Blogs from Bohol, Philippines, Asia - page 13

Last night I was reminded that people are actually good - that human nature is not completely devoid of kindness as it has so often appeared to me of late. Through the following story, I would like to pay tribute to three strangers whose selfless generocity has both impressed and challenged me. Back in June I was in China with a friend. We stayed several days in Hong Kong, the last of which was spent in Kowloon. As we were headed to mainland China, we were reluctant to withdraw any more Hong Kong dollars and so pooled our remaining change for the final day. By lunch time we were starving. We stood by the counter at an Indian food stall, comparing our leftover coins with menu prices. There was only enough to afford a plain piece ... read more

Looking Back: Bohol - Aug. 2006 Bohol. This is one place that I would want to visit time and again. I went here this time with my two cousins from Cebu. We boarded the fast ferry craft, Oceanjet bound for Tagbilaran. There were no more seats available in the air-conditioned section of the cabin so we seated on the second floor open-air section of the craft. This time I had a digital camera and i started taking pictures of the pier in Cebu. As the ferry sailed, I noticed that my digicam stopped functioning. I was getting upset because eight years ago, my friends and I went to bohol and my camera also stopped working after taking a few shots. I thought to myself my cousin brought her camera along so I can have just ... read more

on the second day, i decided to pay the nearby diveshop a visit. just right before i start my holiday, i was seriously considering getting into scuba diving. i just had one problem though: i do not know how to swim. but curiosity got the best of me and so i decided to give it a try. (i was supposed to take it together with my boyfriend david but we broke up days before that holiday started. he was supposed to be with me in bohol. supposed to but then why he wasnt was another story and i do not feel like telling it at this point.) aside from the fact that i was brokenhearted and holger did not know i was, he insisted that i wait for david before we start our lessons. he is ... read more

Philippines: Definitely the most underrated Southeast Asian country. I myself did not have a burning desire to go to the Philippines. But last January Lisa said "Let's go to the Philippines for Golden Week." I thought, sure...beach, sand, fun....let's book it! So for Golden Week this year (I guess you could say the Japanese Spring Break. There are three national holidays in one week so many people take the time to travel travel travel = expensive prices!) Lisa and I, with two late additions Misha and Ryan, headed out to the Philippines! What an incredible, beautiful, and wonderful country. I hope that my entries about our trip and the photos can do it justice. I seriously can't wait to return someday, and I hope it is in the near future. Fukuoka: Never a Dull Moment! So ... read more

This year for Golden Week (basically a week of national holidays in Japan) we decided to travel to the Philippines. Originally it was just going to be Casey and I, but we ended up travelling with two of Casey's friends from Berkley, Mischa and Ryan. DAY 1: Our adventure started early Saturday morning with a trip to the Fukuoka airport where we barely made our plane. Luckily, China Air was nice enough to come and pick us out of the customs line-up and rush us to our gate. After that was settled we were on our way to Manila (after a quick stopover in Taipai, Taiwan)! Upon arrival in Manila we were hit with the kind of air that is hard to breathe due to a combination of heat and pollution... it was just what we ... read more