China Romance

Philippines and other Asian Countries => Your trip to Asia => Topic started by: Martin on May 13, 2014, 06:15:52 pm

Title: #5
Post by: Martin on May 13, 2014, 06:15:52 pm
Trip number 5 to the Republic of the Philippines is just two months away. I am pretty excited to be going to see my wife. A year is too long to be apart!  I will try to update regularly here.
Title: Re: #5
Post by: Robertt S on June 22, 2014, 07:39:30 pm
I hope you have plenty of stories and pictures to post when you return. :)
Title: Re: #5
Post by: RobertBfrom aust on June 25, 2014, 11:29:39 am
Enjoy your trip again Martin , the Philippines in most areas is going ahead in leaps and bounds , I talk to there most days of the week , and a lot of the call centres are now relocating from India to there as finally they have worked out that they speak English that Australians can understand , ha ha ,
Do not know where you are heading to , but in Davao there are large shopping malls appearing it seems like every few months and a huge amount of general building going on , have a safe trip , it is a long way from Canada , but not to far from our shores , regards Robert and Sujuan .
Title: Re: #5
Post by: Martin on June 25, 2014, 11:47:34 am
I fly into Davao then have to drive about and hour and a half north.
Title: Re: #5
Post by: Rhonald on June 25, 2014, 04:21:10 pm
have to drive about and hour and a half north.

Driving North - a direction of travel all Canadians are familiar with. At least, the further North you trek on this trip, there will not be a corresponding increase in seeing snow!
Title: Re: #5
Post by: RobertBfrom aust on June 26, 2014, 10:53:11 am
Rhonald , truth is he is probably heading North To Alaska , ha ha , nah Martin I wish you well and I do not think you are the only one heading that way , by reading FB , regards Sujuan and Robert .
PS I am not allowed to even go for a well earned holiday there , cannot imagine why .
Title: Re: #5
Post by: Martin on July 26, 2014, 06:29:05 pm
I am less than 48 hours away from going on this trip.  I am quite excited to be going, since it has been nearly a year since I was there last.  This trip will be fun, and as an added bonus, I will be meeting up with a former member...Bee964 (AKA David).  He will be meeting up with me, and bring his girlfriend and his new baby.  I haven't seen him in quite awhile.  He was part of the Toronto brotherhood lunches when we were having them a few years back.

I will try to keep you all posted here as to how things are going over there.

Martin
Title: Re: #5
Post by: Robertt S on July 26, 2014, 08:04:40 pm
Congrats, hope you have a safe and enjoyable flight. I do hope you and Dave start filling up the Philippine boards that were added.
Title: Re: #5
Post by: Martin on July 28, 2014, 11:31:54 pm
First leg of the journey has gone well. I flew from Edmonton to San Francisco. The only strange thing is having to deal with US Customs agents in Canada. I guess the new thing is to clear customs before you even leave. Just hard to accept their arrogant attitude when I am in my own country. Oh well, I guess it's the price one must pay to leave Canada.

Right now, I am in San Francisco waiting to board Philippine Airlines to Manila. It's been a long wait, and I am pretty happy and excited that this trip has finally started.
Title: Re: #5
Post by: Martin on July 30, 2014, 02:07:50 pm
Well, I made it safe and sound. Whenever I step out of the airport, I am always taken back by the humidity. For some reason, I always forget that it exists. But I am happy to finally arrive at my destination. For the most part, the trip went well. There was a delay in Manila. The 9 am flight to Davao was cancelled and everyone on the flight was moved to the noon flight. I domt think many people were booked on the 9 am, so I guess they decided to change our flight on us. It only appeared to be about a dozen passengers waiting at the gate at 8:30, when we were scheduled to board. So we got moved to 12, which didn't actually get off the ground until 1 in the afternoon. A little frustrating, since my first day here was pretty well shot.  But, I am happy to be here, and with those that I love. In the end, the delays really don't matter.
Title: Re: #5
Post by: Willy The Londoner on July 30, 2014, 09:58:41 pm
Hope the rest of the trip goes well.  Just seen a TV programme about an American who marriage a Phillipino and they live on an island in the jungle with their three kids, it is a really remote place. He sleeps with a machete by his bed.  I guess you will be somewhere a little more modern.

Willy

Title: Re: #5
Post by: Rhonald on July 31, 2014, 09:29:15 pm
Martin doesn't use a machete, he uses a Hockey Stick!!
Title: Re: #5
Post by: Martin on August 03, 2014, 07:49:59 pm
Willy...much more advanced...we don't sleep with a machete...just an AK47. Hahaha
Title: Re: #5
Post by: Willy The Londoner on August 03, 2014, 10:00:36 pm
Willy...much more advanced...we don't sleep with a machete...just an AK47. Hahaha

Machete, Hockey Stick, AK47. Think I prefer my choice - my wife. ;)

Willy
Title: Re: #5
Post by: Martin on August 13, 2014, 06:06:21 am
Life is good here in the southern Philippines, albeit quite hot for my colder climate disposition. This past weekend, we went to a nice resort on Samal Island, where we relaxed quite a bit, did some swimming, tried scuba diving for the first time, and had a romantic 2nd anniversary dinner on the beach.

Dave (Bee) is flying in from Manila tomorrow with his lady and their son. Gonna spend a few days with them. I haven't seen Dave in 2 years, so it will be nice to catch up with him.
Title: Re: #5
Post by: RobertBfrom aust on August 20, 2014, 11:01:55 am
Martin , liked your photos with Dave , you seem to both be enjoying yourselves., very laid back ha ha . Enjoy the rest of your hols , regards Sujuan and Robert .
Title: Re: #5
Post by: shaun on August 20, 2014, 11:20:44 am
Same here Martin.  I have been enjoying what little you've posted.  Hint Hint.   But I have a more important burning question for you.  Since you're one of those guys that says a... a lot.  When are you going to join up with Ice Road Truckers so that we can watch you on TV?   I understand that the Polar Bear and Alex are looking for newbies.
Title: Re: #5
Post by: Martin on August 21, 2014, 07:28:26 pm
Hahaha...I don't think I am crazy enough to drive on a frozen lake. Our highways up north are like ice roads...after it snows, they are sheets of ice for several days, with vehicles driving in excess of 100 km/h (that's around 60 mp/h for those from that small country south of Canada).

Things here have been going well. Dave and Jocelyn along with their new baby stopped by last week, and visited us for a few days. We took Dave to San Isidro, a small community near where I am here...it's a very tropical area...lots of coconut trees, fruit trees of different varieties, pretty much a jungle. Not much wild life there...apparently there are anaconda snakes, but they are small...they don't live long enough to get too big...also some poisonous spiders, but I have never seen any.

Introduced Dave to durian. He tried a small nibble, but he didn't take to the fruit. Me, I enjoy it. We spent our last day with him at a resort on Samal Island, very close to Davao. Lots of beer, and a swim in the ocean around 11 pm...we had a blast. There were spot lights pointed at the water, so no worries about not being able to see.

He returned to Manila on Sunday with his family, and has since returned to Canada. His time here is done for now. Unfortunately, my time here is also quickly coming to an end. Soon time to start planning the next trip. Leaving, as most of you here know, is never an easy thing.