Feeling Fine in the Philippines (Random Monkey Penis Edition)

Hey there Steemers! It’s been a while since my last post; preparing to move abroad is more stress and work than I remember it being. I’ve been running around a little crazy, packing, moving myself and my stuff, and beginning the process of saying goodbye to friends and family.

Yep, there it is. Monkey showing it ALL off, right above my smiling, blissfully ignorant head.

Small boat from Bohol Island to Cabilao Island, Phillipines.

In a few short weeks I will be fully relocated and you can expect my posts to come with much more regularity, and to see lots of cool new stuff as I explore Scotland and beyond. I’m also working on some non-travel pieces as well….so please stay tuned for those in the near future! In the meantime, bear with me, my awesome new friends. I appreciate the kindness and support you have all shown me thus far, and I’m so grateful for this amazing community I’ve fallen headfirst into.

We made it!

For today’s journey I’d love for you to join me in the Philippines, one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. My last piece was on the longer side, so I’m going to play with fewer words today and see how it goes.

A tarsier: tiny, endangered monkey. Or is it a Furby? Perhaps a gremlin? You decide!

I’ve been writing things for myself for a long time, but never played with the idea of sharing them in this format. I know some people love travelogs and some people hate them, but either way, it’s exciting to know that someone is reading my writing, whether they like it or not ☺ It feels good to create something and share it.

So HERE WE GO!

Cabilao Island, Loon, Bohol, Phillipines

During the year Batman and I spent teaching in South Korea, we had a week’s vacation at Christmas (much needed after what felt like endless hours teaching adorable yet crazy kindergarteners) and we decided to take it in the Philippines. After extensive research and many conversations with fellow teachers who had been there, we couldn’t decide where exactly in the Philippines to go. Clocking in at over 7,000 islands (approximately 2,000 of which are inhabited) it was kiiiiiiiiiiind of hard to choose.

Our home for the week.

Inside - home sweet home! (Minus mosquitos)

We ultimately settled on the island of Bohol by simply asking one of my second grade students where she had just gone on vacation with her family- and Bohol it was. Many of our Korean families vacationed in the Philippines, so we figured they knew what was up, and we decided to take a gamble on a seven-year-old’s advice.

Island nativity scene made of straw. Reppin Korea with the peace-sign-to-face pose.

After more research, we settled on a very small resort called La Estrella on Cabilao Island, a tiny island off the coast of the larger island of Bohol. (The other place we really wanted to go in the Philippines was El Nido, Palawan. From what I’ve heard and read it is beyond breathtaking.) However, with only a week’s vacation, it would have taken up too much of our travel time just to get there and back again without much time for relaxing, as it is very remote. But someday I will go…and maybe you will, too! Anybody been there before?! If so, I want to hear about it!

Blue starfish everywhere!

Windy, storm coming. Can't stop making peace sign pose, been in Korea too long.

Cabilao Island is small, about 7.2 sq km (4.5 sq mi), without a single car or vehicle on the entire island. There were a few bicycles and motorbikes, but that’s it! We had electricity during the day, but not at night (which meant no fan…buuuuuhhhh). There was a cold shower in our bungalow, but no hot water. Without all the luxuries that I had gotten used to taking for granted, I suddenly felt more alive.

View from the porch of our bungalow. Not pictured: wandering chickens and a refreshing afternoon rain.

Singing songs at the Christmas feast. Everyone in the Philippines was incredibly kind and welcoming to us.

After Christmas dinner, dance party time!

I truly went Off The Grid that week, and loved every minute of it. Spending a week on an island with no phone, no TV, and very limited internet access was freeing in a way I had never experienced before. No screens, no distractions, no agendas- there was nothing to do but read, write, sit on the beach, swim, and snorkel. It felt like food for the soul. Oh, and speaking of food, there was also lots of eating, one of my all-time favorite activities ;)

Lechon - traditional Filipino dish.

The Chocolate Hills of Bohol.

We spent the week lying in the sun, reading on the beach, and writing on the porch of our hut when it would rain in the afternoons. Chickens wandered from hut to hut and Batman went scuba diving for the first time. (A big regret of mine is not doing this- I’m not a strong swimmer and lack confidence in the water and chickened out last minute. I WILL do it someday!) I did go snorkeling though (with a life jacket, no shame in it my friends), floating above coral reefs, seahorses, and fish that were truly indescribable. The Philippines are renowned for having some of the best diving and snorkeling in the world, and it was easy to see why. We wandered into a school of tiny, transparent jellyfish but managed to escape unscathed.

Diving time (not for me - womp womp).

Visiting a protected monkey area on Bohol. This is a very good look for me.

Fresh pineapple pancakes with sugary maple syrup were downed every morning, lounging next to the stunning clear, blue ocean. The beach was lovely but stepping on it was a rude awakening; instead of sand it was made up of thousands of tiny, broken shells, hellish on my feet. We had a Christmas feast of a whole roast pig and danced Gangnam Style with the other guests after Christmas dinner. This being the height of Gangnam Style Fever, I was thrilled to learn it extended beyond the borders of Korea. We were the only Americans on the tiny island. Everyone kept asking us how we had found it and why we were there.

Love old churces - visiting a REALLY old one on Bohol.

Beautiful.

Beer time - this picture brought to you by alcohol and Fleetwood Mac.

We got a little drunk on rum and beer almost every day and made friends with an Austrian couple in their 70’s, Hermann and Elisabeth. One day Hermann convinced me a typhoon was coming and we were all going to die, keeping his joke going for hours until I realized he was totally messing with me. His dark sense of humor only made me like him more (once I realized I wasn’t perched on the precipice of imminent Death By Typhoon). I kept thinking that it looked way too sunny and clear for a typhoon to be coming…but he was an older, wizened traveler, so maybe he could just SENSE IT…haha, nope.

And now, enjoy a lovely Filippino sunset, taken on my crappy Nikon camera and not filtered or shopped in any way:

We took a boat to the larger island of Bohol and saw the rolling chocolate hills, rice terraces, and some beautiful old churches. At night we lay in bed listening for the fabled balikaka monster the locals had told us about, reputed to look like a giant clawed dog that snatched cows, sheep, and other animals in the night. One evening through the dark of the mosquito netting surrounding our bed, I could have sworn I heard his claws dragging across the roof, a pained rooster squawk and a tussle following closely behind.

Open air dining at La Estrella - love the island Christmas décor.

Before I knew it, we had to check out, pay our bill, and return to Korea, just in time for New Year’s Eve and then back to the daily grind. But only a few months remained of our teaching contract, so it was time to begin planning our 2 month trek across Southeast Asia…which I hope you will join me for another installment of, next time!

I never want to leave this hammock!

Or this beach!

PS: I know I've already said it, but I just have to say it one more time. Thanks for all the support and encouragement, Steemit. You're awesome.