than 12 million people. There are basically never ending metropolitan areas with around 8 different cities grouped together to create what Manila. Because of its massive area, our cast had to be spread out in completely different regions of the city, some almost 2 hours apart with traffic. This made it difficult to group together every day, so we were involved with special CI (Community Impact) projects that we would go directly to and from on most days. Some of these included; home building sites, spending time with children in the slums, and school groups. Most were centered on direct involvement with the poorest people in the area, working deep in the slums. My project was with Habitat for Humanity. This was a Filipino branch of Habitat that was building a massive housing project in one large area of slums. I was with a team of 8
Up with People cast members. We were also along side a large group of Filipinos that had been working on the project for 1 year, with 1/3 being completed. By year 3, there are to be homes for an amazing 350 families. Each family is required to work a total of 700 hours to receive there home, so we had the pleasure of building side by side with the home partners.It was difficult labor, but I was so honored to be apart of this life-changing project.
Just over the wall from our compound were the homes these people had been living in all their lives. Literally plywood nailed together, some as high as 6 stories, dangling over the side of a river. The worst poverty I have ever seen…I can’t imagine it getting much worse. We built bricks from sand and cement, created lon
g brick throwing lines, painted walls and metal roofing, mixed cement on the ground with only shovels, separated gravel, cut re-barb, basically anything you can think of. One moment that really sticks out in my mind is a brick throwing line that stretched probably 50 yards on the ground, up a horribly unstable ladder, across a balcony, and into 
one of the homes. I realized that of the 15 or so people in the line, there were 5 Americans, 1 Danish, 1 Ugandan, 4 Filipinos, 1 Swede, and 1 German…All working together to rebuild these people’s lives. I felt so taken back to be there in the Philippines doing this work. The people were amazing! Every day we would walk a mile from the Train station to our Habitat site. Along the way were communities of slums,
and people that were always so happy to see us. They always greeted us and walked along as our group came through every day. Most people yelled, “Hey Jo!” to me because I’m a white guy, and the kids playing basketball in the streets wanted me to stop and take a shot as I walked by. Honestly, I had a hard time wrapping my head around the idea of extreme poverty and the joy that these Filipino people expressed. There had never been any connection between the two in my mind. One day, a h
ome partner offered to take us behind the wall into the slums where he lived. We walked through a tunnel under all of the homes and saw first hand the living conditions they lived in. It was hard. I would hope pictures could give some explanation or feeling to it all, because I don’t know how they could ever give it justice.My host family in the Philippines was great! I stayed with Jennie Shepherd from Arizona, and Josh Stevenson from Texas. We also had 4 other staff members that rotated staying in our house and the hotel. I’ll be honest, when I was first picked up by our host family and returned to the house…I was totally mixed up. I wasn’t sure who was my host mom, dad, sister, brother, friends of the family...there were so many people in the house.
We really had 2 different host families. My host mom’s Ida and Grace were so much fun and really made our stay amazing. My host sister Kristal was always showing us around and showing us unbelievable hospitality. Many nights we would go out to local restaurants a sample the Filipino cuisine. That’s another story in itself. Every morning we woke to an amazing breakfast. Many times it was fish and rice, which is an interesting smell in the morning…Here are some other dishes that I had the pleasure to discover:• Duck egg with cooked duck embryo inside – this thing was huge…first you crack the top and drink the juice inside, then break the egg and eat the yoke complete with an easily distinguishable duck embryo (If your lucky it has grown hair!).
• Chicken feet – fried and delicious, although not much meat…mostly bones and tendons.
• Chopped pigs face – skin, snout, lips…what else could you wants? Served on a hot place with raw egg cracked over top and cooked in.
• Pork cooked in it’s own blood
• Basically any inside part of a chicken, pig or cow…you name it, I ate it.
It was an interesting experience for myself, as well as most cast members, to stay in upper-class affluent families. The poverty in Manila is everywhere, not grouped into clusters like people might think. Our families had drivers, housekeepers, cooks, handymen, guards…people hired to do everything. We would spend the day in extreme poverty and come back to a life of complete service. It put things into a different perspective for everyone.
I would walk outside my house every morning and right there on the street see families sleeping in boxes, naked children, old men and women begging for money…it was hard to understand.The Philippines is a very westernized country. Most people speak perfect English. The history of western occupation can be seen everywhere,
including their main source of transportation. We traveled around the city in “Jeepneys,” which are old Jeeps left behind by the US military. They are much longer than a normal Jeep and you just cram in and pay a small amount to travel a specific route. We also rode 
in side cars. These were motorcycles and bikes with a metal cart attached to the side. As many as 4 people can ride on one and I can attest it got a bit crazy on many occasions as we flew through the streets.
Our Cast on a few occasions would meet during the week for different regional learning activities. We saw museums, and also visited a community of families living in a site comparable to Habitat for Humanity.
It was called GK, and basically this organization builds homes for the poor, while also creating a community with education for the kids, leaders holding different positions of responsibility, and jobs. We spent the afternoon playing with the kids and learning more about what the organization does. The kids ran up to us and grabbed our hands, holding on as tight as they could. They even performed some songs and dances for us which were the cutest things I've ever seen. See the video below:
Two children, a brother and a sister, lead me around the different homes. I just kept thinking that my family could be the
ones living here. It wasn’t the decisions they made, but just what they were born into that brought about this lifestyle. As I had seen time and time again, they were so filled with joy and happy to spend time with us. Most the kids were in awe of Jules from Uganda. I don’t think they had seen another person before in their lives!We performed two shows in the Philippines, which were the last of our tour. At the end of our final rehearsal, our cast joined in a circle and sang the UWP song “Well be There,” to one another. It’s a
bout coming together to make a difference and that as a group, there’s nothing we can’t accomplish to help humanity.We’ll be there; we’ll be singing one more song.
We’ll be there, even though the road is long.
We’ll be there, and the feelings growing stronger.
When tomorrow comes, together, we’ll be there.
I’m proud to say that my cast is made up of people who are equipped to make a difference in the world. I know that these will be the future leaders, and the people working to help others and change people’s lives. It was hard to end our amazing semester of performances. In the end, 25 performances in 7 countries.
The final 3 days of our tour were spent together as a cast in Bagyo, a city 6 hours north of Manila. We stayed at the Philippines Military Academy. It was great to wrap up our tour together while also spending time with cadets from the academy. We played soccer matches, ate in the mess hall together, and even raced through the military obstacle course. So much fun! We ended th
e tour with a beautiful final banquet and wrapped the semester up together before flying home to our different countries. Our stay in the Philippines was unforgettable. I saw things and learned things that will never leave me. It’s a beautiful country with beautiful and amazing people. I hope to return soon in the future.
