hidden lagoon

A hidden lagoon in Matukad Island, Caramoan.

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Calaguas Holy Week Schedule (RST)

Book ahead and get the
overnight rate for P1,800 only!!!

April 7-8 
April 6-8

contact us:

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(0917-55 733 55)
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Coron free local guide

Get a free Coron tour guide!

Join us this summer!

Feb 20-22
Feb 28 - March 2

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Eurobike trip

Eurobike trip. 'nuff said.

One down, more to go

We just finished with our first trip (technically).
It was a success and the fears quickly dissipated once the taste was realized.

We will be having another trip this Holy week, this time with a bunch of 'overnighters' and simultaneous with other travel groups. Let the ecklabu begin!


Hey! Like what we always say. Just drop us a line at redshoe and we'll put you on our list :D

Calaguas Island Trip, March 23-25 '10

Tara Na!!!

We're organizing a trip for my friends to Calaguas this March 23-25.
...and this is an open invitation.


It's approximately P3,000 - 3,500 for everything:
-5 meals
-tent accomodation
-boat ride, to and from the island

Itinerary:

March 23
10:00 am - early lunch at Daet
11:00 am - Boat ride to Calaguas from Paracale/Vinzons Cam Norte
01:00 pm - island arrival (set-up camp)
06:00 pm - dinner

March 24
Whole day of paradise
(breakfast, lunch and dinner)

March 25
10:00 am - leave Calaguas
you have all day to enjoy Daet (you have the option to visit Bagasbas to learn basic surfing)
* bus to Manila leaves around 7pm to 9pm

HOW TO GET TO DAET:

OPTION 1 (via plane)
March 23
-morning arrival in Naga (depends on airline; you can check CEBUPAC, PAL, AIR PHILIPPINES, ZEST AIR)
-take a van from Naga to Daet P145 (2hrs)

OPTION 2 (via bus)
March 22
leave Cubao Ali Mall @ around 9pm, arrive in daet early morning around 5 am

*3 days 2 nights
INCLUSIVE OF
Dinner, Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Breakfast
tent/cottages
boat ride back and forth from Daet to Calaguas

- P3,000 - 3,500 (amount would vary depending on the number of beach bums joining)

Get yourself to CamNorte and we'll take it from there :P

NOT INCLUDED:
plane fare or bus fare to Daet or Naga
van fare from Naga to Daet (if coming from Naga)

you can invite your friends to join this trip...

Please contact +639189208769 or +639128345417
or make a comment on this entry

you can visit some of my Calaguas post for added information....

My sombrero in Sombrero

I went there with a group of friends. As I am currently studying in the Bicol Region, our jump off point was from the Naga City Bus Terminal. It was hell of a long ride; we took a van, a wooden ferry and a small boat to get to that small quaint island. Being with friends in this journey made the entire long, inconvenient and definitely rocky boat trip worth the while, one of my female companions kept spilling her guts outside the ferry amidst the beautiful sunshiny August morning, and it was literally her guts since we did not have breakfast when we started our early morning trip.

I would definitely put this beach island several notches down compared to the other beaches I’ve been to before. Don’t get me wrong, this can definitely be in the "beautiful island" range, with clear blue waters, seagulls by the shore and the sands were pearly white; I just personally didn’t like the grainy pebbly feel of the beach shore.

There were barest of bear necessities in the island and we of course had to bring our own food. We roasted mallows and hotdogs on our little bonfire and extended our stay to three days. We just enjoyed the serenity of our stay and had a blast talkin’ bout our near death boat ride experience and the little drama along the way when you’re with old friends ;p I'm glad I didn't go solo on this one.

GETTING THERE:

Starting point --> Naga City

Take a van (near SM Naga) from Naga to Pasacao port (around P50)

Wooden Ferry to the Island of Masbate(around P150)

Small boat to Sombrero Island (we rented it for about P1500-2000, back and forth)

*fare is but an estimate since I went there August of ’09 and really forgot the rates ;p
...
....
.....

...going to Calaguas?

HOW TO GET THERE:

via land from Manila to Daet:

-take a bus from Cubao (Ali Mall) to Daet (5-8 hours, P550-700 depends on the bus)

• take a jeep from Daet to Vinzons (15 mins, P15)
• from Vinzons go to the fishport and look for a boat to Halabang Baybay (Mahabang Buhangin) in Calaguas (for the whole boat it can go as high as P6k 2-way, 2 hours more or less)

or from Daet

• take a bus or jeep to Paracale (45 mins, P50 GT rxpress van)
• go to Paracale fishport and go to Bgy. Mangkawayan by boat (2 hours)
• take a 2o minute hike to the beach shore (mahabang buhangin)

Via Cebu Pac from Manila to Naga:

• fly to Naga via Cebu Pacific
• from CBT terminal in Naga take a bus or FX to Daet (1.5 hours, P145 by FX)
• take a jeep from Daet to Vinzons (15 mins, P15)
• from Vinzons go to the fishport and look for a boat to Halabang Baybay (Mahabang Buhangin) in Calaguas (for the whole boat it can go as high as P6k 2-way, 2 hours more or less)

or from Daet

• take a bus or jeep to Paracale (45 mins, P50 GT rxpress van)
• go to Paracale fishport and go to Bgy. Mangkawayan by boat (2 hours)
• take a 20 minute hike to the beach shore (mahabang buhangin)

Via an outfitter (the easy way); Calaguas Fever outfit: HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

-they will pick you up from Daet and bring you to Calaguas themselves

-they will take care of your food (lunch, dinner breakfast), transport 2-way (boat), tent accomodation or Nipa Hut (1N/2Ds) they charge P1,800. (I think there's a minimum number of peeps needed)

-I have posted their link above (click on their name), if you have any questions you can FB or IM me andiboi the Y! account.

-you can also contact this number directly: +639189208769

-if you need people to join; I can help you look for others to save you money on this trip :D

I'm paying this forward; for the kindness and generosity that they showed me during my lone travel :D they deserve a boost or two in their endeavor.

Mabuhay Calaguas!!!

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Calaguas

Calaguas was a great experience. The place was beautiful, there was no doubt about it, but the truly rewarding piece of my solo journey was the group of people I met along the way; the kindness of strangers goes a long long way and I am testament from the supposed overnight stay that I originally planned (tried) to the extended five days of paradise that I truly experienced.

And I am paying this forward; to the kind hearted people that made my lone journey a worthwhile experience and this definitely will be one never to be forgotten in my book.

I learned about Calaguas from Ish just about three weeks or so ago. I googled it and found out that it's an island north of Cam Norte dangling in reach of the Pacific...with more than a week to go before my enrollment at Ateneo de Naga and with almost two days spent of just circling this province City, my bone thinned butt grew restless and with one or two hesitations, I said eff it and proceeded to buy canned goods, bread and some Sky Flakes--my pamatay gutom for my quick overnight stay in the island. I packed my tent, sleeping bag, and my foldable banig (native mattress). I didn't have any cooking provisions with me and I even left my one and only mask and snorkle in Manila. So to say that this trip was planned was as plain as believing that Binay is our next Obama.

..

Ha!

The trip was more of a light bulb moment but instead of a bulb, there appeared an imaginary neon light on top of my head after the eureka “ting” sound, and those lights spelled CALAGUAS with some letters flickering as if it were a cheap sign from a red light district in some dark part of Manila.

I digress... I arrived at Daet, Cam Norte at around 10:30 am (an hour and a half of FX ride from Naga City) and took a jeep to Vinzons where I needed to look for a boat ride to Calaguas.

A lady inside the jeepney was already asking me a lot of questions, It was a first of many where people were puzzled that I was on my own traveling with just my soul and a big backpack clueless of where I'm going. She was interrogating me; “where are you headed?”, “what part of town?”, “do you know people there?” and I can only give her one answer: Calaguas, Calaguas, Calaguas!!!

To her credit though, I found out that Calaguas is a group of Islands that consisted of 3 Baranggays. I learned some other trivial info about the islands and was also informed about the upcoming fiesta a few weeks from today, and she also pointed me to where the boats were. I found out from the boatman that my destination would be Halabang Baybay (Mahabang Buhangin/ Long Beach), it was called as such since that part of the island had the longest stretch of fine beach sand among the group.

I was part of the regular barrio commuter in the boat together with locals and merchants that brought with them they're sacks of rice, sugar, blocks of ice and what have you that they need for everyday use.

The boat fare was P50 (yes! I did not miss a zero), however that's to a different island (Bgy. Sugod) and I had to rent another boat to get to Halabang Baybay (Long Beach). Fortunately the boatmen offered to take me there for P500; I haggled and we agreed to P400, which was not bad considering the amount you had to produce to rent out the whole boat.

I reached my island destination after two baranggays, a hundred chitchat moments with an old local and four hours of sea travel. The trip would normally take more or less an hour and a half to two hours if you rented a private boat from the port direct to the beach, but it wil cost you P3k to 6k depending on the size of the boat. So it would definitely be to your benefit if you came with a bunch of people to share the boat expenses, as for small or lone travelers like myself, we're stuck with the long and winding boat ride, :-)…

Alas, Island paradise! You can see the vast and gorgeous fine sand of the island's facade that engulfs the shore from east to west. It was pure cocaine and the light reflecting from the sand was blinding me even if I had my Joakley glasses on.

I'm sold! Take off my tag, bag me and take me home! All the hassle in da muscle was well worth the trip to this true Island Paradise!

There were group of families that were already in the island, about 12 of them, they arrived two hours before me; they were brought there by an Outfit aptly called “Calaguas Fever” with a three person team that took care of the families (food, tents and getting to and from the island). They had the “fever” I guess; because I was told that they wanted to extend their stay the moment they saw the stretch of white beach sand from the boat.

With their befuddled looks I think they were curious just like me on how and why I got me, myself and my backpack on the island, right after I got off my boat.

How: google.

Why: I'm always tempted to say that I'm recovering from a bad divorce.

After speaking with Mang Bert (the beach caretaker) and the two guys from the Outfit (Jerome and Ryan) right after my landing, I looked for a shaded spot to park my tent. I set up camp and took my banig, Sky Flakes and book, lounged at the beach and started devouring my beach book, “White Tiger” by Aravind Adiga-- a totally interesting and entertaining read.

By nightfall Mang Bert invited me in his two storey Nipa hut for dinner since I asked him whether there's a place where I can buy rice or cook my canned stuff, I told him earlier that I didn’t have any cooking provisions. I hesitated on the invite but I gradually complied; enjoying every bit of grilled fish, rice and paksiw that his wife cooked. I thanked the old man and his family for the generous dinner and his genuine hospitality. I was really humbled by the experience and the mere fact that there were people willing to give out a hand, arm and whole leg to a total stranger like me.

I was thanking my lucky stars.

Speaking of which; I returned to the beachfront and star gazed for hours. It was a sight to behold. You zone out and hear the waves gently brushing and pounding the beach shore; it's like being in the planetarium... but only a gazillion times better. I was wishing I had known at least one or two constellations so I'd appreciate the moment more, while I marvel at the glorious bright sky that was staring back at me just before my slumber.

I knew then and there that these stars were put there for a reason. This time I was thanking nature for inviting me.

The following morning I was invited for breakfast. It was the Outfit's turn; Jerome motioned his hand to his mouth prodding me to come over and eat breakfast with them. Again... errr… I hesitated but I gradually complied. It was fried rice and eggs, hotdogs, mixed vegetables and a local serving of kinunot (ginataang page or manta ray)--more than anyone could ask for I tell you. I'm on a roll, I was tempted to ask Mang Bert if there's a lotto terminal on the island.

I asked the beach caretaker if I can rent a boat to the mainland around late morning. Mang Bert said it would be difficult for me to rent a boat and advised me to just hitch a ride with the Outfit (Calaguas Fever) the following day. Jerome and Ryan already offered me the boat back to town and I said yes to that. I don't know if I hesitated that time since that would mean being stranded in the island for days (hmmmm that's not a bad idea either).

I was having a grand time bumming on the beach, snorkeling and spear-fishing (apparels care of the Outfit), and taking pictures while constantly being invited for lunch and dinner (I mostly hesitated but still I gradually complied ;-p). It was a blast and I was enjoying the beautiful island where time has no real relevance and worth, and believe me, the meal would be as close to fit a beach king. I was rubbing my tummy after every meal. The only time I declined was breakfast on our third and last day. I figured I still had a lot of Sky flakes and sandwich spread to still give me ‘self a good breakfast.

It was my last day in paradise, and the loading of stuff and peeps on the boat was scheduled at about 10/11 am, and before they loaded stuff I went ahead and asked Jerome what my “damage” was for everything (three grand meals, a boat ride back to town and the awesome hospitality).

He answered “You're good, you don't have to pay us anything.” I was dumbfounded; I really wanted to search the island for a lotto terminal. Considering that each guest pay them P1800 for transport and meals for 2 days. I guess they thought one hitch hiker won't give them much headache.

I stayed there for three, three I tell you! 3! tres! trois! tatlong araw!!!

I truly am grateful.

We arrived at Daet, Cam Norte just right after lunch, about an hour or two of boat ride. I told the Outfit I'd at least have to buy them a drink for my appreciation, and this time they were the ones who gradually complied :D Over drinks they invited me to Calaguas again—the following day! (they had another outfit for a different group). I really hesitated this time but of course again, I gradually complied. I had a back to back trip to Calaguas; who in his sane mind would decline an invitation to that island paradise, but then again I don't consider myself sane, as if that mattered...

I spent the following two days in Calaguas again this time as a friend and guest treated with beach royalty.

A thought or phrase keeps coming back to my mind and this would truly apply to most of my solo trips and this is definitely one aptly branded for this journey: Traveling alone is never lonely.

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addicted

I at least have one bottle everyday, on average I drink a liter almost every other day and on happy days I get a liter and a half. It started a few years after I began smoking, which btw I quit (that poison) about four years ago with a lot of help from Mr. determination and a nicotine patch everyday for two weeks.

I smoked a pack or two everyday for nine years and despaired that the only time I'd stop the habit is through divine intervention or professional help; I guess the patch was the nearest "professional" I can get, which was a miracle in itself.

...but for the love of sweet camote!

I... i.... ♪♫ I can't stop loving you ♫♪♪♪...

I dream there would be a patch too for my sweet bubbly caffeine addiction but for now just like a cowboy inside that sexy bottle; I wish I knew how to quit you!!!


pic from rockblog.com

just walking

...to have a gauge or feel of the city or town in pinasville province all you need do is go to its cathedral or church and you will have a sense of history of the place or a bit to that effect or maybe something clearer so my father tells me

...so on I walked through the streets of Naga late in the morning

Naga Metropolitan Cathedral
no blowing; priests included


San Lorenzo Ruiz


four pillars

inside AdeNU

hey! i'm watching here

I'm in Naga City, and I have been resting my bony butt inside my guesthouse for the past couple of days. I originally planned to go to Caramoan but had a change of lazy heart. I then changed my plan to go to Bagasbas, Camarines Norte and try out basic surfing, but still, the lazy ass disease got the best of me.

Instead I ended up watching a double feature inside an old local movie house. I watched "The Savages" (a dramedy) but did not care to see "X files". It was a drastic change compared to the past 2 days of binge drinking with old friends in this old City that I have somewhat learned to call home.

...and an interesting thing happened inside the theatre; a middle aged woman shouted at the top of her lungs in the middle of the film, trying to shut up a bunch of teeners (i think) doing a little chatter of their own. She couldn't have picked a perfect timing; I didn't hear the moment in the scene where Laura Linney was telling Hoffman (brother in the movie) about her book grant etc...

The woman was really furious and she shouted with perfect English "Shut up! Can't you see we're watching a movie". The chatter subsided for about 10 seconds but then continued.

I have noticed the small chatter in the beginning of the movie however I thought--this was how it was in the province and assumed that the kids don't even know what theyre watching and they probably think it's better to chat the hours away while waiting for the next feature movie, so I didn't pay them much attention but instead focused on the film.

I really didn't know what to think of the woman but I find it amusing that there was some kind of live entertainment inside the theatre hehehe.

The old "lady" was not finished she walked towards the wall where an usher was and asked whether he was the security guard and pointed to the area where she thought the noise was coming. Nothing came much of that and the woman went back to her seat to watch the movie. I wondered whether she thought those group were uneducated or whether her actions were civilized.

About 20 minutes after there was a scene in the film where the character was an old man with dementia watching a movie with his kids (Linney and Hoffman), and he was also shouting inside the room--not shushing a noisy group but trying to respond to the movie as if it were real. The people in that room was telling the old man to shut the hell up and sit down...

...hahaha, I wondered what the old woman was thinking at that point hehehe.
I'm going home tomorrow morning, and I promise I'll be back in CamSur again and maybe use my untouched tent then :D

the little mermaid in me

It was a long walk from the Ultra gate to the pool area. It was pouring rain; there’s a tropical convergence zonamajig brewing to a full force storm. If it weren’t for an invitation to try out a water sport activity, I wouldn’t be riding the jeep and walking the long and dingy road while I soak my brown-beaten tsinelas across the one kilo drip of rain pounding my ole red umbrella.



But of course, the usual me—always trying some new stuff… to fancy or just to plain try…. And try I did, the undertaking was strenuous but uber fun at the same time; I had several gulps of the chlorine filled water and in a weird way I must say that I liked it ;p. You deeply inhale, holding your breath lunging down to the bottom of the five/six feet pool trying to get to that big round orange looking hopia they call the puck and you shove it with a 12 inch stick towards the end of the wall where the goal was. Then hooray! the goal was yours for the taking.

It’s not that easy—hence the “strenuous” from the last paragraph. Again, for emphasis, it’s not easy!!! I can’t say that it’s for everyone although Connie told me that Tintin, the moray eel in the group who were swerving and scoring goals left and right was a non-swimmer when she started underwater hockey. I guess she really liked the sheer thrill of the sport aside from the super cardio that it offers or maybe she likes the big bruises you get from all the body mugging and the accidental fin-slapping in the heat of the melee while struggling to get a piece of that hopia action, hehehe.

I am a water person and I know that for a fact. You can put me on court with 3 minutes of basketball or running and you'll have me asking for an oxygen tank in no time but ask me to swim Kayangan Lake in Coron from end to end and I’ll do that without a pant until my final stretch (I did actually—yabaaang!). But man! This sport will literally leave you breathless. Underwater hockey is the shizeeeniiit na mainit!!!


pic from dallasunderwaterhockey.com

hit no run

I was off to my usual weekend bike from my house to my father’s, that is if my lazy legs would allow me… and so about two weeks ago, I began the journey and I can say that I wasn’t off to a good start.

Less than 10 minutes into the ride, passing a depressed street neighborhood where kids think (and parents apparently) that playing on the road was just as normal as sago on hot Soya. I’m always careful whenever I bike on public roads wearing safety gear to the teeth, and I am especially aware with jeepneys and crazy pedestrians that the danger is real.
The street was empty with vehicles and the jeep behind me was a good 3 or 4 blocks away. I was almost in the middle of the road just pedaling along when one of the kids about 5 years of age suddenly crossed the street as he was being chased by another kid a few years older than him. Instinctively, as I saw him headed at my direction, I squeezed on my breaks to avoid hitting the bone thinned boy, but he still managed to ram the side of my front wheel (thankfully I did not ran over him)… now this is when the action really began; and I’ll play it to you in slow motion if you will.

As I hit the breaks and the kid grazed the front wheel. My bike was half flying in mid-air with the front wheel still planted but the rear part of the bike was a good 4 or 5 feet from the ground and I was there looking at the hard concrete head on while gripping the handle bars with a clutch as good as a monkey’s. And with a “life flashing before my eyes” moment, I did a quick reflex action veering my whole weight to the left avoiding toppling over the kid and preventing a skull-plant straight in to the cement. I landed on the road with my left side of the body; arm first and bike second which fortunately dissipated the force of the landing but still did not leave me unscathed.
vintage vintaged ;p
As I recovered from the rollover I immediately saw a small cut on my left leg and my feet was stuck between the wheel and the fork (the rollover was semi-violent). I hurriedly disentangled my left foot while looking at the jeep from a good distance behind me. I managed to recover from the shock (in less than 7 seconds, would you believe) and safely bring the bike to the side of the road. Some guy was already clutching the kid while I was asking him if he was alright.

The boy was crying obviously from the shock, I think the big part of it was watching me being hurled in a circusly fashion up in the air and seeing things to be as surreal as it was for him. The kid was ok and a relative came hurriedly to console the boy, worried as hell. By this time a small crowd was already converging over the whole hoopla… and I can hear people jeering and making comments about how the elder let the boy play without supervision in the streets etc (heck! kids shouldn’t be playing there at all.)… Looking back now, I think it was a good thing that I really crashed (and I really mean crashed) trying to avoid hitting the boy. If not for that and the small gush of blood already running on my leg I think the small mob would have focused the blame on me.

I was still shaking and was looking at my hand and leg wound. I stood for about a minute and decided to proceed after seeing that everything was ok with the kid and his relative. The crowd was getting a bit huge and the moment I began pedaling, was the moment they minded their own biz again.

With gushing blood on my leg I pedaled through, I stopped a good 10 minutes after (my extended shock) to check my wound. By this time I noticed that my Ipod nano of 4 years that was strapped on my left arm had a broken LCD from the fall. Bummer Moran! It just keeps on getting better!
A good hour after the incident it started to rain hard, forcing me to take shelter in one of the waiting sheds near Katipunan Ave. I waited for another 15 minutes for the rain to stop, but it didn’t and I eagerly wore my jacket and decided to bike my way to my father’s with the rain pounding heavily on my back.

To cut it short, I arrived quasi-safely at my tatay’s, hanged my shoes to dry and rested my tired legs to sleep.
cloudy day
When I awoke, I can really feel the sting on my leg wound even after pouring alcohol beforehand and applying ointment of sorts. Nothing biggie really, I was able to make it for the bike home safely the following day and was able to take some pics along the way… I even saw a motorbike that got into an accident with an SUV. I was just thankful that it wasn’t me.

…gave me added reason to thoroughly consider my dream of biking SE Asia.

hehe we’ll see….

of Dancing Queens and Goto King

what big gun you have, grandma!

We went to the second most bombed island in the world, Corregidor (next to Malta)... at least we were at the number two list for a different reason; that was a welcome change from my country being in the most corrupt list…

It was beautiful, added to the fact that I was with 10+ buddies, which made the whole experience amazingly fun and crazy! ...the crazy part, I’ll get to later hehehe.

From our quick ferry ride from Manila Bay to the island (less than 2 hours) there were buses mimicked like trams that welcomed us. We boarded them and started hopping on and off from museums, lighthouse to monuments and ruins; I guess you just have to check other blogs for pics (if you still haven’t), my broke-ass 8mp poser for a digicam broke down, and I was left using my camera phone.

The tour was very “snap snap” kind of thing where everything was scheduled and in line. I have no complaints though, I think it’s much better that way; organized and the guide was on top of everything… although it made the whole trip more touristy (everyone took pictures automatically when we hopped off the bus) which is what they wanted to achieve in the first place anyways, I think ;p

The highlight of the tour for me was the guide’s mention of “Corregidor Massacre” back in the 70s during Marcos’ rule.

We went to the hospital ruins, destroyed by bombs during WWII�"which was actually a violation of the Geneva Convention by the Japanese. It was a big cross from a pilot’s aerial perspective; however the Kamikaze bombers still bombarded the facility filled with the injured and casualties of war.

(I still cannot figure out though why my fave cocktail is a Kamikaze up till now)…

The hospital ruins were where the Moro Soldiers from Mindanao trained to fight the then disputed island, Sabah, Borneo. But when they found out that they were fighting their Muslim brothers from Malaysia, they had a change of heart and decided to forego the mission. Apparently Marcos was not fond of the soldiers’ resolution and ordered them executed by batches of twelve (and this is according to our guide, Gak Abelgak who harrowingly told the story). A lone survivor escaped the island by jumping off a cliff right before execution and swam to the nearby Caballo island where he met a fisherman on his way to Cavite (now talk about luck!).

scribed moro soldiers on the wall

After doing the rounds on the hospital ruins and seeing the names of the soldiers written on the wall by our own eyes and by their own hands, there was no doubt in our minds that the story was true, and the hairs on my arms slowly rose to a stiff while walking past these walls… of course, I pretended that it didn’t bother me while beside me Foyan was gripping with fear and trepidation hehehe.

We then went to another Battery place where we watched the sunset. What can I say, it was simply amazing!

…and now for the crazy part; even if the closest to “travel” that we did in our Karaoke session is from one mic traveling from one table to the next and San Migs and Tanduays from our mouth then to our tummies, I would still say that this is the highlight of my trip and so is too for the other droonken asses I guess.

lighthouse

The sing and dance portion was the most fun. I think the alcohol was just an added bonus hehe. I believe we’d still dance and partied like crazy even without beer�"at least I would’ve hahaha! Everyone was so merry and was in the moment, and mind you we were still in the “getting to know you” stage ;p…

The most wasted of us all was the one who vomited the most hahaha… well I know she asked not to talk about the droonken ass mishap anymore since she feels that it was too humiliating for her… so for her benefit we’ll give her a fake name since its too crazy of an event to pass up not mentioning, let’s call her Steb or Annie or Honey but never her known name, ok guys :-D

The following morning, Foyan confessed to puking discreetly on one of the garden plants, well, let’s just say that it will bear fruit next season.

josh: gusto mo tulong Jear?

And JeAr letting a rip on his bed sheets, poor cleaning lady!… but Steb, Man! She was really at it the night of the Videoke. She was so smoshed that all you hear from her was “I’m sooo droonk” like a million times. I told her to just sit down, chill and drink water, the moment I thought she was about to drink from her bottled water. I then experienced a scene from the “Exorcist” where Linda Blair gushed out fertilizers from a 90 degree projectile, hitting a part of my arm where it almost fell on my rum coke, funnier thing is that she tried to avoid unloading it all on me so she made a quick right face! Hitting I think Josh or Foyan in the process hahahahahaha.

I swore from that moment on that I will never eat Goto for the rest of my life, lugaw maybe but not goto, nyahahaha!!!.

We all sobered up the following morning of course and were already laughing our butts off from the colorful event the night before over breakfast.

It was too bad all of us except Dennie missed the sunset tour, for obvious reasons hehe…

Most of us then proceeded to the “good enough” beach on the island and chillaxed all the way before preparing for our ferry trip back to Manila. Nickie can’t believe how clear the water was on the beach… uhmmm, Nickie you haven’t been to Palawan yet, well all the more reason for you to go back :-).

In toto, we had a very nice and informative tour of the island and definitely one heck of a party! I will recommend this to friends and family and one day be def back for another tour.

Thank you Josh for a trip well done!

rasa singapura

I arrived technically on the 27th, 45 minutes before midnight from a bus from KL that I boarded at exactly 5:30 PM (for 30Ringgit the bus fare was indeed cheap--compared to the experience i'll be having in Singapore). Singapore is a very expensive city esp. from someone who comes from a not so very expensive one... it's just a good thing that I have a cousin who lives in Singapore with an expensive job too hahaha...
From all the cities I've been to in my SEA journey; Singapore is the most clean and efficient city that I have seen thus far, they're almost the same as HK only the climate varies.

I think there is no city in SEA that is not humid, toasting hot or downright melts you as if you were in an oven. It's a good thing there's an alternative artificial beach which is Sentosa that the city created for the tourist.

I thought at first; you won't get me caught going to Sentosa, I mean it would be an insult for someone who's been to the real Palawan and go there knowing that you will be in an artificial Palawan, but then again who am I to be an arrogant bastardo and snob the beach city near the ports... i actually salute Singapore for creating something as vibrant as sentosa from an actual nothing. I really thought that going to the beaches there would be such a bore, but I actually enjoyed it together with my cuz, some chicken wings and a pitcher of Tiger draught... You will just be amazed how Singapore did this. The fact that they actually grew from a small port town to a big tiger economy in Asia--again out of nothing...

While doing this solo tour I never miss to compare the cities I have visited to the city I live in which is Manila.

.. I compare Siem Reap, Bangkok, KL, Saigon, Penang... everytime! and I always am sad knowing that my beautiful country could be as orderly as Singapore one day or just even KL, maybe even Bangkok where it amazes me that people from my race actually goes to an actual bus stop to wait for a bus (if you've been to Edsa, you'll know what I mean). Each city has its differnet flavour of course, a different crazy and a different discipline in all of them...

Anyhoo, i was hurrying up to get a cab before midnight since i knew that they'd charge 50% more if I got a cab past 12... I got one and proceeded to my cuz's place on Meyer Rd. I had a pleasant chat with the old Singaporean taxi driver where I told him how nice and clean his country was.. and we somehow ended up talking 'bout politics... I remember him saying that back in the 70s, the Philippines was second to Japan and people from SEA including Singapore flock our advanced country for greener pastures... that was some 30 plus years ago, now he says that it's the other way around... he blurted a question that he never really asked for an answer, he said "What happened?". After paying him $6 or so for the short ride from Lavender to Meyer... it got me thinking ...what really happened?

Badpong

Sigh sigh sigh!!! What can I say…you have to love ‘em and you have to hate ‘em haha… My Patpong experience was a hellish one. I vowed not to go back there again except maybe to just be out on the street looking in haha, but to go inside another bar where they do ping-pong shows and other ultra electro magical pop … well… that’s like ‘nunca mas cabron’ but then again I’m not the type that keeps my options close, I like to keep them open at all times lol.

But anyhoo, there we were--I was with an Asian-American dude I met earlier in the day; he was my camera buddy when we met in Grand Palace, we were being wheeled in by a bunch of pimps hawking their bars, convincing us that the show was just for B100, all you have to do was order beer and you’d see a ping-pong, banana, nails and the magic that you can only see in Bangkok… and they kept on insisting that they do not have any cover charge.

I came there knowing that the ping-pong show was already an established tourist attraction. So I felt that it was an easy deal; you go in, you watch and then go out. I was about to find out that it was not… the hard way. The pimps kept on repeating “just see, just look, no pay” for like a hundred times, so we went up a bar named Showgirls and aside from us two pure asian looking dudes, there was also a group of about 4 Japanese with a local I think drinking their shit and enjoying the lame show.

We finally sat and this chubby woman of about 49 years of age naked from her bra down was already lying flat on her back with a naked banana on her right hand. She inserted the fruit that will no longer be worthy of being called a smoothie after 2 or 3 attempts, and when the banana was already inside; from the stage she was pointing her artillery towards me and calculating the targeted projectile.

I thought naaah that mangled banana won’t reach me from where I am (i was a good 10 or 15 feet away from the wretched tora-tora)… again, or so I thought�"it almost hit me, I did an awkward evasive maneuver and almost gave out a girly shriek hahaha… eeewww, imagine being hit by a wet, juicy fruit that came from an overage sex trade worker’s insides trying to please an overly tired tourist.

We watched two more magical moments; where they showed several nails on a string coming out of an again overage nasty entertainer and a super old woman with stretch marks matching the banyan trees I saw in Angkor Wat blowing out birthday candles from a long champola tube inserted somewhere inside her, I don’t know where she got the air to blow out the candles, I don’t think that she was even farting the whole time because that would only ignite the candles more if that were the case hahahaha.

In between the watching and the chatting (we were there for about 15 minutes) the fugly ladies (I kid you not they were really nasty man!) and one lady boy kept on putting drinks that they drank on our table and we kept putting them away, placing it on an empty table that were not ours. I already knew this was their ploy so they could have us pay extra for like ladies drink and other stuff, so I kept telling them no, no and No. So after awhile I motioned to my friend that we split since the show is becoming uber lame anyway and I thought it would be better for me to imagine the contortions than to watch it in their bar hehe.

As we were about to prepare our B100 we asked for the bill... lo and behold they were charging us B2900 for almost everything.

No wonder some of the girls kept putting their empty glasses on our table, which in return I put on another empty table that was not ours... I believe I said NO more than a couple of times...

...so we headed to the bar where the lady manager was; and as we tried to explain that the original agreement was just a B100 each for the magnipiceynt show... the manager started shouting and yelling that that was her show and she will do anything that she wants; hence the rip-off price, which is really an understatement. My new friend kept on telling her that its what the pimp said and that what she was doing was absurd and an outright extortion... the argument was reallyy getting heated up... and since she was arguing with an American, my friend would just not want to concede debate while I was thinkin' "Holy paksyet! how can we get out of this fuckin' situation these rip-offs are trying pull off" In my zen-asian sor t of wisdom I tried to reason with the manager.

.. I told her that it was really unfair and insisted politely that we only have B100 with us and the most (while crossing my fingers) and at this point all eyes were on us since we were the only customers left in that 10pm of a Patpong (the Jap group already left, however I think they paid much much more)... the most that we can give her was B200 each. But NO! this lady just kept on shouting saying the same phrase over and over... NO! this is my bar and you have to pay B2900 bhat... It went on and on and the headache was just going around in circles. I even said my catch phrase in a very assertive tone in the middle of the veryyyy heated argument "CHAN JA BOK TUMRUAD!!!" (I WILL CALL THE POLICE!!!)it didn't work... hahaha... the lady got even worse; she said that she pays the police too and to keep up and stay afloat with her bussines we had to pay her the full amount, or something to that effect.

showgirls; a very bad bad bad badpong!!!!

..

Then the manager finally said "Ok, you pay B1000 and then you go" I was able to calm my friend down and still insisted that we only had B200 at best; with a few haggling and a lot of stalemates I pulled out my wallet and gave her B400 for the whole bill and started to head out the exit which was guarded by a fat lady bouncer and several pimps and lady boys and girls... good thing they made way since apparently the manager took the B400 and finally agreed after a very very very insane and intense situation... I really thought that either we would end up in jail, hospital or worse :-( boohoo...

Sheezkebab! we then went out towards the main road from Patpong while still getting a quick peek inside the girly go-go bars--one minute after the fiasco... we just never learn hahahaha....

On the main road we just had drinks instead, some ice cold san mig and a cocktail. We laughed off the whole situation, nodded and scratched our heads in disbelief and my newfound friend paid me the B200 said Kampai, and laughed our asses out snorting, while talking and replaing the whole scene over and over.

We were better off drinking on that street bar outside Patpong; we met a nice Spain and Italian couple whom we just chatted the night away... the Italian guy said they never watched the ping-pong show "Why watch girls playing ping-pong it's just boring" hahaha that's a good one.

Going home i thought to myself "Man that was some kickass experience... next time i'll keep the Patpong out of my Kangkong" ;-p