The Philippines in Pictures

These are two of the many images from my recent trip to the Philippines—click the link below and you'll find more than 100 more.

Imagine one of those cinematic camera tricks that start you off in outer space, way above planet Earth. As you zoom in toward the blue of the Pacific Ocean, the blackness disappears. You aim a little east of Asia, just above the equator, at an archipelago of more than 7,000 islands. It's the Philippines. As you approach you decide to take the big northern island, Luzon. The land gets closer, and you veer southeast, toward an arcing peninsula. There, you find the province of Sorsogon. Zoom in again and it's the region of Bicol, closer, and you hit the city of Legaspi. Land and hop into a van for a meandering two-hour drive, and finally, you reach Irosin, the only land-locked town on the peninsula. Two miles outside of town, in an impoverished barrio, is where my father was born.

View the entire photo album here.