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My thoughts about the Philippines are mixed. I was not prepared for my trip, for the things I saw. I had not realized that the Philippines are so diverse, both in scenery and economy. Mike and I flew directly from Manila to the Cebu island in the Visayas. The traffic was nuts, bumper to door to door to bumper traffic. The air was heavy from heat, humidity, and exhaust. We checked into the Shamrock Hotel, explored Cebu city center got some food, then enjoyed cable TV and AC in the hotel. Cebu city is a dirty city, full of exhaust, but interesting in some ways. There is a large Chinese population, so there were a lot of Chinese restaurants and Chinese writing. There was even a Taoist temple in the northern hills of the city. The city is crowded, has beggars in certain areas, has HUGE shopping malls that are just like American ones right down to the KFC in the food courts. The city had a few open air markets for touristy items, food, toys, even gravestones. One interesting aspect of the city was security. Banks were swarming inside and out with armed guards, carrying anything from a pistol to shotgun. But even Dunkin Donuts and Shakey's Pizza had armed guard. So did the bookstores and virtually every store at the mall. I did not feel unsafe, but there must have been reason for the guards. People talk about gun control in America and often foreigners think of America as a land where everyone carries a gun. I don't think that it true, but that is how I picture the Philippines. There were signs at the theater and at restaurants announcing, "You are welcome. Your gun is not." or "Please leave your gun and camera with the guard." There were commercials on TV admonishing people not to shoot their guns into the air to celebrate the New Year. I never saw a gun on a civilian, but I think I heard them when I was staying in a rural area. I saw an island policeman carrying a semi-automatic weapon. Many children played with toy gun ( popular items at toy stores). The Philippines is a strange country in a way. It is a third-world country, but also quite developed. There are places that are unsafe to travel because of fighting, yet the same island can also have safe places where tourists flock. You can meet nice people wherever you go. Children follow you, ask your name, sometimes ask for money, sometimes ask you to play with them. People on the street, on boats, in restaurants, sit down and talk to you, asking about you, your travel plans, your home country, how you like the Philippines, tell you about themselves, then continue on their way. You can stay at 5 star hotels, dumps with no running water and lots of bugs, or take lodging with the mayor in towns where there are no hotels. Some cities have drinkable waters, some islands have no running water. Electricity, or sporadic electricity. The first part of my trip was lonely. We went to Bohol and Panglao islands to see the Chocolate Hills. The Chocolate Hills are a big tourist attraction, but even so, Mike and I felt lonely. During the day was a smattering of tourists that came to see the hills. These people took day tours of the island to see the waterfall, world's smallest monkey (Tarsier), the "Apocalypse Now" bridge, and maybe a few other sights. These people took special van or cars to the Hills I am sure, because the only other alternative was by motorcycle (most of the tourists were way too old or fat too ride one) or by crowded "bus" that was shared with tons of people and their fighting cocks. Mike and I spent the night, and we were the only non-Filipinos in the small, secluded hotel. It was dead quiet by 7pm. We went up the hill to look at the stars during the new moon, but we got spooked and returned. There were too many strange noises on the hill and outside our hotel room. We went swimming earlier in the day and didn't enjoy it much because of the crowd we drew. At times there were 15 people watching us from the top of the hill. I think they would run and find others to share in the oddity of the foreigners swimming in the pool. So for the first 4 days Mike and I only had each other for company. But then we stumbled onto Bantayan Island. We stayed at Budyong Beach resort and found a have of tourists. Before that, Mike and I only saw a total of maybe 25 or so tourists, non of whom spoke English. |