Philippines Trip / Day 3 Pt.1

A new day, a new adventure, though the clouds seem to be back. 

Today we decided to do a little island hopping! See that blue boat near the center? That's our ride!

Michelle and Michael getting prepared for the voyage out to sea. 

So far all is calm, let's see if it stays that way...

There's no shortage of things to do here, the inflatables being towed seemed to be especially popular among some of the tourists here. 

Turns out the trip would be around the entire island before we eventually landed on our first beach. This wouldn't have been much of a deal except as we got closer to those dark ominous clouds, the water started getting choppier as the wind was kicking up. Uhhh, you sure we want to go this way?

Don't get me wrong though, there were still some cool views. Multiple times I was thinking "It's like something straight out of Disneyland's Adventure Land, except this is real life." This spot in particular would have been pretty cool to snorkel around. 

Not exactly what I think of when I hear the words "Boat house".

The port where we originally arrived. 

Several times we spotted these large homes hidden behind some trees. They reminded me of an evil villain's lair on some spy show. 

It was surprising that even when we were out pretty far in the water, it was still very shallow. If we had more time, we'd definitely consider scuba diving around here. 

Waves are starting to pick up...

This tiny island had a little setup for some high diving. If the waters weren't so choppy (the dock was moving around a lot more than it looks in the pic) it would have been a pretty fun place to check out. Pt 2 next post. 

Philippines Trip / Day 2

We began our first full day in Boracay with some great complimentary wagyu beef tapas and a quick dip in the water. 

As you can see, the sun decided to show itself a bit today, though from what I've been told is nothing like how the weather can be like in the summer. Considering it was full humidity at 80 degrees, I was perfectly fine dealing with this "off season" weather. 100+ with full sun blazing on top of the humidity? No thank you!

Today we spent the day mostly getting to know the area and doing a little paddle boarding.

Some interesting sandals being sold here...

There's a lot of stray animals here, both cat and dogs. Unfortunately, like with people, their living conditions here are considerably rougher than the states, so despite the high number of animals we saw, this pic of a relatively healthy looking cat will be my only post of them for the trip. For animal lovers traveling here just a reminder this ain't Europe or Japan, be prepared for some tough sights. 

Philippines Trip / Day 1 Pt. 3

Finally we're here! We are staying at a little boutique hotel called Zuzuni which despite being smaller than most of the other hotels in the area easily became one of my favorite hotels I've stayed at. 

The room was just big enough that it never felt cramped and having a large bathroom certainly helped for the numerous showers we'd have throughout the day (humidity man, it gets ya). 

Since we were staying with Michelle's brother, we needed a room with two beds. That request ended up being a room within a room with separate bathrooms. Extra set of stairs to go up (our room now being on the 5th floor) but clever packaging. 

The placement of our place was perfect, located in Station 1 just before all of the shops in Station 2. We even had a top notch restaurant and bar located on the ground floor, working in conjunction with the hotel. Very helpful for whenever we wanted a quick bite or drink. Plus they had some top notch complimentary breakfast choices, none of that Motel 6 continental muffins and cheap bacon. 

No matter where you are in the world, there'll always be a Starbucks nearby, haha. We'll that's it for tonight 

Philippines Trip / Day 1 Pt. 2

Once we landed ashore, we again hopped into a taxi (the back bed of a tiny truck) and headed off to our final destination. On the way there though, we would go through the part of the island that wasn't meant for tourists, quickly reminding me that I am no longer in a first world country. 

Every armored vehicle I've seen so far has been unique, though this looks more professionally made than others. I'm guessing this one is based off a Toyota HiAce.

Wires on wires on wires. Not really very welcoming. 

Soon we began to see larger buildings and spotting some tourists wandering around. 

I gotta give it to MD, they do a solid job making sure that where ever you are in the world, they have a restaurant that's as nice as any other. Admittedly, the two I've seen so far in the PI are much cleaner than the ones in London. 

Passing by one of the entrances to D*Mall. We didn't know at the time, but we'd later realize that the beach was just a quick walk down that alley. 

Next post, we finally arrive. 

Philippines Trip / Day 1 Pt. 1

And so begins the last trip of the year, two weeks in the Philippines. We'll be spending a couple of days in Boracay and then about a week in Manila. First thing first though, we got to get there which was a bit of an adventure in itself. Since we're traveling off season in October, we knew we were tailing the end of the monsoon seasons so we were expecting some rain. Fortunately, so far things haven't been too bad with a light drizzle in Manila but my God the HUMIDITY. It's like stepping into a spa room. So despite how dark the images are for the first day, do not mistake the grey sky for being cold. 

After a short trip to Michelle's grandfather's place, we returned to the airport to take off again, this time only an hour long flight to a tiny airstrip on a nearby island to Boracay. Once we landed, we got into a taxi that took us to a nearby dock. 

Oh yeah, these ain't your American/European ferries. Bamboo supports are universally with the boats in the area. 

Soon to arrive in Barocay, stay tuned for Pt 2!