Paradise aka Aseania Resort

For the umpteenth time since I arrived here I have thought is this really my life? Imagine a beautiful tropical island with a perfect beach resort and a really cool boss. That is my life for the next few days/weeks. Aseania is the  beautiful pristine island retreat that I arrived at after Tioman Islands to do my next HelpX thing.

My first night I tried to help out and even awkwardly carried my first tray of fancy drinks. As I reached for the tray I had a sudden flashback to the only time I'd ever done serving for a catering company in Ottawa. When clearing the tables at the end the person who was paired with me piled tons of wine glasses on the tray and said "go". I made it to the kitchen  before having the giant tray topple over. Needless to say I was not called for a second shift. This is what was running through my mind as I started to do a simple task that servers could do with their eyes shut. Luckily no beers, margaritas or tequila sunrises were harmed that night. At least not at my hands.

Over the next while my main task appeared to be manning the beach bar/snorkel rental hut from 12-2 and 4-7 and if we were fully booked then I'd help out at clearing dinner plates and helping Halim out at the bar. Not a bad gig and on slow days  at the beach bar I would get an exceptional amount of reading done. I got to also speak with John a bit, the Indonesian  guy who ran the beach bar during the day. His english wasn't to great but my bahasa malay and Indonesia is nonexistent so no judgement here. We'd talk a bit in broken English and would occasionally refer to his malay-english dictionary whenever one of us would say something that elicited a blank stare. After a week I had a new job added to my tasks. If the beach bar wasn't busy I'd close up early and go for long sunset walks on the beach with Strix, a good looking boy. Only downside was that boy was a dog but who am I to be picky?

I definitely can't go on without mentioning the staff here - the staff and Bosd Jasbeer are amazing. Jasbeer took over about 7 years ago, personally hired all his staff and takes care of them and stands by them and is very proud of his workers; something I definitely believe because there is no turnover, many have been there 7 years. When a communication error leads to a staff making a mistake or bringing something to the wrong table he laughs it off with the guest and makes it seem like he intentionally sent it to them. With the exception of the Malaysian kitchen staff the rest of the staff are from India, Indonesia and Bangladesh and every single one of then are amazing and really nice, somewhat shy, guys. The only female staff here are Watiih and Eewen.  Watiih I have not spoken with much but Eewen is a firecracker who has even invited me to hang with her after work before. She may describe everyone as 'her best friend' but I still am happy to have made the cut even if it's not too exclusive.

Jasbeer has been a fantastic boss and I've thoroughly enjoyed all the late night talks (over beer, wine, mojitos, or whiskey) and I've been lucky enough to have him share his love of food with me in the form of chicken pies and some great Chinese food. The Chinese food was during a Mersing field trip where we went to this Chinese place that's been open for 25 years or so and unlike the "Chinese food" you get in North America this stuff was legit. It's now looking like I'll be staying here for the next month, and if my first week has been any indication  of how things are here it's going to be a great month.

Things I've done: taken drink orders and carried 7 drinks on one tray (I list this as something I've accomplished since I was sure I'd drop it), started to seem like I know a bit around here, drank plenty of brandy with some of the Chinese guests who invited me to join them one evening, bartended (only easy stuff so far), snorkeled a ton on Besar island, and ate way too much food....every single day.

What I've learned: The staff here are troopers. Every time I see their cell phone background and ask who that cute kid is 100% of the time it's theirs. They work here all year long any only see their kids at monsoon  season.  I'm almost afraid to ask one of the guys "who's that kid?" because he looks like a kid himself.

Lonely in Paradise?

Written July 18th (bad wifi)
I have come to the conclusion that everyone on the island belongs to one of two clubs: The couples and The divers. You of course can be a member of both but a member of neither and you begin to feel like somewhat of a pariah. You also get sick of the following two questions which are "wait, so you're here alone?" and/or "so what are you doing on this Island if you're not diving". As a serial monogamist I've been in a relationship since I was 15 so having lost my membership to The Couples is even more difficult to handle here. I mentioned this to my sister and she reminded me of Eat Pray Love, a bizarre coincidence since I went to the book exchange the other day and the only english book was the sequel.

I think the loneliness of travel didn't hit my first few weeks because I was constantly doing stuff or surrounded by people interested in hanging out,regardless of diver or couple status so I've spent the last few days trying to organize my next voluntheer spot and finally a breakthrough. I have a tentative start date! In contrast to the oh so lonely day the next day started with meeting the 2 french girls in the chalet across from me and having free food. It was the second day of the post Ramadan celebration and all the places had opened up their homes and we're encouraging everyone who walked by to come up and have free food. It was like bar hopping but food style. Damn good food too. Together with a few others we spent the day swimming, hammock lounging, and eating far too much, especially at our chalets the South Pacific Chalets where the wonderful owner Tony would convince us to have another round of food each time we passed. I briefly considered asking if whoever cooked the curry was single.

I thought I would feel my most dirty backpacker moments in metropolitan Singapore but instead it was on Tioman Island surrounded by all the Muslim peple dressed in beautiful colourful fabrics with every girl looking like princesses as we sat in jean shorts that were still wet from our bathing suits - Usually the same suit that had been worn days before too. Another bizarre thing we noticed was every child that arrived at a new location would be given 1 ringit. Why did I spend all those years settling for candy on Halloween when kids over here are getting money? The evening I went to the newly opened jetty bar and we listened to live music over tiger beer. Amazing how no matter what country I'm in the live music is always north American songs I recognize and can sing along with.


Things I've done: island hopping in Malaysia, celebrated hari raya(end of ramadan) with lots  of free food, saw dragons as big as crocodiles, saw giant bats as big as cats, snorkeling in Tioman Islands,

Things I've learned: Muslim formal wear is absolutely gorgeous. Even more so when you look at your dirty backpacker self in comparison

Singapore to Malaysia

For the umpteenth time I have confirmed I am a travel masochist. I was walking along the sidewalk the other day and the ground below me gave out. The stones below me actually crumbled leaving me falling about a metre deep, having to climb out with my pack on, the edges of the sidewalk taking some Canadian chunks of flesh as souvenirs. I began thinking 'holy crap Malaysian sidewalks aren't the safest' which quickly morphed into 'holy crap I'm in Malaysia?' 

My last day in Singapore had been a long but good day with the blisters to prove it. From 9am to 10pm I was wandering around the city visiting the sights starting with the expansive Botanical Gardens. JP had mentioned that 40% of Singapore was forests, a fact which is hard to believe considering how small and densely populated it is, but after spending hours through the giant and beautiful Botanical gardens and seeing it wasn't even one of the biggest parks I'll definitely trust him on that statistic. My sightseeing also included visiting the Jurong Bird Park. I'm not normally a bird person but it was pretty cool to see all the different birds there. That said, my time spent as Bismallah Biryani was ten times more enjoyable. JP and his friend Varun recommended it as the best biryani in Singapore, located in Little India and while it was the only one I tried there, I'll agree. The mutton biryani was so delicious that you didn't even notice that the surroundings were not the usual immaculate Singaporean surroundings.

Back at the giant Marina Bay Sands I decided to take a friends advice and I went to the bar Ce La Vie to have the most expensive drink of my life. The view however was fantastic and the drink was delicious, plus it'd feel wrong leaving the country without having a singapore sling. The $29 I spent on one drink may seem ridiculous (and it is) the more ridiculous thing was the people paying $25 to enter the observation deck next to the bar and that does NOT include a drink. After the drink I returned to gardens by the bay and saw the light show put on in the super tree Grove.

After Singapore I entered Malaysia arriving in Mersing and taking the ferry to the Tioman Islands. For 25 rm a night ($8) I found myself at SPBC in an empty dorm room in a bungalow along the beach. I spent hours walking around still mildly in shock that I was in a tropical paradise in a remote Malaysian Island. I'm also in shock at how many people are studying these big books. Clearly proof that everyone on the island (except frugal me) is here for diving or lessons.


Things I've done: most expensive drink ever, walked endless hours in singapore, had Indian food in little India (at a place highly recommended by two Indian friends), sipped a Singapore sling at the top of the Marine Bay Sands hotel, fell though a sidewalk, had te tarik , entered a country through a border crossing (U.S. doesn't count)

Lesson learned: If you are travelling to a Muslim country know when Ramadan is and if you are there when it happens carry a lot of snacks or you may find yourself stranded food less until restaurants open at 7pm.

Couchsurfing in Singapore

Am I in Asia?

I arrived in Singapore on Saturday and it is an incredibly unique city/country and dramatically different from the Philippines. People are saying that Singapore is overtaking Hong Kong as the 'capital of asia' and from what I've seen so far I'm tempted to believe it. It has the multiculturalness of Vancouver, the big city metropolitan feel of New York and regulations/strictness/cleanliness that you might find in Sweden. I've gone from jeepneys to first class metro systems.

Since arriving I've learned a lot about what NOT to do in Singapore. There is a myriad of things you can be fined for, ones that come to mind are:

• no smoking in public spaces (fine by me)
• no eating or drinking in public (not carrying around a water bottle at all times has me feeling like a heroin junkie always waiting for my next "hit" of water)
• No chewing gum
• no feeding birds
• no jaywalking (since I am terrible at jaywalking I finally have a legal excuse to not do it)
• Not flushing the toilet (also fine by me)

And drumroll for my favourite rule...

• no durian in public places, there was no fine attached to this rule so I like to think the penalty is going straight to jail for eating something that smells like rotten garbage in a public space

Rules in Singapore transit systems

In Singapore it seemed that since it is the most expensive city in the world that I should be couchsurfing if I wanted to avoid losing my entire budget so when I arrived I headed for JP's place to have a second go at couchsurfing. That night I learned that while people I'm Singapore observe a ton of rules, they also play hard too. At Chaos nightclub I got my first glance at a Bollywood style nightclub and I was both entranced with the high energy, incredibly fun music and at how everyone could DANCE. At one part I noticed that there was someone else with my mediocre dance abilities since we had the same dance moves  it was the one white boy in the club. I guess it's time to come clean. I have white boy dance moves. So good finally come clean. When the club closed at 3am the crowd moved to Moshi Moshi where it had similar music but professional dancers too. I'd gone from handpicked lemongrass tea on a farm to bottle service in Singapore, and for the umpteenth time I wondered if this was actually my life.

I explored Singapore solo the next day and discovered their architecture near the bay area is also very impressive - honestly I should not be surprised anymore at finding that Singapore is crushing it as a country. After wandering around for the day I met up with JP and his friend Varun and we headed to the open air food market with hundreds of different food options and insanely good satay where the smoke from their stalls rising above a pink sky as we were sitting next to the Singapore Stock Exchange was a somewhat surreal and entirely delicious experience. After enjoying satay and Tiger beer I got to try stingray for the first time and if it always tastes like that it won't be the last time. Hanging or with JP and his friends has definitely been one of the highlights of Singapore. The only downside so far has been that hanging out with them has added another 100 places to my list of places to visit (mostly within India) and even on a full belly had me drooling at the prospect of all the Indian food.

The Merlion in front of Marina Bay Sands

Okay a place with worse alcohol prices than Canada has been found

Stingray!

What I've learned: for the love of God don't break the rules in Singapore. They even have apps for people to send photos of people breaking rules like drinking water on a bus so they can be found and fined

Things I can check off 'the list': Tried stingray, partied it up Bollywood style, seen a folder  oreo cake that costs $110 for a small one, had Tiger beer in Singapore

The 8th Wonder

Setting out to Batad and thinking what the hell have I gotten myself into. Banaue is the beautiful area known for it's rice terraces and after meeting Laura and Dylan I was excited to do the 1 or 2 night trekking. Unfortunately it can be a very difficult and slippery path so the cons of being the solo female traveller strikes again. I'm beginning to wonder if I missed an important memo since so far all the travellers I'm meeting are coupled up. I spent my first day in Banaue feeling disappointed that it was low season and there were almost no other travellers. The few I saw in Banaue I would approach and all had done it so far. The safest way to go solo is with a guide but they were all expensive and not an option. Especially since I had $50 CAD that had to last me the next 4 days and get me back to Manila since the last few towns had no atm. To avoid the 2 hour jeepney to the nearest atm I decided to avoid guides and eat as cheaply as possible. So cookies and sticky buns are my rations! After failing to meet new arrivals the next day I gave up and hired a tricycle fpr 700 php to take me to Batad junction  where I would trek solo and to pick me up the next day. The long trek would have been great but my compromise in the interest of safety is that I will do the short trek to Batad and return after one night.

Batad rice terraces

It turns put the walk from Batad Junction to Batad was only 45 min and was exceptionally easy. At the tourist check in point I met 5 Brits who had already organized a tour to the waterfalls so I attached myself to them and lucky I did because the 2 hour tel to the Teppia waterfalls was tricky to find and was high up in the rice terraces walking on narrow stones trying not to fall. The rice terraces we're absolutely stunning, seriously kick the big Jess statue off the list of 7 Wonders and replace it with this. I was constantly having to remind myself to stop looking at the view and to keep my eyes on the narrow path. If you slipped left you'd end up up to your knees in mud. Slip right and you tumble down the terraces. Poor Andrew kept slipping (luckily to the left) so that also served as a good reminder.

We reached the Batad viewpoint and had a spectacular view of the entire place. I was also definitely glad we had Vincent as a guide since it was a tricky walk and he was a sweetheart and even though he was late 60s he kick still out hike any of us. His mother is still around at 105 so twhat the hell are these northern filipinos doing? Is it the air? The rice?

Batad Viewpoimt

We descended the viewpoint and  made our way down the stairs which was quite a tricky ordeal as this dog that started off adorable tool a liking to me and would alternate between stopping in front of me so I'd nearly trip over him as I went down the steep slippery stones OR he would disappear then reappear under me foot as I was about to step carefully down. I am started to understand why some cultures eat dogs... I arrived at the bottom despite the dogs antics and the view of the waterfalls was stunning. The waterfall was so strong that on either side of the falls there was a reverse waterfall of water shooting upwards on the rocks. We gingerly made our way into the water trying to avoid falling on the jagged rocks beneath us but it was absolutely worth it since it was refreshing and just the right thing after the hike. I had heard a tourist died from swimming directly below the falls and had thought they should've know  better. After swimming there I'm now impressed that they were even able to get under the falls since the current pushing you away from it was strong. Even if you stood still far way from it you'd be pulled backwards.

Tappia Waterfalls

I am beginning to think I'm definitely  a travel masochist. Not only do I enjoy riding on jeepney roofs but I really enjoyed the grueling hike up many stairs when we returned to Batad Village. I parted ways with the group after lunch and decided to hunt down a place to stay. I had a list of several placed that were 150php/night but the tourist info lady told me every place was 250 php.  

My fellow hikers.  

Sure enough every place on my list was now 250php. Not a steep price unless you haven't seen an atm in days. I got to the very edge of the lowest pint of the Village and was about to give up when I found Christian's homestay which was 150php a night and run by a very sweet family with nice clean rooms and comfortable beds.

Erika the adorable daughter of the guesthouse owner

I attempted to sleep in the next morning but the well meaning staff woke me up at 7:30 thinking I was on the once a day jeepney out of Batad and was worried I'd miss it. I wasn't too put out since I'd been awake for the last 45 minutes trying to sleep in. My body will likely go into shock soon, I've been eating tons of fruits and veggies,  haven't had pretty much any drinks, and have been getting 8-10 hours of sleep, significantly more than my standard 5. The early wake up meant I got to wander around the beautiful Batad area for a few hours and see the hanging bridge. It was awkward at times since you'd be walking on the barrow rice terraces, then try to turn and you'd end up in a courtyard area that seemed like someone's house but they'd always be good natured and tell you where to go. I planned on leaving the hostel 2.5 hours early which was a good call since I left an hour late because I ended up playing with this adorable girl Erika who was the 5 year old daughter of the guesthouse owner. Never has making up games with an ant been so entertaining. It was difficult to pry myself away and little did I know the trek fro. The bottom of Batad village to the highest point at the Saddle would be a grueling 1.5 hour hike at a constant 80 degree angle. By the time I reached the top I finally understood all the "I survived Batad" T-shirts that we had been mocking the day before. If I hadn't been down to $0.04 CAD I would have even been tempted to grab one.

Things I can check off the list: Trek between narrow rice fields, trekking solo for a day, playing with the local kids, changed into a bathing suit in public with noone noticing, swam in the Teppia waterfalls, lived off less than $30 for nearly 4 days

Lessons learned: Meeting people along the way is bound to happen quite often but sometimes I need to be comfortable with setting out on my own and being good doing activities or treks solo (getting there!)

Since there was no atms I lived off baked good from this bakery for 3 days

My Sagada Daytrip

The weekends on the Layog Farm were a rest time for the volunteers so the weekend that just passed Dylan, Laura and I decided we'd go to Sagada for a night and explore some caves. Saturday morning we were up at the crack of dawn and we're flagging down the van headed for Bontoc. Apparently the driver was crazy and whipping through every turn,  but instead of being in the back with 5 people crammed in each tiny row I was up front with the driver and 1 other passenger so my ride was great and scenic. Our only issue up front was that each time we'd get into a song and start singing along to it, the van would turn a corner and the radio would switch signals. It's hard to say how fast he was actually driving since it seems most van speedometers are broken.

We arrived in Bontoc and almost immediately we caught the jeepney headed for Sagada, the only catch was that every spot was taken...except for the roof. The 3 of us climbed on top and once the jeepney and it's roof were packed to capacity we started out on the road winding around the mountains through breathtaking scenery. The metals bars we were on were cruel to sit on but that hour ride was pretty spectacular and pretty enjoyable compared to super safety conscious Canada

1 hour ride on a jeepney roof

Sagada was a small and beautiful town but there was no mistaking how touristic it was, which was quite a change from spending a week on a remote farm next to a town none of the Manila filipinos had ever heard of. We rested up a bit and had lunch, then we set out to see what kind of tours we could do. We finally settled on the cave connection which I onl found out afterwards was the long difficult one described in guidebooks as "not for the faint hearted. We met Fred, our guide, and for 400 php each we were on our way to the caves. Since we weren't there that long we didn't do the Echo Valley tour but on our way to the caves we did see a few of the coffins hanging off the cliff sides.

Hanging coffins

When we entered the caves I assured them I was not afraid of closed spaces, quite the opposite, what I didn't account for was how unnerving the dark was. The rocks were slippery and we squeezed, climbed and in my case, butt slid over a lot of rocks.  Dylan used to do climbing so he was fine and Laura has insanely long legs so I was at a disadvantage. At one point we had to squeeze into one hole and it was so narrow that everyone but me fit. I got stick at the hips and had to go an alternate route. That was probably my lowest point. To balance that out my high point was realizing just how strong my arms have gotten. Thank you Goodlife! At some points I'd have to step onto unstable slippery surface so my arms we're strong enough to support my entire weight and slowly lower myself. Even Fred said I had good strong arms and that not many girls could hold their weight.

Cave Swimming 

Halfway through and it was still a challenge but I was loving it. There were even a few small pools along the way to swim in. Of course the only nut job swimming was the crazy Canadian chick. Near the end we ended up in Sumaging, the large and easier cave and it was such a contrast. In the cave connection it was just us 4 and the occasional glow of the lantern of some guide in the distance, Sumaging was full of filipino students. After exploring some trickier crevasses in Sumaging we emerged into the sunlight and trekked up a flight of 5,000,000 stairs. It was a challenge at times and even a little frightening but I am so glad I did it. Besides what's the point in living if you don't challenge yourself and do the scary but exciting things in life?

Things I can check off 'the list': Riding on the roof of a jeepney, riding on the roof of a jeepney, in the pouring rain, rock climbing in a cave, seeing the hanging coffins.

Things I learned: I learned about the regional dish pinkipikan. Then immediately wished I could unlearn it. Balut eggs are suddenly seeming appealing.

My Week at the Layog Country Farm

Heading up into the mountains of the Philippines in a bus crammed with filipinos ans livestock feed I was struck by the sense of how surreal my life has become.. instead of sitting at a computer from 8:30-4:30 and dreaming of my next trip I am now bumming around foreign countries with no long term plan or answers other than a sense of acomplishment that instead of hearing of amazing travels I am now the one doing that.

The six hour bus ride north was actually pretty quick as there was beautiful scenery to keep me occupied as well as interesting discoveries such as this transport bus was also a package and newspaper delivery. The further north we got the more delight pedestrians took at seeing my white skin, as Javer (nephew of the farm owner) mentioned people were not used to foreigners in these parts. Once I got to the farm I was struck by how beautiful it was and then I was further shocked to find that instead of a small cottage with a few beds and a sink in one room that I was expecting (they mention multiple times to expect simple country living) I had a 2 bedroom cottage that sleep 4+ and a kitchen and outdoor seeting area all to myself

My private bungalow

First day of work was hot as he'll and the work was hard but it felt good working hard and may have been my first day of real manual labour. For the first time ever I found myself with calluses that were not frim deadlifts ir gyn related things. Within a few days I became used to the early hours and the hard work. The boiling sun still took getting used to though. At times I felt like having volunteers might even be more work for poor Noel, the person assigning tasks to us volunteers, but other times we might spend a while morning chopping sunflower stalks and rendering then into organic fertilizer or an entire day cutting bamboo trees and making them into fences. All of which was done with machetes. Yes. They let me use a machete.

Chopping sunflower stalks into organic fertilizer

 When I started there was Eric from Manila and three Malaysian students, one who was fasting for Ramadan, something that seems nearly impossible when you realize that means 6+ hours in the hot sun with no water. After they left a Danish/Italian couple joined us (Laura and Dylan) and it was fun finally having company in my cottage AND I got them and Eric boardgaming with me!

The Layog family and the staff there were amazing. Noel, our supervisor was always smiling and wonderful to be around and Javer was an amazing cook. Flordelina, then owner of the farm was fantastic and I really enjoyed talking with her. She is from the area however she lives in Norway teaching Norwegian to immigrants and plans on moving back when she retires in 2 years. It sounds like opening the farm was hard work but she seems so passionate about it and about having younger people or the community learning about sustainable organic farms. Knowing all the things the farm has to offer is quite a lot but I really feel like I have learned a ton about organic farming, the many many plants that were growing everywhere, I even finally learnt whether dragonfruit was a bush or tree. It's a cactus. I also learned about vermicomposting, which was the fascinating process of feeding worms, harvesting their poop, aka black gold, and turning it into the best fertilizer ever. Ive even got the recipe now so I can make my own "tea".

The amazing Noel

Flordelina, the owner, comes for a visit every July but I was there for an extra special time because her two children, her sister Gloria and her kids, and many other family members were also visiting at the same time. The Sunday that we met them we had a large family meal with then and the Monday (sadly my last day) us volunteers spent the morning feeding worms and hiding from the rain and then in the afternoon we all piled into a van and drove to nearby Kayan to see the old house that Flordelina and her 9 siblings grew up in. The house was a large building across the small Plaza and nestled between the high school and church and it was fascinating to see the old abandoned house that still had their old posters and furniture stuffed with old letters. Afterwards we visited the church and met with the Reverend who told us about how the church has an organic garden that is cared for by the high school students learning about organic farming.  It seems that people in the area are wary of organic gardening but slowly they are bringing people around to their side and the Layog farm had even supplied the church garden with some thing such as rabbits.

Layog Family Dinner

We had one last big family meal and as it was my last night and the last night foe all the visiting family who was leaving the next day too for Baguio it was somewhat of a festive atmosphere. Tons of food, guitar playing and singing, getting dive bombed by weird bugs, sipping on wine and blueberry wine and we even sampled some very young rice wine. Unlike sake rice wine is sweet and when I say it was young rice wine I mean it was so young that it was just fermented but oddly sweet rice that we ate. After saying goodnight Dylan, Laura and Flordelina's son and nephew Glen and Kris came back to the cottage and played some games. My mission to convert people across the world to games other than Monopoly/Risk has so far been successful! It was an early morning catching the van and jeepney to Bontoc but luckily Aunty Lina, Dante and June were awake so I could say my final goodbyes.

Making bamboo fences to protect the gardens

Things I can cross off 'the list': Cultivated plants, fed worms (vermicomposting), washed my laundry by hand, finally discovered what a dragonfruit plant looks like (kind of a cactus vine almost), went a week without Internet -and didn't mind it!, spent several days carrying around a machete....and didn't injure anyone.

Lessons learned: Organic farming can be hard work but it can also be so rewarding knowing that in the longterm is ensures sustainability and in the short term you get to enjoy incredibly fresh organic produce. 

Dragonfruit!

Malaysian volunteers Jen and Meera

Volunteers Eric, Laura, Dylan and myself

Another spectacular view at Layog Country Farm

Heading North into the Mountains

Written June 29
I am looking forward to a week or so of almost no technology on the farm. While the Philippines kicks Canadas butt at having free wifi almost everywhere, their phone situation is so ridiculous its almost comical - that is until you find yourself desperately needing to nake a call. Some phone providers (globe and smart) only contact phones with the same providers meaning a lot of people hace 2 cell phones and the  issue got more ridoculous today when the hotel told me that land lines can't call cell phones, only cell phones can. Unfortunately for me I was finding out that unlike the last phone I got from Wind Mobile, my new one was locked and the unlock code I had ordered online was supposed to arrive in less than 12 hours so of course 19 hours later I was about to lose all wifi access and the code was still not sent. Thank god for the Baguio Village Inn! At 400 php they had the best rate and it felt luxurious having a whole tiny private room to myself.  The inn was really nice,  clean, hot showers, and excellent life saving staff! Okay it may not technically be lifesaving but it felt like that, I asked the front desk if I could try calling the farm contact from their phone and it was then they told me landlines can't call cellphones. Then after I return to my room the staff member knocks on the door and apparently has a phone I can try and everything fell into place . It's almost a shame, I probably would have ended up with some interesting stories about the time I got off the bus in  the middle of nowhere and wandered around asking where Layog Country Farm was.

At this point I'm not sure if I've mentioned how wonderful and kind the filipino people I've met so just in case I'll say it again (okay maybe it's been constantly mentioned). They are amazing. I got to the Dangwa bus station which was an easy 41 php drive from Baguio Village Inn and I was promptly greeted by Beverly whose mother manages the Layog Farm and we talked for a while over a hearty breakfast - I made sure to eat real food before this 6 hour trip unlike the ride the day before where I survived off candy Jace's family had given me. Beverly made sure I got on the right bus and Flordelina, the owner was waiting for me on the bus intent on making sure I got the right bus. It sounds like there is a while team of people watching out for me and making sure I make it to the farm ok. I'm near overwhelmed at their kindness and concern. Flordelina isn't even taking the bus till  the next day. I'm really looking forwards to meeting the people on the farm and speaking more with Flordelina, the filipino owner of the farm who works teaching Norwegian to middle eastern immigrants in Norway.

The one thing that has begun to bother me a bit is how many helpx places or couchsurfs remind people that they should expect simple living. The need to always say this means there have been people in the past who were welcomed into their homes and had the nerve to actually complain.  Personally I would choose simple living with amazingly hospitable people over five star accomodations with no soul.

Things I can check of "the list": Checked into my first hotel ever with no reservation (and no backup plan), travelled through the Philippines mountains, tried some new filipino fruits with names I can't remember/pronounce

Lessons learned: Before getting on a 6 hour bus, eat real food, use the damn bathrooms, even if you don't have to go yet and once you're on the road use every major rest stop to stretch otherwise standing at the end of 6-7 hours will be a new and exciting challenge