The Philiippines is an archipelago of over 7000 islands stretching south from Taiwan to Indonesia. The climate is tropical with the wet season generally lasting from July until October, but November and December tend to be very rainy in Tacloban City. The northern hemisphere winter is the coolest time of year, but the temperature does not fall below 70 degrees Farenheit. Temperatures start rising in Februaryand top out during May and June.

Traces of early man have been found in caves on Palawan. Archaeologists theorize that early homo sapiens walked to the Philippines using land bridges during the ice ages. Indonesian and Malay traders populated the islands, giving rise to many of the indigenous groups. Chinese traders made regular voyages to Luzon and Mindoro as early as 150 A.D. By the 10^th century, Japanese, Indian, Javan, Sumatran, and Siamese traders visited the islands regularly, and the Filipinos were able to maintain peaceful trade arrangements for centuries.

In 1521, the Spanish arrived on the island of Samar and claimed it for Spain. The Spaniards spent the first half of the 16^th century conquering the locals and converting them to Catholicism. When they moved on to the islands of Luzon and Mindoro, to their horror, they found that Islamic missionaries from Malacca had a 100 year head start on converting the peoples of the islands (the Spanish had just ended almost 800 years of Islamic rule at home). Spain took over Manila from the Moros in 1571, and a vicious religious war followed for 300 years. The remnants of this conflict are still smouldering today in Mindanao.

The British invaded Manila in 1762 and were chased out of Manila bay within two years by by a home grown resistance group. This sparked a national unity and rebellion against the Spanish colonizers. The Philippines gained independence from Spain in 1898 at the end of the Spanish American War, which the islands were dragged into as colonies of Spain. Shortly after the peace agreement was signed in Paris, the U.S. took control of the Philippines and held tight control of the country until 1942 when the Japanese invaded and forced general Douglas Macarthur to flee to Australia, making his famous promise to return. MacArthur returned in 1944, landing on a beach right outside Tacloban City, and attacked the Japanese stronghold of Manila. Over 1.1 million Filipinos were killed over the course of WWII. The Philippines gained independence from the U.S. in 1946. In 1965, Ferdinand Marcos came to power. The Marcos regime lasted until 1986 after Marcos declared martial law and appointed himself president for life.

Philippine politics have been chaotic since Marcos left office. The current president, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, has faced allegations of corruption and election rigging, but has still managed to hold her office through several coup attempts. The Filippino people are struggling with the challenges of widespread unemployement and serious poverty.

Quick Facts

Official Country Name: Republic of the Philippines

Size: 300,000 km², slightly larger than Arizona

Population: 91,077,300

Government: Republic

Currency: Philippine Peso, currently US $1 is about 50 pesos

Official Language: Filipino and English are the official languages. The country also has 8 major dialects. The local dialect in Tacloban City is Waray.