In Mindanao...

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Hi....
I finally made it to Mindanao. We tried to leave the island of Bohol on Friday night, only to find that the ferry was full. That's really strange because I didn't think Filipinos have a concept of "full" - based on how they pack people onto buses, it seemed as though the ferry should still have had some room for foot passengers.

Anyways, Redj and I made the Saturday night ferry from Jagna, a nearby town to Tagbilaran. We were in tourist class, which is pretty nice - it was actually quiet enough to sleep. Sleep is at a premium here because between noisy fans, air conditioners, and roosters outside, it's hard to find a place quiet enough to sleep.

We got to Cagayn de Oro by 3 am, and upon leaving the boat, encountered the most aggresive porters I've ever seen. There were about 10 guys all trying to get us to go in their taxis or motorellas (like a motorcycle with a passenger trailer). I had to tear Redj's suitcase away from these guys - they wouldn't really take no for an answer. We walked a few blocks away and took a motorella driven by a respectable guy.

This is Redj's hometown. It's her first visit home in almost two years. It was nice to met her parents and sisters.

It's a nice city too. It's clean and friendly. Cagayan de Oro is one of the only safe cities for visitors on the island of Mindanao. For those not familiar with Mindanao, it's a large island in the south part of the Phils. There's a lot of Muslims here, and they're firecely independent. When the Spanish conquered the Phils 400 years ago, they didn't get too far in Mindanao. A lot of people here want independence from the Philippines. There's a few different groups: the NPA (New People's Army - communist), the Abu Sayyaf (Islamic, pretty much terrorists), and the MILF (funny name hey? - that's the Moro Islamic Liberation Front). Each of these groups have their own areas. Sometimes they work together against the governments, but mostly they are enemies with each other too. Anyways, between them, most of Mindanao is now considered unsafe for travel. I saw a sign of this on the ferry to C. de O. Scrawled on the underside of a bunkbed, someone had written a threat in Visayan. Redj translated it for me in English. It says:

MILF Commander Robot:
Mindanao is ours.
I'll bomb you all!

It's not uncommon for rebels to pick ridiculour nicknames for themselves, by the way. This has the effect of making these threats half scary/ half funny.

Anyawys, that's the end of this post . I'll be staying in Cagayan de Oro for a few more days, then exploring Camiguin Island and Siargao Island.

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