Mangroves, Monkeys and Mozzy Nets

The Sabang Gang...

It was finally time to leave Manila and it couldn’t have come soon enough. All of us were tired of the city and ready to get to the beach and unwind a bit.  There were eight of us traveling together and we started really early to catch an 8am flight. Well we were actually split between two flights as I had asked Andy which flight they were on and he told me they were on PAL not Cebu so book the PAL flight which I did and Mavis did only to find out that Andy was on Cebu. Luckily the flights landed within about 15 minutes of each in Puerto Princessa. Apparently, the flights landed so close to each other that Andy’s flight landed and they turned off the runway and he looked out the window to see our plane barreling down on the runway. Either way we all made it there in one piece and were ready for the trip to the beach. It was nice having Peewee as she was able to speak to the van drivers and hire us a private van to get to Sabang. It was about a two hour ride in the van and I think that almost everyone of us was getting a bit of motion sickness as nobody had eaten anything all day.

Once the van pulled up to Sabang we took a stroll down the beach with the water buffalo to find our accomodations for the next two nights. We got settled and had some lunch on the beach and then got some relaxing time body surfing, tanning and chatting. Sabang is a pretty sleepy town so there was no internet, no real night life but we had a great group with us so we made our own little party in town. Mitra and I had a room with 2 beds in it so we had Kate Bauman staying in our room with us and on the other side of the hut was Simon and Stefan. When we finally all headed to bed that night we could hear those two talking like school girls on a sleepover. So of course we started asking them through the walls if they were having a pillow fight, if they had on their face masks, etc…We all finally got to sleep that night with the waves crashing right outside our window but the sleep was interrupted a few times by the barking dogs, crowing cocks and for some people mosquitos biting.

The next morning was our day for “sightseeing” in Sabang. Now there is not really a lot to do in Sabang except the Mangrove tour and the Underground River Tour. So we all set out to do both of these tours that day. My personal opinion is to skip the mangrove tour as to me it was a waste of time. They paddle you through the mangrove swamp and point out birds and snakes. The two highlights were the dog Brownie that followed us all they way through the swamp and they two guides going out and looking for these edible worms that live in the branches of the mangrove trees. Simon was supposed to eat one of the worms but chickened out as again we hadn’t eaten anything yet that day. So we were on to our next adventure which was the undertaking of the underground river. We decided to hike to the river and then take the boat back to the town. The hike was about two hours long and we had the choice of two trails so we decided to take the Monkey trail. It was pretty hot and the trail had a lot of stairs and to my surprise the person doing the hike the quickest was the smallest person on the trip Peewee! We also had Simon toughing it out with his broken toe. As we arrived  at the underground river we told the guys there we needed a boat back to Sabang when we finished the tour. We got the classic answer “Yes, Yes. No problem” and donned our hard hats and life jackets and got going through the river. I got the enviable job of being the light man on my boat which meant I got this high powered spotlight to shine at all the stalagtites and stalagmites as we made our way through the river. It was definitely a cool thing to see and our guide was pretty knowledgeable giving us some fun facts along the way as well as a few mistimed belches.  Apparently he was having some digestive issues during our tour and was not shy about sharing that with us. Now that the tour was over it was time to head back to town and of course there were no boats waiting for us at the beach. A theme in the Philippines is that even if they don’t understand what you are saying they just say “Yes” like they know what’s happening. After about 30 minutes of waiting on the beach we got our two bankas to take us back to Sabang. It was about to get interesting for us all as there were about 6 foot swells so it was a pretty rough ride getting back to town but for me just another fun travel experience in the Philippines.

Simon and his broken toe

                                   Stefan and Mavis in Sabang

That night we probably had the most excitement in Sabang as we had dinner at the Daluyon resort where Mavis/Summer and Andy/Peewee were staying. I think there were ten or eleven of us at dinner and as we sat down to order dinner and everyone was getting drinks I had the bright idea to get bottles of rum instead of individual drinks for the table. This led to some fun antics later in the night involving Norweigans and their Filipina “girlfriends”. We had a great meal and after a few bottles of rum being downed at the table people started to peel away and head to bed as we had a van ride to El Nido the next morning. I was one of the people who headed to bed but the gist of what occurred is one of the Norweigans started to yell at his “girlfriend” in the middle of the restaurant and make a scene so Andy decided to say something to the guy. Andy basically told the guy not to disrespect the woman and what he was doing was rude and since he is married to a Filipina this guy is giving all men a bad name. Apparently it got pretty close to punches being thrown but that never came to fruition. Everyone survived in one piece and we made it the car the next day to head up to El Nido.

                                                               Underground River

Overall my impression of Sabang is that it’s a nice laid back town. However, the only reason to go there is to see the Underground River. You could make it in spending one night there and then move on to El Nido. If we weren’t with a big group I probably would have done one night in town. Oh and Andy I’m enjoying the ride!

Until next time…

Brian

__________________________________________________________________________

Sabang, Sabang, She bangs, She bangs

(Tales of the Honky Parade)

Song for this post:

I was gonna do She Bangs By Ricky Martin

but that’s too easy

I was also thinking of Even the Nights Are Better

by Air Supply cuz they love them some Air Supply in Palawan

But instead I settled for Amongst the Waves by Pearl Jam

            So Manila left me unbelievably exhausted, what with the grueling travel and the late nights, so exhausted that I broke down in tears at dinner one night.  I was ready for some R and R down at the beach.  Dear reader, before we begin, I’d like to share with an apology for my seemingly schizophrenic baby blog.  (I mean no disrespect to schizos – I have no problem with schizos…and neither do the voices in my head!)  But for whatever reason I feel the need to explain to you how the process of this joint writing endeavor with my all so patient and understanding other half works.  We don’t read each other’s posts except for maybe small bits here and there and that’s how I want it.  Brian doesn’t read mine because for some reason he thinks I’m wordy and would rather be doing stuff than chained to a computer reading about the mental and maybe sometimes neurotic musings that he lives and breathes every day and I’m absolutely fine with that – I absolutely cringe at the idea of him making a mere suggestion that I change or omit something!  Conversely I stay away from reading his posts because as an English major and a control enthusiast, I fear I would try and edit the hell out of his experience and when all is said and done, it is probably best for our relationship that the right hand remains completely oblivious as to what the left is up to!

         

     In that vein, I’d also like to mention that I don’t even read what I wrote – hence any errors of grammar and/or spelling or any chemical imbalance, verbal diarrhea, or asshole twitching vulgarity that may spot my posts from time to time.  I do this, dear reader, all for you.  Well you and my own sanity, the ease with which I can OCD the hell out of something if I don’t show a little restraint, and the fact that I’m just pretty lazy…but mostly it’s all for you!  I’m hoping and trusting that in this process my posts will grow into what and how they want to be and therefore – so as to not censor or edit myself along the way and having what’s being written be forced to become something it’s not – I’m trying to back off as much as possible and just let it reveal itself, let it find its voice.

            I only mention this because if you have some expectation of reading a travel blog that talks mostly about spectacular scenery in soulful, subtle, scintillating sentences alive with clever alliteration, or places you HAVE to go and weird food you MUST try, interesting facts about local life, reviews on museums, palaces, ruins, and general points of interest, and suggestions of places to stay then you should probably just punch yourself in the nuts repeatedly and read no further.  (The nut punching isn’t necessary, but I just like to mention it when I can).  You may find some of that here - probably more so from Brian than myself – but that’s not how I experience the world.  And if you try to get me to explain how exactly I experience the world, well…that’s precisely what I’m trying to figure out myself…

            So we get up early Monday morning and fly from Manila to the island of Palawan.  Brian, Mavis, Summer and I were on one flight and Peewee, Stefan, Simon, and Andy on another that arrived about 10 minutes before ours.  We get our luggage and negotiate a van to take us to Sabang – a beach that’s about a 2 hour ride from the airport in Puerta Princessa.  In comparison, the van ride was rather luxurious in comparison to the public transport we’d experienced thus far.  That being said – almost everyone in the van felt like puking at one point along the ride.  But we got to Sabang and – halle-freakin-luah – I was in heaven!!!  White, soft sand and clear blue water as far as the eye could see.

                                                                     Sabang Beach

            We walked down the beach and headed to our lodgings – Andy, Peewee, Stefan, Simon, Brian, and me at Taraw (basic little huts on the beach for about 500 pesos a night) and Summer and Mavis headed a little further down the beach to the nice resort – The Daluyon (which means “strong wave”).  We got ourselves settled – B and I were staying in a room right next to Simon and Stefan who we all had decided at some point on the trip since they were the only 2 singles that they were now a couple.  Then we had a little lunch looking out on the water, reconnoitered with Mavis, Summer, and Andy who had disappeared to find them, and then headed for the water.  I was still feeling a little sick and worn out from the ride, but once I got into those waves, I can’t describe it any better than feeling like a kid again.  I was rejuvenated and reborn.

            At some point I was sitting on the beach – which always makes me sentimental – and though the others were scattered about, frolicking the day away, I remember it as being alone.

I was thinking a lot about Ellie.  Without going into too much detail and betraying any trust, Ellie was my first very best girlfriend from the time I was 4 until when her family moved away when I was about 6.  I didn’t know it then but it was the last time I would have a true, joyous and trusting relationship with another female for a long time.  When her family moved, we lost trust and I always longed to know what happened to her and had thought of her intensely over the years and even made feeble attempts to find her, though I didn’t know even where to begin – until this past August.  One day I was checking my e-mail and I saw a friend request from her on Facebook.  I was stunned and elated.  We started corresponding pretty intensely from the start and at the very beginning of our communications we discovered that we shared an awful secret that we didn’t know we shared for 27 years that has haunted and shaped us both over the last almost 3 decades.

Even later when we were at The Daluyon hanging out with everyone – talking, laughing, and enjoying the beach and each other - I felt so unsure of myself that every word I spoke and every engaging moment I had with another person was timid and made my whole body feel like I was pushing an 18-wheeler uphill.  I was wishing so much that sharing myself with others was easy, like with Ellie, that they could simply relate to me on that same level and that I didn’t have to think of how to relate to them on theirs.  The simple fact is that long ago, little by little, I stopped knowing how to relate to others on anything besides the shared path of past pain and tragedy and though it may have appeared that I was being cold and unfriendly and highly discerning of others, I was mad and frustrated with myself and it was just building and my demeanor was getting uglier and more shriveled as the days were going by.

Later as we were finishing dinner, Kate (Andy’s sister) showed up.  She had been delayed on her trip out to the Philippines by two days and though she had done the kayaking/camping trip we were about to embark on her with her husband Rusty before the wedding, she had decided to extend her stay and go again with the rest of us and thanks to the selfless, big-hearted generosity of one of the group, she was able to come join the gang so she flew up later in the day and took the van by herself with our driver Joe with whom she sang Air Supply songs the entire ride up.  Brian first met Kate when she was 16 and came to South Carolina for a weekend with a friend to visit Andy and since then, her and B have maintained a great friendship.  Since it was essentially Peewee and Andy’s honeymoon and Summer and Mavis didn’t have an extra bed and no one wanted to intrude on Simon and Stefan’s “alone time”, Kate roomed with me and Brian.

Kate is very much like Peewee in the sense that she’s just that girl you wanna be around.  She’s beautiful, a great storyteller, has an amazing laugh and she makes no demands whatsoever but is so good hearted and lively that you want to do things for her.  Of course I was completely intimidated by her!  After walking back from The Daluyon in the dark (there were no lights along the path back to our place and even then, like the rest of our time in the Philipines, there was only about 6 hours of electricity a day) and I’m pretty sure stepping in a big pile of water buffalo poop, we got back to our room, I donned all of my carpal tunnel arm and wrist gear, making Kate laugh that great laugh of hers, and we went to sleep to get some rest for our big day of adventuring the next day.
                                                                                                               Peewee, Andy and Kate

We woke up fairly early in the morning – it’s hard to have any sense of time these days and I rarely even know what day of the week it is – and met up with Ian and Melanie (a couple from the wedding who’d arrived in Sabang a day before us with Kelly, Quincy, John, and Bobby) and the 11 of us set off for the short hike to go on the mangrove tour.  About the mangrove tour…the best part of it was the tour dog, Brownie, who followed us the entire time down the water way excitedly running and navigating himself deftly through the abstract, twisted tree roots and swimming next to our boat when the mangled mangrove terrain wouldn’t allow him to run after us.

At one point, the boats stopped and the captain of the boat we were on jumped off, disappearing into the woods to find some woodworms – the disgusting, snot-like critters that Andrew Zimmern ate on his show once – and brought them back to the boat after some of the group expressed a desire to possibly eat some.  Brian had brought it up and since we hadn’t had time for breakfast, Simon said he could use a snack.  It would have made the trip a lot more interesting if Simon had actually eaten one, but he totally pussed out and then the tour was over.

We went back to our place and got organized and headed off in search of food that didn’t look like loogies.  We ate and then a few of us set out to find some essentials that we needed to replace or stock up in general.  For Simon, who had decided to come on the trip at the last minute, that was pretty much everything, including being on a mission to find a mozzy net since he’d barely slept due to being relentlessly attacked by mosquitos throughout the night.  After that, the group came together again – all of us who’d gone on the mangrove tour who Andy had aptly named the honky parade – and set out on the semi-treacherous monkey trail that led to the underground river.  The monkey trail was amazing and it felt amazing to be moving my body that much again, putting me in greater, more playful spirits.  And the group was really starting to gel and just having a blast getting to know each other and joking around – mostly teasing Simon and Stefan for being hot for each other.

                                                     Simon and his mozzy net.

          The Honkey Parade

                                                 The Monkey Trail

                                                            

           Cute little monkeys climbing through the forrest

By the time we got to the underground river it was already pretty late in the day so we opted for the shorter tour.  Once again we were split up into two boats and headed into the dark cave.  It was a pretty amazing sight to see and our tour guide did it great justice, pointing out interesting rock formations, giving us pertinent information about the river, and making the distinction for us between when he was relating a fact or just burping.  “That is what they call the Cathedral.  GGGGRRRRRRUUUUUUPPPP!  That was a burp.”  But my favorite was when he was talking about the bats that were more than plentiful in the great cavern.  He was telling us that they are eaten sometime and he said, “Bat is good, I like bat.  It tastes like mouse.”  When he was done with all the interesting tidbits he had to give, he informed us – very much like a PSA on the radio – that if we’d like to vote for the river as one of the seven wonders of the world that we could “Please visit www.new7wonders.com, thank you very much.”  (at least I think that was the website, but it was kind of amusing none-the-less.)

We finished the tour and then started to negotiate a boat ride back to the beach, which was looking pretty dismal as the weather had become ominous – dark and gloomy and windy as hell.  I was beginning to think that we were all going to have to camp out on that little tiny beach overnight and so I quickly offered up Brian for the group to eat if it came to it.  (One of my biggest fears is that I’ll get stranded somewhere and have to eat another person to stay alive.  Though I feel pretty confident that as a former anorexic I could probably hold out for quite some time.  But still – I usually try to carry peanut butter with me most places I go.)  Luckily we’d be eating pizzas at the Daluyon later that night as two boats came to take us back to civilization.  The ride was choppy and slow but we all made it with our bodies and stomachs in tact.

That night we had a great dinner and Brian and I excused ourselves somewhat early to get rest for the long car ride the next day up to El Nido.  We found out the next day though that we’d just missed all the excitement as our group almost got in a fight with a bunch of Norwegian guys whom Andy confronted when they started yelling at one of the hookers they were with.  Us old, married (or domestic partnered) couples miss all the fun I guess!  Nevertheless – Sabang was a nice interlude from all of the running around in Manila we had done and I was more ready than ever to just give myself over to the sun, sand, and sea on the upcoming camping trip.  Though I’ve spent the better part of the last 6 years in the mountains of Colorado, I am a beach girl through and through – it’s my element, it’s where I feel most at peace and I was hoping that a great deal of peace was coming my way to sooth the restlessness, irritability, and discontent I’d been soaking myself in for the past few weeks.

I was thinking about Ellie and what we’d been through and how I’ve become and who I was wanting to be and how much that all dogged me so much still when what I was hoping for was to break free from all of that on this trip.  I’ve had so much love in my life and in this life I have had the world given to me.  Now I’m presented with the challenge of giving myself to the world.  How will that come to pass, I don’t know when and if and exactly how it will.  But when I was in Sabang, when I was in those waves, playing more freely than I have in longer than I can remember, I had a moment of hope and a moment of feeling like a kid again, without a care in the world, only trust and I’m hoping to ride that feeling to freedom and floating and flowing and finally start to leave the fight behind…

xoxoM        

Peewee and Andy tie the knot...

Thrilla in Manila

In my first post I wrote about my reasons for wanting to do this trip. One thing that I didn’t mention was the real starting point for the discussions of this trip. What really got the conversations moving was the wedding of my great friend Andy Bauman in the Philippines. In its infancy this trip was going to be three weeks in the Philippines, which slowly turned into 3 months and then finally morphed into what we are doing which is six months of travel. So a big THANK YOU to Andy and Peewee for giving us our starting point.

Well onto Manila…I was really looking forward to Manila as I had spoken to so many people before going and they had all provided me with information on things to do and places to go. However, things didn’t really go according to plan while we were there as I spent pretty much the entire time sitting by the pool with everyone drinking San Mig or Tanduay. I can’t complain about it much as I was able to meet a lot of great people from around the world, which gives me more people and places to visit. On Thursday night two days before the wedding Andy and Peewee threw an Around the World Party for everyone who had come from outside the Philippines. I believe that this was the first time that Andy had friends from all parts of his life in the same place together. After the party the girls all went to the Hobbit House (yes it’s a bar where everyone is little) and the guys gave Andy a bachelor party. I will just leave it at Bachelor Party in Manila and you can believe it was whatever you want to believe it was.

The next day Mitra went up to Tagaytay for a day at the spa with Andy’s family. From what I’ve read Tagaytay is about an hour and half from Manila and according to Mitra it’s a beautiful volcano and lake. I think she got every spa treatment that was offered all for about $45 and came back raving about the place they went which is a bed and breakfast that she wanted to get me to go to for a night to stay. I have to admit she did bring back the brochure to try her sales pitch on me…”Baby it includes breakfast AND either lunch or dinner! Isn’t that a great deal?” All the while she was ignoring the fact that the place cost about $60 per person per day without the spa treatments so it was a little out of the price range. While Mitra was on her spa adventure I did happen to venture out a little that day and made it to the mall so that I could buy a Polo Barong, which is a traditional Filipino shirt to wear at weddings. It can be worn anytime really but it is a formal shirt that I needed to get for the wedding. This trip to the spa was a day trip and they left at 10am and were supposed to get back around 6pm. Everyone was making plans for dinner to go to the fish market and I had a tough decision looming…do I go to dinner with everyone or wait for Mitra to get back and go to dinner when she arrives. I pondered this for quite awhile and decided to wait for Mitra, which I think, was the best decision for my sanity.

Andy and Me Mitra,Summer,Mavis Kate and John

Finally, we are at the big wedding day! Now many of you know that I am not a fan of organized religion and was bracing myself to squirm…I mean sit through a Catholic Mass for the wedding ceremony. One thing that I knew I would not have to worry about was transportation as everything on that front was covered with vans picking us up at the hotel to take us to the church, to the reception and then back to the hotel. The only responsibility that came with it is we had to make sure we didn’t leave anywhere without our van mates. Relieving myself of all responsibility I passed this duty on to Mitra as I thought it would be a great thing for her since she would be the only one sober enough to remember who was in our van. Before I discuss the actual wedding I do have to mention that I have never been dressed as comfortably for a wedding as I was for Andy and Peewee’s. I was wearing the Polo Barong, linen pants and my flip-flops! There were strict orders not to wear shoes or high heels for the ladies. As for the actual wedding I was pretty zoned out and trying to take pictures so I could avoid hearing all the god talk. I did hear the exchanging of vows, which is what I was really there to hear. I have to admit though when the doors to the church opened and Peewee walked through she looking absolutely stunning and I could see how happy they both are together. I think Andy may have been crying a little bit.

The fun was really about to begin as we made it to the reception. All the westerners raided the bar and started double fisting drinks. I think that we may have scared all the Filipinos with the amount that we were drinking. Andy and Peewee were doing all the formalities of cutting the cake; first dance and Mitra mentioned that she was confused as to why they were doing this right away. There were two things that occurred that I had not seen at a wedding before and were both very cool. The first was a slide show with music that showed background on both Andy and Peewee and how they got to where they are today. I know that Andy teared watching the slideshow but this was nothing compared to what came after dinner. So dinner finishes and Mitra and I are talking to an American guy that we met at the wedding named Charlie who lives in Singapore and is friends with our friend Molly in NYC! Anyways, the music stops and we hear Peewee’s voice over the speakers. Thinking that she is talking we all start looking around for her and look up on the projection screen and see that there is a video playing. On the screen is a professional video set to music of the pre-wedding, wedding ceremony, cake cutting, first dance the whole day. Looking around everyone was in shock as it was completely amazing and like nothing I had ever seen before. Talking to people all you heard was didn’t that just happen? Overall, the wedding was an amazing time filled with many laughs, many new friends and great memories for everyone.

The only decent sunset in Manila

We had one recovery day in Manila which I definitely needed and then it was off to Palawan to see the Underground River and then go on our kayaking and camping trip. Off to the next adventure!

And of course a HUGE Congratulations to Peewee and Andy! We love you both and are so happy for you.

Brian

____________________________________________________

Mabuhay Manila

(And Long Life Peewee and Andy - Thanks for loving each other to get our butts out here!)

Song for this post:

Live Yo Life by Evil Empire & Trae Tha Truth

First thing we did in Manilla after arriving there ABCD (At the Butt Crack of Dawn) and checking into the Ascott Makati – long, LONG hot showers and naps. Brian had gone to work out and when I woke up I did the same. The gym looked out on the pool and as I sweated it out on the stair master (I had accidentally entered my weight in pounds but the damn machine was in kilos so it worked me like I was a linebacker climbing Everest. That non-American speaking stair master kicked my ass - I thought I was going to start my trip in traction! P.S. – before you head overseas, learn the metric system. Being that math isn’t my forte in the first place, this has always caused me problems on my travels to the point where I’ve felt obligated to eat 2 lbs. of cheese by myself in one sitting!) all of the wedding party began to congregate at the pool. Brian would point me out to a new arrival – I’d never met any of these people before – and they’d wave and smile and I’d wave and smile back, sweat pouring down me like Playboy Bunny at a Mensa conference, thinking “@#%$ *^%$$% ##@% ***k!!! Yeah, nice to see you too. Oh yeah, so glad you’re enjoying yourself at the pool. That’s wonderful, I’m so happy for you!”

So some of the mental uneasiness that had crept up on me in Banaue had followed me to Manila. I’ll admit I was a little apprehensive and overwhelmed with meeting so many new people all at once. Throughout my past year of trials and tribulations with my health and being so sick in a new place where I didn’t know too many people and not having the opportunity or ability to go out and really meet people, I was starting to discover that my confidence had been shot. Everything that I did in my daily life prior to moving to New York that made me feel good had become non-existent in the past year – I wasn’t writing, I wasn’t working out, I wasn’t really involved in my recovery program, I was barely in touch with my friends from back home and that being the case, I was feeling extremely insecure and not really confident that I had anything to offer anyone.

I only mention any of this because I don’t know if it’s just me, or just the alcoholic in me, or if it’s something that most people can relate to but I think – no, I know – I had this expectation that once I got on the plane, all the fear and doubt that had been building in me the past year (actually I think it has been building for way longer than that, this past year was just the first time I was still enough to really feel it) would magically melt away and be easily replaced with confidence, fearlessness, courage, passion for life, purpose. (Dear reader, if you haven’t guessed by now, I am on a frantic quest for these things on this trip, have always sought these things but have the highest of hopes that these things will click on this trip and finally fall into place. I am optimistic that I have all the pieces and that this trip will finally bring them all together.) But in short, my start in Manila was a bundle of clichés, the main one being, “Wherever you go, there you are!”

I finally made it out of the gym, my legs feeling like Jell-o walking on pudding and headed out to the pool where the introductions were formalized and had my cherished post-workout cigarette. About 15 of us hung out by the pool for a few hours, everyone (except me) drinking and almost everyone (mostly me) smoking like a supermodel at a smorgasbord. There really isn’t much to our time in Manila, this is pretty much how it went for the duration of the stay – party, party, party. There were a few stand-out moments however and this is what they were:

Thursday: Kate, Summer, Ann, and I headed out to Greenhills – a huge kind of indoor bazaar where I bought clothes I probably didn’t need, but were so cheap I couldn’t resist and Kate and Summer scored some sweet Prada and Louis Vitton knock-off purses that you would never know were “replicas” for about $20 each, thanks to Summer’s fierce haggling skills.

That night we all headed over to the People’s Palace restaurant in Greenbelt 3 for an Around the World party. It was a party thrown for all the people who had gathered from the corners of the earth to celebrate Andy and Peewee’s wedding (sorry Peewee – I misspelled your name in the first few posts!) Someone determined that the only continent not represented at the party or the wedding was South America. Yep – there was someone there from Antarctica! Just to give you an idea of the kind of people Andy and Peewee are (which I’ll get into a little bit more later) and how much they are loved. It was a wonderful party, but came to an end when the boys headed off for the bachelor party and the girls headed out for their own night on the town – sans Peewee who was understandably keeping a low profile with the big day coming up.

About 9 of us headed for the Hobbit House. Yeah – I said it, the Hobbit House. The name says it all – it’s a bar and restaurant somewhere in one of the more the unsavory parts of Manila that is staffed entirely with little people. When we arrived and got out of the cab, there was a table of little people sitting out front and the entrance looked like something straight out of the Shire. But when we got in, I have to say after the months of anticipation and Brian and I building it up in our minds of what it might be like, I was thoroughly kind of disappointed. Not only was it not midget tossing night, but the whole place was way less hobbitier than I had hoped. The staff wasn’t even dressed like Frodo or Samwise Gamgee and Gandalf was certainly not behind the full size bar mixing up Long Island Ice Teas or pouring beers! What a let down! The most amusing thing I saw was a Filipino midget wearing a bright green shirt that said “100% Irish”. And the only thing that was little – besides the staff – was the toilet. And what’s even worse is that the only picture us girls got with the staff was with us sitting behind a table and them standing next to us, but it just looks like they’re sitting down. I didn’t even get a Hobbit House t-shirt. But we had fun, just us girls, singing “Sweet Caroline” and talking till we closed that joint down at which point Summer swears she heard the staff start blasting “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”.

Friday: Peewee had arranged a spa day up in Tagaytay for any who were interested. I’m not sure where Tagaytay is in relation to Manila (get an Atlas, I’ve got a blog to write, I’m not superwoman, I can’t tell you every detail!) but it’s at least a 2 hour car ride there and wherever it is, it’s by a volcano and it is absolutely gorgeous!!! (The whole place, not just the volcano, though that was pretty spectacular as well…and even more beautiful in it’s not being active!) If I’d known better, (or was more of a planner) I would’ve pushed to stay there for a few nights. Peewee said that that’s where Manilans go for weekend getaways and I can see why! Our driver Albert took me, Kate (Andy’s sister), their parents, the Conways, and the Demerlys (both couples have been long time friends of the family) to Sonya’s Garden. This place was totally an Eden – beautiful and serene.

When we arrived there we weren’t exactly sure what the drill was so we went and had lunch. It was a fixed menu of delicious and all organic food that I think they grew right there. I sat at one end of the table with the guys and they just cracked me up the entire time. Then we headed off for our spa treatments – ladies first. We all got 1 hour full body massages and pedicures. Kate and I also got manicures and steam baths. And then I opted for a facial and what they called the Eye Wellness treatment. Basically what that was were these goggles of gyrating, pulsating, vibrating annoyance. (If it had lasted a minute longer, I would’ve gladly given up state secrets and missile launch codes!) I felt a little guilty that my extra treatments delayed our departure by about an hour and turned what should’ve been a 2 hour car ride into more like 4 due to the traffic we encountered on the way back into Manila. But at the same time I felt a bit entitled to treat myself in an effort to try to begin the process of pampering myself after a year of beating myself up and ignoring the wellbeing of my body. Plus, I was trying desperately to ease my mind that had been raging with angst and discomfort for the past few days, but to little avail since I so guilty for holding up the group and the car ride was so bumpy, cramped and long that it pretty much undid all of our massages. Oh well, tomorrow was another day.

Saturday (The Wedding): There’s not much to say about the wedding itself except that it was fabulous! The ceremony was held in a Catholic church per Peewees wishes (Andy is an avid Atheist, but took his vows in front of a priest, God, his and Peewee’s friends and family, and the Outback Steakhouse that was right next to the church to make his love happy.) The men were dressed in khakis and Barongs (traditional Philippine dress shirts) and the women all looked gorgeous in their “Island Formal” attire – though everyone was confused as to what constituted as “Island Formal”. After the ceremony and lots of pictures, we all got in our assigned cars and headed to the reception that was held out on the golf course at Peewee’s family’s magnificent country club. It was a blast, a true celebration and a great opportunity to really get to know everyone. Brian and I even met a guy, Charlie, who is presently living in Singapore but had lived in New York and was good friends with one of our good friends and Brian’s old roommate from when he first moved there, Molly. The world is a small place, isn’t it!

One of the many highlights of the wedding however, was the amazing wedding video that was shown to us only minutes after Peewee and Andy’s first dance that included all of the days’ events up through that dance! It was amazing – I can’t even describe it. Maybe someday it’ll be on YouTube and you can see it for yourself because I won’t be able to do it justice. But mostly what stood out about the wedding were the people, especially Andy and Peewee. All I have to say about Andy is this – here’s a guy who has given himself to the world, joining the Peace Corps after college and living overseas ever since working as and studying to be a marine biologist and in return, at least 50 (if not more, and there were even more who couldn’t make the trip out) people from every period of his life, from all corners of the Earth (except the South American who couldn’t make it) came together to be here for this wonderful occasion. And though we all came from different backgrounds, cultures, and countries, we all got along as if we were all old friends. The observation was made of Andy on this trip that it’s amazing how knowing Andy, you know you’ll hit it off and connect with anyone he knows. I think that says it all about what kind of terrific man Andy is – even if he gives lousy packing advice and probably wouldn’t shower if Peewee didn’t make him! Having the opportunity to meet and spend time with his family and friends was truly notable, given that they are all some of the most dynamic, generous, genuine, lively people I’ve met.

Now Peewee, in her own rights, is just as incredible and fantastic. Put simply, Peewee is magic. She is this tiny little thing (hence the name Peewee – I just wanna fold her up and put her in my pocket!) bounding with the energy, enthusiasm, curiosity, creativity and passion of a child. I mean that in the best way and with the highest regard and admiration possible. Most of us unfortunately lose that as we get older, become cynical and lose that luster for life and the world tells us that that is how it should be, that we shouldn’t dare to believe that the world grows newer and more spectacular, more beautiful, more wondrous with each passing day and too many of us live that to the core of ourselves – I know I do. We live life thinking that there are no surprises left, there’s no imagination left, there’s nothing left on the earth to awe us to the point where our passion spills onto and over everyone and everything around us. But it does happen, that kind of magnanimous exuberance is alive and welland there is no better example than Peewee. She’s the kind of girl who you can’t not love and when you leave her presence you feel nothing but joy and like everything really is going to be ok.

So my biggest impression about the wedding was simply this: that there are two people in this world for certain who are generating truly, madly, deeply, passionately this pulsating, alive, authentic, tangible love between themselves and all who know them. What I’m taking away from Manila, I’d like to say that it’s a little less self-doubt, but unfortunately for now I think I acquired more – not to mention my backpack is already getting full 10 days into the trip! Could I be that person? Could I take the best parts of Andy and Peewee that I admire so much and make them my own? Am I meant to? I crave that, all the magic and wonder I have seen in them, I long for that in myself, have always had a fiery desire to be that free and giving of myself, my love, to be able to put the best parts of myself out into the world without abandon, fear, inhibition, apology, or doubt. Only time will tell until then, I’m just living my life and waiting all too anxiously for it to unfold…

xoxoM

The First Adventure...

In Search of the Rattail

We finally arrived in Manila after a slight delay leaving Los Angeles. Andy met Mavis, Summer, Mitra and me at the airport and we headed to get some lunch at Greenbelt, which is a gigantic mall in Manila. We had a few beers and a little food and got caught up. After we were sufficiently refueled and getting a second wind that we all needed we set off for the hotel we would be staying at in Manila. They were kind enough to let us store our packs so that we could just take daypacks with us to the rice terraces in Banaue.

Once that was situated and we had our reservations for an overnight bus we went to dinner and finally got to meet Peewee (who Andy was a week away from marrying)! We had a great dinner with Chicken Adobo, garlic rice and of course a few San Miguel beers. It definitely helped having the local with us, as she was able to order for everyone and pick some great things off the menu. When dinner was finished it was time to head over to the bus station for our first overnight bus experience in Asia.

Now the buses in the Philippines are not the most modern but they are heavily used. Almost as soon as we got to the bus station we all started to question our decision to take the Autobus line over the Florida line. The bus was pretty decrepit, had cracked window and didn’t really look to safe. However, the real adventure was about to begin once we boarded the bus for our 8-hour ride. This bus had the typical two seats on the left and two on the right…the bonus was the fifth seat, which folded out into the aisle so we had to climb over people to get to our reserved seats in the last row of the bus. The last row was raised up a step or two above the other seats and I sat next to the window which was about waist high and cracked and spidered. Normally that might not be the worst thing but since the bus went through the mountains every time the bus went around a turn I leaned into the window and thought I was going to crash through it and land on the road. Needless to say there was very little sleep happening on the bus ride and led to a pretty harrowing experience since we were all still jet lagged. It was a quick introduction to Filipino driving as they pass going uphill around a blind curve in the dark into oncoming traffic. It made for a long and restless night to say the least.

We did make it to Banaue at about 7am and took a Jeepney into town to get our hotel squared away and setup our hikes through the rice terraces with a guide. We set up two hikes to do while in Banaue. The first we did at 11am the first day, which was a hike to the hot springs in Hapao. This hike is one of the easier in the area and we were able to ease into the hiking since we all were still jetlagged and didn’t really know what day it was or where we were. Our driver and guide picked us up and we started the bone-jarring ride up to Hapao to start the hike. The guide for our hikes was a local named John John. We were all very intrigued by John John from the get go as he had a well kept and braided rat tail that ran down the middle of his back. I tend to believe that the rattail is a status symbol up in the rice terraces as I hadn’t seen that many of them since the mid 80’s. As for the hike at Hapao these are some of the older rice terraces and it’s pretty amazing to see what they were able to build 2000 years ago and carve into the hillsides. The rice terraces are complete with a full irrigation system using fresh water from the river. John John was filling us in on some of the information about how the terraces work. First off all of the rice is for personal consumption and a small terrace maybe 10’x10’ will feed a family of four for two months. Also, the terraces are passed down through the families and unfortunately for Mavis he can’t buy himself a rice terrace. The walk itself was pretty easy but you had to pay attention the entire time, as the walkways are very narrow as I was soon to find out. We all got to the hot springs without any problems but this hot spring was more of a bacteria infested cesspool. Just beyond the hot springs are some freshwater pools created by the river that the locals use to bathe which we used to cool off before heading back. One of the things the four of us had been discussing was falling into the rice terraces. All of the terraces are filled with a few inches of water and there is thick mud underneath the water and it did not look like anything you wanted to fall into. So on the walk back I am following John John and I step on a rock and it wobbles to the right and left and while trying to catch my balance my left foot goes right into the thick nasty mud. Everyone got a good laugh and I was able to wash my shoe off in the irrigation system but I had to complete the hike with a soaking wet foot and a bruised ego. We finished the hike and made our way back to the town for an early dinner and all four of us were asleep by 6:30 that evening and got about 12 hours of sleep to get over the jetlag and be ready for the tough hike the next day.

The next morning we left at 8am for the Batad Rice Terraces. Now you might assume that all rice terraces are created equal but Batad is a big amphitheatre built into the hillside and the views are spectacular. This was definitely the tougher of the two hikes and it was not made any easier by the rain that greeted us in the morning. Again we had to take the Jeepney up to the Saddle to start our hike. We were all advised to get walking sticks, as the trail was wet and “slippy”. So 20 pesos later we each had our own walking sticks and set off on the 45-minute hike to the start of the real trail. As we started I knew that John John was right and it was going to be a more difficult hike than the previous day. We had to hike down into the amphitheatre and it was pretty steep at times but they also did not build the steps for Americans with size 11 feet. Mavis and I had to spend most of the day going down sideways so as not to tumble down the terraces. Some of the views through the valley were amazing on this hike and as the rain stopped and the fog began to lift you could really see the beauty of what had been built. The goal of this hike was to make it to the Batad waterfall and back. After a long and arduous climb down into one of the valleys we finally make it to a stunning waterfall where we relaxed while preparing ourselves mentally to make the climb back up to the viewpoint and out. The hike out was much quicker but all of us were pouring sweat, as it was all stairs. I should have counted how many but I really had to concentrate on each step. We all made it out unscathed and had a nice cold San Mig awaiting us with our lunch and a coffee for Mitra.

The last day in Banaue we decided not to hike but to just hang around town look for some souvenirs and relax. We did to up to the Banaue overlook and took some pictures looking down into the valley and the town. Personally I was also preparing myself for the bus ride back to Manila. We decided to back on the Florida bus instead of the Autobus. This was definitely the nicer looking of the two buses but there was one major flaw that we didn’t know about…it was ice cold and they wouldn’t change the temperature onboard. Looking around the bus was quite comical as people were wearing every piece of clothing they had in their bags to try and keep warm. Mitra had on jeans a fleece her rain jacket and my rain jacket was wrapped around her legs and she was still freezing cold. Needless to say it was a long and cold ride back to Manila. We did manage to survive and made it back to Ascott Makati around 7am and were able to check in and get our first hot showers in five days.

The view from Banaue overlook

The rice terraces were an amazing experience and we were there as they start the planting so our pictures are very different from what one would see when they are in full bloom or being picked. It was definitely worth the trip but just know that the bus ride is not an easy one but the payoff is grand.

Brian

__________________________________________________________________

Are We There Yet?

Theme song for this post:

Animal by Miike Snow

So before we get down and dirty on this adventure, you should know that Brian is a planner, I am not. It’s not so much that I’m not a planner, I’m just not much of a thinker-througher. For those of you who were privy to any of my earlier trips you know that if it were up to me on this trip, I’d have a backpack full of nothing but high-heeled shoes, bikinis, cigarettes and underwear. It simply would not occur to me to pack things like rain gear, head lamps, or aloe. That’s all Brian and that’s why I keep him around. Well that and the fact that I ran out of space in my backpack so he’s carrying my make-up – which is always a mistake to bring because I get so dark that I never have the right shades and aloe is always a mistake not to bring because I take for granted the fact that I’m usually only degrees away from the equator and usually burn before I tan. This fact may have no relevance at this time, but just for future reference, I thought you should know. And with that, let’s begin. Okey-dokey, here we go…

I have to admit that at first I was a bit nervous meeting Mavis and Summer. Of course Mavis (Matt) and Brian have been friends since their Gamecock days (insert lewd jokes here), but it was the first time for Brian meeting Summer and my first time meeting them both. What with still having that hope for approval from the people that mean the most to your significant other and my lack of socialization in the past year due to being sick, I was a little intimidated. But we quickly bonded over our mutual passion-slash-mortification of The Jersey Shore - even giving each other Filipino Shore names for the trip – and when my internal monologue failed to do it’s job and I let slip a crack (no pun intended) about anal bleaching and when me and Summer discovered we were both Libras and decidedly fabulous and when Mavis and Brian discovered we were both Libras and therefore decidedly handfuls, we became fast friends.

So Brian, Summer, Matt and I get on the plane in LAX. We were suppose to take off at 12:05a.m. on January first but someone decided to get off the plane and were delayed an hour. Finally we started to taxi and I popped half a Xanax and would be blissfully asleep and drooling for the next 8 hours with my Carpel Tunnel wrist guards on both hands – or so I thought. Apparently when the food service came around I managed to get my tray table down and ask for the pasta dinner. They were out of pasta so I somewhat coherently asked for the beef and then proceeded to eat the entire meal in my sleep – though I got more of it on myself than in my mouth.

When we arrived in Hong Kong for our layover after 15 hours of flying, we learned that Summer and Matt had had a more eventful flight. Sitting next to them was a young man who I had seen pacing up and down by the gate in LAX talking to himself. He informed Summer at some point in the flight that he had Tourettes and eventually revealed he had 3 personalities – a Brit, an American, and a Gihad terrorist. Fourtunately, Summer never saw him trying to light his crotch on fire, but she had decided to pull her blanket over her head and hoped to not be woken by the smell of burning sneakers.

We got to Hong Kong and had enough time for everyone to brush their teeth and get coffee – except me. I smoked one and a half cigarettes (priorities) and then we got on the plane and about two hours later were landing in Manila. Andy met us all at the airport and we jumped in a car, off to Makati – the ritzy part of Manila where almost everyone was staying for the wedding. We had a nice Filipino lunch in the mall at a place called The Good Earth located next to Bubba Gump’s. With the jet-lag, the lack of sleep and the heat it was hard to tell if we’d even left America – except that I could smoke just about everywhere.

We went back to The Ascott – the hotel where we would be staying for the wedding – and we dropped off our big luggage and downsized for our three day excursion up to Banaue. Now when you’re just arriving in a third world, tropical country and haven’t really had time to orient yourself to the climate and weather and had been in three feet of snow in the Colorado mountains only days before and landing in the smog drenched city of Manila and heading to the rice terraces of said third world country and have only slept about 10 hours of the last 36 and you want to know what essentials to pack for the next three days and you’re a girl who can rough it to a point, don’t ask the guy who was in the Peace Corps for 3 years who lives in board shorts and who’s nickname in college was “Dirty” what you should bring to wear. Use caution – bring EVERYTHING!!!! Andy had been up in Banaue (Bah-now-eh) days prior to this and said he just wore shorts and a light, long-sleeved shirt at night and that it had rained when he was there so somehow miraculously, it should be clear for our trip.

With the meagerest of necessities (I left my make-up in Manila), the original Filipino shore four - after dinner with Pee-Wee and Andy – headed to the bus station to catch our transport to the north. (At least I think it was north. From here on please refer to Brian’s posts for accuracy of location, prices, exchange rates, and names of people, places, and things…and days of the week.) The four of us got four out of the five seats in the very back with Brian against one window that looked like it’d been through Kuwait and back, the girls were in the middle and Mavis got stuck on the other end with a local sitting next to him who immediately took off his shoes and rested them up in Mavis’s face. It would actually take at least three more paragraphs to capture the tragic comedy that was our bus, so I’ll spare you except to say that out of the four of us, I found it the least god-awful since I opted for a whole Xanax as the bus left for the station, through on my wrist guards and my IPod and was drooling on Summer and Brian’s shoulders for almost the entire ride.

We arrived in Banaue around 7am and got to a hostel. While they were making up our rooms, we decided to check out the town (which was about a New York city block long) and look into some hiking tours. We went to the tourist information center right in the middle of town and they were very helpful and we made our plan of attack – three day trips to different terraces, varying in length of hike. On very little sleep, a whole lot of traveling, and no showers for three days we decided there was no time like the present so we decided to start that day. We went and had breakfast, went back to our hostel to get our packs for the hike and then hopped in a Jeepny for an hour and a half ride up to wherever we went that day. All I know is that when they were telling us about this hike at the tourist center they mentioned hot springs being at the end of the hike and I was imaging something like Pagosa Hot Springs near where I lived in Colorado and imagined a soothing spa experience to restore our travel-weary bones. Ha!

We get in the Jeepney which is common transportation in the Philippines – a Jeep Wrangler front with basically a long, covered truck bed in back. Very often on our rides, as the Jeepny was moving, people would jump on and climb up top for the ride or just hang on the back and then jump off. Mostly it was kids deftly hanging off the back. Brian would stick his hand through the window and give them candy (Summer and Mavis had brought a big bag of Jolly Ranchers and Starburst from the States as they had read handing out candy is a hit with the kids in the terraces and it was. But it was an even bigger hit with our tour guide, John John who only ever stopped chewing Beetle Nut – called Moma in Banaue – to eat a Starburst or two), the only thing the kids wanted from me – cigarettes. Yeah – I did it, I gave the kids cigarettes, I’m an enabler!!!

The Jeepny ride was about as comfortable and smooth as being hit in the back of the head with a metal baseball bat while riding a mechanical bull while navigating up and downhill around curves with 100 plus ft. drops. Man was I ready for those hot springs by the time we got out of the car and started our hike! And then the hike began…It was absolutely stunning and breath taking to see the rice terraces and think about what a spectacular creation the people of that land had – what I can only imagine to be painstakingly – carved out of the earth thousands of years ago. Even thinking of it now I’m amazed. And I won’t even do it the dishonor of trying to describe it, you just have to see it for yourself.

Mitra over the valley in Hapao

After a semi-treacherous hike, we made it to the hot springs. I like to keep myself open to new experiences (except for eating weird shit and many sexual fetishes) and try to appreciate how other people live, but there wasn’t a chance in hell I was getting in that spring. It was basically a community bath and surprisingly nothing like the springs back home. We hung out for a bit by the river and cooled off as much as we could before the hike back. On the way back to the Jeepny, Brian had a little miss-step and landed his foot right in a rice thingy and was basically soaked on his left leg in mud that smelled like poop. But that was far better than the alternative which would have been falling the other way and taking a 15 ft. header into rocks and mud. Other than that, the hike back was pretty uneventful and we got back in the Jeepney for the ride home.

We got back to town and were cold, famished and exhausted. I think that night we ate at Las Vegas – the only restaurant in town that offers late night dining staying open until 9 p.m. – went back to the hostel, took freezing cold showers, and were all passed out by about 6:30. We got up relatively early the next day and did it all again, this time to Batad and an amazing waterfall. This hike was pretty strenuous as the trail is frightening at best and we did it in the rain. Thankfully we hadn’t listened to Andy and had brought our rain gear. The terraces of Batad are just as impressive as all the rest but mostly what I remember the most of the next few days is how nuts my mind was and I just couldn’t turn it off.

It was great to have the girl time with Summer since I haven’t had a whole lot of it this past year with the exception of my mom and Janis, the all too few but precious and cherished phone calls with my dearest girlfriends, Tereza, NeNe and Jing, the phone calls when Jill would kick my ass – in the most loving way possible, the wonderful outings with Danielle and Cass, getting o spend time with Kristin and Amanda, and the torrid e-mail love affair with my long-lost childhood friend, Ellie – they saved me this year. And I expect that I won’t be having a lot of girl time in the months to come, so I really enjoyed connecting with Summer – she helped me out so much by us being able to share and get to know each other and be able to have someone to bitch about the cold, cold showers with. I mean the crazy didn’t fully subside (I know what a lot of you who know me are thinking!!!) but it was a little relieved.

On the third day Summer was coming down with a cold and we were all pretty ragged out so we decided to take it easy. The boys treated us girls to the $6 massages that were being advertised at our hostel. In the morning we got up and had breakfast and then the boys left to run errands in town and Summer and I waited somewhat skeptically as two Filipina ladies arrived at our hostel and came to our rooms. It was kind of a strange experience, almost like the start of some really bad and really twisted porn as I saw the horror on Summer’s face when she was being shuffled into her room and asked repeatedly if she wants wet massage. We had come up with “smooshing” as our safety word but thankfully neither of us needed it and the massages were fantastic and that woman bent and stretched my body into shapes I didn’t know the human body could make! (OK – that did sound a little pornish but that’s not what I meant perverts!)

View from Banaue Overlook

Girl time in Banaue

Before we headed out of town we went to the hotel we were originally meant to stay at and to be honest it looked like The Shining, Filipino style. We had a nice dinner though and were very optimistic as we had decided to return to Manila on a different bus line (Florida Bus) than the one we had taken up (Auto Bus). The Florida Bus was pink and looked clean and most of the windows seemed intact and it had a toilet – we were high rolling for only 50 cents more per ticket. We got on and though the bus was substantially nicer, the AC was set to some arctic level of coolness that made me want to pee on myself just to keep warm. And thanks to heeding Andy’s sage advice, none of us had anything warmer than our thin rain coats. It was nine hours of freezing hell. The only saving grace was that we were heading for Manila and four star accommodations…and hot showers!!!

So what I learned from this portion of our travels is this: layer, layer, layer!!! Just because you’re in the tropics, you’re not immune from hypothermia! If you’re relatively new to tropical travel, research – don’t take advice from a guy who got through college with only a handful of showers (seriously), no matter how much you love him! If you go to Banaue, don’t be afraid to eat at Sanafe restaurant – even if someone has left their underwear out to dry on one of the dining tables. You can be nuttier than squirrel shit even in paradise and Xanax may help you sleep but it does nothing for your sanity. But most importantly I’ve come to terms with the fact that after Manila, hot showers and high-heels will be a thing of the past for me and I’m wondering now – who will I be? Marinate on that! Until Manila…

xoxoM