Philippines Travel Log

Today’s guest blog is from Paul Bax. Paul is a longtime reader of the Live In the Philippines Web Magazine. Paul has his own website that you may enjoy visiting. Paul tells of his adventure while visiting the Philippines in his story below. Thank you, Paul for sharing this with our readers!

The day has finally come to depart for my trip to Skip’s Beach Resort. The purpose of the trip is to attend a seminar/workshop to raise money for Skip’s charity, The Alfonso Fund, to help poor children in the Philippines who’s parents cannot afford medical care. Skip’s Beach Resort is located in the remote town of Daantabayan on the outskirts of Cebu. Skip is the third student of the late martial artists and film star, Bruce Lee. He is somewhat of a legend to his countless friends and associates whom he has helped move there and or introduced many to their wives. He has spent his last 17 years in the Philippines among the common man, opting to live amongst the every day Filipino rather then the alleged “upper class”.

Well, I “skipped” out of work early so I could finish any last minute packing and to grab a bite to eat before leaving. In addition, I wanted to spend a little time with both my wife and son (separate since they are not getting along). When it came time to leave the house my son actually seemed a bit choked up I was leaving. He asked me to bring him back a knife that he can carry on him. Just what he needs…not.

So after a nice drive with my wife to the airport we said our goodbyes and it was extremely hard to leave her. Sure, I am going to the land of the hot Filipino babes but still, she almost made me want to put my bags back in the car and say the hell with it. However, I had people depending on me to be there and had committed myself to the event. This was not just a martial arts event but also a humanitarian effort.

I entered Lambert airport and immediately had a brain fart. I tried to self check in and was trying to scan my passport through the wrong area on the machine. I proceeded to manually enter all the information. After deciding to upgrade to first class for $180.00, I was pleasantly surprised that my one checked bag would not see me again until we were reunited in Cebu. One less thing to worry about.

So I grabbed my first class seat, which was quite spacious and came complete with complimentary drinks and a meal. Of course I took advantage of the situation and slammed three bourbon and soda’s before the trip was over. Ironically, an older gentleman named Harlin sat next to me who reminded me a lot of Gene Wilder without the frizzy hair. He actually worked for American Airlines (which I was flying to LA) and we didn’t stop talking from our initial “hello”. He offered me some prescription strength stomach medicine which I took but will probably throw out before I leave the plane. I can just see me getting thrown in a Hong Kong jail because I was carrying a prescription with out my name. Looks like I will have to settle for Pepto Bismol. Harlin’s job was working in the prestigious, “Admiral’s Club” where he basically takes care of executives along with famous musicians and actors. A few names the threw out to me were Nelly, Ashante, Foxy Brown, Paris Hilton, the whole band of Van Halen and a few others that escape me.

After a flight that went really quick because of our conversation, he took me up to the Admiral’s club where he gave me the RX and his boss gave me a free drink voucher. Whew hoo! I paid for one beer myself, another stranger gave me his free voucher so I ended up having another bourbon and soda and two Mich Ultra’s. I handed the guy a five for all his hard work which he really appreciated. I told him he probably needed a tank of gas.

Once I found Cathay Airlines and checked in I converted some dollars to pesos so I was all set for Cebu. The rate was not as good as the published rate but it was good enough to avoid one more hassle.

So I then found my gate and noticed a guy wearing a Thai Boxing shirt. Turns out he is from Texas and his instructor is under Ron Balicki. He was headed to Thailand for a couple of fights. Apparently he had two fights already. His first experience was that he was not supposed to come out wailing on his opponent since the first two or three rounds are go get the bets going. We had a lot of talk about the Orient and what I was in store for. He seemed to think I would be fine with no issues for the remainder of my trip.

So I boarded the plane and everything was fine until my right leg kept cramping up. I have circulation issues with that leg for some reason. I asked to be moved and got a somewhat better seat but there are still some pain issues. I can not believe how long this flight is taking. 14 hours seemed like an eternity. As I type this I have a little over 2 hours left. I could be in Mexico by now!

For now I am going to turn off the laptop since it only has one of battery life yet and I do not know if my hook up will work at Skip’s but I am sure he will have all obstacles covered.

Oh, I almost forgot. I called Dr. Mac who is in good spirits. He transfered me to Skip who was astounded that I would be there so quickly or even there at all. Then he hit me with the shocker. Cebu airport is always crowded and it has taken him up to 6 hours to get out of there. Add this to my 3 to 4 hour bus ride there and I am looking at arriving late on Thursday. Ah, the trial and tribulations of a humanitarian.

Captain’s log, 5-2-08 (Cebu time): I made it through the airport without a hitch and found a taxi driver to take me to Skip’s for $1500 pesos. Quite a bargain. The ride was nothing less then a roller coaster ride with our car coming within inches of trucks and peoples arms and legs. Airport wait was only an hour or less.

The scenery is amazing and the landscape is beautiful. Unfortunately this is a very poor country and that is reflected in the housing. I will say that people walk the streets freely as do the children with no fear of the predators we have in the USA.

So, finally after asking for directions several times we found Skip’s resort. His son, Chip came out to greet me. Immediately as I stepped out of the car the humidity made my glasses steam up. I made my way to my room on the top floor which was quite spacious. Then after settling in I met Dr. Mac for the first time. He was under the weather so we kept our distance but he then referred me to the man we both came to see, Skip Ellsworth. After a firm handshake we sat down and started talking about my trip and it was like we had been conversing in person for years. I took a quick nap and later returned for dinner made by Belle which was wonderful. After some more great conversation, we called it a night. I ended up waking up at 4:30 am and had a nice webcam chat with my ever worried wife. She was worried about me in more ways then one but seems to be accepting my absence and dealing with it.

Later that morning I received a knock on the door from Chip telling me it was time for breakfast. As usual, Belle delivered a great bacon and eggs feast with pancakes (this happened every morning).

Chip and I headed out to the town and came upon a pool hall. After showing him who was the boss of the table we headed back. Dr. Mac and I had a picture session with Skip and then Belle, Chip, Belle’s brother and I headed out to the market where we picked up some mangos and other fruit. The locals were looking at my white legs in astonishment. I think they said I had a big nose (anything is big compared to their petite features) also. The equalizer was that all the women kept asking me if I was married. My standard joking response was “sometimes” which was greeted with wild laughter.

Later I tried a burger from a local vendor (Big Mac’s) which was great albeit a tad thin (think White Castle but smaller). Then we headed back to the resort to rest for awhile. I am already adjusted to the time change. I am not looking forward to changing back when I go back to Missouri.

During Friday Dr. Mac, myself and Chip went to the roof to practice and exercise. With the way Belle is feeding me it was much needed. After some warm-ups we worked on a few take downs and demonstrated a few of our favorite moves. Chip’s sister, Milet joined us and she turned out to be quite a scrapper for a 14 year old. She actually picked up a 70 pound bar bell and put it over her head. She probably weighs that much herself.

Later we had another awesome dinner from Belle and a nice chat between, Skip, myself, Dr. Mac, Chip and Belle. Dr. Mac gave me a few shirts that I was not expecting and Skip gave us both a Philippine flag pin.

Chip and I headed back to the pool hall but it was closed. So, I grabbed a Red Horse beer at the local store and we headed back flashing our new lighters that we had purchased earlier that day into the darkened night. What makes this lighter unique is that it not only provides a flame but also a light…and when flashed on a wall or any surface the light turns into a hot naked Asian babe. Skip totally approved of his son’s lighter. Now that’s a Dad.

So after that I called it a night. As I type this on Saturday morning, the rain is coming down hard. Looks like our work out may be inside.

Saturday’s work out covered some basic throws and take downs and covered the basics of falling and rolling. The day went off without a hitch. After a nice dinner with Skip, Chip and I headed out to the pool hall again where I learned the art of the “knowing where the table is crooked”. I had a lot of practice at that in my youth so it was no big deal.

We headed down to a local festival but it was too muddy to hang around. There was a strange fellow that asked both Mac and I do dance with him. We declined. After walking the streets for awhile Chip took me through a dark short cut through the village. After some more conversation with Skip we called it a night.

Sunday was the final day of the seminar and we had many workers from the resort join us. Belle. Aimee, Maurita, and Milet all took turns punching the pads while Mac and I coached them along as best we could. Aimee seemed to catch on the best and had down punching where her hand was and non-telegraphic movement. Belle had a strong punch on her while so did Maurita and Milet. Chip is coming along good also. The funniest moment was probably when Mac held the pad on his chest from a Wing Chun stance and I demonstrated a full power straight lead. Mac flew back about 8 to 10 feet until he ran into the couch and then promptly fell on his ass. Or in Mac terms, “his backside”. Mac will be upset if I don’t mention his take down he did on me (demonstration) the previous day.
With the seminar over we cleaned up and had ANOTHER great dinner from Belle. Chip and I hit the town again to play pool and slum around the streets.

Monday came with great anticipation since Skip was going to join us on a guided tour around town. He had not left his room for 4 weeks due to some medical issues but he was feeling well enough now to hop in the van and show us around. Our first stop was the local graveyard which is NOTHING like American graveyards. Basically, if you do not have the money to bury you relatives then you simply stick their remains in a bucket and that is the end of it. Judging by the dates on some of the graves, it appears the average life span is much shorter in the Philippines as opposed to the USA.

From there we went to the famous Maya pier where many people take boats to Macalupsa and other islands. Fishing tours are also offered. Belle hit a home run when she bought us all chocolate chip cookies as a snack. We proceeded to drive around the country side, viewing various landmarks and or homes of Skip’s friends (which are growing by the day).

Dr. Mac wanted to have an award ceremony of sorts where he would hand out certificates of participation and various other items. With that behind us, Chip and I headed out to another part of town we had yet to explore (at least with me). Before I knew it I had guys offering me “shots” and girls asking if I was married again. “Sometimes”. After visiting a few stores for drinks, the local pier, a basketball game and a Karoake bar it became quite dark outside so we headed back just in time for dinner.

Before bed I had a nice final chat with Skip and listened to his words of wisdom about life in the Philippines and life itself. He is truly a man of much wisdom and I cherish his friendship.
Unfortunately my taxi-driver was early so I had to say some quick goodbyes, take a few pictures and head out the door. Maurita opened the gate for me and gave me a firm handshake goodbye. The driver seemed happy to see me. We went off on our way and ran into some traffic but both the female and landscape scenery is always worth viewing.

After arriving to the airport two and a half hours early, I befriended a New Yorker who was, as always quite entertaining. He had no cash whatsoever on him after paying his exit fee. He upgraded his flight to first class for $180.00 and was officially in business class. We both decided to get some food but the restaurant would not accept credit cards and we walked away baffled. He caused such a stink that they took him back through security so he could obtain some cash. Ironically, once in the restraraunt, he found out that he could have ate for free at the buffet since he was technically in “business class”. We both found it amusing that the same girl who walked him all around the airport and who knew full well he was in “business class” did not have the common sense to tell him he could have ate for free anyway! What can you do.
So, after the horribly long flight back from Hong Kong to LA I managed to get a earlier flight back to St. Louis. Unfortunately my bag will be on the same flight I originally was on. Should be interesting retrieving that bag.

My final reflections on the Philippines are as follows: the country is beautiful and the people are kind and caring. Unfortunately there seems to be little opportunity here for jobs. Most of the houses are shacks or extremely small. People seem to care little about the environment since their is trash everywhere. However, the lack of fines and laws regarding such issues are what make the country much more free then in the USA. Big government stays out of the citizens lives…for better or for worse. It is my feeling that they people of the Philippines need to be more proud of their surroundings and not destroy their own paradise via throwing trash where ever they please. In the end though, life here is somewhat refreshing. Especially on the streets of Daanbantayan. Kids walk around without their parents with no fear of someone picking them up. People drink freely without worrying about a ticket for public intoxication. And the real owners of the roads and highways are the drivers who don’t have laws and lights dictating their every move. The Philippines…my new home away from home.