Well, I'm back. And yes, I did have a 'philippin' wonderful time' (just rolled my eyes then realised the effect of that is lost in a blog). I thought I'd comprise a short list of things that I experienced for the first time ever. So I did and here they are...1) I rode a banana boat
Note the expression on my face in this photo. Not particularly thrilled. Although once it started it was actually awesome! Would definitely recommend it. Unfortunately I couldn't see a thing due to the saltwater getting sprayed in my eyes the whole time... I wouldn't advise wearing contact lenses for this activity, it wasn't one of my finer moments.
2) I discovered my forte for sandcastle making
Now this beautiful creation was one of my finer moments...
Ok, so we ambushed the local children who had really made it and posed for the camera. Still, it looks pretty impressive!
3) I went snorkelling
Now, this was possibly the coolest thing I did the whole holiday. I'd never been before, and the second we were dropped into the coral reef area and I put my face in the water there were literally thousands of fish right in front of my face! (It scared the hell out of me actually, but I got used to it). It was amazing, everywhere you turned there were millions of brightly coloured fish of all shapes and sizes, dipping in and out of the coral. At one point I shouted to the others 'There are real Finding Nemo fish!' to which the boatman replied, in a bored, rather patronising tone 'Yes, they are called clown fish'. I knew that. We then all proceeded to search for Dory but figured she was lost somewhere on the other side of the ocean.
4) Life endangering situation 1: Nearly getting crushed by a coach
In the Philippines, tricycles are a common method of getting around (basically a motorbike with a sidecar attached to it, they're pretty cool to ride in). However, in the Philippines there are also no traffic regulations whatsoever. People drive where they want, when they want... no lane discipline, attention to traffic lights/signs, nothing. Which, as you can imagine, is pretty terrifying. On one occasion we were in a tricycle with a crazy driver who decided we would cut up a coach on the inside as it was turning a corner. Tiny tricycle, Huge coach. I squealed in terror and the driver swerved to safety and had the cheek to beep the coach!
5) Life endangering situation 2: Exploding car
My Uncle Jonathan has a brand new people carrier. One day, we were leaving the basement car park of a shopping mall when we realised the car couldn't quite make it up the steep slope to the exit (there were 9 of us in the car and a LOT of shopping). We tried doing a 'run up' but still no success. On the fourth try, there was a loud bang, the car started running back downhill and smoke was appearing out of the engine. We all jumped out the car and ran as fast as we could away from it... turns out something had caught fire under the bonnet! We caused such a scene, the security guys had the fire extinguishers out and there was a massive crowd around the entrance. Not to mention we had completely blocked the only exit to the car park so nobody else could get out. As a result I've developed a slight phobia of hills, every time I go up one in a car I hold my breath in case the car explodes...
All in all, it was an unforgettable holiday... it was really cool to see all my filipino relatives (some of whom I hadn't seen since I was 16!) and there were so many amazing things we saw and did that I haven't got time to mention on here. If you get the opportunity, go there!
