...This was the comment Ed received from a security guard at Kalibo airport when he noticed the surname on his passport. It finally helped us get into the Christmas vibe. It's pretty hard when it's sunny and you have been lying on the beach for a week! We have now adopted a policy of wishing everyone we meet Merry Christmas and after visiting a mall earlier today, jam packed with frantic shoppers, we can finally say our mood is festive. We will miss everyone at home, especially the Carrolls and Fordes. Nollaig Shona Duit and we hope to talk to a [View Full Entry]

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If we have learnt one thing about travelling in the Philippines, it has been to be flexible and allow yourself plenty of time. Our original plan for here, was to hit as many islands as possible. After experiencing super-typhoon Durian on Mindoro and the rocky outrigger ride back to Luzon, this all went out the window. I point blank refused to get back on another outrigger and I wasn't hearing any complaints from Ed either. So we went North and loved it. However, everywhere we went the Filipinos kept asking us had we been to Boracay yet? The undoubted pearl of [View Full Entry]

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On our journey to reach Vigan, we travelled via Baguio. We interrupted our journey by purchasing a Buko pie from one of the many bus vendors that hop on and off continously. Buko pie turned out to be similar to an apple-tart. I was a little bit disappointed but surprisingly Amy with the lesser sweeter tooth enjoyed the pie. Our stopover was brief, but Baguio left an impression. The town reminded me of a ski resort in Italy. There were lots of pretty little bistros and parks to chill out in. Our jackets were no longer needed as the temperature was [View Full Entry]

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We are very happy to announce we now have the full complement of babies due during our time away from home. Jenny (Ed's sister) and Dave produced a little sister for Rebecca on Tuesday. Baby Lauren Sarah Powell you are formally welcomed to our blog. Hopefully we can post some pictures on here when we get some. We got this exciting news while on route from Manila to Banaue, it brightened up our otherwise dull journey. It was night so we missed all the scenery and it was cold. I think the bus companies are doing this for the good of [View Full Entry]

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After our very scary trip across the ocean we decided to stay put in Batangas at the nearest available accommodation, Travellers Inn. The accommodation worked out fine even though it had a very strange policy, where you were charged your room price for 16 hours on the first night, and anything over that was extra. We didn't complain, thankful to have a room with electricity, our first proper wash for a couple of days and even better a tv. Batangas proved to be a very lively town with lots of people bustling about. We were both a little bit intimidated at [View Full Entry]

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Hello from stormy Mindoro. We left our hostel in Manila on Tuesday morning with only the vaguest idea of how to get to our next destination; Mindoro island. After a brief conversation with the guy on reception we discovered our vague plan was wrong (or just impractical, not sure which) and headed for the metrorail which we were to catch two stations to a bus stop. Stupid us it hadn't dawned on us that the metrorail at rush hour may not be the best place for two backpackers. After the security guard did a very halfhearted check on our bags we [View Full Entry]

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Hello folks from Manila. Before we begin we would like to welcome two new additions to our readership (is that a word?) Amy's sister Andrea and her husband Steve had a baby girl; Cora Margaret Harrington, at lunch time (GMT) yesterday. We also need to belatedly welcome baby Michael Ferris, first child to Mick and Barbara. Big kisses to Mick, Barbara, Andrea, Steve, Mikey and of course the two little 'uns. We cannot wait to see you all when we get home in January. Now Jenny, Dave what are you waiting for...you are letting the Carroll side of the family down. [View Full Entry]

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Another short and sweet entry today. If we don't write regularly we tend to forget to tell you about large chunks of our travels. We are off to The Philippines early tomorrow and will be far too busy soaking up a new country to write for a few days. We initially planned on only spending a quick overnight in Singapore due to the expense and as this is to be our first (well Ed's second) of three stays (Four for Ed). However we messed up the days a little and were ready to move on from Malaysia so we instead got [View Full Entry]

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We've moved a little further south, approximately a 2 hour bus drive from Kuala Lumpur. The journey from KL was fascinating as we we were located directly behind the coach driver. We heard stories that the Malaysians were wild when it coms to driving, and the journey proved just that theory. We witnessed 3 cars, badly battered, lying in the ditch off the main road. Our fears were compounded by the torrential rain outpours, but the driver didn't seem too concerned as he weaved his way through the traffic. Much to our amusement, the rest of the passengers seemed oblivious and [View Full Entry]

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So we decided big city life was not for us and left KL in search of some relaxation. In fact Ed has very profoundly announced you should not judge a country by its capital city. (hmmm think he may have forgotten he himself is a capital boy!) We braved Puduraya bus station in central KL and searched among the many ticket offices for a bus to Ipoh (the capital of Perak state). Amazingly out of the chaos that is this massive bus station with perhaps 30 different bus companies comes some sort of order and we have learned to love bus [View Full Entry]

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