If you don't want to be sad stop reading now.
Alex Peter and I arrived in Manila on Friday morning with the plan to stay one night and catch the bus in the morning to Banaue. Of course we stayed 2 nights as that is the way it always works...can't just stay one night. I was happy to be back in Malate and see my kids on the street. I had been hanging out with Elvie and Oliver but hadn't really seen the little kids. Over the course of the 2 days Elvie kept saying to me.."Margo, Margo" and pointing to her arm. Margo is Elvie's 3yr old sister. I passed by Margo one day while she was sleeping and she had a t shirt wrapped around her arm so I assumed that Elvie was just trying to tell me that she had had an injury. Sunday morning the guys and I woke up ..late... and packed our things to catch the bus. Peter was taking a long time to get ready as usual so Alex, Frank and I went downstairs to the street to wait for him. Of course Elvie and Oliver came to play and say goodbye. Again Elvie came to me and said "Margo, Margo" and pointed to her arm. I said that I had seen her and was sad that she had hurt herself. Elvie, exasperated with me, went across the street to where Margo and Jr were left alone. She picked Margo up and brought her across the street to me. When I took Margo in my arms I realized that her arm was swollen to 3 times it's size from her elbow to her wrist. Her fever was so bad and she was so weak that she could hardly keep her head up. I lost it. I normally am not a crazy emotional person but I couldn't keep from crying. This killed me to see this little angel suffering like this and all alone on the street. I began asking around where her mother was but no one knew. The woman that works across the street came over and told me that Margo's arm had been like this for almost 3 weeks. 3 weeks! And that she had not been to the doctor. She thought maybe that she had been bitten by something poisonous. I asked the woman to watch the other kids and the guys brought our bags back to the hostel and we all got in a taxi and went straight to the hospital.
The doctors and nurses were all pretty alarmed to see her arm in this condition but nobody really rushed to do anything. I guess even the hospitals are on 'Filipino time'. Eventually we got Margo checked in and hours and hours later she was put on strong IV antibiotics. While at the hospital a social worker came to talk to me and made the approval to wave all the hospital fees. That's right..The whole thing was free and her mother let her suffer for this long without taking her to the doctor. Because I had very little information about this child the social worker asked if maybe I could go find her big sister and bring her to answer some questions. I stayed with Margo and Frank went back to the street in search of Elvie. He didn't find Elvie but he found her mother and brought her back to the hospital. When she arrived I wanted to slap her but I refrained.. This woman couldn't have seemed less interested that her daughter was at the hospital..In fact she seemed a bit put out at having to come.
They wanted to keep Margo on the antibiotics for at least 24 hours to hopefully make the swelling go down. Since the mother was there now to sit with her I decided to go home and get some food and sleep.
The following afternoon I went back to the hospital to check on Margo. The swelling in her arm had gone down slightly and she was a bit more alert. But not much. Only enough for her to realize the kind of pain that she was in so now she was really upset and hurting. I asked the doctor if there was any news and they said that they wanted to keep her in the antibiotics for another 24 hours. Then they asked me if I could please stay with her because the mother kept leaving and would be gone for hours at a time while Margo was screaming her little head off. This is a 3rd world nation and the hospitals are not at all like in the states. You do not get a private room..just rows and rows of gurneys.. and there is not enough staff to keep an eye on the patient if the parent is gone. Of course I agreed to stay with Margo. I told the mother that she could leave and she she was gone in an instant. There is no air con in this hospital and Margo's fever had gone back up so I spent hours wiping her down with a wet towel and fanning her off with a piece of cardboard. She was in such pain. It breaks my heart. I asked if they could give her anything for the pain and they said yes but I would have to go across the street to the pharmacy and buy the meds because they could not afford to have them on hand there. Of course I did and it only cost 50php. That just a little over 1$.
Around 7pm the mother showed back up. Shortly after Frank arrived with a social worker to interview the mother. I don't speak Tagalog so I am not sure how the conversation went but the social worker agreed to go the the street the following day and evaluate the living situation. From what I understand in a situation like this the mother has the option to give up the rights to her children so that we can find them a good home. If she refuses I can push for the state to evaluate the situation and if the see fit they can take the children without consent.
I am going back to the hospital to check on Margo soon. I will post more when I know more..
Monday, May 17, 2010
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Boracay to Palawan part 2
We arrived in Palawan (Puerto Princesa) early in the morning and checked into a place called Banwa pension where the 5 of us shared a dorm room. The Banwa Pension is also called the Art House because they have local artwork decorating the whole place made mostly by the Palawan tribes. It is a really beautiful place. We spent our first day there relaxing and unwinding from our 36 hours cooped up on a boat. We rented motorbikes and explored the town and the mountains. It was really nice to get some fresh air. Too bad my bike was haunted by what I can only guess was the White Lady of the mountain and every time I tried to drive it she took the handle bars and drove me off the road. So I thought it best that Alex drive and I rode on the back. The White Lady of the Mountain apparently didn't mind him driving so we were ok. It was May 5th and although the guys didn't know about the holiday I told them we all needed to go out for margaritas to celebrate Cinco de Mayo. We found a tiki bar with live music and ordered a pitcher of margaritas. After waiting for about 20min for our drinks I asked the server what the hold up was. I mean I get that Filipino time runs a bit slow but I was getting pretty thirsty. The server told me that they were out of the ingredients for margaritas and they had sent a guy out to the store to buy the stuff. Ok..How long do you think it will be? I asked. He said 20 more min. None of us felt like waiting that long so we ordered beers instead. So much for a Cinco celebration.
The next day the guys went out on a boat to swim with the whale sharks but I couldn't go due to lack of space. I was pretty disappointed but it was ok as I was still so sick from dehydration I think that I stayed in bed most of the day. That night we all went out to play some pool and got home and to bed pretty late. In the wee hours of the morning we were all woken up when Patrick sat straight up in bed and shouted "There's a fu**ing monkey in the room! He just crawled across me!" None of us said anything because of course there was not a monkey in the room but when we asked him about it in the morning he held strong to his story and said that it was not just any monkey but a white monkey that crawled across him in the night. Hmm...must have been the White Lady again. Haha.
We really wanted to go up to Sabang to the underground river but the tours going that way were all really expensive so we made a plan for the next day to rent motorbikes again and drive ourselves. It worked out well, we wound up saving about 600php each and the drive up was absolutely breathtaking! In fact, I think that was the best part. I mean the underground river was really cool but being on the open road and taking in the gorgeous countryside can't be beat. I really wanted to hike the monkey trail and see some real monkeys while we were in Sabang but we didn't really have time after out tour throughout the river. The next morning we made a plan to go up to Northern Palawan to El Nido. The guys wanted to take a private van because it takes less time but it is about 400php more per person. I let them do that on their own and I took the bus. I arrived only 1 1/2 hours later than them and when I got there I found that the place we wanted to stay was booked up so they had to take a more expensive place. It was really nice though. Right on the beach. Matthieu Peter and I shared one room and Patrick and Alex shared another. El Nido turned out to be yet another paradise. So many islands surrounding it and boat tours that go out to tour them. The first day there Peter and I missed the tour that the other guys went on so we decided to rent motorbikes again and try to find a secret beach that I had heard about. I had met a local guy the night before and he offered to come with us and show us around. First he took us to the natural hot springs. We had to park our bikes and walk to them. It is really incredible that water can naturally be that hot. Boiling. You could see the shells from eggs that people had hard boiled in the water. Crazy. You could make a lot of pasta there. Walking back, June (our guide) told me to be careful because in the mud all along the way there were patches of quick sand. Of course I like to squish my bare feet in the mud and I told him not to be silly. Getting sucked in quicksand was something that only happened in the movies. Not 2min after I said that I took a step and slurp.. my whole left leg disappeared. The more I tried to pull it out the further in I sunk. It was really hilarious. I mean who really sinks in quicksand?? The guys pulled me out and off we went to find the secret beach. No wonder this beach is secret...it is nearly impossible to get to. When I was told there was a secret beach I just assumed that that meant it was less crowded than the others. No. It was deserted. It was the longest white sand beach I have ever seen with no one on it. Crystal clear water. Amazing.
The next day I again missed the boat tour with the guys. I had made friends with an Israeli guy Mattan and he and I found our own tour. Two guys named Pip and Tattoo were are tour guides and Mattan and I were the only ones out for the tour so we pretty much got to say where we wanted to go and how long we wanted to stay. It was a perfect day. Snorkeling in turquoise clear lagoons and laying around on white sand beaches. We stayed in El Nido for a couple more days not doing much aside from relaxing. Watching the sunset with friends and bonfires on the beach.
The morning we decided to leave and head to Port Barton we thought it best to take the 5am bus to beat the heat. I of course overslept and had to take the 9am bus without the guys. What was supposed to be a 5 hour bus ride turned into an 8 hour bus ride because we got at least 4 flat tires. I think I must have bad tire karma. It's a good thing I was riding on top of the bus instead of inside because it was so hot that day. I think I may have died of heat stroke otherwise. The bus dropped me off at the road leading to Port Barton (22km away) and the only way in was by tricycle. I was almost there when the tricycle got a flat tire...surprised? Eventually I made it and just in time for sunset. Once again I found myself paradise. This time by the name of Port Barton. We stayed at a really nice place right on the beach where a private room only cost 300php. The electricity in Port Barton is only on from 6pm to midnight. I thought those were weird times to have electricity. I didn't mind though. It was so cool there that you didn't need a fan to sleep anyways. As wonderful as Port Barton was it was probably not the best idea to go there. Me and the guys had booked plane tickets from Puerto to Manila for the following day so we really didn't have much time to do anything there. And we didn't realize that it was going to be nearly impossible to get out of the town. There are tricycles to take you into town but none to take you out so you have to take a private van and it is ridiculously expensive. The guys did this but I had met a group of locals and wanted to spend one more night. My new friends offered to drive me to the main road early early in the morning so I could catch the bus back to Puerto. That night we sat around drinking Tanduay of course. Because of a festival that was going on in the town for the next couple of days they let the power run all night and the towns people set up a disco on the basketball court in town. Me and my new friends all went. I of course walk around barefoot. One of my friends looked down and said "where are your slippers?!" I explained that I don't like to wear them so they said if I wasn't go to wear shoes than they better not either. They all took off their shoes and tucked them into their pants. I thought that was really sweet. When we got into town there were so many people and my new friends were so protective of me! They wouldn't let anyone that wasn't in our circle talk to me or dance with me. We danced for hours and got home late. We all fell asleep in the grass and hammocks outside the resort. We got an hour of sleep at least before having to wake up and drive to the main road so I could catch my bus. I made it on the bus and to the airport with an hour to spare before my flight. Met back up with Alex and Peter and we boarded the plane and flew back to Manila.
The next day the guys went out on a boat to swim with the whale sharks but I couldn't go due to lack of space. I was pretty disappointed but it was ok as I was still so sick from dehydration I think that I stayed in bed most of the day. That night we all went out to play some pool and got home and to bed pretty late. In the wee hours of the morning we were all woken up when Patrick sat straight up in bed and shouted "There's a fu**ing monkey in the room! He just crawled across me!" None of us said anything because of course there was not a monkey in the room but when we asked him about it in the morning he held strong to his story and said that it was not just any monkey but a white monkey that crawled across him in the night. Hmm...must have been the White Lady again. Haha.
We really wanted to go up to Sabang to the underground river but the tours going that way were all really expensive so we made a plan for the next day to rent motorbikes again and drive ourselves. It worked out well, we wound up saving about 600php each and the drive up was absolutely breathtaking! In fact, I think that was the best part. I mean the underground river was really cool but being on the open road and taking in the gorgeous countryside can't be beat. I really wanted to hike the monkey trail and see some real monkeys while we were in Sabang but we didn't really have time after out tour throughout the river. The next morning we made a plan to go up to Northern Palawan to El Nido. The guys wanted to take a private van because it takes less time but it is about 400php more per person. I let them do that on their own and I took the bus. I arrived only 1 1/2 hours later than them and when I got there I found that the place we wanted to stay was booked up so they had to take a more expensive place. It was really nice though. Right on the beach. Matthieu Peter and I shared one room and Patrick and Alex shared another. El Nido turned out to be yet another paradise. So many islands surrounding it and boat tours that go out to tour them. The first day there Peter and I missed the tour that the other guys went on so we decided to rent motorbikes again and try to find a secret beach that I had heard about. I had met a local guy the night before and he offered to come with us and show us around. First he took us to the natural hot springs. We had to park our bikes and walk to them. It is really incredible that water can naturally be that hot. Boiling. You could see the shells from eggs that people had hard boiled in the water. Crazy. You could make a lot of pasta there. Walking back, June (our guide) told me to be careful because in the mud all along the way there were patches of quick sand. Of course I like to squish my bare feet in the mud and I told him not to be silly. Getting sucked in quicksand was something that only happened in the movies. Not 2min after I said that I took a step and slurp.. my whole left leg disappeared. The more I tried to pull it out the further in I sunk. It was really hilarious. I mean who really sinks in quicksand?? The guys pulled me out and off we went to find the secret beach. No wonder this beach is secret...it is nearly impossible to get to. When I was told there was a secret beach I just assumed that that meant it was less crowded than the others. No. It was deserted. It was the longest white sand beach I have ever seen with no one on it. Crystal clear water. Amazing.
The next day I again missed the boat tour with the guys. I had made friends with an Israeli guy Mattan and he and I found our own tour. Two guys named Pip and Tattoo were are tour guides and Mattan and I were the only ones out for the tour so we pretty much got to say where we wanted to go and how long we wanted to stay. It was a perfect day. Snorkeling in turquoise clear lagoons and laying around on white sand beaches. We stayed in El Nido for a couple more days not doing much aside from relaxing. Watching the sunset with friends and bonfires on the beach.
The morning we decided to leave and head to Port Barton we thought it best to take the 5am bus to beat the heat. I of course overslept and had to take the 9am bus without the guys. What was supposed to be a 5 hour bus ride turned into an 8 hour bus ride because we got at least 4 flat tires. I think I must have bad tire karma. It's a good thing I was riding on top of the bus instead of inside because it was so hot that day. I think I may have died of heat stroke otherwise. The bus dropped me off at the road leading to Port Barton (22km away) and the only way in was by tricycle. I was almost there when the tricycle got a flat tire...surprised? Eventually I made it and just in time for sunset. Once again I found myself paradise. This time by the name of Port Barton. We stayed at a really nice place right on the beach where a private room only cost 300php. The electricity in Port Barton is only on from 6pm to midnight. I thought those were weird times to have electricity. I didn't mind though. It was so cool there that you didn't need a fan to sleep anyways. As wonderful as Port Barton was it was probably not the best idea to go there. Me and the guys had booked plane tickets from Puerto to Manila for the following day so we really didn't have much time to do anything there. And we didn't realize that it was going to be nearly impossible to get out of the town. There are tricycles to take you into town but none to take you out so you have to take a private van and it is ridiculously expensive. The guys did this but I had met a group of locals and wanted to spend one more night. My new friends offered to drive me to the main road early early in the morning so I could catch the bus back to Puerto. That night we sat around drinking Tanduay of course. Because of a festival that was going on in the town for the next couple of days they let the power run all night and the towns people set up a disco on the basketball court in town. Me and my new friends all went. I of course walk around barefoot. One of my friends looked down and said "where are your slippers?!" I explained that I don't like to wear them so they said if I wasn't go to wear shoes than they better not either. They all took off their shoes and tucked them into their pants. I thought that was really sweet. When we got into town there were so many people and my new friends were so protective of me! They wouldn't let anyone that wasn't in our circle talk to me or dance with me. We danced for hours and got home late. We all fell asleep in the grass and hammocks outside the resort. We got an hour of sleep at least before having to wake up and drive to the main road so I could catch my bus. I made it on the bus and to the airport with an hour to spare before my flight. Met back up with Alex and Peter and we boarded the plane and flew back to Manila.
Friday, May 14, 2010
Boracay to Palawan
I haven't done this for a while so I guess I have a lot to catch up on. I will try not to make it too long.
I had only planned on staying in Boracay for 2 days but wound up staying 5 or so. That seems to be the way with me huh? It's really nice though to not be on a schedule..to be able to go or stay when and where I want.
Boracay is a resort/tourist place for sure but for a good reason. The beaches are really beautiful there. The strip where all the resorts and restaurants are runs along the beach where you are only aloud to travel by foot. No motorized vehicles at all. Along the strip there are bars and clubs and restaurants with great food...Mongolian bbq..mmmmm.. But I have to say that my favorite part about Boracay was meeting a group of local guys on the beach and hanging out with them, singing and drinking Tanduay until well past sunrise every night. The Filipino people are in general some of the nicest, most hospital people I have ever met....Camera stealing prostitutes excluded..grrr. The night that we left all the guys had a going away party for us and we all traded gifts of bracelets and things. They made me a t-shirt and all signed it. It was very sweet. It was hard to leave but then again it is hard to leave each place as each place I go it's it's own paradise.
While in Boracay at our hostel Friendz Alex and I met a crazy Swed named Peter. We bonded instantly. Peter decided to join our traveling family and take the long long boat ride with us to Palawan.
In order to get to Palawan from Boracay you either have to fly which is very expensive or you can take the ferry from Boracay to Caticlan, the bus from Caticlan to Iloilo (7hours) and take a shipping boat from Iloilo to Puerto Princesa (36hours). Of course I chose option 2. The only problem you run into with this long boat option is timing. The boat makes this trip only 3 times a week and it fills up very fast. It took us 3 tries to get on this ship and we wound up having to stay one extra day in Boracay (darn) and three days in Iloilo waiting. We finally made it on the boat on a Monday and set out to sea around 7pm. On the boat we made a couple more friends. A Frenchman Matthieu and an American/Filipino Patrick. They too joined our traveling family. We became 5 and all traveled on to Palawan together. After about 12 hours on the boat it took a 6 hour layover in Cuyo. It would have been a lot more fun had I not let myself get dehydrated and totally ill. But I made the best of it, pretending all the time that I was well and feeling great. When we arrived in Cuyo the beach by the pier was crap so we found a tricycle driver and asked him to take us to another beach. Of course when you give a tricycle free will to take you anywhere you wind up on an adventure and we did. What felt like 3 hours but was probably only 30min later we wound up on a really bumpy rocky road that seemed to lead nowhere when the tricycle driver stopped and said we would have to walk from here. I was a bit concerned until I realized that he would join us. We walked for about 15min and the road opened up to the beach and a half built apparently abandoned building. It turned out that it was not abandoned but owned by a 50 something Australian guy, his 28 year old Filipino wife and their 9 year old son. The Australian man welcomed us with open arms. He offered us coffee, let us swim on his beach and lay around in his hammocks. He was hilarious and his son had laughing for the few hours that we spent there. Meanwhile the tricycle driver is waiting for us. I felt kind of bad. I don't think he realized that by driving us out there he would be spending the afternoon. Well we paid him well to make up for it. About an hour and a half before we were supposed to be back on the boat we asked the driver to take us back. No surprise ...we got a flat tire. Every moment is an adventure. We got the tire fixed eventually and made it back to the boat just in the nick of time.
I have much more to write but I have to go eat dinner now so
To be continued..
I had only planned on staying in Boracay for 2 days but wound up staying 5 or so. That seems to be the way with me huh? It's really nice though to not be on a schedule..to be able to go or stay when and where I want.
Boracay is a resort/tourist place for sure but for a good reason. The beaches are really beautiful there. The strip where all the resorts and restaurants are runs along the beach where you are only aloud to travel by foot. No motorized vehicles at all. Along the strip there are bars and clubs and restaurants with great food...Mongolian bbq..mmmmm.. But I have to say that my favorite part about Boracay was meeting a group of local guys on the beach and hanging out with them, singing and drinking Tanduay until well past sunrise every night. The Filipino people are in general some of the nicest, most hospital people I have ever met....Camera stealing prostitutes excluded..grrr. The night that we left all the guys had a going away party for us and we all traded gifts of bracelets and things. They made me a t-shirt and all signed it. It was very sweet. It was hard to leave but then again it is hard to leave each place as each place I go it's it's own paradise.
While in Boracay at our hostel Friendz Alex and I met a crazy Swed named Peter. We bonded instantly. Peter decided to join our traveling family and take the long long boat ride with us to Palawan.
In order to get to Palawan from Boracay you either have to fly which is very expensive or you can take the ferry from Boracay to Caticlan, the bus from Caticlan to Iloilo (7hours) and take a shipping boat from Iloilo to Puerto Princesa (36hours). Of course I chose option 2. The only problem you run into with this long boat option is timing. The boat makes this trip only 3 times a week and it fills up very fast. It took us 3 tries to get on this ship and we wound up having to stay one extra day in Boracay (darn) and three days in Iloilo waiting. We finally made it on the boat on a Monday and set out to sea around 7pm. On the boat we made a couple more friends. A Frenchman Matthieu and an American/Filipino Patrick. They too joined our traveling family. We became 5 and all traveled on to Palawan together. After about 12 hours on the boat it took a 6 hour layover in Cuyo. It would have been a lot more fun had I not let myself get dehydrated and totally ill. But I made the best of it, pretending all the time that I was well and feeling great. When we arrived in Cuyo the beach by the pier was crap so we found a tricycle driver and asked him to take us to another beach. Of course when you give a tricycle free will to take you anywhere you wind up on an adventure and we did. What felt like 3 hours but was probably only 30min later we wound up on a really bumpy rocky road that seemed to lead nowhere when the tricycle driver stopped and said we would have to walk from here. I was a bit concerned until I realized that he would join us. We walked for about 15min and the road opened up to the beach and a half built apparently abandoned building. It turned out that it was not abandoned but owned by a 50 something Australian guy, his 28 year old Filipino wife and their 9 year old son. The Australian man welcomed us with open arms. He offered us coffee, let us swim on his beach and lay around in his hammocks. He was hilarious and his son had laughing for the few hours that we spent there. Meanwhile the tricycle driver is waiting for us. I felt kind of bad. I don't think he realized that by driving us out there he would be spending the afternoon. Well we paid him well to make up for it. About an hour and a half before we were supposed to be back on the boat we asked the driver to take us back. No surprise ...we got a flat tire. Every moment is an adventure. We got the tire fixed eventually and made it back to the boat just in the nick of time.
I have much more to write but I have to go eat dinner now so
To be continued..
Sunday, April 25, 2010
I am in Boracay now and it is amazing. ...have I overused that word yet? A lot of traveling to get here. Buses and jeepneys and boats..oh my.
Rewind back to Sequijor..
The 4 of us spent another full day in Sequjior. We rented motorbikes again and drove to the mountains where we found the The Cambugahay waterfalls coming off the Po-o river...yes po-o river. We spent the afternoon swimming and frolicking in the pools below the falls in what can best be described as a whimsical faerie land. Lush and green and magical. We got back off the mountain after sunset and treated ourselves to a nice big room in a resort where we sat on the deck overlooking the ocean and drank margaritas. I slept in the hammock outside. It was perfect. the next morning we took a ferry back to Dumaguete. From there Mattias went back to Apo Island and Zoe left for Bohol. And then there were two... Alex and I.
Alex and I planned on just staying one night in Dumaguete and leaving for Palawan in the morning. In the morning we got up and packed and headed for the bus station but about halfway there we decided to stay in Dumaguete and see some of the sights. We checked back into Harold's, rented a motorbike and dove up the mountain to Valencia. From there we walked down 350 steep stairs to the Casaroro waterfall. It was worth the hike. The water was freezing though! It amazed me that in a place this hot there could be water that cold. Brrrrr.
The following morning we were up at 7:30 and on the bus to Bacolod by 10am. The bus ride was 5 hours which translates to 7 hours in Filipino. It was an interesting 7 hours. The bus was not air conditioned and about 35 people and one rooster over max capacity. It's ok...I quite enjoy flying around sharp curves at 70mph with a Filippino man in my lap and a rooster in my ear. We made it to Bacolod 15min after the last ferry to Iloilo. We had to stay the night. Turns out that Bacolod is a pretty cute and happening little town. We called a taxi from our hotel and payed 70Php to go downtown only to find out that it was walking distance.... After eating some street food Alex and I went to play some pool...we have a sort of competition going...who is less terrible. At the pool hall while we were waiting for a table I ordered a rum and coke. The man behind the bar mumbled something about going downstairs and disappeared. He was gone for a long time. Just when I was about to give up on my rum and coke and order a beer, the man appeared with a bottle of Tanduay rhum and handed it to me. I explained that I just wanted a rum and coke so he poured the whole bottle of rum into a pitcher and topped it off with a bottle of coke. I'm not even really sure what to say about that except that I drank the whole thing and it was quite good :).
The next morning we were up early and caught the ferry to Iloilo. I have never been on such a boat ride. I am pretty sure it was going 250mph. I felt like I was on a roller coaster. We made good time though. Off the ferry and into a taxi to the bus station. Another 6 hour bus ride to Caticlan. Someone should tell the bus drivers out here that they are not driving sports cars. It's like they are unaware that they have 60 passengers in the back. My butt left my seat several times as we caught air over bumps in the road.
Off the bus and on another boat to Boracay! Took a tricycle to Friendz Resort and checked in. Walked down to the beach..Set on a pillow on the beach and ate Mongolian grill while listening to live music. Perfect end to a long long day of traveling.
Rewind back to Sequijor..
The 4 of us spent another full day in Sequjior. We rented motorbikes again and drove to the mountains where we found the The Cambugahay waterfalls coming off the Po-o river...yes po-o river. We spent the afternoon swimming and frolicking in the pools below the falls in what can best be described as a whimsical faerie land. Lush and green and magical. We got back off the mountain after sunset and treated ourselves to a nice big room in a resort where we sat on the deck overlooking the ocean and drank margaritas. I slept in the hammock outside. It was perfect. the next morning we took a ferry back to Dumaguete. From there Mattias went back to Apo Island and Zoe left for Bohol. And then there were two... Alex and I.
Alex and I planned on just staying one night in Dumaguete and leaving for Palawan in the morning. In the morning we got up and packed and headed for the bus station but about halfway there we decided to stay in Dumaguete and see some of the sights. We checked back into Harold's, rented a motorbike and dove up the mountain to Valencia. From there we walked down 350 steep stairs to the Casaroro waterfall. It was worth the hike. The water was freezing though! It amazed me that in a place this hot there could be water that cold. Brrrrr.
The following morning we were up at 7:30 and on the bus to Bacolod by 10am. The bus ride was 5 hours which translates to 7 hours in Filipino. It was an interesting 7 hours. The bus was not air conditioned and about 35 people and one rooster over max capacity. It's ok...I quite enjoy flying around sharp curves at 70mph with a Filippino man in my lap and a rooster in my ear. We made it to Bacolod 15min after the last ferry to Iloilo. We had to stay the night. Turns out that Bacolod is a pretty cute and happening little town. We called a taxi from our hotel and payed 70Php to go downtown only to find out that it was walking distance.... After eating some street food Alex and I went to play some pool...we have a sort of competition going...who is less terrible. At the pool hall while we were waiting for a table I ordered a rum and coke. The man behind the bar mumbled something about going downstairs and disappeared. He was gone for a long time. Just when I was about to give up on my rum and coke and order a beer, the man appeared with a bottle of Tanduay rhum and handed it to me. I explained that I just wanted a rum and coke so he poured the whole bottle of rum into a pitcher and topped it off with a bottle of coke. I'm not even really sure what to say about that except that I drank the whole thing and it was quite good :).
The next morning we were up early and caught the ferry to Iloilo. I have never been on such a boat ride. I am pretty sure it was going 250mph. I felt like I was on a roller coaster. We made good time though. Off the ferry and into a taxi to the bus station. Another 6 hour bus ride to Caticlan. Someone should tell the bus drivers out here that they are not driving sports cars. It's like they are unaware that they have 60 passengers in the back. My butt left my seat several times as we caught air over bumps in the road.
Off the bus and on another boat to Boracay! Took a tricycle to Friendz Resort and checked in. Walked down to the beach..Set on a pillow on the beach and ate Mongolian grill while listening to live music. Perfect end to a long long day of traveling.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
19-21 April
I decided that my next destination would be the island of Siquijor. Siquijor is an island of mystery and magic. It is where all the traditional mountain healers and witch doctors live. So obviously this is the next destination for me. It is not too far from Apo so it seemed the the logical next jump. Zoe and the boys agreed to come with me. This will be our last trip together before we all part and go our separate ways. It was really hard to leave Apo but there is so much to see and I want to experience all that I can before my time here is over. A short..slightly less wet boat ride back to Dumaguete followed by a short ferry and we arrived on Siquijor. When the ferry docked I went to take my pack but there were a group of men standing there and they said no that they would bring it out. The 4 of us plus one English couple we had met in Apo waited outside for our bags. The man brought them and then he asked for 20 Pesos for each bag. I explained to the man that I was perfectly capable of carrying my own bag off the boat and that I had in fact tried but he said no. None of us thought that we needed to pay this man. We were sure he was trying to rip us off. We collected our bags and headed up the dock to the main road. When we got to the gate that led to the main road the bag man rushed ahead of us and slammed the gate. He would not let us leave without paying him 20Php each. I didn’t see this going in a good direction. Luckily after about 5 min of arguing another man came over and let us out of the gate. Thank God. I was pretty sure we were going to be carted off in a van and thrown into a cell until we caved and coughed up our 20Php each. Who knows..the bag man be constructing voodoo dolls of the 6 of us as we speak. I guess we’ll know if I return home with a pea sized head or something. I shouldn’t joke about that…sorry. I actually felt kind of bad afterward and had half a mind to go back and pay the man. That is after all how he makes his living.
We made it to the main road and found a jeepney. We told the driver that we wanted to go to Siquijor town but he apparently didn’t care. He took us to a place called JJ’s just outside of San Juan. OK… I guess this is where we are meant to stay. Didn’t really have a choice did we? It worked out ok though because this place is absolutely beautiful! Right on the beach…white fluffy sand and a great view of the sunset. I am happy.
This Island doesn’t have many cars or jeepneys. The only real way to get around is to rent motorbikes. So the next day that’s just what we did. We rented two and drove all over the island. Into the mountains and around then back to JJ’s for BBQ and sunset and rum and bonfire on the beach. Did I mention that I love my life?
We made it to the main road and found a jeepney. We told the driver that we wanted to go to Siquijor town but he apparently didn’t care. He took us to a place called JJ’s just outside of San Juan. OK… I guess this is where we are meant to stay. Didn’t really have a choice did we? It worked out ok though because this place is absolutely beautiful! Right on the beach…white fluffy sand and a great view of the sunset. I am happy.
This Island doesn’t have many cars or jeepneys. The only real way to get around is to rent motorbikes. So the next day that’s just what we did. We rented two and drove all over the island. Into the mountains and around then back to JJ’s for BBQ and sunset and rum and bonfire on the beach. Did I mention that I love my life?
Apo Island
Apo Island is absolutely amazing! I feel like I have been taken back in time. No running water. Electricity run off a generator that is only on from 7:30am to 10:30am and then again from 6:30pm to 9:30pm. No motorized vehicles at all. The little village is so charming. The people here are honest and friendly. The air is clean, the ocean is clear. If it weren’t for the lack of ice cubes, I could live here forever! ...Hey, every once in a while a girl's got to have a gin and tonic with some ice cubes..
This morning after coffee and breakfast overlooking the turquoise sea, I decided to go exploring. This Island is not very big. You could probably see the whole thing in one day..by foot. I had been told about a lighthouse so I went to check it out. ‘Just up those stairs’ they said. They failed to mention that there were 62,423 or them…roughly. I started to count but I lost interest around 14. Nice hike though. Along my way I encountered a handful of small goats, 2 half starved cows..one of which I’m pretty sure was doing yoga..one very excited dog that thought it would be fun to run circles around me at lightning speed, a young Filipino boy carrying a giant bunch of bananas, an old Filipino man carrying 50ft of bamboo and a large ant colony that I accidentally sat in. I reached the top of the island. The lighthouse itself was not much to look at but the view from up there was breathtaking to say the least. I had a complete 360 degree view. Incredible. Back down the quarter of a million stairs and into the ocean to cool off and do some snorkeling. I can’t get over how clear this water is. Everywhere you look there are turtles and sea snakes and fish of every color. After snorkeling and a bit of lying around in the sun I went back to Liberty’s for some lunch and ginger tea. It was then that I realized that it was only 1 o’clock. I couldn’t believe it. I have already had a full day and it’s only 1 o’clock! I mustered up some energy and walked to the other side of the island and hiked up to a view deck at the top. I found two perfect trees to put my hammock in and laid and swayed till sunset. Perfect view from up there. I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of watching the sunset. It is such a unique experience each time. After reluctantly hiking back down I met up with Zoe and the boys on the path and we all sat on the beach, drank rum and took pictures with the stars. What a perfect day. I love my life.
This morning after coffee and breakfast overlooking the turquoise sea, I decided to go exploring. This Island is not very big. You could probably see the whole thing in one day..by foot. I had been told about a lighthouse so I went to check it out. ‘Just up those stairs’ they said. They failed to mention that there were 62,423 or them…roughly. I started to count but I lost interest around 14. Nice hike though. Along my way I encountered a handful of small goats, 2 half starved cows..one of which I’m pretty sure was doing yoga..one very excited dog that thought it would be fun to run circles around me at lightning speed, a young Filipino boy carrying a giant bunch of bananas, an old Filipino man carrying 50ft of bamboo and a large ant colony that I accidentally sat in. I reached the top of the island. The lighthouse itself was not much to look at but the view from up there was breathtaking to say the least. I had a complete 360 degree view. Incredible. Back down the quarter of a million stairs and into the ocean to cool off and do some snorkeling. I can’t get over how clear this water is. Everywhere you look there are turtles and sea snakes and fish of every color. After snorkeling and a bit of lying around in the sun I went back to Liberty’s for some lunch and ginger tea. It was then that I realized that it was only 1 o’clock. I couldn’t believe it. I have already had a full day and it’s only 1 o’clock! I mustered up some energy and walked to the other side of the island and hiked up to a view deck at the top. I found two perfect trees to put my hammock in and laid and swayed till sunset. Perfect view from up there. I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of watching the sunset. It is such a unique experience each time. After reluctantly hiking back down I met up with Zoe and the boys on the path and we all sat on the beach, drank rum and took pictures with the stars. What a perfect day. I love my life.
14-16 April...I think
I haven’t written in a while…I know. I’ve either been having too much fun or on a remote island somewhere with no electricity or both.
I didn’t wind up going to Banaue. While in Manila I made myself a little passport of friends (Zoe..England, Frank..Switzerland, Shanti…Canada, Alex..France, Mattias..Holland). Alex and Mattias headed off to Apo island and invited Zoe and I to join. We decided that sounded like fun and booked our plane tickets for Tuesday. We hung out in Manila for a couple more days with Frank and Shanti had too much fun and not enough sleep. Tuesday came around and I was happy to leave Manila. Not only had I spent the last 6 nights staying up past the sunrise but had also lost a number of things...
Things lost in Manila:
1 Shoe, One of my favorite earings, The 17,000Php camera I had jut bought...stolen by a prostitute.., 800Php..also stolen by a prostitute..., 18 hours of my life, My sunglasses and countless hours of sleep.
...Zoe and I were exhausted and delirious packed and in a taxi by 11:30 for our 1:30 flights. I made my flight ok but Zoe was dropped off at the wrong terminal and had to take another taxi and almost missed her flight. We met back up in Cebu around 3 and took a taxi where we were hoping to get something to eat and pick up our boat tickets in advance for the 7:30 boat to Dumaguete. The travel office told us that we had to get our tickets at the pier but confirmed that there was in fact a bus leaving at 7:30. By the time we found a place to eat and ordered we were a bit pressed for time so we had to take most of it to go. It’s OK..we’ll eat in on the boat. Well that should be interesting since they wrapped it up in plastic bags and we had no utensils..We’ll figure it out. We rushed into a taxi and to the pier…really short on time now. There were about 7 ticket windows at the pier and the first 5 we tried said that there were no boats going to Dumaguete and that we would have to wait for tomorrow. No way…I could clearly see a boat with Dumaguete written on it and people aboard. Luckily at about 5min till 7 we found the window on the other side of the building that would get us to Dumaguete. Perfect. The boat was in the first slot we had just enough time to walk over and get on. We were heading that way when a man shouted “Ride the bus! The bus! Ride the bus!”…It was much funnier at the time than it sounds when typed.. We were then shuffled back to the other side of the building and onto a bus which took us all the way to the other side of the pier to the furthest slot from our boat and then all the way back to the place where we started…… Seemed a bit unnecessary to me but ok. Luckily this is the Philippines and everything moves at an extremely slow pace so our boat was about an hour late departing. The boat was unlike anything I have ever seen..each deck covered with bunk beds. It looked like some sort of prison orphanage or something. Zoe and I found our top bunks and settled in. As the boat was departing we stood at the rail looking out. An 11 year old boy approached me and began to ask me a series of about 1000 questions “where are you from?” “have you ever been to Hollywood?” “Have you ever seen a real live mermaid?” “are you drunk?” Haha.. No I wasn’t but apparently I am such a mess that I just appear drunk to children. The boat took off and Zoe and I took our bunk beds, had a couple beers and Pad Thai and curry out of a plastic bag that we had to eat with a tongue depressor I found in my first aid kit. No wonder small children think I’m drunk..lol.
The boat arrived in Dumaguete around 3:30 in the morning and we took a motorized tricycle to Harold’s Mansion…sleep. The next morning I met Harold himself and he convinced us to stay one more night. That night we had a BBQ then went out to a bar for some live reggae. Hanging out with several people from the hostel we got totally wasted and decided to walk into town at 3am for some food. After eating Chow King we were too tired to walk back so we grabbed a trike. Luckily, Lee, the guy next to me was paying attention because the trike driver fell asleep. Twice. We made it home alive and went straight to bed. The next morning we woke up late and hung over….again. We took a trike to the jeepney station, a jeepney to the road that led to the boats for Apo Island and walked down it. From there after about 2hours of waiting around..hot and hungry…Finally for 300Php each we hitched a really wet boat ride to Apo. Checked into Liberty’s..Food…Nap in the hammock. When I woke up from my nap I found that Alex and Mattias were not only still on Apo but staying in our dorm. Nice luck.
I didn’t wind up going to Banaue. While in Manila I made myself a little passport of friends (Zoe..England, Frank..Switzerland, Shanti…Canada, Alex..France, Mattias..Holland). Alex and Mattias headed off to Apo island and invited Zoe and I to join. We decided that sounded like fun and booked our plane tickets for Tuesday. We hung out in Manila for a couple more days with Frank and Shanti had too much fun and not enough sleep. Tuesday came around and I was happy to leave Manila. Not only had I spent the last 6 nights staying up past the sunrise but had also lost a number of things...
Things lost in Manila:
1 Shoe, One of my favorite earings, The 17,000Php camera I had jut bought...stolen by a prostitute.., 800Php..also stolen by a prostitute..., 18 hours of my life, My sunglasses and countless hours of sleep.
...Zoe and I were exhausted and delirious packed and in a taxi by 11:30 for our 1:30 flights. I made my flight ok but Zoe was dropped off at the wrong terminal and had to take another taxi and almost missed her flight. We met back up in Cebu around 3 and took a taxi where we were hoping to get something to eat and pick up our boat tickets in advance for the 7:30 boat to Dumaguete. The travel office told us that we had to get our tickets at the pier but confirmed that there was in fact a bus leaving at 7:30. By the time we found a place to eat and ordered we were a bit pressed for time so we had to take most of it to go. It’s OK..we’ll eat in on the boat. Well that should be interesting since they wrapped it up in plastic bags and we had no utensils..We’ll figure it out. We rushed into a taxi and to the pier…really short on time now. There were about 7 ticket windows at the pier and the first 5 we tried said that there were no boats going to Dumaguete and that we would have to wait for tomorrow. No way…I could clearly see a boat with Dumaguete written on it and people aboard. Luckily at about 5min till 7 we found the window on the other side of the building that would get us to Dumaguete. Perfect. The boat was in the first slot we had just enough time to walk over and get on. We were heading that way when a man shouted “Ride the bus! The bus! Ride the bus!”…It was much funnier at the time than it sounds when typed.. We were then shuffled back to the other side of the building and onto a bus which took us all the way to the other side of the pier to the furthest slot from our boat and then all the way back to the place where we started…… Seemed a bit unnecessary to me but ok. Luckily this is the Philippines and everything moves at an extremely slow pace so our boat was about an hour late departing. The boat was unlike anything I have ever seen..each deck covered with bunk beds. It looked like some sort of prison orphanage or something. Zoe and I found our top bunks and settled in. As the boat was departing we stood at the rail looking out. An 11 year old boy approached me and began to ask me a series of about 1000 questions “where are you from?” “have you ever been to Hollywood?” “Have you ever seen a real live mermaid?” “are you drunk?” Haha.. No I wasn’t but apparently I am such a mess that I just appear drunk to children. The boat took off and Zoe and I took our bunk beds, had a couple beers and Pad Thai and curry out of a plastic bag that we had to eat with a tongue depressor I found in my first aid kit. No wonder small children think I’m drunk..lol.
The boat arrived in Dumaguete around 3:30 in the morning and we took a motorized tricycle to Harold’s Mansion…sleep. The next morning I met Harold himself and he convinced us to stay one more night. That night we had a BBQ then went out to a bar for some live reggae. Hanging out with several people from the hostel we got totally wasted and decided to walk into town at 3am for some food. After eating Chow King we were too tired to walk back so we grabbed a trike. Luckily, Lee, the guy next to me was paying attention because the trike driver fell asleep. Twice. We made it home alive and went straight to bed. The next morning we woke up late and hung over….again. We took a trike to the jeepney station, a jeepney to the road that led to the boats for Apo Island and walked down it. From there after about 2hours of waiting around..hot and hungry…Finally for 300Php each we hitched a really wet boat ride to Apo. Checked into Liberty’s..Food…Nap in the hammock. When I woke up from my nap I found that Alex and Mattias were not only still on Apo but staying in our dorm. Nice luck.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Cannot seem to get out of Manila
Last night I once again attempted to make my way to Banaue. I made it as far as the bus station... I arrived at the bus station around 8pm hoping to catch the 10:45 bus to Banaue. When my taxi pulled up to the station and I saw the 455,000 people standing around I had a suspicion that I may not be leaving Manila tonight.. Sure enough...the bus was sold out. I went ahead and purchased a ticket for the 9pm bus the following day and took another taxi back to Friendlys. Well, one more night in Manila...I decided to go out. I ran into a English guy that I had met a few days prior and we had a couple beers. A couple beers turned into a couple more and before I knew it we were at a club called Bedrock (decorated like a cave from the Flinstones...really cute :)) and the shots of Jager were flowing... About an hour and too many consecutive shots of Jager into our clubbing we had attracted a group of Filipino transvestites. Man could they dance! I was too drunk at this pint to take pictures...sorry. It really didn't seem like we were in the bar that long but when we came out the sun was coming up. This town is absolutely insane! Sunrise and people are still all over the streets and in the bars drinking!
About 7am I was getting really tired and a bit delirious...time for bed. Nope... Before I could make it back to my hostel my kids were up and wanting to play....off to McDonalds for breakfast. Don't judge me...it was the only place open that had pancakes. I finally made it home and to bed around 9am I would guess. Geez...What a crazy night. I'm almost sad that I wont be here for the weekend when people are really partying!
About 7am I was getting really tired and a bit delirious...time for bed. Nope... Before I could make it back to my hostel my kids were up and wanting to play....off to McDonalds for breakfast. Don't judge me...it was the only place open that had pancakes. I finally made it home and to bed around 9am I would guess. Geez...What a crazy night. I'm almost sad that I wont be here for the weekend when people are really partying!
Another failed attempt to see the Chinese graveyard
My plan today was to A: get my bank situation sorted out...again.... B: Go buy some new hiking shoes...one of mine is mysteriously missing along with about 12 hours of my life..lol. and C: go see the Chinese graveyard. I accomplished one of the three. I got my bank situation figured out. I did make it to the mall to buy some shoes but when I got there all I could think about was my little street children...Oliver, Elvie, Margo and Junior. So I wound up at Robinson's in the toy department. Oliver and Elvie LOVE listening to my MP3 player so I found a kids version for about 199P and bought it along with some other little toys. When I brought my kids the toys they were of course delighted but when I tried to turn on the little radio I found that it was broken. I decided to go back to the store for a new one. I asked the mother if I could bring Oliver and Elvie with me to the mall and she said sure but Elvie was nowhere to be found. The mother didn't know where she was so I went out looking. This little girl is 7 years old...you would think a mother would know where her 7 year old daughter is...but I wont get into that...
I found Elvie about 5 blocks away playing in the street. She was so excited to come to the mall with me that she washed up and changed out of the clothes she had been wearing for days. Off we went laughing and skipping to the mall where my intention was to go straight to the toy store. Again plans changed and we wound up at the arcade. We played games and bumper cars and just had a blast for an hour or so then got some ice cream and we were off to the toy store. I let The 2 children pick out one toy each and one for each of their brothers and sisters. Before leaving the mall I stopped and picked up some underwear, t shirts, flipflops, baby wipes and a few other essentials. We left the mall hungry and exhausted so we went back to our street for dinner and to play with our new toys. After it was all said and done I think I had spent about 1500P. There goes my shoe money..I guess I will be hiking barefoot..lol. Well worth it. And I guess I will see the Chinese cemetery another time..
Needless to say, I had a wonderful day. I am leaving (finally!) for Banaue tonight. It is going to be really hard to leave! I have fallen in love with these children! When my 2 months in the Philippines is drawing to an end if I have any money left I am going to pay for Oliver and Elvie to go to school. It will only cost about 50 bucks each for classes, books and uniforms. If anyone would like to help let me know.
I found Elvie about 5 blocks away playing in the street. She was so excited to come to the mall with me that she washed up and changed out of the clothes she had been wearing for days. Off we went laughing and skipping to the mall where my intention was to go straight to the toy store. Again plans changed and we wound up at the arcade. We played games and bumper cars and just had a blast for an hour or so then got some ice cream and we were off to the toy store. I let The 2 children pick out one toy each and one for each of their brothers and sisters. Before leaving the mall I stopped and picked up some underwear, t shirts, flipflops, baby wipes and a few other essentials. We left the mall hungry and exhausted so we went back to our street for dinner and to play with our new toys. After it was all said and done I think I had spent about 1500P. There goes my shoe money..I guess I will be hiking barefoot..lol. Well worth it. And I guess I will see the Chinese cemetery another time..
Needless to say, I had a wonderful day. I am leaving (finally!) for Banaue tonight. It is going to be really hard to leave! I have fallen in love with these children! When my 2 months in the Philippines is drawing to an end if I have any money left I am going to pay for Oliver and Elvie to go to school. It will only cost about 50 bucks each for classes, books and uniforms. If anyone would like to help let me know.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Venting...
So last night I was going to finally head up to Banaue. My bags were packed and i had even met some other travelers that were headed that way and we were going to take the bus together. I needed to get some cash out before going because there are no ATMs in Banaue. I went to one ATM...'unable to process your request'. Hmmm... I went to another ATM...same message. What the F? I came back to the hostel and got online to check my bank account and sure enough they put another hold on my account! I am more than a little pissed. It took me 2 days to get it resolved the first time they did it. When I last spoke to them I thoroughly explained to them that I was in fact traveling SE Asia and would be using my card. The women said she would make a note of it and it wouldn't happen again. Well..it did and now I am stuck in Manila for at least another day with 790P (about 17$) to my name. Uuuurgh!!! Hopefully I can get it all resolved today and be on the bus to Banaue tonight. I need to get out of this city for a while!
Good news though....I found my phone! I had apparently plugged it in to charge in the common area of the hostel during my weird blackout day...or two?
Now if I can only find my other shoe I will be a happy girl :)
Good news though....I found my phone! I had apparently plugged it in to charge in the common area of the hostel during my weird blackout day...or two?
Now if I can only find my other shoe I will be a happy girl :)
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
China Town 05-April-2010
I started this day by going to the mall and spending WAY too much on a camera. It's pretty awesome though and it seems to be one that I cannot easily break...that alone is worth the extra money given my history with cameras. Having taken care of that I decided to venture off to China Town and see the Chinese cemetery (which I never wound up seeing :( ). I walked to the park and found the spot that I have dubbed Jeepney Chaos Central. I was crammed into a jeepney headed toward China Town with about 50 other passengers. The ride there was only slightly terrifying with the traffic and the driver jolting to a halt every 5 seconds before darting in between cars with no warning. Not only did I manage to survive, I made some friends on the ride. They were a family of young Filipino cousins headed to china town as well. When we got off the jeepney I reached in my purse to pay the driver my 7P but he was off before I could even unzip my bag. I felt terrible for not paying but the family I met got a huge kick out of it! They laughed and laughed. They said 'you supposed to pay when you get on!'
The cousins consisted of 4. One guy from Manila and 2 girls and another guy from Banaue. The guy from Manila was showing his cousins around and asked if I would like to join them. They were headed to see the metal church. I accepted and we were off. Along our way we got thirsty so we stopped at a little Chinese place for some pineapple juice and noodles cooked with what I can only guess was dog or rat....mmm. Hydrated and refreshed we headed out to the heart of Manila...Chinatown. Absolutely insane! The streets were full of vendors selling everything from underwear to cooking pot lids...no pots..just lids. It was absolute chaos!!
Along our walk one of the girls I was with told me I looked like Celine Dion...haha.. and would not stop telling me how beautiful I was. The guy said he was honored and privileged to be walking in the streets with such a beautiful American and that I must be a model. This kind of talk went on all day and night. I do not take flattery well so I was very uncomfortable. I couldn't think of a polite way to ask them to shut up so I just smiled and hoped they would stop. On our way to the metal church we passed the Quiapo church..the church of the black Nazarene. It was full of people praying and touching the sculpture of the black Jesus. Beautiful church for sure. On our way to the metal church I got thirsty so we stopped for so some coconut juice. The coconut juice was served to me in a plastic bag with a straw. How exciting! I have never enjoyed a beverage out of a baggie before! It was delicious! Yum Yum!
We made our way to the metal church and it was absolutely incredible! Probably the most beautiful church I have ever seen! It is claimed to be the only prefabricated steel church in the world. How incredible to build an entire church from only metal! Beautiful!
After the church one of the girls I was with...the girl who was apparently my biggest fan :)... told me it was her birthday and insisted that I join them for drinks, a meal and videoke at her cousin's house to celebrate.
We arrived and I nearly had to crawl through the doorway to get into the house....I am a giant in this country.. I was hustled up to a tiny bedroom where 6 of us sat on tiny couches and chairs and began the videoke. We were served san miguel beer and noodles and chips. I was waited on hand and foot like I was royalty. I refused to sing Celine Dion as requested but the beer was flowing and before I knew it I was belting out 'My heart will go on'...geez.
Earlier in the day my new friends had asked me if I had ever tried balut. My response was something to the effect of hell mother f..ing no. no. no. no. Eww! For those of you that don't know...Balut is a partially devloped duck or chicken egg that is buried to ferment for a couple days before being boiled and eaten. so...no..uck..uck..no. Well....like I said the beer was flowing and my friend all of the sudden appeared with a bag of..you guessed it ..balut. I was feeling pretty relaxed and apparently adventurous. I tried it. Hey..it wasn't that bad...surprisingly. At least now I can check that off the list of things I never wanted to try.
This is where things got weird... I really wasn't that drunk but every time I tried to stand up my body felt like it weighed 14 tons and I had to sit back down. I found it strange but not strange enough to put any real thought into it. At this point...it must have been around 8pm... the guy that I call Small Dog (from a previous joke) came in with a pitcher of liquid and orange coconut powder and something in a bottle. He lit it on fire and when the fire ceased he poured it into glasses for us to take shots. I drank one...two..three... then......nothing. I remember nothing else from the evening. In the morning I woke up in the only bed in the house and everyone else was on the floor. As soon a I opened my eyes I was being fed eggs and bacon, toast and coffee. I got up and was instructed to shower. Ok. Umm...where does the water come from. Oooooh... the bucket. Another new experience for me. A shower from a bucket of water!
My plan was to leave this day and go to Banaue. My friends said that they were heading that way anyways and I could just ride with them. They put me in a taxi to my hostel..told me to gather my things and they would meet me in the lobby. Gather my things I did and I went outside to wait.
While sitting on the sidewalk waiting, a little boy came along. Oliver was his name and he was 6. He asked me for nothing but sat down with me against the wall. I reached into my bag and pulled out an orange...and then another. Rather than eat it it seemed he wanted to play. So for hours we engaged in all sorts of creative games consisting of oranges and water bottles. Oliver's sister Elvie came along to play as well. While I was falling in love with these children there were some local people hanging around. One man seemed to know them...I think he was their uncle. It was after dark now and I asked if he knew where their mother was. He shrugged and said that she was off trying to make some money probably. I said 'where do they sleep?' He pointed to some cardboard on the side of the road. 'Do they go to school?' 'No' The man said....they cannot afford it. From what I could understand school costs 1000P a year. That is only 20$!!! I started to cry...I couldn't help it. Elvie looked up and me and put her dirty hands on my cheeks....she looked me in the eyes for a minute then wiped away my tears and smiled... I melted.
I was joking with Oliver about his dirty feet and saying how I wish I could take he and his sister home with me and give them a bath. The man..the uncle.. offered them to me. He said I could adopt them. Just like that..."Here, have my children". I want more than anything to do just that! A couple of other little street girls came over to play and I was getting hungry. I ordered us all a large pizza and we sat in the street and ate. Best meal I've had yet!
It was about 9pm now and my friends still had not shown up. I was still feeling really dizzy and heavy from the night before so I went back to Friendlys to check in for another night. While waiting for the man to check me in I looked over and saw a warning sign about people slipping you a drug called Ativan. It listed the side effects and they sounded a whole lot like the way I was feeling. It doesn't make any sense. None of my things are missing...I wasn't violated... I don't know if that is what happened or not. Maybe I just ate something bad. Anyways...I checked back into Friendlys and slept like a baby.
This morning I woke up at 6am...wide awake! I had some coffee and hung out for a bit then I went out for a bite of food. As soon as I turned the corner from Friendlys who did see? Elvie and Oliver! The came running to me and jumped in my arms :) I invited them to come have breakfast with me and they brought their little brother (Jr) and sister (Margo) along. We had a wonderful breakfast of pizza and burgers and french fries! I hung out with the children half the day and we had a great time!
Don't be surprised if I return home with 2 to 4 children....
Tonight I am taking to bus to Banaue. I think it is about a 12 bus ride. I am really looking forward to getting some fresh air!
The cousins consisted of 4. One guy from Manila and 2 girls and another guy from Banaue. The guy from Manila was showing his cousins around and asked if I would like to join them. They were headed to see the metal church. I accepted and we were off. Along our way we got thirsty so we stopped at a little Chinese place for some pineapple juice and noodles cooked with what I can only guess was dog or rat....mmm. Hydrated and refreshed we headed out to the heart of Manila...Chinatown. Absolutely insane! The streets were full of vendors selling everything from underwear to cooking pot lids...no pots..just lids. It was absolute chaos!!
Along our walk one of the girls I was with told me I looked like Celine Dion...haha.. and would not stop telling me how beautiful I was. The guy said he was honored and privileged to be walking in the streets with such a beautiful American and that I must be a model. This kind of talk went on all day and night. I do not take flattery well so I was very uncomfortable. I couldn't think of a polite way to ask them to shut up so I just smiled and hoped they would stop. On our way to the metal church we passed the Quiapo church..the church of the black Nazarene. It was full of people praying and touching the sculpture of the black Jesus. Beautiful church for sure. On our way to the metal church I got thirsty so we stopped for so some coconut juice. The coconut juice was served to me in a plastic bag with a straw. How exciting! I have never enjoyed a beverage out of a baggie before! It was delicious! Yum Yum!
We made our way to the metal church and it was absolutely incredible! Probably the most beautiful church I have ever seen! It is claimed to be the only prefabricated steel church in the world. How incredible to build an entire church from only metal! Beautiful!
After the church one of the girls I was with...the girl who was apparently my biggest fan :)... told me it was her birthday and insisted that I join them for drinks, a meal and videoke at her cousin's house to celebrate.
We arrived and I nearly had to crawl through the doorway to get into the house....I am a giant in this country.. I was hustled up to a tiny bedroom where 6 of us sat on tiny couches and chairs and began the videoke. We were served san miguel beer and noodles and chips. I was waited on hand and foot like I was royalty. I refused to sing Celine Dion as requested but the beer was flowing and before I knew it I was belting out 'My heart will go on'...geez.
Earlier in the day my new friends had asked me if I had ever tried balut. My response was something to the effect of hell mother f..ing no. no. no. no. Eww! For those of you that don't know...Balut is a partially devloped duck or chicken egg that is buried to ferment for a couple days before being boiled and eaten. so...no..uck..uck..no. Well....like I said the beer was flowing and my friend all of the sudden appeared with a bag of..you guessed it ..balut. I was feeling pretty relaxed and apparently adventurous. I tried it. Hey..it wasn't that bad...surprisingly. At least now I can check that off the list of things I never wanted to try.
This is where things got weird... I really wasn't that drunk but every time I tried to stand up my body felt like it weighed 14 tons and I had to sit back down. I found it strange but not strange enough to put any real thought into it. At this point...it must have been around 8pm... the guy that I call Small Dog (from a previous joke) came in with a pitcher of liquid and orange coconut powder and something in a bottle. He lit it on fire and when the fire ceased he poured it into glasses for us to take shots. I drank one...two..three... then......nothing. I remember nothing else from the evening. In the morning I woke up in the only bed in the house and everyone else was on the floor. As soon a I opened my eyes I was being fed eggs and bacon, toast and coffee. I got up and was instructed to shower. Ok. Umm...where does the water come from. Oooooh... the bucket. Another new experience for me. A shower from a bucket of water!
My plan was to leave this day and go to Banaue. My friends said that they were heading that way anyways and I could just ride with them. They put me in a taxi to my hostel..told me to gather my things and they would meet me in the lobby. Gather my things I did and I went outside to wait.
While sitting on the sidewalk waiting, a little boy came along. Oliver was his name and he was 6. He asked me for nothing but sat down with me against the wall. I reached into my bag and pulled out an orange...and then another. Rather than eat it it seemed he wanted to play. So for hours we engaged in all sorts of creative games consisting of oranges and water bottles. Oliver's sister Elvie came along to play as well. While I was falling in love with these children there were some local people hanging around. One man seemed to know them...I think he was their uncle. It was after dark now and I asked if he knew where their mother was. He shrugged and said that she was off trying to make some money probably. I said 'where do they sleep?' He pointed to some cardboard on the side of the road. 'Do they go to school?' 'No' The man said....they cannot afford it. From what I could understand school costs 1000P a year. That is only 20$!!! I started to cry...I couldn't help it. Elvie looked up and me and put her dirty hands on my cheeks....she looked me in the eyes for a minute then wiped away my tears and smiled... I melted.
I was joking with Oliver about his dirty feet and saying how I wish I could take he and his sister home with me and give them a bath. The man..the uncle.. offered them to me. He said I could adopt them. Just like that..."Here, have my children". I want more than anything to do just that! A couple of other little street girls came over to play and I was getting hungry. I ordered us all a large pizza and we sat in the street and ate. Best meal I've had yet!
It was about 9pm now and my friends still had not shown up. I was still feeling really dizzy and heavy from the night before so I went back to Friendlys to check in for another night. While waiting for the man to check me in I looked over and saw a warning sign about people slipping you a drug called Ativan. It listed the side effects and they sounded a whole lot like the way I was feeling. It doesn't make any sense. None of my things are missing...I wasn't violated... I don't know if that is what happened or not. Maybe I just ate something bad. Anyways...I checked back into Friendlys and slept like a baby.
This morning I woke up at 6am...wide awake! I had some coffee and hung out for a bit then I went out for a bite of food. As soon as I turned the corner from Friendlys who did see? Elvie and Oliver! The came running to me and jumped in my arms :) I invited them to come have breakfast with me and they brought their little brother (Jr) and sister (Margo) along. We had a wonderful breakfast of pizza and burgers and french fries! I hung out with the children half the day and we had a great time!
Don't be surprised if I return home with 2 to 4 children....
Tonight I am taking to bus to Banaue. I think it is about a 12 bus ride. I am really looking forward to getting some fresh air!
Sunday, April 4, 2010
04-April-2010..Manila
By the time I got through customs and out of the airport it was nearly 1am. I was so tired that I found the first car that would take me to my hostel and wound up paying 1000P (about 20 bucks). Too much! That is twice as much as I am paying to stay in the hostel for one night...oh well..chalk it up to being tired..I would have payed anything to just get some sleep! And sleep I did...aaah. On my way to the hostel I was really surprised to see how alive this city is. 1:30 in the morning and the sidewalks are packed with people and the streets packed with cars. It is true what they say about the traffic here and people driving like crazies. Makes sense though...there are no street lights or stop signs at any intersections! Every man for himself on the road. I stayed at the Malate Pensionne in Malate Manila. I woke up this morning and checked my email only to find out that they had put a hold on my bank account for irregular activity. Figures. It's going to be fun trying to sort that one out without access to a phone.
I decided to take it easy today due to the jet lag so I headed out to the mall to shop for a new camera...mine stopped working in Hawaii :( When I arrived at the mall I was frisked and searched before entering...that was a first. I am pretty sure that this is the largest mall that I have ever been in! 4 stories...a full hardware store...a full grocery store..geez. In the center of the mall was an Easter celebration for children and blaring over the speakers for their enjoyment was a rap song about taking shots and getting fucked up. Yes. Fucked up. This is apparently kids music.
After the mall I decided to take a walk around the city. Manila...loads of character and a pungent smell of urine. The latter probably has something to do with every other building being a bar that run specials like all you can drink from 12am to 6am for 199P (about 4.50).
I have to note that on my walk I passed a midget man on the sidewalk standing on a chair giving shoulder massages. That made me smile :)
While I was hopelessly lost wandering around the city (...what? Me? Lost? Surprising...I know.) I got to see first hand the poverty that I have always heard about in this area. To see children sleeping on newspaper in the street makes me want to cry and scream... I was followed for about 5 blocks by a small boy asking for money. I realize that if I gave cash to every child in this city that begged for money I wouldn't last a week before I was broke. I remembered that I had an apple in my bag and I gave it to him. He was delighted and went on his way. I went straight to the grocery and bought a bag of oranges and a bag of apples and carry them with me now to give to the street children. I wish that I could take them all with me and give them a proper meal and a good home.
After getting lost and finding my way again I checked out of the Malate Pensionne and into Friendlys across the street. This hostel has more backpackers and socializing. I think I will like it better. I think I will stay here at least one more night before heading north to hike the rice terraces.
I didn't buy a camera yet but as soon as I do I will post lots of pictures!!
I decided to take it easy today due to the jet lag so I headed out to the mall to shop for a new camera...mine stopped working in Hawaii :( When I arrived at the mall I was frisked and searched before entering...that was a first. I am pretty sure that this is the largest mall that I have ever been in! 4 stories...a full hardware store...a full grocery store..geez. In the center of the mall was an Easter celebration for children and blaring over the speakers for their enjoyment was a rap song about taking shots and getting fucked up. Yes. Fucked up. This is apparently kids music.
After the mall I decided to take a walk around the city. Manila...loads of character and a pungent smell of urine. The latter probably has something to do with every other building being a bar that run specials like all you can drink from 12am to 6am for 199P (about 4.50).
I have to note that on my walk I passed a midget man on the sidewalk standing on a chair giving shoulder massages. That made me smile :)
While I was hopelessly lost wandering around the city (...what? Me? Lost? Surprising...I know.) I got to see first hand the poverty that I have always heard about in this area. To see children sleeping on newspaper in the street makes me want to cry and scream... I was followed for about 5 blocks by a small boy asking for money. I realize that if I gave cash to every child in this city that begged for money I wouldn't last a week before I was broke. I remembered that I had an apple in my bag and I gave it to him. He was delighted and went on his way. I went straight to the grocery and bought a bag of oranges and a bag of apples and carry them with me now to give to the street children. I wish that I could take them all with me and give them a proper meal and a good home.
After getting lost and finding my way again I checked out of the Malate Pensionne and into Friendlys across the street. This hostel has more backpackers and socializing. I think I will like it better. I think I will stay here at least one more night before heading north to hike the rice terraces.
I didn't buy a camera yet but as soon as I do I will post lots of pictures!!
02/03-April-2010..Off to the Philippines..
Left Hawaii...long flight..I am sitting at the Tokyo airport waiting for my flight to Manila. I miss Maui already. It is always so hard to leave. Maui has such a huge piece of my heart!
I never really cared too much to visit Japan but it is kind of cool to be here..even just at the airport. The technology here is so different from any places I have been before. I spent a long time in the bathroom pondering the toilet..haha. I was curious about all the options the toilet had to offer. What is the difference in the bidet and the shower buttons? I was too afraid to press them and find out..something about water spraying up at me from a public toilet freaks me out a little bit. I was intrigued enough however to try the button marked 'Flushing sound'..'For women only'..hmm. Sure enough, when pressd it justs makes the sound of a flushing toilet. What? Why? So many whys. Like why is that for women only? And who was the woman sitting around on the toilet one thinking.."man, I really wish I could have the sound of a flushing toilet without actually having to flush"?... Too funny!
Ok, enough about toilets.
Off to manila in about an hour...
I never really cared too much to visit Japan but it is kind of cool to be here..even just at the airport. The technology here is so different from any places I have been before. I spent a long time in the bathroom pondering the toilet..haha. I was curious about all the options the toilet had to offer. What is the difference in the bidet and the shower buttons? I was too afraid to press them and find out..something about water spraying up at me from a public toilet freaks me out a little bit. I was intrigued enough however to try the button marked 'Flushing sound'..'For women only'..hmm. Sure enough, when pressd it justs makes the sound of a flushing toilet. What? Why? So many whys. Like why is that for women only? And who was the woman sitting around on the toilet one thinking.."man, I really wish I could have the sound of a flushing toilet without actually having to flush"?... Too funny!
Ok, enough about toilets.
Off to manila in about an hour...
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