First trip outside Hong Kong! (Macau doesn't count). As most of my Facebook friends may already know, last weekend, myself and about 10 other exchange students ventured to Cebu City in the center of the Philippine Islands. Our flight left very late Thursday night and by the time we arrived in Cebu about 3 hours later, it was 4am. With little sleep (Daniel of course managed to sleep on the plane) we piled into a transport van and made our way to the resort on Mactan Island. Arriving that early, we knew we wouldn't be able to check in until much later in the day but the hotel staff was extremely accommodating and let us leave our bags with the doormen while we relaxed in the outdoor restaurant. We watched the sunrise over resort and ate a buffet breakfast until it was sunny enough to go to the beach (which was right outside the back of the hotel).
When lunch rolled around, a group of us who had napped on the beach ventured outside of the hotel for some food. it was definitely jarring to go from the beautiful enclosed resort to the destitution of the streets immediately outside. We saw many different animals on the way to town: chickens, cows, goats, lizards and a ton of dogs. The people we encountered, either walking by us or even in their motorcycle/car crossovers were extremely polite. Everyone said "Hi" or acknowledged us and not even in the hopes of getting money. Little girls would follow us and when we stopped to eat lunch a Korean restaurant, they gathered outside and waited for us to finish eating so they could talk to us. So sweet!
That night our group went out for some authentic Filipino food and live music in celebration of a student's birthday. We attempted to go to a club later in the evening but since most of the males in our group violated a dress code of 'no shorts' we were swiftly rejected and headed home. One thing I must note about the traffic in Cebu: there are no rules. Taking a cab to the city was certainly an experience with the driver craftily swerving past cars and crossing the median line to do it. There aren't many true cars in Cebu and since most use tuk tuk (open bus) or motor transportation, cars yield for no one and it doesn't matter because there is no prevalent law enforcement to push adherence.
The next day began early with a trip that Daniel and another student, Lisa, planned. At 10am our entire group boarded a mid-sized boat for a day of island hopping and snorkeling. The first stop was to the town where the crew waded to the shore to get lunch and snorkeling gear. At the next island, we dropped off the two female crew members who waded to shore with the food to begin making our lunch. After that, we stopped near an island to snorkel. I was hesitant at first mainly because I didn't think there would be anything to see. Granted the water was pretty clear but I never imagined there would be as much wild-life as I saw. There were Nemo look-a-likes, bright blue starfish, swollen puffer fish, and schools of others. It was definitely an experience I can now check off my bucket list: snorkeling in the Philippines! We headed back to the island after snorkeling for a true "home-cooked" meal of barbecue pork, whole fish, fresh mango, rice and bananas. It was AMAZING and better than a lot of the food that I have had here in Hong Kong.
When lunch ended, we cruised around some more and headed back to freshen up for the night. The last day we were there, it ended up raining so we ventured to the nearest mall which was actually one of the most modern things around. It had 3 floors, 1 department store and maybe 30 others. Definitely the smallest/cutest I've ever been in. Everything there was ridiculously inexpensive (compared both to the U.S. and HK) and Ali and I got mani/pedis for approximately $2.31 USD (I know, it sounds unbelievable but it's true). We left the mall with enough time to get to the airport and head back home to Hong Kong.
Even though it was only a weekend, I certainly got a lot out of my time there. Our accommodations couldn't have been better and even the weather turned out to be in our favor when it really counted. Going through the city opened my eyes not only to the deep-rooted poverty but also the sincerity of the people we encountered. To my surprise, more people spoke English there than in Hong Kong and it was very easy to communicate and appreciate what everyone was doing for us.
If you have a Facebook account be sure to check the complete photo album there. I couldn't post all of them to this page!
The next day began early with a trip that Daniel and another student, Lisa, planned. At 10am our entire group boarded a mid-sized boat for a day of island hopping and snorkeling. The first stop was to the town where the crew waded to the shore to get lunch and snorkeling gear. At the next island, we dropped off the two female crew members who waded to shore with the food to begin making our lunch. After that, we stopped near an island to snorkel. I was hesitant at first mainly because I didn't think there would be anything to see. Granted the water was pretty clear but I never imagined there would be as much wild-life as I saw. There were Nemo look-a-likes, bright blue starfish, swollen puffer fish, and schools of others. It was definitely an experience I can now check off my bucket list: snorkeling in the Philippines! We headed back to the island after snorkeling for a true "home-cooked" meal of barbecue pork, whole fish, fresh mango, rice and bananas. It was AMAZING and better than a lot of the food that I have had here in Hong Kong.
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