I woke up this morning at 6:30am! I guess that's what happens when it's hot and muggy and the fan isn't running because the electricity is turned off! Oh, El Nido how I love you... and hate you all at the same time! I grabbed my ipod, and listened to some soft background music while I tested my brain with a little sudoku!
I opened the door to my cottage to enjoy the morning view of the beach! Blue skies are finally here!
Around 7:45am, I had had enough sudoku and walked down the beach to Ric Son's for some banana pancakes and coffee, for $1.00!
After breakfast, I packed up all my stuff and headed nextdoor to my 3rd accomodation in El Nido - Entalula Beach Cottages! It's official, I'm staying here! 800 pesos a night (about $17.00)
I got lucky, because they told me the room with the best view had just become available! My luck on this trip is out of control! Can you believe this is what I will wake up to for the next 4 mornings!? I can't!
After getting settled in, I walked down to Ric Son's to meet the gang for our boat trip... but unfortunately, Ali woke up with a bad fever this morning, so we all stayed on land for the day, which actually turned out to be wonderful! I hung with Mike, Janice, and Missy for a while...
... and then spent the next 5 hours snorkeling in about 1 1/2 feet of water, searching for shells, buried in the sand! Janice said people were looking at me like I was crazy for snorkeling so close to the shore! haha. I will be the 1st to admit, I think I went a little overboard with the shells! I'm hoping my students enjoy using them as game pieces, or whatever I decide to use them for, because if not... I am stealing a lot of shells from the Philippines for NO GOOD REASON!!
This is the 3rd day, in a row, that I've seen stray dogs "hooking up" here!
I'm telling you... THEY ARE REALLY FOND OF EACH OTHER! Can't you see the look of love and desire in their eyes?! haha!
The kids in El Nido are so sweet and charasmatic! When they see my camera, their eyes light up! So different from the Korean kiddos who shy away and cover their faces!
I spent most of the night at the Art Cafe with Mike, Janice, and Noa. We were all chatting about music, so I introduced Mike and Janice to Aisea Taimani's song "Broken," and they were instant fans! (Aisea is a friend of mine from Santa Monica, CA, who is an incredibly talented musician and singer!) I loved the idea of being able to share his music with people living in the Philippines!
At the end of the day today, I can say that I did a lot of snorkeling, shell searching, eating yummy fruit and veggies (and banana pancakes!), talking with new friends, playing with the local kiddos, and ultimately enjoying every moment of it! Who knows what tomorrow will bring! At this point I'm just happy to be here, and will be happy doing anything as long as it's in this beautiful place!***
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