Anilao New Year

What better way to end 2013 and bring in 2014 than spending time with the Dimayuga family at their beach compound in Anilao, our favorite seaside hangout a couple hours south of Manila.  We originally intended to be there for 3 days just before new years, but owners and good friends JB and Ysa twisted our arm to come back for a few more days just after the holiday.  It didn't take much persuading.  As always, we're grateful for their generosity and the opportunity to spend time with them and the family, especially in Anilao!

One new addition on this trip was an underwater camera.  A morning of snorkeling at twin rocks gave us plenty of opportunity to try out photographing the fish and coral.  The current was fairly strong, so the water was a little murky, but not bad.  Take a look at the photos and you'll see one of the many reasons we love going there so much.

For more photos of our Anilao trip, CLICK HERE.

The "Ber" Months

A few weeks ago in early October while walking out of a store, I realized I was humming "Let It Snow, Let It Snow".  Yes, it's been pretty darn hot and some cooler weather might be welcome, but "let it snow"??  It dawned on me that the retailer was playing holiday carols, and I had that song stuck in my head.  Christmas arrives early in the Philippines!

Filipinos love Christmas.  The joke here is that any month ending in "ber" is Christmas season.  I didn't see too many holiday decorations coming out in September, but many stores are now fully stocked with all the traditional decorations you can think of.  So next time you say "I wish they'd wait until after Thanksgiving to start Christmas", think of us here!

      

Salcedo Market

Makati is the country's urban and financial center.  Commercial and residential high rises have sprouted up everywhere and are multiplying fast.  But in the midst of all this hub-bub, one section of town, Salcedo, hosts a very popular Saturday market that is really quite delightful and well worth the visit.

Like many weekend markets, the focus is food, but you can find handicrafts, orchids and other local products, too.  Recently harvested organic produce, fresh fish and seafood and all sorts of home made gourmet dishes and treats abound in more than 100 vendor stalls set up every Saturday morning.  Mind you, this is not your "typical" Filipino market, but I'm told more and more are popping up.

There seems to be a bit of food from all over the world here, much of it cooked and ready to eat at tables set aside in the center of the park.  Local and international chicken, pork and vegetarian hot dishes, bibingka and other rice cakes, ice cream and desserts, fresh buko (young coconut) and other juices, are just some of the things that readily come to mind.  No need to go hungry here.

For more Salcedo Saturday Market photos, CLICK HERE.

 

Floods!

Its raining heavily today, reminding me of the floods last month.

Metro Manila is notorious for flooding.  Built on a plain between the South China Sea and a lake, much of the area lies at or just above sea level.  Many areas actually lie below sea level.  The metropolis has experienced decades of dense urbanization, but basic infrastructure has lagged far behind.   Illegal logging and deforestation in the mountains contributes to runoff.  As a result, heavy rains invariably bring floods to the city during rainy season (June - October).

The street in front of the house

A few days after arriving home from our road-trip, a typhoon swept across northern Luzon, the island we're on.  Very soon after that, another typhoon parked itself for several days to the northeast of Luzon.  Although it never came ashore in this country, it sat in the "perfect" position to bring in the dreaded southwest monsoon rains.  We had three days of torrential non-stop rain bringing a month's worth of rain in that time.  Some nearby areas measured rainfall of 2 - 3 feet in those three days.  This turned out to be one of the heaviest rainfalls ever recorded here.

In the garage

Before the southwest monsoon rains ended, half or more of metro Manila was under water, including the house where Tony's mom lives.  This was only the second time the house has flooded.  She had more than a foot of water on the ground floor, but managed to calmly wait it out on the second floor.  Fortunately, friends and neighbors were able to help get critical items up above the water.  Within a week after the flood, everything had been cleaned and dried out.  These photos were taken by Tony's brother, Bob, who also lives at the same house.

Living room couch propped up on kitchen chairs

Here in The Fort where we're a little higher up and have new infrastructure, everything was fine and we had no problems.  But I was beginning to wonder if maybe we shouldn't have rented a unit higher than the 16th floor!

Today's rain is also a result of southwest monsoons pulled in by a "super" typhoon that is currently headed for Hong Kong.  Hopefully we won't see the same volume of rain or experience such severe flooding this time.

Road-trip

I'd been wanting to get in the car and take a road-trip.  In August, we decided to head north for a few days of exploration.

Pamarta Hotel, Morong, Bataan

The first day took us through Olongapo, home of what used to be the US's largest overseas naval base, and then south to Morong, Bataan.  We found a nice new hotel on the beach, the Pamarta, and stayed there for the night.  Being mid week and off season, we were the only guests, but at almost $100, it seemed a bit pricey.  We wandered the beach, and I made use of the pool.  Not a whole lot to do there, but it was very pretty.  Morong is also home to the only nuclear power plant built in the country, but it never opened after protests and seismic fears in the 80's.  Apparently, it's quite a popular tourist attraction.

The next day took us north through the province of Zambales.  Although we traveled the coastal route, we rarely saw the ocean unless we made detours to the coastline.  Not what I expected after living with highway 1 in California all those years.  But the view of the rice fields and towns along the way was beautiful.  There were also a couple of lahars visible from the Mt Pinatubo eruption back in 91.  Remember that one?  It was one of the planet's largest eruptions that century and affected the weather worldwide for a year.  A day trip to Mt Pinatubo is another of our planned trips.

Bolinao Beach

We ended up the day in Bolinao, Pangasinan staying at the Punta Riveria on the beach.  The area and beach are very pretty, and we happened to be there at low tide when a very wide section of the coast was exposed.  It helped make for an interesting afternoon of beach combing.

On the third day, we headed to the Hundred Islands national park in Pangasinan.  Its a spectacular area dotted with small islands (124 actually at low tide).  Many of the islands are mushroom shaped from eons of tidal erosion.  We hired a small boat and guide in Alaminos for about $30 for the day.  He takes you wherever you want to go, or in our case since we had no idea, will take you to recommended spots.  It's about a 20 - 30 minute trip out to the islands, and then you can island hop around.  Many of the islands have small white sand beaches were you can swim, snorkel, picnic, or just sightsee.  Its definitely an area I'd like to go back to.

Hundred Islands

Hundred Islands

Good thing we took the trip when we did.  A couple days after returning, the area was hit with two typhoons causing lots of damage, mostly from the torrential rains.  More on that later.

 For more road-trip photos, CLICK HERE.

Davao

June took us to Davao.  It's on the southern island of Mindanao and the country's third largest city.  Like Cebu, it pales in comparison to Manila in size, congestion, traffic, etc.

We were there for Mely's birthday.  Planned and hosted by her sister, Erlin, the surprise party was a small intimate affair for more than 100 of Mely's closest friends.  Wow.  Erlin really knows how to throw a party complete with lots of food and an extensive entertainment program.  It was a really good time.

We were also able to see parts of Davao including lunch on Samal island, just across the water from Davao, and a trip up to Eden Nature Park on Mount Apo, the country's highest mountain.  Both are beautiful areas and worthy of a return visit.

For those who have heard of security concerns on Mindanao, the eastern half of the island, including Davao, is quite safe.  The western side has a muslim majority that has long pushed for autonomy, and that has included armed conflict for several decades.  It was the same when I was here in the 70's.  Its generally a good idea for westerners to stay clear of that side of the island.  There is a new negotiated agreement with the government and muslim leadership for shared autonomy in the area, so cross your fingers that things will finally settle down in that small area of the country.

CLICK HERE for more photos from Davao.

Cebu

Cebu from the Marco Polo

May marked someone's birthday.  We decided to head to Cebu, the second largest city in the country, and one I'd been wanting to visit.  I'd heard lots of good things about it and wanted to see for myself.  Mely, a good friend living further south in Davao, flew in to join us.  And by luck, Marina, another friend from the US, happened to be staying in town and also joined us.

We stayed at the Marco Polo, just up the hill from central Cebu.  Mely had already arrived and was meeting with someone for work related stuff in the lobby who, after their meeting, took it upon herself to play tour guide.  Ellen took us to lunch at Golden Cowrie, home of some really delicious local dishes. The deconstructed kare kare was a surprising treat.  She then drove us all over town and beyond showing us the hospitality that Filipinos are so noted for.  Thanks Ellen!

Tony, Mely, Marina, Bill

The following day, we decided to take a boat out to the nearby island of Olango and have lunch at one of the floating restaurants.  Instead of hiring a boat for lots of money, we took the 20 minute ride on the public bangka for a whole 15 pesos each, 35 cents US!  Once there, we took a tricycle (a motorcycle with a sidecar commonly used for public transit here) out to the "floating" restaurants.  They're actually not floating, but built just offshore on stilts.  Once you get out there on a small boat, you pick from fresh seafood available that day and they cook it there for you.  Turns out the pricing was a bit of a tourist ripoff, but we sure did have fun.  On the return boat trip back to shore, we hadn't factored in that the tide had gone out.  The small boat couldn't get to shore.  Three of us were able to just take off our shoes and walk the remaining 10 feet to shore, but Mely had jeans on and had to be carried on the back of one of the helpers.  Oh how I wish I'd gotten a photo of that!  It was a delightful way to bring in a new year.  

I was thoroughly impressed with Cebu.  Even though the second largest city, it pales in comparison in size to Manila.  But that means congestion, pollution and other urban ills are much much less.  It sits on the water, but has mountains just behind it.  Access to other tropical islands throughout the middle of the country is quick and easy.  It doesn't get the typhoons that frequent the north.  If we had friends or family down there, I'd consider moving to the area.

For more Cebu photos, CLICK HERE.

Anilao

A few weeks after Stephen's visit, we returned to Anilao for a weekend with JB and Ysa, the owners and good friends.  It's awfully hard to turn down an offer to spend time there with them!  

Nicknamed Kamalig, this seaside family retreat was designed and built by JB and Ysa as a place for family and friends to gather, relax and interact in a shared beautiful setting.  Boy did they succeed.  The entire place is oriented to enjoy nature, the ocean and most importantly, to share time with each other.  The main gathering area is the dining / kitchen area, totally open to the yard and the sea.  The "living room" is an open-air building with comfy couches and chairs, again open to the ocean.  One wall of the cabanas where you sleep totally opens up to views of the yard and water.  You feel like you're in a private five star resort.  

The beach is composed of broken coral and stones, so no sand castle building here.  But step out into the warm clear ocean, and you quickly find plenty of coral and bright colorful fish.  Mon, the caretaker, loves to take visitors to his favorite reefs and snorkeling areas on the kayak.  The area is now designated as a preserve after having been virtually destroyed by dynamite fishing years ago, and the coral and fish have returned and are again plentiful.  Snorkeling and diving are now the big local activities throughout the area.  

Tony, Diego and Manu

This trip was special because we got to spend time with Ysa and JB and their two kids, Manu and Diego.  That was a real treat.


For more Anilao photos, CLICK HERE.

Stephen's Visit

April brought our first visitor from the US, Stephen Billars!  Sure was good to see a familiar face from "home".

We headed first to Anilao, Batangas where a close friend of Tony has an incredible paradise by the sea.  About a 3 hour drive south of here, JB has created a weekend family compound on the ocean that he graciously let us use.  This was my second visit there, the first one being in 2011, but Tony and Stephen's first.  The place is amazingly beautiful, peaceful and so relaxing.  The caretakers, Mon and Chelma, and their kids add to its comfort and character.  We spent the next couple days eating, drinking, swimming, snorkeling, kayaking, reading and relaxing.  Perfect.

Next on the agenda was a day trip to Tagaytay, about an hour and a half southwest from Manila.  We hung out a bit at the family house and had lunch along the ridge at Antonio's.  The view of the lake and volcano from the restaurant was wonderful.

Our time in metro Manila had been either walking around The Fort or in Makati.  Although both areas are beautiful, they offer a rather sanitized skewed view of life in the Philippines with neither of them offering much of a glimpse of more typical living in the metropolis.  So off we headed on the heavily used local light rail system through town, walking through Rizal Park and then wandering through Intramuros, the old walled part of Manila dating back to Spanish times.  We finished the afternoon walking along Manila Bay and then through Malate for merienda at the Aristocrat, a local favorite restaurant.

We're looking forward to more visits, Stephen!

 CLICK HERE for more photos of Stephen's visit.