The return to civilisation could not be more abrupt. From the back of beyond to never sleeping Manila, where we arrived at four in the night. With nowhere else to go, we stranded at a McDonalds, open 24 hours a day, and for once were glad about a standardized and safe Egg McMuffin. This breakfast also was a farewell meal: Gaultier and Olivier flew back to Taiwan to study, Fleur and Fanny left for Boracay, and the six of us from NTU headed, one way or another, to Malapasqua Island.
Patrick, Chris and Gregor were energetic enough to pay a visit to Makati, Manila’s business district, during the morning hours. As for Quentin, Camille and me, we took a cab to the domestic airport. I bought a ticket there to fly to Cebu and back. The others already had tickets to Taglibaran (150km south of Cebu). They planned to see the famous Chocolate Hills before coming to Malapasqua. I wanted to take the more direct way in order to enjoy the beach a bit longer and travel a bit less.
Travelling less also meant travelling alone, a bit boring but comfortable, and I had no problems. After the plane landed in Cebu, I joined a young Filipino who had just returned from an eight-month cruise throught the Carribean Islands. He had worked on the ship, but could leave it during some of the stops, so he had a couple of magnificient pictures to show. We took the a cab together that brought him home and dropped me off at Cebu’s northern bus terminal. Isn’t it ironic that non-aircon busses are not only much cheaper, but also more comfortable than some of their freezing counterparts? Leaving Cebu, it was already getting dark, but there was enough light for a picture of a graffitti which made me think:
In my dreams, I fly…
It looks like, for some Filipinos, Singapore is the dream city, the way out of poverty maybe… whereas for me, I come to the Philippines for the holidays, the beaches and the sights?
Around ten o’clock, the bus arrived in Maya Pagay, the gateway village to Malapasqua. At that time, there were no more boats going to the Island, so I stayed overnight in the Abba Lodge. This was a great thing for two reasons: I met Patrique and Mike, two travellers from France and Canada, respectively, and we had plenty of time to next day to find the best place to stay in Malapasqua. But that is another story, to be told in another post.