Philippine Travel Notes

Greetings Gandara #philippines! So I silently said as we crossed the highway walking towards center of town (I think). Happy I was doing this since I did not have any idea what might be worth my while in this town – reason why it is not listed in my itineraries! But as I always say, throw me anywhere in this country and I will surely see something interesting to do or watch or marvel at. First catch, a manong in his habal-habal carrying a big roll of ‘ abaca ’ (yep, Manila Hemp) and a bundle of firewood. Immediate question: was he delivering those or did he just buy them from the Gandara market? I could not of course holler at the man to stop him, only for me to ask a question. But things ran pesky in my head, iike “if they make abaca in this place, where would that be, how do they do it, which plant is it really” and many other similar questions. Interesting to one day stumble upon a place that’ll help me answer those questions, right?! Ah, let’s just hope it will be soon! The firewoo...

This is a town, somewhere in (Western) Samar, along the Maharlika Highway between the cities of Calbayog and Catbalogan. I passed by this place many number of times before, but haven't yet got to step on it. So, one of those recent lucky days, a friend on an errand to this town dragged me along, and I did not have to make any second thoughts. I just very immediately said yes, and I went. Yey! I knew even then that this town is the province’s “rice granary”. You’ll see proof of that in the video (taken on our return to Catbalogan). I also know that this is “queseo” country (or kiseyo, or however you want to spell that) – those little white round patties made form carabao milk that most of us know as “white cheese”. And that is pronounced as “ke-se-yo”! Queso = cheese, but I don’t know (yet) what queseo really means in the waray-waray dialect or even in Spanish (if there is even such a word in Spain). Probably “little cheese” or “faux-cheese” or “cheese-like”. Ah, basta, white cheese...

What a day to ride an airplane, right? We see the bright yellow-orange umbrellas dotting the airport’s tarmac again. But ride we must, as that promo ticket is not transferable nor re-bookable! Depending on your wits however, it can be fun anyway! You just choose your attitudes! And OMG oops..! Oh well, that can happen to anyone of us hahaha! And it makes jolly an otherwise gloomy day! I thought I should have flicked to the cam's video mode as this happy lady was all shrieking and giggling about the poise-challenging incident! Even her companions a few steps ahead joined in the shrieking! Sorry mana ku-an ha?! I did not mean to shoot your face or body, it was just so funny a scene I needed to catch the action on my camera! Hmm, that naughty windy-wind from the south-east was blowing not only umbrellas to reverse but even necklines and hemlines. Oops, can't show another picture I took of another jolly fine lady to my right. I could get mightily whacked with that yellow-orange umb...

This is probably one of various ways how you can not let me eat! I maybe a food lover, and I may not be that finicky as many people, BUT some things do sometimes tickle my usually imaginative hypothalamus that in turn somehow shuts the otherwise glutton of a mouth and stomach combination I have! Look at that picture: This is at CJK – my favourite haunt when I want to eat delectable and affordable food at/near the Mactan Cebu International Airport. How can you eat with gusto if your supposedly “delectable specialty” seems to be sternly staring at you?! No, I did not return it, or made a scene of any sort. I think I just lost the appetite, and something in me told me to stare back at it – with my digicam, that is! Oh boy… To tell you the truth, I did sip the perspiringly savory soup of the very same dish – that after I placed the bird on my plate and brought the bowl directly to my mouth! It is really good! The soup, I mean. The herbs and other green whatevers in the broth leaves a wonde...

Somebody in #cebu is really “pissed” you taxi drivers queuing up at the Cebu airport, beware! Oh, you taxi owners and even us passengers, we better tell them about this or there will be no more taxi from the airport! These ‘reminders’ are printed on paper, wrapped in transparent plastic and nailed to some trees. Yep, plural! I think I counted 3 or 4 trees with that reminder. And I liked the type of nails used – pam-bubong yata yan ah, at mukhang galit-na-galit nung ipinako sa puno! Whaahehehe! So you taxi drivers… beware. If anyone of you my dear readers care to translate, please do. I think I already got the message. It is admonishing taxi drivers not to leave plastic bottles with their pee (and other trash) on the side of Waterfront Hotel Mactan, otherwise the MCIAA management will revoke their rights to line up and pick passengers. Or something like that in a harsher tone hehe! Couldn’t help but imagine though… how do these idiots do the act anyway? I think, its quite a feat to do....

Hmm, with that title am starting to sound like a textbook hehe! I better be, if only for us travelers to start realizing (and perhaps tell other travelers) what should and should not be present for us to enjoy a pesky bus ride to wherever. And I take pleasure in picking the bus system inside Bonifacio Global City (BGC) also called Fort Bonifacio, also called The Fort, and at least one of you I know insists I call it Taguig. Sus! Anyway, I have lately been a constant passenger of these buses inside the fort, not because I like them but because I have no choice! Ikaw na tumira sa condo unit na walang kalakip na parking slot where you pay hefty sums for a mere few hours of parking in the very same building where you live hehe! I have observed time and again though, that in general, getting into and out of these buses are very orderly compared to anywhere else in this country. And to think, most passengers that ride these buses are youngsters who work at call centers, BPOs and other corpor...

Yes, HOT in every sense of that word! Yolanda’s is a little shack of an eatery somewhere at an interior portion of San Jose in Tacloban. Specifically, It is at Barangay 86. The place is actually just beside the Barangay Hall! And hey I just noticed, San Jose is a district of Tacloban, not just a Barangay! While there are no directional signs to Yolanda’s, it will be hard to miss if you ask around since it is quite famous in the area. I’ll have to clarify that thing I said about “interior portion”. That is, if like me, your point of reference is the main road. But Barangay 86, therefore Yolanda’s, is a coastal area of the peninsular land mass that is San Jose (the airport is part of this place)! Ah, Just see the goggle map below! The place is like a miniaturized version of the old “dampa” in Paranaque. I say miniaturized since there is only one place – theirs! You choose your seafood and talk to the staff or crew or Mana Yolly herself how you want it cooked. If you don’t know, they’ll t...

Many of you my dear readers may have been wondering why I can’t seem to write anything positive about anything or anywhere Tacloban. Me too! I did ponder a bit on that! Sat down under a tree for some self-analysis.., and I now know the reason why! It’s something I will have to call the “hometown syndrome”. Something related to the expression “I love my own”! But I am not from Tacloban, so you may say? Regardless, the feeling is true! I did live a few months in this city and it was such a wonderful time of my life. Yeah, not even a year but I learned to love Tacloban. In those times I even called myself a Taclobanon – since I was a resident, albeit briefly. It was a fine and fun city, and I think it still is! I still have many friends at almost every corner of the city. Most of them are now even ‘captains’ of their respective industries. Whoa! So why the many negative write-ups? It’s the “hometown syndrome” in me! When you are from a certain place (even if for just a few months) and you...

As with the previous topic (on departures ), we are not talking here about how it is in the building, for indeed, there has not been quite a significant change, ever since this terminal was put in place, during the age and time of our grandparents. The topic here are the idiotic ways and means outside the building. So let us do arrivals? Here we go! If you were the rich, the politician and the corrupt (am not sure now if those words are actually synonyms!), there is not much of an issue. You just step out of the arrival area, do about 10 to 15 steps, and ride your waiting vehicle. Off you go! But if you were the not so moneyed resident of Leyte or Samar; or if you were just a visitor going for business or a go-see of the islands (like I am now), then you are in for a long walk! How? First you walk out the building ("G" in the pictures) and embark on a hike of more than 200 meters to the waiting jeeps ("C") that ply the route of 'Airport/San Jose to city center...

This love affair with Samar & Leyte is taking me to some places not at all beautiful (in case you were thinking everything about my travels is like Lulugayan or Calbayog )! But hopefully things will get noticed and rectified starting with us talking about them in the open. One of these is the Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport a.k.a. Tacloban Airport for a shorter name! Having an old airport building becomes uglier due to a style of management that seems to have been taken from the book of idiots – if there is such a thing anyway! This topic is not about how old and inadequate the building is, since we all know it has long been so, I will just be talking about how airline passengers are having a hard time due to movements in and around this building that you will really feel is being orchestrated by nothing better than an idiot! It is not only inconvenient to many passengers, it is discriminatory. Whoever is managing this place does not probably even think what an airport is primarily f...