My trip to the Philippines (May 5-May 12,2008)

For the past years, I've worked so hard to establish myself as a freelance interpreter. However,I don't want to spend all my time working. I want to take some time off to see the world. My first stop was the Philippines.

It was my first time going abroad. I chose the Philippines for its proximity to China and its famed beaches and scenery. Besides, Cebu Pacific Airline offers affordable air tickets.

Round trip tickets for Guangzhou-Manila cost about RMB1500(about USD216) It takes about two hours to fly to Manila (capital of the Philippines) from Guangzhou, China

My plane was supposed to take off at 22:30 and arrive at Manila at 0:15. The maddening truth is I arrived at my guesthouse around 6:00 a.m.

My trip to Manila got off to a very rough start. Here's what happened:

While I was waiting for my flight patiently at the airport, a friend, who has been to the Philippines, called me to give me some warnings about Manila. According to my friend, people in Manila are not as nice as those in other parts of the Philippines. I asked,"Not as nice in what way? More deceptive or more violent?"

My friend responded,"More deceptive." I wasn't worried much about deception, and said,"It's Ok. Deceptive people just want more money from the tourists. The most important thing is my safety."

As luck would have it, the page announced that my flight to the Philippines was delayed to 23:30 p.m. In fact, our flight didn't take off until after midnight. What I didn't expect was that the captain notified us that Manila airport was closed during 1：30－3：30 a.m. for some reason. Our plane couldn't land at Manila airport during that period. As a result, our plane had to fly to Cebu to refuel and then return to Manila. What luck!

Cebu Pacific is a low-cost carrier. Passengers have to pay for food and water. A bottle of water costs 50 pesos. (1USD is about 40 pesos)

The flight attendants asked if we had any concerns. We asked for free water and free breakfast half jokingly. However, our requests were not taken seriously. Should have started a riot on the plane. :P

Our plane landed at about 4:40 a.m. While I finally went through the customs and got out of the airport, I was greeted by the morning rays of Manila.

I didn't anticipate that my journey to Manila could take a whole night. It was supposed to be a two-hour flight.

The Filipino guy sitting next to me said,"I have flown X number of years. This is the first time something like this has happened."

Getting caught in a rare situation like this was really beyond my wildest dream.

I hopped into a taxi and asked the driver to take me to Pension Natividad recommended by Lonely Planet.

It costs about 200p to go to downtown by taxi.

According to Lonely Planet, dorm room costs 300P single room costs 800－1000p

In reality, rates have gone up to dorm 400p
single fan room with bathroom outside 900p
single fan room with bathroom inside 1000p
air-con room -1400 p

I didn't get much sleep on the plane, so I got a bed in a dorm. I wanted to catch up on some sleep before I went sightseeing in Manila. I didn't plan on staying the night at Manila. I wanted to take the night bus to Banaue to see the rice terraces.

I settled down at the guesthouse at about 6:20 a.m. I had my breakfast before I went to bed. My breakfast cost 185p.

Bottled water costs about twice as much at the guesthouse. A bottle of water costs 13-14p at a convenience store, while the guesthouse asks for 25-35p.

I want to be a free-spirited backpacker and a budget traveler, as I've always considered backpacking and traveling on a small budget cool.

After a few hours' sleep, I got changed to embrace a hot day out.

My first destination was Lake Taal.

I first took a jeepney, then a bus and finally a tricycle to somewhere close to Lake Taal. I would have to charter a boat and then ride a horse to get really close to Lake Taal. The guys at near the Lake asked for 3000p for getting me up there. It was obviously a rip-off. I didn't want to haggle with them, as it looked like rain. It would be a bad idea to go up in this weather .I bet all I would see was a muddy lake. So I insisted on leaving. I was so disappointed with the unreasonably high price and bad weather. On our way back to the tricycle station, it started to pour and I felt really cold and was practically shivering. It was really a bad day for me.

After I got off the tricycle, I had to take an air con bus to go back. The air conditioning was unbearably freezing. I felt like I suffered for nothing, as I really didn't get to see anything good, until I saw a street parade. Local people were dressed in bright-colored costumes. A friendly old lady sitting close to me started a conversation, which warmed me a little.

After I got off the bus, I didn't take a jeepney, as I wanted to go back to my guesthouse as soon as possible. The driver of the first taxi that I flagged down didn't know the direction, so I had to get off. The second driver was not straightforward. He said the taxi fare was "up to me". I heard people say this about payment a couple of times in the Philippines, but it's never really upt to you. The driver finally asked for 200p. And I was too frustrated to haggle with him. I just wanted to get back to the guesthouse, which would put me at ease.

After I finally got back to the guesthouse, I put on more clothes. There were some tables outside the guesthouse. I sat down at one of them and talked to an Israeli traveler for a while. I told him about my unpleasant experience. I felt like I had wasted a day and seen nothing.

The Israeli traveler comforted me,"You don't have to punish yourself. You don't have to see more than you see." What he said was philosophical to my ear.

The Israeli traveler had been to Lake Taal in the morning and he paid 1200p. I told him that those guys wanted me to pay 3000p. He said they could ask for 6000p and that you had to haggle really hard to get the price down. He also said it was better off not going up there, because it was quite muddy up there.

The weather in the Philippines is really trickle. It can be sunny one minute and rainy the next.

I chose to stay at Pension Natividad, because I like the introduction in Lonely Planet："This is the pick of the budget places. Set back from the street, the rooms here are clean and fresh. There's a long shady area outside, perfect for meeting other travelers or chatting with the charming owners. The inexpensive coffee shop does good breakfast and is open 24 hours."

I found the staff helpful and friendly.

Some old guy who claimed to be from Hollywood pointed to my jeans jacket and said, "Wearing jeans is working class." I shrugged,"I don't care. I am working class." The Israeli traveler said, "We're all working class. If we were millionaires, we wouldn't be staying here."

I had already booked the 10 p.m. bus ticket to Banaue. It would be a nine hour bus ride. My first day at Manila was really tough and restless.And I felt so tired after my fruitless trip to Lake Taal. I didn't know if I could survive 9 hours on an uncomfortable bus. I planned to see several cities in the Philippines. The Israeli traveler suggested that I go to Banaue for a few days and then return to China." He said that if I attempted to go to several places within such a short time, I would be dead tired at the end. My original plan was to go to Banaue and then to Cebu and Bohol. His suggestions and comments did have some effect on me. After taking a walk, I decided to give up Banaue and go straight to Cebu. I really didn't want to spend 9 hours on a bus after a rough start in Manila.

And he was right, I didn't have to see more than I saw.

Giving up Banaue meant I had to stay the night at Manila. I was so tired and didn't want to stay in a dorm, so I asked to upgrade to a single room. As a matter of fact, the dorm was more airy than the single room. But a single room offers more space and privacy. And it's safer as well.

A single fan room costs 1000p. I already paid 400p for a bed in the dorm, so they only asked me to pay 600p to upgrade to a single room. As a matter of fact, I already checked out in the morning after a few hours' sleep in the dorm. They could have charged me another 1000p for a single room, but they didn't, which I think is commendable. Many people in the Philippines are Catholic. It feels weird to have pictures of Jesus and Saint Mary in the bedroom.

There's no hair dryer in the room. I couldn't go to bed right away after I washed my hair, so I read some local news and waited for my hair to dry.

I didn't really have the time and energy to write much in my travel journal the first day. After a night's sleep, I felt energized and relaxed and wrote something in my notebook while eating breakfast.

After some soul-searching,I decided to embrace my experience in the Philippines, good or bad.

I don't have to punish myself. I don't have to see more than I see.

I resolve to take in every moment of my trip.