March 30th 2015 Mambajao Camiguin island to Cebu City.

Had to back track 3 hours from Camiguin to Balingoan back to Cagayan De Oro. Then got the midnight boat to Cebu City.

5:30am as I walk down a street in Mambajao to get a jeepney to the boat.

The passenger boat that took us from Benoni to Balingoan at 6:30am.

I had 12 hours to kill in Cagayan De Oro so watched 3 movies in the air conditioned theaters.

I saw this poster as I walked down the street to do with the Chinese territory dispute with the Philippines.

This is just a fraction of the people in the waiting room for the boats to Bohol and Cebu City.

I got a tourist class cabin but this is economy class with bunk beds for a hundred people in this one room.

Getting off the boat at 7:40am in Cebu City.

Buffalo chicken pizza I had at Albertos Pizza in CDO.

Got up at 5:30am and checked-out and walked down to the Public Market in Mambajao where the jeepneys that go to the boat are suppose to be. I get the jeepney to the boat and we get on a passenger boat and leave at 6:30am and when I get to the other side they tell me there is no boat to Bohol from Balingoan and I would have to go back to Cagayan De Oro so I am basically back tracking 3 hours. As I give the minivan driver my luggage and get in the back I hear him talking tagalog to me from the front and a woman tells me he wants to charge my luggage as a passenger and I say "no way and that I will come to the front and deal with it". I just put the luggage right in front of me and problem solved. 2 hours later and we are back in Cagayan De Oro and I grab a cab to the ferry where I find out the ferry to Bohol leaves at 10pm every night but tonight is already fully booked up due to Holy Week so another passenger there tells me to just take a ferry to Cebu City and then another ferry to Bohol if I want to leave tonight. I book a tourist room which is shared by 7 other people and is 1,105 pesos (meal included) and economy class is 900 pesos but it is basically a room of 100 people in it and bunk beds everywhere. 

After I purchase my ticket I get another ride to McDonalds at 10:30am and as I was sipping my coffee and downloading photos to the blog an old american guy walked up the stairs and he looked like a decent guy so I nodded at him and he gave me an army salute as he went to the washroom. When he came out he came over to my table and introduced himself by shaking my hand and said his name is John and has lived in the Philippines for 20 years now and is originally from Oregon state. I said "So living here for 20 years you must be married here" and he said "No I am not married" and then looks me in the eye as he leans forward and says "These people will lie to you and tell you anything they think you want to hear but they are only interested in improving their standard of living and helping their families". He told me he was also a treasure hunter and gets hired by people in the Philippines from time to time to look for other stashes of Yamashitas gold which I didn't know about but said WW2 Japanese General Yamashita Tomoyuki hid his gold in the Philippines and he told me that the gold has been found. He said "Ferdinand Marcos found it. How do you suppose he got so rich?". I said "I thought he got rich because he is corrupt" and he agreed and said "Well yeah and that too". 
http://rense.com/general13/treasure.htm 

After McDonalds I took my luggage back to Casa Crystalla hotel where I stayed and they put my luggage in storage for 12 hours and then I went to Ayala Mall to watch a movie to kill some time in an air conditioned place and saw DESCRATED and then watched ROBOT OVERLORDS. At 7pm I headed to the ferry as there were no more movies to watch. All 4 theaters I went to were playing the same 4 movies. 

There were a lot of people at the Boat terminal which was like a hockey arena full of chairs and people waiting. My boat to Cebu City was to leave at 12 midnight but we began boarding at 10:30pm with a bus picking some of us up where it was packed like a Tokyo subway and brought us to the boat which was huge. There was an escalator on this boat. I found my bed that I shared with 6 woman, 7 year old girl, and one man. My laptop power had run out while I was in McDonalds just about to put my second post up on the blog so I went into the arcade room and was about to plug into the wall socket and a crew member told me I had to recharge with the machines which is 5 pesos for 10 minutes of charging.

We got to Cebu city an hour early at 7:40am so decided to stay a day in Cebu City and will look into grabbing a boat to Bohol. I checked into the Cebu Regal Pension house which is pretty decent value for your money at 500 pesos with private washroom and good internet and close to downtown.

March 28th 2015 Mambajao, Camiguin Island Day 2

Mambajao market where they sell food of all sorts.

 

These are more of those rooster pens where they have used big rubber tires to make the rooster house.

Just cruising around the island of Camiguin.

As I stopped here to take a couple pictures I had kids swimming in the ocean saying "Hello my friend!" and then kids across the street saying the same thing.

Cruising around the island on my scooter. It is 66km around and took just over an hour or so.

A street in Mambajao.

In the town of Mambajao up on a tower taking a picture from above.

Driving in the middle of Camiguin island looking for Ardent hot springs.

As I drove around Camiguin island looking for Ardent hot springs I had to do a double take as I saw a dog lying down sleeping on a bench. 

I had walked around Mambajao last night when I arrived which is really small and only a few streets and most of the towns on this island are smaller than that. I was told there was going to be a BROWN OUT today between 8am to 5pm so I planned to rent a scooter for the day since there would be no air conditioning at the hotel and around town. It was 8:10am while I was watching a movie in the morning when the power went out so I headed out. There is no brewed coffee here so last night I had bought some instant coffee and make some at the pension house. I talked to a guy outside the hotel who always greets me at the door and asked if I wanted to rent a scooter and I asked him how much and he say 400 pesos for 24 hours and I said sure so he called another guy who drove his scooter down and paid him the money then took off. 

After I get gas and am driving for 10 minutes I go to shift gears and realize the clutch is missing. I think to myself that the clutch lever must have fallen off as I was driving but I didn't hear it probably due to this helmet over my ears so I turn around and trace my steps back on the main road and can't believe a clutch lever would fall off a bike and I am thinking "What a piece of shit bike he rented me". So I don't see it on the road so go back to the hotel and as I am driving down the road I think that I spot the owner of the bike so I turn around on a one way road (which I shouldn't do of course) and go back to where I saw him and vehicle are coming at me and filipinos are looking at me from the side of the road probably wondering why I am driving in the wrong direction but I get up to him and for some reason I am not 100% it is the guy who I rented the bike from since many kind of look the same to me. And I ask him "This is your motorbike right?" at which I realize he doesn't speak english as I didn't really talk to him but the other guy at the hotel when I rented the bike. Then I pointed and him and then the bike and said "Are YOU the owner of THIS bike?" at which he points at himself and says "owner" and I say "Where is the clutch lever on this bike?" at which point he says "No clutch on bike" and at this point I am realizing the affects of not drinking my brewed coffee in the morning as I had driven this bike without a clutch lever just fine for the first 10 minutes and at some point along my trip I believed it had a clutch to change gears with and didn't fully recognize the owner even though he was there then I paid the money for the bike. This is why I NEED my morning coffee!!! I get alzheimers without it. 

I drive down to the Benoni boat terminal and ask them for their boat schedule and the guys says "Here is our schedule for Balingoan" and points at a schedule on the wall which starts at 3:30am and runs every half hour so I ask him "OK.. and which boat goes to Bohol?" and he shakes his head saying "We no longer have any service to Bohol". This is where I realize my 6 year old guide book is not helping as it is 6 years old and everything is still there that is in the book except for boat services from CDO to Camiguin and Camiguin to Bohol. So I realize I will have to take another ferry back to Balingoan where i just came from and get a boat there to Bohol. 

I continue driving around the island and really like it. Very green with coconut trees everywhere. Definitely a very nice and relaxed atmosphere compared to any Philippine city I have been to so far. I even drove up to Ardent hot springs but didn't go in as I had a lot of money on me and didn't know if they had lockers etc... (which I doubt). There is never anything to buy in their super markets. I go in and see aisles full of condiments, toilet paper and pop etc... but never something you can buy and eat or at least nothing that you want to buy even the candy. Everything is all cheap shit that has zero nutrients for your body. So I go down the the public market and look around and see some sticky rice patties that I like and buy 6 of them for my breakfast. They taste good and give my body the carbs I need. 

Even though I have the motorbike until 9am tomorrow I know I am not going to use it anymore. The butt is hurting and I feel I saw enough on it and have decided to go to Bohol tomorrow morning. I find out the power is out until 8pm tonight so can't watch any movies until then but the place has their generator going so the A/C is on.

March 28th 2015 Journey from Cagayan De Oro to Mambajao on Camiguin Island

About a 2 hour ride from Cagayan De Oro to Balinboag where I take the 1 hour and 15 minute ferry to Benoni on Camiguin island

The ferry waiting area in Balingoan. My ferry was suppose to leave at 9:45am but ended up leaving at 10:35am.

Our boat is the blue one second from the left.

Once I got on the ferry there were kids on the other ferry asking me to throw money into the water for them to dive for and keep of course.

Arriving at Benoni boat terminal on Camiguin island.

Just outside Benoni boat terminal and escaped some taxi drivers wanting 500 pesos for a ride to Mambajao. I got this Jeepney on the right for 22 pesos. Inside on the right is the Grandmother, 10 year old Grandson, and the mother.

The GV hotel. Single rooms with AC for 405 pesos and standard with AC for 430 pesos. No WI-FI internet though.

Standard room with TV and movie channel.

Beach of Mambajao.

A run away horse running all over the place and the guy in the blue trying to catch it.

A street in Mambajao on Camiguin Island.

In the morning I grabbed a taxi to Agora Market where the CDO bus terminal is located. My taxi driver asked where I was going and I told him I was going to Camiguin island and he pointed and said "you should take a minivan they are right there". I get out and talk to a guy outside where the minivans are and ask him how much and he says "475 pesos" and then I ask another guy who seems in charge and he says "1500 pesos" but I am sure it was his english and not trying to rip me off (I think) as he tells me to be back at 10am because that is when they leave and it is only 7:30am right now. I didn't like the quotes they gave me and the fact it was still 2.5 hours away so I walk to the bus terminal entrance and about to walk in when another guy says "Are you going to Camiguin sir?" and I say "Yes" and he says "I am going to Balingoan right now and you can take the ferry from there. Just 120 pesos for the ride". So I get in and the minivan is full and we leave. It was about a 1 hour and 40 minute drive before we get to Balingoan ferry terminal. 

Everyone lines up to purchase their passenger boat ticket on the street for 175 pesos and as I walk in I have to pay a 2 pesos environmental fee and walk a little further and pay a 15 peso terminal fee before the security guard checks me and lets me in and I am told the boat leaves at 9:45am and I check my watch and see that it is 9:45am already but we wait in a waiting room for another 45 minutes and we eventually leave at 10:35am. I was one of the first to get on the ferry and as I head up the stairs and find a seat and some kids calling to me on the ferry beside me and climbing all over the boat and diving in the water. There are 5 of them and telling me to drop money into the water and they will dive for it so I throw a few pesos into the water for them to dive for.

The boat ride from Balingoan to Benoni (Camiguin Island) took an hour and 20 minutes and as we were heading there I was sort of sleeping until I heard some commotion and clapping from the people in front of me and look out and there are dolphins swimming with the ferry and jumping out of the water in unison. Once we arrived at Benoni boat terminal there were taxi guys trying to get me to go with them for 500 pesos and I knew the island was small (64km around) and said no so the guy says "Sir, I will give you a special price of 400 pesos" and I walked up to a Jeepney operator and asked how much for a jeepney ride to Mambajao and he says "22 pesos" so I look back at the taxi guy who was right behind me and said "Yup, I think I am going with him". 

In the back of the Jeepney is a grandmother, mother, and 9 year old grandson. The grandmother was a very nice and pleasant woman. Her and her daugter had a nose that was twice the size of mine and the grandmother had about 7 teeth in her mouth but spoke perfect english and told me everything about the island as she was a lifetime resident of the island and said she knew every person on the island. I looked around in the jeepney that was now full and said "Do you know everyone in this jeepney?" and she looked around at each person and then said "Almost everyone on here. There are a couple tourists though" and laughed. I checked my guidebook and decided I would go to GV Pension house and she said she knew where it was and would tell the driver to drop me off there. I found her to be a very honest soul when talking to her. 

Once I got dropped off I walked over to GV Pension house and she was getting off there too. I said good bye and the jeepney driver passed my luggage down from the roof of the jeepney and I went to check in at the Pension house. As I was inquiring I noticed the grandmother at the door smiling at me and she said "you pay your room first and I will talk to you after" and I am thinking "Oh great, Here I thought she was this honest woman and now she is probably going to ask me for money since what else would she want?". Once I pay for the room and go over to her while she is smiling showing all her 7 teeth she whispers to me "Did you actually even pay the jeepney driver for the ride?" and I told her I did but it was while he was passing me my luggage from the roof (and out of her line of vision) and she laughed and said "Oh ok. I was just checking" and left. 

I walked around the town of Mambajao (Mah-bow-ha) which is the capital of the Camiguin island which was really small and found an internet cafe but they didn't have a slot on their computers for my photos so I will have to transfer them onto an USB memory stick and then I can use it but the internet owner had told me the internet was slow today and tomorrow although he will be open there will be a power shut down for the day. As I walked back to the GV pension house I hear a guy yell out "Hello Mr Canada!!" and it was an old man who had asked me where I was from an hour earlier.

March 27th 2015 Cagayan De Oro- Day 2 Very HOT!

As I wait for my pizza at Alberto's Pizza an Alberto Employee is sleeping on a pull down bed in the restaurant. Another employee tried to wake him and it took 5 seconds of shaking him to wake him up. Obviously very tired not to mention the heat!

My 11 inch Hawaiian pizza for 120 pesos ($4 cdn) at Alberto's Pizza.

"Luke..........I am your faaaaaaather!"

This is the Agora Market. Behind it is where the main bus station is.

Robinsons Mall.

Walking up along the street of Golden Friendship Park this morning on my way to McDonalds at 5am.

I had gone to Alberto's Pizza last night to get a Hawaiian for take-out and this morning I went back again for lunch as their 11 inch pizzas are 120 pesos ($4 cdn). The woman had told me to try the quickmelt cheese on my pizza and she said I would like it and as I left she said "So how was your pizza?" and I gave her the thumbs up and said "It was awesome!" but she didn't smile and looked at me as if I said "it was aweful!". As I walked down the street I heard a guy yell out to me from across the road "Hi daddy!!" and then another guy laughed near me and said "Hi dad!". I just don't get it unless they are pretending to be my long lost children or something. 

I walked down to Macabalan Wharf (Misamis Oriental) to inquire about their schedules for Cagayan De Oro to Camiguin Island (Cah-mee-geen) and they told me they no longer have a boat service from Cagayan De Oro to Camiguin island and that I would have to take a bus to Balingoan and from there catch a boat across to Benoni, Camiguin island. 

As I left the Wharf I noticed an old woman start to deliberately follow right behind me where ever I went. At first I thought she was going to ask me for money but she didn't but just followed right behind me where ever I went which was a little wierd so I quickly waved down a cab and jumped in and she came right up to the taxi drivers window that was rolled down half way and she bent down to looked directly across at me for a few seconds as the cab driver looked at her wondering what she wanted. I said to him "That woman has been following me and I don't know what she wants. Do you know?" and he laughed and said he didn't. She was my first filipina stalker!! 

The cab driver was 53 years old and said he didn't know what the whole "Hi daddy" thing was all about but he sure did like Celine Dion as he cranked up a song and began to sing out loud "And I am your LAAAAAAADIEEEEEEEEEEEE.....da,da,da,..da,da,da.. and you are my Maaaaaaaaaaan!". I think he thought he was at karaoke as he was getting right into it and made me laugh. 

I walked over to Agora Market which was where the bus had dropped me off when I arrived in Cagayan De Oro and I inquired about when the bus goes to Balingoan and the guy told me the buses run 24/7 every 30 minutes and I saw a sign sayng Balingoan 90 pesos ($2.50 cdn). As I walked back I saw a group of young school girls in uniform and I could hear them talking amongst themselves and then they went very quiet as they were within 30 feet of me and each one was looking up at me with little smirks on their faces and then they all laughed after they passed me. I guess they don't see too many blond haired white guys around too often but this happens EVERY TIME I pass by a group of school girls in uniform. It is very humourous!

Well I think from my last post I have changed my mind about staying in Cagayan De Oro for a few more days. Today I was outside and it was just cooking in this concrete jungle where I needed to go into Malls for air conditioning just to escape the heat. March is the hottest month of the year in the Philippines and unfortunately there are no nearby beaches to chill out and relax at during this heat which is why I have decided to move on to the island of Camiguin starting tomorrow morning. I usually go off my Lonely Planet guide book maps and check things out in every town and once I feel I have seen what I wanted I just move on. Lingering around has never been my style as I am too IMPATIENT. 

I had left the air conditioning on in my room and it was so nice to come back to a very cold room. It was like a refrigerator! 

For the past week I have been asking myself if 3 months in the Philippines is too long and was wondering if I should cut it short by 2 weeks. Right now I have one month left (April 28th) and I might check with the airline but I still want to see Camiguin Island and Bohol before heading back to Cebu City. I think I prefer the provincial areas best as the city takes a bit out of me and a little too chaotic with traffic and noise. I know if I stay another day in CDO I will probably just hang out in my A/C hotel room anyhow so definitely time to move on for me. I would be lying if I said I wasn't missing Canada right now. This is the longest time I have spent in another country (60 days) where I think I was in India for maybe 30 days or less when I was there 9 years ago.

March 26th 2015 Cagayan De Oro- Day 1 Walking around & movie

Golden Friendship Park in downtown Cagayan De Oro.

Golden Friendship Park in downtown Cagayan De Oro.

Golden Friendship Park in downtown Cagayan De Oro.

Looking north down the Cagayan River.

Another mall.

Walking back to the hotel after the movie where I hear a white cream advertisement while I walk along the sidewalk.

After getting back from SM Mall I headed out to "Golden Friendly Park" which is like the downtown area and I was running across the streets to the next part of the park and a guy came up from behind me saying "Hello my friend!". Anytime I hear those words I normally keep moving because I think they want to sell me something and this guy came up and thought I was an American and I told him I am Canadian (I guess we are all the same to them) and he was very polite but I was having a hard time understanding a few words of his english as he was trying to explain something to me but basically I found out he was the traffic control guy telling me I am not allowed to cross the road like I have been doing and that I must always use the crosswalks that are fading quite a bit I might add. So I continued and began walking down the street until I came to the mall where my bus had dropped me off the night before and went into one of them just looking around. 

It was 3:50pm and I felt like killing a couple hours so as I was walking through a mall I saw a movie theater and one of the movies "Insurgents" was about to play at 4pm so I popped in to watch it but the movie sucked with no name actors and I left halfway through and started walking back to the hotel. As I walked along the sidewalks I could hear advertisements being played and heard one say "Stand out from the crowd with WHITE SKIN!! using our new & improved white creamer blah blah blah". I had to laugh but they take it very seriously over here and the women wear umbrellas all the time to shield their skin from the sun. I see the men while they work out in the sun wrap their faces with cloth and I have seen many where ninja masks and every part of their skin is covered. I mean, what would the neighbors say if they saw your skin getting darker? You don't want that to happen over here! 

I must admit, there are some smoken hot chicks in this town. I might stay a few extra days haha.

March 26th 2015 Cagayan De Oro- Day 1 SM Mall in morning

Here is where I am staying. Casa Crystalla.

I am on the 4th floor so have to do a bit of stairs.

Just doing a SELFIE.

Sometimes I pass by a work site and see filipinos working hard in the scorching heat. I could only watch them for 5 minutes before looking for an air conditioned mall to cool down in!

SM Mall in Cagayan De Oro.

 

The only 3 whites guys in SM Mall all huddled around the coffee shop!

This stuff is delicious and cools you down.

For 165 pesos ($1.90 cdn) it is definitely worth it!

After I left McDonalds on the last post when I walked out the kid was dancing in the middle of the  street to the outside music blasting and he was doing THE WAVE with his arms having a good old time until he saw me and the hand came out for money as he ran over to me. I laughed and threw him 10 pesos. Don't quite the starving kid he was letting me believe he was. 

I am staying at the Casa Crystalla hotel where my taxi driver last night thought was the Nature Pension House. I got a standard room at 750 pesos ($21 cdn) and it is very comfortable and good value except the WI-FI  internet doesn't seem to be working. They need to reset it as I am. 

In the morning I decided to walk to SM Mall which is 5 km away and it gives me a chance to see more of the city. Some guy carrying an infant on the other side of the street called over to me asking me for money with his hand out. As I walked to SM Mall I heard this loud music coming from this truck slowly driving along the streets with huge speakers and big banners on it with a couple soldiers or guys in uniform and the banners said "Join the war against the Chinese occupation of Philippine territories". I guess taking over Tibet wasn't enough for the Chinese and now they are taking over territories of the Philippines. I watched the news later and saw that the Philippines is in dispute with China over territory. 

It was really hot outside and I was sweating like mad constantly wiping my forehead as I walked. I saw some guys digging on a construction site (see photo) and watched them work for a few minutes realizing they would be lucky if they were earning $1 an hour and it was probably less as it was unskilled labour. Sometimes I watch them and pretend to switch places with them and that it was my life working hard labour in the Philippines (Kind of like the movie TRADING PLACES). I know for sure that I would be learning english as best I could and be jumping on the first overseas job that came along and if not that then driving taxi since it is pretty easy to drive around in an air conditioned taxi and make some decent money in the Philippines. I guess we have all done hard labour jobs when we were young that we hated and that is usually the motivation to find something easier!

I like to go into every cities SM Mall or other malls as it is nice and air conditioned and I feel like I am back in Canada the whole time I am in one. I feel that I have been magically wisked away to a first world country and forget about all the poverty I have seen here. I saw 3 old white guys huddled around a small coffee shop and then when I left I saw 2 old white guys (70+) coming into the mall with their 40 year old filipina wives. I grabbed a taxi from SM mall and headed back to the hotel.