Meaningless story follows.

The Philippine Daily Inquirer, published in Manila by the way, had an interesting profile piece today on Ka Beng-Beng and her group in Davao that are using organic techniques to grow food and prepare home remedies.

We’ve been looking for a supply of organic vegetables and also interesting things to sell in Jenny’s new MiniMart up on Bacaca Road.  So this afternoon Mikee and his yaya, Tita Lynn, my brother-in-law and his wife and kids and our trusty driver pack in with us and we make the trek over the mountain and up the valley about 20 kilometers to Mintal looking for Bgy. Loon and Beng-Beng.

Turns out Loon is down a rally narrow road that ends just past a huge Napocor substation and storage yard.  After a few conversations with locals, who clearly didn’t get the PDI this morning (or any morning) but were nevertheless amused, I would say, to see Beng-Beng in the paper, we drove down this even narrower dirt path, out into a coconut grove and finally stopped, got out and walked a hundred meters down to a nice little house with a buffalo submerged in the pond nearby and there was Ka Beng-Beng. Yep, the same lady that was pictured in the paper. And a fascinating person to talk with.

But all she grew there at her place was mani!  Peanuts.  Lynn really thought that was a hoot, after our long trek. But I didn’t really care. I was pleased to meet Beng-Beng.  She said her group sells organic vegetables and stuff over in Los Amigos - not at her place.

We never found the place in Los Amigos, even after a couple of stops to ask people who seemed to know exactly what we were looking for. So we turned around in Calinan and headed back; stopping on the way to grab a few bunches of bananas as a snack.

After we returned, Jenny had to make a trip to Bankerohan Market to get gulay for the week - pesticides and all.