Gina and Pete's Philippine travel diary - No Reservations

[ginapeterb]

A Great day out as an Eco Tourist - the Philippines opens up to me.

I have been constantly looking for ways to expand my horizons, and in last few days, the Philippine Islands have started to open up to me in ways that I had not considered, during my many visits over the last few years, I have tended to concentrate my holiday around the main cities, we went to places like Baguio City, Bohol, Cebu, and of course our home Island of Negros.

But do we truly see the Philippines in its true glory, I am not convinced we do, for many of us, we get the chance to branch out our horizons, yesterday was one such day, but the way in which we undertook this mission, impressed me and gave me much food for thought in the future.

My Gina tells me, that we will go and visit the Mambucal Mountain Eco Tourist resort, I have been a couple of times before, but just to swim, take a dip in the volcanic sulphur pool, and then we come home, we are normally there about 2 hours, and then we call it a day.

This time, its different, my Gina wants me to see some of the hidden treasures up higher in the mountain, she tells me, there is much wild life to see, and I would enjoy it more if we also had a Picnic.

Now forgive me about this, because I thought Picnic's died a death in UK, when Jane Eyre was written, back in 1800's England, the rich and wealthy used to take Picnics on their country estates, Picnics to me were for people who could not think of anything to do at the weekend.

I was wrong, or rather should I say, I thought wrong, Picnics to Filipinos are totally different in concept, my Gina tells me, Filipinos have to be thrifty, and if you often wonder why they are in so big a group, it has several benefits.

Firstly, the cost of such a trip, to get into Mambucal Mountain resort, it costs P30.00 per head, imagine a group with 30 people in it, well I saw such a group, they rented a picnic cabana as I call it, a shelter with seating, and a barbecue stand, for P300.00 per day, well 30 x 30 is P900.00 plus P300.00 for the shelter, and then if you want to take a dip in the volcanic spring, its another P50.00 imagine 30 x 50, thats another P1500.00 then if you want to swim in the main pool, another P50.00 per head, my Gina works it all out, that this trip would cost them around P10,000 with transport up the mountain, and then food for them all.

The figures are staggering my Filipinos standards, my Gina tells me firstly they will pay for entrance on thier own, P30.00 they will find, then to contribute for the day out, they will not eat at the food court, that is provided, they will all bring something to contribute to the picnic, plus, many of them will not swim in the assigned pools.

What I did notice, is the gushing river that flows down the resort, from the falls further up, my companion and driver JoJo, tells me, the Filipinos will find ways to enjoy themselves without it costing them.

He says, you have to be like this, the streams and gushing clear waters of the falls, are of course free, he tells me no P50.00 for this.

That is probably why i see over 50 or 60 Filipinos in the river, they are of course taking advantage of the fact that it doesnt cost anything to get in the river, also the river is clean, as the gushing waters come up through the mineral rocks in the river.

Gina also tells me, their is probably a celebration going on, someones birthday, or anniversary, or some event, so they decided to come up for the day, what amazes me, is that everyone tucks into the mountains of food they have brought, I see one man cooking barbecue pork, fish, and every kind of food.

We for the first time, have followed suit, my Gina started early in the morning, preparing food, rice, pork, snacks, coke, mountain dew, cups, ice, fruits, we take everything, towels, games, even ipod speakers and an ipod, she tells me, we can play our own music in the picnic area, we can play our own games, I said, leave it all behind honey, we dont need it, she knows different.

And it shows, when we get there, all of those things she thought of bringing, are needed, and even though we pay to get in the dipping pool and main pool, she tells me, you don't want to be eating at the food court, they dont have what we want, and you dont get much anyway.

Whereas she tells me, if we take our own food, we can eat as much as we want, and what we want.

She also tellls me, that Filipinos will eat, go and have fun, come back, eat again, then go off again to swim, come back, eat again, and then have snacks, and then she also says, the cost of pepsi and other drinks is twice as much when you buy it at the food court, whereas, you take your own, and its so much cheaper.

These calculations come from much of her life spent here in the Philippines, its a hard habit to shake, and actually a very good one, your Filipino wife will always teach you how to save money, although maybe sometimes some of us think they will spend it all, actually they dont.

Later we leave our driver and companion JoJo to watch our things, and we decided to take a trek up the mountain, I am told its not for the faint hearted, we feel its better to have a guide, and we meet Boboy, who agrees to escort us up the mountain, I am glad we did, the path up the steps of the hill can be treacherous, its slipping and I need his assistance on more than one occasion to negotiate several areas of the trek, plus when we have to cross a very high speed gushing river, his assistance is invaluable.

It takes a good 15-20 minutes to climb to stage 1 of our viewing, a beautiful view of cascading water falls, a perfect pic opportunity, then we are told to look up, and we see a wide variety of species of Bats, our guide tells us, there are 25 different species, of which only 4 of them are found in other parts of the world, he tells us they are unique to the Philippines, and seems quite proud of the fact.

Later, he takes us to see some more of his guide freinds, they have captured a live orange tarantula, of which they scooped it up in a plastic bottle, we take a look up close but decide to leave it at that, the guides tell us, it can kill instantly if stung by it, they say, its rare to be stung by one, but some of the guides in the mountain have been stung, and death was instantaneous, the sting attacks the nervous system, and shuts down the blood supply, I gulp in my throat and start looking around me quite nervously, our guide assures me no harm will come to us.

I ask about Cobras in the forest, our guide tells me they are around Sir, but not on the paths, its rare to see them, but sometimes they might sliver across the path on their way down the mountain, but its rare to see them, but just be careful as to what you step on, again I am nervous, but make a sort of nervous chuckle and we move on.

We pass several people going up, mostly Koreans I notice, who seem to be extra loud as they come up and down, I am told, the Philippines is becoming a major tourist destination for Koreans, who seem to flock to the Philippines in large numbers

30 minutes later we are the 2nd falls, my breath is taken away, it is spectacular, and my guide invites me to go in and swim, I am hesitant at first, as I am reluctant to swim in an area, that I cannot see the bottom, my guide tells me where to swim, and says, just feel your way in, its perfectly safe, and you will enjoy it.

I am still relucant, but the bravado in me seems to want to do it just for the thrill, I get in and find the stones under foot are quite easy to walk on, the guide says, the water is pefectly clean as it comes up through the mineral deposits and is cleaned, he says its also drinkable water, and tells me, that it gets bottled in local markets, and is a Grade 1 water supply.

That kind of makes me feel much better and I enjoy 15 minutes or so of cooling off in the lush white waters, the pounding of the water falls is deafening here, but its a sight I have not had in UK, and not had the chance of bathing in this type of water falls before, its my first time, and I feel quite privilidged.

The climb is taking its toll on me, I am out of breath, as it is getting quite steep now, someone has built some steps into the mountain side, but I declare my time is up, our guide quickly tells me to look up, a swarm of bats are hanging in the trees directly above us, I whince, as they are so close, but he tells me , they wont move, they are always there just hanging in the trees.

I feel like I am in the jungle, and lament on this fact, the guide laughs and says, well yes sir, you are....we all LOL

Eco tourism is fantastic to enjoy, its a side of the Philippines I rarely see, its been a great day, and there is yet much to do, from swimming in the leisure pools, walking along the hanging bridges in the trees, which again I am reluctant to do, but do it in the end for the experience, everything I do here is great, I enjoy every minute, and when the day ends, its getting slightly dark, we are still in the river sitting in the gushing waters, we have all eaten 3 or 4 times, had snacks, drink so much pepsi, with our own ice....that time has no meaning here.

What is it about time, no appointments to cover, no clock watching, time is endless here in the Philippines, and there is so much to do, what is it about having fun here, that makes you think your in another world.

My Gina tells me, Filipinos love to have fun, they like to enjoy life, you don't have to be rich to do this, and being in a large group certainly helps, they will crack jokes, make fun of people, but the fun making is innocent, no one takes offence really, she tells me, people are commenting about me, I ask what they have said, she says, oh its nice to see a foreigner smiling, I ask why is that so significant, oh she says, they just said, you are laughing and smiling, and they said, some foreigners are straight faced or maybe snobbish it seems to them.

Some children come up to me, and say hello, they want to feel my skin she tells me, the kids are really cute, and I talk to them, Filipino children are great to be around, they are polite, nice, and cute.

All the children here seem to be extra polite, they are a joy to talk to, in perfect english they told me to have a nice day, what is their secret I silently think, what is it that these people have that I dont have....

I cant work it out, I have yet to come up with an answer, like my guide Jo Jo, who acts as my driver my companion, always smiling, never complaining, just happy about life, but normally lives on about £2.00 a day.

These questions and many others still seem to occupy my mind, its around 5 pm, and its time to get ready to go, all the food is gone, the drinks gone, I go to throw the plastic bottles in the bin, JoJo, says no sir, I will take those, oh yes I forgot I tell myself stupid.....you should know JoJo will take them.

As we drive down the mountain road, a tricycle with about 7 guys on it, comes up the side of us, I have the window down, and they all put the thumbs up to me, I do the same, and wave out of the window, they shout hi Sir, did you enjoy the day, I said, yes I did, thank you Guid, they smile back, they are happy about something, I dont know what....maybe its the life here itself...

On the way back, my Gina asks me if I want to have something to eat, I said, oh my goodness, we ate so much at the resort..she tells me..that was hours ago, well i said, what shall we have, she said, I would want you to try Kikiam, its like a fish but cooked and then you dip it in sauce, like barbecue sauce or sweet and sour sauce, she asks me if I wanted to try it....I said, anything honey I will try.

She comes back 5 minutes later with 4 or 5 trays of squid balls, Kikiam, Fish balls, and says, try it all.

I said, is that our dinner, she says..noooooooooo its just a snack honey, dinner is later...I am LOL, as I thought it was for our dinner, she says, Filipinos will eat up to 6 meals a day, they start with breakfast, then snacks, then lunch, then snacks, then afternoon snacks, maybe something quick, like fish balls, then later more snacks, and midnight snacks, I am LOL, as I cannot imagine it, and then I said, but they look so thin, she is laughing, eat rice she tells me....and more rice.

I cannot imagine eating rice all day, at dinner she says, eat more rice, and tries to pass me another serving, I am floating on rice...and cannot take anymore.

Today was just one day in the my life.....I think it was the longest....tomorrow, is another day....oh..more snacks, more rice...

I wouldnt change it for the world. !!!!

[Ji&Ma]

Superb post again Pete, pleasure to read it
Ahhh man you are making me envy hehehee

[ginapeterb]

Glad you are all enjoying my ramblings, thanks for the support of everyone who reads..I certainly enjoy sharing what I am finding out here in Philippines...wow today is so hot, 35 plus degrees, at home today, its quite, just listening to music, and relaxing.

[Sun Shine]

Hi Pete and Gina,
I just wanted to say thank you so much for sharing your holiday experiences with us in such a detailed way. I have spent the best part of the last 3-4 hours reading and digesting what you have written, and having not been to the Philippines yet, it has given me a great image in my mind, and actually made me feel as if I was there with you if that's possible
Once again, thank you so much and I look forward to the next installment.
Sun.

[ginapeterb]

Despedida day - celebrations, parties, visitors galore.

well guys and girls, the great nostalgic and triumphant return is once coming to its proverbial end, its been 3.5 weeks now, and I am on what I can only term the wind down period.

How can you possibly want to wind down to come back to UK, I know its depressing, but I have often experienced this in the past, its rather a sad fact, that the last few days seem to be hard, in that a part of you, has already landed back at Heathrow, the other is still entrenched in this beautiful country.

Yesterday was pretty much a quiet day all round for me, apart from the fact that our funds are now depleted, well we are still ok, but we are not spending anywhere what we did in first 2 weeks, that kind of tells a story, but yesterday, we had visitors, people turned up for my sake my Gina tells me, she put the word around that Pete is off to Manila tomorrow, so freinds of the family are showing up to have snacks and coffee.

My Gina has organized my very own despedida tonight, we are meeting at Pendy's a fashionable restaraunt in the city and there will be 17-20 people there, I am told, Filipino's love to celebrate, they will go out to dinner for almost any reason, but Gina tells me, she is splitting the bill with a high school freind of hers who is a Nurse in the U.S.A.

Aparrently this has all been arranged last week, so i am looking forward to going out to dinner tonight, and share a few jokes with the crowd, the problem for me is, its hard to say goodbye.

I have also come to make friends with our driver JOJO, he had me sad abit yesterday, in his best english, he told me he will miss me when I fly home, I said the same about him, we have been together quite a lot, this is what happens when you make freinds with a Filipino, he has been my trusted guardian, companion and driver for over 3 weeks, he takes me everywhere, points out fruits I might want to eat, or stops by the road, to buy me something to try.

Its going to be really hard to say goodbye, but say It I must, I promised JoJo, next year we will be back, but with the economy the way it is, its really hard to say what will happen.

JoJo, really needs alot of help, if he could just get a decent job, but secretly guys between you and I, for those reading this, I have decided to buy him a tri-cycle and side car, not a brand new one, but a used one, there is a franchisee in town, wanting to sell one and I have seen it, what JoJo does not know is that I left instructions with Gina to buy it for him when I go, and give it to him as a gift from me, he does not know yet, but I wanted to leave him a letter when I go, to tell him, that its to make his life better, he said, he dreams of owning his own tri-cycle, what he does not know is that dream is already a reality.

Gina told me, his life will be so much better, because he can earn easily P500.00 a day doing this kind of work, he just needs a helping hand, I know what some of you might think, that you cannot keep giving out money to help this one and that one, but honestly guys if only you met JoJo, youd want to do it too.

He is the nicest Filipino you can ever meet, never complains, does anything for you, asks for nothing, and is honest as you can ever meet, I dropped 50 pesos in my towel, and he noticed it, and gave it to me on the way back from swimming, P50.00 to me is not much, but to him its all about honesty.

He is a great guy, and he is worth it, I know now at Christmas, he will be able to feed his children, and to me thats what it is all about.

Call me sentimental if you want, I know, it is really, but here I can help someone, in UK I can do little to help anyone, the state of the economy as it is, and everyone is out for themselves.

Gina is ecstatic, she says it will change the lives of so many, its hard to imagine it, its nice to be generous when you can be, its gives you a great feeling, well i think it does.

Yesterday, was all about trying to do something good for another, its party night to night, and then tomorrow we are all flying up to Manila, that is me Gina, our house manager, and a cousin who never has been to the capital city.

She is also ecstatic to go, as Shoemart her boss, gave her the leave as she had to produce a copy of her ticket, we are hoping to visit Malacanang Palace, Intramuros, and obviously they all want to go to the Mall of Asia, its a big thing for them, its like my sister who has never been to London, coming down from Yorkshire for first time, I guess its the same as that.

So guys, the holiday is coming to an end, not much to tell you other than its that time, so see you all in Manila tomorrow, and I will update on how the 2 days there goes.

Best wishes


Pete

[laurel]

Been nice to read this blog, whetting my appetite for when i go later. That was a lovely gesture buying Jojo the tricycle.enjoy Manila

[Sun Shine]

Hi Pete,

Another good read - thank you. This one really touched my heart (the part about JoJo) and I found tears welling up in my eyes, I can't even begin to imagine how happy you will make him when he finds out.

Thanks again,
Sun.

[ginapeterb]

Destination Manila - last 2 days of the greatest month of my life.

Have you ever looked at your life and realized that at some stage it was a life changing moment, the last month has been like that for me.

It was with some sadness that finally, preparations were being made to fly with my family to the capital, for me, it was the start of the beginning of the end, for others, an opportunity to visit the capital of their own country, something of which they had never done, I don't really care about myself in this, it was mainly the pleasure and excitement it would bring to others.

Wednesday night, our youngest cousin came over to sleep over, this is the usual Filipino custom of togetherness, you have to see this and experience it for yourself to understand just how secure and happy you seem, I found this recently, we all piled into our bedroom in the house, 3 of us in the bed, LOL, myself, Gin Gin, and our younger female cousin, a couple on the floor, Filipinos do not like to be seperated, they are quite happy to all pile in to a room, its cheaper on cost, and, they sit up until all hours of the morning cracking jokes and exchanging general chit chat.

That was kind of how it was, Thursday morning was a funny experience for me, since we all had to get up and use the bathroom, it was 4.30 in the morning, and we had a 6.40 am flight from the provinces to Manila.

I don't know how this happens, but everyone seem to move around me, like my clothes were laid out, but I could not see how ? I go in the shower, oh by the way guys and girls, I managed to get hot shower, hot shower is a big thing for me, cos finally it works hahahaha, great, 2 days before I go home, the shower is now working, someone sure is smiling on me, hot shower, in the Philippines at the house, wow, we are getting sosyal.

I get dressed and the younger female cousin has been sent in to put on my socks, I am LOL as this is a nice gesture, again, I think Gina is sending in the cousins to help, you know guys I am getting used to this, this is a family that really works together, I tell Gin, dont send in the girls to help me, she laughs, "No she says, I told them to help you, shut up and dont be silly, the girls love you....."

I am privately very touched, one of the cousins tells me, "I will miss you, and gives me a bear hug which is a tall order, considering she is 5 foot 1 and the smallest girl in the world , hahaha, small maybe, but big in affection and cuddles", this will not be easy when finally we all go our seperate ways.

Whats even more amazing is that we all manage to pile in our car, which I bought about 2 years ago, its a Kia Sportage and should really only have 4 in it, in usual brilliant Filipino fashion, we manage to squeeze 7 of us in it, me in the front with JOJO our driver, and 5 others in the back, don't ask me how they do it, they do, and off to the airport we go, well wishers, and travellers all at the same time.

We arrive on time, and check in for the flight, our cousins so excited to go, and also, Gina's sister in law is going to Manila to meet us on Friday, so she is leaving from a seperate airport, she is in the capital to buy new breeder fish for their business, Gina gave them a little bit extra business capital to buy new fish, they wanted to buy certain imported types that can only be found in Manila, our sister in law is ecstatic because they now have the money to take the business forward, my brother in law has been working hard on his land, because he is to become a major supplier of tropical fish to wholesalers, again, we did not give much money, but enough to put a few smiles on a few faces.

Our flight lands in Manila 25 minutes ahead of schedule, so its quite early when we arrive at Terminal 3, for me Terminal 3 has got better over last 2 years, the aircon seems to be working much better, and seems to be better organized now, thats the general impression I got.

We decide to jump in a metered taxi this time, although their are 5 of us, the taxi driver does not complain as they would in UK, no elf and safety to worry about here, he is all smiles, as he asks for P250.00 to take us to Makati, my wife told me, that he said he could put the meter on, or just ask for P250.00, Gin tells me its ok, let him have P250.00 at least we know what to pay.

I am happy because the first day we arrived we took a airport white taxi, which cost us P750.00, something for some of the newer guys who have yet to go in country, I have a suggestion for some of you reading this, this may at first seem hard to do, but I wholly recommend if you really trust your girl, let her do the budgeting, giver her some money, if not alot of money, and tell her what your budget is for the trip, tell her straight how much you have to spend.

I find a Filipina will respect that, if you tell her, you have say P100.000 (thats around £1300.00), then she knows how to budget for your stay, they will handle everything from all the petty payments that need making, like taxi fares, buying you food, airport terminal fees, and your Filipino girlfriend, Fiancee etc, can be a great source of savings, remembering that for most of their life, they have been used to stretching money and making it work for them, since in truth, they probably have had so little to work with.

Its just a thought, but my Gina handles all financial matters in Philippines, and to be truthful, I like it that way, if I want an ice cream she gets it, if I want a snack like fish balls, she pays for it, she pays for everthing, and this is really a compliment to the girls, who budget very for everything.

Going back to the taxi, we are down in Makati, and went straight to our hotel, the Great Eastern, known as Aberdeen court, we have used the hotel over several years, but I decided that this year will be the last, our experiences on the 2 occasions we have stayed there, have led me to beleive that sadly, the hotel has let itself down.

We booked 2 rooms over the phone, for our stay, and got verbal confirmations, on arrival, they could not find our name again, this is the 2nd time this has happened, and its kind of irritating since I see lots of koreans again in the hotel, and do they have this happen all the time, surely not.

On getting our 2 rooms, we end up with 2 superior rooms and not 2 deluxe rooms as we had booked, when we get to the room Gin and I had arranged, we find that its 2 single beds, and not a double as we had requested, again, a minor point you may feel, but irritating to me.

Then I notice their is no remote control for the t.v., Gin calls down to reception and is told, "Maam, you have to request it, because they are stolen so much" when I go in the bathroom, I note that their is no toilet tissue, again a call to reception finds that their apologies and someone will come up, someone does about 15 minutes later and comes with 1 roll.

The first t.v. remote control has faulty batteries in, and a second call has to be made, this is becoming a joke, and I am trying not to loose my cool, after all, why would I want to ruin what has been a great month for me, I decide to bite my tongue and let Gin deal with it.

The rooms we are offered are starting to look delapidated, I know we could have stayed at a 1st class hotel, but as we are on our way home, its pointless paying out P5000.00 to P7000.00 on a room down at Intercon, or Shangri La, etc, maybe Makati Palace, or Dusit Thani, there is plenty to choose from, but we are paying P2000.00 a night, and in the provinces, P1200.00 a night gets you a fantastic room, Manila is definately getting expensive, for comparitive rooms, this is something we have noticed, things are getting expensive in the Philippines, this has also been commented on a freind of mine, whose wife has gone back after 2 years, and was shocked at the prices of basic commodities.

But for P2000.00 a night we expect to be able to sleep together, and our reservations are in advance, so it should not be an issue, I make a mental note, that for next year, we will make alternative arrangements, also, we check the 2nd room and find their is a support pillar in the center of the room, thus seperating the 2nd bed from the t.v. line of sight, this is getting ridiculous, the towels have to be changed as I complain that they are not white, but like a slight creamy brown, shortly after my complaint, new towels are sent up.

Gina tells me, there are some pretty dirty people, the staff were telling her, that people wipe the floor with the towels, however, I say, that has nothing to do with me, I want clean towels, and I am paying for a service.

Hotels aside, I really want to go around today, as I want to go to some places I hear often visited but as I use Manila for a stepping stone to the provinces, I rarely visit them.

This was one of those days, Intramuros, literally means "CITY WITHIN THE WALLS", its the old Spanish colonial Manila from 1545 onwards, and I have never actually been up to Intramuros, I also wanted to see the Manila hotel, and JP Rizal monument, and the Government parks, that line that part of Roxas boulevard.

We engage a taxi again to take us across from Makati over to Malate area, due to the severe traffic, it takes around 45 minutes, considering its only about 8 KM it seems to take forever, our taxi driver tells us, the traffic is getting worse, and he takes several chances near other taxis, how they don't collide I will never know.

The Old Spanish Garrison of Fort Santiago - Intramuros

Intramuros is probably not visited by many BRITISH guys who go in country for the first time, often they are meeting a lady in Manila, and they get taken to Makati, we all know why, all the first class hotels are there, plus many of the first class shopping malls, its generally cleaner, safer and it makes sense to go there.

Getting out of Makati, opens up the capital a little more, and I am quite interested in the history of the Spanish occupation of Manila, the one thing that seems to restrict my touring is of course by elimination, the incredible heat in the daytime, Manila is great to tour around, but the heat is a killer, especially for me, who is a bigger guy, th heat is excruciating, and no matter how many times I go, and get aclimatized, I cannot take long periods of being out in the open.

I always carry a pack of moist scented tissues with me, and also a sweat rag in my pocket, by the time I have been out in the open for about 15 to 20 minutes, my back is starting to trickle with pockets of perspiration, my Gina is well aware of this, and does her best to make me comfortable, sometimes I look at Filipina's and they don't seem to be perspiring at all, however, my Gina tells me, yes its hot, we are used to it, but we don't stay out in it too long either.

The taxi drops us off at the gates of Fort Santiago, the cost to go in and walk around is 75 Pesos, not bad about a £1.00 a head, a Filipino guide comes over and shows us a map of the area, there is quite alot to see, however, it becomes apparent he is not doing this for free, he talks about the Spanish occupation, and after about 5 minutes tells us we can hire a guide and a horse and cart type bugey for around P1000.00, Gina gets irritated quickly by this, and tells the guy we will just walk around, he rather rudely tells us, that their is other customers to attend to, Gina says, "We did not ask you to come over and talk to us", she is going on about his rudeness for about another 5 minutes, she is clearly irritated and embarassed by his attitude.

The gardens in For Santiago, have clearly been well looked after, the Government is obviously investing money in making this a tourist attraction, there are many school parties there, and I would recommend, if you do go there, allow about 1 hour, because any more, and your going to be feeling the heat, we head out and visit Manila cathedral, we don't spend more than 10 minutes, there, I am about to pass out, and we jump in the nearest aircon taxi we can hail.

Within 5 minutes we are heading down Roxas boulevard, to the JP Rizal monument, in Luneta, this park is amazing in that its incredibly clean and tidy, clearly much money is spent on its upkeep, and it rather does the Philippines much credit, Roxas boulevard is clean, and quite wide, puts some of our roads here to shame, we pass the Manila hotel and the United States Embassy, again another building with a commanding prescence in the area.

Our historical sight seeing over and many photos having been taken, we are of course destined to head down Roxas Boulevard for the Mall of Asia, a must see place for anyone who goes to Manila, Mall of Asia is SM's group largest project in the area, perhaps slightly smaller than EDSA Mega mall, but not much difference in content of shops.

I have been to Mega Mall of Asia a few times, but this time I get to see more of it, I am visibly impressed by the night life around this area, on Sunset Boulevard, this week there is an United States Naval Fleet anchored off shore, I can cleary see an Aircraft carrier, and a few support ships including a couple of Missile cruisers, I note in the mall, a few hundred American personel going around, I also notice that I am not stared at here, I ask Gina why ? she tells me, well they are used to seeing foreigners in the malls here, its no big deal, no one seems to bat an eyelid, that makes me feel kind of at home...

For me Mall of Asia is a giant monolith and testimony to American shopping methods, I mean come on guys, this place is huge, like a giant maze, what amazes me is just how many different eating places there are, the food court is the noisiest place in the world it seems to me, with every different kind of food to eat, not just inside but outside too.

Have you noticed just how many eating places there are, there must be hundreds, from snacks stands to restaraunts, you are so spoiled for choice, it does kind of put some of our large shopping malls to shame, even at Westfield in London, the food courts there, do not stack up to mall of Asia, you can easily get lost in here, and by the way, Gina wants to take me to Shangri La Plaza and Edsa mega mall, this is a triple diet of shopping malls, all within a 10 KM Radius.

I find the whole thing not only tiring, as my constant requests to sit down at the food court and get a drink are a testiment to, Gina simply laughs and says fine, lets do that, in the end, I ask to be put in the cinema, as I reall don't have anything I am interested in buying, and I decide to go and watch GI Joe, which is P200.00 at least twice what it would have cost down in Visayas, I note that Manila is twice as expensive and it some cases 3 times as expensive as Davao City, something for you guys to note, that if you are courting a Davao Girl, you are probably going to find your money goes 3 times as far.....as if you court a Manila girl.

HAHAHAHA, I am going to be in trouble with the girls from the Manila area now, I can see this will happen, sorry girls, its a fact, Manila and surrounding area is expensive compared to Davao City, cinema is only P60 to P70, depending on the cinema, Manila is P200.00.

I really want to go to the IMAX Theatre, that is really why I am here, I am a little dissapointed to find that there is only 2 movies showing, that is Transformers and Harry Potter, I had already seen Harry Potter in the provinces, and I was not overly impressed by it.

So we booked Transformers in 3D, by the way guys its P400.00 per head, a 50 per cent hike, its late and we are at the IMAX, Including Gin and myself there is 5 of us, it just cost me P2000 to go in, remember thats around £25.00, just be aware if you have a big entourage of family doing this, it can work out pricey, hahaha, just be aware, I was happy to do it, as it was a great experience for those travelling with us, they were anxious for photos, for Facebooooooooook and Freindster....

It was enjoyable, the IMAX is a great experience, and well worth the money, I am impressed, and the only thing I noted is that half way through the presentation, my guests fell asleep, I am afraid, the day had taken its toll on them, and tomorrow its Shagri La Plaza, and EDSA....I hope they are up for it.

[ginapeterb]

Day 2 - EDSA Megamall and Shangri La Plaza, will I make it through the day.

I am pushing GIN GIN to take us to the Malcanang Palace, I want to see where the President lives, but the girls and by the way, its 1 guy, thats me, and 4 girls, they are having none of it, "What do you want to go there for they ask" as though I asked them to jump over the edge of a cliff.

We wake up Friday morning, and Gin says to me come on, we are all going in the 2nd room to chat and have breakfast, what is it about Filipinos who are known for rising obscenely early in the morning, this happend this morning, and has always seem to happen for all the times I have been in country.

They have already been out and bought things for breakfast, I say, "Are we going to breakfast in the hotel", "No she replies, we already have been down Makati avenue and bought Jollibee for breakfast", we thought we would all eat together in the room, this is the way of Filipino families, forget any notions you have about privacy, they simply don't think that way.

They would rather go and buy food for everyone, and then take it to the room, and all sit and eat, this is how it has been for me, this is my experience, and its great to tuck into Pancake sandwiches and coffee.

Although I was wanting to rest and take a nice hot bath, I am told, we are all going, and to be quick and get ready, the girls want to go to EDSA mega mall, I am not looking forward to this, as the heat is already coming up, and its going to be a hot day again I can tell.

We all jump in a taxi again, which is fine because I come out of the hotel, jump in a aircon taxi and everything is fine, get off the other end, and go into an airconditioned mall, thats fine also.

EDSA Megamall is 3 floors of shops selling everything known to man, brands I have never heard of, again I end up dragging around behind the girls with my Iphone playing music, this is boring the pants off me, and Gina wants to put me in the cinema again, I am relucant since the place is huge, I have been to EDSA before, but our cousins have not, I forget, that here I am having travelled 6000 miles on a regular basis, and here we are, with family, who have never left the provinces I content myself with the thought that this is really for them.

One of the cousins is excited to buy something, and purchases a pair of shoes, and a blouse, Gina tells me, they will be ecstatic to take something back from Manila, everyone will get the hear about it....and they of course will be talking about their trip for days to come.

One of the young cousins is constantly on her cellphone, she never stops texting, I ask her, who is it Inday who is on the phone ?

"Oh its my boss at shoemart, she is wanting to know what I am doing, how is the mall, I said, but you have been texting all day, yes she said, maybe 100 texts, but I am keeping her informed, that is how it is..............texting all day, to keep other people informed of how the emerald city at the edge of the rainbow is....its hard to keep up with all of this.

After 2 hours of totally being dragged around, my Gina asks me, "Honey areyou ok, I can get you a drink, oh you are so kind, the cousins are so happy, they are shopping, why are you so nice...going around with us...(I choke at the thought), actually I am falling asleep, but I am trying to put on a brave face.

We decide to come out, and walk around to Shangri La Plaza which is about a 5 minute walk from EDSA mega mall, the Shangri La Plaza is more up market, with stores such as Gucci, Prada, Chanel, and alot of European brands, I am amused to see Debenhams, and Marks and Spencer are there, and many Italian brands, but the place is like a ghost town, there are a few sosyal type Filipina's prancing around, Gina calls them Ekra...! with their pencil slim skirts, Louis Vuitton handbags, and Blackberry phones, thats another thing Guys, it has to be Blackberry or the dont want it.

Something in the Philippines about cellphones, you have to buy them a Blackberry, that seems to be the in thing, doesnt matter what the phone can do, as long as its Blackberry.

But the plaza is almost empty, Gina tells me, not many come here, as its expensive, and even by London standards, things cost more here, because they are imported, its cheaper to buy these goods in London she says, "I am not paying these prices Gina tells me", its amazing how she calculates the difference, she has the advantage of course of living in the London area....and tells me, hmmmm there are no sales here...

ITS A HARD LIFE...NO 50 PER CENT. NO 70 PER CENT.....IT SIMPLY WONT DO "!

A couple of hours later, and intense purgatory for me, the girls call it a day, I am told we are off to eat Malaysian food, and she knows a good restaraunt locally to our hotel, I am happy, if my feet are anything to go by, my reputation as an ardent mall visitor just shot up...

My feet are killing me, where is the taxi....we are going to this Malaysian restaraunt, I forgot the name guys sorry it serves absolutely superb, King Crab Chili, and this is what the girls are being treated to.

Gin Gin's sister in law is asking about money, she says, we are spending too much on them, Gin Gin tells her...no...we are so happ to treat you...isnt that so, hubby ?

I LOL, I wish I had a button on my neck that she could press, and every time she presses it...It has a digital voice recording that says.. "Happy to help, happy to help" well what else am I there for, if its not to pay...

The bill is not much, about P2000.00 for 5 of us to eat out, and eat King Chili Crab all dressed in salad, and other gourmet items, I hardly flinch, thinking that in any event I could not afford to eat this at home...so why worry.

By 10.pm I am all out, its time to go and sleep, Gina tells me, tomorow we will all have a lie in, I am not sure what they mean by this, and I welcome it, my feet are killing me, I am hot, and I need to relax, by 11.00 my head hits the pillow, its been a long day, FILIPINO style, malls malls malls eat...malls eat malls eat....malls eat...

Tommorrow I am flying home....I am not looking forward to the goodbye stage...its finally hitting me..its all over...

[ginapeterb]

Time to go home - all good things come to an end.

We do have a lie in on Saturday morning, I am quiet, I think Gin can sense it...

We chat about all the months experiences but the reality is creeping in, the thoughts of UK start appearing, and I know I have a long flight again, I also know I have done this many times, one more time is neither here nor there, every year I go through this, it shouldnt be any different this year.

We have a breakfast again, all LOL and chatting, exchanging stories, our sister in law has gone ahead to buy her fish and prepare the shipment, so we all agree to meet at the airport at 12.00, its early, but we would rather sit there and chat than hang around a hotel room, and in any event, the traffic is heavy, and its another scorching hot day.

We end up at Terminal 3, and its full today, but I Notice that well wishers are being allowed in, no ticket check at the door, they seem to have relaxed that policy now, thats good for Filipinos to see off their relatives.

We are early, but the time just seems to go quickly, Gin our house manager and our cousin is going to one destination, our sister in law is going to another, I am flying back to Hong Kong, I am irritated as it takes me 1 hour in a queue to check in for my flight to Hong Kong.

People keep getting court for oversize baggage or excess baggage, its irritating, but I tell myself, it doesnt matter how long I wait, my flight is not to 16.40 so why worry,

We all sit and chat, but I am quiet, Gin is staying in Phils for another 2 weeks, she always does this, and I always come back ahead, she is sad now, she says, she does not like me going back to UK, but I know I have to....the younger cousin is sad too, she says she will miss me...

Whats the song guys...all my bags are packed, its the OFW song, John Denvers Leaving on a jet plane...I am LOL cos the shoe fits today.

Finally, its time to go, terminal fees paid, cards filled in. I tell Gina, ok Honey, I will go through, its only 2 weeks until we meet up again, and this time, I will collect her from Heathrow, its a doddle, not too long, but then again, we are always together and cannot bare to be parted...thats how it is...


I go through to airside and take long last look behind, Gin has gone...my holiday is over..


Concluding Thoughts.


My time in the Philippines has been a month which I can only describe as an incredibly life changing event, I have seen the lives of others touched in ways and seen people have pleasures that money cannot buy.

I have watched peoples lives touched by things I had a hand in, I have been to places, gone out with freinds, had dinners, lunches, and have photos galore, I have spent my money and put my time in, I have eaten some of the best gourmet food, such as thinking back to the Cebu Grand Convention centre, Pendys in Bacolod City, Marco Polo international Buffet in Davao, I have relaxed in the pool of the Insular Hotel Davao, and snorkelled off Paradise Island, Samal.

Every day has been a great day, I have no regrets, I have made freindships, been treated everywhere as a King, and all good things come to an end, its time to go home now, and get back to work...I am relaxed and refreshed...

Thanks for listening guys and girls, maybe I can hear your experiences, I can tell you this...if you go to Philippines, you can have the time of your life...and live like a King..


And by the way, there is always next year...isnt there ?

[Mrs.JMajor]

And thank you very much indeed for sharing such nice holiday of you with us, everytime you mention something about Phillipines, my imagination is working about how nice my country was.

[Sun Shine]

Hi Pete,
I've really enjoyed reading your posts, so much so, I've always looked forward to the next post, waiting anxiously for it to come in.
I haven't been to the Phils yet, and now I look forward to it more than ever after reading your detailed account of your experiences.
Thank you so much for sharing it with us.
Sun.

[Ji&Ma]

Thanks a lot Peter, well written and very touching - all your travel diary especially the end. Pleasure to read
I guess that most of guys (and girls) who had to leave their beloved behind there know well what are you talking about when you described the feelings by the departure...

Kudos

[mickcant]

Hi Peter,
Thank you for all the accounts of your lovely trip.
It really felt as if we were with you.
And it was good to hear your account of the few places I myself had been to, and your explanation of filipino coustoms was very usfull.
Thanks again.

[ginapeterb]

The Encore - the return to UK.

Although my holiday experiences are over, I thought I would add this last final section, today its Monday Morning and I landed safely yesterday at London's Heathrow Terminal 5, after being full rested on Sunday, I am up early this morning to get back to work, its an eye opener let me tell you.

Firstly, the object of this section was to put in some comments about coming back from the Philippines alone, most of you have had to do this some stage in your relationship, this is mainly for the men to read, but perhaps the girls too, because it gives an insight into how the men feel.

I am no different, I really hate coming back alone, it has to be done sometimes, either your coming back from the 1st visit, or your 8th visit, or your a husband coming back because you left your new wife there, or your fiancee there, whatever it is, you have this sort of empty feeling, I experienced that everytime, and although I have been coming back alone for 2 or 3 years now, not including my first 2-3 visits to PHILIPPINES, the feeling never changes.

Don't forget you have had such a great time, not just in your love life, which we all know is great, there is nothing like waking up next to a Filipina I know what your thinking the smell of their hair, shall I go on.....nope, I think you all get the picture.

So you are at a loss, you miss them terribly, and it shows down your sleave, as you wait for your flight, that is how it was for me, getting down to the gate with CEBU PACIFIC was hard, I was quiet, I told myself, youve done this all before, hmmmm who am I kidding, its not that easy, the flight to Hong Kong was ok, I sat next to 2 other rather older Filipinas, so it was not like I was staring at them trying to imagine my girl was next to me.

Sitting around HONG KONG airport for 4 hours wating for my late flight was hard as well, I played around with my Ipod, watched people generally, and attempts at using the free wi fi was hard too, could not get a skype call to the house, irritated to say the least.

When finally I went down to the gate which was 17 for my BRITISH AIRWAYS flight back, the reality steps in, the real world is just 12 hours away, and I was apprehensive, actually as I often say coming back to UK was not a big puller for me, for those of you who share my sentiment, actually, if you could afford to live in Phils you probably would, I know, I was not happ about the prospect of coming home, to me there is little or no equivalent life in UK.

But I tell myself life is what you make it, so come on, buck up, lets go.....British airways surprised me, and put a smile on my face, it made the trip a little easier, at last minute I was upgraded to a club world seat, apparrently, many families were going back and flight was over booked.

Who was I to complain, it made the trip just a little more bearable, all I could think about was landing in UK, the flight was comfortable and enjoyable, and the 12 hours seem to move quickly, I slept most of the night, and on landing, it kind of hit me hard....this is it, but then again, I also know, my girl lives here in UK she is just taking a further 2 weeks leave, come on Pete its not like you wont see her again for months or even a year as some guys have to go through.

2 weeks is a doddle, and then again, I can always watch what I want on T.V. HAHAHAHAHAHH

Still though, no Filipino wife to cuddle up to for 2 weeks, come on be truthful, how can you not want all that reklamo in the mornings when you throw down your boxer shorts on the floor, or when you squeeze the toothpaste the wrong way, or when you dont drink water....

take care guys nice to be back in a way, I hope you don't have to wait too long to be with your girl....being apart is never easy, even for married ones, who have been coming back and forth for years....


just bring her back to me....and soon.

[laurel]

Hi Pete, read with great interest. Many thanks and welcome back. Im off myself in the next few months......was there earlier this year and that thought of coming back is haunting me already. At least Ginas back in 2 weeks so keep your chin up. All the best.

[Alan]

Pete - IMHO this is nothing short of a literary masterpiece! (Apart from a few mistakes - or typos)

I think that you should seriously consider having this published as a novelette - I am serious.

Thank you again Pete for giving me - and many other members of our 'family' so much pleasure.

Al.

P.S. I'm still as sick as a pig that I didn't meet you in the Queen City!

[Tawi2]

The "Horse and cart type Buggys" around Intramuros are Calesas,introduced in the 18'th century in pinas for high-rankers,the movers and shakers amongst the spaniards,they are found in a few pinoy cities but nowadays they are tourist traps like the Rickshaws in Hong Kong or the Bedouin thoroughbreds around the Pyramids.

[ginapeterb]

Hi everyone, well I am happy to hear about the horse and cart things, Calesas, or whatever they were called, thanks for that info.

Thank you Alan for your comments, interestingly enough, a contact of mine at the Visayan Daily newspaper read it, and said, I should write a news column about life in Philippines, Oh my goodness, if only I could be a writer, journalism is something I missed out on, in some ways, I enjoy writing about my experiences, Alan thank you for your suggestion and yes, I sure did miss the chance of meeting you in Cebu, thanks for the Grand Convention Centre Buffet, the 390 all you can eat was superb, wonder if you have been there yourself.

Thanks guys for all your comments, I am back on the forum in general now, maybe I will come in on some visa questions, but for me, the forum is about experiences, how to get by in the Philippines, maybe its the place itself.

I always say, its the place itself, it does something to you, now I know how some of our girls feel when they first arrive in UK, its quiet, when they say its boring, I know what they mean.

Now I see so clearly why they love to be in groups, in groups there is life, we are so used to being isolated in UK, by 2020 1 in 4 households will be single occupant only, the only freind being social networking sites.

Just a point Alan I will be hopefully transferring some of my literary experiences onto the website I built in time, I think I would enjoy doing that, when time allows, I have had so much great feedback for guys going in country for first time, telling me how they relied on the site for information, its been great fun, and writing is my passion, perhaps thats where my spare time will be take up.

"Nothing prepares you for the Philippines, - but don't worry it only seems weird the first time"