Visit with my brother then on to Portals of Manila

Phillip and I spent a very nice five days in Bareto, Philippines, visiting my brother, Burt, and his wife, Connie. Burt is eight years older than me and is my half-brother.  He calls me "little sister" and refers to our sister, Margo, as "baby sister." That description explains the writing on the birthday cake that Burt and Connie bought.  My birthday is in less than a week, and they started my celebration early. 

Another photo that shows how much shorter Connie is than Burt. She fusses at Burt in a loving way and they get along very well. She takes great care of him.

One day during our visit, Burt and Connie walked to our hotel to join us for lunch at the hotel's restaurant/bar, on the patio between our room and the beach. We all ate some tasty chicken curry and enjoyed the overcast, not-so-hot day!

The last two days of our time in Bareto, rain bands from a tropical storm that moved north of Luzon (the large island we were on) passed over us. We had occasional but not constant rain, so we would wait for a dry time to walk to Burt's house or back to our hotel room.

During our last evening, we left Burt and Connie's while it was not raining; however, enough rain had already fallen that their street flooded during our visit. Connie said that construction on the beach side of their road had really messed up the drainage. She had plastic pants with feet that she gave us to wear to wade thru the flooded street. It was standing water, not flowing water, so we wore the pants. Phillip's pair worked well, but I did get wet feet. My sandals were still wet to pack the next morning, but I had plastic bags for wet items. 

Phillip wearing blue rain pants, walking 
in the flooded street

During our drive to Manila on Thursday, we were in rain for about 30 minutes, then the driver drove south enough for us to be out of it. We are in the BGC area of Manila, the most modern and fanciest area of town. We're in a serviced apartment on the 19th floor of a 35-floor apartment building and have a washer/dryer combo unit and a small kitchen. It's a great way to end our travels as we have things to see in BGC but also are comfortable when we return "home." 

kitchen in our apartment

I noted "portals" in the title of this blog. The first portal, and it is called a portal, is at the beginning of BGC High Street. High Street is a wide pedestrian walkway lined with shops and restaurants and is full of public art and landscaping. The portal is connected to five other portals around the world and broadcasts and receives live video streams to and from them, changing the feed location every three minutes.  I remember seeing a portal before. Looking at the list of cities with portals, it was probably in Dublin, Ireland. 

We could only stand and wave to people in Europe (I think this particular feed image was from England) for a few minutes, so we moved on down High Street. And we came to a large dragon's head.... It was a huge display advertising HBO's "House of the Dragon" show. People took turns taking photos in front of it. 

We saw an interesting water sculpture that I really liked. Phillip called it a wet rock with legs. 

Today, we found another portal. I noted earlier that BGC was modern and fancy. It is nothing like regular Manila. BGC has no jeepneys, motorcycle taxis or street vendor stalls. BGC is expensive compared to regular Manila, so its service workers don't live or eat here. There are buildings and walls to separate BGC from the rest of Manila. If they don't come in via the major roads, how do the workers get here? Phillip saw the answer on a vlogger's post and we checked it out. There is an almost hidden walkway called Butas, which translates to "hole" in English. This is the wall that covers the walkway entrance.

There's about a 12-foot opening in the wall, a portal, with a walkway that turns 180 degrees from the sidewalk we just walked on. 

The walkway runs directly along the other side of the patterned wall for about 40 feet, then makes a right turn to this, the Manila that is not BGC. 

This is what is immediately on the other side of the patterned wall, a totally different Manila, the one with street vendors and motorcycle taxis and worker housing. And cheaper prices! We bought pandasal (a Filipino cheese-filled breakfast roll) for 5 pesos each (8 cents US) here from a street vendor and a container of roasted peanuts for 40 pesos that would have been over 250 pesos in a BGC grocery store. It was raining and a Saturday morning, so not all the food vendors were working. We walked back thru the portal and continued our exploration of BGC. 

Electric scooters for rent are parked around BGC. We passed this cluster, but one scooter was already in use as a bed. Stray cats are neutered, fed, and microchipped by an organization that takes care of them here, according to signs in the area. 

Phillip and I went into a mall for a few minutes of air conditioning and came across a Suzuki media event. Suzuki was unveiling a new 150cc maxi scooter, the Burgman 15. 

Dancers put on a performance on stage before the Japanese Suzuki executive uncovered the new motorcycle. 

Phillip checked out the Burgman 15 after the ceremony was over. It's a good size for the Philippines, had plenty of storage compartments, and was reasonably priced here at 165,000 pesos (about $2700). It would cost much more if sold in the US. We walked away without buying one and came back to our room until later because the sun is out and it is hot outside now. 

The Philippines: the first and last country of this adventure

Phillip and I are in the Philippines, the country in which we began this trip. Although we refer to our current location as Subic Bay, we are actually about 15 km from the former US Navy base and its surrounding city. People have heard of Subic Bay, but no one has heard of Barretto or Baloy Beach. This is our fourth stop in the Philippines. We spent a few days in Manila in April to start this adventure before heading on to seven countries. We flew from Hanoi to Cebu last week. We visited Cebu before, but only for one night in 2014. This time, we stayed for three nights and had some Filipino classic food for our meals and snacks. We've eaten the traditional Filipino dessert, Halo-Halo several times. The purple color is from ube, a sweet root vegetable that is processed into ice cream and desserts. Those are corn flakes on top for a bit of crunch.

Phillip ordered sinigang, a sour pork and vegetable soup. I enjoyed it more than he did, although he did like it. Lots of veggies in broth.

We both liked the pork sisig and have eaten it several times. It reminded me of a pork hash without potatoes. A fried egg is served on top, but the waiter had already stirred the egg in when I took this picture. 

We ate pork sisig at our Clark hotel also, and I snapped a picture before the egg was stirred in. This restaurant added sliced peppers, spicy but not nearly as hot as Thai peppers. 

In Cebu, our hotel was in an area called "IT Park." IT Park is home to huge office buildings filled with call centers. If you call a major corporation, there's a good chance that your call may be routed to a worker in one of these buildings. Lots and lots of 20-somethings, male and female, all who speak English well, coming and going from these buildings. 

Other than walking around IT Park and noticing the hundreds of coffee shops (to fuel the workers), we went to only one tourist location, a spot called TOPS. It is an overlook about 30 minutes outside the city. Our hotel was just around the corner from the bus station that had a dedicated shuttle to TOPS. For 200 pesos each ($3.29), we got a round-trip shuttle ride and entrance into TOPS. 

entrance to TOPS on the top of the mountain

We could never have walked to TOPS, not that it was far, but the very steep road took us up the side of a mountain. At the top, we did have really nice views. 

The main viewing level was wide with clear views of Cebu. The facility had an even higher level that we went up, although the city view from there was basically the same as from the main level.

From the upper level, we did have a nice view of the mountains on the side and rear of TOPs.

For our final Cebu photo, I give you this guy. He was painted on the underside of a set of metal stairs. We walked under the stairs to find shade to finish our Halo-Halo (the first photo in this blog post) and noticed him.

We flew from Cebu to Clark on Thursday, spending two nights at Clark. Clark is a city, like Subic, that owes its existence to the US military, in Clark's case, the Air Force. Clark Air Base was closed in 1991-2 following disputes with local leaders and the eruption of nearby Mount Pinatubo. Phillip and I know the history of Clark Air Base and Mount Pinatubo because we visited the Clark Museum during our stay.

The two floors of the Clark Museum, about 1/2 mile from our hotel, held an eclectic array of exhibits. They jumped from indigenous people, to birds, to geology, to Clark Air Base history, to Mount Pinatubo to local artists with no transition from one topic to another. One local artist showcased in the exhibits used twisted copper wire in their artwork. It was fascinatingly beautiful and had it been for sale, I might have tried to fit a piece in my suitcase.

Since this was near a military base, the museum had a canon exhibit between it and the former Clark AFB parade grounds.

Visiting the museum wasn't the only thing we did at Clark. Our hotel was part of a 3-hotel complex, anchored by a casino! The casino had the same slots machines that we see on cruise ships. We visited the hotel casino both evenings we were there. I broke even with my slot betting. We won't talk about how lucky (or not lucky) Phillip was in the casino. 

I arranged for a car and driver for the 3-hour drive to take us to the next hotel, the Wild Orchid Beach Resort, just a few hundred yards from my brother's house in the town of Barretto. Although we have seen some ants, we are happy with our room which is about 30 feet from the beach. 

We spend parts of each day at Burt and Connie's house, an easy walk on the same street as our hotel. We do have to walk about 2 km to the market. One day, after Connie and I walked to the market, we rode back with our purchases in the regular local transportation, a motorcycle tricycle taxi. 

my view from the motorcycle taxi

Yesterday, we went with Burt and Connie when they went to play pool. Burt has been told by his doctors to get some walking in each day. Connie can get him out to play pool, so it is a routine for them. It was about a 5-minute walk to the hotel/bar/pool hall, but the outing did ensure that Burt got his movement in by walking and playing. 

Phillip and I don't play, so we watched Connie and Burt. Burt won, but he has such a reach advantage over Connie that I don't think she could ever win against him! Phillip was happy to get a halo-halo while we were at the pool hall. 

We walked back along the beach just as the sun was setting, so here's a final picture, Baloy Beach at sunset. The sand is not white, but it is lighter in color than Galveston sand. 

 

Traveling again, back to SE Asia

Time for more travel! Phillip and I are in the Philippines, the first stop on our 2-1/2-month adventure back to Southeast Asia. We will visit seven countries, two of which, Brunei and Malaysia, will be our first time to see. We were on the island of Bali when we visited Indonesia during 2023. This time, we will be on Java. Our favorites, Hoi An and Hanoi, Vietnam, and Chiang Mai Thailand are also on the itinerary. 

Phillip on the flight to Manila

We left DFW Airport on Wednesday, April 15, flying to San Franscisco then changing planes and continuing on to Manila, almost 19 hours of flight time. We are in the Makati neighborhood of Manila, home of shopping malls and parks and parks within shopping malls.

statues in a park in the middle of a shopping mall

Makati has a more developed street infrastructure than most other parts Manila, with pedestrian overpasses and underpasses at the major intersections.

escalator back to street level from a pedestrian underpass

ceiling mural in pedestrian walkway

not all the escalators were operational! 

Weekend markets and festivals are quite popular here. We walked to the Salcedo Weekend Market. We were still full from our hotel's breakfast, so we didn't buy any of the vendor meals, but I did get some fresh jackfruit to eat later. 

vendor stalls at Salcedo Market

Two blocks from the market, we can across a pet festival at Ayala Triangle Park (Ayala is the largest chain of malls in Manila). Rows of vendors selling pet products and treats. People brought their dogs to this festival. 

pet festival

These activities during our first days have been low key because we've been overcoming the jet lag. Manila time is 13 hours ahead of DFW time, so our bodies had to make about a 180 degree change in sleep time. Tomorrow, we fly to Brunei for a 3-night stay. It is a small country, so just one stop there before we move on to Indonesia. 

Return Home and Final Thoughts

We made it safely back to DFW after a grueling flight that started when we got up at 2:15 am Monday morning and ended at 11:15 pm Monday night when we arrived home. That doesn’t sound too bad, but figure that our start and end times were not in the same time zone, but had a 12 hour difference. Our bodies were awake from what to them was 2:15 am Monday morning to 11:15 am Tuesday morning. We missed a night of sleep after having only gotten about five hours of sleep Sunday night. We had a two hour flight from Manila to Hong Kong, then a five hour layover there. We were flying Cathay Pacific Airlines; however, a company called DragonAir had the neatest looking paint job, red dragons on the tail section. I can’t tell you what Hong Kong looks like because the airport was almost fogged in. About half the departing planes were delayed. Fortunately, ours was not one of them. If you ever travel thru the Hong Kong Airport, bring your own snacks. $4 for a 500 ml bottle of water, over $60 for a small breakfast for the three of us – coffee (one cup of brewed, nothing fancy) was $5. The airport did have free internet kiosks scattered around. Phillip and I used them to check our emails and the weather forecasts. Our plane left Hong Kong on time and we then endured the 13 hour flight to Los Angeles. Mom was pretty tired by the time we were almost there, so Phillip asked the flight attendants about a wheelchair for her and they were able to call ahead and have one. We were glad they could arrange it, as she would have had difficulty with the LAX customs line and long walks up and down ramps to get to our next boarding location. As it was, the wheelchair came with a staff person who took us to the special lines. Mom doesn’t use a wheelchair at all here, but even she admitted that Phillip’s idea for her to have one then was the correct way to go. At 91, she needed this particular perk at this time. We had another 5 hour layover in LAX. When we got to DFW, we very happy to see my brother-in-law, Terry, almost as soon as we made our way to the baggage area and sat Mom down in a chair.

Our Philippines trip is now over and it was great. Mom took her film and had it processed yesterday, so I have copies of her pictures. While she was at Burt’s, he and Linn had a party for the family members with birthdays in March (I think there were 5 of them). Linn had it catered, complete with a roasted hog and huge birthday cake. Burt said that Mom was dancing at the party, and I believe him. The party was on the beach near his house. Linn and I went there to pick up shells for a game board I bought called Sungka. I saw it at our hotel in Puerto Princessa and want to learn how to play it. Sounds like Internet search time for the directions and hopefully a video.

Phillip and I will return to the Philippines in a future travel year. We enjoyed our adventures and appreciate the education system of the country that teaches English in school. That is a legacy left from when the Philippines was part of the United States, a territory like Guam and Puerto Rico still are today.  The clear blue water with coral reefs teeming with fish rival that of Thailand. The volcanic rock composition clearly visible in some of the smaller islands is fascinating. To think that eons ago, volcanoes in the ocean spewed lava to form the islands, then time changed the volcanic rock into soil in which plants can grow is a nature lesson at its basic. Regarding food, the Philippines comes up a little short. Although we enjoyed the chicken and pork adobo, we found the food to be rather bland for such a tropical climate. Thailand and Ecuador had better tasting native dishes. To be fair, we never tried the balot – and that could have been great. I doubt it, but maybe. Phillip and I agree that the mangos of the Philippines are the best in the world. We had never bought them because they are smaller than the ones we buy, but the taste is stronger and fruitier. And a well-blended mango shake is unrivaled to provide relief from the heat. The people of the Philippines are friendly and welcoming. They easily engage in conversation, especially if you ask what they think of the Chinese. (China is trying to claim some of the islands, even though the disputed islands are over a thousand miles from the China coast and within Philippine’s recognized border.) The Philippines is composed of over 7000 islands. Considering the island-hopping tours and our overnight stays, we’ve seen about fourteen of them. Plenty more to visit! So, to quote General McArthur, “I came through and I shall return!”

Our time on the island of Samar

Our three days on Samar included a lot of visiting with my brother, Burt, his wife Linn, and family; shopping in Calbayog; and attending a cockfight. On Friday, Burt, Phillip, Mom, and I went into Calbayog, the town of 147,000 about 8 miles north of Burt’s small town of Santa Margerite. I took Mom to the beauty shop to get her hair washed. She decided on a haircut as well. So, for 120 pesos, Mom had a haircut, shampoo, and blow dry. Less than $3 and the haircut was perfect. Because of the sun, Mom kept her hat on, so I don’t have a picture of it. While we were waiting for Burt to conduct some business at a bank, I couldn’t resist the nearby street food vendor. (I’ve yet to get sick from street vendor food, as I only buy from one that is swarmed with locals). Pancakes made in a rounded-bottom muffin tin-looking cooker. The vendor cooked them, them flipped one on top of a second so you end up with tall pancake. Tasty, with a sweet corn flavor, it needed no syrup.

Burt and Linn don’t have a vehicle, so all our traveling on Samar was by motorcycle taxi or on foot. This cityscape of Calbayog shows the motorcycle taxis, bicycles, and pedestrians that were more common than cars. Although she had a little trouble getting out of one or two, Mom rode the motorcycle taxis without complaint. I usually rode in the back passenger compartment where I had a great position to get pictures as we passed items of interest. We frequently saw tarps covered with rice along the side of the road, the rice drying in the sun. Burt said that although it dries quicker there, the rice will end up with small stones that you then have to pick out before you bag it or cook it. The person he buys rice from dries it away from the road, so no rocks in their rice!

I’ve posted a picture of Burt, now time for one of Linn. She is so sweet, and so happy that we came to visit with Mom. Linn knows everybody in their area and is related to about half the people. She enlisted one of her relatives whenever we needed anything. A ride to town after dark? Her nephew Elmer has his own motorcycle taxi, so she sent for him. Mom needed a pedicure? Her cousin does that. She always had some relative with whatever skill or resource was needed.  Linn always had food or drinks for us, making a coconut drink one afternoon, a mango drink another. Linn didn’t go with us Saturday afternoon to the cockfight. The local arena is just about 500 feet from Burt’s house. The main activity of a cock fight isn’t the roosters, it is the betting. Phillip and I had front row seats, at rooster-level to the raised, caged arena. The “cristos” who took the bets were behind us, screaming during the betting period. These two roosters haven’t fought yet, but are being evaluated by the betters. It was an interesting cultural event, not as bloody or gruesome as I had thought. It’s not something I’d do, or probably even go see again, but I saw the agility, strength, and single-mindedness of some of those roosters, and they were a sight to behold. Almost every motorcycle taxi in the area was parked on the road for the fights, but they didn’t all belong to Linn’s nephews!

This morning, we boarded a Philippines Air flight in Calbayog and flew to Manila. Not even a set of roll-up stairs was needed for this plane. The ride, only an hour long, was basically one of those up then down flights. We are at the Miramar Hotel, the same one we stayed in when we arrived to the Philippines. Lots of hot water and Albano, the talkative, friendly security officer/doorman. We get up tomorrow at 2:30 am to catch the first leg of our flight home. Manila to Hong Kong, Hong Kong to LAX, LAX to DFW.