Puerto Princesa and Back in Manila - Last couple of Days in the Philippines

Puerto Princesa is the door to that paradise that is Palawan. You often enter the island by its airport and you leave by this airport. And like a door the (almost) only point of it is to go through it. In that sense Puerto Princesa feels pretty much like door to me. No much to do or see in that small city. After 4 days in El Nido it takes a LOT to amaze oneself and Jeroen and I are at this point only looking forward to head back to Manila.

A nice cathedral, a WWII memorial, a nice (and empty) river side walk are among the things we saw in our hours spent there. Let’s not forget the mall here. We spent lunch time and I shopped in that local mall… This is probably the most Filipino experience we have. It seems like they love malls.

Another Filipino experience for me was to play some basketball with local kids (thanks for that amazing photo of live action Jeroen!). It was real nice to play with locals and I was probably happier than they were. We played 2x2 for a short time. It took just seconds before I was sweating like a pig while these kids looked fresh, as if it was not 30 degrees but 15 and there were having a walk in the park. Basketball is the national sport and I am glad I had that moment for myself.

Playing some hoops with local kids. Thanks Jeroen for the awesome picture.

We returned to Manila that night where we shared a succulent diner and drinks with Ronnie. Across the road we found ourselves dragged into the Ring Side, a place where we were to witness midget wrestling, midget boxing and midget dancing. Curiosity is bad but you have to sometimes feed it. This is all I am going to say about that business. I will rather encourage you to go see it for yourself and make yourself your own opinion. I preferred the bar we went to next - the rooftop bar of the Z Hostel.

After a few drinks it was the sad moment when I part ways with Jeroen and Andres.

They would both return to Switzerland.

Here is a picture of my Swiss gang in Chocolate Hills. Travelling will not be exactly the same without you guys. I am very thankful having your company for this time.

For now I will follow my adventure alone! 

My last day in Manila was cultural as I went on to discover the Intramuros part of Manila and mostly the Fort Santiago. This is a pivotal place in the history of the Philippines as it witness the execution of José Rizal a key person in the fight for this country's independence.

Dr Rizal is here portrayed in his cell the day he was executed.

A path of golden foot print pave his last walk toward his death by the Spanish colons. 

Paying tribute to this hero was a nice way to say good bye to this amazing country and the best host there possibly is over there: Ronnie. Thank you buddy, hopefully I can be as much of a good host when you visit Europe next time around.

Manila - 3 days of rest and visits of the local hospital

I got to Manila on the 27th, middle of the afternoon... My first concern was not to find out where was the best place to go for a run but to find a medical center.

Jeroen had arrange for us to stay at a Filipino couch surfing friend he met 8 years back on the great wall of China!!! Ronnie, our guest, was so kind to help me out finding an hospital that would suit my needs. I proceed to go to the Makati Medical Center straight from the airport based on his feedback.

Philippines is having a lot of stereotypes to its name and is unfortunately having a very bad reputation in the western world I come from. Also Manila is one of the most chaotic places I have been to. The traffic is insane and at first the city was scary to me.

All these ideas were chattered facing the infinite kindness of its people. OMG they are nice people, especially towards me, standing out of the crowd with my bandages. Walking in the street of the capital so many people have been asking me if I was ok or if I needed help.

The nurses in the Medical Center have been amazing to me. By the second day, they would almost all know my name and welcoming me with the warmest smile. I would go for 4 visits in a row to the same medical center.

Besides that, our stay in Manila was very restful to us, especially to me. I would mostly stay in the residence where Ronnie lived. It had a bar/restaurant and 2 swimming pools but our favorite spot was definitely the roof deck located at the 42nd floor. The view from there is amazing. From Ronnie's flat on the 34th floor it was not too bad either.

This used to be a power plant, this is now a mall. 

On our last night, we had a great couch surfing party at his place! It was nice and fun to hang out with locals. Definitely one to remember.

Picture of a Polaroid taken during the couch surfing party :)

After my last visit in the hospital in the early morning of the 30th, it was time to go to the airport again. Jeroen had plan for us to spend New Year Eve on Boracay, a very small island in the center of the country.

Bye Bye Manila - This is Makati from the roof deck of Ronnie's residence.