A HOP, SKIP AND 4 AIRPORTS AND 3 FLIGHT JUMP TO NEPAL

WEATHER: Airports and planes

HIGHLIGHT OF THE DAY: Everything ran to plan

BUMMER OF THE DAY: My breakup with Zeme…….

WORD OF THE DAY: Tomorrow is a new day  

DISTANCE TRAVELLED: 3592km

So travel this afternoon I travel 4 countries, 3 flights and 19 hours.  I always ask who wants to be me on these travel days and funnily enough no-one puts up there hands.  My transfer wasn’t until 5.30pm and I was going to head to some of the shopping centers that were close by the hotel.  But after I finished breakfast at 10.30am and headed to my room to pack as it happened Zeme was online and we talked a little before I mentioned that I was unhappy and that we couldn’t be a couple anymore.  It was the hardest thing I had to do and there were still a lot of things left unsaid that he just wouldn’t understand.  It’s the best I could do and I will follow up with a phone call in a few days.  Damn it was hard, for so many reasons but unfortunately life continues on and me with it.  I really like this Buddhist quote:

“Teach this triple truth to all: A generous heart, kind speech, and a life of service and compassion are the things which renew humanity.”
    

And with this in mind my journey to Africa continues.  This has not waivered my decision and it has not dampened my faith in love.  I probably should have chosen a better time as now I have 19 hours of airport and plane travel to brood on my decision or I guess I can look at the upside and think about my future, the future that I am now back in control of and the challenges that lay ahead of me, even if it all does look really scary!

I got my bag packed for airline travel once again and I had forgotten just how big my bag is when it is all done.  It really lives up to its monster name that is for sure.  My arm is still healing but it is getting better each day that passes and I need to make sure that the monster doesn’t do any unwarranted damage.  To me it weighs more than 22kg, but I haven’t bought anything new, I think it just maybe that I haven’t carried it around for the 4 weeks that I am now finding it too big.  I like the lighter travel and this realization now after nearly 20 months of traveling.  DORK.  I checked out of my room at 5.15pm and I got the same dufus guy I had yesterday checking in telling me I had 3 rooms booked when there clearly was just me.  Well it was a rigmarole again paying for the 2 cokes, one from the last stay and by the time he had all that sorted my transfer had been waiting 10 minutes.  When I got into the van and we had pulled away from the hotel I then remembered that I hadn’t paid for the late check-out.  They had a 1000peso hold on my card and the room charge was 1250peso so I am guessing that they will just charge my card to the remaining amount.  Can they do that if they don’t have my authority for the difference?  I guess they can and at the end of the day I need to pay, right. 

My flight time wasn’t till 9.10pm but with the Manila traffic so bad, especially at 5.30pm being rush hour, as if the rest of the day isn’t as bad anyways, is the reason they collected me so early.  I was fine with that, I prefer to be early and have extra time, especially when there are connecting flights involved on multiple tickets.  I was flying Jetstar Asia to Singapore and after a 6 hour layover I was flying Malaysia Airlines to Kathmandu via Kuala Lumpur.  It seemed a good idea at the time I made the bookings and I now remembered I was saving over 600AUD to do my flights this way rather than try and get it all on one ticket.  I could have saved a little more money travelling Jet Airways which are an Indian airline, but I would need a visa and I didn’t have time to get one, so paid the extra 100AUD to fly Malaysia, which has always been a good airline to travel with anyway.  The transfer took 1 hour and as we pulled up to departures there were lines of people everywhere.  So the traffic isn’t only confined to the roads I see.   After my bags had been scanned for access into the terminal, with my bags on a trolley I took a walk around the large terminal that had check-in counters on all 3 sides of the building.  I couldn’t see a Jetstar Asia counter so I went to the information desk in the middle and she told me check-in counters 14 to 20.  So I started for the counters and there was a huge line up what looked like it was in front of counter 16.  So I asked the man in front of me if he was flying Jetstar Asia and he said yes.  So I figured I was in the right line.  Lucky I wasn’t in any hurry as the line was 100 long, I swear it was massive.  I waited about 15 minutes and there were now people behind me as the line moved it snaked away to the right to counters 25-30.  I think I may be standing in the wrong line, so I asked the man behind me who he was flying and he said Thai.  Yep I believe I was in the wrong line and when I moved out with my trolley I could now see counters 14-20 and there was people checking in but no-one waiting.  What a goose!  I stood in the wrong line for over 20 minutes!!!  So I was next up and my bag weighed 22.7kg, so it was nearly exactly the same when I arrived.  It certainly felt heavier than that let me tell you.  I have been waiting for Jetstar to pull me up on the weight, as I had only paid for 20kg and my bag has been heavier than that, but no-one has batted an eyelid, so I won’t complain.

All checked in and after passing a security check point there was a departure tax to pay of 550pesos.  Gee they really grab ya with all these taxes.  I wonder if they know the rest of the world includes them now in the ticket price.  I was lucky I still had 700pesos on me, but worst case scenario they also had a cost of 13USD so assuming you could pay in US if you didn’t have enough pesos.  Once you had paid and a sticker stuck on the back of your boarding pass there was the scanner to go through.  They had a men’s line and a female line and then you were finally through to the departure terminal.  It is a full on airport and you certainly need extra time to get through everything from actually getting there to checking in and all the security.  By this time it was 7.15pm and we were to board at 7.55pm so I had some time to kill and 150pesos to spend.  I spotted some free internet, so I jumped on to see if there was a message from Zeme, which there wasn’t, and then I looked at spending my left over money.  150pesos is like 3.45AUD but I wanted to spend it and figured I better get something to eat with it as I am not sure when I will be able to get food once I get into Singapore, we arrive in at 12.30am and I am not sure what will be open at that time.  I am thinking that BK (Burger King) won’t be open at that hour and I wouldn’t be able to get my Singapore fare of drumettes and my passionfruit Iced Tea.  I was waiting in the departure lounge when I heard the call for another flight and it was heading to Darwin!!!  Of all places.  It was a good omen I thought, of things to come, not just with my flights but next on my journey.  For those of you who don’t know, I grew up in Darwin and that is also where my mum passed away in 2008. 

Our flight left on time at 9.10pm.  I like the Jetstar Asia flights, their planes are new and the arm rest is those high ones, so my leg doesn’t make them but up so high.  We were travelling on an A320 with a configuration of 3x3.  I tried to take some night time photos from takeoff leaving Manila, and it can be tricky when you are travelling at 300km an hour, but I took like 20 and got 3 good ones I believe.  I wonder if I will see a sunrise today as well?  I LOVE window seats.  It was a 3 hour and 40 minute flight and soon after take-off I had fallen asleep.  Lucky as I had a lady sitting next to me that also fell asleep, but she had the bobbing head action going the whole flight and nearly rested on my shoulder a few times.  So starts my travel day of 4 airports, 3 flights and 19 hours to get me to my final destination of Kathmandu in Nepal.        

We arrived into Singapore’s Changi International exactly at 12.30am.  I now had a 6 hour and twenty minute layover till my next flight.  Even though that sounds like a long time, it is good that the flights connect as such, so I don’t have to pay for accommodation.  I haven’t transited Singapore at this hour before so it will be interesting to see what is open at this time.  The information counter was not manned, so I wasn’t able to get my Wi-Fi codes but I was still able to check my emails and Facebook before heading down to the customs hall.  This was my 6^th visit in the last 6 weeks and the customs hall was the busiest I had seen it and that was at 12.50am.  Weird.  I had to wait 25 minutes to get processed and when I was at the counter I asked the customs lady what time the airtrain stopped as I had to get from T1 to T2.  She said it stopped at 2am for 3 hours and then restarts again at 5am.  So I had 45 minutes which was fine, I knew it wouldn’t take long to get through security and out the other side.  Again I had to collect my bag as I was travelling on separate tickets but time was on my side and there was no rush, except to make that airtrain before it closed. I got a trolley for my bag, they were scanned on my way out and then I started to make my way to the train and you could imagine my surprise when I passed a Burger King and it was open.  But I was in T1 and I didn’t want to fluff around till I got to T2.  So when I got to the escalators, the monster was thrown on my back and I waited 2 minutes for the next train and found myself at T2 by 1.30am.  As I have transferred between terminals so much I have to say nothing looks familiar, each time it all looks different.  I am not sure if I am just coming in from different entries, as I am pretty good at remembering landmarks, or I am totally just losing it.  Either way on my way from the train to the main terminal guess what was open and shining like a halo-BK!!!!  Well now I was where I should be I ordered my 6 drumettes and my medium passionfruit Iced Tea and then pulled up a booth for the next 2.5 hours.  I wrote some of my blog, I updated my diary, listened to some tunes and read my trip notes for my upcoming tour as I had no idea on what I was actually doing for the next 2.5 weeks.  It doesn’t look too scary except for the 2 days of rafting on the Seti River.  I was always a little worried about this and now with a dodgy arm I am wondering how I am going to go.  I don’t want people on tour thinking I am a fattie trying to get out of doing some exercise.  The river rafting isn’t until day 10, so hopefully people will get to know me before then and know I am not a lazy so and so.  It is amazing how quick 2.5 hours could go and even though it was 1.30am in the morning those drumettes tasted delicious!!!!

The check-in counters normally open 3 hours before the scheduled flight, but when they are early morning flights this is not always the case.  I packed all my stuff up at 3.45am and thought I better go an scope the layout and make sure that all was going to plan.  My laptop was on its last juice anyway, so if I saw a power point that would also be a bonus.  So I made my way into the main hall and looked at the departure screens and I had to get to counter 9 for the Malaysia Airlines check-in.  When I got there, people were already waiting but there were no staff there yet, so I did a lap of the terminal looking for a power point and they had them but they were literally all under lock and key.  They had little doors over them and were padlocked shut.  I guess I won’t be charging anything check-in side.  I know there are point’s airside; so I will just do it when I get through.  The counter opened at 4.15am, I checked in with no dramas, security was passed, customs was cleared and I was back in to the departures.            

The departure lounge didn’t open for another hour, so I just jumped on the internet to kill some time, took a walk around and then sat down at the Orchid Garden that they have in the terminal and organized some money, got out the address for the hotel in Kathmandu, got informed on the transfer/taxi’s once I arrived and felt I was now all information’ed up.  I had some Thai Baht that I had to exchange so I tried 2 booths looking for Nepalese Rupees but they said I had to get them when I arrived, so to be on the safe side I got the baht exchanged into USD, you can never have too much USD and I should really start to look at getting my USD stash back up as it is a great currency to have in Ethiopia.  I just happened to arrive at the gate at the right time when it opened and I was the very first one into the lounge which was awesome because I was able to snag a seat that had a power point attached to it and I was able to put some life into my IPod as it was running out of juice. 

We boarded on time and left on time and were in the air at 6.50am.  I knew the flight wouldn’t be long to Kuala Lumpur but it was only a 45 minutes…..hardly seems worth all the fuss of everything for a 45 minute flight.  There were a lot of business men on the flight, so I guess they can get to KL and back in a day, like a flight to Sydney, but with passports, extra check-in times and security.  I had the seat next to me free and as we took off there was a stunning sunrise, on my side and I was able to get some great photos.  Have I told you today I love sitting at windows?  It was another great view from my window with islands, white beaches and beautiful blue waters, all that seen from 20,000ft in the air.  The flight was that short there was time to eat a packet of supplied peanuts and a glass of juice before it was time to prepare the aircraft for landing.  Wouldn’t it be nice if all flights were that long?  Speaking of flights this was my 79^th flight and I was on a 737-800 with a 3x3 configuration and it wasn’t the most comfortable flight, the seats were a little pinchey and I was thankful it was only a 45 minute flight. 

We arrived into Kuala Lumpur at 7.45am and my next boarding pass stated that we had to be at our gate at 7.55am.  The good news was the flight didn’t leave till 8.55am, so I knew I had some time up my sleeve but not to furf around too much.  We came into gates B and I had to get myself to gates G.  It was nice to be on a connecting flight where I didn’t have to collect my bag and recheck in.  I felt like I was skipping a step somehow but it felt great all the same.  Some-one else was in charge of moving the monster for me.  Once I had located where my new gate I had time to go to the toilet, freshen up and then through security and into the departure lounge.  KLIA offer free Wi-Fi, so I was able to jump on and check email and FB (still no message from Z) and then we boarded and departed on time at 8.55am.

Now I used to scoff at people who asked crazy questions like what side of the plane does the Captain sit on, what side of the plane should I sit on if I want to see the Himalayas’ and I now understood why.  I have some friends travelling and they got a magnificent photo from their plane window of the Himalaya’s and I wanted one to, but was I on the right side of the plane?  It was a full flight and breakfast was served pretty much as soon as we had leveled out.  The staff were very abrupt and the way they spoke to passengers was cringable, I felt so bad, but the passengers didn’t seem to care, the staff pulled faces and laughed between themselves and I think it was the worst service I have ever seen.  They weren’t rude to me, if anything they were super nice to me considering the way they were treating the rest of the flight, probably cause I was one of few ‘white’ people on the flight.  Once breakfast was collected I curled up and slept for 3 hours till we were told to prepare the cabin for our arrival and it was at this time the captain made an announcement that we would get our first glimpse of the Himalayas’ of you were sitting on the right side of the aircraft!  That was me and they looked stunning.  What I had failed to do was have my big camera out and my little camera was not cutting the mustard of getting a good shot.  Dang it.  But to watch mountain range for the last 30 minutes of the flight was amazing and to think there were people on this flight that were going to be climbing them was crazy and inspiring at the same time.  It was a picturesque run into Kathmandu with massive green mountains with hillside terraces and homes, seeing small villages in the valleys between each of these magnificent mountains and the roads that ran along the edge of them clearly visible. 

Finally we arrived into Kathmandu at 11.10am.  There was a funny time change of 2 hours and 45 minutes from Singapore, which is weird, but there it was and I had been on the road for 18 hours and I tell ya it felt like it.  I was shattered.  Kathmandu’s airport, Tribhuvan International Airport, felt like you had stepped back in time.  There are no aerobridges here, the terminal is a ground floor affair built in red brick and there was nothing modern about this place at all.  Which surprises me, it is the only international airport in the country, there are thousands of people who visit here to climb and trek Everest and base camp and this is the welcome they get.  What looks like a Russian 1940’s airport.  I am not one to judge, but it was pretty dated.  Once we were transferred from the plane to the terminal by bus there were a few ways people could go.  We all had to fill in arrival cards (they were not given out on the flight) and then there was a local line, a line for people who needed visa’s, a line for people who already had them and then a local line who needed visa’s (this one didn’t make sense to me).  But before I went through I wanted to get some cash and I had a toilet stop I wanted to take.  The money changer was busy, there was no line as such, you just stood near the window and sort of just pushed your way into be served.  I did note that they were all men, there wasn’t one woman exchanging money at all and I got my turn and handed over my 100USD and got 8300pesos back.  Gee how good am I at my 83 times tables?  So now I was cashed up, toilet free and I was ready to clear customs.  By this time the people that were getting their visa on arrival were still in line where I was able to sashay right up to the people with visa line and got stamped straight in.  I was lucky I had time in London to get my visa, but you can do it on arrival here, it just takes time. 

Once you were through it was into the baggage collection area and here it was just as old as the arrivals hall.  All brick and not very inviting at all.  The trolleys were free (old but worked) and then it was the hurry up and wait game.  The thing with an airport like this is everything is done manually.  So the bags were slow to come out and so I had time to people watch and I just wonder how their bags make it on the flight.  Some of them were MASSIVE; I kid you not they make my monster look like a baby.  The Nepalese people are not that tall and I swear some of the bags were nearly (slight exaggeration) as tall as them.  They were all either plastic wrapped, tied up in like a kilometer of rope (or both) and clearly labeled on the outside with flight numbers and addresses.  Seriously 90% of bags were like this.  I find it funny that people all crowd around the carousel when their bag isn’t even coming yet, it’s not going to make it come any faster and I doubt if you will miss the bag if you just stood away a little from the belt.  The good thing about not having a transfer booked is that there is no pressure on you to feel bad as there isn’t anyone waiting for you on the other side.  My bag finally appeared after waiting 35 minutes.  There were still a lot of people to get theirs so I wonder how much longer they had to wait?  But I was on my way out.

I had read that there are prepaid taxi services when you come out of the terminal to the right and they were right.  I asked what the price was once I gave my hotels name and I was told 650rupees.  Intrepid notes said 400rupees but I looked around and the taxi men outside the secure area looked a little manic and for the sake of 3AUD at this point I was not going to gripe and I also saw a board behind him with all the pricing on it and I could see Thamel where my hotel was located and it said 650.  Okay, so I wasn’t getting ripped off.  So I paid and I was assigned a driver and taken to what they call a taxi here in Nepal.  The cars are small and generally Indian made Suzuki Maruti cars and very run down.  People have told me about the crazy driving of the Nepali’s drivers but my guy didn’t seem too bad and I have seen a lot worse in Ethiopia and now the Philippines.  I am staying in the tourist area and I could tell the second we hit it as you could see all the westerners walking the skinny streets as the cars and bikes dodged them.  There seemed to be a lot of souvenir places, but the shiny modern ‘buy a magnet here’ they looked older and selling more artifacting looking stuff and heirloom kind of jewelry.  I will definitely come back down here in the next few days.  There didn’t seem to be much traffic and we arrived at the hotel within 25 minutes.  I had a USD in my pocket to give him and I got a little cranky when he asked if I liked his driving that I could tip if I wanted.  I hate when they ask, but I have him the dollar which is way beyond what should be paid.  The Intrepid trip notes say that 20-40 rupees is plenty, the 1 USD works out to be 83rupees for him!  Well isn’t he lucky today.

I walked to reception and the lady behind the counter didn’t even smile.  Her first question to me was I with Intrepid.  My reply was yes and I was told that breakfast wasn’t included.  Well welcome to you too.  She just had attitude and when I was given the form to fill in I was down the other end of the counter and she left it up her end for me to come and get.  WTF.  So I got it and walked back to where I was and filled in the form as requested and just as I was signing my name she said I only had to fill in the email address section and not the rest.  Well you didn’t tell me that, so with tude come tude and in the end I think she may have had the last laugh as I got a key that had 520 on it, which meant I was on the 5^th floor of a hotel that had no elevator.  Mental note to be nice to receptionist no matter how rude at hotels with no lift.  The Wi-Fi isn’t free here, so I bought a card while I was there and was offered the service of the bell boy and his eyes nearly popped out of his head when he saw the monster lying there on the floor.  Let’s just say it was a US Dollar well spent and well- earned up 5 flights of stairs with that sucker.  Sorry buddy. 

So it was 1pm.  I am in Kathmandu and I am knackered and a little hungry.  I decided to watch some TV and just kill time till I could go and have a very late lunch and an early dinner at 5pm downstairs.  There is an indoor and outdoor area that is lovely with big carved chairs and lights and a nice little ambience about the place.  It is nice to speak English and to be understood.  Sitting there eating my dinner there were groups of people coming and going and a lot of them sounded French.  There seemed to be also a lot of Germans as well.  I was able to load my photos from my flights over the past 24 hours, get some blog done over a cold coke and then I was back to my room at 7pm with the intention of finishing a blog and uploading it, but the second I sat on the bed I was out like a light and woke up at midnight to turn off all the lights, change into my PJ’s and head back to bed. 

What a day. 

I am in Kathmandu and I am a single woman again.  I am still not sure how that is sitting with me and I have yet to have a good cry about it all, so I am guessing the next few days I will have a breakdown somewhere and hopefully I will get it done and be able to start my new and last tour with a new breath of life.  Welcome to Nepal.

IT’S TIME TO LEAVE – PARADISE

WEATHER: Hot and 31C

HIGHLIGHT OF THE DAY: McDonalds for dinner-judge me all you want

BUMMER OF THE DAY: Leaving paradise

WORD OF THE DAY: White sand and blue waters will always be remembered

DISTANCE TRAVELLED: 390km

Do I really have to leave?  I would LOVE to spend longer here but I think it would be better if you were with some-one.  It doesn’t have to be a boyfriend/girlfriend, that is another beauty of Boracay, there just aren’t ‘couples’ walking around holding hands, there are groups of guys, families and there seems to be large groups and conferencing groups also around the traps.  There is none of that ‘awkwardness’ of people feeling sorry for you being on your own even though I lost that worry months ago.  The upside of leaving means I am closer to getting to my next tour and in turn closer to getting home.  I really hope that I get a great group for this tour.  Like my Scottish group or my Sri Lankan group.  I only mention then as they are the freshest in my mind, I have travelled with a lot of amazing groups, so if they are like any of them then I will have an amazing time. 

I had to be ready at 11.45am for my security guy to walk me to my waiting transfer to take me to the ferry terminal.  Here goes the rigmarole to leave paradise-damn them.  Right on time I was walked to the waiting van for the 20 minute drive to the port.  Once we arrived there was again the organized chaos of people coming and going, but no security this time as my driver parked and led me to a counter where you had to pay a departure tax of 100pesos which is like 2.50AUD let me through the terminal and straight onto a waiting ferry.  I use the word ferry loosely as it was a local boat called Bangka.  The Bangka is a type of canoe featuring one or more lateral support floats known as outriggers, which are fastened to one or both sides of the main hull.  It had a roof with open windows and there were plenty of life jackets hanging from the roof and it looked study enough so I was just going to enjoy the ride.  I didn’t have an issue getting on the boat as such but rather the way you had to get onto it.  The jetty stairs were higher than the Bangka, so there was a rickety looking plank that was steep that you had to walk down.  I honestly wasn’t sure that the plank would hold my weight, that was how worried I was, but I looked to the seamen that were holding it steady and they didn’t look worried, so with the plank moving back and forth with the waves I crossed without falling-phew.  Me and little boats don’t mix at the best of times, but when you have to suck it up I just get the job done.  Thankfully the driver still had my overnight bag and he walked along the outside of the boat to find me a seat and I hunched over and walked through the inside already full of people.  The driver told me there would be someone to meet me on the other side for my further transfers.  They wait until the boat is full and after taking on one more couple we were navigated away from the pier and other Bangka’s and on our way back to Caticlan.  For some reason this trip seemed quicker than the arrival ferry and that was in a ‘proper’ ferry.  I think I liked this better, as the wind was in your hair and you could see where you were going and get some photos. 

We arrived to the other side and with another steep ramp to climb with my bag I was back on terra firma successfully.  I walked out and what do you know there was no-one there.  I wasn’t too concerned as I knew the airport was only a short walk away, but then I figured firstly I had paid for the transfer and secondly he may be looking for me-don’t want him to think he has lost a passenger.  So after asking 2 people I was pointed in the right direction across the road and there was a guy walking towards me asking me if I was Miss Bernice.  Yes, that’s me-where have you been?  There is nothing worse walking around looking like an idiot, but I don’t get upset, I just refocus as I know I am going to have to get used to it in Africa, doesn’t mean I will like it anymore.  So with the 5 minute drive I was dropped at the airport with an apology and a wave and I entered the airport terminal.  My flight wasn’t until 2.30pm and I was there at 12.40pm so the check-in staff asked if I would like to go on the 1.30pm flight instead.  I would love to, but I have a transfer organized for my pickup in Manila, so it really wouldn’t make a difference, but I asked if I could make a phone call and pulled out the mobile phone I had been loaned and with the All About Asia office number already pre-programmed I made a call to Julie and she said that it wouldn’t be a problem and she would notify the driver.  All this was done with no fuss and having that phone has been magic.  I need to make sure I remember to send a text message to Julie to thank her for everything.  So I was now leaving an early hour, which meant I would be back in Manila earlier which sounds good to me.  I got my usual window seat and I also had to get weighed again for the flight. 

I was flying Air Phil Express today and after paying yet another departure tax of 200pesos (they get you everywhere) we sat in the cool departure lounge to wait for tour boarding call.  The plane that wad to take us came in at 1pm, and the with the turnaround of the aircraft we were all onboard and ready to go at 1.30pm.  We moved a few meters and then we had to wait for 3 flights to come in.  Who would have thought that such a small airport would be so busy, but then seeing how many people there were at White Beach and they can only get 40 people there on a flight, there would have to be a few flights coming and going.  I was glad today I had a window as the weather as perfect and I hoped to get some good photos from the air and I wasn’t disappointed.  There were no ‘guess that song’ like Cebu Pacific have and with the flight being only 1 hour there was no refreshments offered either.  We were on an ATR70 plane that had a 2x2 seat configuration and I was sitting just in front of the propeller.  The views we had were amazing and this is why I love the window seats.  There was a family of 5 that were sitting across from me with the father sitting next to me.  The row behind us was free, so I thought about moving but then thought about the weight thing and maybe they had placed us in certain seats-as there was an announcement made before we took off to not move around the cabin unless going to the toilet due to the weight ratio.  The flight was only an hour, so it wasn’t going to kill me and he just slept the whole way. 

We arrived into Manila at 2.40pm, the domestic terminal looks so new and we were the only people to be in this section of the airport.  I feel a little strange that I am not standing in a customs line and filling in arrival forms for these domestic legs.  We just arrive, find the baggage carousel and with my bag being the second one off the rank I could see my dude standing outside the glass pane with my name-yay….. He obviously got the message of my new flight arrival.  The drive from the airport was a stop start affair in really bad traffic for 45 minutes getting me to the hotel at 3.40pm.  When I checked in the reception staff reconfirmed I had 3 rooms.  No only one.  They double checked and said 3 rooms?  Um no there is just me.  So it took them 15 minutes to work out that small problem and then they told me I hadn’t paid my bill for the coke I had last week when I was here.  Well that was because you said you would take it out of the 1000pesos deposit I had to leave, but I am happy to settle that with my bill tomorrow.  I also asked about a late check-out as I wasn’t getting collected tomorrow till 5.30pm and he told me they can’t tell me till tomorrow, WTF, so I asked how much would it cost to have a late check-out and after a few more minutes he returned and told me 1250pesos which is like 31AUD so I told them I would just pay for the damn room.  Can’t argue with 30 bucks.  While I was here I also collected my monster that I had left in their luggage room and he said that’s right the big bag.  Yep, that would be the one. 

The only good thing that came of that whole 30 minute transaction was the room they gave me on the 20^th floor.  There really wasn’t a view from where I was, but it feels nice to be up so high.  When we drove down the main street of Makati I saw a KFC and a McDonalds only a few minutes’ walk from the hotel.  So I watched a movie, looked at all the crap I had to repack for airline travel tomorrow and then went and got Macca’s for dinner.  I don’t care what any of you think, but it was nice to have something that didn’t have curry, rice or minced pork for a change.  It was a busy store and when you walked in the queue there was a lady that would pre write your order on an order form and then you just present that to the cashier when it’s your turn.  Not a bad idea, so by the time people get to the front they have already decided what to have and the lines keep moving, well I am guessing that is why.  What a great idea for a busy store to keep the flow of traffic moving.  I can’t say it was the best Macca’s I have ever had, but it was food in the stomach.            

I’m not sleeping well as I have a lot on my mind, mainly where my and Zeme’s relationship is heading.  I have been so sad the last few weeks and I think if something that makes you feel that down it needs to be assessed and something done about it.  I spoke to him about it when I was in Cebu but I am not sure how much gets through with the language barrier, but I am not feeling any better and as sad as it is I think we are going to have to go our own ways.  It is such a shame when I am back in Addis in 8 weeks and as nice as it would have been to have Zeme there for my arrival, it’s not fair to him or me to continue the relationship just for that.  Handy, but not fair.  So with a heavy heart I will speak to him tomorrow and get what needs to done, done.  Life can be so fucked up at times and even though I still love him there are a few issues that cannot be overlooked and I will not let my generosity be taken for a ride.  That is all I will say on the subject.

So I have enjoyed my time in the Philippines.  There is so much to see and do and you certainly need more time than 10 days, but it was a great overview and I could see myself coming back to this wonderful country to see more of what it has to offer.    

BEAUTIFUL BORACAY AND HER BEACH

WEATHER: Hot EVERYDAY AND 31c

Boracay is a small island of the Philippines located approximately 315 km.  Boracay Island and its beaches have received awards from numerous travel publications and agencies.   In 2012, Boracay has been named the Best Island in the World by an international travel magazine, Travel + Leisure and I definitely see why.  As of 2010, Boracay has in excess of 350 beach resorts offering more than 2,000 rooms ranging in quality from five-star to budget accommodation.  There is also a wide range of restaurants, bars, pubs, and nightclubs to frequent during your stay.  It surprises me, I have been to a lot is islands similar to this and everything is so expensive, well not here.  I didn't get to see many prices of things while I was in Manila, but when you are paying 4.50AUD for a cocktail and I saw on a menu a lobster tail was 7.50AUD that is SO cheap and for an island that is rated in the top ten in the world I think that is pretty amazing in itself.  This would be a BIG thing to differentiate it from some of the other top ten beaches.    

Sofia Gonzales Tirol and her husband Lamberto Hontiveros Tirol, a town judge on nearby Panay Island, took ownership of substantial properties on the island around 1900 and planted coconuts, fruit trees, and greenery on the island. Others followed the Tirols, and cultivation and development of the island gradually spread from this initial beginning.  Tourism came to the island beginning in about the 1970s. The movie Too Late the Hero was filmed in 1970 on locations in Boracay and Caticlan.  In the 1980s, the island became popular as a budget destination for backpackers, By the 1990s; Boracay's beaches were being acclaimed as the best in the world. 

The name Boracay is attributed to different origins. One story says that it is derived from the local word "borac" which means white cotton with characteristics close to the color and texture of Boracay's white sugary and powdery sand. Another credits the name to local words "bora," meaning bubbles, and "bocay," meaning white. Yet another version dating back to the Spanish era says the name is derived from "sagay," the word for shell, and "boray," the word for seed.

The island is approximately seven kilometers long; dog-bone shaped with the narrowest spot being less than one kilometer wide, and has a total land area of 10.32 square kilometers.  Boracay's two primary tourism beaches, White Beach and Bulabog Beach, are located on opposite sides of the island's narrow central area.  White Beach, the main tourism beach, is about four kilometers long and is lined with resorts, hotels, lodging houses, restaurants, and other tourism-related businesses.

In the central portion, for about two kilometers, there is a footpath known as the Beachfront Path separating the beach itself from the establishments located along it. North and south of the Beachfront Path, beachfront establishments do literally front along the beach itself. This is where you will find most of the shopping.  As you stroll the beachfront path you will be approached by men selling sunglasses, pearls, model sailboats, carvings, fake watches, belts and numerous other trinkets.  There are also stalls set up selling pens, keyrings and bracelets made to order personalized with your name on them.  After dodging them you also have the tour operators wanting to sell you the activities, with laminated cards with the pictures of what they offer on them.  And lastly no tropical paradise is complete without the call for massages.  ‘You want massage’? You hear this the whole length of the walk.  Some are drumming up business to go into a beauty salon, others have the chairs/loungers right there and you can tell these women as they are all wearing what looks like a nurse’s outfit of the same colour.  They also offer manicures, pedicures and also on offer is henna tattoos and hair braiding.  I did notice when I was on the beach that none of the sellers were on the beach also.  They mustn’t be allowed on the beach which I think is a great idea.  Some of the watersport people were there, but I think that can be forgiven as their activities are water based.  There were even banana boat rides that you could do and they always seemed quite busy with people during the day. 

D’Mall is the main place where you will find what you need.  Like an outdoor shopping centre as such it runs from the main road that is parallel to the beach and travels the length of the island, all the way through to white beach and here you will find designer clothes, pharmacies, souvenir shops, travel agents, optical and dental services and upscale and budget restaurants and bars with happy hours, that run longer than an hour! 

 

Even though there are a lot of people around, the locals remember you.  I was walking along the beach on my last day and I do remember this guys as he tried to sell me a scuba (wrong person buddy) on my first day, and I was down the other end from where my hotel was and he said that I was staying at Le Soleil wasn’t I.  I said yes and he said if I still wanted to scuba I could (still the wrong person) but thanks for remembering me.  It still has that personal feel and if you are there longer than a couple of days then people do start to remember you and say hi.  This was a nice touch. 

So my 3 whole days in Boracay were amazing.

Breakfast was a little ordinary here at the hotel.  I seemed to pick the best time at around 9am, missing the early rush of deckchair hogs to the later arrival of our Korean friends at 9.30am.  I had got a bit of a routine happening where I would complete a blog (or 2) at night in my room and then I would bring my laptop down to breakfast, upload the blogs and the photos I had taken the previous day and that was the only light of day my laptop saw while I was here.  So my days were filled with beach walks and you will be happy to know that I applied SUNSCREEN each day as my skin had copped a flogging when I was in Mirissa in Sri Lanka and it had just finished peeling and even I knew I would be an idiot to go out without anything on.  Hands up who are proud of me!!!!  The beach always looked busy, but when you walked it didn’t seem as crowded as it first looked.  The northern end had hardly anyone up there when I went up there on my last day, so it was nice to get a photo of the beach with not many people on it.  There are local kids that hire out skimboards and they can be seen doing this all the way down the beach.  You basically throw a mini surfboard, thinner as well, on the small waves that hit the beach and then you jump on and go for a skim…..  It looks like it would take some practice and I saw more than a few people fall off when the board skid out from under them and they fell on their bottom. 

There seems to be a permanent black cloud that hovers down the south end of the beach on one of the surrounding mountains, but I have yet to see any rain.  The driver said when I had arrived it had rained all last week, but the weather was supposed to be okay for the days I was to be here.  I’m not sure what I would do if the weather turned sour as all the activities are outdoor save the massage places, but I am not really into them much.  Leisure activities available on or near Boracay include scuba diving, snorkeling, windsurfing, kiteboarding and cliff diving.  Boracay is the site of an 18-hole par 72 golf course designed by Graham Marsh.  Yeah, well I still wouldn’t know what to do.  There were kids on the beach that were

I was here in low season (rain predicted) so I knew that when I made a booking I just wanted to hope for the best.    My daily routine consisted of breakfast, uploading blogs and photos.  Out of the hotel by 11am, out and about till around2pm with lunch thrown in there somewhere, back to the hotel for a little rest and swim in the pool as it was so hot each day, with a book in hand I would float around in the pool for 2 hours back to the room for a small rest before heading out to what the sunset looked like for the day, I would then go to dinner while I was out and then head home around 8pm.  Not a bad little daily routine I have to say.  I don’t see any enjoyment going to a bar on your own and I really wasn’t in the mood for small talk with strangers, sometimes my whole story is complicated that you just can’t have a short version and for the daily activities I have done them all before (except scuba) but I sometimes think you need to do them with people you know to maximize the fun, I know it sounds weird, but people are so caught up in the excitement they don’t think to ask a single traveler if they want their photo or to chat to them and I think it takes away from the experience.  If there was something I really wanted to do I would do it in my own, I wouldn’t miss out but otherwise I was just here for relaxation this time.    

It rained 3 times while I was here and it was all at night time after 9pm. The good thing it seems it doesn’t last for long and so I think I may have been lucky with the weather while I was here.  Besides one night out of 4 I got some amazing sunset pictures.  It really is a true paradise here without all the bells and whistles of what small islands are normally like.  The atmosphere here was great, it had a great vibe and I know that if I had the chance I would definitely come back here again, with someone-if it be friends or for a romantic liaison, but I would come back for at least a week, maybe longer if you plan to do some of the activities. 

I spent 4 days in paradise and it was now time to face the world again tomorrow and to also do something that I have been thinking about for a while and putting off.  Knowing that I couldn’t do it anymore I have to face the cold hard facts with Zeme and my relationship and tomorrow was going to be the day. Ugh.  I feel sick.    

A CAR, A PLANE, A BUS, A FERRY AND A VAN DESTINATION BORACAY

WEATHER: Hot and 32C

HIGHLIGHT OF THE DAY: Arriving in paradise

BUMMER OF THE DAY: An effort to get to paradise-but worth it

WORD OF THE DAY: STUNNING

DISTANCE TRAVELLED: 844km

Today I head to the paradise they call Boracay.  I have seen some beautiful beaches in my time.  The Seychelles, Tanzania, Reunion Island, I mean Australia have amazing beaches.  But I have been told that Boracay is one step above.  Well we will see.  It is a bit of a drama to get to this paradise and I had in my head a peaceful haven, not many people (due to the rigmarole to get there) and palm trees and white sand beach.

I was able to have a leisurely start to the day as my flight was not till 2.05pm.  My transfer wasn’t till 11.30am and I was able to enjoy that monster buffet one last time.  It was hard as you don’t want to eat too much, but I even ate pasties, which I never have, but they looked so good and they tasted so good I just had to have 2 (mini size of course).  And I was hooked on with the siomai which are like little dumpling filled with pork/prawn/mushroom and steamed.  Nom, nom, nom, nom-they were delicious.  My driver was waiting for me at 11.30am and the drive to the airport took 45 minutes.  Traffic is a real issue, but I think part of the problem is the traffic lights take so long to change.  Their theory seems to be let more cars through in long changes than to have shorter changes.  Seriously you can wait up to 5-8 minutes per change.  I am not sure if that works for the flow of traffic, but then I am sure they do it for a reason. 

I was dropped at the airport and then after checking my ticket, my passport and my bags scanned I was in the terminal.  Cebu’s Airport is dated.  It reminds me of Darwin’s old airport back in the 80’s.  When I got to Cebu Pacific’s check-in counters they had their slide boards up and each line was for a particular destination.  The airport I was flying into was Caticlan and then I would be getting a ferry to the island of Boracay.  So I stood in the correct line and when I was next in line I started to pay attention to what was happening in front of me.  Once the check-in agent had taken bags, she would go to a computer at the next counter, do something, come back hand something to the passengers, some had to go in another line and others not and then before they left they had to stand on a set of scales with their hand luggage to be weighed.  MAN.  How big was this plane we were going on?  I checked where the scale display was and it was not pointing where everyone could see (thank goodness) and the thought of me getting on scales in front of some-one was horrifying but necessary.  When my turn came I went through the same procedure though I didn’t have to line up in the other line (looked like an excess baggage payment line) I was weighed and then I asked for a window seat, which was given no worries.  From here you had to pay a departure tax of 200 pesos, a ticket and ID check and then you were through to departures.  There were a few shops around and a few eat spots, but I had eaten a later breakfast and decided to just make my way down to my gate.  It was a ground floor departure, which always involves a bus transfer and we were called on time and once we drove to the plane it was an ATR74, propelled plane with a rear entrance and a 2x2 seat configuration.  I was sitting in the last row and sitting next to a small waif of a woman and my backpack just fit in the overhead.  It was a good day.

It was an hour’s flight from Cebu to Caticlan.  There weren’t any refreshments served but we did get the game ‘name that tune half way through the flight.  I do take off my ears to listen and the last one the Hostee gave a hint that it was going to be an English song for the western people (there were 4 of us on the flight) and I wasn’t fast enough, not that I didn’t know what it was, you would have to be dope not to when she started to sing Mama Mia…… Damn I could have won a Cebu Pacific bag.  Never mind.  I am so glad that I asked for a window seat.  It was a beautiful day flying over the ocean that would occasionally be dotted with deserted islands, some not.  The Philippines has over 7195 islands, only 3590 of them have names and over 2000 of them are inhabited.  I think we may have flown over 8. 

Well as we were in the very last seats of the plane, we were first off after we arrived at 2.45pm.  We had to walk across the tarmac, we are in the tropics now, and as we entered the terminal building we had to register our details at the information counter.  The airport was tiny and 5m away was the baggage carousel and 5 minutes later my bag was out.  I walked out of the terminal and there was a guy with my name on a board, so my bag was taken, a sticker of the hotel where I was staying slapped onto my shirt and I was escorted to an air-conditioned minibus.  The itinerary was very wishy washy on the exact details of what would happen, what taxes I had to pay and how far things were etc….  I was just being reliant that all would go to plan and if I got stuck I would ask some-one.  Typically on an island, everyone knows everyone and what is happening and worst case scenario I had the mobile to the office in Manila if I got super stuck.  We only had to wait for 6 more passengers and then we were transferred the 2 minutes to the ferry terminal.  It really wasn’t far, a little embarrassing really, but if people had big luggage and the heat was pretty bad, so I guess I will just stick with the transfer, but you could seriously walk it in 8 minutes. 

Once we arrived at the ferry terminal it looked like an organized chaos.  It was busy.  There was security, porters, food sellers, tourists, locals, transfers coming and going…….The guy that had the board with my name on it, passed our small group to another guy with a walkie talkie who was to guide us through security where our bags got scanned and then told us we had to pay an environmental and admission fee of 75pesos and a terminal fee of 100pesos.  After I had given him 200 pesos, he told us to take a seat and went and purchased all the tickets and paid the fees for us and was back in 10 minutes.  He went to give my 25pesos back, but I told him to keep it, he earned it.  So we than passed through the payment check, the ferry pass check and then we were out on the dock and being escorted onto a rather shabby looking boat they call ‘fast ferry’.  This thing looked lucky it was able to float.  But I am now on the islands and this is how they roll.  So we walked a dodgy plank to get onto the boat, which in its favor had air-conditioning and it was grab a seat and wait till departure as we bobbed up and down with the swell.  Luckily I don’t get sea sickness that much (thinking back to the Isle of Harris ferry crossing) we had about 20 more people board and then we lifted anchor…well the plank and we were on our way for the 10 minute ride to the actual island of Boracay.  I am SO glad that I didn’t have my monster bag, it really would have been a pain in the bottom and I think it would have taken a toll on my arm.  I really couldn’t see much out of my window as they had that window tint that was applied like 100 years ago and people had tried to pick it and it was like looking through a pair of beer goggles. 

Everything you read about Boracay is that there are different ferry stations.  Depending on where you stay is dependent on what ferry station you get off at.  We were given a small tourist book on Boracay as we headed through the ferry terminal and it still had that information in it as correct.  But when we got to the first stop and everyone was looking at each other to see who was to get off here we all got the word that we all had to get off.  Okay, not going to argue and once we had got on the pier at Boracay there was a guy in a Le Soleil uniform waiting for me.  Talk about a military precision of 5 people making your arrival all go smoothly.  From the board guy, to the ticket guy, to the ferry guy to the pickup guy you are continually being met by people who are where they should be and it was quite a nice feeling.  I asked the transfer guy about the station stops and he said that they don’t do that anymore, there is just this stop on the other side of the island as no boats are now allowed on the White Sand Beach (main beach) of the island.  We had a 15 minute drive to the resort from here.

So driving through the small villages and the shops where the locals shop, we turned down a small beach road 20 minutes later.  We stopped in the lane and I was told that due to the new restrictions they weren’t allowed to drive on the beach road anymore and there was a security guy waiting for us to walk me the 8 minutes to the hotel.  Again another link in the chain all working smoothly getting me into the hotel at 4.15pm.  I was able to see the beach clear as day as we walked along the sandy path.  All the hotel entrances face the ocean and with outdoor tables set up for dining (joined to the hotel) there was nothing else blocking out that view.  All the hotels are literally 5m from the front doors.  I could see the aquamarine blue glinting with the beautiful white sand.  Once I had checked in I asked reception for directions to the closest supermarket and decided to have a little look around.  I was actually also a little relived that there was no Wi-Fi in the hotel rooms.  I needed to have a break from 24 hour access and what a better way to do it than not having a connection.  They had it in the restaurant downstairs, so I as I was passing through I would quickly check and then be on my way again.  Now who ever would have thought they would have heard me say that!

The main area is called ‘White Beach’ (for obvious reasons) and this is where 85% of the accommodation is located.  There are stacks of restaurants of all standards, people selling ‘fake’ pearls, small bead stalls, femo looking pens looked all the rage, massages on offer and Henna tattoo seems to be all the rage for the Koreans from first look.  People are just walking around in their beach wear and the whole place just had an amazing vibe.  The main shopping/eatery section is called D’Mall and with my impression of a mall as such it was an open air shopping/eating district with anything you wanted you could get it from here.  I found the supermarket no problems and stocked up on some goodies for the 4 days.  I got some biscuits, found some camembert, bought a bottle of Boracay Rum (coconut flavor) for 3AUD and that was for a LITRE and the berry juice I bought to mix with it was the same price-CRAZY!!!!  I also invested in some SUNSCREEN (I know don’t fall off your chairs) and I also bought 2 bowls of 2 minute noodles as a backup for dinner or lunch to save some money and if I didn’t want to go out, I had a meal.  So with snacks in hand I headed back to the hotel and then not wanting to waste a sunset, I sat on the beach at 5.15pm and watched my first Boracay sunset and it was brilliant.  I have said that it is unusual to see a sunset over water, I saw one in Galle, in Sri Lanka, and now in the Philippines I see another one.  Looking up and down the beach there looks like there are thousands of people and that shocked me, as I really thought this was a secluded, not many people come here type of place.  WRONG.  But as I walked further up the beach even though looking it looked like a lot of people, when you walk it doesn’t fell crowded at all.  There were still people in the water after 6pm, kids building sandcastles, Frisbees being thrown, a lot of people also enjoying the sunset and a lot of people also walking the beach. 

It was a magic way to end what was quite a busy day.  It certainly isn’t the easiest place to get to.

A transfer in Cebu to the airport

The flight from Cebu to Caticlan

A mini bus transfer from the airport to the ferry terminal

The 10 minute ferry ride

The transfer from the ferry to the hotel district

The 8 minute walk from the van to the actual hotel

And even after all that it is totally worth it.  I didn’t see too many western people around, a lot of Koreans and Japanese.  It makes me wonder why there aren’t more Australians here with direct services from Australia to Manila; you think that wouldn’t be too much of an effort and certainly not as far as our European friends travel.  Either way, if you get a chance to visit-DO IT.  I can see why it is ranked one of the top 10 beaches in the world. PARADISE-and I am here for 4 glorious nights.

    

DAY 527-A MUCH DESERVED DAY OF REST

WEATHER: Hot and 30C

HIGHLIGHT OF THE DAY: The breakfast buffet

BUMMER OF THE DAY: Can't think of a single thing

WORD OF THE DAY: Office day  

BUDDHA QUOTE FOR THE DAY:

Work out your own salvation. Do not depend on others. 

FINALLY, a day off.  The last 5 days have been full on.

We travelled from Galle to Colombo-full day

I flew 19 hours to get from Colombo to Manila

I had a half day tour and then a flight to Cebu-full day

I had a half day city tour of Cebu

And lastly possibly the longest day tour ever of 16.5 hours to Bohol

FINALLY, a day off and what was I going to do with that day?  SFA.  That is what.  The only time I had to keep today was I had to be at breakfast by 10am.  Lucky I still set my alarm for 8.45am as I think I may have just slept through past 10am and trust me you wouldn’t want to miss a breakfast like the one that the Marco Polo throws each morning.  It is a MONSTER.  There is a bakery station, not a table, a whole station.  There is a hot food station, not a table, a station.  There was an Asian station, not a table but a station.  There was a fruit station, not a table, but a station.  There was a cold salad/meat station, not a table, a station; there was a juice bar with 7 different juices and a small cereal bar as well.  I’m telling you I have seen some buffet’s in my life time but this one takes the cake. 

I had my IPod with me and my Contiki Husband was online, so we stated to chat via Facebook and he told me to jump onto Skype.  Well Kate had downloaded Skype on my IPod when I was in South America but I had never used it and then when I was in Las Vegas, Tippy’s 12 year old son made me a new account, but I had never used it.  So this was the first time that I would be jumping on and after Marc found me, I finished breakfast, headed back to my room and before I knew it we had been chatting for an HOUR and it was all FREE!!!  Can you believe that!  What an amazing invention.  Why haven’t I been using it before now?  It really wouldn’t help with my communication with Zeme and the internet connection in Ethiopia is crap anyway and from last I knew Skype was illegal in the country as the only phone company, government owned, was losing money with people using it and hence made it illegal, because they can I suppose.  But I could have kept in better contact with the Elkins and spoken to the girls more, but texting suited us better with the time difference most times in my defence.  But no use thinking about that now, I can’t change it, but I am now on Skype and my name to find me is Berniezeme if anyone wants to hook up.  It was great to have a chat to some-one, I have missed that and even though today is a new day, I need to have a serious think about things and I am now a little more positive.  I really am in a difficult place and I am just not sure how it can be fixed. 

I spoke to Zeme today.  I still try and phone him once a week when I can.  The Filipino telecommunications don’t seem too expensive.  I topped up the mobile I was given from the gift shop downstairs and I spoke to Zeme for 20 minutes for a cost of 12AUD and trust me that is a great rate.  I checked with the business center on how much a call would call to Ethiopia and they quoted 2AUD a minute, which again from a 5 star hotel room I didn’t think that was too bad either.  It is always great to hear his voice.  The early afternoon was spent watching a movie and getting a blog written, I am nearly out of Sri Lanka and when I am writing nearly a week behind, even though I hate being that far back, it is always nice to relive what was such a great tour.  I also made this an office day.  I had emails I had to respond to, a few bills to pay and Facebook messages to reply to.  I also emailed my storage guys to see what was involved in getting my container out and delivered for a week or so for me to go through it and they replied back saying they can’t deliver, but I am more than welcome to go through it at the depot.  The more I think about it the more I think I will need a small storage unit, just to put a few things that I will not be able to toss out yet, like some of my mums stuff and some personal items.  I know I have a lot of crap and it can all be replaced, so I am just going to have to work out what will be the easiest way to get rid of it all.  Facebook and try and sell crap-give it away-give it to Vinnie’s.  I won’t have a lot of time on my side and it is starting to stress me out a little, but until I know what is in there, I guess there is no point in worrying about it till I get home.  But it will be a MASSIVE job. 

I needed a break from the computer and it was 4pm and time to eat.  So I had a late lunch downstairs by the pool with no IPod and no computer and just took my book downstairs to just chillax with no gadgets.  The staff here has been amazing and they are very attentive.  I got a margarita for 4.50AUD which again for a 5 star hotel is really a great price, so I had 2, ate my lunch and read my book for a few hours downstairs.  It was nice, it wasn’t too hot and the great to hear children laughing, playing in the pool.  Life just keeps on ticking by, no matter what is happening in your life and you need to just suck it up and keep on moving or you can let it get you down and make you a real misery.  I am always a bouncer, but when you are just not so sure of what lies ahead for your future it can be a little disconcerting, but I think I am back on track now, some decisions to be made, but there is now rush at this point for that and I just need to make sure that I enjoy the last of my travels, look forward to going home for Christmas and then things will hopefully seem clearer. 

What a great was to spend the day.  I am off to Boracay tomorrow and from what I have heard I am expecting BIG things.  My skin has just recovered from my sunburn I got in Sri Lanka so a little R&R on one of the most beautiful beaches in the world sounds right up my alley. 

      

TODAY I MET THE WORLDS SMALLEST PRIMATE-BOHOL

WEATHER: Hot and 31C

HIGHLIGHT OF THE DAY: Seeing the tiny Tarsier-they were SO cute

BUMMER OF THE DAY: It was the longest day tour EVER=15.5 hours

WORD OF THE DAY: Prony the Python

DISTANCE TRAVELLED: 90km

I had a full day tour to Bohol today and it better be worth it with a 4am pick-up.  I had the agency in Manila phone me yesterday on the phone they gave me, to reconfirm that they had reconfirmed with the tour company in Cebu the pickup time and checked that everything was okay.  It is a nice touch and nice to know that they have the finger on the pulse.  So with the alarm going off at 3.30am-I showered and changed and was in the lobby at 3.55am.  I checked with reception about my take away breakfast, which was on its way up and I sat and waited for my transfer….and waited…..and waited…and waited….  It was 4.30am and I was about to get reception to make a call for me when my guy walked in through the door.  I couldn’t hold my tongue and said that he was supposed to be here at 4am and he said no, 4.30am and when we got into the van he showed me his piece of paper that said 4.30am.  Well my piece of paper says 4am, but I am not going to shoot the messenger, it’s not like he was late, he was just told a different time.  Well the comedy of errors continued when we arrived at the port 10 minutes later, making it 4.40am for a 6am ferry departure.  I really don’t think I needed to be collected from the hotel till at least 5am if not a little later, so I now had 1 hour and 20 minutes to sit at the ferry terminal.  I was dropped at the front gate (car wasn’t allowed in) and then was told I would be picked up at 8pm tonight. Ummmm where do I go, is the piece of paper with my confirmation all I need?  I am lucky that I am a switched on traveler and I am not afraid to ask people for directions.  So I made my way to the first ‘official’ ticket window I could see which was across the carpark and into the building and didn’t I feel like a dorky tourist with my ‘take away’ breakfast box in one hand a lost look on my face.  But I asked, and was told to keep going through to the next room.  I felt a little wary, it was a working dock, it wasn’t well lit and there were a few characters floating around.  So I followed the directions to another desk further in and they pointed me to the check-in counter that wasn’t even OPEN yet, that’s how early I was!  I only had to wait till 5am and the counter opened and I stood in line and got my boarding pass and followed the crowds into the waiting room.  I used this opportunity to get rid of my stupid breakfast box but I do have to say it’s the best one I have ever had, ever.  There was a can of pineapple juice in there, a bottle of water, scrambled eggs, 2 sausages, 2 pastries and some rice.  Now THAT is a breakfast box!!! 

The ferry started boarding at 5.40am.  I was in no rush as we had seat numbers allocated to us, but I could see a sign that said Tagbilaran, so I knew I was getting on the right ferry.  The gang plank down to the boat was so steep that I nearly needed some help getting down, but I made it and as my seat was near the door, I could see that just about everyone needed help getting down that thing.  My seat was in the first row where everyone had to walk to get to their seats and I was in the middle of the boat-no window.  So when the doors closed for departure, it wasn’t a full ferry so I moved to a seat that had a window, it had less leg room and after I had squeezed in the window had been tinted, oh I rekon around 50 years ago and then people have tried to pick some of it off and you officially couldn’t see too much out of the damn thing.  Oh well, I couldn’t take pictures, but I could see a little.  As it worked out pretty much the second I put in my earphones, I fell asleep with the slight rock of the boat and woke up 20 minutes before arriving in Bohol.  That was a great way to kill 2 hours!!!  We arrived into Bohol at 8.30am and my guide was waiting there for me with my name on a sign.  So I have a diver today Mark and my guides name is Deboy.  I’m not sure what it is, but the second we got to the car, Deboy was firing questions at me, and I just don’t like it.  Our first stop was at the Sandugo Monument.  The Sandugo was a blood compact, performed in the island of Bohol between the Spanish explorer Miguel López de Legazpi and Datu Sikatunathe chieftain of Bohol on March 16, 1565, to seal their friendship as part of the tribal tradition. This is considered as the first treaty of friendship between the Spaniards and Filipinos. "Sandugo" is a Visayan word which means "one blood".  The Sandugo is depicted in both the provincial flag and the official seal of the government in Bohol.  It also features the image of the blood compact. The top of the seal explains the history behind the Sandugo event that occurred in Bohol, the fleet and the location where the Spaniards anchored and the place where the treaty was conducted which was dated on March 16, 1565.

We then drove for 20 minutes and stopped at the Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception in Baclayon.  It is considered to be one of the oldest churches in the Philippines. It is also one of the best persevered Jesuit build churches in the region; although in the 19th century, the Augustinian Recollects added a modern facade and a number of stone buildings that now surround the church. The first Spanish missionaries or doctrineros in the region, Fr. Juan de Torres and Fr. Gabriel Sanchez, first settled in Baclayon in 1595. Shortly after their arrival, a visita was erected on the spot. Although Baclayon was the first seat of the Spanish Jesuit missionaries, fear of Moro mauraders soon forced them to move their headquarters more inland, to Loboc. Only in 1717, Baclayon became a parish, and construction of a new church commenced. Some 200 native forced laborers constructed the church from coral stones, which they took from the sea, cut into square blocks, and piled on to each other. They used bamboo to move and lift the stones in position, and used the white of a million eggs as to cement them together. The current building was completed in 1727. The church obtained a large bell in 1835. In the Baclayon church is a dungeon, which was used to punish natives who violated the rules of the Roman Catholic Church.  We visited the museum next to the church which was the old convent and now houses a small museum with centuries-old religious relics, artifacts and other antiquities, dating back to the 16th century. Included in the collection are an ivory statue of the crucified Christ looking towards heaven; a statue of the Blessed Virgin, said to be presented by Queen Catherine of Aragon; relics of St. Ignatius of Loyola, old gold embroidered ecclesiastical vestments, books with carabao skin covers, and librettos of church music written in Latin on sheep skins. Here you can also find the cuadro paintings made by the Filipino painter Liberato Gatchalian in 1859.  It was pretty interesting, and trust me I have seen some churches in my travels.

The highlight of the day for me was a visit to see the Philippine Tarsier.  It is an endangered species of tarsier endemic to the Philippines.  It is found in the southeastern part of the archipelago, particularly in the islands of Bohol, Samar,Leyte and Mindanao.  We visited the Tarsier Sanctuary in Corella.  Despite the protection status of the Philippine tarsier, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources has granted special limited permits for this display of the Philippine tarsier in Loboc. Here, tourists can see the Philippine tarsier up close and personal and take pictures, but are not allowed to touch them as they live in their natural environment.  There are 10 Tarsiers they have at the moment, they are free to come and go as they please even though there is a fence surrounding the ‘compound’ as such.

It is a member of the approximately 45 million year old family Tarsiidae.  Its elongated "tarsus," or ankle bone, which gives the tarsier its name, allows it to jump at least three meters from tree to tree without having to touch the ground.  The Philippine tarsier is not a large animal; it measures only about 85 to 160 millimeters in height, making it one of the smallest primates. The mass for males is between 80–160 g usually lighter for females.  The average adult is about the size of a human fist and will fit very comfortably in the human hand.  In comparison with his body size, the eyes of the tarsier are enormous. In volume, the capacity of the bony eye orbits, or eye sockets, is larger than that of the brain case, and also larger than its stomach. The eyes are disproportionately large, having the largest eye-to-body size ratio of all mammals. These huge eyes provide this nocturnal animal with excellent night vision. 

The Philippine tarsier's habitat includes tropical rainforest with dense vegetation and trees that offer it protection like tall grasses, bushes and bamboo shoots. It prefers dense, low-level vegetation in secondary forests, with perching sites averaging 2 meters above the ground.  Early studies showed that the Philippine tarsier has a home range of 1 to 2 hectares, but more recent research shows that home ranges averaged 6.45 hectares for males and 2.45 hectares for females allowing for a density of 16 male and 41 female tarsiers per 100 ha.  Research findings also show that while both male and female tarsiers are solitary animals, they cross each other's paths under the cover of nightfall as they hunt for prey. They travel up to one and a half kilometers across the forest and the optimal area is more than six hectares.  The Philippine tarsier is amberous. Primarily insectivorous, its diet consists of live insects and it has also been observed to feed on spiders, small crustaceans, and small vertebrates such as small lizards and birds. The Philippine tarsier is a shy nocturnal animal that leads a mostly hidden life, asleep during the day and only active to look for food during the night. During the day, it sleeps in dark hollows close to the ground, near the trunks of trees and shrubs deep in the impenetrable bushes and forests. They only become active at night, and even then, with their much better sight and amazing ability to maneuver around trees, are very well able to avoid humans.  It is arboreal and is a vertical clinger and leaper, habitually clinging vertically to trees and is capable of leaping from branch to branch.

The Philippine Tarsier is solitary. However, it is found to have either monogamous or polygamous mating system where for one night they will meet to mate and then they go their separate ways again for another 12 months.  The Philippine tarsier's pregnancy or gestation period lasts about 6 months. Mating season begins in April to May.  The female gives birth to one offspring per gestation. The infant is born with a lot of hair and born with its eyes open. The females carry their infants in their mouth. A new born can already cling to branches and in less than a month after birth, it can start leaping.  The Philippine tarsier reproduces poorly in captivity.  There is no known negative impact of the Philippine tarsier on humans, just as long as it is in its native environment. However, when kept as pets, there is a possibility that the species may spread worms and other parasites to their human owners.  Tarsiers used to be kept as pets or sold for trade, although their survival in captivity is erratic due to their need for live insects upon which to feed.  The tarsier does not do well in captivity. Its life expectancy is shortened from anywhere from 2 years (if taken from the wild) to 12 years, as compared to the 24 years the tarsier can live to in the wild. The tarsier can develop sore eyes, which is an indication of a poor diet. Also the lighting usually used in captivity can cause long lasting damage to the eyes.  Another reason why the tarsier does not do well in captivity is its tendency to “commit suicide”. Because the tarsier can be described as shy and nervous many activities associated with captivity (such as camera flashes, being touched and being in an enclosure) stress the Philippine Tarsier. This leads to the tarsier hitting its head against “objects” which kills it because of the thin skull. 

For the past 45 million years, tarsiers have inhabited rainforests around the world, but now they only exist on a few islands in the Philippines, Borneo and Indonesia.  In Bohol, the Philippine tarsier was a common sight in the southern part of the island until the 1960s. Since then, the number has dwindled to as few as an estimated 1000 still left in the wild.  Once protected by the humid rainforests and mist-shrouded hills, these mysterious primates struggle to survive as their home is cleared for crop growing.  Due to the quickly growing human population, which causes more and more forests to be converted to farmland, housing areas and roads, the place where the Philippine tarsier can live its secluded life is disappearing.

So when we arrived there was a guide that was to take us around the one-hectare netted enclosure that is the home of ten tarsiers. These tarsiers are for both public viewing and study. The tarsiers are free to leave the enclosure to hunt and roam within the larger area of the Sanctuary.  The great thing for us is they must track the little fellas each morning so when the visitors come they know exactly where to take us to observe these little guys.  It was like when we trekked with the gorillas in Rwanda, but on a smaller scale.  So it didn’t take long for us to walk along a dry mud path, through a few tree fronds and there was our first little tarsier.  They were so cute and at first look with his eyes open he looked like a little Gremlin and then when they got sleepy and started to close his eyes he looked like Yoda from Star Wars.  I was literally standing 1.5m away from him and he was not worried at scared or skittish at all with our presence.  He heard a noise of some sort (not from us) and I got a first-hand view of his head doing the 180 degree turn, with his big boogly eyes looking around.  Seriously you just want to reach and touch them, if though you never would ever.  We then moved onto a female tarsier and her baby and there wasn’t much size difference between them and then we saw one more male tarsier further in the sanctuary, so we didn’t do too bad seeing 4 out of the 10 possibilities.  Really, during the day they are so adorable.  Once we were out of the netted enclosure, I watched a 10 minute video on the critter and at night time when they are roaming looking for food they are a lot scarier than what they are during the day!  They are starting to sound more and more like Gremlins.  But what a highlight and I wasn’t disappointed. 

I think we may have been ahead of schedule as Mark has been driving like Miss Daisy all morning and after the video Deboy asked if I wanted to get on a ferry that left at 4.20pm rather than the 6pm ferry.  With the journey time of 2.5 hours and I still get to do the whole itinerary it was a resounding yes please.  I think it goes to show how much faff time they add to itineraries and generally by nature I am not a faffer.  Our next stop before lunch was the Bohol Butterfly Sanctuary. The great thing about this tour so far was every time we stopped there was a local guide to take me around and explain things, it is nice to see that the love is being shared and that me visiting is helping more than one person and keeping people employed.  So I got a local ‘crew’ member from the sanctuary that not only showed me butterflies but they also gave a lecture on how butterflies are being formed (metamorphosis), how long do they live, difference between moth and butterfly, difference between male and female butterflies and many more information regarding butterflies.  I have been to butterfly houses before, but this one was done exceptionally well and I got to hold a real caterpillar and I also got to hold the largest caterpillar that turns into the largest moth in the world aka the Atlas Moth.  I was so…yik and ah and yick and ah but I held that massive green thing in my hand and then for good measure she put another one on there!!  Why not they must have been 10cm long and as round as a fat sausage.  It was disgusting but cool all at the same time.  I then got to see some butterflies that had just hatched out of their cocoons that morning.  COOL.  From here we walked into the netted enclosure and here we found several kinds of butterflies of different sizes and colors. As the butterflies have been born in captivity they are pretty social things and didn’t mind getting picked up and put in my hair for a photo and then popped on the face for good measure and then on the shirt.  They didn’t try and flap away or anything.  It was amazing and THAT has never been done before.  About one-third of the 915 butterflies found in the Philippines are endemic to the country.  One of the largest butterflies in the world and the largest in the Philippines, the Magellan Birdwing can be found here. The largest moth, the Atlas moth, can be found in the Philippines as well.  My ‘crew’ lady asked why I was travelling on my own and firstly I thought what was the short answer to that and it was a very good question.  It was a great stop and now it was time for lunch.

Lunch was to be spent on a floating restaurant that departs from the town of Loboc.  We boarded the boat at 11.30am and our buffet lunch was ready to be served.  There were several other groups on board and I was wondering where I would get seated and I had a table to myself as my guide sat with the other guides for lunch.  I was fine with this, but there were times that he would see me taking a self -take photo and wouldn’t even offer to take a photo, which I thought was poor form and there were several times through the morning that he was on his mobile phone while I was waiting.  That makes me mad.  But the cruise was relaxing; the colour of the water was a beautiful ‘Tiffany’ blue.  There were around another 5-7 floating restaurants on the water, but they seemed to time them all that they didn’t all leave at the same time.  We departed at 12 noon for the 1 hour cruise down to the Busay Falls and back again.  The floor of the boat was made from bamboo and if you had something fine, like a chain or a credit card it would have slipped through the cracks between the bamboo sticks.  I was wondering how much weight you could put on them with me walking around taking photos?  I decided to not risk it and walked on the cross struts when I could.  Imagine if I feel through- now that would be embarrassing.  We had live music in the form of a guy singing with an electric guitar and he was good, good enough to pass the time.  It was pure magic, the tall coconut trees over hanging the wide Loboc River.  Half way down the river we stopped to see some local dancing and music of about 20 people, we tipped them and then we turned around at the falls and then made our way back.  It is so lush and green here and it was a great way to spend lunch.     

There were 2 more stops of the day before I had to get back to the ferry terminal.  Once was on the itinerary and the other was an extra if I was interested in stopping off to see the biggest python in captivity.  Deboy was making out that I would be holding the damn thing, and he told me I have to face my fears, so I said okay we could stop to have a look at the python on the way back to port.  But I could put that off a little longer as out next stop was The Chocolate Hills.  They are an unusual geological formation in Bohol.  There are at least 1,260 hills but there may be as many as 1,776 hills spread over an area of more than 50 square kilometers.  They are covered in green grass that turns brown (like chocolate) during the dry season, hence the name.  I was there in the wet season, so they were beautiful and green, so it was hard to picture them brown, but what an amazing sight all the same.  They are featured in the provincial flag and seal to symbolize the abundance of natural attractions in the province.  They are in the Philippine Tourism Authority's list of tourist destinations in the Philippines and they have been declared the country's third National Geological Monument and proposed for inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List.  The Chocolate Hills form a rolling terrain of haycock hills – mounds of a generally conical and almost symmetrical shape.  Estimated to be from 1,268 to about 1,776 individual mounds, these cone-shaped or dome-shaped hills are actually made of grass covered limestone. The domes vary in sizes from 30 to 50 meters high with the largest being 120 meters in height. These unique mound-shaped hills are scattered by the hundreds throughout the towns of Carmen, Batuan and Sagbayan.  During the dry season, the grass-covered hills dry up and turn chocolate brown. This transforms the area into seemingly endless rows of "chocolate kisses". The branded confection is the inspiration behind the name, Chocolate Hills.

There is a government owned viewing station located in Carmen called the "Chocolate Hills Complex".  The Complex has a restaurant, hotel with swimming pool and an observation deck.  This is where we climbed to the top to get a magnificent view of the hills.  The deck is 64m above the ground and there were a total of 214 steps leading to the observation or view deck.   Deboy warned me prior to getting here there were 214 steps and I had to conceal a laugh.  Yeah I may not look fit pal but that will be a walk in the park after my 1200 step at Sigiriya or the 22km I walked through tea plantations, so 214 steps are nothing AND once we started the climb, it was him puffing more than me-HA I say. Ha.  Once at the top we could view the landscape that was covered with more than a thousand Chocolate Hills that offered a 360-degree panorama of the surrounding area.  It was magic up here, my only concern was there seemed to be a storm brewing which adds colour and definition to photos but there was some lightning that started to flash across the sky and with a large antenna on the same hill as us, it was time for us to move on back down to some safety.  Seriously the strikes were really not that far away from us and I am glad that Deboy was holding the umbrella, not up of course but less metal for me to carry the better I say!

So it was time for the 45 minute drive back to town with a stop at the Reptile Park.  I was seriously worried I was going to hold this snake, like Pops did when we were at Sigiriya, but then when I saw the python in the 3mx10m cage I knew that I wasn’t here to life the thing.  My first reaction was NO WAY.  This snake was MASSIVE.  Seriously it was HUGE and the plan was to get in the cage with it.  The python’s name is Prony.  She is a female and is reputed to have one of the longest 10m and heaviest 300 kg python in captivity.  Prony is known to be the biggest python in captivity ever.  Named after its captor, the python has caught the attention of many local and foreign tourists, not only for its size but particularly on how it has been fed. Feeding is done during full moon, so thank goodness I was there during the middle of the month!!!!  Anyway the plan was for me to get in the large cage; it was the size of a small room and gets my photo taken with her.  She was all coiled up with her massive head resting on herself in the middle of the coil.  I was actually terrified and Deboy had to go in first and stood next to her and she didn’t move an inch.  I said I am not sure I could go in, and the handler and Deboy both egging me on, telling me to conquer my own fear, I decided they were right and I stood next to her, but behind her head so that she couldn’t see me.  Deboy had my camera and told me to kneel down next to her, so I went on my knees, he took the picture and then I was out of there.

We got back to the ferry terminal at 3.45pm.  Deboy made sure I got my newly changed ticket ok and walked me to the departures hall.  I had tipped Mark before I left the car and even though I wasn’t totally happy with Deboy, the good in me tipped him the whole amount.  So our ferry was supposed to leave at 4.20pm, but was late in arriving in so I had some more time in the departure lounge.  There were plenty of seats to choose from and the chairs looked like they belonged next to a pool or on a beach, they literally looked like sun chairs.  At least they were comfortable.  I still hadn’t seen many western tourists and even looking around the hall, there would have been a handful out of the 200 people.  I knew I wasn’t going to get back to the hotel till about 7.30pm, so I bought some siomai (small dumplings) and a bak pau (Indonesian) - pork in a dough type thing and they are delicious.  This would do me for dinner and I could have a great big breakfast tomorrow morning.  So we finally bordered the ferry at 4.45pm and no flies on the ferry guys, once everyone was on board they closed up and we were on our way.  This ferry was just about full and I was lucky that this time I was allocated a window AND we were on a new ferry.  There was a flat screen TV, air vents and it was all shiny and new.  I couldn’t sleep, even though I had been up now for 14 hours.  So I read my book, played solitaire and listened to some tunes.  It was a smooth ride and when we got back to Cebu my morning’s driver was there with a sign with my name and 30 minutes later I was back at the hotel.  I was knackered.  It was a massive day, it was good as it kept me busy and after trying to complete another blog before bed, I just had to give up and turn in for the night.  I have a free day tomorrow and I plan on doing nothing, as the last 5 days have been insane and it will be nice to not be somewhere for the day-oh besides breakfast, but I have until 10am to get there.