DECLAIMER
Philippines the trip of a lifetime
FIRST lets establish one thing
The ASPCA does not exist there , never will and personally I'm not that much of an animal lover.
Dogs and cats are Rodents ,no better than rats, Cockfighting is legal , a big sport next to basketball and conducted in back alleys weekdays with major events on weekends.
Everything that you see is subject to be eaten for food.
Under these ground rules I will begin my story.
Please feel free to ask any questions about anything.
Poverty and Income
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| Work at 4am in the morning |
There is complete harmony in a nation of complete poverty and the very rich, each one needs the other to survive.
You are responsible for your actions here in what you say and what you do, a good attitude and patience is a must. There is no such thins a insurance a social welfare system or legal system, as i said you are responsible for your actions or your family will suffer.
The people are very friendly enjoy live cherish what little they have and are among the hardest working culture that I have ever been exposed to. (and I have been around much of the world).
Its simple, No work No pay and this includes Saturdays and Sundays. The average salary for a person working is $7.00 dollars a day or about 350 peso.
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| 8000 peso |
On this table is 8000 peso , about $200.00 dollars American.
This is more money than the average worker makes an entire year.
Communication
We in the US live on the Internet, Thinking this was the case throughout the entire trip, i prepped the cellphones and any other device for communication that was available. It came immediately apparent that this is going to be a problem when I boarded the Airplane in Burlington VT and had no communication anymore. In NY JFK if you want Internet you have to pay for it and get sucked into a six month contract with some carrier that you will never use again, so no Internet. Transportation from one terminal to the other was quite easy after you pay $10.00 for 2 smart carts that can be used throughout the terminals. However on the way back ,we discovered the trains were not running so all 5 pieces of luggage as well as hand carry had to be loaded onto a buss for transportation to terminal 5, in the cold with improper clothing. with the train everything is indoor so no environment to deal with . With the bus this is not the case .
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| Decent meals,lots of drinks |
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| The sun never sets over the North Pole |
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| 40,000 ft and -55deg f |
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| The only place my camera mount would stick, but then the touch screen would not work |
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| Tracking the trip was fun |
14hrs in one spot is difficult for even the best of us. The accommodations are comfortable with plenty of legroom, decent meals,lots of movies and you can get around and walk as you with, There is a bar on board, duty free purchase . Pleasant service , something i found throughout the entire trip and something we in the US really have to learn, We are so self centered with a ME attitude, We forget about the people around us in our daily contact.This was very apparent the minute we landed in Inchon Korea.
Inchon Korea. Courtesy and Greeting
From this point forward throughout the entire trip I was greeted as SIR and Joy as MAM by anyone you came in contact with. The airport terminal is spotless, the employees are all very young and in uniform to serve you.
Departing the international flight and a connection meant another security check. Not as annoying as the US, much more pleasant . Just don't buy expensive water because you will just have to throw it into the waste basket. Here is were the entire family group met up throughout the entire US I estimate about 35 family members all bound for Cebu Philippines on the last 4 hr leg of the flight. It turned out to be quite a party flight seeing relatives that you have not seen in quite some time.
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| Nice shops |
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| High end merchandise |
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| Open bar |
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| A 58,700 bill |
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| Hamburger and coke delivered to your table on a porcelain planter |
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| Your menue |
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| more shopping |
Exhausted and a flight delay I slept solid on a tile floor on gate 28, Here is were the party kicked into high gear. Everyone that is going to this event has to meet here for the connecting flight, about 30 relatives, from NJ NY VT Chicago Tennessee and Idaho Toronto Canada, Soal, Korea. MY god let the party begin.This was supposed to be a 7:30 departure that didn't board until 21:00 for a 4 hour flight in at midnight.On this short Int flight The air con was minimal during a 2 hour ground delay on the taxi way for of all things deicing, shit Its still cold outside.Joy fell asleep, woke up and asked how much longer damn we haven't even left yet ,go back to sleep,.
Lost FYI again.
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| A hamburger purchase |
We have now traveled half way around the world from BTV at 06:00 on Wed and arrived in Cebu 24:00 Saturday morning , passed through the international date line ,Lost Friday altogether and Never saw night because we flew over the north pole at 40000 feet , quite a site to see the aurora borialis at that height.After our departure out of Korea about 15 min into the flight my seat monitor crapped out. I need some sleep.
The Philippines A third world nation, My home for the next 3 weeks.
As an American you cant hide among these people, first you are about 1 foot taller than everyone there, overweight, and no tan. The best you can do is accept that you are a tourist, get out the camera, and buy a big hat so you can be seen. The people love to have their picture taken.
I was fortunate to have with me a member of my family ,JASON who became my shadow and my best friend.
He stayed with us all the time while there , Slept on the living room floor ,arranged for laundry and transportation or anything I wanted. Joy also had a personal person that stuck with her throughout the entire trip. This personal assistance allowed me to go places that no average tourist would ever dare to go by themselves.
For Joy it was not too much of a problem but still it was very comforting to know that the word was out in the community of Car Car ,I was a family member visiting from the US and off limits to any and all questionable activity unless personally requested something through Jason (I did During the cockfight),.
Everyone warned me about the possibility of getting jumped and taken advantage of, this was not the case ever during my time there. I felt very comfortable and was allowed to go into places by myself that you would not think of. The word was out, I was a guest and was greeted everywhere i went by my first name OVA as the visitor from the US of the Bargayo family.
Seems the name has clout in town.
Everything is word of mouth, there is no postal service at all, no street signs to guide you, no GPS to find things, no Internet, unless on a new bus to Cebu , an Internet cafe, 20 peso for 1 hr, or private home so moving information and legal documents is done by carrier . Seems everyone knows someone else, or is a cousin of the family. What a beautiful way to live.
This is a CATHOLIC nation, no separation of church and state. Very important to remember
Our accommodations
Welcome to Cebu Immigration was very slow but that seems to be the standard here people are in no hurry and quite pleasant customs was non existent but one piece of luggage did get torn open but nothing lost.
Philippine customs and immigration was simple and strait forward but we have been in transit now over 20 hrs and even a small delay gets to be a bit testy. Its 12 midnight and it took another 2 hrs to get through these two governmental entities. Nothing goes with any kind of urgency here.
Its now 3am and we finally get outside into some warm and wet climate. We say hello to all the relatives that came to greet us along with a big welcome sign. Then off to our first nights stay.
Saturday Jan 11
We stayed at "St Gregory the Great" a Retirement home for Priests and Nuns . This arrangement was bade by one of our other travelers and was quite pleasant, This is also were we had our family photo shoot and a big party afterword a few days later, just before the wedding. I'm surprised that we could even do this in that type of accommodation. A bit conservative for this group but after last nights party .It was a good reprieve. Just like a hotel but with services thrown in. Anyway we got a real good rest in before continuing on the the private residents of Dindo the groom and stepping things up a notch in the party category, red horse, gin beam, Jack Daniels a good basketball game and Gatorade shots, all night long good food. Warm weather 78+ deg and light rain Sure beats snow Cell Phones wont work and were turned off for fear of roaming charges. Again No FYI. At this point I started hand writing everything.
Our first house,
The wrong one
This was a real nice accommodations, but the wrong house. Seems there was a miss communication between my two brother in-laws and both contracted for a different home for us to stay in while there. The other home was only 2 houses further down. We stayed in the upper right condo for 2 days before discovering this was the wrong place. Of course we had to make amends to the landlord payed him for the two days and then moved to our new accommodations. End of problem right , Wrong. A group of young adults, i think seven, were staying at my Mother in laws home. Its like a halfway house there right now. Funds are tight but they chose that over our accommodations . We could have taken them all in but my mother in law was so happy she had a full house of young adults you could not deny that pleasure.
Their plan was to go to Cebu , separate from the rest of the group and go zip lining ,which they did. Before leaving showers and cleanup was in order , thinking that the wrong home was the right home ,they just crashed in ,made themselves at home .Got cleaned up and left. The landlord never knew. I'm sure that this got out into the community and restitution had to be made by my brothers to the landlord for the mix up. Could you imaging doing this in the US you would be in Jail. Here a small compensation and thank you for your service is fine. Like I said earlier "You are responsible for your actions"
Sunday church service and first buffet complements of Love and Jim along with James
One of the interesting things about a food service of any kind is that all are welcome ,so for the poor who have limited resources the was a smorgasbord that everyone could attend.
From this point the family split up to visit all of their respective relatives and reunited at Eppys surprise birthday party. OH There is another formal dinner in between in a private club in Cebu
Medical Issues
Yes we had them ,mostly the runs due to water and in one case Tim got real sick after a beer party.
We had with us two medical doctors and many nurses so we were all in good hands for anything that would and did come along.
Another party]
Some reflection,
The less you have here the happier you are ,that seems to be the culture here. As you will experience in the photos The people here will never change to conform to our way of living ,not for many generations.
So on the communication dilemma, we purchased some cheep card phones with a month of service. I'm not using mine because i did get Joys phone to work.
For you smokers in the USA , cigarettes are sold by street vendors by individual cigarettes ,they are called sticks 2 peso each to anyone any age.
. I think I'm still typing on Saturday so the afternoon was spent at the grooms home , gated of course with servants. Just ask and you shall receive. Even the laundry is picked up no mater where we are it disappears and comes back clean pressed and clean.
Bummer, I'm on a public access system and it times out every 30 min I have to start my long entry all over again
With Sunday service over and good food eaten ,we set off to see the town in a van provided us by family members.
Transportation is not easy. Ill talk about that a bit later.
Bahay-na-Tisa
http://traveleronfoot.wordpress.com/2010/04/27/bahay-na-tisa-of-carcar/
The pictures don't do this house justice It is really beautiful inside. The only drawback I saw was that the first floor was flooded with about 3 inches of water due to the heavy amount of rain . This was not a problem, some shipping pallets were laid down ,whatever was down there got picked up off the floor and all is well.
The City of Car Car is a beautiful Gem in the rough.
The city of Carcar in Cebu is known to many as “The Heritage Town of Cebu
The Heritage City of Cebu. Carcar City is home to various Spanish to American period structures. The Carcar plaza alone hosts several Heritage structures, the Church of St. Catherine of Alexandria dominates the area.
Within the complex various structures stand. Walking towards Sta. Catalina street one will surely be astonished with the quaint houses and their distinctive architectural details.
This city is poor compared to Cebu but for all its disadvantages it is vibrant and very active. The people are just wonderful and friendly. Everyone is just trying to make a living anyway they can, right down to the smallest child.
I really enjoyed my street photos . They tell a story all their own.
The children of the street will sell you candles at 2 peso for offerings
The candles are then placed on this screen and burnt off. The wax melts down on to a pan below and is then recycled into new candles to be sold again.
May vendors just sleep in their transportation
This is the local fire truck, the only one. If there is a fire like we had several years ago there is no hope.
The town roundabout is a historical landmark and off limits to all. This is highly respected , not trashed and kept clean by the residents
The streets Of Car Car
DRIVING is interesting , there are no road rules ,no traffic lite on the weekend they are turned off but no accidents or dented fenders. You are responsible for your actions and words. This is the proper way to live. So lets turn off all the tragic lite in NY on weekends and see how well we do.
As an American visitor it is accepted that you are rich and wealthy. Possession here is a status symbol but all is fully shared.
The streets Of Car Car
The streets Of Car Car Its raining and wet but warm.
Today is Sunday ,The day of the dead.
Seems the party is at the cemetery.
January is festival month throughout Cebu
"The "senyor" in the greeting refers, of course, to the Santo Niño, the Holy Child. The complete title is actually Señor Santo Niño de Cebu. "Señor" here is being used as a title of respect."
I will be the first to admit this for me was a bit unusual, but to the residents of this community its a festive time for them.
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| Welcome to the Dead End Store |
This is just a fun establishment and in no way reflects the activities in real live
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| Local business men |
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| For some reason i could not rotate this photo |
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| The dog is not a pet ,its competing for food with the child |
Whats real is this
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| No mater the weather everyone waits to make 20 peso for a ride to somewhere |
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| Children earn pesos to clean the crypts |
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| The entrance |
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| Just waiting in the rain for people like me |
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| Transportation after a funeral |
Sunday funerals are done by foot ,everyone walks. When its over they all jump onto whatever can take them back into town
The tarp in the background had water in it. As the truck drove under it someone pushed the tarp up and everyone got wet. The result was great laughter for all
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| rodent |
This little girl Just caught my fancy
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| For the love of a child |
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| The crips |
There is not much space for the dead here. Each family has a plot so as each generation passes on the previous person is moved out ,placed in a earn and displayed within the family plot and the next generation takes their place.
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| Street people |
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| The emotion in their faces under the living conditions cant be expressed here in the US |
The Bargayo visit for a Sunday afternoon
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| Lunch |
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| Scavenger |
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| A small payoff |
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| The ride |
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| Sister and Brother, who needs to make amends |
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| One very happy Mother |
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| Not quite the dead end |
So on to the next adventure. One of the nice things about this trip is I never know what is going to happen next. My only request was that we not sit around and do nothing. Thank you all for granting me that.
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| Bench seats |
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| Our ride |
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| This group is returning from a funeral, its raining heavy |
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| The streets |
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| Housing |
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| These three items saved my butt for electronics. I gave the small meter to Jason when i was done with it |
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| This is for Tim Who absolutely hates spiders |
_________________________________________________________________________________
Our next big adventure was a family photo session done by a professional photographer back at
St Gregory the Great With a wonderful buffet meal that evening.
Thank you Mio for making that happen for all of us.
Just a note to my family and friends. I've been taking pictures since 1980 this makes me somewhat of a semi pro who screws up a lot. You will notice I have no formal photos of this event, as well as the wedding event. This is because i have a standing rule for myself that I not interfere in any way with the photographer who is being paid to do his/her job, its hard enough as it is.
So please if you have formal photos I would love to have access to them for this project.
Thanks
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Its Monday The day of the wedding
Its makeup tome and a small bachelor session At the http://www.radissonblu.com/
.Radisson Blue hotel Cebu
Its only 10 am and we are already drinking . This is going to be a fun day.
Again the photography was done professionally at the wedding and reception. Wait until you see that.
Ive got some side shots
First sorry for the blue temperature hue My photo screw up I'm not going to do color correction in Photo shop until later. Besides at this point we were already half in the bag and its not even noon yet.
So Two of the things needed doing before the wedding was a proper shirt and a haircut.
Lets talk about the shirt that just never seemed to stay in one place.
Off we go Saturday morning to buy me a shirt at the Mall in Cebu . Going to the mall here is just not the same as at home . Winding streets heavy traffic and when you finally get there
Security. and My shirt
Security in the parking lot before you park there is a mirror inspection and trunk inspection even before you park your car.
A security check at the main entrance of the mall through a metal detector. For all this it was not intrusive at all very cursory inspections even with my backpack. I kind of like this procedure. It was done by young people who were very happy to have the job. This process employs many people and is quite effective. They are dressed in a clean tailored white shits ,name tag formal badge a weapons belt , empty holster such as we use in the US but no weapon of any kind. There is a first aid pack attached .
You will find them at all entrances as well as the bottom ant tops of escalators. always willing to help anyone in need.
The second type of security revolves around Banks and ATM machines here you have a guard assigned with a shotgun. For me this was a bit intimidating at first but as time went on it was just part of the overall decor and nice to know that you can go to any ATM and not be concerned about what is behind you.
I got to likening their security policy. Its proper and employs many people.
Buying a shirt, or for that matter any purchase is a pleasure,
Entering a store in the mall , (past a security guard of course) you are greeted by several sales representatives in a formal uniform who always address you as MAM or SIR . Asks what you are looking for and then stays with you throughout the purchase of the item. For me the shirt was a problem because i am a large person. Our sales rep went out of the way to get the right size for us from the back ,had me try it on right there on the floor and then hand carried it for us to the checkout were he then took care of the cash transaction packaging of the shirt. All by the same person . Well done Thank you
We in the US could learn a lot about customer service from these people. Again there are so many ,at least 4 per section always straitening and fixing something, its a wonderful way to get max employment for the economy.
So off we go with the shirt. Through front door security no problem a check of the sales slip which is attached to the outside , and all is fine.
Well the next day comes around, Where is the shirt for the wedding, gone, we don't know where . I suspect we left it in the vehicle that was used for the trip and forgot it. Bummer the shirt was actually quite expensive by Philippine standards and it just took a walk.
Off to the store we go again the next day just before the wedding to go through the hole process again for another shirt .Done finished all is fine .I liked the shirt, used it, but i don't own it.
Seems it went out with the laundry to be cleaned several days later and never came back.
I do look good in it at the wedding.
A note when shopping here , there is no return policy or refund policy. You buy it ,you own it, no matter what. Another item we should adopt here .Maybe we will think more about how we spend our hard earned cash.
The haircut
Joy said I need a haircut, thinking is was just one of those US style wham bam thanks a lot cuts i said no. Dindo said, Uwe come with me ,you will like it. He was right. When you are in a foreign country even a simple haircut can be an experience.
As I have said, leave your American attitude and ideals at home. They do not belong in the Philippines.
On Monday I went out and got a Filipino haircut. He puts a US barber to shame. First relax in a nice chair, your barber speaks both English and Tagalog. First a hot towel, then a haircut with scissors and a comb, another hot towel treatment, a shave, but a dry shave with very sharp straight razor one section at a time. This is followed up with another hot towel, a second shave, this time wet, when done, another hot towel, powdered down and then some really nice aftershave. Now a hot towel behind neck then a full facial massage. Total cost 200 peso, or $8 US, for the haircut that took almost one hour. I gave the barber at 300 peso tip 12 bucks, because this was the best shave and haircut ever.
The wedding was great and very beautiful. I cant wait to see the photos.
Well nothing ever goes right with this group without some sort of calamity, even at the church.
Dindo has this real cool souped up VW Bug that we used to cruse the neighborhood on Saturday
This was to be his ride to and from the church
Nicely polished all spiffy it arrives with a full accompaniment , Out he goes and the bug is valet parked just a bit down from the entrance.
The wedding is over ,we come out only to find that they have been locked out of the bug. Seems someone locked all the doors and left the key inside. Well in less than a minute there are guys around with coat hangers trying to help with a full course of breaking and entry into the car.
Seems They did get in. I couldn't hang around because my ride to the reception was leaving .
The monkey in the tour bus
During this day we had available to us one of those 20 passenger tour buses to get everyone around. Air conditioned ,clean white, unmarked, When you drive through the streets of Cebu in one of these it is definitely an attention grabber . Who are these people anyway, American tourists with cameras what else.
Never the less the people were very friendly and not at all disenfranchised about our mode of transportation. We were the monkeys in the bus.
I was with Joy in a private car just ahead of the other group heading for the prescription at the
located on the island of Lapu Lapu just south of the airport.
At this point I would like to get a bit into the people that have to live here. I took these photos while stuck in tragic
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| Gas is very expensive |
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| A gated private home |
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| Get Lost dog |
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| School children going home |
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| School children going home |
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| Your local store |
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| Standard transportation |
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| The streets |
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| The streets |
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| The streets |
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| This man stood there for about 3 minutes while stuck in traffic |
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| The streets |
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| Still the same guy |
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| School girl on her way home |
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| The streets |
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| The family |
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| Housing |
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| Play time |
from the private car just in front of the tour bus. The trip took over an hour for less than 2 miles
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| most work is done in front of the house |
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| Schools is out |
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| the lumber mill |
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| The streets |
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| delivery |
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| housing |
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| Basketball a national sport |
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| Government revitalization program |
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| Quality transportation |
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| shopping |
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| a Koran restaurant Don't ask whats on the menu |
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| Stepping through a ditch left by a work crew while widening the street |
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| I thought this was interesting totally out of place |
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| living |
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| I liked this old gate |
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| Total and complete poverty right next to a very expensive resort |
Welcome to the Blue Lagoon Were the reception was held and we stayed for two knights , full meals and all amenities.
Whats interesting is that at this resort you can tip your service providers. The one we went after for our one day guest pass complements of the local Mayor and coronal ,if you tipped the employee he or she could loose their job. Something they all highly cherish.
Here is the only time I got to take some quality photos. I got up at 0400 in the morning took the tripod and went out to the lagoon to take these photos . By 0700 i was done and went to breakfast.
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| our room |
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| the bar |
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| high end photos |
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| high end photos |
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| My favorite taken at about 0430am 15 sec exposure |
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| high end photos |
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| high end photos |
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| Not different exposure different times |
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high end photos
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| high end photos |
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| high end photos |
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| high end photos |
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| looking for starfish |
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| the hermit crab would not come out |
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| merge the next three pics 1 |
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| 2 |
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| 3 |
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| breakfast |
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tide is out
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sea erchants
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| bill for the first day |
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| good food |
This was definitely 2 days of high end living.The two days are over and we take up an invitation to stay for a day pass at Plantation Bay also a nice high end playground were everyone had a blast.
What constantly comes back throughout the different locations that we visit is the quality and service that you receive no matter where you go.
Plantation Bay
http://plantationbay.com/
This is the resort were no tipping is allowed . We were the guest of the Local Mayor
We were served a wonderful lunch and while waiting we observed the proper way to set up a guest table. It takes 4 employees and a level.
test
We were guests for lunch
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| The work |
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| the level |
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| the table |
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| our waitress |
Plantation Bay was definitely a fun water park day the weather was great.Most of these pictures were overexposed so I spent the morning photo editing them.
The resort reserved a room for us all so we could get all get cleaned up for our next destination
A private club in Cebu for a semi formal dinner party complements of Arnald. We had the privilege of large private buss transportation from the plantation to the club. Here is the monkey in the buss adventure again We have been club jumping after the wedding for 3 days now so everyone is living out of their suitcase. All these had to go into the bus as well as the entire group. The club in Cebu would not allow us to stage all this luggage in their lobby, so what to do?Joy and I got the driver to take us to Zenidas home on the other side of town way up in the hills. I still don't know how this driver made it through those narrow streets in that large bus, but he did. All the luggage was dropped off, lots of it . We thanked him (properly) and off he went back to Plantation Bay. It was definitely a long day for him. Zenida then drove us to the second party. Another long day well passed midnight before all was over
These are some of the street pictures from Plantation Bay back across the bridge and into Cebu
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| School is out |
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| This is the school bus for those that can afford |
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| nothing is easy here |
This is the primary mode of transportation throughout the islands
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| A hole family |
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| Grain store |
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| I Think this was a welding shop |
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| Im not sure what is going on here |
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| food |
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| Construction |
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| Each person pays 20 peso the more the cheaper |
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| watermelon delivery |
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| bicycle repair station |
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| Look Joy TJ MAX |
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| moving commerce |
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| across the bay back into Cebu City |
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Recycled paper
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| Refrigeration in motion |
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| January sale |
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| Side streets are always interesting |
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| Phone service |
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| Street workers the polution is so strong this is how they work around it |
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| Sheetrock delivery |
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| recycling |
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| The only car accident i saw while there. Financial restitution will be made on the spot. There is no insurance. |
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| Delivery |
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police department
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| school is out |
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| school is out |
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| school is out |
Its common to see the entire family on one bicycle. I really don't know how they do it
Transportation is very simple and basic
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| streets |
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| streets |
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| Balot at first I thought this is how they vote |
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| streets the barber shop |
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| streets produce |
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| streets grains |
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| streets welding |
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| streets BB-q |
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| construction |
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| watermelon |
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| recycling |
This is the only car accident i saw the entire time there. restitution is made on the spot. There is no insurance
These vendors are selling memorial plates, but they are only samples. If you choose to buy one, you pick a style and pick it up the next day.
The key here is that the letters are removable and they put your plate together by stealing the letters off other ones in the cemetery to assemble your purchase. Eventually yours will get recycled also.
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| competition for food |
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| Street streamers for the fiesta this weekend |
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| bike shop |
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| A strip club Joy wouldn't let me go |
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| across the street from the club |
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| im not sure what the function of the ladder is |
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| this trash will be picked up by someone and reused. Its in the middle of the street. |
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| These two pictures stand out for me |
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| This is in downtown Cebu |
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| your electrical grid But everything works |
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| note security guard with no gun. This is common here. This seems to be the only street argument i saw in 2 weeks there |
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| everything is swept and cleaned up for recycle, even the dust in the street |
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| Our next party spot |
Zenys house Was our halfway house for the entire group no mater where each group went. If things got late,or the schedule had conflicts, someone was sick or not feeling well . This was the stop off place to recoup and reorganize.
Our new house in Car Car
Finally after almost one week we where into the house that was originally rented by us.
The place was owned by a very nice older lady who had an absolute eye for decor and design. The place was really beautiful and a pleasure to stay in throughout our visit Hot cold water 2 baths and lots of room to spread out and get comfortable. It was just on the other side of the old location right next to some bridge construction for widening of the road. The landlord said she would loose part of her front yard to the wider road. This seemed a bit sad but did not seem to bother here all that much.
The entire home was ours for seventeen days . Total cost about $320.00 dollars US
The flowers are in bloom
Well arranged
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| These are old railroad ties |
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| Mill stones |
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| coconut tree |
We settled in .The house was about 2 miles north of the town of Car Car and within walking or a quick ride in a Pedicabs to Joys moms house, his brothers or to town. A nice location but next to a bridge construction site and heavily traveled road. This was OK .I really got to observe the daily routine of the average person living around the bridge.
Joy went out the next morning into town for errands and I stayed behind. I set up a chair with my camera at the top of the steps ,just outside the gate and started to take pictures for about the next four hours.
The street is a beautiful place, the people are always smiling and the concept of hardship of any k
ind does not seem to be on their mind.
Transportation
Jeepneys
The jeep was a remnant from the World War II. Enterprising Filipinos saw the possibility of it being a mode of transportation and turned them into the new longer and colorful jeepneys that have become a Philippine icon. The most common mode of transport, jeepneys ply several routes around the country, especially those areas where bigger buses cannot serve. Jeepneys can be 10-seater or 14-seater. More than once the seats in the jeepneys are full of passengers. Still, always some new passenger will be added.
Sitting in a jeepney, your knees will unavoidable touch the knees of your neighbor. To get off at a particular location, you just tap your peso coin on the roof. The conductor will yell for the driver to stop. When you get out and eventually new passengers get in, one single word “Sigi” or Go of the conductor is enough for the driver to move on.
- Route travel can be seen on cardboards displayed on the jeepney’s windshield
- ‘BAYAD PO’ (BAYAD means fee or payment) – This is what you’ll say when you pay. If you are seating far from the driver, other passengers will pass your fee to the driver or fee collector (a person who usually sits in front).
- ‘PARA PO’ in Tagalog and Lugar lang in Visaya (PARA means to the side) – This is what you’ll say to the driver if you want the jeep to stop. It serves as a signal to the driver that you’re going to alight.
Remember:
- If you are not sure of the place you’re going, you can always tell the driver where he can drop you off. Tell him nicely the exact name of the place you’re going. Jeepney drivers know the routes very well and can help you with the directions.
- When inside the jeepney, it is important to be watchful of your things. Avoid using your cellphones, cameras, and other gadgets (especially expensive ones) that can catch the attention of snatchers/pick-pockets. They can be one of the passengers inside the jeepney or people in the street.
Pedicabs
Pedicab is a three wheeled bicycle with a covered rear seat for customers. Like a bicycle rickshaw, this form of transportation is powered by human pedals. This environment friendly type of transportation is very common in places with narrow streets
. This can be considered the silent version of tricycles, since bicycles are used, with a passenger cab attached to the side or in front.
As a driver, strong lower limbs and being healthy physically are very necessary. Driving pedicabs is one of toughest in the world. Pedicab drivers are exposed to the heat of the sun, dust, sweating a lot when it is a sunny day while wet and cold when heavy rain falls. Some call pedicabs as “padyak”, others call it “trikad” while in some areas in the country, they are called “tricycle”, “pot-pot”. This mode of transportation can carry one or three passengers at a time.
Tricycles
Most motorcycles in the Philippines are used for serving as a kind of taxi. Most known names for these means for transportation: Tricycles and motor-taxi’s both can be seen in many different forms and length. Tricycles in the Philippines resemble the auto rickshaws of India and the tuk-tuks of Thailand and other Asian countries, except that the cab is attached to the right side of the motorcycle instead of being in front or at the back.
Tricycles can be seen on the side streets and some subdivisions and normally used for short-distance travel. With the stronger horsepower of a motorcycle, the tricycles sometimes are hired to ferry people and merchandise from the market. Depending on the construction and discretion of the driver, the tricycle can ferry from 2 to about 7 people.
- If you are not sure of the place you’re going to, you can always tell the driver where he can drop you off. Tell him nicely the exact name of the place you’re going.
- You can ride tricycles together with other passengers, or you can ride it privately.
- You can also say ‘PARA PO’ if you want to get off.
- Tricycles are not allowed along highways like EDSA. but they do it anyway. There is no one to enforce this rule They will only bring you to short-distance travel-areas.
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| room for one more |
This is done rain or shine with no cover of any kind except maybe a plastic bag.
But then the weather is warm and a little rain never hurt anything.
Bridge Construction
I was fortunate enough to watch the construction site in action over several days while there.
The traffic flowed no mater what the situation There are no detours, cones equipment moves freely with the traffic and they worked on the project over the weekend .
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| The man in blue was the welder |
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| trafic keeps moving |
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| mixing concrete |
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| yes everyone works |
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| 30 kilo of rice |
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| yes its raining |
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| removing a mold plate from the concrete form |
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| mixing concrete |
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| pork to market |
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| it was about lunch and this person was given something to eat. No lunch break here |
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| water to market |
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| Welding with no mask no gloves and in shorts |
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| family walking home from shopping |
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| the children are beautiful |
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| team work |
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| happy |
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| they work in their bare feet |
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| Among all the hard times you find a high and tour bus back to Cebu |
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| a young woman adding water to the slurry |
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| the welder |
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| this young boy was waiting for a ride into town |
Some advice that was given to us was, don't drink the water
I couldn't quite understand why at first, but now I do.I was given this bottle of water that was purchased at the grocery store and I could actually remove the secure cap off the top refill and put the cap back on so that the seal got never got broken.
When you buy water in the Philippines make sure it's a brand that you can trust and don't buy water from the young people on the street. Especially with Chinese writing
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| 1 mile of drive-able highway |
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| Add caption |
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| The streets |
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| The streets |
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| The streets |
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| housing |
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