adventures in the south pacific pt. 4
continued from part three.
the plane we took to Calbayog was small and dated. you can tell that it was pretty old by the way the interface above you looked. it had those old push buttons to call for the attendant, big red ones with the springs below the button. there wasn’t any meal trays on the backs of the seats and the curtains and seat material reminded you of a 70’s/early 80’s tv sitcom, much like “Three’s Company”.
it wasn’t a long flight. and since the plane was so small, you can feel every bump in turbulence. but it was bright outside, and the view below was amazing. i took as many pictures of the passing islands as i could. the clouds were bright white and fluffy against the bright blue sky. i love views like that. contrasted with the luscious green foliage of the islands below, it was just a perfect sight to see.
things started looking up in Calbayog. the aunt we stayed with is the sister of my mom’s sister’s husband. so they’re not blood-related, but they treated us as such. i got to meet some more of my mom’s cousins, lots of family friends who still live in town, and once again, they might as well force-fed me more food. so much food. i’m sure i’ve gained more than few on this trip.
i think one of my aunt’s friends kept hitting on me. i wasn’t sure. but i can hear my name dropped in the middle of conversations in Visayan (a dialect of their region). i’m pretty used to it. it’s what i experienced growing up. hearing my name being thrown around and not really knowing what they’re talking about. by the tone and some of the context with the few words i know, i can get the general feeling of what they’re talking about. and the reason why i suspect i was being hit on (jokingly of course) is because they’ve told me she was my “stalker” and i can hear some english dropped in. they kept asking me if i was okay and then telling me to sit down. (they didn’t like it when i was standing up for some reason.) at one point they jokingly said for me to sit on that woman’s lap. and of course everything is followed by laughter.
slightly awkward comfort levels aside, everyone was really friendly to me. they all knew my mom and were interested to know that i was her son. my uncle took me around Calbayog. we went to a couple beaches and spent some time in the market. Samar (the island Calbayog is located in) had a cultural center which was pretty cool. my aunt works there and they let choose a bracelet souvenir.
it’s amazing how poor Calbayog is. Houses ranged anywhere from shacks, to huts, to full-on houses. there really is no “nice” neighborhood, where all the houses are plush and then you cross the street into a neighborhood of shacks and huts. they’re just all mixed together. the streets are small, and littered with motorbikes, tricycles, and vehicles. even though the house we were staying at didn’t have hot running water, and the streets were sometimes paved, and you can definitely say that Calbayog is less of a tourist spot than say, Cebu, i think i felt more comfortable there. i guess i was just in awe with the area because it’s where my mom and my family comes from. this is where they grew up. and i was more interested in knowing about this place than any other areas of the Philippines.
we were scheduled to leave the morning of my birthday, July 4th. so they gathered a bunch of people together and had a party for me the night before. i’m sure that it was more for the fact that my mom and my aunt and i were visiting from out of town. but they had a cake for me and went all out with food, drinks, and karaoke (or videoke as they call it there). lots of people showed up. my aunt kept feeding me tequila shots between the brandy and coke i was drinking. before i knew it, i was giving a speech thanking my mom for giving birth to me, singing tagalog songs on the Videoke, and dancing with everyone. i definitely kept my birthday tradition of drunken craziness and splitting headaches in the morning.
things were definitely looking up on this trip. the time i spent in Calbayog was just amazing. i took lots of pictures of the scenery. everything seems so underdeveloped, so untouched. and at the same time, you can definitely see an industrial and commercial influence. i’ve noticed that everywhere in the philippines has a Jollibee, a McDonald’s type fast-food restaurant that caters with some filipino cuisine. Calbayog even had one. but i was more interested in the land around the city.
i wish we had more time. there’s just so much more to Samar to explore. one of the beaches we went to used to have a floating hut out in the water. one of the only memories i have of the philippines when i was little, was of that hut. i remember my aunts and uncles would swim out to it, where they would drink and hang out. i really wanted to go, but i was afraid of the water and didn’t know how to swim then. so one of my uncles tried to carry me, but i started crying. then i remember being really sad that i could join everyone else up on that hut. sadly, a typhoon destroyed that hut recently. i was really hoping to finally get the chance to swim out to it.
i spent most of my birthday being hungover and waiting at the airport in Calbayog. the airport there is so small that it only opens up when a plane is scheduled to land. there was only one flight that morning: ours. i’d say the group was slightly bigger this time around, heading back to Manila. but it was still relatively small and on the same small plane. the moment we took off, the airport shut down.
we arrived back in manila, and i wasn’t feeling all that well. i tried to nap in the room, but more distant cousins came over for another little party for me there. i had more cake, more food, some ice cream, and started not feeling even more well. my family here keeps insisting on that i eat more. even when i know i’m full, i try to eat a little bit of everything to satisfy them. it’s just hard, because i’m not really used to eating this much. it’s not that the food’s bad, it’s just so much of it. it’s a little frustrating. because i really don’t want to eat anymore, and i’m basically being force-fed all this rice and noodles and fried foods. it can be a little upsetting to my stomach.
we spent some time yesterday on this resort farm in the mountains. the place was beautiful. it had pools and palm trees and huts and houses. it was carved out of the side of this mountain. all farmed to look beautiful. i went swimming, ate some more, and tried to nap on a hut up the hillside. to be honest, i was a little bored out of my mind. i did all the swimming i cared to do, i tried to relax, but couldn’t. i think i started getting cranky from the indigestion i started to have, which worsened on the four hour drive home. (it was really a two hour ride, but we hit major traffic on the way home.) i think i was ready to call it quits on the philippines. my flight the next morning to tokyo couldn’t come quick enough.
it’s not that i’m not thankful for this trip. everyone’s been so nice and accommodating, it was great. i got to try lots of new food and see lots of new places. i have a wealth of great photos. the philippines, with it’s ups and downs, is just an amazing place. one of these days i’d like to come back when i have some money and stay at one of the really nice resorts. see some more beaches with crystal clear shores. or i can totally see myself coming back with my mom again and visiting family. i just think if i do, i’d want a friend to come along with me. i can only take so much coddling from my mom and family. i still feel like i’m being treated like such a child sometimes.
i’m on the plane now, headed towards tokyo. i’m not sure what to expect there. but it’s the last leg of my trip before finally heading home. i’m sort of anxious to be home again and get back to my life there. i’m not sure how much i’m ready to get back to work, but the sooner i start getting back to a normal life, the better i think i’ll feel. i’ve been sort of having nightmares about coming back to work and everything’s changed so much that i can no longer do my job. or coming back to friends and my apartment and finding that everything’s changed. it’s weird, i’m only gone for two weeks, but it just feels like so much longer. i’m sure i’m only going through these anxieties because i really don’ t travel like this that often. i know everything will be fine. i just need to enjoy this last part of my trip as much as i can, which i’m sure i will.
to be concluded in part five.
