Day 6: Massage and Helmet Diving!

I woke up after 9:00am this morning, so realizing I had missed breakfast at the clubhouse, I grabbed the cupcakes from the fridge, and the leftover fruit from 2 nights ago and went to town while watching The Office, The Price Is Right, and David Letterman... all shows that were staples for me when I lived in the states!  But, I haven't watched any of them on TV in over a year and a half!  It was a treat, for sure!

Then I took the hotel shuttle to White Beach and took a nice long walk down the shore.  I spotted these police officers, who were ON DUTY!  Talk about living the life!!!

This man was building a sandcastle, which would be his income for the day!  Many local Philippino's do this in the morning, and then charge money for people's pictures to be taken in front of it throughout the day.

I played with these 2 kids for a while!  They were like little monkeys, climbing all over the bamboo walls of their dad's accessory shop on the shore...

As I was walking, a lady politely asked, "Massage ma'am?"  It was as if my voice could say nothing other than, "Of course!"  So, for $7.00, I had myself a 1 hour massage on the beach!

By this time it was lunchtime, so I ordered some pizza and a diet coke and enjoyed it at my table with an ocean view!  (It's worth noting that my lunch was $3.00!

After lunch I went on a mission to find the hotel that Aaron stayed at last summer, when he came to Boracay!  It was actually quite an adventure!  The tryke driver didn't know where it was, so I got a bit of a tour of the island while he figured it out!  It was worth the wait to see where he stayed!  Good choice Aaron!  Very charming, and cool location!

This was the beach in front of Dave's Straw Hat Inn where Aaron spent his summer vaca last year...

As I was leaving Dave's, I spotted a nice man, selling water sport packages in front of a nearby hotel.  I ended up walking away with a ticket for helmet diving!  What's funny about this, is... I saw a commercial for helmet diving one time and remember laughing and saying, "That is the dumbest thing I've ever seen!"  I will tell you now, I should eat my words, because it was awesome!!  

I will upload a video, and pictures, of me, underwater with the fishies tomorrow!  :)

We headed over to Bolabog beach to catch the boat which would take us over to the helmet diving area of the ocean.

I met these 3 Philippino's on the helmet diving trip!  They live in Manilla, and we hit it off right away!  

(Dan, Me, Carla, and Janelle)

After jumping off the boat and seeing these darling Philippino boys, who had made a little pool of water for their miniature fishies they were harvesting, I shared my candy with them, which made us automatically friends!!

When I got back to town, I grabbed some melon ice cream!   For 23 cents, I couldn't pass it up! 

As I was waiting for the shuttle back to the hotel, Lindsay saw me and picked me up in her golf cart!  Lindsay is dating the owner of Fairways.  *** I accidentally said earlier that Dolly's husband was the owner - He is actually the developer of the luxury homes, not the owner.  (Just thought I'd clear that up!)  Anyway, we sat and chatted for a long time over drinks, fries, and a margarita pizza!  She's from Canada, but has lived in Boracay for a year an a half!

I asked her a lot of questions about the Philippines... and she told me very candidly what it is like living here and what it's like for the Philippinos.  She told me that the Philippino's working at the resort make about 200 pesos a day, which is only $4.  Can you imagine trying to live on 4 dollars a day?!

She also said that no food is wasted in the Philippines.  If you eat at a restaurant and don't finish your meal, the staff will probably either eat it themselves or take it home to their family!

She said her housekeeper will take home the heads of shrimp, or the chicken scraps when she eats them at home.  They give them to their families who eat the little bit of meat that is left on them!  She said they get really excited when she gives them scraps because otherwise their family may only eat rice for the day... I was shocked when I heard these things, and my heart when out to the people here.
  

Yesterday I was paying for a coke at the front desk of the resort and I said, "I'm sorry, 500 is the smallest bill I have," (which is $10) and the concierge said, "Wow, you're rich, aren't you?" 

Being here has made me realize how lucky I am to have a job that allows me to travel, eat out, buy things I want, and have a roof over my head... I hope I never take those things for granted!

Tomorrow I am heading to Palawan Island, but not before I play a couple holes of golf with Lindsay on the resort course!  I'm hoping all that screen golf with Aaron will pay off for me tomorrow!      

***

**

Day 5: Horses, Butterflies, Bats, Trykes, Private Beaches, and Music - Absolutely Enchanting!

This morning, I headed over to the clubhouse around 8am for breakfast!  Romel came in, shortly after, and told me he had arranged for me to go horseback riding!!  YAY!  I could hardly contain my excitement and scarfed down my pancakes and pineapple slices!

The horse was literally waiting for me just outside the front door of the clubhouse!  My own private horse trainer was standing beside it and said, "Good morning madam (which I love being called), let me help you on your horse."  It was just me and him the entire ride... none of this horseback riding where there are 20 horses, all lined up, butt to face!  It was just me, Black Dunes, and the trainer!  How trendy are my horse's bangs?!  He would totally fit in in Korea! ***

The trainer walked about 30 feet ahead of me, and the horse did whatever he did!  If he ran, the horse would gallop (which was slightly terrifying!)  If he stopped, the horse would stop!  It was incredible how well this animal was trained!  We walked along the resort's golf course path for a while...

 ... and then went up to the highest point on the resort's grounds (where the zip line is) so I could take some pictures!  These Philippino women were about to ride the zip line and asked if they could take a picture with me and the horse! They were sooo sweet and welcomed me to their country!

The trainer could tell I loved flowers, because I kept saying how beautiful they all were along the golf course, so he started picking one off of each plant we walked by!  haha!

It wasn't long before I had a little bouquet going!

I asked the trainer if it would be alright if I rode Black Dunes on the beach, as this has been a dream of mine since I was a little girl!  His response of, "Of course madam!  We can go wherever you'd like" nearly made me giggle like a school girl!  

It was as if Black Dunes and I were the only ones on the beach (actually, I think we may have been!)  We galloped, all up and down the shoreline!  Definitely a highlight of my trip!

After saying goodbye to Black Dunes and the trainer, I headed for the Butterfly Farm with Romel!

The butterflies were gorgeous....

...but it was the bat that caught my eye!  The man running the farm told me I could hold it if I'd like!   I can assure you that I've never "dreamed" of holding a bat, in fact I always thought they were bitters... but I do love experiencing new things, and being adventurous, so I decided to give it a try!  I'd be lying if I said I didn't let out a few childlike squeels though!  (Enjoy the video!)

After exploring the butterfly farm, Romel and I hopped on a tryke and headed for White Beach! As we were walking through the front gate of the resort, we stopped in to say hello to the woman working and noticed she had an adorable puppy!

I had told Aaron that I would skype with him at 12:20pm, so I stopped into an internet cafe at D'Mall and got to introduce Aaron to Romel over skype...  Then Romel went back to work, and I headed to White Beach!  I plopped down here...

... under these 2 gorgeous palm trees!

... and spent the next couple hours in the water!

A storm cloud started brewing, so I headed for the hotel, so I could hang in the clubhouse if it stormed, but luckily when I got there, the clouds had passed, so I decided to take another little dip in the water!

And for those of you who wanted to see my pedicure... here you go!

There are tons of Koreans here, so I feel right at home!  I befriended this 10 year old girl at the pool today, and got to give her an English name!  Lynzi, I named her after you! :)  Her mom said she's going to be a professional golfer one day!  They chose the Fairways Resort so she could practice golfing!  At $100 a round, I happen to think that's CRAZY!!

After the pool, I went back to the clubhouse to get a ride to my hotel room, and saw Romel, who motioned for me to follow him to the bar!  He reached over the counter and presented me with 3 boxes of Philippino butterscotch cakes and another box of black forest cupcakes!!  He told me to bring it back with me to Korea for my friends!  Lucky you, if you live in Korea!

 

I showered up and headed over to meet Olga and Marco for a drink.  Unfortunately, Olga had an emergency work meeting, so Marco and I grabbed some fancy juice at a beach bar.  We had a really interesting conversation about his life, all 60+ years of it!  They invited me over to their home for dinner tomorrow night, which I'm really excited about!

After drinks with Marco, I headed down the beach in search of some "yummies" as I like to call it!  (Dinner in case you weren't following!)  As I was walking along the shore, I heard a guy's voice and a very John Mayer style guitar in the background! So, I walked over to see what was going on.  In front of the Astoria Hotel (a gorgeous, very modern, way out of my budget hotel) was serving a buffet with a live concert!  I immediately fell in love with this kid's voice and decided to stay for dinner!

When his set was over, I immediately walked up to shake his hand and tell him how fabulous I thought he was!  I walked away with a $4.00 CD!  Hope it's good!

After his set was over, he stepped off stage to grab some dinner and I invited him to come sit with me!  We had a nice chat about his life here in the Philippines and a new opportunity he was just given to record his own album (professionally)!  I toasted to his success, and then headed to the internet cafe so I could write about my day!  Hope you all enjoyed it... I know I sure did!

**

**

Day 4... Table for ONE, please!

Dolly wasn't kidding when she said the sunrise is stunning from her home!  I set my alarm for 4:30am, just to catch it!

I woke up around 8:00am, and walked out my bedroom door to see this!  A view like this could never get old!

I walked downstairs and was immediately greeted by one of their housekeepers who was cleaning in the kitchen.  "Would you like some breakfast, ma'am?"  I've NEVER had a maid or housekeeper, so I'm not used to this kind of service!  "2 pieces of toast would be wonderful, thank you!"

After breakfast, Dolly's driver took me to White Beach so I could take a walk on the shore!  Can you believe the color of the water here?!

The shore is lined with fun shops and charming little cafes and restaurants!

After walking for a while, I headed inland for lunch!  I stopped at "the Pancake House" and indulged in the most delicious chocolate chip pancakes, at a "table for one!"  They came with a pleasant surprise too - peanut butter!  I thought of you A!

I knew this could possibly be my only chance to be independent while I'm here on the island, since Dolly has people serving me all day long, so I decided to walk back to the hotel (which is about a 1/2 mile from the town), instead of using the shuttle bus, so I could get a look into what the natives live like!

This was the first little schmooch I spotted!  Her mom owned a hair braiding stand on the beach!

This kid was carrying this stick with bags of small fish, along the side of the road... put to work before ever attending high school.

A market where the locals shop...

Family bike ride!

Right after I snapped this photo, a man behind me asked, "Are you a photographer?"  I turned around and answered, "I dabble a bit here and there."  He introduced himself as Marco.  He's probably in his 60's, a retired English and poetry teacher from New York, who's married to a 24 year old Russian woman who works as a hotel sales director in Boracay.  We walked and chatted about travels and stuff, and he introduce me to his wife, Olga, who's workplace was right off the road we were walking on.  They invited me to join them for drinks tomorrow night!  I was honored and said I'd love to.  They seem like a very interesting couple, and I'm excited to hear about their lives!

After saying goodbye to Olga and Marco, who, by the way's, full name is Marco Polo!  NO JOKE!, I decided to walk along this road, off the beaten path, to get a better look at the way they live here in the Philippines.  This girl was the first person I ran into.  She was on her way to school and stopped to greet me.  She was an absolute sweetheart, and began blushing when I told her how beautiful she was. :)

A local Philippino boy, playing outside his home (in the background).

The neighborhood basketball hoop, which has been very resourcefully and creatively crafted out of a tree trunk and random scraps!

This area was up the road a bit and was the most shocking of all...

While tourist stay in beautiful resorts along the shore, these people live in shacks.  It's times like these that make me thankful for my apartment and air conditioning.  We are blessed friends, realize it!  This family was sitting on their front step, and was very welcoming to me!  When I asked if I could take their picture, they were honored!  (I'm sad it turned out so blurry)

 
This was the rest of their neighborhood...

I stopped into a local school along the side of the road during my walk... In fact, I think it may be the only school on the island!  The kids were adorable, and loved practicing their English with me, and of course getting their picture taken by a foreigner!

The smiles on their faces assured me that they are happy children, despite their poverty.  You can literally see the joy spewing out of them!!!

A local boy, buying some candy...

The local hair salon!  Fancy, fancy!

It began to rain, and I was almost to the resort entrance when I heard a scooter beeping behind me!  I turned around and it was Ike (the hotel director).  He said, hop on Jill, I'll take you to your room!  I've never ridden on a scooter with a resort director, in the rain!  Chalk that one up! 

I stopped into my hotel room to shower up and put my bathing suit on, because it was pool time as far as I was concerned!  I tried, in vain, to get a timed picture in the pool, but none of them turned out!  I did however think you guys would get a kick out of this one!  I'm still trying to figure this darn camera timer out! 

It began to sprinkle a bit, and I could hear thunder in the distance, so I jumped out of the pool and grabbed my beloved Sudoku book and went to town for about an hour, before relocating to the beach!

There were hardly any people around today...  Some would say, "What's a beach without people swimming and playing beach volleyball?"  I would say, "The best kinds of beaches are the one's with clear water, and no one in sight!"  I think I came to the right place!

I love this cove, which leads to the staircase to the clubhouse!!

I decided it was time to indulge myself in a pedicure (because, lord knows, I NEEDED one!), so I headed to town and stopped in at the first shop I saw!  (The before shot!)

My pedicurist's name was Jude, and let me tell you... He was the most detail oriented and perfectionistic person I'd ever had touch my toes!  I think he saw it as a challenge to make my toes look nice again! :)

I snapped this picture of him, and said, "Jude, you're so handsome!" (Just to give him a little confidence boost!) ... and all his co-workers (who were women) started laughing and said, "No, no.  Jude is PRETTY!"   Seems Jude is a lady boy in the making!

While we're on the topic of lady boys, I love this picture because the woman standing in all white on the left side, posing for the camera, is a ladyboy masseuse!  Their flamboyancy is really funny to me.

The island is hopping tonight with beach side restaurants serving inexpensive, yet delicious, buffets!

I actually opted for a plate of fruit tonight!  If you know me, you know I am a SERIOUS LOVER of fruit, and I haven't had a bite since I arrived here!  This plate was the perfect dinner treat!

After dinner, I stopped into the internet cafe, which is right next to this restaurant.  So, in about 3 minutes, I'm going to be lounging right here in my table for one! :)

While I loved my independent, "table for one" type of day, I would give anything for Aaron to be here with me on this adventure!  Miss you A!

Until tomorrow!

**