A little over three months after saying our final goodbyes to Jeoffrey from the Cap Cleveland we met him and his fiancee Fatima at the Iloilo City Airport on January 18th. He had taken care of all the arrangements during our stay, so we prepared ourselves for a whirlwind final week in the Philippines.
On the bridge of the Cap Cleveland with Jeoffrey (October 2010)
At first we had to attend to some immediate needs: a much overdue haircut, probably one of the best I’ve ever had—and for only 70 pesos (or about $1.50), the cheapest. [Editor’s Note: For the record, I’ve been reminded that the cheapest haircut I’ve ever had was at “Salon de Soleil”. I stand corrected.]
Justin getting his hair cut
That night we went to a bar in the Smallville district that prided itself on having an extensive selection of beers from around the world. It was certainly the most we’ve seen so far outside the US. I treated myself to a Rogue Dead Guy and a Stone IPA, Steph had a Boont Amber Ale. We felt right at home. I wanted to order some homemade chicharon (fried pork skins), but they were out. So Jeoffrey ordered some chicharon bulaklak (literally, “flower chicharon”) and wouldn’t tell us what they were till after we tried them: deep-fried pig intestines. Chewy, but pretty tasty.
Afterwards we went searching for some lechon, which several Filipino friends back home had suggested after our babi guling experience in Bali, but we had trouble finding. Eventually we drove out to Tatoy’s and got our fix, along with some tasty kinilaw, a sort of local ceviche, and barbecued pork belly, which seems to come with every meal.
After spending our first week in the Philippines visiting the Banaue and Batad rice terraces, we flew to Puerto Princesa on the island of Palawan for our second. One of the main tourist destinations on Palawan is this place called the “Underground River” (or more formally: Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park, another UNESCO World Heritage Site) which we’d heard about from the Filipino crew on the Cap Cleveland. I was keen to check it out, but Stephanie was a little apprehensive about being in a cave.
We were also thinking about visiting El Nido, the premier beach destination in Palawan, but we read that it can take anywhere from 6-9 hours to get there, some of it on roads not unlike those on the way to Batad. You can imagine that the prospect of being in a crowded jeepney on rough roads for 9 hours also did not sit well with Stephanie. I admit I too was not excited about the prospect of spending two days in a jeepney after our recent back-to-back overnight bus experiences.
In the end we did what we normally do when we reach an impasse about what to do. Nothing. We extended our stay at the hotel in Puerto Princesa to three nights and generally took it easy. We discovered a wonderful restaurant in town called La Terrasse. We caught up on email and blog posts. By our third day we decided we were finally ready for the Underground River.
Map of the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park
It began with a two hour drive to Sabang in a van with 10 other tourists on mostly paved roads. The package included a buffet lunch which we took as soon as we arrived. After eating we were taken by boat (similar to the traditional jukung boats in Bali) to the entrance of the Underground River, where we transfered to another boat with a guide who would paddle us into the river/cave system.
Stephanie was a little “jumpy” about going into the caveWatching a boat enter the mouth of the caveStephanie was still nervous when our turn finally came around
The Slovenian couple we met in Banaue had originally planned to go directly to Batad, a neighboring Ifugao village with an amphitheater of terraces. However, once they discovered that the public jeepney to Batad left late in the afternoon and a chartered jeepney costs 2,500 pesos (or about $60), they decided to hike the Banaue Rice Terraces with us (so as to not waste the day).
After discussing the options for Sunday over beers that night, we agreed to charter the jeepney as a group the next day to halve the cost. From there Lolita would take us on a tour around Batad (for an additional 1,000 pesos). The Slovenian couple would stay the night in Batad, while we’d take the jeepney back to Banaue to catch the overnight bus to Manila. Overhearing our chatter, a solo traveler from Holland asked if she might join our merry jeepney band. But of course. So now we were five.
A trike seen through the back of our jeepney in Banaue
The next morning we piled into our very own jeepney for the trip to Batad. Getting there was an adventure in and of itself. The first hour was a curvy mountain road, most of it unpaved, interspersed with occasional sections of concrete. There was evidence of frequent landslides along the way as well as poignant scenes of rural life and surreal views of rice terraces.
We returned to Ubud for the final three days of our three and a half weeks in Bali, to do a little shopping and generally take it easy. Then on Wednesday the 5th we caught a flight to Jakarta, briefly gaining an hour, then giving it back, as we continued onto the Philippines—our first destination in the northern hemisphere since crossing the equator in September.
We arrived in Manila at 6am after a 4 hour flight and little sleep. We had a hotel booked for the first night, and figured we’d make things up after that. For the next 36 hours, we pretty much camped out there: sleeping, showering, and laundering to start, followed closely by vegging out on the internet. We made occasional incursions to the nearby mall for food and supplies, which gave us a taste of the frenetic, jeepney-powered energy of Manila. But generally we laid low to refuel for what was ahead.
A typical decorated jeepney, this one parked in Banaue
On Friday night we checked out, hailed a taxi, and tried to find a bus to take us up to the Banaue Rice Terraces (pronounced: ba-NA-way), a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Of course we never found the bus terminal we were looking for (Autobus) so we went with another in the area that looked good (Florida) and bought a ticket for the 9:10pm bus (only 400 pesos/person, or about $9). Our bus showed up late, so we didn’t hit the road until after 9:50. For the next eight and a half hours (yes, this was an overnight bus!) we were assaulted by blasting air-conditioning and the vocal stylings of Kenny Rogers. Actually it wasn’t Kenny Rogers the whole way, but there was music always playing. We were told later this was to keep the bus driver awake. Reassuring.
We had been tipped off about the A/C, so we brought layers (thank god) and had earplugs for the road noise (and Kenny), but still, it was comically awful. I must have managed to doze off, given my surprise to see light outside when I was jostled awake at 6:30 on Saturday morning in Banaue. We groggily got off the bus, reclaimed our packs, and tried to figure out what to do as various people, startling with their blood-red, betelnut-stained lips, asked us if we needed rides or guides or rooms. We were offered a free jeepney ride into town, saw some familiar foreign faces (from the bus) inside, so we hopped on, and they brought us down to a restaurant and guest house.
Looking across the town of Banaue towards the terraces
Given the success we had with our first tour in Bali, we decided to book a second one last Thursday. We chose an ambitious full day program starting in Ubud and winding our way to Lovina on the north coast. Unfortunately our driver’s command of English was less confident, so we got very little commentary along the way—which made the tour feel like a series of disjointed stops punctuated by long silent drives, rather than a coherent and enriching cultural experience. Oh well. Here were the highlights.
Pura Taman Ayun, the main temple of the Mengwi kingdomPura Ulun Danu Bratan, the temple on Lake BratanAir Terjun Gitgit, the 40 meter twin waterfall
