Today was a good day. It was one of those days when we took a break from our personal life to head back to Ginatilan Mountain to take care of some family business. For those of you who’ve been following us for a while, you know that Jessa’s parents have been living in a cabin that was partially destroyed by a typhoon over a year ago. One of the biggest issues they’ve had is that they haven’t had proper windows ever since. Today, we finally did something about it. (it is the cabin we gave them after we moved)
We started the day driving from Moalboal, stopping first at a window shop to get things moving. We ordered three or four glass windows—the green-tinted ones, just like the ones that actually managed to survive the typhoon. It’s funny how some parts of a house get leveled while a couple of windows stay perfectly intact. The total cost was around 10,000 to 12,000 pesos. Since the shop was out on deliveries, they’re going to head up to the mountain later this week to do the final measurements and handle the installation. It’s a huge relief to know they’ll finally have protection from the rain and wind again.
Of course, we couldn't show up empty-handed. We stopped in Ginatilan town to load up on "essentials." We bought a massive two-kilo box of biscuits, some bread, eggs, and about half a kilo of dried fish. Jessa also picked up a whole grilled chicken for their dinner so they wouldn't have to cook after a long day of work.
The drive up the mountain is always an experience. Most of the road is paved or cemented now, which is a massive improvement, but there are still those rocky, bumpy sections that keep you on your toes. When we finally rolled up to the house, nobody was home! In mountain life, everyone is busy working or harvesting until the sun goes down.
Even though they weren't there, we made ourselves at home. I sat down, enjoyed the view—which used to be my view, too—and waited for a bit while Liam took a nap. We stocked the fridge with the chicken and groceries, left 2,000 pesos to cover their electric bill, and gave a little extra pocket money for the kids.
Before we left, Jessa and I took a look around the place. They’ve got their TV and karaoke set up, which is basically the recipe for a happy life in the mountains. I also noticed that her dad had replaced a tire on the old bike—the one I used to drive for miles to pick up vegetables. It’s good to see they’re keeping things running, even if the bike itself is on its last legs.
We eventually headed back down the mountain and made it home to Moalboal. We didn't get to see them before we left, but I know they’ll be happy to find a full chicken in the fridge after a hard day's work.
Now that we’re back, I’ve got to face the less "fun" part of being a grown-up: paying taxes. I’ve got about 90,000 pesos to hand over to the government today. It’s never fun to see that much money go, but as I always say, it’s not really our money—it belongs to the government, so we just have to get it done.
Thanks for watching, and I’ll see you in the next one!
