Road trip PI

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A few weeks in now, and I finally made it to a pc with time to get an entry in. It's pretty much been gogogogogogogogo since we landed. The tour we flew in with set the pace with a full steam ahead itinerary. Landed in Manila around 1130 pm, customs, baggage and the bus ride meant not getting to Manila Hotel until just before 1am. Registration and check-in, didn't put my head on my pillow until around 2am. Breakfast started at 6am, bus for the first destination leaves at 8am. No allowance for jet lag or a chance to get my bearings. The destinations for the tour were pretty good, a lot of history, and our guide tita Lynn (tita = auntie) was real informative. On the way back to the hotel one day. she bought us a couple of bottles of lambanog (Filipino moonshine made from coconuts) to share on the bus. Picked up a couple of bottles as well, just under $2usd, why not? My uncle makes it better, I'll have to make sure to get some from him to bring back. Unfortunately, the tour was marred by the other tourists. Retired brown brethren, the majority of whom were atypical balikbayans (returning Filipinos) - large part of the resentment some of the people here have for Americans. A lot of noses pointed toward the sun, gaudy jewelry and public money counting. But of course, they turned instantly blind when they passed the homeless and hungry. Not all of them of course, just 99%!o(MISSING)f them. Anyways, it was a nice change to see the sites in and around Manila for the first time. The other times I've been back here, it's just been straight to my pop's province, Bicol.

After the retired military tour, we started the family tour with some family friends. More long car rides. First to my dad's province so they could see it before they leave, then up north to theirs. More of the stuff I wanted to see, the rice terraces in Banue, 100 Islands, Baguio City, Bataan (the site of the Death March). In Bataan, there are obelisk markers along the highway signifying the path the soldiers were forced to walk.

I had planned to keep traveling after the folks and fam friends leave, but availability for the cousins changed. Instead, me and sis will just head back to Bicol to spend time with the cousins. We'll do resort trips around that province. If we had kept traveling, we'd have ended up with only about a week and a half total with the cousins. Since they're the most important part of my trip, it just makes more sense to stay close to where most of them are. Plus, money is tight and I have no job to go back to. The island hopping will have to come on a future vacation.

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Photos

Manila skyline
from the boat to Corrigador

Comments

[Auds]

Pictures
Did the storm come down on you guys Manong? And you caught crabs, ey? *snicker, snort*