Well, I can't say my time in Manila has been boring. Adjusting to the initial though expected culture shock, my sleep deprivation, and inclement weather has been challenging at times. Overall, it's been a good experience, and I would do it again.

I haven't blogged here in quite some time, and I know a lot of people must be wondering why I didn't blog about the typhoons. The truth is that I didn't have anything significant to report as far as my experience with the storms was concerned. Edgar, the shuttle van driver, had mentioned to me on the way to work that Friday night that a typhoon would hit us, but I didn't know how serious it could be. I worked my shift that night and came home in the rain the next morning, but I so no flooding or damage where I was at the time.

Later that night, I went out with some friends from work to Ascend, a night club at The Fort in Taguig. We saw only light rain, no flooding, nothing like any of the footage that would be broadcast on the news in the days to come. The club was only a fraction as busy as it normally would be, and we were informed it was because of the storm, but still we had no idea. The devastation caused by Ondoy has been compared to hurricane Katrina, but we didn't see any of that devastation in our area.

The next day, I received a number of calls and emails from friends and family back home and had to assure everyone of my safety. After watching the news, I could understand their concern. Many of the areas hit hardest were actually quite close to where I live and work. Fortunately, Rockwell Center, where I'm staying remained virtually unscathed.

Fort Bonafacio in Taguig City, where I work and only minutes away from Ascend wasn't so fortunate, however. Three World Square, the building I work in, is at the bottom of a large hill on Upper McKinley Road. I didn't see any evidence of flooding or damage when I drifted into work at 11 p.m. that night, though. Most of the issues had been resolved by then, but for most of the day there was no power and no phone service. I was grateful power was restored by the time I got into work because it would be brutal trying to work in that building without air conditioning.

About half of the analysts didn't make it in that day, so a good portion of our call volume was redirected back to New York, but we still got slammed. I and the other mentors who flew down here to train the first-level analysts even had to jump on the phones and take some calls, something we hadn't had to do since we arrived here.

Thankfully, all the analysts and their families survived, though a good number of them were out for the week. They and their families have had to deal with getting their homes back in order. One of the guys was displaced altogether. He and his family lost everything, and his father lost all the tools he needs for his livelihood. Thomson Reuters, the company we work for, has set up something of a disaster relief fund which he has been able to take advantage of, so hopefully that will be enough to get him and his family back on their feet.

Some have attributed the ferocity of the typhoons to climate change. Personally, I don't doubt it. Ondoy created the heaviest flooding Metro Manila has seen in over 40 years. Is this just the beginning?

Labels: Ascend, Ketsana, Manila, Ondoy, Taguig, Thomson Reuters