Wanderlust Heaven!

Last night in Dumaguete – redux.  Spent most of it hanging out at Mike’s diveshop, along with the usual eclectic mix:  Rudi the German divemaster and weblord…John the IT geek from Montana…his uncle, with his young Filipina girlfriend…his cousin, a banker based in Shanghai…and a couple Filipina university students.  Had a few beers there, teasing Mike about the ‘ambience’ of his bar – a couple nights beforehand, Steve had dissed the ambience of the diveshop, saying it was too loud (it’s right on the boulevard, so it is a bit boisterous) and Mike had taken offense – so this was now a running joke.

Moved on to Garaje, a student-type of hangout, for a few more.  Mike expounded on life in the Philippines, then headed home.  The rest of us wound up at Whynot Disco, where I got to know one of the Filipina uni students, Christine, a bit better.  Delightful lass – am staying in touch with her and we might meet again one of these days.

Got up the next morning, packed, stopped by the diveshop to say bye to Mike, then caught a bus back to Cebu.  Yet another great time in Dumaguete – probably my favorite spot in the country.

Uneventful bus ride – with some very sweet views as we went across the straits, then drove up the east side of Cebu Island.  I was the only gringo on the bus and that was fine by me.

Checked into Kiwi Lodge, where I’ve spent many a night.  Most of the staff was still there, lots of familiar faces.  Had a beer at the long bar there and caught a bit of the news – heard that there were 128 US military suicides last year, the most ever recorded in a year.  Ugh.  Not only has this war exceeded the duration of either World War, but now it’s proved more dispiriting than Vietnam.  Thanks, George…

Hit a couple bars that night, including Club Temptation.  I knew a waitress there, and we hung out for a while.  After she finished work we went over to another bar to visit her sister – lots of sister acts in Cebu.  Saw a news program in there, the heat in South Australia’s been so bad that railways have actually buckled.  Worst heat in a century – my timing for my Oz trip wasn’t looking great.

Meanwhile, the weather in the RP has been terrific, it’s just a bit before the summer heat comes on, and at night it’s perfect.  For the locals, of course, it’s damn cold…

Got up early the next morning and faced a long day.  First, had to fly to Manila…then had a layover there…next, a flight to Legaspi, and finally a ride to Donsol, on the southeast Luzon coast.  I was heading there, finally, to snorkel with the famed butanding (whale sharks) that abound there.  Had been meaning to do this for years, and was finally getting to it.  I left Cebu quite tired, but also excited.

Got to Manila.  Cebu Pacific, my airline, is the only outfit currently using the new Terminal 3, and the place is a bit of a ghost town.  But all the employees are cloyingly nice, and in the bathrooms (‘comfort rooms’) the cleaners drop tools and morph into attendants, giving you a handtowel and expecting a tip.  Not my thing, but wasn’t surprised either.

Flew to Legaspi.  On my flight were a few Westerners, and as we were waiting for our packs I introduced myself and asked if they were going on to Donsol.  I was in a hurry – the Donsol Visitor Center closed at 5 p.m., it was 2:30 or so, and Donsol was at least an hour away.  There are jeepneys headed there, but they’re packed and slow…and I was hoping to share a minivan with a few tourists, and get there quickly and in some comfort.  Found two Slovenes and two Germans, and we got a van and off we went.  Easy enough.  You can arrange package tours to Donsol from Legaspi, but I much prefer to base myself right in the area of attraction and do it myself, even when it’s a pain at the start of the venture.

The Europeans proved to be good fun.  Hiko, one of the Germans, had spent a year in the States as a teenager, and experienced Hurrican Hugo in Charleston, a real event.  He and his girlfriend, Vivi, are doctors, and gentle souls…we got to be quite friendly during our few days together.  The Slovenes were also cool, but a bit more reserved.

Got to my hotel, Woodland.  The Euros decided to stay at Amor Farms, a bit down the road.  I dropped my stuff and headed to the Visitor Center, where I paid my park fee, watched a video about the whale sharks, and put in my name for an excursion the following morning.  Done.  Took a long walk on the beach, and eventually doubled back, finding the Euros watching the video at the center.  Despite my slight anxiety about making this all happen, it was already done.

Lots of little kids on the beach – for them, I was a real novelty.  Donsol is a major tourist spot, but it seems Westerners are still new to them.  Hanging out with the kiddies was a real experience…

I was excited about the whale shark excursion – friends Alan and Janine had done it back in 2007 and had raved about it.  Not sure why I hadn’t gotten to this, but whenever I come to the RP I have some friends to visit and some places I don’t want to forgo…so I only manage to get to one or two new spots each trip.

Took a long nap that afternoon – was happy to be away from big cities and even from friends, I’d felt fairly busy the past couple weeks.  Finished my New Yorker magazines, finally, and could now start reading books again and watching a few of the DVDs I’d been stacking up.

Tried to ring Christine in Dumaguete, but the network was spotty and I couldn’t get through.  Eventually wandered down to the beach, where the signal’s strongest, and had a good chat with her.  We’ll see where this one goes…

Got up at 6 the next morning, had a fatty Filipino breakfast, then walked to the Visitor Center.  I was the first of our group there – the Germans were 3 minutes late (a felony in Germany, I believe), and the Slovenes were downright tardy, they were a good half-hour late.  I was annoyed…I’d heard that you want to get out early to see the butanding, and I only had this day and the next, so I felt a bit squeezed.  The Slovenes did turn up, and we were assigned to Randy, the ‘Butanding Interaction Officer’ (BIO) and a boat/crew.  One of the crew stands atop the mast and spots the butanding, then you pile into the ocean and try to follow it.

We spotted a butanding about 15 minutes after taking off.  This was a short ‘interaction,’ about 30 seconds or so, the fish probably got spooked and dove.  But what a majestic beast, it was probably 7-8 meters and a glorious sight.  Got back in the boat and chugged along.

We saw four more butanding over the next few hours.  The ‘interactions’ got increasingly longer, with a couple lasting for 5 minutes or so.  Hard keeping up with these fellows – their tails are massive and they swim deceptively quickly.  I had to fin damn hard to keep up, but managed to do alright.  And I got some OK photos and some quite solid videos, as did Hiko my German friend.  Here’s a link to a couple of them, I think they do justice to the experience – but you’ve gotta try this yourself someday:

http://www.fliqz.com/public/aspx/playerdefault.aspx?vid=7721A5641517C8A55AFB5347AB80B36A

http://www.fliqz.com/public/aspx/playerdefault.aspx?vid=C6845BB14CDDD87D134A534B64993E4A

That heavy breathing in the videos?  It’s not the whale shark…

We got back to shore around noon, exhilarated and famished.  The ‘interactions’ were exactly what I had hoped for and I felt like I’d accomplished something that had been out in front of me for a while.  I do think I’ve made pretty good choices about what to do in my travels, even if it’s taken me a while to get around to some of them…

Took a trike to an email café in town.  Polished off a few emails, sent an Amazon.com shipment to Boston, as I always do before a trip home, and checked the time of the Super Bowl, the following morning local time.  Went back to the hotel, asked the front desk woman where I could find a TV to watch the game.  She said that I could go to her house and watch it with her husband – I said that sounded terrific, and thought it was almost too good to be true – watching the Super Bowl here in little rural Donsol.  I wondered what might go wrong between now and kickoff, but I crossed my fingers.

In the café I’d read an email from friend Bettina in Manila, about ‘Dating a Banker Anonymous.’  This is a group of ridiculous women who have – wait for it – dated a man in the financial services industry and were now facing the music.  Some of the men had strayed, some had lost their fortunes, some were just cranky – I couldn’t believe they were for real, it was a NY Times article but could have appeared in The Onion.  America is really a ludicrous place at times…if you showed this article to a Filipina they would find it so bizarre they wouldn’t know how to react…

Went on a short riverboat ride that night to see fireflies – apparently Donsol is one of the world’s top places to spot these.  Went with the 4 Euros.  Somewhat disappointing, there weren’t that many fireflies, I guess it was a windy night.  And we got in a minor boat crash that was more exciting than the fireflies.  No injuries, just some splintered wood and bruised egos.

Had beers and dinner with the gang that night, traded travel stories, talked politics, etc.  I really enjoyed the company of Hiko and Vivi, the Germans, and was warming up to the Slovenes as well, despite still being slightly annoyed about their morning tardiness.

Got up at 6 again the next morning, wolfed down breakfast and then caught a trike to the receptionist’s house.  Got there, the family was welcoming and the TV was already switched on.  ESPN was on, and they were showing a spelling bee.  Hmmm, anything qualifies as sports these days.  It was about time for kickoff, but no game in sight.  Cycled through the channels…zilch.  They called the cable company and were told it wasn’t on offer.  They took me over to the cable company office, but no go there either.  Eventually, a bit annoyed, I went to a web café and tried to follow the game on the net.

Not that much fun…on Yahoo!Sports they’re a little slow updating the screen and sometimes it seemed I’d missed 3 minutes of actual playing time.  Oh well.  I followed as much as I could, did feel a bit spellbound by the crazy 4^th quarter, and reveled in the Steelers’ comeback win.  I resolved to find the rebroadcast that night in my hotel in Legaspi City…usually they show it again at night.

Kurt Warner, the Arizona quarterback, is a tough son of a bitch.  The Cardinals were the underdogs, but he almost guided them to victory.  Great, great game.  I just had to catch it on the TV that night…

Got in a van with the Euro gang that afternoon and went to Legaspi City.  We were all staying there that night, then departing the next day for different spots.  The Slovenes were heading south, eventually to Bohol…the Germans were getting up early and connecting in Manila through to Singapore…and I was stopping in Manila for one night, before heading to Oz.  We all stayed in different hotels, but planned to meet for dinner.  It was one of the Slovene’s birthdays and we wanted to help her celebrate.

I checked into Legaspi Tourist Inn, a budget place right in the heart of the city – my favored type of arrangement.  Switched on the TV to see about the Super Bowl, and there it was, just a few minutes into the game – bingo.  Watched the rest of the first half, then went out to see the city and grab a bite, and ran into the Slovenes, who were trying to find the Tourist Office and get a clue about how to proceed overland/oversea to Bohol.

Back to the hotel for the second half.  As exciting as I’d imagined/observed from the webcast…perhaps the best fourth quarter in Super Bowl history.  There really have been some classic matches over the years.  My parents hailed from Pittsbugh and I’ve always been a Steelers fan, so I was thrilled by the outcome.

Met the gang for dinner at Brent’s Grill, near the Pepperland Hotel.  Nice outdoors place, freezing cold San Miguels and good food.  The Germans were there first, then I showed…and after an hour the Slovenes did too.  They had been noncommittal about joining us, they’re pretty reserved in general, but there they were.  We toasted the birthday girl and had a fun few hours talking and sharing travel experiences.  And they went behind my back and paid the entire bill, as they had the previous night.  Very Japanese of them – in Japan it’s rare to have the bill brought to the table, someone always excuses themself and pays it away from the table.  Funny stuff.

I’d become surprisingly close to the Germans over the course of about 3 days – they told me they really enjoyed hanging out with me.  That’s not something most people come out and say to other people – I’d last heard it from the Swedes I’d hung out with in Darjeeling.  It’s nice to hear compliments like that, though – gives you a bit of a boost.  I told them that if I go back to work and wind up in India, they have to come visit me there.  I think they’re in, they’re quite adventurous.

Got back to the hotel, but wasn’t quite ready to turn in.  Walked down the street to a seedy videoke place and had a beer.  I think the place was called Pier One…a woman in the street called to me as I was sitting down, I think she was looking for love but she just wasn’t my type.  But this is what I’d call a real local experience…package tourists don’t see much of that.

Slept like an old dog – had been having way too many early bells the past few days, or very late nights.  Checked email – my friend’s brother, who’s been following my travels, called me the Jewish Hemingway.  Thanks…I think.  Called Dad and Ellen, talked about my trip home and about the Super Bowl.  Dad seemed pretty jazzed about that.

Spent an hour walking around the city, primarily to get views of the superlative Mt. Mayon, an active volcano about 30km from Legaspi that is one of the most symmetrical volcanos/mountains on the planet.  It erupted last in 1993, methinks, and killed a number of people, including some American geologists in the ‘hood.  What a stunning volcano – see for yourself:

Reminded me of Mt. Fuji’s perfection…but this one is much more active and has a veneer of danger.

Then packed and headed to Legaspi’s little airport.  Got around the weight restriction on Cebu Pacific – when the attendant wasn’t paying attention (which is often), you can put your pack on the scale only partway, so that a bit is hanging off the side and not weighed.  Didn’t have to pay a surcharge, I was pleased.  Took some photos of the volcano from the airport doors – seeing Mt. Mayon is reason enough to come to modest Legaspi City.  Of course, most people come to see the butanding and the volcano…

Started reading the book ‘Alive,’ about the Uruguyan rugby team that crashed in the Andes in 1972 and survived (some of them, anyway) for two months.  Classic survival tale.  Good book, and I really should track down the movie at some point, I heard it was very well done…

Got to Manila, checked back into the Citadel Inn.  This place has dodgy elevators, and they were really acting up today.  Took forever to get up to my room.  Then went for a run and did some errands.  Headed out to a little place called Beers Paradise and had a work call with Mumbai…status check on my potential job there.  Looking pretty good, but we’ll see.

Called Christine after that – enjoyed talking with her.  She’s a nursing student, and has exams coming up.  It’s been a while since I had an exam…

Had a good Spanish dinner at nearby La Tienda.  Had considered heading all the way to Malate to go back to Casa Armas, but it’s a real haul and I was tired.  So went local and enjoyed it.  Not quite as good or homey as Casa Armas, but La Tienda did the trick.

Went to a local bar for a couple beers.  It was already getting late and I had some things to do the next day before flying to Oz.  Had only meant to have a couple beers, but the new waitress was alluring and she kept coming by to chat with me.  She eventually asked me where I was staying, I told her, she perked up.  I asked her why she wanted to know – was she planning to surprise me in my room later on, after her shift?  She said she couldn’t do that…she didn’t have my room #.  That was quickly remedied…I went back to the hotel and crashed, not really expecting anything to actually happen.  Then the phone rang, it was about 4 a.m., the front desk asked me if I was expecting a visitor.  I coughed out a ‘yes,’ then fell back asleep.  A while later (perhaps 30 minutes – the elevators were still screwy) the door bell rang and the waitress was there.  I was exhausted, but can always summon up a second fuel tank for moments like these.  Hallelujah!  Or shall I say Dayenu…

Very little sleep that night…approximately 12 minutes.  The waitress had to head home…I had to check out.  Did that, and went off to deal with a few things.  Checked email and the news – noticed that Kyrgyzstan wants the US to close the Manas Airforce Base in Bishkek.  The Russians are pressuring the Kyrgyz and it seems to be working.  That’d be a real blow to the Afghan War prospects…

Hit a couple malls, including the gigantic SM Mall of Asia, where I usually manage to find my favored brand of cologne.  But they only had the extra large bottle, which I can’t readily carry around.  Went over to my old favorite, Robinsons Mall, which has been expanded and spiffied up (in a sense – they built a new area with upscale outlets, but the older area has been packed with crappy little kiosks and older stores, creating a bifurcated mall).  No luck there either.  Will have to track the stuff down in an airport or in the States…

Headed to the airport that night to fly to Sydney.  Felt a sense of symmetry, if that makes sense – I’d started this journey in June 2006 in Australia, with my friends Iain and Stephanie, and now I’d perhaps be concluding it there.  Nothing’s set in stone just yet, but it did feel like I was setting down a second bookend…

Checking in at Ninoy Aquino Airport was a bit annoying.  Long line to check in…then my itinerary was a bit complex, even though I already had my electronic Oz visa.  Then I left my small pack with books and DVDs at the checkin desk, and had to run back to grab in 10 minutes later.  Thankfully they’d found and kept it for me.

Called Christine, then got on my flight.  And that was it for this trip to the Philippine islands…

My itinerary was, as mentioned, complex.  It was a frequent flyer round-the-world deal, I had to fly through Bangkok to Sydney, then catch another flight to Adelaide.  Long night – got a bit of sleep on the Bangkok-Sydney leg.  Finished ‘Alive’ – good book.  Read some newspapers and saw that the US has passed Germany in use of wind power, and will become #1 in solar soon.  Great – but the US has nearly 4 times the population.  Still, a bit of heartening news, I suppose.

Also read about a TEAC turntable that allows you to burn CDs straight from vinyl.  Only US$1,000 or so for the model.  Hope they make a cheaper one soon…

Landed in Sydney.  Immediately, a good vibe, as in the old days.  Hadn’t been in Oz since June 2006, my longest stretch in 10 years.  Was excited about spending a few days with Iain, Stephanie, and their family.  Will stop here and update you on that next week, by which time I’ll already be in freezing Boston.   Over and out.

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