Excursion #1 Filipino style

The hostel in Manila was an absolute goldmine of travel information. Not only was the owner a Philippines travel expert, but the country is subject to a hub-and-spoke travel infrastructure, so there were plenty of travelers returning from trips to various locations. Everyone seemed to be buzzing about Palawan, so I connected with another traveler at the hostel, James, who also wanted to go to Palawan, and we started hatching our plan.

We took the ferry from Manila to Coron. This 12-hour ferry ride was quite and experience and in its own way, a bit of a crash course in Filipino culture. We were two of four foreigners on a boat with several hundred passengers, so we got some inquisitive looks. I guess that most of the tourists opt for the airplane to Palawan.

One family in the bunks next to ours was very curious about us and with in seconds of dropping our bags, we were besieged by the kids, who seemed to be endlessly amused by, and insisted upon touching, my blond hair. Then, the mother requested several photo ops with the strange, tall, pale foreigners. I felt a bit like a circus attraction, but you know, it was all in good fun (sticking out has become a way of life for me since I started traveling, so it's not so shocking anymore).

Curious kids weren't our only companions on the ferry, we also had a small army of roosters on board. It only took me a couple of days in the Philippines to register that roosters (aka fighting cocks) are an integral part of life here (great if you like cockfights, bad if you are a light sleeper). The status of roosters was confirmed by the fact that they are the only animals allowed on ferries (before seeing eye dogs, mind you), and doubly confirmed by the number of proud owners milling about on the ferry's top deck, stroking and showing off their prized fighters. Quite a sight indeed.

Second only to roosters, is the importance of videoke (Filipino world for karaoke) in Filipino entertainment. No establishment is complete without a videoke machine, and you are guaranteed that it will be fired up once a few beers are consumed. Naturally, our ferry's cafeteria was equipped with its own videoke machine, disco lights and plenty of beer. I fell asleep in my bunk before the action got started, but fear not, I'm sure that I will be getting a healthy dose of videoke before I leave the Philippines.

-Julia


Leaving Manila


My bunk...I actually slept the whole night


Manila's port


Curious neighbors


Roosters in transit


First glimpses of Palawan


Arrival in Coron

Manila...welcome to the Philippines

When travel to Burma became out of the question, I had to re-arrange my plans. Billy and I had met two dive masters and a handful of others along the way who highly recommended the Philippines. I did some research, booked a ticket to Manila and decided to check out the place for myself.

I took a 3 hour "overnight" flight from Bangkok, which was pretty horrible as I was in one of those exit row seats which does not recline. True to form, I didn't sleep a wink and arrived in Manila a complete sleep-deprived zombie (I really need to put a stop to this overnight travel stuff because it tends to mess up my sleep pattern for a few days and induce general grouchiness).

My first impression of the Manila was of your typical big, dirty, SE Asian capital city, but after a few hours of wandering around (and consuming approximately one liter of coffee), I started to sense that Manila had a very different feel. What really set the city apart in my mind, were the people. Everyone, and I mean everyone, is friendly. Not that fake I-want-to-sell-you-a-tour-so-I'll-pretend-to-be-your-friend crap, but genuinely kind and eager to help you out or just strike up a conversation. As an added bonus, almost everyone speaks English or a blend of Tagalog and English, so you can actually connect with people and there is no more of this point-and-gesture food ordering business.

The Philippines isn't a typical backpacker destination and, in general, there aren't too many tourists, which means that the locals aren't yet jaded about the negative effects of the tourism industry and actually kind of curious about visitors. What a refreshing change from Bangkok and the backpacker trail. Of course, this comes at a price. While the Philippines doesn't seem to attract a lot of budget travelers, for some reason (which I have not yet entirely figured out), it does attract more than its fare share of sex tourists. Fortunately for me, I don't frequent the same establishments as these creeps, so I don't have to interact much with them.

Upon arrival in Manila, I checked into Friendly's Guesthouse, which I would highly recommend. This guesthouse is one of these special places that is owned and run by an enthusiastic local backpacker and just exudes a welcoming traveler vibe (a bit like my friend Laura's hostel in Panama). The owner is a human travel encyclopedia for the Philippines and has really fostered a fun atmosphere at his place.

One of my favorite things about arriving in Manila was having access to a kitchen. Yes, you heard me right, I was excited about a kitchen (for those who don't know, I'm not exactly wonderchef). I'd been missing western food since Bangkok, so I was looking forward to a grocery story and preparing some of my own meals. I almost did cartwheels down the supermarket aisle when I discovered that there was an entire section devoted to cheese. I returned to the hostel laden with two bags of dairy products and enjoyed them all to the last morsel. I think that finally took care of my western food cravings, at least for now.

-Julia


A little pandemonium at the Bangkok airport


Manila


Interesting public message


Intramuros, Manila's old Spanish Colonial town center


The "jeepney", a cross between a jeep and a small bus...definitely the most colorful way to get around town


World War II Memorial (Central Manila was almost completely destroyed during the war)


Intramuros church


More jeepneys, I really liked these things


Manila skyline from Friendly's guesthouse

BKK v2.0

After 3 days of R&R in Ko Chang, I headed back to Bangkok to catch my flight to Manila. En route to Bangkok, I found myself in a bit of a pickle because I hadn't reserved a ticket for the bus ride. Bad move seeing as it was the Sunday following a public-holiday long weekend and the whole world was returning to Bangkok (but honestly people, I don't speak Thai, so how was I supposed to know?!?) . Fortunately, I befriended a Thai woman, Nina, who was returning home from a long weekend at the beach with her 3 kids. They had reserved 3 seats between the 4 of them, and she graciously gave me one so that I wouldn't get stranded overnight in the middle of nowhere. Thai people truly have hearts of gold.

I spent my one day in Bangkok retrieving my passport from the Philippine embassy, followed by some temple sightseeing and a wander through Chinatown with Alex, a friend who I had met on the way back from Ko Chang, and Maria, another traveler who I had met at the ever-so-clean Soi 1 backpacker's Guesthouse.

For the first time in months, I started to get cravings for western food. I've learned that western food is a wild card at most local restaurants in Asia: either it's decent or really horrible, and no matter what, it will be more expensive than the local fare, so you are generally better off just sticking to the rice and noodle program (which I quite like, so this is normally not a problem for me). Bangkok has a big ex-pat community, some of whom have opened their own eateries. For the first time in a while, I had a number of good options so I splurged on a good western meal (or three). What can I say, sometimes you just want some bacon.

-Julia


Nina and her munchkins, who saved me from a night in the middle of nowhere


Minor bus issues on the way to Bangkok (we had a run-in with another vehicle, so the driver had to make some roadside repairs)


In honor of the king's 60th year as king, everyone dons yellow on Monday (really, it's amazing to see the sea of yellow on the subway and sidewalks)


One of Bangkok's canals


Hmmmmm...could that be a giant dead snake floating in the canal?


Temples in Bangkok


Temple spires, reaching towards the heavens


Temple exterior


Buddha


Bangkok skyline


Bangkok buildings


Chinatown


Chinatown alley

Ko Chang

After some time in Bangkok, I was ready for a break. Several people along the way had recommended Ko Chang, and island off the east coast of Thailand, near the Cambodian border. I had a handful days up my sleeve, so I decided to check it out.

Honestly, I don't have a whole lot to say about Ko Chang. It wasn't my favorite destination to date, but was a pleasant diversion from Bangkok. The theme for my entire experience seemed to be ok, but not amazing. The beaches were good, but not fantastic, the restaurants were decent, but somewhat overpriced, the water was warm, but murky and filled with jellyfish. Plus, Ko Chang seems to be a couple's destination, and these "couple's spots" can be a little lame if you are travelling solo. I do have to say that my perspective is pretty skewed. I've spent the last 7 months traveling in some truly amazing places. Perhaps if I were on a 2-week vacation, and Ko Chang was my first stop in Asia, I would have been wowed. What can I say, I've been very spoiled by some magnificent places and am becoming a little picky these days.

The most memorable part of Ko Chang was meeting Roisin and Cathy, two young Irish travelers. Since I started traveling alone, I've had a difficult time connecting with other women. There are fewer female travelers than male travelers, and the women who I do meet are either traveling with a boyfriend/fiance/husband or traveling as a tight-knit pack of 2 to 4 girls (normally not so open to letting foreign newcomers into the fold). Back in the States, my girlfriends are an important part of my life, and through this travel experience, I've really gained a new appreciation for how important these relationship are to me. It was great to spend a few days paling around with two smart, articulate, fun, like-minded young women.

-Julia


Waiting for the ferry


....And the ferry arrives


Ko Chang from a distance


Fire dancer in Ko Chang


Roisin, chatting it up


White Sand Beach town


Ko Chang Beach


Beach side restaurant at night


Ko Chang's White Sand Beach

Bangkok...back to Thailand, baby

From Pakse, Laos, I crossed the border into Thailand. I could have gone directly to Bangkok on an overnight-bus, but I decided to stay one day in Ubon Ratchattani and then push on to Bangkok the following evening. Even though Ubon was pretty much the most uninteresting city I've seen to date, staying there for one night turned out to be a good plan. Coming directly from Laos, I would not have been ready for the chaos of Bangkok, and this gave me one day in a middle-ground to adjust, plus I found a cheap internet cafe, and I was able to hunker down for a few hours to dig myself out of the email-hole I'd managed to develop. Unfortunately, the internet cafe I selected in Ubon was one of these gaming center/internet combo places, and my USB flash drive (the one with all of my travel photos) contracted a virus that made it look like my pictures had been erased. Everything turned out ok, but not before I had a mini-meltdown at the internet cafe. I think I would rather lose my passport than lose all of my photos from traveling. Though it would be a huge inconvenience, my passport, at least, could be replaced.

Bangkok is intense. It's a huge city with pretty much anything and everything you could possibly imagine. The traffic is insane, the streets are packed with taxis and tuk tuks, and the sidewalks are crammed with food stalls and vendors of every product imaginable. The sounds, smells, heat and humidity hit your sense like a ton of bricks. I landed amidst this pandemonium early in the morning, fresh off an awake-all-night-bus from the sleepy town of Ubon. I had a surprisingly uneventful tuk tuk ride from the bus stop to the Skytrain station, hopped on the Skytrain to the Sukumvit area, checked myself into the super-clean Soi 1 Guesthouse, and set out to explore the city.

I had some errands to run (the occasional organizational day is necessary when you are traveling for an extended period: a visit to an embassy to apply for a visa, a quick stop at the pharmacy, questing for yet another pair of size 11 flip flops to replace the ones I destroyed the previous week...you get the idea), so I didn't have much time for sightseeing, but walked around most of central Bangkok with a few excursions here and there. I was planning to use Bangkok as my travel hub over the next few weeks, so I wasn't too stressed out about seeing all of the sights on this particular visit.

One evening, I went to the infamous Khao San road. This is where most of the backpackers stay and is famous through out SE Asia as the original "backpacker ghetto". I made a conscious decision not to stay there because the area is not well linked to the rest of the city via public transportation, and I was in errand-running/organizational mode. Plus, Khao San has its own distinct vibe, and sometimes I just need a break from backpacker-land.

All in all, my time in Bangkok was a fun experience. The food is fantastic, and the city is full of life. A visit to Bangkok is the travel equivalent of adding a shot of espresso to your life.

-Julia


Bangkok


A lizard chilling out in Lumpini park, Bangkok


Khao San road at night


Evening food stalls in Bangkok...fantastic curry!


Bangkok

Pakse and Champasak

From Tat Lo, I headed with Phil back towards Pakse. Upon arrival in Pakse, we spent two days eating Indian food (we found a fantastic place with cheap Indian food and English menus) and enjoying the forgotten wonders of modern technology, such as air conditioning, tv and internet.

While in the area, we took a day trip down to Wat Phu Champasak, a pre-Angkor era Khmer temple complex, just south of Pakse. Getting there involved several different modes of transportation and some serious haggling with the tuk-tuk drivers, but it was definitely worth the effort. The ruins were some of the most atmospheric that I've seen so far and had none of the crowds that you see at Angkor Wat.

Pakse was where Phil and I had to part ways. From Pakse, my plan was to head into Thailand and he was headed North towards China (from China he's traveling the silk road West to Europe). We had been traveling together for 3 weeks, the longest I'd traveled with anyone since Billy left SE Asia. We'd become good friends, and it was sad to say goodbye. Thus is life when you travel alone; you meet some fantastic people along the way, but you almost always have to say goodbye...at least until the next time.

I've been so fortunate to have met such amazing people on this trip. Truly, it has been the people who have made this a special experience for me.

-Julia


Pakse


French-colonial buildings in Pakse


Pakse from the back of a tuk tuk


The Mekong on a beautiful sunny day


Ferry to Wat Phu Champasak


Entrance to Champasak


Temple ruins


Terrace steps to the main temple complex


Overlooking the Mekong river valley from the main temple terrace