Typhoon Yolanda aftermath : A Volunteer's Journey in Ormoc, Leyte (part 1)

The day did not start so well for me, good thing I'm OC about packing that I packed my bag partially the other night in anticipation of my trip to Leyte on the weekend. Ugh! Received a text message just 15mins before my DH briefing......"we are at Lipata now waiting for the ferry"......I panicked! I thought that my volunteer group will go on Saturday! Kalurkezzz...

Good thing though, the saints probably wanted me to go......Multiple taxi rides (I had to return back home coz I forgot my personal phone where all the numbers are stored! Ang hirap ng tumatanda!!) and sweating all over, finally arrived at the ticketing office of Weesam Express an hour before boarding time.

Got my ticket, yeheyyyyyy!!!!

Was told to take the express shuttle which is going to take us to Pier 3.....siempre, front seat! hahahahha

Honestly, its my first time to travel inter-island in the Visayas region. I am excited about the trip, though not excited about why I had to make this trip.

Had a bit of a worry, but then I consoled myself with the thought that I have been to more challenging places in other countries......or arrived in the middle of the night without having a problem.....even with language barriers! Here, I am in my own freaking world, speaks Bisaya, hmmmm...should be okay.....

Oh well, except that the province just experienced the strongest typhoon ever recorded and the place might not be back to normal yet.....meaning, no electricity!

I'll just try my luck to get on a bus (if there is one that time) or hire a motorbike to take me to Baybay City, the place where the volunteers will be making their base. It is about an hour away from my place of embarcation, Ormoc City.

The only worry nagging at me right now is the fact that I will be arriving at 7pm in Ormoc City and might not find anyone willing to take me to Baybay City. Fingers crossed......

I arrived in a city shrouded in darkness.....the whole city of Ormoc is in total blackout except for a few places with either gensets or solar lights. I tried to haggle with a motorbike driver, thinking that this way I can get to Baybay faster but at the rate of PhP 700.00??? That is totally extortionate! I went out of the pier area and continued walking....heard a guy shouting, "Baybay City"....I was indeed lucky, there was a van waiting for passengers (last van for the night na daw) right at the bus station (I assumed it was a bus station coz I can see silhouettes of buses in the darkness). And the fare is only PhP 70.00.....talk about overpricing! Hahay buhay....its more fun in the Philippines talaga!

My only problem now is how to get hold of my org mates.....their phones remain unreachable.

I told the driver and my seatmate that this is my first time in Leyte, they were kind enough to drop me off at the main gate of Visca University where the rest of the volunteers are billeted. Again, another good Samaritan..... the guard offered to take me by motorbike to the building where they were housed as it was quite a distance from the main gate....

Finally! Found my org mate having dinner, and it was such a welcome scene....people from my district of CCMCL, from different organizations....there were Karancho riders who rode on motorbikes all the way from Cantilan....the ladies from the Womens Club.....the college kids from SDSSU....and of course, our very own......volunteers from MFBGI.


Here's our sleeping quarters.....hehehe....nakitulog sa mga boys coz they have plywood covered with tarp which is a great improvement from the sleeping area earlier pointed to me....as in, cold, tiled floor....


Just cannot sleep properly......was not prepared to come in the rough....I did not bring anything at all. Lesson learned.....next time na mo atraka, dapat kumpleto an bala. Need to really buy a tent.

Short naps in between while tossing nonstop....I can hear the snoring all around me, I really envied how deep they were able to sleep.

Woke up at 4am.....briefing time is at 6am....I'm assigned to the food distribution team....

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