A New Adventure Begins!

The time has come for a new adventure for Phillip and Pat. It’s been three years since our last extended international travel (except for numerous cruises). We leave Tuesday for the Philippines, a three week quick tour of some exotic locales and a visit with my half-brother, Burt, and his family. This trip has been an idea for the past eighteen months and it is now all planned. Why the Philippines? Two reasons: To take my mother to see her son and because it’s a great location for visiting, snorkeling, and eating fresh fruit.

My mom has not seen Burt since 1990 and I haven’t seen him since 1984. Some of you hadn’t even been born (can we say “Robin”?) the last time I saw him. He retired out of the Navy many years ago and settled in the Philippines with his Filipino wife, Lin. My dad never wanted to travel to the Philippines, as he had been there during WW II as a sailor and had no desire to return. After Dad passed away in June of 2012, I had the thought that Phillip and I could take Mom during our 2014 travel year. Phillip was on board with the idea and Mom’s health has stayed strong. Her daily trips to the gym have certainly helped that. She will turn 91 the day she arrives on Burt’s island, Samar. Mom of course jumped at the idea and is excited beyond words as our travel date approaches.

The Philippines consists of over 7000 islands; we will visit 4 major islands, starting with the big one that Manila is on. We fly into Manila (via Tokyo) and I send Mom on another flight the next day to Burt. Phillip and I will go to Palawan, then Cebu, and on to Samar to visit Burt and pick up Mom for our return to Manila and then back to the USA. Our route is counter-clockwise on the map. I had initially planned a different route that included Tacloban, but Typhoon Yolanda made that route impossible. Although the map shows four direction changes, we will actually make six. On Palawan, we will travel to the north end of the island to El Nido for a few days, then back to the middle for a few days in Puerto Princessa. On Cebu, we will fly into the east coast of the island, but will travel to the west coast to stay a few days in Moalboal.

As in our previous travels, we may miss our family. I know that this time, however, we will miss one family member in particular, Zelda. We recued her from the Humane Society over two years ago and she has been our constant companion at the ranch and in town. We delight in her antics (chasing reflections on the floor, whining whenever she sees cows because she so much wants to chase them, herding a five gallon bucket around the yard) and she has become a good watch dog (usually, although she has slept thru Chris’ entry via the front door).  I know that Leslie and Rock will take good care of her and that if she and Daisy (Leslie’s dog) develop any issues, that her alternate home at Chris and Kathryn’s with Riggs will be fine.

I hope to post regular entries to this blog, regaling you with tales of the big city of Manila, the beautiful beaches of El Nido, island hopping tours, the Underground River, and food experiences. I will say up front that, unlike in Ecuador where we ate the national exotic dish, cuy (roasted guinea pig), I have no plans to eat the Filipino equivalent dish, balut. Balut is a boiled duck egg containing a partially developed embryo with feathers. That’s not to say I won’t, but I have no plans to!

We leave in four days, so I guess it’s time for me to start packing. I know my mom has already begun!