Sex Tourism

After a misreable bus ride back to Manila from Banaue. (Misreable because we sat above the engine where the temperature was approximately 120 degrees. Keep in mind: A. we are in the tropics, B. our bus was constantly going up and down hills, C. most of the windows on the bus had cracks from being broken, D. the air conditioning got warmer as it got farther back. This combination left me shirtless on a bouncy seat sweating my butt off instead of sleeping. Traveling like the locals really makes you appreciate traveling like we normally do.

Tonight we went to the "girly bars" or the sex bars where foreigners come to buy sex. I went to about 10 different bars and talked to numerous girls and it was very enlightening but also extremely sad. We paid the girls just to talk to them, because obviously we are not paying them for sex, but we care about them suporting their families. When I say families it is because the girls are supporting not only them selves, but also kids, and also parents and brothers and sisters. Working in the sex bars is one of the best paying jobs in the entire country, and it is very easy for young girls to get hired.

We did our best to not support the bars, so we gave money straight to the girls. I found out that ALL of them were supporting more than themselves, many of them were in Universities trying to pay for school, and some of them had graduated but have not been able to find work. These are very smart and very bright girls. They are very kind, down to earth real people that I enjoyed talking to very much. Before anyone gets the impression that they only talked because I was paying them, know that I did not pay them until I was leaving and that I told them I was not loking to take them back to the Makate Palace (out current hotel) with me. The girls I talked to told me that they wish there was other work where they could make enough money, and when talking about my major and travels they said they think I should come back to the Philippines and hire them to work for me so they do not have to work in the sex bars anymore.

Soem of the conversations were very deep, very honest, very joyful, and very sad. One of the girls I talked to had multiple scars on her wrists and we talked about that and she shared about herself to me. I know this does not make anybody's day to hear about this but it is part of my experience that had impacted me very deeply already.

fyi: Most of the customers are Americans and Brits in their 50's and 60's. All ages are included though from 20's and up, and there are also customers from Europe, Australia, Japan, Korea, etc. Seeing the guys in these clubs paying to picm up girls 40 years younger than them was the hardest part of the whole night. To be honest all I wanted to do was beat the hell out of them. I know they are real people too, and I do not know them or their stories so I should not judge them, but is it so damn hard.

On a happier note, tomorrowe we are leaving Manila, and the island of Luzon to fly to Dumageti (spelling?) and then take a boat to Apo Island. Apo is a small sustainable community model on an Island with less than 1000 people. My project takes place here and I will be conduscting a population register and figureing out total fertility rates, and population growth rates to see if the Apo community is outgrowing itself when the register is taken again by another student next year. I will also be getting scuba certified. There will be no internet for me for the next 5 days so I will post again when I can.