The visits begin!

Tuesday 20 March
We were greeted in the morning by our rotarian hosts who welcomed us into their homes for the next 2 days. We were all with different families in different parts of the city and were excited to learn more about the way of life in the Philippines. Shortly after arriving in our first homes, we were on our way to meet the city Mayor of Kabankalan City, City Mayor, Hon. Isadro Zayco. We had a tour of the staff offices and the chamber where the councillors meet. We also wre the traditional headresses for a photo!

Sarah, Helen, City Mayor of Kabankalan, Gareth and Me.

Traditional headdress

After a lunch in a local restaurant, we headed for the SONEDCO sugar mill for a tour of the milling process. The Island of Negros is the largest supplier of sugar to the country (and what makes the people so sweet!) and it is common to see sugar canes being grown in feild upon field, they are harvested once a year and turned into all sorts of sugar. We were lucky enough to have a tour of the mill and once we were close to the factory we were met with a distinct 'farmyard' smell, which was actually the smell of the sugar! The factory was huge!

Me at the SONEDCo sugar mill

That evening we joined the rotary club of kabankalan at their open air meeting place and made a presentation to show our personal interests and the sights of Wales, this was followed by a karaoke session, where the GSE team sang 'It's not unusual' for a bit of welsh input! This was followed by dancing and more singing, the Philippine people really know how to have fun! We are going to really like this place.....