PADYAK CITY

i was amazed, when i come first time to tabaco city in albay and find there instead a plenty jeepney and trycicat a plenty pedicap or PADYAK...
special in this time when we speak about how to reduce pollution, that can be an answer for a public transportation inside a city proper on short distances...
so i hope that this pedicaps also get more popular in other city's in the philippines and also in other country's...
SALUT TABACO

what i shall or have to believe ?

when i was borne, it was already fixed to what religious group i belongs !
the decision was given from my parents and so i had to follow their wishes.
i'm happy and lucky that my parents was very open minded and don't forced me to much, my pa was an Catholic and my mom protestant and they show us two boys that there is no border and harmony if there is love, trust and unity to fight for each other.
but soon i have feel the differences true the society and my schoolmates when i come in school.
the different religious groups had there own religion lesson and there the pastors or religious teacher has learned us that we have only to follow and believe in our church.
i got in troubles after i had accompany my mom sometimes in her church and so it starts in me the questions about what i shall or have to believe !
i speak and discuss it with my parents and friends..
i read the bibel...
i searched in literature...
search in the historical story's...
what i found was horrible...
at all the religious groups was a way full of blood...
there was killings, intrigues, abusing, lies...
so i decide to go out on my religion group and quit when i was 13.
years later when i read the book of hermann hesse : siddhartha this story has fascinated me and so i had searched more about buddhism
true my travels later to asia i come to the point where i find my way in my believing and he was founded in buddhism, because this religion is based more on a philosophical way than in a way of sin a mistakes, which you be always punished by the rules of the other religious groups...
why was mostly all religious groups split off ?
why the leaders of the groups always press there members what they have to believe ?
why they mostly have in the end when they can't give you an answer of your questions only the phrase it's god's will and we have to believe and follow...
who has written all the religious books ?
was it not we human beings?
why there is for example in the catholic church always a controversy discuss about the origin bible...
there are more than one version, so i ask what is the origin ?
had not every one of the publisher or writer his own version about his own background ?
why are woman's discriminated by catholic and muslims, can't have a pastor or higher position ?
why fanatic groups abuse kids and members for a holly war and suicide bombings
why
why
why
a never ending story ?
should we not all start to have respect and be tolerant to others ?
if we all could learn to be more tolerant and open minded...
if we can stand that we are not perfect and make mistakes...
if we can be open for all different groups and accept and love them even they have other believe or roots, over all nation in this world...
that would be the time there is a changing..
a time of peace and harmony...
a time we also could make this wonderful planet to a real HOME

villa sunshine for rent

im an architect and one thing let me here always smile...
it is the word TEMPORARY...
many buildings are not finish, or just the first floor and you can see still the steel bars which looks out at the second floor...
mostly it is because of locking finance...
and so this temporary stand for a life time...hehe
it is not easy to get here in the philippines a credit from a bank for a good condition and it needs a lot of papers for it, best if you have a permanent job in the government or a bank self or has a own business; otherwise the interest is to high when you have to borrow money from the private sharks with the 5/6 rates...
so comes many peoples, also farmers and people with small businesses mostly sooner or later in bankruptcy...
specially when there get somebody sick or need to go in a hospital, or the prices of seedlings, fertiliser etc. run,s up or the harvest was damaged by typhoons...
so this people has to sale in the end there lots or loosed on this finance sharks and landlords and stay now instead as owner as renter on the property and work for a bakschisch..

loving siddhartha

when i was a teenager, i read the novel siddhartha from hermann hesse!
this story has open so much my mind, influenced my following life up of now...
my pa was a catholic, my mom a protestant and they was forced when they married that there children's has to be catholic...
sometimes when in my childhood time my mom ask me that i company her in her church so that she hadn't to go alone, my pa had also sometimes work shift on sunday...
a klassmate has see this and told that to our catholic pastor, so at the next religion lesson in school, the pastor ask me after the lesson, where i have been last sunday?
i told him, that i was in the church...
he said that he not see me there...
so i told him that i have accompany my mom in her church...
he was mad, said i'm not aloud to go in the protestant church...
i ask him why??
he said that i'm a catholic...
and?? im also a christ and protestant are christ too and that i respect my mom...
the pastor got now very mad and shout, that i have to follow what he said...
i shout back, that he shall show me in the bible whee it stand that i can not accompany my mom in her church..but that there stand that i have to respect my parents....
my pastor got wild, said that he don't like to disscuss that with me and that i have to tell my parents that he will visit them tomorrow eve...
i have inform my parents about this dispute which i had with the pastor and my pa just said let him come...
the following eve the pastor come to our apartment and my pa ask him what is the purpose of his visit?
it's about your son frank, he was last sunday in the protestant church...
my pa asked now the pastor if i always visit the religion lessons?
yes...
also the obligated lesson and masses in the church which are fixed for the first communion??
yes
so where is then the problem my pa ask??
he has not to go in the protestant church my pastor said...
so, and please than show me where it is written in your bibel that it is forbidden my pa said...
now the pastor got loud, i forbidden it to him he shout...
my pa stand now up and said, i never will forbidden my son to accompany his mom in her church because i respect all religion and specially my wife and here my apartment has a door for come in but also to get out, and if you are not going out right now i will punch you out...
the pastor get very red, just saying nothing anymore and run out the house...
i have after quit by him at the next religion lesson, that i will not be longer a catholic member...

after i have read the story of siddhartha from hermann hesse, it has touched my heart and i had the wish that i will go to india when i'm finished my study, to see and learn more about buddhism...
and so it comes that i have saved money after i finished my study and start to work as architect and have prepared a vw-bus and was traveled with a friend when i was 23 overland to india and nepal...
later i have continue this travel, also to thailand and japan
and when i look now back my 64 years i must say, that for me buddhism is still the religion i can accept, if i just look on the history on some religious groups i must say that for me still buddhism is the most peaceful of all, i like how they respect others and also the nature...
i hope and wish that i can be a little bit like siddhartha and even more like the ferryman

who should be parents?

when i was young, my parents told me:
it is not difficult to get parents but to be parents...
at my childhood i had sometimes wish, that my parents should be rich so that we have a nice and comfortable life instead to suffer and helping my parents to making home works beside the school, so that we had enough income to exist.
i wished to get jeans instead the knickerbockers pants, wish to have a Tinkietoy cars like my neighbor friend and mostly, to have my own room instead to slip with my brother in the living room couch...
as teenager i had no plan to get married, want just to be independent and travel around the world..
i was travel 3 times to asia, twice with my vw-bus overland from europe to india and nepal, once with public services, airplane, ship, buses and that has changed my life.
i have study again social work and so i had now the wish to have a own family, so i have also married and had my own family with a adopted and a own son...
true my work in homes i have see many broken family's and was hoping,that i make it better...
after 23 years i struggled down and now I'm divorced
so i ask my self now after all, how should be parents?
is there a recipe for it, like when you will cook a meal....??
i don't think so, i believe it is hanging on how the couples deal in there partnership with eachother as a UNITY...
we learn in school mathematic, science, sport..
we learn how to read and to write...
we have to remember a lot of dates and phrases...
we have to follow the rules of the society and the religion groups in which we are a member...
but we don't learn really how to handle with each other...
we make our parents guilty when we struggle and make mistakes...
need it as an excuse, instead to ask us self which was our part in the story...
sometimes i think that the parents roll which we want it has to be is impossible to rich...
so one time again my question: HOW SHOULD BE PARENTS ?
i don't know if there exist an ideal parents in this world...
but i believe that most of the parents try to make a good job...
we have to accept that also parents has a right to make mistakes and are not perfect as we want and wish...
may it need it even, because out of mistakes we learn and can show also our kids a way how to handle with...
when i hear parents say, that there kids should have a better life than them so is that already totaly wrong, we need to teach and advise our kids to find solutions in there life which will be filled with unexpected things and we can just come over them when we learn how to deal with them or how to play this game of life so that we struggle lesser...
we as parents can't put always away for our kids there problems, but it is our responsibility to learn and teach them the way that they can find self a solution for there problems...
but for all of that it needs that the parents show there kids that they are an unity and that they pack there problems together and search also for a solution together...
if we instead be united just criticise each other all the time and specially in front of our kids because of the reason to get them on our side in this fight, we loose already...
as parents and also as human being

impreession at chinatown manila