I was lucky enough stay in an amazing hotel but even luckier to meet the best hotel managers.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
The Best Hotel Managers
I was lucky enough stay in an amazing hotel but even luckier to meet the best hotel managers.
Traditional Fillipino Breakfast
The traditional Filipino breakfast consists of plenty of rice, bangus (Milkfish), shrimp (served cold), filipino steak, champorado (hot chocalate), Tomatoes and eggs ( I know there's a name I just don't know it), puto and cheese ( puto is a rice cake)
Jules just grubb'n on the food
Jules just grubb'n on the food
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Gardens, Weddings and After Parties
This set of photos was taken between April 25th and May 1.
Close up of the calimansi tree growing in my Tita Aurie's garden. Calimansi is widely used around the Philippines as marinade in fish and meat dishes. It is also used as a flavoring in drinks.
Red palm tree
Our cousin Esther married Joseph at St Therese church on April 25. Tiffany (far left) and Jules (far right) were part of the wedding entourage as cord sponsors. The cord is draped on the necks of the bride and groom to symbolize the lifelong bond between the two.
The cousins gathering for a group pic at the wedding reception. Check out Tito Romy in the back, holding up the wedding cake for reasons beyond explanation.
The celebration keeps going, with the wedding after party taking place at our Tito Nonoy's, the father of the bride. We all look suprisingly sober here after finishing off a bottle of tequila.
Close up of the calimansi tree growing in my Tita Aurie's garden. Calimansi is widely used around the Philippines as marinade in fish and meat dishes. It is also used as a flavoring in drinks.
Red palm tree
Lanterns constructed out of sea shells
Bel, Tita Aurie, my mom and Ana dressed up and ready for the wedding
Our cousin Esther married Joseph at St Therese church on April 25. Tiffany (far left) and Jules (far right) were part of the wedding entourage as cord sponsors. The cord is draped on the necks of the bride and groom to symbolize the lifelong bond between the two.
The cousins gathering for a group pic at the wedding reception. Check out Tito Romy in the back, holding up the wedding cake for reasons beyond explanation.
The celebration keeps going, with the wedding after party taking place at our Tito Nonoy's, the father of the bride. We all look suprisingly sober here after finishing off a bottle of tequila.
Introducing the Pinkie Bomb, named after our cousin who made this drink up on the spot: Drop a shot of Jose Cuervo in a San Miguel Light. Guaranteed drunkeness.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Going Through Hell...
...to get to Paradise
The rigors of travel can be really taxing, and going to El Nido is no different especially with this kind of morning:
5:30 wake up
6:15 leave for Manila International Airport
7:30 arrive and check in
8:30 leave for Puerto Princessa
9:30 land and take a tricycle (motorcycle with car attached) to Fort Wally Van Terminal
Once we got to the Van Terminal the hardest part of the trip so far was ahead of us. The cheapest way to get to El Nido from Puerto Princessa is via bus or van. ~280km of unfinished dirt road snakes through the mountains of the island. Narrow bridges, construction delays, pot holes, and jarring terrain combined with a 10 person van packed with 15 people makes you feel every meter of the journey in your ass. Needless to say, the trip got old very fast and I was telling myself "this better be worth it" after the first 20km when the concrete road ran out.
It was totally worth it:
This picture doesn't do justice to how it actually looks here. This is what we wake up to every day. Each morning we are greeted with gentle waves splashing. Each morning beach tables welcome us with a hot Filipino breakfast. Each morning the boats beckon us to charter them to unknown adventures.
Og's Pensionne is one of the places that you only hear of by word of mouth. Carla, who can't be older than 18, seems to be the manager of the joint as she's the only one who can speak english. Talking to her, she was surprised that we were only staying for 3 nights. Many guests take advantage of the P1000/night ($20) rates and stay for months. It's sounding pretty tempting with the view, but that wouldn't be fair to all of you at home.
Our room is sparse with little more than two beds, a fan, and an airconditioning unit, but provides plenty of space for respite from the humidity. The bathroom doesn't have a shower so we just use the bucket and pail for washing and laundry:
Under the rooms on the beach, the attached bar/restaurant serves up beer, cocktails, and glass bottled sodas along with their food. FYI, they have some of the best mango shakes I've ever tasted.
Next door is home to Sea Slug's bar and restaurant. Pretty much the same deal as Og's but with two differences: Sisig and live music.
First the Sisig. Chopped ginger, chilis, garlic, shallots, salt and pepper are mixed with chopped chicken, topped with an egg and served on a rocket hot cast iron plate. The flair of the presentation is matched by the taste. Fresh calamansi (Filipino Lemon) finishes the dish and gives a clean acidic contrast to the rich and fragrant chicken. I'm pretty sure the word Sisig is onomatopoeic and the dish is a perfect accompaniment to the Red Horse beers and live music.
And about the live music. Ask any Filipino, and they'll tell you they know at least one person who has real talent in terms of performing arts. Sea Slug's next door showcased some of the local talent Monday night. On a makeshift stage, the local band sound really professional. Funny thing though, this is probably just a hobby and they couldn't be older than 21. Acoustic guitar renditions of Michele Branch, SWV, Alicia Keys and others are a great complement to the night.
The video is pretty dark and the audio is soft, but trust me, they sounded amazing:
Today has been a day to relax, drink, and talk with other foreign nationals. Tomorrow we'll probably take a boat ride and do some snorkeling. Whatever comes, the attitude of the trip can be summed up with something Jules said: "Yeah, I can get used to this."
The rigors of travel can be really taxing, and going to El Nido is no different especially with this kind of morning:
5:30 wake up
6:15 leave for Manila International Airport
7:30 arrive and check in
8:30 leave for Puerto Princessa
9:30 land and take a tricycle (motorcycle with car attached) to Fort Wally Van Terminal
So cramped
Once we got to the Van Terminal the hardest part of the trip so far was ahead of us. The cheapest way to get to El Nido from Puerto Princessa is via bus or van. ~280km of unfinished dirt road snakes through the mountains of the island. Narrow bridges, construction delays, pot holes, and jarring terrain combined with a 10 person van packed with 15 people makes you feel every meter of the journey in your ass. Needless to say, the trip got old very fast and I was telling myself "this better be worth it" after the first 20km when the concrete road ran out.
We lost a lot of good men in there
It was totally worth it:
This picture doesn't do justice to how it actually looks here. This is what we wake up to every day. Each morning we are greeted with gentle waves splashing. Each morning beach tables welcome us with a hot Filipino breakfast. Each morning the boats beckon us to charter them to unknown adventures.
Og's Pensionne is one of the places that you only hear of by word of mouth. Carla, who can't be older than 18, seems to be the manager of the joint as she's the only one who can speak english. Talking to her, she was surprised that we were only staying for 3 nights. Many guests take advantage of the P1000/night ($20) rates and stay for months. It's sounding pretty tempting with the view, but that wouldn't be fair to all of you at home.
Our room is sparse with little more than two beds, a fan, and an airconditioning unit, but provides plenty of space for respite from the humidity. The bathroom doesn't have a shower so we just use the bucket and pail for washing and laundry:
Laundry day
Under the rooms on the beach, the attached bar/restaurant serves up beer, cocktails, and glass bottled sodas along with their food. FYI, they have some of the best mango shakes I've ever tasted.
Next door is home to Sea Slug's bar and restaurant. Pretty much the same deal as Og's but with two differences: Sisig and live music.
First the Sisig. Chopped ginger, chilis, garlic, shallots, salt and pepper are mixed with chopped chicken, topped with an egg and served on a rocket hot cast iron plate. The flair of the presentation is matched by the taste. Fresh calamansi (Filipino Lemon) finishes the dish and gives a clean acidic contrast to the rich and fragrant chicken. I'm pretty sure the word Sisig is onomatopoeic and the dish is a perfect accompaniment to the Red Horse beers and live music.
SOOOOO GOOD
And about the live music. Ask any Filipino, and they'll tell you they know at least one person who has real talent in terms of performing arts. Sea Slug's next door showcased some of the local talent Monday night. On a makeshift stage, the local band sound really professional. Funny thing though, this is probably just a hobby and they couldn't be older than 21. Acoustic guitar renditions of Michele Branch, SWV, Alicia Keys and others are a great complement to the night.
The video is pretty dark and the audio is soft, but trust me, they sounded amazing:
Today has been a day to relax, drink, and talk with other foreign nationals. Tomorrow we'll probably take a boat ride and do some snorkeling. Whatever comes, the attitude of the trip can be summed up with something Jules said: "Yeah, I can get used to this."
The 10 Labors of Hercules aka Jeff eats the world.
Weddings in the Philippines are no different than the states when it comes to feeding people and the one we went to certainly didn't disappoint. There were 10 things on the menu served family style and I was challenged by Jules to make a dent in each one.
Cold Cuts (
pork, beef, century eggs, seaweed and others):
Spinach and seafood soup:
Beef Tenderloin Chinese Style:
Chicken and Broccoli:
Steamed Garlic Shrimp:
Steamed Lapu Lapu with Ginger and Scallions:
Birthday Noodles:
Pandan Jelly with Coconut Milk and Cornflakes:
Ube Sesame Ball:
and the 10th course? Rice of course.
Each one was pretty intimidating and I looked like this after each dish:
I'm pretty sure I'm gaining all the weight I've lost. Totally worth it.
Cold Cuts (
pork, beef, century eggs, seaweed and others):Spinach and seafood soup:
Beef Tenderloin Chinese Style:
Chicken and Broccoli:
Steamed Garlic Shrimp:
Steamed Lapu Lapu with Ginger and Scallions:
Birthday Noodles:
Pandan Jelly with Coconut Milk and Cornflakes:
Ube Sesame Ball:
and the 10th course? Rice of course.
Each one was pretty intimidating and I looked like this after each dish:
I'm pretty sure I'm gaining all the weight I've lost. Totally worth it.
Day two
Driving to Dagupan for the wedding which is about 7 hours north of the capital of Philippines, Manila.
First day
Fresh of the plane we see a jeepney. Here's a picture of it for all of you that aren't familiar
Jeff's dad picked us up from the airport where we proceeded to the largest mall of Asia. The food court has some crazy food, but we chose Kamay Kainan (roughly translated as Hand Food) and its a place that has some pretty bomb filipino food.
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Dagupan
Hey everybody, I'm currently in Dagupan, Philippines the hometown of my mother. I've been in the motherland for a little over two days now, and it's been packed with activities, like attending a wedding, trying all sorts of new dishes, pretending to remember old uncles and aunties, finishing a bottle of tequila with the cousins, and going island hopping and snorkeling.
Today, Monday, is the first "catch your breath day" I've had. Jules and Jeff, have taken off for El Nido, while I've stayed behind one extra day. I've been put to work running the register at Pinkies, the local bakery/cafe that our family runs. (The pay is lousy, no pay, but I do get to eat whatever I want.) I've taken my lunch break by heading into an internet cafe to enjoy the air conditioning.
Here's a quick review of the new dishes Jeff, Jules, and I have tried
Roasted calf: Awesome! Slow roasted over a charcoal spit, it tasted extremely juicy and tender. Apparently they marinated it by injecting brandy.
Bbq frog legs: It really does taste like chicken.
Century Egg: A chinese dish where the egg is fermented until it turns black, the egg white becomes quiet gelatinous and translucent. It wasn't my fav.
Parad - A preparation of pork that can only be bought in the town of Alaminos. The pig is only fed garlic cloves. When bbq over charcoal, it tastes likes happiness.
I'll be sure to post up pics of our activities as soon as I can find my camera cord.
Next stop: Hong Kong
Today, Monday, is the first "catch your breath day" I've had. Jules and Jeff, have taken off for El Nido, while I've stayed behind one extra day. I've been put to work running the register at Pinkies, the local bakery/cafe that our family runs. (The pay is lousy, no pay, but I do get to eat whatever I want.) I've taken my lunch break by heading into an internet cafe to enjoy the air conditioning.
Here's a quick review of the new dishes Jeff, Jules, and I have tried
Roasted calf: Awesome! Slow roasted over a charcoal spit, it tasted extremely juicy and tender. Apparently they marinated it by injecting brandy.
Bbq frog legs: It really does taste like chicken.
Century Egg: A chinese dish where the egg is fermented until it turns black, the egg white becomes quiet gelatinous and translucent. It wasn't my fav.
Parad - A preparation of pork that can only be bought in the town of Alaminos. The pig is only fed garlic cloves. When bbq over charcoal, it tastes likes happiness.
I'll be sure to post up pics of our activities as soon as I can find my camera cord.
Next stop: Hong Kong
Stay Tuned...
10:56pm. Jules and I just arrived back in Manila after a 6 hour drive while Paolo stayed back in Dagupan. We're very tired, but we've been doing so much these past 4 days and have a lot to blog about. We're still alive and have a whole lot to show you guys. Stay tuned...
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Cya!
Jules and Jeff have probably landed in the Philippines by now. Shortly, I'll be chasing them across the Pacific. Next time you hear from us, we'll be halfway around the world!
Packing List
Clothing/Shoes
1 Pants, 2 shorts, 2 swim trunks
2 long Sleeves, 2 short sleeves, 2 v-neck undershirts (keepin it classy)
Rain jacket
Hoodie
5 Underoos
Flip flops
Water proof kicks
Misc
Credit/Debit Cards
Money Belt
Passport
Vietnam Visa
Books
Airline Tickets
Electronics
iPod
DigiCam
Chargers
Bathroom Gear
Face Wash
Sunblock
Mosquito Repellant
Toothbrush
Toothpaste
Soap
Immodium
Deodorant
10000km, 12 hours, 2 meals, and a cousin
Eva Air Flight 25 was definitely better than some other flights that I've had. There were the usual lows (cramped spaces, crappy food, bathroom lines, etc.) but there were plenty of highs that kept the stress down and flight bearable.
The accomodations were pretty nice for a coach seat.
Blankets and pillows were soft and clean, and to keep you comfortable they even provided some slippers to use while you kicked your shoes off:
Best of all, the individualized entertainment system was pretty cool:
That's me checking out the nifty controller. One side was a phone while the other side had a controller that could be used to control the screen in front of the passenger. Each station could broadcast movies, games, tv, and info as the user requested so I definitely took advantage of it. YesMan was pretty good as was Role Models. Benjamin Button was better in the theaters, but it did help me get back to sleep.
The lows were pretty standard. Food was mediocre at best. Take for instance the breakfast below:
Pros for fruit and yogurt, but the actual food was pretty bad. Sausage, eggs, and a soggy hashbrown. Jenny's care package got us through it all.
Other than the food though, I don't know how a coach ticket could get much better.
Fact Finding
A tip to all travelers- Before you go somewhere, a good traveler does extensive research to there bound destination, a fact finding mission some might call it. In my case, my travels across asia would mean I would have to get acquainted and immerse myself with the asian culture. That's why the night before our trip I took a little trip to Golden City, for those that don't know it's (the best) run down chinese dive bar in Ballard. Here are some picture's of what I learned.
Though this guy had great stories of his fishing days, he provided me with absolutely nothing that could help me with my travels, besides if I ever wanted to go to Scandinavia. In that case I should make sure never mistake Scandi's to Norwigians. We learned that the hard way after a friend asked him if he was Norwigian and his mood changed drastically from friendly -
to very angry and confused
If I learned anything from my fact finding mission is that if the long island ice tea's in Golden City are any way close to what they'll serve on my trip, it'll be a great vacation!
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
The Weigh-In
Jules and I are going to be making a huge dent in southeast asia's beer and pork supply so we decided to see how much of it we were going to be bringing back.
Jeff: 189.4lbs
Jules: 183.4lbs
Both of us have been working out like crazy over the past couple months just for this exact trip. We'll be sure to do a weigh in when we get back. Stay tuned.
Jeff: 189.4lbs
Jules: 183.4lbs
Both of us have been working out like crazy over the past couple months just for this exact trip. We'll be sure to do a weigh in when we get back. Stay tuned.
Itinerary
Some of you have requested a schedule of where we'll be. Here are the dates below:
04/24 Manila-Dagupan
04/25-26 Dagupan
04/27 Manila - Puerta Princessa
04/27-29 El Nido
04/30-5/1 Puerta Princessa
05/1-06 Boracay
05/05 Manila
05/6-9 Bangkok
05/09-11 Hanoi/Halong Bay
05/13 Bangkok
05/14-17 Manila
05/17 USA
04/24 Manila-Dagupan
04/25-26 Dagupan
04/27 Manila - Puerta Princessa
04/27-29 El Nido
04/30-5/1 Puerta Princessa
05/1-06 Boracay
05/05 Manila
05/6-9 Bangkok
05/09-11 Hanoi/Halong Bay
05/13 Bangkok
05/14-17 Manila
05/17 USA
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Can't Miss List
Friends and family have been asking me what activities I plan on doing. Here's my can't miss list.
Hong Kong, China - Walking all over the city sampling street food
Boracay, Philippines - Massages & drinking beer by the beach
Bangkok, Thailand - Muay Thai Fight
Hanoi, Vietnam - Riding a Scooter (Hopefully all three of us won't have to cram)
Ha Long Bay, Vietnam - Kayaking
Hong Kong, China - Walking all over the city sampling street food
Boracay, Philippines - Massages & drinking beer by the beach
Bangkok, Thailand - Muay Thai Fight
Hanoi, Vietnam - Riding a Scooter (Hopefully all three of us won't have to cram)
Ha Long Bay, Vietnam - Kayaking
Treatment worse than the disease
Ran into Virginia Mason for shots and to get a prescription for malaria meds today. One of the pills (Mefloquine) has multiple psychotic side effects including suicide ideation, permanent central nervous system damage, unusual dreams, and hallucinations. Now I like ruining my senses as much as the next guy, so I opted for the less intese Malarone. Makes me wonder though, how much could I get if I hocked those other meds off to some ex-pat. Any takers?
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Gettin' Shit Done
The three of us are getting our lodging figured out. The places in Bangkok Paolo sent us are looking pretty good, but there's a little detail that we just happened to overlook:
APPARENTLY THERE IS CIVIL UNREST GOING ON IN THAILAND
Now there are a few obvious downsides to this situation (getting caught in a riot, dying, etc.), but there is a huge upside. The Baht has fallen a bunch so this trip just got a whole lot cheaper. On top of that, hotels have been slashing prices. Boring? No. Dangerous? Yes. Affordable? Fuck yeah.
Here are some pics of our "productive" work party
Me studying up on Vietnam:
Paolo trying to find a tranny hooker once we land:
Jules still trying to figure things out:
APPARENTLY THERE IS CIVIL UNREST GOING ON IN THAILAND
Now there are a few obvious downsides to this situation (getting caught in a riot, dying, etc.), but there is a huge upside. The Baht has fallen a bunch so this trip just got a whole lot cheaper. On top of that, hotels have been slashing prices. Boring? No. Dangerous? Yes. Affordable? Fuck yeah.
Here are some pics of our "productive" work party
Me studying up on Vietnam:
Paolo trying to find a tranny hooker once we land:
Jules still trying to figure things out:
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Who We Are
We are three Posadas' (two brothers, one cousin) about to set off on a three week adventure through South East Asia. Stamps we'll be adding to our passports include the Philippines, Hong Kong, Thailand and Vietnam. Come along for the ride by visiting this blog often.
From left to right, Jeff, Paolo and Jules.
From left to right, Jeff, Paolo and Jules.
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