Philippines Trip / Day 8 Pt.3

Despite the clear sunny sky we had when arriving onto the island, it was apparent that the skies would turn dark very quickly so we decided to head back right away. 

By the time we were able to get to the island shore, we heard the thunder roll in and within a minute it started pouring. We waited in shelter until we found a break in the downpour, hoping it'd be long enough for us to cross the lake. 

Unfortunately the 20 minute window we were hoping for turned into a tiny 3 minute crack. The darker half of the photo is the rain already reaching the boat and will quickly cover the rest of the lake. The rest of the boat ride was hiding behind a sheet of tarp as the driver raced across as quickly as he could, lightning still lighting up the sky. It was pretty fun :D

Right before we arrived the rain let up and the sky gave us a break.

Judging by clouds in the distance though, it looked like it'll eventually return. Some of the boat owners didn't want to risk their boats getting damaged against the shore. 

After another moment of hiding in the shelter, we got in the van and started climbing back home. 

It was a little too narrow and busy to really enjoy it publicly, but if it were closed off or late at night this would be an amazing road for a quick touge run. 

And so ends our trip to Taal Lake, the volcanic inception of water and land. 

Philippines Trip / Day 8 Pt.1

We woke up early morning for our day trip to Tagaytay, an area just south of Manila. Personally, I was excited we'd get to get out of the city since as nice as it is, isn't really much different than most other international cities. There's a growing global culture and while I think it's a great thing, it does make places a lot more familiar than perhaps you wish it was. Anywho, it was nice to catch the day before the sun got a chance to crank up the heat, though that humidity was still always present. 

After about 40 some minutes of driving the city life disappeared and soon we were in the countryside. 

And here's what we were going to, Taal Lake which is formed inside a dormant volcano. The crazy thing about this place is the inception-like layering of the islands and water. We're on an island in the Pacific and here's a lake with an island inside. Ok, nothing too crazy there, but on that island is ANOTHER lake with ANOTHER island. So that's an island in a lake in an island in a lake in an island in the ocean. *whew!* If you look at this place from Google Maps, the water and land look like rings from a cut tree. 

But we're gonna do more than observe it all from atop the outer ridge, we're gonna try to see the inside of it ourselves. After a very long (and fun!) mountain road down to the first lake, we ate lunch at one of these little huts. 

These trikes are EVERYWHERE. We rode in one in Boracay on the way out to our port, but it was a lot larger than these small lowriders. Sketchy? You bet, but they also look super fun. A part of me wanted to pay on of the drivers to go back on the mountain road as fast as he can. 

When we first got here, we were under the impression that the crater you see here would be where we'll be going. Definitely looks like there'd be a small lake in there, right?

And here's how we'll get to island #2. Pretty much the same boats as the ones that we took "Island Hopping" except this time we wouldn't be running into any white crests. I mean, look at that sky! What could go wrong?

We soon arrived on Island #2, but I noticed we landed on pretty much the opposite end of the island as the crater. Are we really gonna hike all the way there? 

Part 2 to be posted later. Till then, gonna take a nap. 

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 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!