The Forgotten Bag: Boracay, Philippines

Our Philippines trip began with a “red-eye” to Manila. In actuality the flight left Singapore at 1am and arrived in Manila three hours later. In my opinion a “red-eye” suggests a much longer trip than three hours; sort of like calling a flight to Orlando a “red-eye”. Regardless – we boarded a connecting flight (4 hours later) but couldn’t land at our intended destination (Caticlan) because of weather so our plane was diverted to Kalibo, an hour and half away. Unfortunately the airline didn’t provide us a method to get to Caticlan – in fact they didn’t even seem to notice we were in the wrong city. Fortunately there was a cheap bus to the ferry terminal which would take us to Boracay. (Cheap bus = the four of us travelling together + driver + 10 other people + 1 baby)

Ferry terminal was a microcosm of the only thing that bothers me about the Philippines; you get nickeled and dimed to high hell by people looking to carry your bag for a buck as well as a buffet of other fees. Terminal fee, environmental fee, tourism fee, etc. Completely ignoring currency conversion I had only taken out 1,000 pesos assuming it would be a lot but realizing it was only about $25. That meant I had to go to an ATM to pay the fees which meant I had to pay an ATM fee for the right to pay another fee. I had to pay a fee fee. Annoying.

We took a motorbike cab – thrilling ride – to our hostel. A young lady met us at the door and perpetuated painful small talk to kill 15 minutes before our room was ready. She asked us where we were coming from – we said “New York” – her response? – “I heard that is the nicest city in France”. Seriously. I responded that New York was actually the second nicest city and France behind Kabul – a lovely city and popular destination for bachelorette parties – wear bikini’s, have a few cosmos and maybe even get stoned (zing! I’m horrible). I actually didn’t say that but instead sat in awkward silence thinking about all the ways I could mess with this poor girl’s mind.

The rest of the trip was relaxing and truly remarkable. Boracay is touristy but not too touristy – it is crowded to the point of spectacular people watching but amongst the people you can find quiet places on the beach if that is what you want. It is far from presumptuous – you can’t tell the barons of industry from the broke backpacker. There are tons of activities and all are affordable. It has none of the stereotypical touristy beach characteristics you’d associate with Miami, Daytona, Atlantic City or the Jersey Shore. There is subtle dignity to the place and rent-a-cops everywhere making sure nobody smokes on the beach, litters or is too aggressive peddling knick-knacks. I really can’t say enough wonderful things about this place – and everybody in our group of six travelers agreed – anybody looking to go to a beach location in southeast Asia must give this consideration. A few quick highlights:

· Sitting in the “lobby” of our hostel (we stayed in a new place the last three nights which was a nice upgrade) during happy hour, chatting with other backpackers (all seem to be ex-patriots teaching English in China or Korea), drinking local beer and watching the gecco’s eat the bugs around the ceiling lanterns (see picture of Julia and notice the gecco’s on the roof above her)

· Walking the “boardwalk” at night (just a sandy path) and negotiating with vendors for fresh seafood. When you found something you liked they weighed it – agreed on price and threw it on the grill

· The fire-dancing show – see pictures

· Sunsets (the beach faced due west)

· Ariel Point – a club build into a cliff with a series of planks off which you can jump into the sea. The highest, 45 feet, was pretty frightening.

· The live music – all western but very good. There is something strangely comforting listening to “Take Me Home Country Road”, “Sweet Home Alabama” and “New York, New York” in a foreign country largely devoid of Americans (although many Europeans)

· Banana shakes – although no pictures of these we consumed at least two a day – sometimes with Kaluha as a nightcap … mmmm

Again – will let the pictures speak for themselves.

On a separate note, we awoke early Monday morning to watch the Packers beat the Bears and the Jets nearly complete a tidy comeback. Off to Bali Wednesday morning after which we will stick around Singapore for a few weeks before spring break.

Some cars we ran into en route from Kalibo to Caticlan - see below picture as well.

This is the bar at the hostel. Gecco's all over the roof eating the bugs flying around the lanterns. Intimate and casual. I think the bartender was 9 years old.