Days spent here: 14

Places visited: Puerto Princesa, El Nido, Manila

Average daily expenditures: $51.27 a day. I could’ve definitely spent a lot less, but I splurged on accommodation and food in El Nido. With no regrets!

Weather: HOT! Coming from an extremely cold Korean winter, the heat of the Philippines was a shock. But a good one. March is the dry season in Palawan and we experienced only sunshine the entire time we were there. The weather in Manila was similar in temperature, with a few scattered showers in the afternoon and evening.

Language: Tagalog and English are the official languages of the Philippines. Tagalog, officially called Filipino, an interesting language that due to the colonial past of the country, is made up of about 40% loan words from Spanish. The majority of the people I encountered spoke English extremely well which made traveling easy.

People: Everyone I encountered in the Philippines was very kind and seemed genuinely excited to have you visiting their country. I never had the feeling I was being truly taken advantage of because of being foreign, a feeling I like to have.

Transportation: Manila has a wide range of public transportation options, but due to our location we took mostly taxis which are extremely cheap. The starting fare is about US$1. Make sure the driver uses the meter. In the smaller cities the tricycle, a motorcycle with a sidecar attached, is the main mode of transportation. While you probably won’t get the same rate as locals, trikes are still a very cheap mode of transportation. Most rides I took cost no more than US$2 for two people, while I was able to score a 15 cent ride once when I was alone.

Getting between cities and islands takes slightly more effort: a ferry (some with not the greatest of safety records) or flight. Cebu Pacific and Air Phil Express both offer low cost flights around the country. Flights in the country generally seem to run around US$50.

Jeepneys, buses, and vans are used to get between cities on the same island. Jeepneys are the cheapest, and most local, but looked far from comfortable. We took a van from Puerto Princesa to El Nido, which was cramped but had aircon.

Accommodation: Outside of Manila it seems that guesthouses or bungalows are the most common option. In Puerto Princesa, it seemed that US$20 was a common price for a double room with aircon. El Nido has a variety of options, but like I said earlier, we splurged on a beachfront bungalow with aircon for US$50 a night. In El Nido the electricity only runs from 2pm-6am and you can expect a cold shower. Manila has a wider range of accommodation options in all price ranges. We stayed in a hostel for $15 a night per person. It is said that accommodation prices in the Philippines tend me run higher than other countries in southeast Asia.

Internet and Phone Service: Internet service in the Philippines is spotty at best. Restaurants and bars seemed to be the best bet for wifi in Palawan, but the speed was usually incredibly slow. In Manila it was slightly faster but still difficult at time to even connect to Gmail. I tried to get a SIM card for my iPhone when I arrived in Puerto Princesa but found that they had no SIM cards for smart phones, so if you want to go that route you might have better luck in a bigger city like Manila or Cebu.

Food: The Philippines have an interesting and varied cuisines owing to the mix of cultures in the country that the centuries of Spanish rule. There are some dishes that feel uniquely Asian, while others have a definite Spanish feel to them. Filipino food also varies greatly by region, different parts of the country even have different preparations of the same dish. All of this makes for interesting culinary travels! I highlighted some of my favorite dishes here, but if you want a condensed version of what you should seek out then look for adobo, sinigang, lechon, fresh seafood, and if you’re really adventurous, balut. I’m still sad I didn’t get to try it. Filipino food is generally inexpensive, which gives you no reason to not sample a bunch of dishes during your travels.

Nightlife and Alcohol: There is no shortage of nightlife options in the Philippines! Most of my time was spent at bars featuring the ever ubiquitous Filipino cover band. Fantastic covers of Adele, laid back acoustic sets, and interesting covers of Sexy Bitch, the Filipino cover band has you, ahem, covered in terms of entertainment for the evening. Beer is fairly inexpensive. San Miguel, the national beer of the Philippines, is the cheapest at around US$1.50, and their higher alcohol content (and my favorite) Red Horse is just slightly more at US$2.

Philippines Wrap Up is a post from: Farsickness

Binondo is a majority Chinese area in Manila, and is considered to be the world’s oldest Chinatown. 5% of Manila’s population is Chinese, called ‘Chinoy’, and their cuisine plays a major part in the way the people of the city eat.

From Binondo Church we walked to New Po Heng Lumpia House, a small restaurant located in the back courtyard of a old building. Seated on plastic chairs, Ivan told the group about one of the most famous Chinese foods in Manila, lumpia, or spring rolls. At New Po Heng we would try the most classic type: freshly rolled.

The lumpia were much larger than I expected, almost resembling a small, Chinese burrito and filled with 90% vegetables. Ivan gave us instructions on how to ready them for eating: a dab of hot sauce, a glob of a sweeter sauce, and a dusting of peanuts. The combination of sweet, hot, and the crunch of the fresh vegetables was fantastic and I had to keep reminding myself that there were still 3 more hours of eating left.

After lumpia, we made our way to Dong Bei Dumpling House. Although the majority of Chinese immigrants in Manila came from the southern Chinese province of Fujian, the dumplings of Dong Bei are northern Chinese cuisine.

Everything at Dong Bei is homemade and we were able to watch the employees roll out the wrappers and fill them before they were sent to the back to be boiled.

First, we tried jiao tse, a dumpling that looks similar to a potsticker. The jiao tse had three different types of fillings which gave them a slightly different appearance. The dumplings filled with chives were a vibrant green, those filled with celery and cabbage looked much more pale, and the ones with shrimp inside were slightly orange. Next up, we tried a Chinese stuffed pancake, similar to something I’d made in Taiwan, which is almost like a dumpling that is pressed flat.

Dipped in a sauce made of soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, and chili oil, the dumplings were delicious and fresh.

Though we were starting to feel ever more full, we continued on for merienda. A holdover from the Spanish colonial times, merienda is a snack between lunch and dinner. Being Chinatown, our first merienda treat was siu bao. Siu bao is a Chinese hot bun that is filled with pork and seven spices and then steamed. The taste was slightly sweet, different from other pork buns I’ve had.

Finally, it was time for the main course, lunch, at a second floor restaurant called Cafe Mezzanine. We were served salted rice, a type of white rice cooked with soy sauce, peanuts, and chives, and fish ball soup and instructed to dip the rice into the soup broths to wet it slightly. Luckily, the portions were small as I was positively stuffed at this point.

That being said, there was still one more stop. Dessert. Ivan brought us to a small shop selling hopia, a pastry traditionally filled with bean paste. At the mention of bean paste I was hesitant. I’d choked down enough red bean filled desserts in Korea to know I was not a fan, but when I was handed a newer version of hopia, filled with a sweet pastry cream, I was impressed. Though, with only enough room in my stomach for a tiny piece.

With that the tour was over and it was time to roll my over-indulged self through the sweltering streets of Manila, back to air conditioned sanctuary that was my hostel to recover.

The morning spent exploring Manila’s frenetic Chinatown with Old Manila Walks was an entertaining and educational one.

And one that kept me full for hours.

What dish from Manila’s Chinatown sounds the best to you?

Note: My tour was in no way sponsored, nor was I asked to write a review.

History Through Food: An Eating Tour of Manila’s Chinatown is a post from: Farsickness

El Nido.

Located on Palawan, one of the least developed of the major islands in the Philippines, I’d only heard fabulous reviews about this beach town. Island hopping in turquoise waters, unspoiled beaches, and the world’s last frontier were just some of the things my friends had told me about El Nido so when it was finally time to leave Puerto Princesa and head north, I was ecstatic.

After a six hour crammed minivan ride over some terrifying roads, Tara and I took a tricycle to the main street and began looking for accommodation. We ended up booking an oceanfront cottage at Chizlyk Cottages. It was a little more than I’d normally pay for accommodation but it was about 50 feet from the sea and the owner was a sweetheart.

For the next few days we went into full on vacation mode.

Days started early, usually close to 6 am when the power around town was shut off the room began to get hotter and hotter. After throwing on a bathing suit and sundress, we’d usually make our way to the Art Cafe for breakfast before hitting the beach or swimming in the sea.

On our first day we spent some time at the beach outside our cottage. The water was shallow and clear making it the perfect place to wade around and cool off for a while.

The next day we went on one of El Nido’s famous island hopping tours. Just about every establishment in town offers these four tours and we booked Tour A through our cottage owner for 700 pesos (the standard price). A boat picked us up at the beach outside our cottage and we began the 30 minute journey to our first stop, the Small Lagoon.

This area was crowded with other boats, but you could swim through rock openings to get to smaller and less crowded lagoons to swim or snorkel in peace. It was at this point that a jelly fish swam very close by and touched me. Luckily, I was not stung but it was a little too close of an encounter with nature for me.

Next up was a small beach area that was also crowded but the white sand and clear water made for some spectacular views.

Our third stop was an almost deserted beach with the most turquoise water. There were no shells and rocks and it was the perfect place to swim in peace. Our boat captain cooked us a delicious lunch of grilled fish, fresh fruit, pork, and salad which we ate right on the sand.

After lunch we took a ride over to the Big Lagoon, probably the most famous place in all of El Nido. The water is deep, clear, and very blue. It was the perfect place to jump off the boat and not worry about any encounters with jelly fish.

Our final stop on the tour was 7 Commando Beach, one of the more developed islands. There was a beach bar serving up cold beer and tropical drinks and a line up of boats dropping off sun kissed tourists. We grabbed a drink and spent the rest of our time alternating between the sand and the sea, making sure to take advantage of every last second of sunlight.

We spent our last day at Las Cabanas, a beach resort a few kilometers outside of town. A quick tricycle ride away, the resort offers access to their beach for free. Even though it rained on and off that day, we enjoyed sipping coconuts under palm trees and soaking up the sun.

We ended each day similarly- with dinner and a cold beer or two on the each- while enjoying the fabulous sunsets of El Nido.

El Nido is paradise. Things move slowly. There isn’t pressure to do much, only enjoy your surroundings while you’re there. It was the perfect way to unwind after two years in Korea and the perfect way to start this trip.

Paradise Found: El Nido, Philippines is a post from: Farsickness

The Philippines was an exciting destination for me partially because I was unfamiliar with much of their cuisine. I was looking forward to being able to discover some new dishes. Philippine food, I learned, has a lot of influence from other cuisines, especially from the Spanish who ruled the country for several hundred years. Being a chain of islands it was not a surprise to find a lot of seafood on menus, and Filipinos love them some pork.

Unfortunately, I didn’t have as much time to chow down as I would’ve liked. Toward the end of my stay I got a wicked stomach virus during which even the mention of the word ‘food’ had me gagging. Despite that I was able to find some delicious treats during my two weeks in Puerto Princesa, El Nido, and Manila.

1. Sinigang 

Sinigang is a Filippino soup that is most well known for its sour tamarind flavor. This was a new dish for me and I was instantly hooked. Filled with bits of pork (a fish variety is also popular), eggplant, okra, tomatoes, garlic, onion, and other delicious vegetables the soup’s distinctive flavor was powerful, yet smooth. I had this in Puerto Princesa, but it’s popular and can be found on pretty much any menu in the Philippines.

2. Sweet and sour lapu-lapu (grouper)

I had a lot of really great, fresh seafood in the Philippines and this lapu-lapu, the Filippino grouper, in Puerto Princesa stood out. At the restaurant you can pick out the seafood you want and choose how it is cooked. We got this lapu-lapu deep fried and smothered with a thick sweet and sour sauce. Not the healthiest choice, but a delicious one nonetheless.

3. Pizza at Altrove 

This isn’t Filippino food, but it was so good that it deserves a mention here. Located on the main street in El Nido, the pizza here was some of the best I’ve had outside of Italy. Seriously. The southern Italian style pies are cooked in a brick oven and have the perfect cheese to sauce ratio and a selection of delicious toppings. We tried the margherita and Mediterranean and both were superb. The prices here are a little steep for the Philippines but worth every peso.

4. Garlic and butter prawns

Almost every afternoon that we were in Puerto Princesa Tara and I saw a family walk up and down the main street with a bucket of fresh prawns. They stopped at each restaurant selling their fresh catch. Obviously, this meant I needed to indulge often and indulge I did. The best rendition by far was in Puerto Princesa smothered in garlic and butter.

5. Lechon 

Lechon is the national dish of the Philippines, present at every large celebration in the country. A holdover from Spanish colonial times, lechon is a suckling pig roasted over a spit. Also known as, pure ecstasy in food form. Unfortunately, by the time we got a chance to try it I was already feeling a bit sick and we had to resort to eating lechon at the Mall of Asia food court in Manila. It was delicious (how could a plate of sucking pig not be?) but it wasn’t the crispy skin deliciousness I’d been waiting for.

What looks the best to you? What is your favorite Filippino food?

What I Ate In…The Philippines is a post from: Farsickness

Tara and I had decided to stay a couple of days in Puerto Princesa before heading north to El Nido. With not much to do in the bustling but small town, we booked an island hopping tour for our last day. I’d read that the Honda Bay island hopping tour wasn’t really that great, and if that you were planning on going to El Nido it would be wise to save your money and skip it, but after months of cold and cloudy weather in Seoul we were ready for some sunshine and a beach or two. So, we coughed up the 1,300 pesos each and booked a tour with what seemed like the only operator open in town on Sunday.

Monday morning a van filled with a group of Filippino friends picked us up at our hotel and we began the drive to Honda Bay. Our first stop was at a rental shop where they encouraged people to rent snorkel gear and water shoes. I don’t really like to snorkel (looking at fish is boring) so I politely said no thanks. The tour guide wanted none of this and spent the next few minutes questioning me and my lack of desire to get up close and personal with slimy underwater creatures. She must’ve finally sensed my complete lack of desire and began herding us all back into the van.

We arrived a dock filled with other vans, sweating tourists, and jewelry touts where we proceeded to wait for about 20 minutes before being ushered into a bangka boat. While we sailed toward the first island our tour guide gave us a brief introduction to the islands and our schedule.

The first island was small, with a few huts, a diving board, and a couple of beach chairs. The water was a little murky with a lot of seaweed near the shore, but it was a beach and I was happy. Tara and I laid out our towels and began frying ourselves in the sun.

I laid back and closed my eyes only to be disturbed by increasingly louder chatter. I looked around and saw no less than four groups of young women taking posed self-timer pictures of themselves around the beach. This went on for the two hours we were there. I don’t know either.

At about 11:30 lunch was served to the group. It was quite the spread with grilled fish, pork, rice, salted eggs, eggplant salad, and other vegetables. Halfway through the lunch an old Japanese man in our group (the only other non-Filippino besides Tara and I) started a conversation with me by pointing at my tattoo to show me where he came from. It was a good ice breaker.

After lunch we went to a snorkeling spot on a reef. Tara and I sat on the dock and looked at pictures of the things in the water. I still don’t think I missed anything special.

Our last stop was Cowrie Island, named because of the abundance of cowrie shells found there. This place was the most developed of all our stops. There were pavilions to sit under and a full service bar.

It was also the prettiest. The water was clear and blue and lined with palm trees. Tara and I grabbed a couple of Red Horses to drink in the sand. When we got too hot we waded into the warm, shallow water. This was the kind of island we’d wanted all day.

Soon, sunburned and satisfied, it was time to head back to shore. Was it a great tour? No. Was it the most beautiful? No. Did I enjoy my first trip to the beach after a long, cold winter? Most definitely.

Though, if you are going to El Nido, believe what you read and don’t hang around Puerto Princesa longer than necessary…

Island Hopping in Honda Bay is a post from: Farsickness