West of the Town

Saturday 9 December 2017

Fish and Lights

Some meetings are in the church buildings; others are where the people are. One such is on the beach where several families live in home-made houses.

These are fishermen and their families. Some fish on the river which is one side of the single road that gives access. Others, those who own a boat, fish in the sea which is the other side of the road.

Because we meet after 6pm it is always dark. So we sit in a circle on the sand under an LED light. Later the men will go out in the boats to fish.

So on the way home we stop at the next "village" where Evangeline is friends with one of the families. We park and follow the lady to the seashore. The night is very still which is good for fishing not least for safety reasons. The boats are those small thin ones with outriggers.

As photos go, it is not smartphone friendly. Just starlight, candles and torches. So the flash photos is the best I got.

However, for buying fish it is ideal. The boats have just returned and the men are still throwing the catch from the nets onto the sand. We fill a bucket with small fish called "lady of the farm" in Filipino and return to the house to weigh them and pay for them. They will have to be gutted when we get home.

The next night we returned from the church building at Reserva village. As we pass through a town on the main road, their Christmas lights are worth a look. The big tree is last years winner made large for this year's display. The smaller trees round the edge are contenders for next year.

All the trees are made from local materials, often recycled. The winner is already selected but we liked one best that wasn't even placed.

There is a video playing and stalls selling food, nativity scenes and lots of people. Most large towns have one but this was the one on our route.

Today, lunchtime and some of the ladies of the farm are in the frying pan. They should taste good!

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