Another Series of Firsts

Off to the other islands
Originally uploaded by wershwie

My first time in Iloilo. First time in Guimaras. First time to have a vacation with my brother when we actually flew together. First time I brought a book to a trip and actually finished reading it.

I love seeing more and more of the Philippines. Thanks to Lakbay TV, I've basically seen most of it FOR FREE! ;P And since 2005, it's been my goal to send myself to all the other spots I hadn't been to every year. One province/city/town/island at a time. Maybe I should leave little flaglets with "LESLIE WAS HERE" in each place I visit next, eh? ;P

Like I said in my flickr set description, we were in the land of the best mangoes in the country as well as the spot with mostly dramatic sunsets. Only we were there at the wrong time. Ahahaha! So, yeah, no mangoes AT ALL coz they weren't in season, and no sunrise or sunset photos as it kept raining during each day's bookends. Beh... I'm thankful enough that we got enough sun to go island-hopping, snorkeling, and sunbathing in those 4 days.




The last day was mainly for doing the church hop-about around the towns of Iloilo AND the search for THE ORIGINAL batchoy ;) Was blessed with good weather for good photos. I've set foot, once again, on one of the country's UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Basically there are five (5) on the list:

1. Historic town of Vigan (yup, been there twice)
2. Rice Terraces of the Cordilleras
3. Puerto Princesa Subterranean River (again, been there twice)
4. Tubbataha Reef Marine Park
5. Baroque Churches of the Philippines (NOW I can say I've seen 'em all!)
- San Agustin Church, Intramuros
- Paoay Church, Ilocos Norte
- Nuestra Señora Church, Ilocos Sur
- Miag-ao Church, Iloilo

There were other really nice churches around Iloilo, and I was happy to photograph them.



Oh, and we did find the "ORIGINAL" batchoy place IN La Paz town, nonetheless ;)





All in all, I think it was a good trip. Yup, despite all the fully-clothed locals splashing about our beach and the irritating boombox showdown from each of the cottages of the day-trippers. Heck, it was all quite fun in spite of all those Koreans who brought along their own msg-rich instant noodle soups to their vacations! Haha...

I got to rest. I saw a new place. I ate local food. I took photos.

Yup, I think that was indeed a GOOD trip.

The Safari

MULTILINGUAL SAFARI

I knew I couldn't be anywhere near an elephant and NOT ride it, and since Koh Phangan actually had an elephant safari in Chaloklum town I had to make sure I'd get in on it. At first I thought it'd be possible to just head out to there on my own via public transportation and then get an elephant ride and an elephant ride alone. Eventually I realized that it wasn't gonna be easy NOR was it gonna be cheap to do it that way. I tried getting on a half-day tour, the one that bundles the elephant ride with snorkeling in Mae Haad Bay, but they said noone was booking the half-day tours. They did mention that the whole-day tour still had some slots available. It may have been a ploy to get more money out of me, but I'm glad I ended up booking a slot as it turned out to be one of the most pleasant experiences I have ever had in my life.


April 5
This was my last "real" day in Koh Phangan 'coz the next day was all about heading back to Bangkok. Was at the resort's restaurant by 8:15am, hoping to get a quick breakfast before my scheduled pick-up at 8:30. The ride came in a bit earlier than expected and my pancakes were running late (haha!), so I had to head out to a safari on an empty stomach. Had to run back to my bungalow to get my sneakers 'coz the tour guides said I'd definitely be better off with them as we go through the jungle. Finally hopped onto the jeep where 4 other guests were already seated. One girl smiled at me and I smiled back with a quick "hello." They started chatting in a different language and I didn't quite bother picking up what it was as I was deep in my thoughts about how the day would be like. All of a sudden, I felt a tap on my knee. Apparently, the guide has been talking to me and I hadn't been minding him. Hehehe... As expected, he'd been speaking to me in Thai. I apologized for not responding as I didn't understand anything he said. Had a quick chat about where I'm from, how long I've been in Koh Phangan, the usual stuff you get from small talk. Got to another resort to pick up the last members of our tour group. I asked where they're from. Hungary, they said. Then I turned to the other bunch and asked the same question. They all smiled and said, "Barcelona!" Haha... I was just too amused and eventually blurted out "aaah, español!"




"C'mon elephant!"
First stop was the elephant safari. I hadn't known we were there until I saw a couple of elephants crossing the road. That was the first time I saw an elephant outside the zoo, and my jaw just dropped at the sight! There's seriously something majestic about them... The elephants weren't outrageously big, but they were still very much larger than life. A smile was plastered on my face the entire time I was there. I tried to pay attention to whatever instructions were given us, though, 'coz the animals were seriously distracting me. Soon enough, I was already on my elephant, and we were heading up the hill.



The trip would only be 30 mins long, just enough time for the elephant to bring you up to the view spot to take pictures before heading back down the same trail. At certain points we had to stall 'coz the other elephants ahead of us still wouldn't make a move on. Each time we were free to go on I'd tap the elephant's head while saying, "c'mon, elephant!" Later on, my elephant's caretaker would also shout, "c'mon, elephant!" as my ride slowly trekked down the hill. Hahaha! ;P


Back down at the receiving area, we were allowed to play with the two "display" elephants - an elder and a baby. The baby elephant was real cute, making noises and raising his trunk as if to say thanks each time he's given a banana! Hehe... The elder elephant was real gracious and friendly, letting us pat him as much as we wanted.



To my surprise, we were given drinks by our guide. He said we could get as many drinks as we wanted during the trip. The elephant ride and the complimentary drinks were already enough to make me say the trip was well worth it, but the rest of the safari just gave more value for the money I let go of for the slot.


Back to my good old Lakbay TV days
Next on the list was the jungle trek. Okay, a jungle is a jungle is a jungle, so I was ready with my mosquito repellant, bottled water, and yes, my sneakers. What I wasn't ready for was the CLIMB.

Halfway up the mountain was a waterfall. Well, it was more like a spring amidst a dried up river than a waterfall 'coz it was the peak of summer and the rivers and waterfalls were definitely a bit dried up. Before long we headed straight up to the summit/viewing point. Just like my treks back when I was in Lakbay TV, I didn't notice that I was already at the top until the view opened up in front of me. The paths/trails leading up would always be covered with trees and plants. The summits would always have flat grass or huge, round rocks. When I got up there, I looked back down at the steep trail thinking I'd have to go through there on my way back down again. Hahahaha! For the first time, though, I didn't really care. I had climbed yet again, and it felt good. :)




To be continued...

"THE" Full Moon Party

Heading out to the APRIL 2 FMP
The party would be at the Sunrise Beach in Haad Rin, a 15min ride away from my part of the island. From the resort, I had to take a 5min walk to the main road where I would catch a songthaew to Haad Rin. I'd gone out at 7pm thinking I'd grab a bite in Haad Rin before jumping into the party, but ALL the songthaews passing along were already full of tourists heading out to the FMP. After half an hour, a private pick-up truck pulled over in front of me and asked if I was going to Haad Rin. When I said yes, he motioned me to climb up aboard the cab. I appreciated the lift, and when I walked towards the cab I saw two guys already drinking their beers, also getting a lift to Haad Rin. They were Norwegians - Morten and Andreas, both 20 years old and fresh off their university, taking a break before stepping into the world of employment.

We had a good chat during the ride and while finding our way to the beach party. We had stopped walking for a bit 'coz Andreas had to go to the loo, and while I waited with Morten, I was suddenly overwhelmed by the fact that everywhere I looked I could only see WHITE PEOPLE. Seriously! In the bars, on the motorbikes, walking on the street... WHITE. Blondes, brunettes, baldies... WHITE. Egad... If it weren't for the locals manning the stores and serving food in the restaurants, you really wouldn't think that was an Asian locale.

My head was moving up and down and left and right as I scoped everything around me - all the colorful stuff being sold in the stores, neon lights from the bars, tables that showcased buckets with your options for the night's poison, people walking around with snakes and other exotic animals... The only thing that made me realize that we were already on the beach was the sand's cushion to my straying feet. Oh, sweet lord... Haad Rin's got BORA SAND!!! WUHOO!



I have arrived
The feel of the sand prompted my wandering eyes to look out front and my jaw just dropped at the view - a clear night sky with the huge full moon shining down at the sea... Tables, chairs and rugs sprawled out on the beach for people to find their own spots... More carts were lined up selling booze... At the far side of the beach you'll find the neon lights that read "KOH PHANGAN" and the bars had their djs spinning on overdrive. Oh yeah... :)



The Norwegians and I got our drinks and settled on one of those rug set-ups. Chatted up a neighboring group - Aussies. There's Jack, Danny, Scott, and another Scott - a Canadian who'd also just met the dudes that evening. Jack was up and about most of the time and had finally come back to our "mat" to pull us all into the Cactus Bar 'coz "the girls are starting to dance!" Hahaha! Good thing he did, 'coz that's when the party actually started ;)


Time to paaaaaarteh!
Lugging around our own drinks, we started groovin' on the dance floor. I realized Cactus Bar was the hiphop station on Haad Rin. Perfect. ;) A few minutes in, we lost Canadian Scott and the Norwegians. Don't think they liked the dancing bit. Hehe... After another half an hour or so, the other Scott was nowhere to be found. Last time I saw him, though, he was chatting up a girl... So I guess he hooked up! Wuhoo! ;) Meantime, Danny, Jack and I just kept on making a mess on the dance floor. They were seriously fun to hang with! Two other blokes whose names I never got joined in and we sorta stuck together for the rest of the evening. At one point, all my dancing buddies were already half-naked! (Well, except Jack) HAHAHA!




We were passing around drinks and smokes, dancing with each other and basically with everybody else around us. Round about midnight I stepped out to meet with a couple of Filipino friends who'd crossed over from Koh Samui to check out the FMP. I thought it was busy when I got there, but that time I left the bar to meet them, the entire length of the beach was now PACKED with tourists. PACKED! It was quite a relief to be able to speak my native tongue again, not that speaking in English didn't come easy. My friends eventually decided to get a massage while waiting for their speedboat trip back to Koh Samui, so I headed back into the party. Got a new bucket to pass around, and I must say, somehow that particular bucket jump-started the alcohol's effect on me! Haha... The second wave of partying was C R A Z Y! People were more uninhibited, or should I say more drunk? Haha! There we all were - dancing, grinding, drinking, touching, kissing, smoking, shouting... Egad... That was SOME night! I'm surprised I still managed to get on the right taxi back to my resort. I remember feeling all too woozy at one point as Jack kept me on my feet. After a minute's breather, I decided to call it a night and head back to my bungalow.

Awesome night. I'm sure the aftermath was just as wild. ;)

The Journey To Koh Phangan

This was my first trip to Thailand, and since the time I got off from work would start on April 1, I thought I'd try and catch the April 2 Full Moon Party in Koh Phangan Island before checking out Bangkok.

I was traveling alone again, and somehow this trip felt more like a backpacking trip to me than my previous trip due to the open-endedness of my plans. I had only booked my flights and accommodation in Koh Phangan, the rest was up in the air.


Time starts now
I had spent the whole afternoon of April 1 with my weekend buddies - Joepi, Joyce, and Jun. Had our usual coffee fixes before getting dinner at Capriciosa in Greenbelt 3. Really good Italian food there! :) Then we all set for the airport where they left me with wishes for a great vacation.

I was at the NAIA Terminal 1 by 8pm. I thought I was early enough for my 10:45pm flight, and the line at my counter wasn't so bad. Alas, the service has once again proved to be a huge disappointment... The "roving departure tax podiums" that were abound the airport in my last trip were no longer existent. And so locals had to check in at the counters, go all the way to the other side of the airport to pay for the departure tax, and then go all the way back to the check in counters to show their receipts before claiming their boarding passes. It took me an entire hour before I had my boarding pass in hand. Of course, both the terminal fee and immigration lines were also added frustrations. I got to my boarding gate just in time for boarding - 10pm. What the heck...

Anyhoo, we finally got onboard, flew out to Bangkok, and landed at the Suvarnabhumi Airport by 1am Thailand time (2am Philippine time).


"Soo-wana-poohm"
The airport was all lit up and pretty that time we landed, and it was quite a walk from our exit gate to the immigration and baggage claim areas. I didn't mind much, though, as I soaked up the enormity of the place. Got through the immigration, got my bag, found the exit and headed towards the departure area to catch my connecting flight to Koh Samui.

Found my check in row and saw some other backpackers sprawled on the seats, seeming to be waiting for the same counters to open. My flight, the first flight to Koh Samui, wasn't leaving till 6am. Had a 5-hour layover, and the counters wouldn't open till 430am. Thought I'd try getting a shut-eye, too, so I took out my shawl-slash-blanket and set myself on the unoccupied half of the row of seats by the counter using my backpack as pillow. I swear, I was smiling to myself as I closed my eyes thinking that was seriously another mark of a true backpacker. Haha...



First set of buddies
Couldn't get much sleep, though, so I ended up just taking pics. Started chatting up the girl seated in front of me - Rachel. She's from Alberta, Canada and would be meeting up with her sister and her sister's friends at the Koh Samui airport before heading out to Koh Phangan. At that time, she was already traveling for about FORTY (40) hours! Alberta, Canada - Seattle, USA - Seoul, S. Korea - Bangkok, Thailand. Egad... I would think there'd have been a better route she could've taken.


Counters finally opened. Got our bags checked in. She had a bit of delay for reasons I dunno, so I went ahead and walked the loooooong walk to the boarding gate. Wonder of wonders, there was a LOUNGE right across the assigned gate... FOR ECONOMY PASSENGERS! EGAD!!! Now I was impressed! Comfortable seats, free reading materials, free internet terminals, free drinks and foodies! Omg... I seriously sat for a minute thinking how BEHIND we are in the airline industry! I just had to take pictures! Haha! ;P



Met Ed, an English guy who was on his way to Koh Phangan, too. We discussed the ferry schedules and options in Koh Phangan a bit. He'd flown in straight from the UK, traveling for about 24hrs already. When I moved to the boarding gate, he came over to go through my list of ferry rides again. See, I always have my own version of a guidebook printed out for my trips with info I get from the internet. After a few minutes, the other guy who was initially sleeping on the seats across us got up and started stretching. When Ed left to go to the loo, he'd started chatting me up asking about the ferries. Apparently, he was also off to Koh Phangan, and we were all planning on going to the Full Moon Party. He was Dan, also from England. Been traveling for around 9 months already, having gone to South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. Now he's on his Southeast Asia leg. Invited me to travel with him to Cambodia, actually, but I'd told him I didn't have enough time. He'd alternated attending university with working as an electrician and had saved enough money for his long-haul trip. (Imagine that? It's unfathomable for Filipinos to save that much money by being an electrician in the Philippines. Heck, even I could only afford short trips in SOUTHEAST ASIA! Bleagh...) We had agreed to travel together with Ed all the way to our resorts in Koh Phangan. Since we were all seated separately in the plane, we decided to just meet up by the carousels at the Koh Samui airport. Got to sneak some photos of the sunrise as we took off from the airport. Quite a sight.


Got to Koh Samui by 7am. While waiting for our bags, Dan and Ed realized that they were batchmates from the same university in London. HAHA! I told them they'd traveled halfway around the world only to see each other again, and then eventually meeting up with common friends who are already in Haad Rin, Koh Pangan. Hehe... Amazing. :)

At the airport we learned that there were counters that sold ferry tickets that had a shuttle service from the airport to the pier bundled with them. All three of us got on the same ride - shuttle to the Bo Phut/Big Buddha pier in Koh Samui and then the Seatran ferry to the Thong Sala pier in Koh Phangan. We stayed at the deck for the fresh breeze and had a fun chat about our own travel stories for the entire hour's travel to the island.


At Thong Sala, we thought we could all hop in a taxi and share the cost as the boys would drop me off at my resort first before heading off to theirs. Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way in Koh Phangan. Their taxis are either airconditioned vans or redesigned pick-up trucks called "songthaews" to accommodate passengers on benches welded on each side of the cab. The boys had to get on the white vans as they were headed straight to Haad Rin while I had to hop on a songthaew for the Ban Kai/Ban Tai area. I said goodbye to the boys as we looked forward to seeing each other at the party that evening.



Touchdown
I arrived at MY PHANGAN RESORT at 10am, Thailand time. Got myself a Singha (Thai lager beer) and ordered pad thai (Thai noodles) for brunch while waiting for my bungalow to be cleaned up. A bungalow of my own with an ensuite toilet and bath plus my very own hammock at a beachfront resort. Roughly 12hrs after I left Philippine soil, I was finally in my happy place. Oh yes...

Got my bungalow a bit before noon. Settled in, showered, and stretched out on the bed before falling asleep. Needed to make sure I had enough energy for the unknown adventure for that evening's Full Moon Party.

Koh Phangan

Found in southern Thailand, 1 hour away by ferry from Koh Samui, Koh Phangan is an island most famous for it's monthly Full Moon Parties and mesmerizing sunsets. This is where I would spend the bulk of my vacation, having decided to catch the April 2 FMP, catch some sun, and maybe even ride an elephant. :)

I'ma break down my Koh Phangan trip into different entries. Each day is worth its own post, is why. :)

Quiapo

King of Screw
Originally uploaded by wershwie.

That sign was from my side trip to Quiapo after our shoot last Saturday with my boss and the executive producer to go get some photography stuff. We got off at the end of the Avenida strip and made our way to Hidalgo street on foot. For the most part, I felt like I was seeing a new place for the first time. I've been to Quiapo several times before, but every time was for a shoot. This trip, however short, was very enriching for me. I actually felt the same delight I had while touring the local towns of Singapore and Malaysia.

The booming sounds from the different stores along Avenida triggered it for me. Somehow, everything slowed down. Or at the very least, all voices got drowned out. I was no longer paying attention to whatever my boss or the exec producer were saying. I just kept walking, looking, watching, listening, smelling, smiling. :)

Finally got to photograph our version of hawker stalls using my camphone. Would've loved to try out some of the goodies, had I had more time.


It was also amusing to see several ladies offering manicure and pedicure services right by the benches along the "park." Glad they were more than happy to smile for my lens. :)


Heading towards the church, the streets were lined with colorful karts of EVERYTHING - potions, handyman tools, fruits and vegetables, amulets, etc.


By the church were swarms of flower vendors, candle vendors, and then rows and rows of fortune tellers. The place was bustling with colors and life - something not a lot of locals are keen to experience. I wanted to stay and just keep taking pictures, but I didn't want to hold back my companions. We were there to go to the photography places after all.

We did our business, walked back to the van and headed out to our next agendas.

I had thought about doing a Quiapo trip by myself, yes. Just hadn't had the time to head out that way yet. Now I know I really should.