Mabuhay! Welcome to the lovely Philippine Islands.

The Collector 6: Love Cure takes place mostly in one of the towns of the Philippine Islands, where the Collector sent Marianne and Nicholas to retrieve the figurine of a demi-goddess.

The Philippines is an archipelago of over 7,000 islands lying about 500 miles (805 km) off the southeast coast of Asia. Situated in a tropical climate somewhere a little above the equator, it experienced only two seasons for the entire year: rainy and dry, but it has weathered numerous storms and earthquakes, landslides and volcanic eruptions over the years. Its people are generally very friendly and hospitable. In fact, Marianne and Nicholas were the recipients of this very hospitality, as bestowed on them by the Filipino family who was their host during their stay there.

Like all the countries in the world, Philippine literature is inundated with a fascinating and rich store of folktales, legends and myths, both oral and written, by which the people explained the origins of the land, rivers, nature and even human beings. They also have their own set of gods and goddesses with Bathala as the supreme or chief god who is the creator of humanity. His counterpart, Sitan, is the the god of the afterlife. Sitan has many helpers, among them Hukluban (death), Mangkukulam (fire), Manisalat (destroyer of love), and Manggagaway (sickness). Manggagaway is said to disguise herself as a healer, roaming the countryside not to heal, but to induce maladies with her charms.

In The Collector 6: Love Cure, Manggagaway is mentioned, but as the mother of the lovely demi-goddess of healing, Manggawana. I needed a goddess of healing, in line with the theme of the story, but in all my research, I couldn't find one. So, I admit that I took liberty with whatever material I have found and created Manggawana, who in direct opposition to her mother's occupation, found a niche for healing illnesses. It is her statuette that is depicted on the cover of the book.

Some Filipinos, though heavily Westernized and Christianized, still believe in deities, and the prevalence of belief in the figures of Philippine mythology is strong in the provinces.

Your question for the Grand Tour is: What did Marianne and Nicholas receive from their Filipino host during their stay in the Philippines?

Email your answer to collectors.contest @ inbox.com (no spaces) with Grand Tour Stop 6 in the subject line.

Your next Stop 7 – Visit Ireland with AJ Matthews at http://ajays- blog.blogspot. com/ on Saturday, August 25, 2007

Ref: http://en.wikipilipinas.org/index.php?title=Philippine_Mythology