Blogs from Banaue, Philippines, Asia - page 3

Mt. Pulag Ever since I saw pictures of Mt. Pulag on the net, I promised myself that one day I to shall have my picture taken with a backdrop of a sea of clouds. Last Dec. I finally convinced my friends to climb this mountain with me. Mt. Pulag is the 2nd highest mountain in the Philippines (second only to Mt. Apo by 110ft or so). Take note as of the climb I have had no real physical exercise for the past year or two! I was able to arrange the climb with a travel group that fixed everything for us. They provide the transportation, tents, food and guide. If you’re interested in climbing Mt. Pulag, here’s our itinerary and cost breakdown. Ill also include some useful contact info. You can climb Pulag on a ... read more

The reason for choosing to come to the Philippines at this time is so that we could spend Easter with our Friends, Carl & Cheryl Rich and their15-year old son David. This and our Exodus tour starting in late February were really the two anchor dates for our whole trip. Fortunately, the rest of the people we were to visit were flexible enough to accommodate a couple of aging Americans with a thirst for adventure. Our time leading up to Good Friday services found us exploring the SIL compound and surrounding towns with Carl and Cheryl. We visited classrooms, school activities, Bible studies and pray times. We became familiar with some of the local Ifugao (the regional people group) customs and even visited an American expatriate living in a nearby town. We ate breakfasts by ourselves ... read more

Der Nachtbus nach Banaue war nicht gerade von der komfortabelsten Sorte. Der alte Bus war übervoll mit Menschen und Gepäck, und einige arme Seelen mussten die ganze Nacht auf Notsitzen im Gang verbringen. Unsere Sitze dagegen waren halbwegs erträglich, nicht wirklich bequem, aber mit genügend Beinfreiheit. Der Trip dauerte, statt der erwarteten acht, ganze elf Stunden, was aber nicht weiter schlimm war, da es bereits um kurz nach fünf hell wurde und man somit für die letzten Stunden auf einem schmalen Sträßchen die wunderschöne Berglandschaft der Cordillera vom Fenster aus genießen konnte. In Banaue angekommen frühstückten wir auf der traumhaften Aussichtsterrasse der Sanafe Lodge mit Blick auf die berühmtesten Reisterrassen der Welt und reservierten hier gleich ein Zimmer für den nächsten Tag. Da im Moment Nebensaison und somit kaum ein Tourist im Ort ist, konnten wir ... read more

Sleep wouldn't come even in this semi-luxury, AC'ed bus. Maybe it had to do with still being on a natural high from swimming with the whale sharks. Or maybe it was because of the frequent stops for bathroom breaks and midnight dinners. Or maybe, just maybe, it had to do with the heart-breaking, never-ending screams of a baby one row back. Whatever the cause, sleep just wouldn't come. All night we drove, half-conscious but fully annoyed, from Legaspi in Luzon's deep southeast to Manila arriving at about 5:45 am. The intention was to breeze thru the capital and head up north. As it turned out, the station with buses to Banaue was on the other side of town. A kind bus driver offered us a free ride and we stretched out in recliners watching Manila come ... read more

right in banaue at the moment, after a rather jokes trip on another ferry where the attendants appared to fall in love with us and didnt do much work just stood and talked to us for 19 hours. then we arrived in manilla and spend the WHOLE DAY in mall of asia ie filipino brent cross that even had an m&s. feels surreal going there though with all the extreme povery in manilla then u walk into an air conditioned wonderland with starbucks. oh capitalism. anyho then we got the auto bus up to banaue. we have had our fair share of cold air con while taking busses around SEA but ths bus was a joke, i had on two jumpers tracksuit bottoms and socks and still flet like i was contracting pneumonia. and now we ... read more