I wanted to share with you one of the many finished products that a Kiva Fellow creates. In this case it is a mass journal. Each Kiva Fellow is expected at some point during their fellowship to write a personal entry to all the lenders that have made a loan through a particular field partner. Part of the mass journal should also clear up the relationship of field partners to Kiva. So I figured that many of the blog readers could also benefit from a similar letter and so here is mine. I hope that you find it helpful.

Hello Kiva lenders my name is Ed Coambs and I am a Kiva Fellow that has spent the last three months working with the field partner Negros Women for Tomorrow Foundation (NWTF). What’s that you don’t know who or what NWTF is, well that is ok. By the end of this journal my hope is that you will understand the important partnership field partners have with Kiva.

Field partners are the backbone of microfinance. They support the body of microfinance, by being the eyes, ears, and nose in their country. Field partners determine what types of loans and services people need in order to start or grow their own business. This means that the money you breathe into Kiva is exhaled through a field partner that is associated with the entrepreneur that you have loaned to.

My experience as a Kiva Fellow has shown how field partners are more than lenders. They are life givers. Kiva lenders like you get to experience the life of these clients through the work of the field partners. The field partners are the ones that spend countless hours in the field doing the humble and thankless work of meeting clients, collecting their stories and then posting them to the Kiva website.

NWTF has shown itself to be a field partner that is unbelievably humble and also a great leader in the industry of microfinance. During my time as a Kiva Fellow I experienced firsthand loan officers spending hours visiting groups of entrepreneurs to collect loan repayments, I attended a microfinance conference where key NWTF staff shared industry insights, and I traveled many hours with the research department to find new areas that could use microfinance. These are just a few examples of the role that a field partner can play in the life of microfinance.

Kiva and NWTF have been partners since July of 2009 and in that short time NWTF has been able to post nearly 350 borrower profiles worth over $135,000. You can be proud of the fact that you have contributed to the early success of the partnership between Kiva and NWTF, but also feel good to know that you are supporting entrepreneurs that are paired with a mature organization that goes the extra mile for their clients.

I will leave you with one of my fondest memories from my time in the field. After spending four days traveling over many rough roads I had seen hundreds of NWTF clients at their center meetings. This is the time that clients gather to meet with their loan officer and conduct the business of their loans. During the center meetings I would have the chance to ask the women about their dreams for the future and almost unanimously they wanted their children to go to college.

It was on the last day of a four day trip to the field, at the last center meeting when I was feeling most hot and tired that I became emotionally stirred. By this point I knew each center had a personality of its own and this last center was no different. The women one by one got up and shared their dreams and as I came to expect many would say they dreamed of their children going to college. But what happened next is what brought tears to my eyes. Several of the women with great pride in their voice and a tear in their eye shared that their children had gone to college and completed. It was then that I realized this is not some far off dream that can’t be accomplished. Rather it is a dream that can come true through hard work, determination, and the help of microfinance.

This is why field partners are so important; they are the backbone of microfinance that brings together the necessary support for the entrepreneurs and the logistical skills to collect the needed funds from the many great lenders on Kiva.org.

Have you ever had a dream. Sure you have. We all have.

I have created a short video in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. and the women of Negros, Philippines to remind us all that it is important to dream and dream big.

Spending the last three months in the Philippines has been an amazing experience. I have traveled to meet many Kiva entrepreneurs all over the island of Negros, and no matter what I find a way to ask about their dreams. There is no doubt this has been the most inspirational part of my time here. I hope that you will take a few minutes to remember Martin Luther King Jr. and the women of Negros. They are both great dreamers.

The start of a great Christmas party

There is a video at the end of this post that is well worth the watch!

This Christmas was like many I have had in the past, there are Christmas songs filling the radio airwaves for a month. The local shopping mall is adorned with Christmas music. The office party is slated to have a secret Santa gift exchange. But what unfolded at the Negros Women for Tomorrow Foundation Christmas party was unlike anything I have experienced.

In the couple of weeks leading up to the Christmas party each NWTF department is tasked with coming up with a dance performance. Not just to entertain the rest of the audience, but as part of an annual competition. I quickly learn that this competition is a big deal and begin to wonder what it will look like.

The final days lead up to the Christmas party and rumors are afloat that Josh and I are also supposed to prepare a dance routine.  We both blow it off as everyone just teasing us. Then on the night of the Christmas party each department delivers their own unique dance routine, and the suspense of Josh and I dancing builds despite Josh and I did not preparing anything because we did not take the rumors seriously.

So in a last ditch effort not to disappoint Josh and I decide we will do the Macarena. With little preparation and less dancing skills we aim to please the crowd. Take a look and see for yourself.

Needless to say that was one Christmas party that will not soon be forgotten.

A Great Negros Women for Tomorrow entrepreneur

By now you have probably had a chance to make a loan on Kiva.org and if not you are thinking about it.  Either way you are probably thinking about how does the loan get made in the field.  Well like you I wondered this until I became a Kiva Fellow. Now that I have spent 3 months in the field,  I can honestly say I know how the lending process works.

Let me just say it is a lot hotter, and comes with shall I say a distinct smell that you will never get while clicking through Kiva.org at home or wherever you make your loans from.

I hope that you enjoy watching this short film I have put together to show what the lending process looks like from the field. After watching this short flick take a minute to check out Kiva.org and make a loan to one of the many great entrepreneurs out there.

Snack time with the Galvez family

I have just spent the last three days sweating, bumping, and meeting new borrowers out in the field. My butt is exhausted from sitting on endless metal seats transporting me from one borrower interview to the next.  I have met some incredible women along the way, but I have reached a point at the end of the third day, when I am exhausted and think I can take no more. Then I meet one of the most amazing families.

Little did I know that when I met the Galvez family that they would confirm for me an idea that I have been pondering most of my fellowship. I have been contemplating the idea of happiness more than I care to admit during my fellowship. After learning about this families amazing success as entrepreneurs we were sharing a snack, when Josh another Kiva Fellow and I asked if the family ever wanted to travel to the United States. Then with no hesistation their son responded “Happiness is in the heart”. The son proceeded to share his view of happiness and that it does not come from traveling to places, but rather comes out of creating it in your heart. The sincerity in which this explanation was shared with me leaves no doubt in my heart that he has happiness in his heart.

What was shared over snack is what I have found to be representative of the Philippine culture, while many of the people are poor in monetary terms, they have a great wealth of happiness in their hearts. I continue to learn many great lessons from the people that I am meeting in the Philippines but this one will always stick out to me.

The video may take a few minutes to load but it is well worth it.

Lorna Sagario has just shared her business with you. She makes clay pots for a living. When I came to center 35 to observe their weekly repayment meeting I was met with a lot of excitement and enthusiasm. Of all the centers that I have visited center 35 was particularly welcoming and it was a real pleasure to learn about their craft of clay oven making. The clay pots not only represent hot food but a source of income. Lorna is able to make clay stoves in 5 minutes.

Center 35 says hi

While Lorna was the first person that wanted to show me how to make clay stoves, Joselyn Neiales in the green shirt and Melalyan Mayordo in the brown shirt also wanted to show me how they make their clay stoves. The clay stoves that you see being made are a common cooking appliance that families use in preparing their food. Many of the people in the Philippines live without the resources to afford a gas or electric stove and so these clay stoves serve as their only option for cooking foods.

Center 35 Welcomes Me

I asked Lorna about the challenges of her business, to which she replied transportation is one of her limitations. She currently has a motorcycle with a small side car, but she dreams of a day when she could use a small truck or van to transport her finished clay ovens. If there is anyone that came make this dream come true it is Lorna. She has the energy and optimism to make it happen. If you would like to help women like Lorna achieve their dreams make a loan to the women of Negros Women for Tomorrow Foundation on Kiva.org.

I have created this short video to show you what my room at Negros Women for Tomorrow Foundation looks like. I have been so blessed because as I have talked with my other fellows I realize that I have it good. I have hot water, cable, minifridge, and a flushing toilet. These are all luxuries for a Kiva Fellow. If you like what you have seen on my blog link to the Kiva Fellows blog. There are really some great stories out there.

I hope that you have enjoyed my spin on MTV cribs. If you have questions about something you saw and would like to know more about it let me know by leaving a comment.

Me with the staff of Bago branch

Hello readers. Below you will read about my experiences with borrower verifications. This is the short version. I have also included on my blog the long version of my experience. If you would like to read the long version just go to the next blog entry.

What will the field hold for me today as I go out to complete my first Kiva mission. I have been asked to spend time completing ten borrower verifications. The idea is first introduced to me during my fellowship training. The borrower verification process is one of the requirements for a Micro Finance Institution (MFI) that has partnered with Kiva to move from pilot to active status. (The pilot stage is designed to allow Kiva to evaluate the MFI, and their ability to meet all Kiva requirements. All MFI’s start in pilot status with a low fundraising limit and once they move to active status have their fundraising limit raised.) During training as I am introduced to the borrower verification process I think oh no problem I can knock this out in a day. All I have to do is take some photo’s, check documents, and ask some questions about the borrowers business. Well what unfolds during my borrower verification experience is far from what I expected.

I would love to share with you one particularly fun and inspiring experience that I had while completing my borrower verifications. If my memory serves me right it was our fourth borrower during the second day of verification and we were headed to her local market place.

I feel a warm wetness down the front of my pants, oh no did I wet myself in fear for my life while riding the tricycle. Nope a water bottle lid is not closed tight in my backpack and I feel the consequence of this in my wet pants. Not to worry only my laptop and several books I was reading where in the bag. So simultaneously I rip my bag open while clinging for dear life to tricycle to save my books and computer from eminent destruction. Fortunately most of the water went through the bag and onto my lap. I was able to get the books out which Sheila kindly held in her bag and my computer was in a soft sided carrying pouch that kept it dry.

Just as this water incident is sorted out it starts to rain, or maybe I should say a bucket of water was dropped on us from the skies above. As naturally as I tie my shoes in the morning our tricycle driver slickly pulls out a crinkled plastic sheet that he tries to wrap around the front of his bike and the front of the sidecar. He hands clothespins for Sheila and Rowena to attach the plastic sheet to the frame of the side car. As soon as the sheet is secured in place the rain subsides. As quickly as the rain came it subsided.

When we arrive at the market place stall for Erlinda the borrower I am supposed to verify she is not there. One of the other vendors tells us that she sold out for the day and went to a friend’s house. We head over to the friend’s house and find Erlinda there. After talking with Erlinda for a few minutes and me explaining the documents I will need to see she tells me we will need to go to her house for those documents.

Meet Erlinda Untal

Erlinda flags down a teenage boy that is driving a tricycle to take us to her house. We turn through a couple of neighborhood streets and then onto the highway. Oh, did I tell you that Erlinda is a duck farmer and lives in the middle of a sugarcane field. No I didn’t think so. We pull off the highway and onto the sugarcane field road. Not too bad at first, very bumpy but manageable. It does not take long for me to hear eruptions of laughter as the girls are getting bounced around on our ride. Then comes the deep trenches that the sugarcane trucks have worn into the road. Our fearless tricycle driver with a look of determination in his eyes carries us further into the sugarcane fields plowing through the deep trenches. At last he can go no further. Yet all the eye can see is sugarcane.

We get off the tricycle and start to walk up the road. Then the sugarcane parts in just a small place and a few huts appear. Great we have arrived at our destination.  No not yet, Erlinda leads us another couple hundred yards to her sky blue concrete house. We settle on her small front porch to begin the borrower verification process. Before I know it her husband shimmies up the coconut tree in front of their house and I hear the loud thud of coconuts dropping from the sky. Her husband then with a couple quick strikes of his machete is pouring fresh coconut water in glasses for us to enjoy as we talk with his wife about her business.

Erlinda gleams with pride as she talks proudly more about the accomplishments of her daughters then her own business, but it is the skills that she has learned from her business that have helped her to teach the lessons of hard work to her daughters. In order for her daughters to pay for primary school she would send them every day with a duck egg to sell that would help pay for their school. This work ethic has helped carry one of her daughters into a successful career in computers and another daughter will finish stewardess classes to work in the cruise ship industry.

We wrap up our verification with Erlinda which felt more like afternoon tea or should I say afternoon coconut water then a borrower verification. She walks us confidently back to where we left our tricycle driver in the middle of the sugarcane field. He has managed to get the tricycle turned around and is patiently waiting for our return. While approaching the tricycle I can’t help myself but to stop and admire the beautiful setting that surrounds the sugarcane fields. There are mountains in one direction and an afternoon sun slowly moving towards the horizon in the other direction.

One Muddy Road

View from the sugarcane field

The tricycle roars back to life and we head back to the highway. Oh did you forget, because I didn’t the road back is waiting for us full of mud pits, large rocks, and a questionable bridge to cross. As we rumble over the rocks and in to the first mud pit the tricycle gets stuck. Sheila, Rowena and I climb out of the side car and the driver guns the bike hoping the lighter load will allow him to clear the mud pit. No such luck, but at last my size and strength come in hand. I help to push the tricycle past this mud pit. We all climb back on only to get bogged down in another mud pit. This cycle of everybody off Ed help the tricycle clear the mud pit everybody get back on happens no less than five times before we clear all the mud.

Now you are probably wondering much like I was how in the world did they get to Erlinda’s house and not get stuck once and now leaving they get stuck multiple times. Well your guess is as good as mine, the only thing I can think of is God wanted me to really remember my visit to see Erlinda.

As a Kiva lender or maybe soon to be Kiva lender you can rest assured that everything checks out good. Each entrepreneur has a real story and much like any of us they have their successes, their failures and their dreams, but the important thing is that they are all working hard to create a better life for themselves, family, and community. Please join me in changing life’s by making a loan today.

Bago Branch Staff

What will the field hold for me today as I go out to complete my first Kiva mission. I have been asked to spend time completing ten borrower verifications. The idea is first introduced to me during my fellowship training. The borrower verification process is one of the requirements for a Micro Finance Institution (MFI) that has partnered with Kiva to move from pilot to active status. (The pilot stage is designed to allow Kiva to evaluate the MFI, and their ability to meet all Kiva requirements. All MFI’s start in pilot status with a low fundraising limit and once they move to active status have their fundraising limit raised.) During training as I am introduced to the borrower verification process I think oh no problem I can knock this out in a day. All I have to do is take some photo’s, check documents, and ask some questions about the borrowers business. Well what unfolds during my borrower verification experience is far from what I expected.

Good morning Ed this is Vicvic she will be taking you to Bago branch today for your first five borrowers to verify. Vicvic and I grab the first available trisikad. If you will imagine an old rusty bmx bike with a specially manufactured side car made to accommodate people who for the most part are shorter then 5’10” and weigh less the 160 pounds. Alright if you must here is a picture

A Typical Trisikad

To say I didn’t fit well is an understatement, it would be better to say that I was not meant to ride this type of transportation. But Vicvic and I needed to get to the minibus depot at the public market to catch a ride to Bago City, so I folded myself into a pretzel and away we went.

Once at the public market we find the minibus headed to Bago city. We enjoy a lively conversation about where I am from and where she is from during our ride to Bago city. We hop off in Bago city and walk a block to the branch office. As we step in the branch Vicvic introduces me to everyone in a whirlwind, leaving me just hopping to remember one name. I spend a few minutes reviewing with Vicvic and the branch manager Marlon who I need to see for the day. During the review of the list one of the loan officers pipes in to say oh she is not available today. Then as I make my way through the rest of the list the same loan officer says she is not available as well. Ok well there goes two of the five people that I needed to see. After some brief conversation we determine that if I come back in two days the two borrowers that are not available now will be available then.

Welcome to Bago branch

Now that I have identified who we need to see, the real adventure begins. Vicvic, Marlon and I head out to visit the clients that I have identified. Back into a trisikad we go to get to the minibus area of Bago city, where we catch a minibus for a 10 or 15 minute ride to transfer to a jeepney that will drive us another 15 minutes and drops us in front of the market place where Jasmin sells her goods at her Sari Sari store. This is my first verification so I am a little nervous, I just want to make sure that I get all the details that I need. At the same time as I am getting prepared for the verification in this busy market a fear of having my backpack grabbed and taken emerges. So I keep an eagle eye on my bag as I am introduced to Jasmin who greats me with a big smile. She willingly gets all the documentation that I ask for and happily shares with me about her business. She explains that through many loans like the one that she has received from Kiva. Her business started with selling fruit and now includes a wide variety of goods. The goods range from fruit to candies to household cleaners that are all being sold from a store that is probably not more than 10 feet by 10 feet with every inch housing a different product.

Meet Jasmine Gargarita

We spend 30 minutes or so with Jasmin capturing all the details. The first verification is complete and I still have my bag so my fear of having my bag taken subsides some. My experience with Jasmin put to rest some of my fears about meeting the borrowers and having them open up their loan documents and share a bit of their story with a stranger.

To get to the next borrower I am told that it is a pretty long ride. For the next leg of the trip we catch a tricycle not to be confused with a trisikad.  What’s the difference, I am glad that you asked. The tricycle is a motorcycle with a sidecar attached. So you get an engine instead of leg power and a side cart that is slightly larger, perfect for 99% of Filipinos but less than perfect for this large American. The tricycle ride is short and gets us to a jeepney which carries us a long distance and will get us close to the next borrower that will then only be a short tricycle ride away. The borrowers name is Lina and she runs a sari sari store that is stocked full of useful and need to have items ranging from snacks and sodas to more important items like medicine. Lina explains that the medicine is the most important thing that she carries because if she did not have it her community would have to travel a long distance to get medicine. Everything with her verification checks out and we part with a purchased ice cold coke.

After arriving in Bago city at about 8:30 it is now approaching 11:30 and Vicvic says we will head back into the city to get lunch which puts us on a tricycle to transition to the jeepney going back to town. We sit down at Vicvic and Marlon’s favorite local restaurant. They are curious about what I like to eat and then almost always insist on ordering it for me. I don’t fully understand the practice, but somehow at our lunch table for this meal a wide range of tasty items arrive.

We have chicken and pork on a stick, soup, something that looks like a spring role and rice. Unlike the typical American lunch where we would rush through the meal to get on to the next activity we take our time enjoying the food and good conversation about family. After the leisurely lunch I am more ready for a nap then a hot and dusty trip to the next borrower. But hey Kiva lenders want to make sure that they are lending their money to legitimate borrowers. So we rise from the table and head out to find our next minibus which will take us directly to our last borrower to verify for the day. I know what you are thinking no tricycle ride, what a letdown. Let me just say the minibus is no picnic for me either. I now know after riding the major modes of transportation in the Philippines none of it is designed to fit a 6’1” body. VicVic actually finds it very comical that I have to sit sideways on the bench seat in the minibus but of course she would because she is about 5 feet tall.

We arrive at our last borrower for the day and I feel like after two verifications I have a method to ensure that I get all the needed information. Joana sells kitchen wares. When we show up at the market she is not there. It turns out her sister is manning her table while also operating her own table where she sells t-shirts and flip flops. I am thinking great now I have three people that I will have to come back to check on. But as luck would have it Joana shows up a few minutes later, she had left her table to go home and have lunch. Now that I have my process down we collect the necessary information and have a chance to find out what Joana expects to sell with the Christmas season coming up. She thinks people will want to buy tuber ware to give as gifts for Christmas. So she says she plans to stock up and have tuber ware to sell.

After collecting all the needed information we head back out and catch the next minibus to Bago city. As we are riding back to Bago city I tell Vicvic that there is no need for her to catch the next bus with me back to Bacolod another 40 minutes past Bago city. She already got up early to come and get me in Bacolod to make sure that I got to Bago city ok. Vicvic insists that she ride back to Bacolod with me just to turnaround and take another bus back to Bago city. That settles it, you don’t disagree with the hospitality of the Filipinos as they just want to make sure that you are well taken care of.

So after a quick stop in Bago city to let off Marlon, Vicvic and I catch the next minibus back to Bacolod. The ride back to Bacolod involves more friendly chatter with Vicvic but I don’t remember the conversation as I am busy reflecting on all that I have experienced in this one day. No hair on my head lays in the same place as it started this morning. My face is slightly reddened from the afternoon sun beating down on us across the fields of sugarcane. My back is starting to remind me of all the bumps and awkward positions it was contorted into during the days travel and yet I am over my fear of doing the verifications and excited about my next day’s adventure of borrower verifications.

The next day I am sent out on my own to the other branch I will work with for the borrower verification. I am sent with reassurance that Sheila will meet me where the van stops. Sure no problem I am a big boy I can ride a van by myself, yet there is still a little boy inside me that screams out in terror “what are you crazy you don’t know where you are going or who you are meeting” I temper the little boy in me and remind myself not to worry there will be someone there to meet me. Sure enough as I step out of the van in La Castallana and am trying to get orientated I hear my name “Ed”. I look up to see Sheila smiling and saying hi we just have a short walk to the branch. We get to the branch at about 8 and they are just getting started for the day. Sheila invites me to just sit and relax while they get started for the day. She makes sure to introduce me to all the staff, especially Rowena the branch manager who will travel with us for the day.

I will spare you the blow by blow of transportation changes for the day’s borrower verification and just say that it followed the same pattern as the previous day. I however would love to share one particularly fun and inspiring experience that I had during the days travel. If my memory serves me right it was our fourth borrower for the day and we were headed to meet her at her local market place. On the way there riding the tricycle I feel this flood of wetness down the front of my pants. Oh no did I wet myself in fear for my life. Nope a water bottle lid is not closed tight in my backpack and I feel the consequence of this in my wet pants. Not to worry only my laptop and several books I was reading where in the bag. So you guessed it I rip my bag open while clinging for dear life to tricycle just to save my books and computer from eminent destruction. Fortunately most of the water went through the bag and onto my lap. I was able to get the books out which Sheila kindly held in her bag and my computer was in a soft sided carrying pouch that kept it dry.

Just as the water bottle incident is sorted out, it starts to rain or maybe I should say a bucket of water was dropped on us from the skies above. As naturally as I tie my shoes in the morning our tricycle driver slickly pulls out a crinkled plastic sheet that he tries to wrap around the front of his bike and the front of the sidecar. He hands clothespins for Sheila and Rowena to attach the plastic sheet to the frame of the side car. As soon as the plastic sheet is secured in place the rain subsides as quickly as it came and we are spared from being drenched.

When we arrive at the market place stall for Erlinda the borrower I am supposed to verify we are told that she has sold out for the day and went to a friend’s house. We head over to the friend’s house and find Erlinda there. We start asking a few questions of Erlinda only to find out she does not have her loan documents with her that I need to verify. When we explain what we need, she agrees to take us to her house.

Erlinda flags down a teenage boy that is driving a tricycle to take us to her house. Little does he know what he is about to get into. We turn through a couple of streets and then onto the highway. Oh, did I tell you that Erlinda is a duck farmer and lives in the middle of a sugarcane field. No I didn’t think so. We pull off the highway and onto the sugarcane field road. Not too bad at first, very bumpy but manageable. It does not take long for me to hear eruptions of laughter as the girls are getting bounced around on our ride. Then comes the deep trenches that the sugarcane trucks have worn into the road. Our fearless tricycle driver with a look of determination in his eyes carries us further into the sugarcane fields plowing through the deep trenches. At last he can go no further. Yet all the eye can see is sugarcane.

We get off the tricycle and start to walk up the road and as the sugarcane parts in just a small place a few huts appear. Great we have arrived at our destination.  No not yet, we walk another couple hundred yards and Erlinda’s sky blue concrete house appears. We settle on her small front porch to begin the borrower verification process. Before I know it her husband shimmies up the coconut tree in front of their house and I hear the loud thud of coconuts dropping from the sky. Her husband then with a couple quick strikes of his machete is pouring fresh coconut water in glasses for us to enjoy as we talk with his wife about her business.

Erlinda gleams with pride as she talks proudly more about the accomplishments of her daughters then her own business, but it is the skills that she has learned from her business that have helped her to teach the lessons of hard work to her daughters. In order for her daughters to pay for primary school she would send them every day with a duck egg to sell and help pay for their school. This work ethic has helped carry one of her daughters into a successful career in computers and another daughter finish classes to become a cruise ship stewardess.

We wrap up our verification with Erlinda that almost felt more like afternoon tea or should I say afternoon coconut water then a borrower verification. She walks us confidently back to where we left our tricycle driver in the middle of the sugarcane field. He has managed to get the tricycle turned around and is patiently waiting for our return. While approaching the tricycle I can’t help myself to stop and admire the beautiful setting that surrounds the sugarcane fields. There are mountains in one direction and an afternoon sun slowly moving towards the horizon in the other direction.

One muddy road traveled

Our fearless tricycle driver, Sheila, Rowena, Erlinda

View from the sugarcane field

The tricycle roars back to life and we head back to the highway. Oh did you forget because I didn’t, the road back is waiting for us full of mud pits, large rocks, and a questionable bridge to cross. As we rumble over the rocks and in to the first mud pit the tricycle gets stuck. Sheila, Rowena and I climb out of the side car and the driver guns the bike hoping the lighter load will allow him to clear the mud pit. No such luck, but at last my size and strength come in hand. I help to push the tricycle past this mud pit. We all climb back on only to get bogged down in another mud pit. This cycle of everybody off, Ed help the tricycle clear the mud pit everybody get back on happens no less than five times before we clear all the mud.

Now you are probably wondering much like I was how in the world did they get to Erlinda’s house and not get stuck once and now leaving they get stuck multiple times. Well your guess is as good as mine, the only thing I can think of is God wanted me to really remember my visit to see Erlinda.

Two days have passed I have met and verified 8 of the 10 borrowers that I need to. Now I just need to get back to Bago city and catch up with the last two borrowers. Fortunately the arrangements work out and I am able to successfully meet the last two borrowers and complete my verifications in two and half days after riding many, many, many trisikads, tricycles and minibuses. Completing the borrower verification was nothing like I expected during training, it was better. I got to meet ten great borrowers, see the country side, and experience all of the Philippines modes of transportation. Not bad for two and half days.

As a Kiva lender or maybe soon to be Kiva lender you can rest assured that everything checks out good. Each entrepreneur has a real story and much like any of us they have their successes, their failures and their dreams, but the important thing is that they are all working hard to create a better life for themselves, family, and community. Please join me in changing life’s by making a loan today.

This trip starts like any other to the mall. I have set out to pick up some groceries from the attached grocery store at the mall. This is my first time to go in this grocery store. The store is over flowing with people doing their shopping. The funny thing is that it is a Wednesday night, unlike the United States where people save their grocery shopping for the weekend this week night seems popular to pick up the essentials. After navigating endless isles of all the staples I make my way to check out lanes. As I make my way to the checkout there are two options one for small blue grocery carts and then check out stations for people with the standard grocery cart. Well on my way into the store I picked a small blue grocery cart knowing I would only need a few items.

My dilemma starts when I realize that the blue cart lines will take longer to check out then the regular carts, so I figure I will just go to the non blue checkout stand. As I pull in the line behind one other person ready to get my goods and go, the check out girl looks at my cart and says “Sir” then points to the blue grocery cart checkout lane. Ok, ok I will play by the rules but I don’t see what the big deal is. I move over to blue grocery cart line behind 5 other people and patiently wait my turn.

At last I pull up to the checkout counter and everyone stops, the store goes quiet. Then it is the voice of God, well actually it is the store load speaker and a Catholic prayer being recited. The prayer goes on for a minute or two and then business resumes as normal. During this prayer I am confused, amazed, concerned, and left bewildered. I have never experienced anything like this. I reserve judgment of this practice to cultural differences. Being a person of faith I have my own thoughts about prayer, but I try to remain open to different practices.

Now that the prayer session is over the checker is gliding my few items across her scanner, and before the last item crosses briskly across her scanner the store stops again. Another prayer, no now it is a customer appreciation cheers. While I don’t catch the words it is apparent this is a routine act where all the employees repeat a cheer with a quick staccato clap. Now that we have prayed and been appreciated maybe my groceries will all be checked out.   The last item clears the scanner and I look at the total of 523 pesos, and quickly do the math in my head with it coming out to about $10. Not bad for getting a hand full of yogurts, cereal, Gatorade, milk, chips, and a snickers. (Yes I was craving an all American candy bar)

Riding the Minibus

Traveling from one Kiva borrower to another often involves riding a minibus. This is one of the three major modes of travel that probably 80% of the population uses to move from place to place. I mention the minibus in particular because I was struck by the operations of these buses. A mother is riding with her two young children. We have been riding for some time with the warm air circulating through the bus from the outside air. The only way to keep cool or should I say not over heat is to ride with the windows down because there is no air-conditioning on these buses. The women’s little boy sits in her lap while the little girl sits in the seat across from her mother. Sweat has drenched the little girl’s hair leaving it plastered to her forehead as we bump down the road. The young girl nods off to sleep before the bus arrives at her stop. The mother signals to what they call the conductor that they have reached their stop. The conductor functions as the money collector, baggage mover and in this case mover of a precious little girl.

The conductor gently reaches down and scoops the small girl into his strong arms as the mother exits the bus carrying her little boy. The conductor seems to glide down the steps without the little girl making a motion still locked in her dream state. There is a concrete bench that the conductor sits the girl down on as gently as he picked her up. He stands there for a moment as the little girl wakes and her mother gently grabs her hand.

This episode stands out to me because of the culture that these conductors carry out on the minibus. They are there as servants helping people to enter and exit the bus. They don’t just collect money; they make the rough trip just a little easier with their service. I am impressed by this culture of help on an unspoken word, you should understand the special thing about this conductor and little girl interaction is that there was no need to ask for help by the mother. The conductor knew that was what needed to be done and so that is what was done. Amazing.

Soccer

For my friends and family that know me, they know I love to play sports. Well as luck would have it shortly after arriving in the Philippines I have found a new favorite sport. Indoor soccer. I had the chance to meet a friend of Raymond’s who is not involved in microfinance but plays indoor soccer. So we got talking and he invited me to come play with him the next day, Monday. It turns out he plays twice a week on Monday’s and Wednesday’s.

Great I am an athletic activity for my time here in the Philippines. Monday evening approaches and I am get excited and nervous. The usually anxiety of will I be good enough, fast enough, and do I have the right equipment start boiling up in me once I know Pocholo is on the way to pick me up. Pocholo my new friend picks me up and we head out for the indoor basketball court that we will play on. The sun has set in Bacolod and we are driving turning right, then left, then left again and soon I have no idea what part of town I am in. Pocholo explains that we are going to a subdivision that had the roads put in but no homes ever got built.