End week 5 - the Philippines

It's come to my attention that some of you were worried that, since I didn't update my blog, I didn't make it back from the Philippines. Sorry about that. I definitely made it back. Anyways, here's a recap of my adventures in the Philippines:

Five people went on my trip: Ana, Brittanie, Anish, Nupur, and myself. We left campus at 6 pm on Thursday, and had to take 2 buses for approximately 1 1/2 hours to get to the airport. After finding some amazingly Americanized Chinese food, we find out our flight has been delayed. We didn't actually make it to Manila until around 1 am. I would also like to reiterate how much I hate flying. Especially when the weather isn't so good.

Once we got to Manila, we went straight to our hostel. This is the first time I've ever stayed in one, so it was definitely interesting. The beds there were actually more comfortable than the ones at HKUST. I didn't take a shower there though, the bathroom was infested w/ mosquitos, and I'd really rather not get malaria.

We got up at 8 am, so I only got a few hours of sleep. Then we went out and explored Manila for a few hours until we had to be at the airport for our flight to Virac. We took a cab to Rizal Park, which the lady that owned the hostel told us was the place to go if we only had a few hours. We had to take 2 cabs, so the group got split up. We took the cab to the US embassy because it was close to the park. Apparently, you're not supposed to take pictures of the embassy, even if you're an American citizen. The guards get really angry. After getting yelled at, Brittanie, Anish, and I were trying to find Ana and Nupur, but we didn't know if their cab had even gotten there yet. While we were looking, a guard walks up to us and tells us the other white girl had just crossed the street. Sure enough, the other white girl was Ana. It was hilarious. The park was cool. There were lots of statues, and apparently people bring their chickens to the park and tie them up while they sit in the park. That was interesting.

The Philippines has one up on HK because it has Mountain Dew. It was wonderful. After we stopped to get a drink, we took a Jeepnie (or at least that's what it sounded like people were calling it) to the airport. Or at least, we thought we were taking it to the airport. Anyways, a jeepnie is kind of like the old jeep trucks they used to transport soldiers around the Philippines during WWII. It's apparently the most popular (and cheapest) mode of transportation there. And they don't try to rip the white people off like the cab drivers. So we take the jeepnie as far as it goes, which turns out to not be the airport, and then we had to take a taxi the rest of the way. We convince the driver to take all 5 of us, and it was the most packed cab ride of my life. It was definitely a bonding experience.

Of course our next flight gets delayed as well, so we don't end up leaving until around 5:30 pm. We did find a really good restaurant in the airport though, so that was exciting. The plane we took to Virac was pretty tiny, which isn't surprising, given that they only get 1 flight a day there. While we were waiting, we end up meeting the mayor of a city near Virac called Barras, and he gives us the card of a place there, and tells us he'll see us the next day. The plane has 4 seats per row, so of course I have to sit in a different row by a stranger. And, because this is my life, he's a ridiculously chatty stranger that won't let me just read my book. He was borderline creepy actually, asking me where in the states I live, and how old I am. And he took a picture of me with his cell phone. Creeper. Apparently he was in the mayor's posse (which I'm pretty sure took up the rest of the plane), and they were just really excited to see white people. Their island doesn't get a lot of tourists.

After a rough plane ride, we finally make it to Virac. There wasn't enough room in the cab of the truck for all of us to ride, so I sat in the back with Anish and Nupur. What I neglected to realize was that blonde-haired people draw a lot more attention in the Philippines than they do in HK, and they draw even more attention when they ride in the back of a truck. I didn't really have time to concentrate on that though, because they guy was driving really fast over unpaved roads, and I was concentrating on not falling off.

The resort we stayed at in Virac was really nice. It was on the beach, and the rooms had A/C and a TV, so we couldn't complain. We got there around 7, so we didn't really get to do a lot there. Not that there was much to do. We got up at 5:30 the next morning (not my decision), and walked around the beach for a while.

We left Virac at 9 am to go to the resort in Barras. We end up waiting for like 2 hours for a jeepnie to take us to Barras. The ride itself took 1 1/2 hours, and I had legitimate reasons to fear for my life. I don't know how that thing didn't flip over. And while the crazy ride is going on, people are taking pictures of us with their cell phone, like it's completely normal. Then we get to Barras, and we have no idea how to find the mayor. So we take what they call a "tricycle"/"tuck-tuck" to the resort that he told us about. A tricycle is a dirt bike with a covered sidecar. And we had to fit 5 people and 5 bags on this thing. Nupur and I ended up riding on the dirt bike with the driver, while Ana, Brittanie, and Anish ride in the sidecar. It was definitely an experience.

We get to the resort, and it turns out that they guy who owns it is from Hawaii. He was really awesome, and the food there was really good. The only drawback was that the girls' room had a clear bathroom. Like, the walls were glass. So we all had to leave the room when someone had to go to the bathroom. We ended up showering in the guys room while everyone was watching TV. We hung out on the beach and watched The Born Ultimatum on HBO that night. And the mayor ends up coming by the resort to make sure we ended up there. And then we had to get up at 5:30 again, so we could leave by 7 to get to the airport.

We left that early because we assumed that the trip would take as long as it had the day before. Well, 2 tricycles and a jeepnie ride later, we were 2 hours early for check-in. And the Virac airport will not let you check-in early. So we just had to hang out in a cafe across the street for a couple of hours. Well, at least it gave me time time to finish Gone with the Wind, which is one of the best books I've ever read. Seriously, everyone needs to read this book. So, we finally get to check in, and then we all take a nap while we wait for the plane, which is of course delayed again. Apparently the island lifestyle means that no one cares about schedules.

I didn't have to sit by a stranger on the way back, so that was good. The plane ride was still rough, and I still hate planes, but we made it in time to make our next flight, which was also delayed. Go figure. We finally made it back to HKUST, and I pretty much fell immediately asleep. And that's the end of my adventure. I'll update about week 6 in a few days. Skype/facebook/AIM me!