Relaxing at Breakneck Speed

The year is winding down this December yet there is so much going on!!  It’s been a non-stop ride here.  After a 2-day trip to the island of Bohol, where I plan to relocate to in two months.. I had just gotten my bearings when I then took off for a 2-day trip to Bogo to check up on the piggies.  We suffered some casualties and lost a few Momma Piggies although I have a strong suspicion a neighbor poisoned them out of jealous spite.  I bought a hybrid Momma piggy though.  Right about now there are about 35 mini-piggies almost ready for market.  

The trip was fun, took a bus this time.  I was able to get from downtown Cebu all the way to the Northern end of the island (about 2 hours away) for 120 pesos.. that’s about $2.75 USD.   Once there in Bogo, I took a motor-tricycle to the province where the farm is.  After spending the day there, around evening got the same tricycle to meet me out there and take me to a small, but very nice resort located along the north-western coast of Cebu in a town called San Remigio.

The resort is called Warren’s Beach Resort and is definitely what you’d call a cool ‘getaway’ place.  You take a winding road through the vegetation and find this wonderful little resort tucked along the coast with the waves lapping just beyond the pool and on site restaurant.  When I arrived it was already dark so at first I was just happy to toss my backpack into my room and fall into the bed for a few minutes before going to the restaurant for some dinner.  I got a ‘studio’ type room for 1,200 Pesos (~$29 USD) but they have nicer rooms for about 20% more.  Mine had a television (watched ‘Inception’ again that night, cool movie) and a bathroom (here called a CR/comfort-room).  Even though the tap water in the Philippines is fairly warm the shower had a tankless water-heater for hot showers.  That was a luxury in itself as I haven’t used hot water since I got here.  (I just make up for it with antibacterial soap)  The bed I got was really sagging in the middle but I slept fantastic since I hadn’t slept on a real mattress in a long, long time.  My bed in my studio is made of bamboo with a thin mat on it.  Sounds like torture but I find it really good for my back and sleep great.   So sleeping on a thick mattress seemed kinda alien to me at first.  If you find yourself checking in here someday, they will show you the rooms ahead of time and you can check out the bed first to see if it’s to your liking.

The restaurant is very nice.  There’s a view of the ocean from any table and both an outdoor patio with tables as well as a courtyard lined with palm trees as you look out over the ocean.  And the food is both good AND reasonable.  Dinner was about 275 pesos (roughly $6 USD) for a big spaghetti dinner.  Big portions, took some back to the room in fact.  I could have gotten dinner for about $4 though, a nice variety of American dinners and lunches are available.  Breakfast was great.. two eggs, toast, corned beef, rice and a drink for about $3.70 USD.  I was there during December so I almost had the place to myself other than maybe three other guests, one of whom was an American dude from my old stomping grounds of San Diego/Temecula CA areas.  He lives there full-time for $250/month (USD) which includes his studio, utilities and WiFi plus full use of the billiards, on-site beach and swimming pool.

After a relaxing morning in the beach there after breakfast I got on a bus back for Cebu.  I got off the bus in Mandaue and my original plan was to catch a taxi from there to home.  I live in Basak, which is on the next island over (Mactan) but connected by a bridge.  From where I got off the bus to my place is about 3.5 miles.  It was about 5pm and the heat of the day had subsided.  With no taxis immediately available due to the Christmas rush, I decided to just start walking.  After a while, I saw the bridge in the distance and, just like Forrest Gump I just “kept on goin‘”.  I crossed the bridge walking, something I’ve been wanting to do since I got here anyway and.. kept on walking.  Along the way I passed this abandoned, unfinished building that I’ve been curious about since I saw it from a taxi in passing months ago.  What should have been an underground garage was now just an urban cave with who knows how many critters and crack-heads living in it’s dark recesses.  Naturally, I was drawn to it now that I was walking beside it.

I ventured down the ramp and peered in.  Even after my eyes adjusted it was still pitch-black for the most part just ten feet in.  I stepped just a bit further in and it became obvious to me that whoever/whatever was in there had a better view of me than I did of them so I backed out.  Not a good time to be without a flashlight.. or common sense.  As I made my way up the ramp and to the street a local came up to me and said, “My friend!.. I can get you up to the 3rd floor.. you take some pictures!”  I looked up at the massive, unfinished slabs of cement with zero railing and figured.. probably not a good scenario. “Nah.. I got a lot more walking to do.”, I told the guy and walked off to continue my trek home.

I told myself I’d get a taxi in Lapu Lapu but before I knew it, Tamiya was within sight so.. I kept on walking.  Then it started to rain.  Hard.   I knew there was a JolliBee nearby so I ducked into there mostly to wait out the rain and use the CR.  I had bottled water in my 20 pound backpack and I was due for a pit-stop.  Since I was there I got a combo meal and once the rain stopped I got to walking again.  Within a few minutes it was now night-time.  Off in the distance I could see the bustle of traffic near the mall next to my studio.  After 2 hours of walking I finally made it home, slipped off my backpack and took a much needed shower.

The very next morning I was back in town to meet up with a new friend of mine, Mae.  We’d met up at the SM Mall in Cebu a few days prior and now she was stopping by for a visit to see my place and have some lunch.  After lunch and hanging out a while we decided to go to the SM Mall in Cebu to see, “The Hobbit” in 3-D.  We went to a Shakey’s, something of a treat for both of us since I’d not had Shakey’s pizza in a few years.  ‘Yellow Cab‘ pizza here in the Philippines is a fairly good chain as well as S’Barros for pizza.  But most of what they call ‘pizza‘ around here is frozen/microwaved fare that just doesn’t cut it for me.  So getting a crispy, thick-crust pizza with ham ‘n pineapple made for a pleasant meal with some good company.

Today I awoke early and after a bit of cooking, Kristine and I took my POS motor-scooter for a spin here on the property.  Had such a fun time, and I didn’t crash it this time.  I think I might be ready for 3rd gear next time around but I’ll have to take it out on the open road on a slow traffic day down by the cemetery.  Today I will attempt to catch up on a few projects and then tomorrow morning I’ll be meeting up with Mae to catch a fast-boat to Bohol.  I’ll be spending Christmas with her family there, so that should be fun.  As long as I’m there I’m going to find a cheap room for a few days and Mae is willing to show me around the east side of the island so I can get some beach-time in.  A day after I return from that I am once again on a bus to a province in Cebu where I’ll be spending New Year’s Eve with Delia’s family.  They do a big fiesta thing every year and invited me to be a part of it.

After New Year’s I’ll have about 10 days to take it easy and then comes Sinulog!  Sinulog is THE big event held once a year in Cebu and draws massive crowds from all over the globe. I checked it out online last year and am looking forward to seeing it up close and in the mix this year now that I am here.  After that I hope to begin taking some of my belongings to Bohol for the move in mid-February and then relocate (semi) permanently until the winds of providence take me elsewhere.  There are more photos on the way including some video from my motorbike learning curve so.. stay tuned.

Henry V.
www.lifebeyondthesea.com