Intrepid Love: Philippines

Our trip to the Philippines got off to a bit of a rough start. We woke up to the biggest snow storm of the year, my credit card had been stolen, and it took almost 2 hours to get to the airport. Because of the snow we missed our connecting flight in San Francisco. Thankfully Orbitz was able to get us on the next flight out but we had to wait until just a few hours before our flight before we even knew if we would get on or not. Our anxiety and stress was at an all time high. Needless to say it was a very long day. We both were able to sleep for the majority of the 15 hour plane ride. And finally after almost a full 2 days of traveling we made it to Manila!

Our one main day to really explore Manila was the day that we missed! So we didn’t really get to have much time in the city. We did see the “small” mall of Asia. Which was definitely not small. Ate some great food, and got to stay in 3 different parts of the city over the period of our trip.

After sleeping for the night we got on another plane to Puerto Princesa, where we then got on a bus to El Nido. The bus ride took about 5 hours. We left the airport drove around for an hour then came back to the airport because the driver refused to leave until every single seat was full. We were all in the van like a can of sardines and could not wait to get to El Nido! The drive was absolutely gorgeous, on coastal roads, through rice fields, and little villages.

El Nido was an absolute dream. I’m going to do a separate post just for that beautiful paradise! We spent a full week soaking up the sun, drinking coconuts and cocktails, and eating delicious food. I think it’s safe to say that we will be back to El Nido!

After our week in El Nido, we journied to the north of the main island to a little city called Alaminos. Collin had been told by a few people that The Hundred Islands Park was gorgeous so we decided to check it out. It definitely had its own type of beauty and for $20 we had a whole boat and tour to ourselves. There was some amazing snorkeling. We went “cave” jumping with probably 1000 bats, saw a sea snake, and I saw a puffer fish. We stayed at a wonderful AirBnb in Alaminos called Traditional Filipino Home if anyone is heading that direction I’d highly recommend staying there.

At times it was heart breaking and very humbling seeing a majority of these wonderful Filipinos living in third world conditions and terrible poverty. It definitely made both Collin and I very grateful for what we have. It also opened my eyes to being happy regardless of our circumstances. The Filipinos we met were the absolute most friendly people we have ever met, despite their living conditions. It was definitely a humbling experience.

I think it’s safe to say that the Philippines left a wonderful mark on our hearts! We cannot wait to go back and explore more of those 7,000+ islands.