over on the side of the highway, walking down a steep hill and swimming in the ocean for a few minutes at this spot in the photo. Originally there was no one around but as we swam about 10 local children came down to watch and laugh at the strange white “Joes.” It was nice to know we provided some entertainment on that day to some of them.

-Beautiful blue-green clear water

-The bucket shower in our “can’t get anything cheaper” cottage ($11/night). Some might see this as a disappointment but I have grown to love the bucket shower in hot weather. So refreshing!

-Several good meals including fresh mango, dried mango, and mango shakes - mango, mango, mango!!!

Meeting these cute kids on the beach. I shared my oreos with them and they let me take a few photos. They were local kids hanging out all day without any parents in sight.

Kawasan Falls – We visited some falls on our way back. We enjoyed a nice swim in the very refreshing cool fresh water.

-Learning how NOT to drive to Moalboal

-Taking the correct roads back so it only took us 2.5 hours on the way back.

-Overall it was a fun adventure. Despite the challenges we did end up having a good time and enjoying the time together.

Headed for the beach

Later today, Andrey and I will drive 2 1/2 hours to the west coast of Cebu to spend the next 2 nights at the beaches near Moalboal. Andrey has the rest of the week off for Holy Week so we're making good use of the time. It's always an adventure booking a place to stay before seeing it. This place didn't even have a website. We'll be staying in a cottage with a fan at a place called Sunshine Pension House. And it's cheap. That's all i know. I'll take some pictures and let you know how it goes.

Edible sea animals

Since being in Cebu, i have lots more time to cook. Lately i have really been enjoying planning meals and putting together something fun for when Andrey comes home from work. I just clued into the fact that seafood is really fresh & tasty here (and not very expensive). Yes, of course it is! We live on an island! I didn't think of it at first. Well that just opens up lots more healthy options for variety in cooking. Let me tell you what i've learned about seafood since living in Asia. Shrimp - they have heads! and orange gooey stuff that oozes from their necks when you chop them off. Scallops - come in a lovely shell, and what we refer to as the scallop, is actually the white part in the center of a gooey black and orange mass that sits in the shell. You actually have to cut the scallop outta there! Fish - sure, it's great to cook fish - if someone else has taken it's head off, scaled it, removed the guts, and is in a nice form called the filet. I'm not even going to go into squid, stingray, and all the other lovely edible things from the ocean that i see here. I won't be experimenting with them. Eeek! All this to say, i want you all to know how good you have it when you go to the seafood counter at your grocery store. I LOVE this about America! They do all the dirty work for you! Filets of fish; deheaded, peeled, deveined shrimp; and scallops - JUST scallops. What's the trade off? the cost. Now i understand why it costs so much more in the US for good seafood. It's to pay the guys/gals in the back who are up to their eyeballs in gooey sea animal guts! They should be paid well if you ask me.

Well that didn't stop me from making a yummy pasta dish last night with shrimp and scallops. The night before, we had fish tacos (i actually found filets, oh thank you!) with some of the most fresh, delicious fish we've ever had. Thank you Cooking Light magazine (and my mom for sending them to me) for the great recipes! I'm so glad i don't have a picky eater for a husband.

Holy Week

It's Holy Week. This is by far the biggest holiday in the Philippines. We are told practically everything closes down on Good Friday and Black Saturday this week. Apparently by Easter Sunday everything is back to normal. Very interesting and contrary to evangelical christian culture that places the entire celebration around Easter Sunday. Without denying the resurrection of Christ, Catholocism here emphasizes the Passion (suffering & death) of Christ. Protestants, sometimes exclusively, emphasize the resurrection. Who's right? May i venture to say we can learn from each other? Meditating on Christ's suffering and death was something we never did growing up. I didn't know what Lent was. I only knew that Good Friday was the day Jesus died on the cross. We weren't taught to think about that too much. Why would we? After all, Jesus isn't dead. He isn't still on the Cross. He's in heaven! He's alive! Yes, this is true and Hallelujah! I love celebrating the new life I have in Christ at Easter each year! But here's a question: How much more would we experience life and joy on Easter Sunday if we devoted a healthy amount of attention on Christ's suffering and death? I find such focus serves to enrich my experience of Resurrection Sunday and therefore my experience of new life in Christ. Over the past few years, Andrey and I have used a book by Henri Nouwen called Show Me The Way to learn about and guide us during the season of Lent. The following is an excerpt from a recent reading:
"Suffering and death belong to the narrow road of Jesus. Jesus does not glorify them, or call them beautiful, good, or something to be desired. Jesus does not call for heroism or suicidal self-sacrifice. No, Jesus invites us to look at the reality of our existence and reveals this harsh reality as the way to new life. The core Message of Jesus is that real joy and peace can never be reached while bypassing suffering and death, but only by going right through them. We could say: We really have no choice. Indeed, who escapes suffering and death? Yet there is still a choice. We can deny the reality of life, or we can face it. When we face it not in despair, but with the eyes of Jesus, we discover that where we least expect it, something is hidden that holds a promise stronger than death itself. Jesus lived his life with the trust that God's love is stronger than death and that death therefore does not have the last word. He invites us to face the painful reality of our existence with the same trust. This is what Lent is all about."