Dumaguete to Moalboal

2/28-3/1

After coming down from Talanis and taking a days rest once again in Dumaguete we said our good byes to the locals there that we had come to know over the last few weeks and headed north to a town called Sibulan, from there we got a ferry to Cebu island and headed via bus up the west coast to Moalboal.

I had found out from some of the other travelers and the bulletin board at one of the hostels that the diving in Moalboal was worth seeing, and it was on our way to Leyte anyway.

Everything I describe to you is some of the best parts, mixed between a myriad of travel. Long hours walking, cramped buses, dirty jeepneys. Its all a great experience but lets all just remember that not every moment of it is tropical paradise and beaches.


That being said, Moalboal is by far one of the most tourist ridden places we've been to. As soon as we stepped off the bus we were, as is the norm in high tourist locations, assailed by dozens of trike drivers asking us where we were headed, what we were doing, etc. By now though, we have become near experts in dealing with this kind of... attention. We made short work of shooing them away/politely refusing their services, and made our way, 60lb packs and all, to the nearest pier to have a look around.

When I say pier I mean a concrete jetty haphazardly extending into the bay. After such a long bus ride its nice to just walk around a bit and get your bearings before continueing. Being that the area was swarmed with those of the lighter pigments, it was easy for us to ask some other tourists where the cheapest hotels were.

Turns out that there are really no hotels in Moalboal itself. We were instead directed to an area called Panigsama, which after a short trike ride (20php/person) later we found that it was a sort of amalgamation of tourist resorts, forming into a complex of sorts. Buildings connected together, walkways snaked their way in and out of the beach, down alleyways and even strait through bars. It would have been amazing for some urban paintball.

We've gotten pretty good at finding the cheapest places around as soon as we get into an area, though I'll not kid you, we certainly weren't impressing anyone with our choice of accommodation's... Thats a pic of a crab we found walking around in our bathroom.

We found a place an "Corletta's" for 400php a night (200 ea), settled in and started exploring our new surroundings. True to expectations everything in this "community" was about twice as expensive as in Moalboal proper. So much more expensive in fact that it was worth it for us to hire a trike to take us back into town just to have dinner and still come out ahead.

We spent the evening there supping and drinking into the evening. We took our bottles of San Miguel onto the wharf and watched the sun set. Groups of girls and guys dotted the pier and we got our share of attention from all as we passed.

Looking back on it, and even then, there was always a wish that we could have stayed somewhere longer, developed deeper friendships, as it would be so easy to do here. maybe even... dare I say... have separate rooms! -gasp



Any way the sunset was... well... was making me wish I had a better camera. if a 35mm is worth 1,000 words than these pictures are the daily special versions. We caught a night trike back to Panigsama and wrote in our journals out on the tiny concrete pier in front of our room. It wasn't long before we were approached by 2 girls who sat and talked with us into the night. (eventually one threw out the expected sales pitch for some local dive shop-its really just the way things work 'round here)

The next day we were out and about to look at costs for dive shops. We found a shop that gave us a good deal (damn were getting good at bartering deals) a package set 3,000 php for 3 dives. talked down from 7,000. I'll totally plug the dive site here, its called Pete's dive center in Panigsama, Moalboal

Unfortunatly i was saving my pictures for when i got to see whale sharks and I only have the one disposable camera. So I don't have any pictures from diving here. We dove a reef wall on Pescador island, amazing. Our second dive was just a reef shallow dive. Lots of micro life and some sea turtles.

The boat needed repairs so we skipped out on the 3rd dive and only had to pay 2,000 php. That evening we partook of one of the local (albeit over priced - and when i say over priced its a relative to the area term because by our standards its still nearly free) bars. We drank there for a bit, reminiscing about the trip thus far and a bit bummed that we only have another week in the Philippines.

Long after the sun had set we headed back down the beach way to our accommodation's, along the way we were met by a different two girls, whom obviously had a bit to drink, and sat on the pier near our hotel drinking and talking with them in the near full moonlight.

The weather was perfect, the moon was full, tropical waters lapping at our feet, and two beautiful women at our sides; we REALLY, should have sprung for separate rooms. -sigh

But alas, we were too leave early in the morning to head to Leyte or Padre Burgos (we hadn't quite made our minds) so with much regret we had to say goodnight to our lady friends and in the morning leave all that may have been behind us.

Moalboal isn't really a town I would say is a must go, but it fills its role. If your loo king to spend less than a week in the Philippines then it would be a pretty nice place. If you were looking to do some diving and sit out on the beach most the time then its a great place. For us though once we dove it a bit there wasn't much left for us there. (other than beautiful women)

These are sea urchins that we found on the beach all split open and looking like they had been eaten. There just so happened to be a spoon right next to the pile as well. Made for an amusing site to behold just sitting out on the beach.

Back posting...

I know its a bit pointless, the blog was made for us to communicate with people while we were gone and now that were back why does it matter? Well I'm going to finish out the posts for our last 5 weeks just for completion sake. A few people said they enjoyed reading about it and to be honest, I like writing about it.

In Yokohama again

Hey everyone we made it into Yokohama again, so much to say so much thats happened since my last big post. I'll get to it eventually just wanted to let everyone know where we are right now. Only 2 weeks left and the end is bittersweet as it will be nice to get back to having a steady roof over our heads but theres so much adventure left to be had.

Theres a festival tomorrow that were going to and I'll try to get up some of the awesome pictures that havent yet made it to the blog. Happy easter every one!

Update

We met Kim in Kyoto and have been here for the last few days. Today is out last day here and unfortunatly I dont have time to catch up the blog with the big meaty posts I usually do. But after here we are getting a train to Yoshino and doing the kumano kodo pilgramage. We are going to be up in the mountains for the next 10-14 days so wont have any posts for a while.

The cherry blossoms are just starting here in Kyoto and if we were here in about 2 weeks I think it would be full bloom, still the occassional bloomed tree here and there really adds to the majestic scenery in some parts of town. Theres definitly a lot of tourists here so we have been visiting the smaller temples to stay away from them, The main temples are soo crowded. Today will be pretty much all big temples though so we will wade our way through the tourists to catch a glimpse. Price also dictates our destinations, some temples charge 600 en to get in the door so we don:t even bother. Its an interesting system, a lot of time they call the charge a *woshiping fee* Which always brings the 700 club to my mind.

Mount Talinis

Since we've gotten here we have become fairly skilled in gathering information. We've gotten capable of finding out of the way places by asking locals etc. One of the more major tourist places in this area is Twin lakes, so we decided... not to go there. Instead there is another lake out in the wilderness as well as a waterfall.

Oddly enough we would later see an advertisement for a hardcore adventure company advertising a 3-4 day hike into the very mountains that we ventured off into, just the 2 of us.

Anyway, we decided to start at the most familiar point and basically hike a few dozen kilometers into the mountains, hit the falls and a few lakes and then come back.

The first day was hot, but being that it's been two weeks since we have really done any hiking, I was full of energy and ready to go. The trail was pretty hard heading at a steep grade (steep is a word that we laugh at in hindsight), but it was fairly well traveled. By this I mean it wasn't over grown with plants and the trail, albeit a single person wide was clearly visible.

Our only concern that first day was with water. The trail kept going up and up an up for hours and as per the usual, the distance to our destination was grossly underestimated. We made it to an area where we met a crew of guys laying pipe to run from a local lake to the town. We reaffirmed that we were on the right path and kept heading up.
(about as steep as the M @ home)

Coming to a split in the trail (the first of many that no one ever mentions) we explored a bit down one before coming to the conclusion that it was the less traveled of the too and less in the right general direction. About the time we made our choice of which trail to follow we heard another group of guys coming up the trail to head to meet up with the pipe laying crew, they(what seemed grudgingly) confirmed the direction we thought to be correct.

While exploring the 2 paths I had the opportunity to see some of the largest ants I've ever seen in my life. I know there are probably larger out there, but compared to where I'm from, these suckers were huge. The one that managed to bite me through my socks was a little bit bigger than my thumbnail. Had the equivalent sting of a horsefly with a nice swelling after effect. -Noted to myself not to stand in place for too long again.

After that split the path started to thin and there were bits of over-growth here and there. A few times the trail split but it wasn't hard to figure out which was the more traveled path and discern whether or not it was the right direction. We finally reached the ridge line and it wasn't long before we were headed (dare I say) down hill, ever so slightly.

We continued to the path and I ran out of water in the 90 degree heat but Nathan still had a bit and we knew that water had to be close by. Luckily we were right and after 4 hours of hiking (it doesn't seem like much but in the 90 degree weather up hill for kilometers at a time we were plenty ready for rest.) we finally found water, and as though it was meant to be, next to the stream there was a hollowed out flat area with brush overgrown off the mountain side making a cave of flora. (this place is called Miano as we would later find out)

We set our packs down and eagerly filtered water for drinking. We gathered wood and started to make camp. Wood here is a bit harder to get going and since we couldn't find fuel for our pocket rocket we had to rely on fire cooking. Too tired to care we made use of the iso we had and had a fire started shortly. The problem is that wood here needs constant attention to keep burning so we only had it long enough to cook an awesome meal. Spaghetti with meat sauce - man it was amazing.

-I continue to be amazed at how early we start off. This is our "vacation" and we are up at nearly 0700 every day (about 2 hrs after the sun though) and ready to hike by 0830.

The second day had us following the river, and in it for a good portion. The trail had thinned way down by now and was little more than a single light path with a fair amount of overgrowth. Following it became increasingly difficult as it crossed the stream. There were times when the path disappeared all together as who ever traveled it simply walked in the water upstream. Areas where the trail had simply been washed away for 100s of meters at a time became more and more frequent.

The trail once again split and we took the more traveled of the two that headed more to the south (toward Dauin) This would bring us into a clearing that, if you had a helipad there, would be the most amazing piece of realty I could imagine.

I'll quote from my journal for this one.

"...30 minutes from the branch (in the trail) we came into a clearing with a farm; as though straight from a painter's imagination a huge bowl cut in the mountains, towering peaks covered in rain forest on all sides, a cow and calf grazing in the clear green fields. A single hut sits along side a stream that has dug a gully deep into the landscape. The remnants of a 1/2 planted garden. Below a font for a natural spring and above a lone cat meows us a greeting."

We explored the clearing and followed the path we were on.... It lead right up to the hut and stopped. Crap.

We looked around the area for a bit, searching for another path leading out as the idea of back tracking was in no way appealing to us. We even tried knocking on the hut.

In the end, backtracking was our only option and we headed back to the split at the stream. The loss of about an hour or so is fairly expected considering we are hiking around without a map or guide, with only a compass and directions from locals.

At some point, I think it was when we saw that we were walking through something in between a crevice and a valley, looking at the vines hanging from dozens of meters above us dangling into the water, that we realized we were backpacking through the rain forest.

It seems like such a simple thing when you think about it. But maybe because we were caught up in what we were doing at the time. Each step, each day, that we didn't see the big picture. Were trekking through the freaking rain forest. Not 2 days ago we were in a cozy little hotel and now We are sharing a tent that would fit in a walk in closet, pulling spiderwebs from our faces and wading through thigh deep (and deeper) streams... in a rain forest.

I wish there was some phrase or quote that I could come up with but the only word that comes to mind right now is - wow.

Anyway, making our way along the stream brought us to all kinds of beautiful scenery. We came across a small unnamed waterfall that had carved deep into the rock bed. It was the kind that you know the water had been flowing there for an unfathomable amount of time in order to cut the rock so deep.

Walking along the stream did another thing for us as well. It ade us realize that our trail continued to dwindle and become more and more overgrown. Luckily we were able to follow it long enough to come across another local working on building some sort of structure. It's amazing how we go for hours and hours without seeing a soul and then right when we start to question our path we blunder across some random local. (hopefully luck like this keeps going)

The guy told us that our first point (twin falls) was only 5-10 minutes from our where we were and that lake Nailig was "that way". (off to the west). We continued up the stream and it wasn't long before we could hear the roar of the falls. Twin falls was as amazing and different as all those we have seen thus far. There is just a particular beauty unique to every place we come across. To some I could see how it seems like the same stuff over and over. Maybe it has to do with actually being there or maybe its just in Nathan and my blood but there is no repetition for us yet, it's all a new adventure.

Twin falls was not as high as Casaroro, but it was still at least 20-25 meters. It's flow bouncing off the rocks in thousands of places rather than careening airborne all the way to the bottom. The side falls (the twin of the primary) held its own sort of wonder as well. It wast multistaged, falling into multiple pools before finally joining he stream.

We dropped our packs and explored the area. We found a way to climb up along the side of the main fall and we managed to get up to the top. It wasn't exactly rock climbing but lets just say when we climbed back down it was with our face to the mountain. Even if it wasn't a 90 degree incline (more like 75) it was riddled with slippery mud, trees that would give way when you put too much weight on them and downed branches making for obstacles. Definitely not an easy climb but fun non the less. The view from the top was far less impressive than from the bottom but it was more about the climb than anything else.

Again this was one of those places that we could have stayed all day at but we just didn't have the time. We had no idea how far the lake was and we needed/wanted to get there before dark.

We headed up the mountain side for about an hour or so and as we cleared past some brush we saw an opening in the jungle. Peering though we could see a field... with a cow, calf, a small hut, and a stream running through it... Crap.

We had managed to spend the entire day only to end up in the same field we were at that same morning. Deciding that it was too late to explore some of the other trail splits we headed down to make camp.

The trail that we entered the clearing from was a different one than this morning, coming from the north of the field rather than the east end. As we came out of the forest and into the clearing we looked back and it was as though the forest had simply consumed the trail. It was not visible from the field at all. Unless you knew exactly where to look there is little chance that you would see it. There was thick overgrowth hiding it away.

We camped in the clearing next to the small stream that ran through it and we had just finished collecting wood when the owners of the hut came out of the forest on the same trail that we came from. We watched them make their way across the field, said a quick hello, and asked permission to stay where we were (we assumed it was their land).

We cooked up some of the rice we had and decided that that variety of rice (I don't remember the name) was absolutely disgusting. Sleeping out in the field we were able to see the stars clearly, as there wasn't a canopy of jungle over top as the previous night.

The next day we again headed off early and started back to where the trail to the North split. We followed it 15 minutes or so only to find it ending. Along the way there were various snares and traps so back tracking once again to the field we decided it must have been a game trail.

At this point we were out of trails to check so we went back to the hut hoping the mother and son were still there. They were and after asking directions the woman told us some of the best directions we have ever had in the Philippines. She even drew out a little map in the dirt (something no one has EVER done before).

She showed us the start of yet a different path, leaving to the southwest of the field. Once again it was overgrown and started behind the house and over a bit of a ridge. Not nearly has hidden as the paths heading strait into the jungle it was still one that you would be very unlikely to find without knowing.

We started off heading toward the sulfur springs. We could see the scorched area of blight from the trail. it was like a scar amidst the green that would not heal. We didn't head down to the springs to get a closer look, one of the few times we didn't feel like exploring further. We had a fairly good view from the trail anyway.

So we came to the split that she said we would find and headed to the uphill one. It winded through the jungle for a bit taking us over logs, and under caves made from tree roots. When I say caves I'm not describing a few roots, I'm talking about huge masses that completely cover the path, causing us to be on our hands and knees for 2-3 meters at a time.

By now the trail was almost completely overgrown. At this point we could hardly call it a game trail. We were relying on our meager tracking skills to see the occasional footprint, scuffed moss on a downed tree, or the occasional machete mark in a tree. It was thick, and it wasn't long before it became steep.

Steep hiking is something I use losely here, as for a good portion of the "trail", we were heading straight up the mountain side if 75 degrees or more. It was more like climbing a ladder that was caked with slippery mud and loose roots than it was any kind of hiking. We pulled ourselves up faces plastered to the dirt hand over hand as we made our assent. At one point we climbed straight up what was obviously a small waterfall during the rainy season.

To say this day was brutal, is as much of an understatement as saying Einstein could do algebra. I will admit right here, for thousands to see, that it was one of the most exhausting work outs I've ever had. Only wrestling training has ever even come close to the kind of physical struggle that this mountain held. Arm over arm, climbing up near cliff sides with 30 kilos (66 pounds) on your back and only mud covered rocks and rotting roots as your hand holds is not something I would suggest to any one.

After clearing one such mud wall we found an overlook that was little more than a rock jutting out the side of the .... cliff, I will say that it was more of a cliff than a slop because if we had to turn around and go back down, we would have to do it 30 feet at a time, leap frogging so that we could lower our packs to each other. We knew that it was pretty much a one way trip. After clearing the cliff and coming to the rock we rested and I dropped by pack and fell limp on the rock, legs sprawled and lungs heaving. I tell you that for 10 minutes that nothing existed in my mind. Exhaustion had brought me the closest to prajna that I have ever been and am likely to ever be.

I managed to take a few bites as it had been hours since our breakfast of a few oz of peanuts and I rose blearily. With only will power and the knowledge that there was no realistic way back down or back the way we came, started back up the cliff side. We made the top and looked out. We were not quite yet to the top but there wasn't much higher that we could get.

I've underestimated the Philippines for its oddities before and I have done it yet again. After finally reaching the ridge line, instead of following it, the trail led down the side and right back up to the same ridge line... It's as though what ever person or animal we were following had wanted to punish themselves and vicariously, us.

I say now that when we crossed the trail split that the woman had described to be 15 minutes from the lake I nearly went giddy. Just the idea of an end in sight was enough to give my will power fueled body a boost. It didn't take long before the lake proper (Lake Nailig) was in sight but the trail again teased us. Bringing us within meters of the lake only to pull back up the mountain side. It wasn't until we had walked another few kilometers to the other side that it would finally give us a chance to reach the water. We had finally made it. Checking our GPS and making a point we found that we had hiked over 1500 meters (4500 ft) above sea level to reach the lake.

Before we settled in and collapsed, we set about to gathering wood and setting camp. We had a very early start today and reached the lake after only 6-7 hours of merciless climbing. The lake was a large pool of water nestled in the crater of the mountain, it too was surrounded by rain forest on nearly all sides.

We rinsed the layers of sweat and mud away in the waters, we sat in silence most the rest of the evening going about our chores in a near daze. Before sun down we set about to regaining our strength with a feast of tuna in rice with ramen and tea. The clouds rolled just barely over head often dipping over the ledge of the crater to drink from the lakes water, filling the crater with an ever moving fog. As the light dimmed and the stars brightened, little motes of light began floating in the tall grass, lazily making their way to the waters edge, a few coming to a pulsing rest on our tent.

This was the first time I have seen fireflies and it is not something I will forget. It was not just the iridescent balls of fire floating from leaf to rock and back but the fullness of the moon (about 2 more days to full) the slight warmth from the fire (the temp actually gets a bit cool up here) and the rolling in of the clouds as they kiss the mountain top. All of it mixed together to make a unique memory.

Once again we awoke early to clear camp and get the most out of the sun light. We said our goodbyes to lake Nailig and headed back to the trail. From the ridge just off lake Nailig we could see another smaller lake nestled in the next crater over. The jungle completely consumes the lakes waters and there is no realistic way to camp or sit along the waters edge so we satisfied ourselves with a short exploration of the area before returning to the path.

Now heading east we took off along the trail confident (who knows why) that we would be out of the jungle and make it to Dauin by this evening. There were only a few moments that the trail came close to being as steep as the cliff side we climbed earlier but after 3 days straight our pace was slow and plodding.

This side of the mountain, while still covered in the beauty of the rain forest did not hold the same wonder as the other side. It lacked the shear cliffs and the flowing streams, but it was easier going than the previous day. But that's a matter of scale I suppose, to say it is easier is only by comparison. The slopes were still no less steep than hiking the M, and not the cross backs either, the straight up the mountain way.

The path crossed by another small lake that we only took a few moments to take in. We still had a long hike and only so much daylight.

The path emptied out to a ridge that overlooked the sea. In this picture you can see the highest ridge that we had come from. On the other side of it is lake Nailig. The path we traveled cannot even be seen as it is completely over grown. Though since we had left the lake and headed toward Dauin the path had started to become a bit more substantial.

After the clearing, the trail dove down (thankfully not as steep as the previous day) and on the way we ran across a group of fellows heading up the trail. Once again confirming we were on the right path we continued down the slope.

The rain forest expelled us into a clearing, the trail barely visible behind us. the clearing led us to a road.

"I'm not sure if it was because my brain knew that there was no more jungle ahead or if it was the exact moment that my muscles were ready to give out. As soon as I set foot on the road my legs began to shake with a fury I've only known a few times in my life. As though the anger in my calves were joined by the rage of my thighs. I could not take another step until they had finished berating me for my mistreatment of them. In a few moments they calmed their complaints and with renewed co-operation we made our way into the road and headed down."

The road, albeit boring was a welcom break to the constant climb and descent of the mountain behind us. We were still a long ways from Dauin but at that moment, it didn't mater. We passed by a few huts which turned into a few more, then a few shops, then paved road. We didn't measure the day on time any longer, only on how close to civilization we were getting.

After a few kilometers we took a habal habal (its basically a motorcycle with and extended seat to fit on more people than a motorcycle has any right fitting) that made our trike rides seem like child's play. Too tired to realize just what kind of suicidal choice we were making the two of us got on the single motor cycle, packs still strapped to us and headed down the road. A habal habal's seat might be extended but with our packs I was sitting side saddle and Nathan sitting on the back, with his pack extending beyond even the "extended" seat.

Our time in the Philippines has given us a new definition of what is safe and what is dangerous and we have both concluded that growing up in America, we are all taught that just about everything is way more dangerous than it is. Compared to what these people do on a daily basis, Americans are akin to children sitting inside all day on a padded couch wearing helmets, afraid to go out.

We've learned a lot on this trip and continue to become more "traveled" every day, shedding ourselves with the ingrained misconceptions we burden ourselves with.

Apo island

2/22/10

As I said before, we are only kilometers from some of the best diving in the world. We had the pleasure of learning in Dauin, with some of the most diverse marine life around. Today we are going to dive Apo island.

We started off early and prior to heading out of town stopped by for a "sack lunch" philippino style. Basically take some stews, rice, soups and various dishes and put them in individual plastic baggies. We got to the pier and being from Montana we did our part of the workload, packing the boat up and getting it out of dock.

We headed out early in the 4 man banka loaded up with dive gear and 7 people. I'll just say that its a good thing I remembered to bring dry bags. The waves crashed over the bow soaking the first 1/2 of the boat. The water here is so warm that its actually refreshing, other than the taste of salt water.

We got out to the dive site and did the dive. It was similar in Marine life to Dauin but here we were able to dive a reef wall. It was basically a wall of coral that drops strait down from 5 meters to 30 meters (15ft to 90 ft). I'm still a novice to being able to spot all t he rare things here and its very easy to glance over things if your eye isn't trained.

Its hard to describe a dive, at least it is for me. Theres such a sensory overload the memory turns into more of an emotion, a maliable thing that can only be experianced and felt. To describe it would cheapen it and be ineffective any way. I can't even keep track of all the life that I saw.

We broke for lunch and tied to a tree, banka bobbing just off shore. We had about 90 minutes for food and decompresion. Nathan and I, per our usual, took off to explore a bit, looking for just the right spot to eat our food. The islland was bigger than we expected and had way more people living on it that either of us thought possible, or even desireable. There was a resevior of sorts not 50 meters inland and while we didnt taste it we postulate that it was fed by seawater being filtered and re eemerging on the other side. But its all guess's here.

We found a beach on the opposite end of the island that was the original marine preserve. Now the whole island is loaded with sea live but some people come to this specific area to dive and snorkle even though theres a "park fee". We decided this was a good enough spot to sit and havee our lunch.

Remember I said our food was in plastic baggies... These aren't ziplocks, they are just regular baggies. So here we are, no sivlerwear, no plates, biting little holes in our baggies and sucking out our "sack lunches" staring off into the ocean. I'm not going to say the food was bad because it was the same as everything else we have been eating but I will say sucking it our of a plastic baggie not only gives an interesting texture but makes me have a bit more respect for astronauts.

The second dive was much like the first but still amazing and before we knew it the day was over. The evening was our usual wandering around town finding cheap food and relaxing.

Casaroro Falls

Its hard to even start this, I'm/We're so far behind in our post I sit down to the keyboard with a shudder. But even though its not possible, I must share with everyone reading those amazing experiences that we have seen.

As Nathan said earlier we were in Dumaguete finishing our classes. After getting our new certifications we shopped around to get a good price for diving Apo island. Its one of the top rated dive sites in the world and we can see if from the balcony of our hotel.

We took the opportunity to take our lives in our own hands again and rent another scooter to head south to check out some of the dive shops. It turns out that "Snoopy" had the best prices. As a recap "Snoopy" is the instructor and owner of the dive shop in Dumaguete right next to Herold's mansion called "Underwater ventures"

If anyone is in the oriental Negros and plan to dive, they need to look him up. Dumaguete is a small enough town that if you ask around someone can point you to him.


2/20/10
The trip south to check prices wasn't a total waste though, we stopped by a roadside stall and picked up an unmarked 1/2 gallon jug (that looked like an old bleach container only translucent) filled with a brownish liquid called Tuba. Its basically coconut liquire akin to bathtub made moonshine. Tastes like drinking strait yeast, or really REALLY underdone bread, with a hint of coconut. But it packs a kick without having the burn of hard alcohols.

So off we went down the road on our scooter with no lights, a bent brake, broken rear shocks, and no working console (broken speedometer and fuel gauge) Me driving and Nathan on the back with our 1/2 gallon of booze in one hand.

We headed up to the falls and had a bit of a walk when we made it to the end of the paved road. I've taken a bike out on the dirt road with the too of us but the gaps between these rocks i would cringe to take a four wheeler across. We walked the rest of the way and were ready for a bit of a trail to get to the falls.

No such trail awaited us but a @#$* ton of stairs did. Well over 200 stairs that we knew with every step down, we would have to eventually make in reciprocity. At first reaching the bottom teased us with being a disappointment. There was a falls maybe a meter high at best with a fair stream running by. We followed a little concreate path leading up the stream.

We found a little bridge that lead to a covered area. It wasn't until crossing the bridge that we knew that any thoughts of disappointment were (almost literally) washed away.

Casaroro falls is like something you see in a movie (as I suppose a lot of what we have seen here is) over 30 meters tall, water careened over 90 feet to a huge pool at the base. The roofed area we were in was the end of the path but there was no way that we weren't going to go swimming.

We crossed the stream and made our way in up the stream to the base of the pool. The sound was defening and though I got video I would need a waterproof camcorder to get any closer. The spray from the falls could be felt over 30 meters away from it.

The water brought us memories of home, a chilled mountain water that makes you gasp when you first step in (either that or were getting used to the heat). We made our way toward the fall and could feel the current long before even getting close. The massive amounts of falling water made a natural barrier that only a well practiced swimmer could hope to penetrate. We made our way to the wall just tot he side of the falls and contemplated how deep the pool was (we would find out later that the pool was over 35 feet deep!). The exhilaration of the view and the experience took me and handed the reins over to lunacy. I slowly made my way around the back of the falls more rock climbing than swimming as the current pulling down kept me well aware that thousands of gallons of water were pushing down to the bottom.

I came out the other side to the sounds of Nathan calling out to see if I was ok. The task took me a few minutes to accomplish even though I had only traveled a few meters. We swam to the bank in time to see some other people watching us from the covered area down the stream. I so much wanted to see if i could swim directly through the falls but that was too much lunacy for even me.

I wish we could have stayed longer but the sun was setting and we had a fair drive ahead of us. Neither of us feel cheated on the amount of time we had but there would have been nothing wrong with staying there a bit longer and getting a bit deeper into our tuba.

fast update

Yup were doing fine, don't have time to make a proper post b/c there's so much thats happened. Right now were in Moalboal, on the western side of Cebu island. Were going to cebu city tomorrow then a ferry to Ormoc. Were going to look around in ormoc for a bit to see if we can dive this island to the north called meripipi. If that doesnt pan our we will head south to padre burgos instead. Then we fly out of Tacloban to Manila and leave the phils. will give a better update when we can! Look forward to it.

It All Started With a Coconut

After Jeff left, Clark and I went down to the Cebu Airlines office to find out there'd been some confusion with our airline tickets, and we were going to be in Manilla for one more day. We spent the day hanging out with our new friend Allie, and the evening and on into the next morning drinking with Phil and our other Peace Corp friends.

We flew into Dumaguete, getting there early in the morning, and dropped our bags off at Harold's Mansion(a hostel), before going on our customary ramble about town. We walked along the beach, checking out the banka boats, and stopped to watch a couple kids cracking open coconuts to drink the milk. Feeling, adventurous, I decided to try my hand at coconutting. I climbed the tree, with the kids laughing and watching, but couldn't quite get the knack of actually getting a coconut down. I came back down and one of the kids decided to show me how it's done. I thought I'd climbed the tree well, but this kid scrambled up it like a monkey and with a few quick flicks of the wrist, had several coconuts lying on the ground bleeding their sweet sweet nectar.

We were having a good time, when an angry man on a bicycle showed up and questioned the kids in a language we didn't recognize(the locals here speak pusayan instead of tagalog). Our new friends pointed at us and promptly vacated the area.

The man introduced himself as a Barangai councilor named Coro, and started quizzing us about what we were doing there, why we were climbing the trees, where we were staying, etc. We'd had a somewhat questionable encounter with a Barangai councilor before, and with coconut milk guiltily dripping from our chins, warily evaded answerings most of his questions. He explained to us that if the owner saw us eating her coconuts, she'd call the police. We explained that we didn't realize someone owned the trees, we were sorry, and wouldn't do it again. Then he explained to us that if the owner saw us eating her coconuts, she'd call the police. We explained that we didn't realize someone owned the trees, we were sorry, and wouldn't do it again. Then he explained to us that if the owner saw us eating her coconuts, she'd call the police...

After going back and forth like this for a while, Coro calmed down a bit, decided we were good people, and in hospitable Filipino fashion, invited us to have lunch with his family. We couldn't turn him down, and were soon eating chicken and rice while being regaled with stories about Coro and Sally's 5 sons, 6 daughters, and 22 grand children, many of whom we met. We parted ways, Coro inviting us back to eat and go swimming with his family; an invitation we plan on taking him up on.

Our time in Dumaguete has been peaceful and relaxing. Most days, Clark and I have been doing one or more SCUBA dives; me to get my open water certification, and Clark to get his advanced and mixed air certs. Snoopy and his assistant, Johnly were great instructors, and opened up a whole new world to me that I hope to explore a lot more in the future. I was lucky enough to learn to dive in one of the world's top rated reefs, instead of a swimming pool.

We rented a scooter and tooled around the area for a day, seeing a bit of the neighboring towns and mountainsides, and Clark got to experience driving around in Filipino traffic on a busy holiday(Valentines Day is HUGE here). I don't know if we've mentioned the traffic here before, but it's pretty crazy. There are no traffic lights or signs, or even speed limits as far as we can tell, yet it flows like a river. Every one pays attention to what's going on, and even though drivers are aggressive, they're also courteous. Honking is a form of communication and a gentle warning rather than an abusive expletive. It's actually kind of cool to watch... but nerve-wracking to be a part of.

Dumaguete is known for its 'gentle people', and it's a reputation well earned. Out of all the Phippines so far, the people here have been the most helpful and gracious. Harold and Snoopy, in particular, have been a fountain of useful information about the area, things to do, dives to make, and places to go, as well as how to get there. So much so, that we're extending our stay here a bit, so we can see more of the area. The city living's making us a little soft though, so we're heading out today to spend a few days hiking and camping before we come back to Dumaguete to make a few dives, and head off to our next destination, wherever that turns out to be.

Crow Valley to the beach

To start, I'm way behind in posting. This post is not where we are right not but is where we were about a week ago. Just as a quick FYI we are in Dumaguete now and will be here for a few more days after this post, Hopefully I should have everything caught up before we leave.

Onto the meat...

Once we left Crow Valley we took a Trike back to Alaminos, from there we were going to check out the 100 islands national park in Lucap. We took another trike (after stoping for a bit of food) to Lucap 75php. Arriving there and before I could even step foot off the trike I had a guy run up to me and tug on my shirt telling me I had to register to go to 100 islands, I had to pay a park fee etc... I tried to tell him that we just wanted to look around a bit, see lucap and maybe we wouldn't even go to 100 islands. He told me the only reason I can be there is to go to 100 islands.

Again let me point out that this is only our 2nd experience dealing with tourist areas and "tour guides" in the philippines. But we are learning fast. The first thing they will try to do is rush you into making a choice, into paying a fee, or into telling them where you are going (often to see if they can profit from getting you there.) The problem is that some locals are genuinely friendly and interested and some are looking for a buck, as I said before its just a matter of experience to tell the difference.

So the people @ Lucap could not be convinced that we just wanted to look around, and to be honest I was fed up with dealing with them so I just asked how much it would be. They wanted 500php for 1 night to camp with our tent. We smiled and said that we could get a hotel for that much.

We tried a different approach. Our back up plan to Lucap, if it was the tourist trap we thought it was and turned out to be; was to take a banka boat to a small fishing village called Pingan. It is about an hour by boat from Lucap to Pingan and they wanted 2,000 php. This is the first time that I wasn't able to control myself. I burst out laughing. The kind of belly laughing that forces you to bend at the waist, the kind of incredulous laughter that lets everyone around you know exactly what you think without having to say a word.

We told them we could get a jeepney there for less than 300php as we got back onto the trike and told the driver to about-face. As we rode away its was easy to feel the scowls at our backs.

I guess that most tourists that come here are either to stupid to know when their getting ripped off or to rich to care about it; we are neither. Even the locals we have talked to since then have been dumbfounded at how ridiculous those prices were. -We continue to learn every day.

So, back in Alaminos we hopped on a Jeepney for Anda (only 40php each). We also got to try something that a few people have recommended to us and I'm sure all or our families will scorn us for, top riding. Basically imagine a Jeepney like a big Van. Top riding is exactly what it sounds like. Its not all that different than riding in the back of a pick-up to be honest, something I think all of us living in Montana have done. It was neat, but with no roof for shade we had to be a bit weary of the sun.

Arriving in Anda we took a break to eat and find out the best way to get to pingan. We also wanted to explore the area a bit, as is our nature. We ended up stopping at this little burger place and talking to some kids. Through the kids we found out about a little beach known by the locals and NOT in a guidebook.

We have collectively decided not to name any of the non-guidebook places. If you’re a tourist, get a guidebook, if you’re a true backpacker, then ask around and do the leg work yourself, it’s not that hard.

So we changed our plans and headed to the beach the kids told us about via trike.
Getting to the beach we were apprehensive as always but when the surprised locals there asked us with disbelief "how did you find this place?" we knew that we were where we wanted to be. The "entrance fee" was 5php We gave them 200php a night to let us put up our tent on the white sand beach (we didn't even bother haggling the price down) the 200 included the rental of a little hut to keep us out of the sun. The water was clear and blue green, there were bankas floating sporadically out in the sea, and a small island about 300 meters off the shore... perfect.
The best thing, no tourists!

We met some other non-philipinos there, 2 Swedish guys who had family in the area, and an Australian who also had family there.

We hadn't even been there 3 hours when we met Julian, she came out to meet us after hearing that there were some foreigners on the beach. (Its a very, very small town and word gets round fast) She invited us to her friends house for some food. The town is so small there’s only 1... hotel I guess you could call it and basically no restaurants. Julians friend basically ran a pool hall, store and restaurant out of her home. No signs or advertising, without the local knowledge we wouldn’t have even known.

She asked us what we wanted and cooked us a great meal. Don't get me wrong we had to pay for it but it was far different than any restaurant. It was more like paying for the raw cost of the food that a friend cooks for you. We spend the next 3 days exploring the area, meeting locals and relaxing.

I could spend the next 10 hours writing about the intricacies and details of this place that has become so carved into my memories but it would all be hollow when set beside the experience of actually being there. It is a place that I will go back to.

During our time there we learned about a few other off the beaten path places that we decided to check out, both of them waterfalls.

Again without mentioning names though as I said, its not that hard to find these places; the first place we went to we started walking from the drop off point of the jeepney along the highway toward where a local had pointed. We met up with another guy who apparently was the owner of the area on his way to do trail clean up etc... he also was a barangay councilmen though we have learned to take what people say with a grain of salt @ first. He walked with us along the highway chatting with me.

He led us down a path that wasn't marked at all telling us that the sign had been knocked down in the last typhoon. Without going into much detail we had a bad vibe about the guy so we had our guard up a bit. He did end up leading us right to the falls though and I will admit without him leading us its very unlikely we would have found it. He said his goodbyes and left us there.

The falls were amazing, like nothing I've ever seen with my own eyes, and if the professional pictures I've seen on discovery and in magazines didn't do the job at preparing me for this kind of beauty then my pictures are hardly worth the pixels.

Back in Japan I posted pictures of the falls we went to and I thought those were amazing. The ones we saw here were full, and heavy with water. Hundreds of gallons poured over the rock face and fell 6-10 meters to water of the finest clarity below. In Montana before we cliff jump we swim below and check the depth because the bottom cannot be seen. We performed the same check here though there was hardly need, the bottom could be seen from above, it was amazing.

I wish we could have stayed longer.

About my 3rd jump from the top of the falls I noticed a few guys come down the path, and again without going into the kind of detail that might worry any one I'll just say that we were smart enough to follow the mood and our instincts and leave the area. I wish we could have stayed in that paradise a bit longer but prudence just wouldn't allow. Oh well, we know the way (or general way) to another set of falls, so off we headed.

We ended up going a bit out of our way, back tracking to a town we didn't need to go to and then passing by the same area we left to get to the next falls. We were dropped off where a dirt road met a highway (again when I say highway I'm talking about a small road barely large enough for 2 lanes.) and told by the driver it would be about 2km to where we wanted to go.

If there is a second thing that we have learned past being very vague about where your going, it’s that most Philippinos (and I hate to generalize) have very poor senses of distance and time it takes to get somewhere. When this guy said 2km he meant about 10. We realized this as soon as we looked at our watches as we say the sun passing over head and realizing that we had been walking for 2 hours.

We were lucky here though because walking with us were 2 school kids that we could keep asking if we had passed the falls yet. They were walking home (from what we could figure out) and made for good traveling companions.

Once again what could have been misfortune turned into luck. If we had been later in leaving the first falls, or if we had taken the trike all the way to the second instead of deciding to walk ourselves we would have missed an event that, while brutal is still a gem in our experience of the Philippines.

A cock fight.

Not a sport that’s legal where we are from or accepted by most, it is the philippino baseball. Walking past a turn in the road we could hear the calls of roosters, which in and of itself is not uncommon here as they seem to be everywhere. In fact it would be odd for more than 10 minutes to go by without the sound of a crowing rooster. So less the calling and more the mesh ring with 2 dozen or so individuals packed around it.

Once again I must comment on the generosity and curiosity of the Philipino people. While some are truly just trying to make a buck those that are not have shown us some of the most amazing hospitality I have ever seen, even in the close nit state that I'm from the hospitality here puts us to shame.

We were beckoned over by some of the people there, perhaps 1/2 out of their own curiosity of 3 foreigners out in the boonies stumbling across this event and 1/2 hospitality. They gave us front row seats, offered us some drinks (none poisoned sealed soda bottles for you worry warts out there) and even let us take pictures.

Out here there aren’t near as many people that speak English so learning the rules were a bit difficult. In fact I will go so far as to say we still have no idea about how the sport works. There seemed to be a lot of ritual involved in it (not the spiritual kind). There was a specific way to choose which birds would fight (which took almost an hour). Everything was very detailed and done with purpose; I can truly not think of a better word that ritual.

The birds were "armed" with blades that were attached to their spurs and sometimes one bird would have a handicap, if it was bigger or smaller, or of a better bread. The handicapped bird would only get 1 spur while the other got 2. The amount of detail is amazing. The box in the picture is a case of blades, all different sizes and shapes and all razor sharp.

We only stayed for 1 fight, just to experience it and because we still had a lot of ground to cover. Not to mention it was almost and hour of choosing which bird to fight, getting the birds ready, and betting for about 90 seconds of a fight.

We took off and headed down the path for another 3 hours before, after asking a few people in huts along the way, we found our destination.

It’s hard to compare the 2 falls; they were similar but different all the same. We stayed and swam here for a while and were caught in our skivvies by an entire family that came down to swim and picnic. We sat there in our underwear talking to the driver that brought the family here. We had a few shots of rum with him (yes rum, yes he was driving) and chatted for a bit.

We decided not to stay the night here as there wasn't really a nearby camping area and Jeff wanted to get back ASAP to make it home by valentines day. We walked back watching the sunset as we went.

Unfortunately there were no trikes going to where we needed to go to catch a bus back to Manila so we started walking along the highway the right direction, we really had no other choice at this point. We happened along 2 trikes exchanging goods and again, as a testament to Philippino hospitality, let us load up and took us to where we wanted to go, even though one of them was headed the opposite direction. We tried to compensate them a bit for the gas and time but they wouldn't have any of it.

The rest of the evening was spent cooking some rice and waiting for the overnight bus to Manila. We had to skip out on Benaue and Bulinou but I think both Nathan and I plan to come back in our lives and see them then.

Manila was spent finding a replacement tent as Jeff’s was too big for just the 2 of us and too heavy for one of us to absorb the extra weight. Since Nathan and I have to split the group weight that Jeff was carrying I wanted to find as lightweight of a tent as possible. 100 bucks and 2 days later (shopping in the Phils is really annoying, but that’s an entirely different subject) we had a tent that while, should be rated to 1 man only (poor nathan) was the only thing we could find to work. We said our goodbyes to Jeff and our three of a kind became a pair.