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Published: March 12th 2008
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This February, Larry and I were very lucky to get a week off from work due to the big Korean holiday: "Seol-nal," otherwise known as the Solar New Year (or Chinese New Year). Excited to get away for a little rest and relaxation, especially after the extremely busy month we had at the academy where we work, we decided to check out an island in the Philippines just south of Manila - Boracay. Well, needless to say, this very Westernized island had all the ingredients necessary for a perfect vacation...including great weather, delicious food, massages on the beach, and a perfect beach resort where we stayed for our 6 day holiday.
In case you have not yet had the experience of traveling to an island outside of the N. American region, let me just start off by saying, there is no quick and super-convenient way to get to the tropical islands of a 3rd world country. We had to fly to Manila (the capital city) and spend the night there, before then flying to Kalibo, and taking a bus 2 hours to Caticlan - before finally taking a ferry across the water and arriving in Boracay. It definitely took about
24 hours of traveling! Now, we could have flown directly to Caticlan, but again, we would have still had to have flown to a larger city in the country first...and with the timing and prices of the flights during this busy season (and the fact that we didn't want to sleep in the airport awaiting our domestic flight between 1am and 7am), it just made more sense for us to take the even more "scenic" journey!
The airports were quite interesting too. And when I say "interesting," I actually mean, well, "scary as hell." They were so small and seemingly unorganized, that it really made me look at the airports we have in our country in a whole new and appreciative light. Imagine, you are waiting for your flight in one huge, ground-floor room with a big door...and when they call your flight name/number, it is your turn to walk outside and get on your plane. And I'm pretty sure there were more police officers than passengers on the premises. Quite an experience. (And by the way, I'm not talking about the airport on one of the islands....I'm talking about the airport in Manila - the capital city!)
When we did arrive there that first night though, it seemed as though we were in a fantasy world...we had a little scare at first. After we got to the island of Boracay and hopped in a tricycle (kind of like a moped attached to a little buggy on the side for 2 passengers), we were getting quite nervous when our driver suddenly went off the main path where most of the hotels were and turned down a dark, unpaved road. I didn't say anything, and neither did Larry, but I could tell we were both thinking the same thing..."What kind of ghetto hotel are we staying in??" Well, when the tricycle stopped and we got our luggage and walked through an even smaller path to the beach, things were looking up. It was at that moment, when we stepped onto the beach and saw the moonlight/tiki torches/candlelight, the people relaxing in hammocks, and others having beautiful oceanside dinners in the sand as the water splashed at their feet...that we knew our hotel's location was not ghetto, but in fact, WONDERFUL! It just seemed a little off the beaten path because a huge cliff jutted out between the main hotel
strip and our area....but we soon realized that that made our getaway even more private and special.
Well, after checking into our boutique hotel and getting a "welcome drink"... we decided to go join the others on the beach for some dinner and a walk.
Our hotel was wonderful. It was called the "Artista Beach Villa Resort" and, since it was a boutique hotel, it only had 9 rooms. We stayed in room 5 - otherwise known as "cinco." "Cinco" wasn't as good as "siete" (apparently the room with the BEST view) as we were told...but we still had a really nice view of the ocean and fresh flowers on our bed everyday!
So, the rest of our trip was a combination of relaxing on the beach, going shopping in a trendy outdoor shopping area known as "D-Mall"," getting massages on our loungechairs (1 hour long for the equivalent of about $8 I might add), and enjoying happy hour and candlelit dinners on the beach every night. We even met a really nice couple from London (Lucie and Hamid) that we shared a dinner and drinks with on our last night there. It was all very wonderful,
and when the last night came around, we were actually both really sad....until we had to switch hotels...
Since we went on this vacation over a huge Asian holiday, the Chinese New Year, our hotel was already booked up for our last night there...so we had to find another. Well, the very kind woman who owned Artista offered to help us...and when she told us about her friend's place that was "right around the corner and only $50/night" we thought it would be fine for 1 night. And upon first glance, it was. The room was clean, had a TV and air-conditioner, and even its own private balcony. Not bad at all for $50...until we looked in the bathroom. I think the pictures below will describe it in some of its glory...although if you've ever seen the movie
Jumanji with Robin Williams...we think there's actually a scene or two of that movie that could've been filmed in this bathroom! Anyway, it was REALLY rustic...one of the walls was actually a huge tree, and the roof was made of straw. Lots of room for many creepy crawlies to get in...and that they did! Almost everytime I had to go in
there to use the bathroom, there were new insects (dead and alive) all over the walls and floor. It actually scared me to go in there, and so everytime I needed to go in there, I made Larry "keep watch."
And good thing that I did too! That night when I was taking a shower, and just trying to keep all the mosquitoes away that were coming in attracted to the light, Larry suddenly told me, "Don't look up!" Well, of course I did....and screamed bloody murder before running out of there, shampoo suds still in my hair! 😱 At first, I thought I saw a snake...the head was huge and looked just like a snake's head. But then when I screamed and it ran across our ceiling, I could see that it was actually some kind of HUGE lizard-like creature! Anyway, I was especially careful that night not to drink or sweat too much, because I knew I would not be showering again until we got home!
So, that's it in a nutshell. It was relaxing at some times and wild at other times, but it was just what we needed. As I already mentioned, for the
month of January (and some of February too), Larry and I were working insane hours at our academy. We were both working 6-7 days/ each week, and well over 10 hours each day! (In Korea, the competitiveness of the education system is incredible....this was actually the students' "Winter Break," but instead, they use that time to go to all their private academies all day long...which oddly enough is less of a break than during their regular "non-break" schedules). We'll never understand it fully, but at least we can live here for a little while as English teachers and reap the benefits of it! 😊
Well, that's all for now folks! Stay tuned for some pictures/video clips from my new TV show and a dinner at a very unique 1-table restaurant that Larry and I went to for our 3-year anniversary (2 of those years - engaged!) Hehe! Yes, we're getting married soon!
Take care and we'll talk soon...
xoxo
Larry & Melanie
PS - We took "Flat Stanley" with us to Boracay as well! That paper man gets around!! 😊
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Jessica Lofbomm
non-member comment
Wow!
Your photos from Borocay are so beautiful! Your hotel looks awesome. Thanks for sharing your travels with us.