Back from the Philippines

[evoltnvii]

Well i just got back in this morning had to take 3 planes but finally made it. I had an amazing time i arrived on the 11th at about 11:30pm and got out of the airport at about 1am. walked out the door and the humidity hit me like a bag of bricks i thought i was gonna pass out. So im looking for my girl and shes nowhere to be found. My cell is dead so i cant call and there are no pay phones. this guard says hey ill call her for you im thinking this guy is really cool he calls her and says ok ill send him now. He says to me tip please..... Im like what? hes tip please TIP 100 pesos. I say ok and just pay him he says oh shes in the waiting area across he street so i finally find her and she jumps on me and starts hugging and kissing me. We find her cousin waiting for us with a suv and we pile in and drive to her province about 2 hours away. we get there and wake her sisters up then had drinks and went to bes about 4 am. i didnt sleep much her bed was like concrete and i was nervous from the trip and her immediatly latching onto me before going to sleep. she held onto me in her sleep like i was gonna run off in the night ive never had a girl do that but it was great. We spent 2 days there and just walked around and visited friends i was an attraction i guess sine no one there had ever seen a white guy it seems like so we got lots of stares.

Day 3 we went to a water park resort so i could teach her to swim and i could get some a/c because i was having a lot of trouble getting used to the climate. We had a good time there and then went to manila to catch a bus to samar the next day there were not any tickets available so we stayed in a hotel on Roxas blvd. Hotel was nice about 3000peso a night great view and right near the american embassy. We took the 16hour bus ride the next day great views but way too long. We stayed a a beach resort for a week it was good and bad. The service from the employees and the food at the resturant was pretty bad and way overpriced but the room was great and the beach was amazing. the owner was pretty nice tho he took us and some other guests on a whole day boat trip to a bunch of the islands in the san bernardino strait that was great we go to see several beaches and remote islands.

thats all for now ill try to write more when i can.

[Bear]

I still have a hard time getting use to Honey sleeping so close to me too, but I wouldn't change it for the world.  My ex used to "demand" a king size bed so she could have more room.  I bought Honey and I a queen size last year and I don't think 2/3rds of it has ever been used!  Never felt so loved, but very hot, in all my life.

Glad you enjoyed your trip!  One question I always like to ask is how did you feel the locals were treating you?

The Bear Family

[Ray]

Hey, it sounds like you had a blast, but I guess we forgot to warn you about the weather...LOL!

I must have sailed through the San Bernardino Straits at least couple dozen times, but always on a big gray warship. I always thought it would be cool to go explore those little remote islands in a small boat. Very nice scenery!

Is it visa time?

Ray

[evoltnvii]

Is it visa time?

Ray

Yes it is filling out the paperwork already

[evoltnvii]

Part 2

Well after a few days at the resort we went to visit her father on his farm and do the whole meet the parents thing. It was great for her because she had not been there in 13 years and missed it there a lot. its in the middle of nowhere he has a little rice farm and grows pineapples and avocados etc and has a tiny little house in the middle of the coconut groves essentially. hes a nice guy but looks like a 12yo kid standing next to me hes tiny. we spent the day there and got his blessing to be together it was fun but not fun to walk that far down a goat path with a broken toe on one foot. well took another bus back to manila after a week and spent a week there traveling around  seeing the sights like Quiapo church and the Taal volcano. we stayed in the same hotel again with a great view of the bay. BTW if anyone is going to manila and wants a hotel try the Boulevard Mansion ask for a suite on one of the upper floors. Its 3100php a night if you walk in but is worth it just for the view. Anyways we went back to her village for another few days after that and just spent time with her sisters and watched movies just relaxing. a few days before my flight we went back to manila so we could do some gift shopping before i left. BTW I totally fell in love with lipton lychee iced tea mix it is the best thing ever i brought a case home i went to robinsons supermarket on a trip just for that. So last few days were slow she wasnt feeling so good so we stayed in a lot and ordered delivery. Its nice when you can look up any resturant in the phone book and everyone delivers including jollibee and mc donalds lol. last day came and we wanted to have some fun so we called her cousin and said we wanted to go somewhere to get something special for lunch. so he picks us up and we go to his neighborhood for what is reported to be the best Lechon in manila and it was damm good. next he says ok lets go and we go all the way out to angels in pampanga to eat sizziling sisig at the place it was invented. what a town its like a giant red light district  theres more bars and videoke shops than people. we left there and went back to manila and slept for a few hours while she packed my bags. my flight was at 12:30am so we decided to tahe her cousins out for a really good seafood dinner for helping us out and for a last meal before i leave. we went to the seaside market and picked out some crabs and other goodies and had a resturant cook it for us while we watched some really hot girls sing and dance for entertainment. well we had a great time then we went to the airport and said our good byes i wont bore with the details there was a lot of crying involved is all i will say. so im back here and filling out forms all that remains is the waiting..... sigh waiting sucks lol im gonna get a beer

[KBD]

Well i just got back in this morning had to take 3 planes but finally made it. I had an amazing time i arrived on the 11th at about 11:30pm and got out of the airport at about 1am. walked out the door and the humidity hit me like a bag of bricks i thought i was gonna pass out. So im looking for my girl and shes nowhere to be found. My cell is dead so i cant call and there are no pay phones. this guard says hey ill call her for you im thinking this guy is really cool he calls her and says ok ill send him now. He says to me tip please..... Im like what? hes tip please TIP 100 pesos. I say ok and just pay him he says oh shes in the waiting area across he street so i finally find her and she jumps on me and starts hugging and kissing me. We find her cousin waiting for us with a suv and we pile in and drive to her province about 2 hours away. we get there and wake her sisters up then had drinks and went to bes about 4 am. i didnt sleep much her bed was like concrete and i was nervous from the trip and her immediatly latching onto me before going to sleep. she held onto me in her sleep like i was gonna run off in the night ive never had a girl do that but it was great. We spent 2 days there and just walked around and visited friends i was an attraction i guess sine no one there had ever seen a white guy it seems like so we got lots of stares.

Day 3 we went to a water park resort so i could teach her to swim and i could get some a/c because i was having a lot of trouble getting used to the climate. We had a good time there and then went to manila to catch a bus to samar the next day there were not any tickets available so we stayed in a hotel on Roxas blvd. Hotel was nice about 3000peso a night great view and right near the american embassy. We took the 16hour bus ride the next day great views but way too long. We stayed a a beach resort for a week it was good and bad. The service from the employees and the food at the resturant was pretty bad and way overpriced but the room was great and the beach was amazing. the owner was pretty nice tho he took us and some other guests on a whole day boat trip to a bunch of the islands in the san bernardino strait that was great we go to see several beaches and remote islands.

thats all for now ill try to write more when i can.

Sounded like a great trip!!! Congrats man. "We spent 2 days there and just walked around and visited friends i was an attraction i guess sine no one there had ever seen a white guy it seems like so we got lots of stares. "
Wowwww I know what ya mean by that. I spent 4 days in my girls province and we got tonsss of stares! She did say many there have never seen a white man in person before. I remember one afternoon I was chatting with one of her cousins in a nearby village where we were staying at, and there was a women who kept starring at me, and everytime Id catch her looking at me she would hide behind a banana tree! I got a good laugh out of that. Good luck with the visa. I'm going back to the Phils this September, maybe october. I secured me and my girl a apartment in the province area we stayed in, for a mere 1500 pesos per month! Not bad for a 2 bedroom, with a washer and dryer...I payed a years rent in full already.

[Jeff S]

Wow. Thirty bucks a month. Now that's cheap living.

[evoltnvii]

1500 a month is great where is that at?

[KBD]

1500 a month is great where is that at?

Alabat Island Quezon Province. Yea it's super cheap. It's nothing like a apartment here in the states, but it is nice and cozy. There is no AC but I'm buying a window unit for the bedroom. Where this place is there are absolutely no tourist, this place is definitely off the beaten path! Most of the roads are not paved. But it is truly in paradise, I can't wait to return there! Aside from the apartment, her family has some vacant land available nearby a niceeeee beach, I'm going to get a nipa house built on it...so we have a place to relax near the beach.

[Dave H]

Congratulations evoltnvii !!!

It sounds like you had a great time. The wait to be reunited is the hardest part! Fortunately it quickly becomes a distant memory once you are reunited.

Those 3 planes are tough. I did 4 the last few trips. In March I missed my LA-Philippines connection thanks to a 3 hour delay in Dallas. At least AA put me up in the LAX Hilton and rescheduled me for the following evening flight to Manila.

Good Luck!

Dave

[Dave H]

Part 2

BTW I totally fell in love with lipton lychee iced tea mix it is the best thing ever i brought a case home i went to robinsons supermarket on a trip just for that.

Hey evoltnvii,

That explains it...you bought it all!  I really liked it too!  I bought it a few times and now I can't find it anywhere. Everyone keeps telling me "Sorry Sir...no stock." I've been forced to buy Lipton Lemon, Honeymansi and 4 Seasons Iced Tea mix. Oh well enjoy it!

Dave

[Dave H]

Alabat Island Quezon Province. Yea it's super cheap.
 
Aside from the apartment, her family has some vacant land available nearby a niceeeee beach, I'm going to get a nipa house built on it...so we have a place to relax near the beach.

Hey KBD,
 
That is cheap! We are paying P5800 ($122) for a 2 bedroom, 2 story cement apartment (townhouse). My wife thinks it's expensive.  But we are in an upscale community, 3 blocks from the mall. We are on a "private" road.

She has a "DRYER"? The only clothes dryer I have seen around here is the sun. 
 

A nipa hut on the beach is my goal too. 
 
Dave