Rock Ed was on the road up North for 8 days in early July.  First stop was Tuguegarao with Noel Cabangon.  A bar called Traffic Jam became our classroom for the night.  Day 2 found us in Cagayan National High School for an afternoon with the students of its arts program.  Day 3 saw us in Solano, to take part in a meeting with the Rotary Club of Vizcaya, we had the chance to dialogue with the gentlemen of that region.  Future tie-ups with doctors and some business people were discussed.  Solano is a town of cool people.  I played badminton one night with the local yuppies and left with a donation for books from two ladies, Arlene and Geds.  (Salamat!) An old friend of mine from UP Diliman named Jun Olfindo and his lovely wife, Nan hosted PJ, Mike, Beng and I. Together with Mang “Joe Schumacher,” company driver of Coca-Cola Export, Inc.  Day 4 found us visiting the Juniors and Seniors of Bascaran National High School.  We wove our way to Santiago, Isabela on Day 5 for an evening of rock jamming with the campus-wide Rock Ed session sponsored by the University of La Salette.  Our gratitude to Christine and Benjo Carag, siblings from Santiago who organized the wonderful event with a surprising turn out.   Day 6, not quite road-weary, we headed West to Quirino Valley by the Sierra Madres.  We dropped off part of the first wave of books in Nagtipunan Elementary School and dipped into the Cagayan Valley river.  A beautiful spot, hardly touched by industry. I can’t decide if that’s a good or a bad thing just yet.  We have made plans to go back to provide for vaccinations in that area because Nagtipunan doesn’t have a hospital nor a health center in their area.  Watch out for ROCK BAKUNA, a concert to raise funds for vaccination projects this August 25  @ Eastwood. Beneficiaries will be the village in Quirino Valley and a school in Vizcaya.

We got back to the flurry of Manila bone-tired but happy. 

I wish many of the volunteers saw what we’ve seen.  Ang ganda ng Pilipinas. At ang cool ng mga Pilipino. Pero ang dami pang dapat gawin sa larangan ng kalusugan at edukasyon.

Sama kayo, next time.