Leo and I couldn’t wait to begin our Asia leg. Although Latin America was absolutely lovely, we were tired of the food there and were missing our vegetables.

After 3 stopovers we reached the Philippines! Arjun’s guitar had to be checked in when we stopped over in LA. China airlines refused to listen to us, citing some stupid policy and promising us that fragile goods are treated with TLC. In Cebu, we were shocked to find the guitar completely cracked open. TLC for China airlines meant “totally lacking care”! We were in Cebu city and super tired after almost 2 days in airports. The food in the malls were frankly disappointing and so I had a mango milk shake to feel better. Big mistake! I now know that the Philippines does not have fresh milk and imports mostly from the USA. The mango milk shake was mixed with milk powder and filtered water. It tasted odd and I wondered if we’d ever get to eat well.
Luckily, the street food was cheap and delicious. We tried some barbecued meat and fish. Several stalls sell Balut which is a fertilized developing egg embryo that is boiled or steamed and eaten from the shell with a sauce. We weren’t adventurous enough to try that!

Moalboal is a scuba diving and snorkeling destination. On our 1st day there, we started enquiring about initiations in scuba diving. Arjun quickly reserved the session for the 3 of us. As you probably know, I have a phobia of deep waters. Still groggy in the morning, I didn’t have time to think and just went along. Before I could say hell no, I found myself in a wetsuit with an oxygen cylinder and a guide gently tugging me on the sea shore.
When realisation struck, I politely told the guide that I had changed my mind. However, he wasn’t in the mood to listen and kept telling me that it’d be fine. We can come up to breath and relax whenever I’m scared. Arjun’s been pestering me to do this and I thought that he’d be off my back if I do this just once. If I die, he’ll regret this and not pester anyone else. My life would have a purpose. So I went ahead in spite of being sh.. scared.
Once in the water, it was magical. I saw stunning coral reefs, a school of sardines and other brightly coloured fish 🐟 🐠
The next hour, I was switching between extreme fear and awe. I probably made the guide take me to the surface thrice to breathe. It was a frightening yet fascinating experience. I wouldn’t do this again in spite of it being so so gorgeous. I was very close to a panic attack 😳
The next day we went canyoning at the kawasan waterfalls and this meant diving in the turquoise blue water. It looked spectacular! I had a lifejacket and Arjun held my hand 💓 So I just jumped because I knew that I’d come up with the lifejacket. The next hour we’d wade through narrow passages, jump in the water, glide backwards while admiring the beautiful rock formations and the waterfalls. I had such a great time.
We then went to Osloab to swim with whale sharks. By now, I felt comfortable in deep waters as long as I had a lifejacket. So we booked the trip and left to see the whales. We were given tokens and I saw hundreds of people seated to wait their turn. There were almost 50 small boats close to the shore. We were told not to touch the sharks and not wear any sunscreen. Our guide told us that we’d be given snorkeling gear. Once in the boat, we were given masks and no snorkeling gear. There wasn’t any choice now and we found ourselves with several boats and hundreds of people in the sea. A lot of fish feed was being tossed in the sea so the sharks could come and get it. We then saw the magnificent shark. It looked amazing! After a while I felt something stinging me and it was all over my body. I jumped into the boat with Leo. On the shore, we showered and learnt that we were stung by tiny jellyfish or had a reaction to plankton. We applied vinegar but it wasn’t placating the itchy sensation. The next week was a nightmare! I had a rash on my legs and they were sooooooo itchy. I had to put on the stinky Mexican cream to soothe myself. I hate these mass tours!
We then went to Bohol, hired a bike and just went around. The chocolate hills are a strange formation and shelter the smallest primates in the world – the tarsiers. We didn’t see any and the tour was rather lame. We had to climb a few steps and have a look at the chocolate hills. While it looked amazing, it just felt like something for lazy tourists who don’t like to walk. While having lunch we had a chat with a drunk South African farmer who has been living on the island for years now. He encouraged us to take the bike around the chocolate hills. He also told us that he got a lot of snakes to bring down the rat population. Apparently the local Filipinos weren’t very pleased with the snake population. We rode around following his advice and then we decided not to listen to drunk people anymore. The road was really bad and Leo & I had to keep walking or wading through muck while Arjun struggled to move forward with the bike. We were tossed around in the bike like eggs being flipped on a pan. Also, isn’t there any government control on foreigners living in the Philippines? Are they allowed to experiment like the Australians did?
From Bohol, we went to Siquijor and I fell ill from switching between the warm weather and the icy cold AC rooms. The next 2 days were spent in bed with Leo and Arjun exploring the island. It was then Leo’s turn to fall ill and Arjun went out alone. We loved Siquijor and its beautiful waterfalls. Mind-blowing! The beaches were equally fab with white soft sand. It’s a quiet, lazy island full of friendly people – a true paradise. Sadly, it was time to leave plus Arjun’s turn to fall ill 🤒🤧

We went to El Nido in Palawan because everyone kept recommending it, only to be in the midst of a town buzzing with tourists. Once there, we wanted to go back to Siquijor. We still went ahead with the classic boat tours that take you snorkeling around various islands and beaches. Despite being crowded, we thoroughly enjoyed them. We were mesmerized by the marine life.
We were supposed to go to Coron but by now wanted to avoid crowds, so we went down south to a quieter place called Port Barton. We did a similar boat tour here and the experience was very different. It wasn’t rushed, the groups were waaaaay smaller and we felt much better. We also went to a waterfall close to our guest house and a really peaceful beach 🏖️ with literally noone! It was time to go to Puerto Princessa and stay there for a day before flying to Manila. Initially we wanted to take a subterranean boat tour which was recommended by many and we almost booked. When we learnt that it was a whole day trip of sitting in a van and then a boat for a half hour ride in caves, we changed our mind. Instead, we hired a bike and went to a waterfall and then our last sunset in the Philippines which was soooooooo breathtakingly beautiful. On our way back to the guesthouse there was a rainstorm and were soaking wet. I was worried about Arjun who had to put up the helmet visor to be able to see the road in the dark but had rain water literally pelting his eyes 👀 Leo was shivering on the bike and I couldn’t wait to shower and hop into bed.

Walking around the different islands in the Philippines, we felt super safe and secure. We walked around late at night, travel anywhere, leave our helmets on the bike, not worry about our phones, purses, camera etc. This was a welcome change from Latin America. The Filipinos are extremely friendly, kind and protective. The islands are not polluted or noisy. Filipinos love soft romantic numbers. 80s and 90s English pop songs are played everywhere!
One of the strange thing I noticed in Philippines were young and pretty girls who were invariably with much older and not very good looking Caucasian men. All kinds of people can be attracted to all kinds of people but these men really looked like sugar daddies!

Our last day was in Manila. We had a day to spend at the airport and it was my turn to pester Arjun so we could have a quick look at the city. We left our bags at a locker within the airport and left to see the historical centre. Philippines has a bloody history with the Spaniards, Americans and the Japanese fighting for their land and wealth since the 16th century. The intramuros dungeons had a dark story and literally left me in tears.
The Filipinos were finally independent in 1946 – a year before India. Most Filipinos complain about the corruption in their country. I don’t know what they have to say, now that the Americans are coming back to have their military base here 🤷🏾. Before we left, we stopped at the Dampa seafood grill to have some Boodle food – Leo’s favourite!

I love you Philippines and the lovely Filipinos. I’ll be back!