Wednesday March 9, 2016 I have made plans for next week. I have booked 4 nights at the Turtle Bay Dive Resort in Moalboal (Sunday through Wednesday nights). It is a high end resort — with fees and all it is $80 per night. Expensive for Philippines (cheap for the bay area) but I think…
Days 6 and 7: I’m almost ready to participate in life here
March 7 and 8, 2016 Monday March 7 Monday turned out to be an uneventful day. I researched a walking tour for today or tomorrow. I decided to get a massage (350P for one hour ($7.25). I called at noon but they couldn’t get to the hotel until 4:00….I said fine….took a nap. At 4…
Day 5: The Adventure Begins: Part 2
Sunday, March 7, 2016 I headed out to Ayala Mall this morning, arriving at 10:30 AM. I planned to stay the whole day to get acclimated, but cut it short after 2 hours. Highlights of the event were: 1) I actually walked for about an hour to the point that my hamstrings and calves were…
Day 3: I venture out of my hotel
Okay, the phrase of today is “Culture Shock”. In a good way. I got a taxi and rode to Ayala Mall..probably best described as two sports stadiums side by side with 4 levels. It is not a Mall, It is a SUPER_MALL. No need to exercise, just wander around the mall–it is huge. I got…
Day 1: Lesson Learned
March 1 (4:00 AM Eureka time) to March 3 (early morning Cebu time_), 2016 What the heck have I gotten myself into? I have learned one thing about long distance travel: Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate. I flew into San Francisco, leaving my house at 4:30 AM. I drank some water, got two sodas ($3.50 for a…
Day 5: The Adventure Begins Part I
Sunday March 7, 2016 Okay. Let’s backtrack to yesterday. Imagine this scenario: You meet someone on an International dating site. You correspond with them and agree to meet them. She stated that she was taking a taxi to your hotel, but then shows up driving her “sister’s car”. Do you get in? Is she going…
Day 4: Maybe getting my strength back
Saturday, March 5, 2016 I still haven’t eaten any Filipino cooking yet. As I’m a little under the weather I’m going to pick American specialties such as cheese omelettes for now. I planned to watch tv yesterday after my trip to the mall, then have dinner at the restaurant downstairs. I was going to get…
Day 3.5: The Elephant in the room
As stated in my previous post, I fit the profile of the American Sex Tourist. Retired 60ish, overweight, balding (nope, NOT ME). The Philippines are a 3rd world country and the local red light district is only a 70P taxi drive away. A companion can run, from my research, from $20 US to $120. Not…
Day 2: Start of my trip in the Philippines
March 3, 2016 What the hell have I done? I want to hide in my room for 25 days and then go home 🙂 I am now faced with a bunch of chores, along with surviving the onset of the Humboldt Crud I incubated with 17 hours of flight time and 8 hours of total…
Hello World
Hello World. Nice to see you again. It has been an interesting 7 months since my retirement from the high school classroom. I’d love to relay great stories and insights, but these months have been mostly uneventful and relaxing. There is little stress when one has nothing to do and no deadline to…