Bahala na

I was under the impression we were travelling light, so I did. My rucksack only weighed 6.5kgs! My friends all caved and paid extra for checked baggage, so they were pretty impressed with my packing light. However, I failed to pack a handbag. This meant that I spent two days carrying my wallet, phone and camera around in a plastic bag (very security conscious), whilst a friend kindly carried my passport for me. I do not recommend this in Manilla, it’s a pretty ‘sketchy’ area as my friends would say. The poverty is pretty visible, distressing and disturbing at times. We were constantly warned to be mindful of the street kids, who are prevalent purse snatchers. One of the ladies who worked at the hostel warned us to keep a firm hold of our bags at all times. She said that in the couple of years she’s lived there, she’s had her bag stolen seven times. A group of street kids approached us and tried to swipe my friends sunglasses off her head, before they ushered away by a security guard. Eventually, much to the relief of my friends, I treated myself to a swish little handbag from the mall of Asia.

The security guards in Manilla look really scary because of their weaponry, but they are extremely friendly and helpful. The first gun toting guard I encountered said “Good evenin’ Ma’am” in a light and friendly manner. “Good evening”, I feebly replied whilst I thinking, oh my god, that’s a big gun, and trying to avoid staring too much.

Generally the people in the Philippines are extremely friendly, some of the friendliest people I’ve ever met. And even more so when you venture further away from the bigger cities. When we arrived at our hostel, we were encouraged to feel as though we were staying with family. The owner of the hostel knidly took a small group of us on a tour of Manilla.

‘Bang, marry, kill? Superman, Batman, or Spiderman’.

‘Watch out for those Korean kids!’

‘Butterflies mate for over 8 hours’

When we arrived a Subli cabins Lady PP taught me how to play Pusoy dos (a Philippine card game). Springfield warned me that during the trip, she’d beaten him every single game. Despite not fully understanding all the rules and different hands (which are similar to poker), I became the pair queen and even won a few times.

Palawan Island Here we met our lovely guide Jason. His tricycle had a picture of Spiderman on the front, so he was an immediate hit with me. Jason’s tricycle, Palawan Island

‘I’m height-est, but otherwise I’ve no preference’.
Italian stallion ‘Here I am’.

One of the perks of teaching is being able to travel and explore within and outside of Korea. We have a couple of long weekends coming up in May and June. Hopefully we’ll be making the most of those as well.