New Blog URL

I finally moved my personal blog from WordPress.com to my own server. I never was unhappy with the WordPress hosting server, but by the time I wanted some features they don’t provide. Features like Google Analytics support or more freedom to post external content via iframe’s.

The new URL for my blog is http://blog.schihei.de.

Think Big! IBM Supercomputer Internship

View this document on Scribd

Promising iPad Apps

So far, I don’t have an iPad but these apps look very promising. Further recommendations are always welcome.

• Evernote
• Todo for iPad
• iWeather for iPad
• Wikipansion Plus for iPad
• Dropbox
• Adobe Ideas 1.0 for iPad
• Articles for iPad
• WeatherBug Elite for iPad
• AccuWeather.com for the iPad
• StumpleUpon
• TweetDeck for iPad
• The Elements: A Visual Exploration
• SketchBook Pro

Weird Foods in the Philippines

During my time in the Philippines I loved to try several weird foods and I hope that I did not forgot anything? Following a small selection of the dishes I tried. Enjoy your meal!

Balut

Is an Asian delicacy and a fertilized duck egg with a nearly-developed embryo inside that is boiled and eaten in the shell.

Mangosteen

The flavor of Mangosteen, the queen of all fruits, is rather unique, almost indescribable, but fans have likened the flavor to a cross between strawberry, peach, kiwi, and plum; sweet with a little bit of sour.

Isaw

One of the most popular local dishes is the unique Isaw (grilled chicken intestines on a skewer). It is grilled to crispy perfection and glazed with sweet and spicy sauce.

Durian

The South East Asians worship the Durian like a miracle. So much so that it’s almost like a mascot of our culinary world. Despite its glorious reputation, many visitors to this part of the world often find the strong and strange aroma rather, unpleasant.

Tapsilog

A typical Filipino breakfast, this platter is made up of rice with dried cured meat and a fried egg cooked sunnyside up. Simple as it is, the Filipinos can’t live without it. Despite its huge portion, especially for a breakfast, you’ll be asking for more.

Ox Brain

They cooked this very well that it taste like omelet.

Jellyfish

A plate of jellyfish. Great texture, but I have always found them relatively tasteless unless one adds soy or other seasonings.

“Adidas” – Grilled Chicken Feet

In the Philippines, street food vendors can be found grilling marinated chicken feet that are playfully nicknamed “Adidas” (three toes = three stripes).

Alamid Coffee

Ok, actually not food, nevertheless it is weird. Of all the coffee produced in the world, there is nothing more rare and expensive than the Alamid coffee from the Philippines. But if you think this coffee comes from the usual sources, think again. The Alamid coffee actually comes from the droppings of the Civet, a common cat like mammal related to the mongoose which is considered a pest by the Filipino farmers, but are also hunted for their meat.

Civets are carnivorous mammals but they do eat the red coffee cherries that contain the beans which they are fond of. The consumed coffee cherries pass through the civet whole after fermenting in the stomach and that’s what gives the coffee its exquisite taste and aroma. Local farmers have discovered that their droppings are worth their weight in gold but its very hard to gather the beans from their droppings since they have to trek through the mountains and the thick undergrowth just to be able to gather the coffee droppings.

Once gathered, the beans are then carefully washed and left to dry in the wind and later to be packaged and mostly exported. Although the Alamid coffee does have it’s charm and exquisite taste, like any other specialty coffee, it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. Some people might have trouble drinking it especially if they learned where the coffee comes from.

The First Days in the Philippines

In the last couple of days I had not the time or the Internet connection to write a blog entry about all the things I experienced so far during I am in the Philippines. I have to tell you, that I already started to love the Philippines. The people are so friendly and warm!

My experience already started in the plane. For the time I have eaten a noodle soup with sticks and didn’t get a dirty shirt. I was so proud of me. After we landed, we organized a taxi and get a good impression what heavy traffic means. Driving in Manila is absolutely crazy. I am so happy that I was able to do my driver license in Germany, because I am sure that I could never survive in this traffic if I have to do it on my own.

On Monday we had the first meetings with our clients. We meet the National Institute of Geological Sciences, the Philippine Institute of Vulcanology and Seismology and the Philippine National Red Cross. After we did a presentation about our self and our expertise we had the first discussions with our clients and her ideas. It was very interesting and I am going to be an expert about floodings, earthquakes and Vulcans. It It is amazing what I already learned in this short time. After this meeting, we meet the Philippine Red Cross team in Manila, saw the famous sunset at Manila bay and had a fantastic Lechon.

Lechon is a roasted pig with crispy skin and juicy meat and absolutely delicious. The method of cooking Lechon is that the whole pig is roasted slowly over live charcoal. The tedious method of long-hours roasting the whole pig leaves the meat very tender inside and a crispy skin outside. Lechon is a popular dish in any of the festivities in the Philippines such as fiestas, holiday seasons, and special occasions like birthdays, weddings, and other family gatherings. It is said that celebrations are not complete without the Lechon as the table’s centerpiece. It is always served with a liver-based sauce making it more tasteful and delicious. If you eat pig – I am more that sure that you will love Lechon!

On Tuesday we walked for the first time to the National Institute of Geological Sciences. Our commute is going through the UP campus and remembers me back to my University times. I really feel like I am a student. Also, some students told me that I should go to the election and vote them to be the next student speaker.

I think this is a good sign. :)

My Philippine experience will start in a few days!

Deal all,

One year ago I did an application for the IBM Corporate Service Corps (CSC), which is one of IBM’s leadership programs. The idea of the CSC is to give IBMers an on-site experience with an emerging country. My team consists of ten IBMers, which are are from six different countries. Three people are from India, two people are from Germany, two people are from the United States, one person is from Canada, one person is from the Switzerland  and one person from the Slovakia. Four are female and six are male. The tenure is from 2 years to 22 years and we work in four different time zones.

My departure date for the four-week assignment is in three days and I will be based in Manila as result of aligning this assignment with the typhoon disaster recovery efforts, which are currently ongoing.

If you want to get first-hand experiences, you can read my blog or follow me via Twitter or Facebook.

Blog
http://schihei.wordpress.com/tag/csc/

Twitter
http://twitter.com/schihei

Facebook
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=560133349

Hallo zusammen,

In drei Tagen beginnt mein Abenteuer auf den Philippinen. Im letzten Jahr haben zwei Taifune auf den Philippinen schwere Überschwemmungen ausgelöst. Im Rahmen der IBM Corporate Service Corps unterstütze ich in Manila die laufenden Wiederaufbauplanung.

Meine Erlebnisse kannst Du aus erster Hand über meinen Blog, Twitter oder Facebook erhalten. Da ich leider nur auf Englisch schreiben werde, könnt Ihr eine mehr oder weniger grausliche „Google“ Übersetzung über folgende Links erhalten.

Blog
http://is.gd/8vrst

Twitter
http://is.gd/8vrCz

Facebook
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=560133349

Schedule for the first three days!

My departure date for my Corporate Service Corps assignment on the Philippines is getting closer and I am sure it will be a story both exciting and touching. ;-)

As an initial impression I received the schedule for the first three days.

Saturday 20th February

• Meeting with my non-government organization, the Australian Business Volunteers. ABV will introduce me to the Philippines and Manila, is giving a logistics briefing and describes all possible activities, the program and the local culture.
• After this, I will have a group dinner at nearby restaurant.

Sunday 21st February

• I will have Jeepney tour of the University of the Philippines Campus to scope out restaurants, theater, recreational activities, laundry and supplies.
• Rest & free time followed by a dinner at a Filipino restaurant.

Monday 22nd February

• Courtesy call to University President and Chancellor.
• Kick-off meeting with the clients and IBM Philippines. Our clients will prepare a presentation to explain assignments, training needs and expectations from the project. I have to prepare a presentation to introduce myself, present my skills that I am offering to the program.

Our NGO Partner

Every Corporate Service Corps assignment will be done in close collaboration with a non-government organization (NGO). In this post I will talk about the responsibility of the NGO. Also, you will get some background information about our NGO, which are the Australian Business Volunteers.

The role of the global NGO partner is to work with IBM to identify Corporate Service Corps assignment opportunities in the destination countries and provide in-country and online support for the volunteers. The NGO partner will lead in all logistical details relating to the in-country experience and ensure the volunteers are well prepared and supported throughout their in-country placement. Logistical details include in-country transport, lodging, food per diem, provision of cell phones, traveler’s health and evacuation insurance, airfare and where necessary language interpreters. The NGO partners will also collaborate with IBM to provide detailed information on the country of work, selected projects, and community clients. NGO partners provide an in-country manager who is a host country national to support our teams while on assignment.

Australian Business Volunteers ¹

ABV came into existence in 1981 and has since completed over 5000 development projects across 16 countries. They deliver an array of capacity building solutions leveraging the skill and experience of volunteer experts. Each ABV solution is development focused and tailored to meet the specific needs of each client and partner. With almost 30 years of experience working within diverse cultural contexts, ABV continues to provide outcomes that are sustainable and contribute to the attainment of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals.

Where They Deliver ²

The Philippines is confronting many complex economic and social challenges. Economic progress is slow, and poverty incidence is high and growing. Lack of sustained economic growth over the past 30 years has seen it lag behind the achievements of many of its east and south-east Asian neighbours in reducing poverty.

Each assignment delivered in the Philippines addresses one or more of the following objectives:

1. Increase workplace skills capacity to contribute to the growth and development of MSMEs and encourage regional and rural productivity.
2. Contribute to improving the quality and delivery of the education sector.
3. Strengthen the governance capability of key organizations and institutions in both urban and rural areas.

^{1,2 Source: Australian Business Volunteers, Our Story and Where We Work.}

Our Accommodation on the Philippines

During my one month Corporate Service Corps assignment I will stay at the “University Hotel“. The hotel was built in the late 70′s by the Philippine Center for Economic Development and was donated to the University of the Philippines. The University operates it as a special project through its Board of Overseers who was commissioned for its operation. The hotel is located inside the University campus which is in the middle of Metro Manila. The campus itself occupies a land area of 14 hectares and has approximately the size of two city blocks in the Ermita district.

The hotel was chosen by our non-government organization, the Australian Business Volunteers, as it is more secures and gives us the sense of being in a community. Also, it offers us many opportunities for cultural activities like concerts, theatre and films that are available in the campus.

In the following you can find a Google map showing the University Hotel and our client the National Institute of Geological Sciences.

View Larger Map

Our statement of work is finalized!

This week I got the statement of work for my IBM Corporate Service Corps assignment on the Philippines. I have to support the National Institute of Geological Sciences (NIGS) at the University of the Philippines. This institute is a multi-disciplinary forum for the study of processes that shape the Earth and offers undergraduate education in geology. They also provide courses at the graduate level in the fields of geochemistry, solid-earth geophysics, volcanology, volcano-tectonics, marine geology, hydrogeology and paleontology.

The NIGS is the leading earth science research and teaching institution in the Philippines and is often consulted by the Philippine Senate, Congress and other institutions on issues involving earth science and public safety. Examples of these are the recent flooding and landslide event related to the Typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng, and the potential of earthquake damage due to the Marikina Valley Fault System.

They are in the process of designing a project to predict flooding level in Manila and already have funding committed from the Reconstruction Commission and SMART Communication, the largest telecoms company in the Philippines.

I will work together with a co-worker from IBM India and our task is to assist NIGS in the design and development of the Flood Prediction System project, to include the hardware, software and personnel requirements and project a budget for presentation to the Reconstruction Commission. Also, we have to work with local counterparts to design the technical specifications of the Flood Prediction System and provide guidance and direction on software and personnel selection for the system. Finally, we have to provide training on dynamic web systems that will allow real time posting of information and on end-to-end project management for these systems.