Why Am I Here?

A sample of the questions I'm now encountering on a daily basis from just about everyone I meet:

1. Why are you here?

2. Where are you from?...No - where are you really from? (As a traveller, STORY OF MY LIFE!)

3. Are you single? (typically asked by women)

2 and 3 are sort of loaded questions, ones that I sometimes find difficult and/or frustrating to answer, but 1 is an entirely reasonable question and it's one that I've been meaning to answer here for a few weeks. 

My raison d'être in the Philippines is a CIDA-funded opportunity through the Canadian Urban Institute (***DISCLAIMER -- ALL VIEWS HERE ARE MY OWN, AND DO NOT REPRESENT CIDA OR CUI***) to work with local government and stakeholders to strengthen local economic development in Bicol region through sustainable tourism. My official title is Grand Duchess of Bicol Tourism Development Officer. I'm still working on putting together my actual work plan and figuring out exactly what my project will be here (my mandate was deliberately left quite broad so that I'd be able to work with the local project office to assess where my skills would be most useful), but it's looking like I'll be focusing on product development in the culinary sector. 

At first blush, developing a culinary tourism product in the Philippines is a daunting task, as Filipino food is rather maligned, especially when compared to the cuisines of neighbouring Southeast Asian cultures; it's usually written off as too salty/sweet/fattening/boring. Thankfully, I'm discovering that Bicolano dishes are a bit of an outlier in Filipino cuisine, as there are a number of regional specialities that are rather delicious; in fact, Bicolano dishes are renowned throughout the Philippines. In the week since my arrival in Naga, I've only managed to try a few of the local dishes (photos and descriptions to come), but I think there's a lot of potential here to build on. 

As I work on bringing this project to fruition, I'll need to keep the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in mind, as they are a major set of guiding principles and goals that my project is meant to be working towards achieving. Of the MDGs, the goal of promoting gender equality and empowering women will be at the bedrock of my project, not only because CIDA has identified this as a priority, but because I'm personally committed to the importance of raising the status of women in all spheres, particularly in the workforce. Wish me luck!!