The Philippines

In June 2006, I went to the Philippines to visit my dad, who had moved there with my younger sisters, Ariana and Zandalee.  He chose to retire in the Philippines because: 1) The dollar goes far there. 2) English is the official language! 3) Americans are well-liked there. 4) It's a water sport mecca.  My family of 5 went for the 3 week adventure!

It didn't start out so well:

Philippines Airlines:  We paid $6,000 but had no stroller upon arrival at our connection.  Then they wouldn't let my baby on the plane because a boarding pass wasn't not good enough and infants suddenly needed paper tickets- she wasn't listed under e-tickets in Cebu.  15 minutes before departure, I was expected to run to the other side of the airport with all my carry-ons and kids and "purchase" another ticket.  So now Giselle had paid double.

Cat has 9 lives: -After only a week,  I had crossed the street about 7 times with near death outcomes.  My lives were running low. Those jeepneys (taxis) and motorcycle taxis with sidecars (which pile up to 10 people on them - roof and all) liked to sweep by Charlotta, my 5 year old, about 2 inches from her skin.   But  our whole family got to ride one.  It was the 1st motorcycle ride for the kids - pretty cool!

Low season:    This means that for $4, I got my own motorcycle with sidecar taxi driver for the whole day.  He just followed us and waited for us wherever we went.

Rainy season: (June- Sept):  This means that if you look at the sky, 1% of what you see will have a rain cloud and the chance that it will pass over you with warm refreshment for more than 2 minutes is like 1/1000.  In fact the locals say this is their favorite time of the year because it's not as hot.  And if you do get caught in the rain, the nearest person will invite you to wait the storm inside their house and chat with you.

Rental Vans:  The size of my family required one if we were going far.  None of them had seat belts, so the booster seats we brought worked well on the kitchen chairs.   What's worse is that the drivers always drive in the middle of the road, not the lane. even on blind curves.  They use their brights to signal they are coming and apparently hope that other drivers will do the same. They duck back into their own lanes with only 30' clearance between themselves and the oncoming car.

Zoning? There doesn't seem to be much zoning here apparently.  Wealth is mixed right in with poverty, commerce and industry.  This makes the sightseeing rather interesting.  I'm never sure which way to look because there is just so much to look at.

 Stray Dogs:  Everywhere!  A lot of them sleep on the road.

My Dad's house on Panglao: - It was  like a tropical jungle mansion.  He rented it from an American, with the agreement that he'd be watching over it.  The house came with a married caretaker and housekeeper/cook, whom we called Manang.   She did the laundry for us and cooked whatever we bought at the grocery stories.   Unfortunately, the ants here make holes in sealed packages, so cereal boxes, etc are damaged before you even open them.  

My dad had a cool karyoke system that scores you at the end of the song.  There was big competion between Charlotta, dad and me.  I got a 95/100 for Yesterday - Beatles.  Charlotta got a 98 for Rockabye baby.  Dad sang "My Way" which seemed to reflect his life perfectly.

Leo thought the outdoor gazebo was a castle.  And the outdoor kitchen, along with the guest house, were Giselle's playhouses.  I read in a rocking chair on the breezy, ocean view porch.  We enjoyed ping pong and billiards on the outdoor first floor.  But I was always waiting for the 1st coconut to knock someone out and taught the kids to weave between the trees and not walk right next to them.

The Rural Life:  We would wake to roosters and chase baby chicks around the yard.  Leo's top priority was to scare the chickens.  Caribou, goats and pigs abound.

How to buy fish:  Walk 100 meters to the beach, spot a fisherman with a pointy sun hat on his sea kayak with homemade pontoons for the waves that don't seem to exist, flag him down and hand over a few pesos for his catch.  Or point to your house and he will hand deliver them for dinner.  Of course, Manang would take care of that.  You can also easily find sea urchin (the poor man's dinner) for sale on the beach.  We watched men collect it.  

 Dad's house was next door to a German who had horses for rent.  $2/hr to ride.  The baby horses followed their moms and nursed and brushed against our legs as we rode down the beach or along some inland trails.  

We met a man from New Hampshire who builds boats and invited my family to go with his for a picnic on an island the next day, but unfortunately that was the day before we were leaving.

Our Neighborhood:  A short walk will make you many friends.  I found personal 12 year old tour guides named Marjorie and Celeste.  They even entertained Giselle by reading to her and playing with her toys.  They changed her diaper, washed her butt, scrubbed her clothes and noticed when she was in danger before I did.  And they put all the toys away in the neatest possible way - all without even being asked.  Their moms were housekeepers and their dads were fishermen, typical families in Panglao.

Poverty: I learned that Marjorie was currently not in school because she needed new shoes to go to school but couldn't afford them.  I tipped them well for showing me around and helping with Giselle.

Security: The tops of walls surrounding some houses were covered with colorful broken glass, that protruded from the surface, both decorative and practical.

The Mall:  About 20 minutes from my dad's house, it was very big and modern with American type stores; however,  you would get a handwritten receipt for even the smallest purchase, so shopping took some time.  You needed to show your receipts upon exiting the mall, like at Costco.  

For our family it was fun receiving so much attention.  If I turned around for 5 seconds to get something from a shelf, a group of old ladies would be pinching my children's cheeks and cooing.  It seemed that white skin families were pretty rare there.  Everywhere we went, we attracted stares,  the nice kind of stare.

We enjoyed checking out the grocery store at the mall.  Whatever we brought home we gave to Manang to prepare.  I'll never forget Ube (some kind of sweet potato) ice cream and melon milk.   

McDonald's:  McDonald's carried coffee flavored jello, spaghetti, fried chicken and rice.

Private School: My 13 yr old sisters had moved to the Philippines when they were 12.  They tried homeschooling for a year, but then went to Bohol Wisdom School, a private school where they were the only Americans.  They got to learn Chinese and Tagalog.    Off to school they went in their uniforms.  At first my dad took them on his motorcycle.  Eventually, he found a bus taxi that took them on the one hour journey to Bohol.  They were gone from 6am to 6pm and clubs hadn't even started yet.   They would graduate after 10th grade.

Bohol Wisdom School handbook:  1)  It is strictly not allowed to have a boyfriend or girlfriend during your high school career.  One should concentrate on their studies instead.  Failure to comply will result in expulsion.  2)  Do not bend over your book when reading - it helps to rest your elbows on the table or rest your cheekbone on your knuckles to automatically keep the correct distance from the book (14 in)  3) Strict disciplinary action will be taken if you do your math homework in pencil.  Pen only!

School Culture: One of my sisters missed her class play on Saturday because she thought it was at 7:30 PM, not AM.  She got a 0 for 10% of her English grade as a result.  She kept complaining that  and school communications were obscure.  And now she didn't have to/get to?? hug the boy who was the "heart throb" of Bohol Wisdom School.  He wrote the 2 person skit that she was supposed to be in (after he knew she would be his partner.)

Floor wax:  There are no janitors at Wisdom school so guess who cleans?  My sister, Ariana, had to buy floor wax because her turn on the floors had come.   My other sister's cleaning job at school was to hand wash one washcloth and show the teacher how clean she could get it.

Relaxing on the Famous Alona Beach:  (the 2nd most popular beach in the Philippines):  Impossible.  Every minute you are asked if you want a massage?, necklace?, ice cream?, shells for the baby?, massage?  go sightseeing to the chocolate hills?  dolphin watching? massage?  but the oil will be good for your sunburn.  but that lady there that you don't know can watch your kids while I give you the massage.  Even passerbys will want to take pictures with your children.

Of course,  I'll never forget my $4 60 minute massage on the white sand beach with the waves and breeze in the background.  The sand inevitably gets into the oil and exfoliates your skin.

Snorkeling - Charlotta was growing a mermaid tail and had become 51% marine.   A one minute walk through my dad's backyard took you to a beach that was a 20 second swim from a huge coral reef refuge.  Planning a snorkel trip took no forethought.  We could just go whenever we wanted, swim as long as we wanted, and never see the same section twice.

Charlotta and I also snorkeled at Alona beach while the tour guide was in his kayak following us and pointing which way to go to avoid the current.  We saw parrot fish, angel fish and all the colors of the rainbow.  Meanwhile, Dima babysat the others on the beach and bought 40 cent ice cream drumsticks.  We took turns snorkeling and babysitting, the usual procedure.

 I also booked a 6AM dolphin watching/snorkeling trip - my dad couldn't get up in time and missed it.  We chased the dolphins about at close range and then headed 1 hr away to Belacasag Island.  The problem was that this dolphin boat has no muffler.  Permanent ear damage was surely done to all 5 of us.  At least the grownups could turn their heads away.   Snorkeling was great and only a 1 minute swim from the beach.  We watched a colorful eel dance and return to its hole.  We snorkeled along the reef's wall edge by the deep blue sea.  Fish density was about 3-20 fish per cubic ft.  Non-snorkelers played in the waves.  Leo did put the mask on once but couldn't work up the nerve to stick his face in.

SCUBA: I went SCUBA diving with my dad and panicked a little because i hadn't done it for about 7 yrs.  So I breathed heavily, which used up my air faster. I also had a hard time clearing my ears.  I relaxed by the 2nd half and enjoyed seeing eels, lion fish, huge clown fish, a variety of plants and coral in the "Black Forest" named for the color of the coral.   Then we paid an entrance tax to the island to have lunch at the resort.  It was so delicious that I ate too much and the 2nd dive came all too soon - my downfall.  From the waves, I got queasy and felt like I wanted to throw up under water.  I got scared at the idea of throwing up 60' under.  How do you breathe while you are throwing up?  I got the taste of vomit in my mouth but that's as far as it went.  Then i got all sleepy because i was up too late the night before doing karaoke with my sisters.  Then my mask was sucking so hard on my face that it got painful.  There were too many things to worry about.  On top of it all I thought- I have 3 kids under the age of 6 - what in the world was I doing in this dangerous situation?  So maybe I'd stick to snorkeling.

Chocolate Hills:  These are so named because they look like brown chocolate chips.  They are a big tourist attraction.  Because of the rainy season, they were mostly green.  It was the first time we had seen rice paddies too!

Cruise down the Loboc River:  This included a nice buffet, with a woman who flops a mop over the food to chase the flies away.  How many times did that mop get in my hair?  Boys swing like tarzan, land in the river and swim to the boat for donations.  That must be why the money here is so waterproof (it survives the laundry very well.)  The highlight was the live salsa and ballroom music and the big bamboo dance floor!  Charlotta and Giselle were asked to dance by the natives so many times!  And they asked to have their pictures taken with my kids.

Tarsier:  This is the world's smallest primate with the biggest eyes in proportion to the body.  You can hold them and get your picture taken at some of the wildlife preserves.  Spielsburg supposedly got his idea for E.T. from these creatures.

Ziplining:  We were all harnessed and sent walking over a rickety bridge over a gorge and then we got to fly back on the zip line over the subtropical rainforest.  Even Giselle, age one, got to go in our arms.  This was Leo and Charlotta's favorite part of the trip.  When everyone is older, we will go back for the white water rafting.

Cruise Ship:  We took a cruise ship to Cayagan de Oro and slept in a room of communal bunk beds.  It reminded me of backpacking on the trains of Europe. I must have been on 15 different kinds of boats in the Philippines.  Boats are the Philippine train.  Anyway, on the cruise ship you are rudely awakened by roosters traveling to their cockfights.  There were also a dozen boxes of baby chicks on board; each box had 40-50 chicks.  We held and pet them.  Two of my children fell in the anchor chain hole that goes out to the sea.  Fortunately they didn't fall all the way.  We did some karaoke on board and threw coins at the locals who jumped to retrieve the coins from their makeshift boats with their homemade paddles tied to their boats.  Naked babies lie inside drinking empty bottles of milk.  a plea to throw more coins?

Horseback riding: In Cayagan, Charlotta did her 1st horseback riding.  The guide sat in back of her saddle and taught her to ride thru the subtropical rain forest.  I'll never forget the ripe guava we found near waterfalls that you literally slide down.  My legs were long after still bruised from riding horseback in my swim suit.

The Yacht Experience: - We spent 3 days on my dad's yacht sailing in the Visayas.  Giselle didn't want to get off.  One could chill out  and say "this is the life,"  especially when the sailor cooks and cleans for you at $6/day.  Once a school of flying fish soared right over our boat.

We sailed to the province island of Sequijor (5 hrs away - depending on current and wind conditions)  It was my sister, Ariana's, 1st sailing trip - and probably her last.  She and Charlotta threw up at least 3 times on the way there due to 2 ft swells in the sea.  Giselle and I made up a song about Rockabye baby on the sailboat and did just fine.  Leo still danced and smiled the whole time; he thought he was surfing.

On the way my dad used me as a guinea pig to test whether one could successfully hang from a harness connected to the mast when the boat was leaning 60% toward the water.  I was flying - kind of barefoot skiing backward, my heels dragging in the water, or sinking below or hovering up to a foot above the water depending on the waves.  the kids were cheering me on.   I was flying like a rag doll, powerless against the forces of nature!  I could see how fast the 45' yacht called the Illihune was really going.  But then I got tired- the straps weren't that comfortable on my groin.  To bring me in, my dad decided to turn the boat away from me.  I swung lightning fast like a pendulum around the boat until I hit it at full speed with my butt.  then my harness broke and I fell to the water while the Illihune kept going.  Albert, the hired hand, jumped in after me and lost all his cigarettes (thank goodness).  I wore a life jacket so waiting for rescue was no big deal.  But now half my butt cheek turned black and blue - along with my arm.

 We awoke in Sequijor's harbor to fresh crab for breakfast.  Albert had caught fish with a bare line, no pole.  Then we rented a breezy van (jeepney) to give us a tour.  It was Mexico v. Philippines boxing match day and many a tv's were outside luring neighborhood crowds to watch.  So we saw tv, banana tree, tv, banana tree . . .

The highlight was the cave tour.  My dad moaned and screamed descending into the cave, so Dima and Ariana chickened out and waited with Leo.  I guess they had a good time spider watching.  For about 45 min I was a true spelunker, led by the candlelight of 4 tourguides who carried Giselle and Charlotta in the same hands they carried their candles.  I used all 4's in a Halloween grab bag situation.  Slime and mud surrounded us.  We eventually came to an underground river you could wade in.    We ended at a swimming pool with waterfalls and a mermaid chair made by the geological forces of acid breaking down coral, all decorated with stalagmites and stalactites.    My dad held his mouth open under the cascades to imbibe the pure water.  We all sang and took a dip.

Afterward, we all visited waterfalls with cool pools of blue.  We all showered under the falls to wash off the mud, got waterfall back massages and  slid down natural waterslides.

  We had lunch in someone's kitchen of an old cement house where the only decorations were 2 pictures of Jesus.  9 people ate soup with liver and tongues and chicken and pork and rice and pancit for 12$.  The boxing match was on the tv next to us.

Then came the worst part of our trip.  Going down a mountain, I noticed we were picking up too much speed and my dad turned around with the look of terror in his eyes and screamed, "We lost the brakes!"  I was lay down on the floor with Giselle so that we wouldn't fly out the windowless windows.  Some miracle brought us safely to a brake shop at the bottom of the slope and we were fixed up in no time.

Cebu
To get back to the airport, we had to go through Cebu, a larger city.  Beggars presented their rash-covered babes  and naked toddlers.  A peddler went from jeepney to jeepney with a single fake rolex to push off.

Monkey Attack:  I was attacked by 2 monkeys at the Cebu children's zoo.  We walk in to kill time before going to the airport.  I was holding 3 bananas and a guava.  Dima was holding a water bottle.  The monkeys got it all.  They climbed up on me and took it.  Just as I started to think they were friendly and didn't have rabies, one slapped me in the face and bit my chest.  I turn around and saw a sign, "Friendly Zoo"  Afterwards I saw lots of kids playing ball with the monkeys.

When I got back home,, I couldn't believe I was sitting in my house in SJ, CA!  Just a few hours earlier I had been eating roasted pig next to my rainbow colored jeepney and horse and bicycle taxis were everywhere.   I could see how my house wasn't as fancy as my dad's and not as clean and there was  no one to clean it for me.  Dinner was not waiting on the table and my laundry was damp from travel.  And I didn't have a balcony facing the ocean where I could rock to the sound of the waves and read my book while the kids kept busy torturing starfish.  In short, I was bummed.

We liked our 2006 visit so much that we decided to back again in Feb, 2008.

The Plane: This time Philippine Airlines wouldn't let us sleep on the floor , so we were all crabby and sleepy after 16 hours of flight (included a stop in Guam)

We gave the maid $100 to cook, clean and do our laundry till we left, so I had nothing to do. . .the weather was nice and I had some books and some plans to interview local children, take pictures and freelance biographic profiles for multicultural magazines. 

Spider Fights: I had about 10 neighborhood children over for a party.  Some boys brought their spiders in a homemade matchbox home with 6 compartments.  They found the spiders in bushes.  The boys seemed to carry these spiders everywhere they went.  Their parents didn't know about it.  Children were supposed to study instead of play with spiders.  They showed us real spider fighting on a stick.  Leo and Charlotta took turns holding the stick.  The kids bet 5 pesos on a fight.  The fight is over once the victim is spun up in a web.  Spider fighting is popular among Filipino children.  These children ask for spaghetti and sliced bread for Christmas.  They have these luxuries only once a year.    But they each earned 50 pesos for letting me interview them.

Cockfight:  We went to a cockfight on another island.  A knife blade is tied to each rooster's foot and everyone makes bets.  Each fight lasts a good 3 seconds.  Well I bought some food there because it looked pretty authentic.  We were the only foreigners there so were were constantly stared at.   I bought rice, vegies, pig roast, pork kabobs, grilled banana.  I thought she said the rice was 70 pesos.  41 pesos=$1.  I said "expensive"  (These people can't afford to pay that much for rice.)  Then she said 6.  So I got her down from 7 to 6.  The pig roast was 90% fat.  I paid 250 pesos for 1 kilo.  When I returned the ceramic plate, they were surprised we hadn't eaten the fat.  10's of locals laughed at me.  They tried to pour sauce over it.  Finally we agreed they would put it in a bag and I could take it home.  Each pork kabob was all meat and only 5 pesos.  They put the cooked vegies in a plastic bag and gave me some metal spoons.  Anyway, the next day I had stomach trouble and Charlotta had an allergic reaction around her mouth- the type she usually gets from exotic food at our local Japanese grocery store.

 Inflation:  A boat ride to a reef that was $2 last time was now $15.

English: It was harder to find locals who speak/ understand English this time.

On the bright side:

Coconut season: It was coconut harvest time and the coconuts were sprawled out all over my dad's yard.  They're cracked open and drying out.  This lured various farm animals into our yard.  We saw baby cows, goats, roosters, and chicks eating the coconut.  I tried coconut wine - not so good.

Snorkeling with kids: Not only Charlotta, but also Leo, now 5,  really enjoyed snorkeling this time.  Leo did well in the deep water, but was reluctant to take him where it was shallow because of his wild kicking feet.

Health food: They now sold whole wheat bread, pasta and brown rice.  and Nature's Path organic optimum power cereal.  This was unheard of a year and a half ago.  My sisters wouldn't eat rice anymore.  They had been in the Philippines for 2 yrs, 3 months, so they had plenty of time to get sick of rice.  Cotton candy was available at school recess everyday for just 5 pesos.

Wildlife: We visited the Sikatuna Protected Landscape, seemingly unknown.  I found it on the internet, but there were no signs leading up to it through the gorgeous rice fields.  And the hiking paths were overgrown.  This rain forest is home to 400 species of birds, 200 of which only live in the Philippines.  It also hosts 29 species of bats, numerous frogs, monkeys and lemurs.  After the guide called out "oooh" for a couple minutes, about 7 wild monkeys swung down from the trees right up to the headquarters.  We fed them crackers.  The biggest one took it right from our hands.  One monkey had a baby that was estimated to be 10 days old.  On a hike, we spotted a lemur in the trees and then a black and red spider landed on me.  I shooed it away.  Afterward, the guide told me it was poisonous.

Motel Visit: We stayed in a motel in Carmen, Bohol.  This was our first Filipino motel experience.  We had to get 3 rooms to accommodate us all.  The plain rooms smelled of mildew and bleach.    The bathroom was one big shower stall with a toilet, a sink and a drain on the floor.  You use the faucet to fill a bucket.  Then you pour water on yourself or down the toilet in order to flush the toilet.  The motel swimming pools were quite luxurious, however.  The walls displayed mosaic tree designs and each of the 2 pools had its own waterfall.  The motel served only rice, eggs and corned beef for breakfast.

Funeral: Our housekeeper's husband died in a motorcycle accident while we were there.  Unfortunately, motorcycle accidents are quite common.  So she took 9 days off.  Meanwhile, my husband, Dima, did a lot of the cooking.  We found a replacement housekeeper who does laundry but doesn't cook.  Tradition here has it that the deceased person's body remains on display for 9 days in a glass-covered coffin in the person's house.  Family and friends come to visit nonstop for 9 days and take care of the widow.  We paid our visit, saw the body and all the flowers, signed the guestbook, made a donation and sat and spoke with our widowed housekeeper.  We  passed by several above the ground cemeteries there.  My sisters decided they wanted to be cremated, rather than be on display for 9 days.

My dad later moved to Quezon City, near Manila.  We've been wanting to avoid the big city, so we haven't been back to visit since 2008.  He still owns property on Panglao, so perhaps we will return.