PHILIPPINES: the LOST island CAMIGUIN

Camiguin is a well hidden volcanic treasure island (waterfalls, hot and cold springs, volcanoes, wild beaches) among other islands of Philippines: it`s relatively remote and there are no planes going there...so we decided it`s a perfect place for us ;)


DAY 1: "LOST" feeling is in the air... (LOST fans will understand ;)

...black sand..colour of volcanic ash...


...tropical wilderness....


...waves waves waves...and all the seaside for us only...looking for the perfect place to stay


...true LOST airport.... hasn`t seen air-planes for a long time...boat is currently the only way to & off the island :)

...Seascapes - wild resort with bamboo houses we found by the sea...with the end of the world feeling...

..and an amazing balcony facing the sea!


...after the dark soaking in HOT SPRINGS of HIBOK HIBOK volcano...


...and we imagine ourselves being LOST on a perfect island!!!


At night the sea is "partying hard" and making lots of noise, so I peak out for tsunami check ;)





DAY 2: 64 km around the island on motorbike

Old Volcano trail + review of the biblical knowledge in Station of Cross


From the top we could see the huge cross in the sea that marks SUNKEN CEMETERY


SUNKEN CEMETERY (also told to be a good snorkelling and diving spot): the cross marks the spot of an old cemetery which slipped into the sea following the earthquake of 1871..

We tried to catch the feeling of island life by ...catching some fish in traditional style :)



Things that finish up in the net...you don`t want to be touching this cute creature ;)

Young fisherman

Some catch ;)....full of funny bubbles...that`s how some fish try to avoid being eaten :)


It was Sunday ... and if you see many motorbikes, jeepneys and other vehicles parked along the road on Sunday it means it`s cock fight time!


"No One Writes to the Colonel"...man and his rooster


Measuring cocks (roosters!) - choosing fair competitors


If you had any doubts... yes, rooster fighting is a bloody business! During the fight the fighting cocks wear sharp razor blades fixed on their legs! Guess what`s the outcome of the fight?!


Rooster fighting arena...betting...screaming...encouraging roosters to fight...frenzy!!! Cock fighting is seen as a national sports in the Philippines!


As we continue cruising around the island we see cool houses on the way....in a couple of days we will realise the importance of building "high" ;)


The only white sand beach of the island! We saw this white stretch on the way to the island and when cruising around we were determined to find it...so we did :)


Tanguines lagoon -> dinner on the lagoon :)



That night sea was partying even harder than the previous night...I was officially on tsunami guard :)




DAY 3: BLACK & WHITE
Black ...

and white...


Welcome to the WHITE ISLAND: an uninhabited white sandbar 1-2 km offshore Camiguin with the mysterious view of Hibok-Hibok volcano hidden in the cloud. Amazing little place where you can snorkel with little fish and feel the power of nature when the high tide is starting to "consume" this tiny island...



Our next idea was to see the waterfalls of the island...but hardcore rain changed a lot of our plans starting from then on ;)

All we managed was to ride up the mountain towards the volcano a bit ...no one around...palms almost disappearing into fog/cloud/smoke....


..and to visit Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology station where we read all about volcano eruptions and tsunamis and confirmed which side of island is relatively safe if volcano goes "angry" ;) Anyway...we were told there was no eruption planned in near future. Sure ;)



That was one wet day...and we decided that the real cool thing to do during shower is to go to hot springs again to dip into hot water when you`re kinda chilled after whole day in the rain :) ...and as we were splashing and soaking in the hot bath...enjoying the refreshing raindrops on our faces ...we decided it was time to leave the ISLAND and search for sun ;)


That night the house was shaking as the wind was getting stronger and rain didn`t even plan to stop... I was starting to suspect there would be no boat for us the next morning...



DAY 4: LEAVING - attempt failed
...as we were leaving our beach-front tropical paradise garden was turning into deeper and deeper pond...


There was no boat at 8 am (what a surprise!) ... there was no boat at all that day...any direction..all the boats were cancelled because of typhoon, so we decided to face the flood :)

We spent the day getting wet, walking the flooded streets of Mambajao (capital of Camiguin) and fighting the currents when crossing the streets and singing in the rain :)))







The two films on TV we watched that day were " Singing in the rain" & " "Rainmaker"....couldn`t be more precise :)))


No tsunami check that night ;) as we stayed in a hotel in the capital of Camiguin, Mambajao..





DAY 5: THE BOAT THAT ROCKED..to BOHOL island

And again there was no boat at 8 am (what a surprise!!! ;)

But there was the one at 11 o`clock!!! :)

Rain had almost stopped, there was even sun peaking out of the clouds, but the sea was still going wild and the ride started as "fun hilss" of childhood amusement park...15 minutes of pure pleasure crushing the waves...(crazy waves!!!)...

....and then it all changed in a couple of minutes...and for the rest of the trip (for a bit less than 2 h) I was "broadening my horizon" and feeding fish (if you know what I mean ;).... that was something new for me as I had never felt that way before ;))) ... additionally I got splashed all over by salty waves as I felt better being close to the edge ;)...


...and I was real happy to step foot on firm ground of Bohol island :) and 1 Pepsi later I was full of energy and ready to pursue the perfect beach on a new island :)




NEXT: HOW WE FOUND THE SUN & SETTLED IN A HOUSE ON THE BEACH!

PHILIPPINES where few go: CAGAYAN DE ORO

Cagayan de Oro is a city on Northern Mindanao - the second largest and easternmost island in the Philippines. Mindanao is the only area of the Philippines with a significant Muslim presence. A guerilla war is ongoing on the islands, so not many tourists make it here as many countries warn against it, but the truth is that only certain parts of Mindanao better be avoided, while in the rest your should be as safe as anywhere else. We were :)

Landing in Cagayan de Oro felt like landing into the jungle.
As our plane was a couple oh hours behind the schedule and we arrived quite late we decided to stay in Cagayan de Oro for the night and to continue to the ISLAND in the morning!

DIVISORIA: centre of town closed for the night market every Friday & Saturday night! Food, shopping, just hanging out - the place to be!!!


Massage, Miss? Massage, Sir?


Little Mulan selling cigarettes and candies ...seems like a common little girls` job here..


Tom Sawyer & Huck Finn cruising Philippines :)


In the morning it was time to continue our journey towards the Volcanic Island Camiguin...a chance to pray before the ride :)


Little boys asking for money from boat passengers.
And as the captain was greeting everyone and asking for God`s protection and blessing during the trip...we were heading towards the ISLAND...


...all I asked for before the ride was to see the DOLPHINS...and WE DID :) It was a breathtaking sight! Small gangs of them slowly cruising the waters! They`re quite huge!!! It was my first time to see wild and free dolphins :) Yeaaaaaaah!!! :)


NEXT: THE ISLAND and HIBOK HIBOK :)

Philippines: GROOVY MANILA

MANILA...



...for some reason many people don`t like it and consider it merely a necesary & unavoidable stopover to get further to dreamy tropical beaches.... they describe Manila as too crazy, too dirty, too dangerous..

Ok, you do see lots of guns in Manila..all shops, offices, restaurants, hotels, banks, etc have armed security stuff which is kinda spooky at the beginning, but it also gives a sense of security!

All that said... Manila is groovy! :) It`s as colourful, as unpredictable and as friendly as its Jeepneys! !!!

After Chinese cities with it`s crowds and millions of people Manila felt real relaxed with its unique "fiesta" character and virtually no tourists!

...lovely Old town INTRAMUROS...
...crazy non-stop colourful Jeepney "carnival"...
...funny pedicabs...
...wide seaside boulevard for sunsets...
...sophisticated new town Makati...

A great place to spend at least a couple of days!



Jeepney is the most popular mean of public transportation in The Philippines. Hop on...squeeze....get lost...hop off... as much as you like :) Jeepneys where originally made from US military Jeeps left over from World War II...they are like a never-ending colourful drag-queen parade in the streets of Manila praising God and delivering other important messages on their "bodies"!




Now riding a Pedicab reminds childhood when driving those toy cars in the amusement park...most of the time you feel like it was a near miss ;)



Now let`s take a walk in INTRAMUROS - the Old town of Manila!


Spanish-like patios...evidence of important Spanish heritage!


Relaxed streets!


Colours..colours...colours!!!


Churches! I have never seen as many churches in one country as I saw in The Philippines!


Lush parks!


Lots of stories and long history behind the rocks and old houses...


And one impressive city wall...you can walk on it...and apparently do many other things on it :)



And for amazing culinary experience (if you`re a fan of Asian & Mediterranean cuisines) head to Ziggurat restaurant in Makati! It will be hard to chose!


We stayed in Manila twice: on arrival we stayed in Malate/Ermita area (backpacker`s choice) and before returning to China we opted for a fancier feel of the city in Makati. Both highly recommended ;)


Next: off to the ISLAND !!!

Delicious PHILIPPINES!

And now...my top culinary experiences in Philippines (must-try ;)

1. LECHON MANOK or roasted chicken
The best chicken I have ever tasted! Seriously! (And the best of Lechon Manok was on Camiguin island, Mambajao town, Bambi`s place, whole chicken costed around 2 Euros)



2. Mango shakes!!! Had soooo many of them during the trip...



3. Raw stuff :)
Raw sea urchin roe which is told to be a very expensive delicacy in some countries. Quite yummy for sushi lovers like me! Before I even agreed to try local sea urchin "business woman" on Virgin island just smashed 1 sea urchin in front of my eyes, mixed it with vinegar sauce and put a little pile of roe on my hand. Eat! And I did :)
Also Sashimi or Kinilaw - mix of raw fish in a special sauce was real nice!



4. Grilled seafood!



5. Brownies and donuts in most unexpected places (like, street market on the photo) - true paradise for a proper brownie lover like me ;) Manila International airport`s local departure hall had just too many cafeterias selling all kinds of tasty sweets!!!

PHILIPPINES - fiesta is in the air!!!

First impression
...this is how I had imagined South America could feel like...very promising welcome message in the airport at 1 am "We go the extra smile"....fiesta still going on at 4am...little children patiently hanging out with their parents in the bar...music all around...feeling relaxed...really few "organized" tourists...even real few backpackers..

Philippines is a happy place for happy people!

Interesting history....impressive Spanish heritage...very Christian...language that sounds almost like Spanish...fiesta...smiles...singing.... And they have also taken the best USA has to offer: brownies ;) ..and everyone speaks English (which makes travelling so easy!)!

Filipino Language is also fun...as they mix English into Filipino language (which sounds a bit like Spanish with a considerable amount of Spanish loan words)....so sentences like: "Pero you better..." are very common...and it`s fun to listen how English words pop up during local conversations!


2 week adventure route:
Manila -> Cagayan de Oro (on Mindanao island) -> Camiguin island -> Bohol island -> Panglao island -> Manila






Top 10 experiences:

1. Snorkeling for the first time off Balicasag island...under water world is amazing!!! (no underwater camera for now, so just some blue sea-stars photographed from the boat)



2. Perfect beaches: White island, Virgin island and a dreamy beach on Pangalao island




3. Floods & showers! We managed to be soaked wet on numerous occasions and experienced flood twice!





4. Always singing Philippinos :) ...and the coolest airport experience -> 2h concert waiting for the plane in a tiny waiting room in Tagbilaran airport on Bohol island.



5. "LOST" feeling of the volcanic Camiguin island referred to as the Philippines’ “Garden of Eden.”




6. Cock fights - real bloody national sport!




7. Visiting cute tiny Tarsiers in the Tarsier sanctuary - tribute to an endangered species!




8. 2 Legendary boat rides.
1. First time in my life saw dolphins in the open sea from the ferry going to Camiguin island - quite many of them....so amazing that didn`t take my eyes of them to look for photo-camera!!! :)
2. Wavy boat ride from Camiguin island to Bohol island that I will never forget! I was broadening my horizon & feeding fish for almost 2 hours...and was happy to step foot on the firm ground...



9. Jeepneys phenomenon!!! Probably the most fun public transportation invented!




10. Chocolate hills...natural Herhey`s kisses :)



To be continued... ;)

Competition time or 2 weeks of talent search!

In the middle of January I managed to get a better idea of Chinese public education system and to get that X-factor or Idol show judge feeling ;), cause as a member of English competition jury I was visiting schools of Rizhao in search of true English speaking (+ singing, reciting, tongue twisting, dancing, playing musical instrument) talent :)

Number of schools visited in 2 weeks: 12 schools
Number of students listened to in 2 weeks: 690 students!!!
Number of photos taken with students: many :)

TOP 10 songs heard again and again in different schools:
1) Emilia "Big world" ... more than 30 times - seriously!!!!
2) "10 little Indians"... primary school hit :) (English learning song)
3) Taylor swift : "Back to December" and other songs..
4) songs of Westlife...many times :)
5) "Yesterday once more" by Carpenters...where do they get these ideas?! (everyone seems to know this one here!!!)
6) Michael learns to rock “Take me to you heart”
7) Justin Bieber “ Baby” (first time heard Bieber songs during this competition)
8) "Nothing`s gonna change my love for you"...and again - where do kids get these ideas?!!
9) “God is a girl”... around 10 times :))
10) "Amazing Grace"!!!

Here`s how it went..




in different schools of Rizhao





Also part of my job for the last two weeks: posing for photos with students and school management and EATING :)) Most of the directors of the schools we went to wanted to invite "the grand jury" for lunch or dinner... and trust me it`s not an easy job when as a foreign guest you are kindly encouraged (and expected) to try all the dishes (usually we had 13-20 different dishes during such a round table meal)


And to finish...some cool stuff I heard during the competitions (that made me laugh out loud ;)

"We are all high this afternoon"

"My first name is “ HUI” , it means I can do everything" (HUI does mean “to be able to do smth” in Chinese, but for Russian speakers this sentence is sooooo MUCH MORE ;)

Now that the best students are selected we are getting ready for the Semi-finals and Finals in March!!! More fun to come :)