Uncertainty, trusting in faith, moving forward one step at a time.
So amazingly the bus to bus to plane to taxi to port to ferry to motorbike to hotel went off without a hitch. After reaching Cebu, I quickly met up with Carlos and after a wait of a few hours we boarded a fast craft ferry to Bohol. It was a long day but we ended up in a place called "The Chill Out Resort" in Panglao. It was a strange feeling, being driven down the road in a motorbike without the faintest clue where I would lay my head. The feeling reminded me of travels across Europe so many years ago, with only the "Lets Go Europe" book as a reference. Unfortunately, this time I had forgotten to pack my Lonely Planet Guide to the Philippines, so we were even more blind. Luckily, I was with Carlos who knew the language, anyway!
The Chill Out was a nice place, with friendly people. The owner was french and obviously had an artistic touch. The place was a 10 minute walk to Alona Beach and we would have stayed if our path to the beach did not cross thru the Alona Beach Tropical Resort!
The "Tropical" was paradise! Right on the beach, it was a true resort with beachfront bar and restaurant, all amenities, and situated in what could only be described as a tropical garden. So, I just had to make the jump from, $10/night to $60. It was well worth it! Alona Beach is primarily European tourist destination. I heard no 'americano' (0), but did run across Russian, German, French, Dutch, Aussie, Japanese, Korean, Chinese to name a few.
Carlos needed to move on to Mindinao, so after some fun snorkeling, he left and I became a lone traveller. But, I wouldn't be alone for long! I knew that Steve, another PCRV in my group was living around 3 hours away, and I had made contact in the hopes that we could meet up. Well, as luck would have it, the party was just about to start! As it turned out, there happened to be another friend from out group, Jessee, who just happened to be touring Bohol at the same time as I! And he was traveling with yet one more PCRV! So, the US Peace Corps invaded Alona Beach Tropical!
Before long we were swimming and having nice happy hour celebration on the beach. Rum and Mango juice flowed and we laughed and laughed, sharing our experiences in the Philippines. Next, God gave us a gift. There we were, the four of us looking out over the ocean.. and then the largest, longest and slowest moving shooting star any of us had ever seen crossed the sky. We laughed afterward because it was so bright.. and so slow moving that we actually had time to comment on it before it disappeared. Something like, "hey, look a that... .wow... that it a beautiful shooting star! Amazing!!!" And then, darkness.
A superb grilled fish dinner came next (freshly caught grouper and the largest prawns I have ever seen in my life). Then, the big moment - I forgot to mention that Steve's last name is Balut.. can you imagine the irony in that?!! If you don't know what Balut is, I will spare you the trouble of looking it up... its a fertilized, partially developed duck egg and it is quite the delicacy here in this part of the world. Well, I have sworn off the blood soup and the dog and the chicken head and the lizard and the frog and the snake.... here I was with Steve Balut and well... since non of us had tried it, we felt that we just had to... Luckily, it was dark because the hardest part of eating balut is looking at it before you eat it, but eat it we did! "4 balut, please!" And it wasn't that bad after all!
The next morning Jesse and his friend had to move on. Steven stayed and we had a great time essentially doing nothing but talk and swim. Oh, and we got massages situated outside overlooking the sea. Steve has a lot to share not only because he's probably one of the brightest guys I've met in a long time. An architect by trade, Steve is in the midst of his 4th service with the Peace Corps and one of them was in Antigua, the tiny island where Jean and I served for two years! I tell you, what are the odds of that???? Steve has travelled extensively throughout the world and has many fabulous stories to tell! But lo, he had to go and then... then I truly was alone in a far off exotic place.
The best part of the trip behind me, I soon packed and made my way back... first to the port, then by ferry to Cebu. Once in Cebu, I felt rather lost. Having no map and no clue where I would sleep, I did a quick stroll about the area surrounding the harbor. Nothing.... A couple of taxi drivers had approached me and asked if I wanted a ride to Lapu Lapu... I declined but I figured if they thought I was heading there, well, maybe that was a sign?! So, I asked around and before long, had jumped a ferry and was on my way to Lapu Lapu. The ferry was clearly a good choice because by taxi it would have cost over 500 peso I am sure.. but by ferry it was only 20! It sounded exotic but what would Lapu Lapu actually look like???
I got there.. walked a while.. sweated a bunch and finally found a tricycle and a driver who knew just a little english... and when I asked about a resort.. he promised me he would help me find one. He took me to a few places and I finally ended up on some coastline, at an overpriced resort. I quickly learned that Lapu Lapu is a tourist destination for Koreans... funny how different areas attract different nationalities. My resort had passed its prime. There was no beach, but its source of recreation was watersport. If you wanted, you could jump a boat to island hop, jet ski, or dive. I had spent too much on the room, so I decided to eat a nice meal and crash early. But then, a sad thing happened.
I was approached by a lovely young filipina after dinner on my way back to my room. Her english was good, she had the most beautiful almond eyes, and she was desperate. She asked me if she could sleep with me for 500ps (around $10). She was 21 and had 4 children. Obviously, she had no man to take care of her and her children. He sister was ill and she needed the money to help pay for medicine. It is hard for me to explain my emotion... but I felt so bad for her. It was too easy to see that she understood that she was humiliating herself by asking me for this. And I also understand the importance of character and honor in this culture. She was crying... authentic tears. I would have just given her the money.. honestly, if I had money to spare, but as it happened I had calculated exactly what I needed to get back to Lagonoy and there was little to spare. I'm no sucker, and I have been asked for money a bunch since Ive gotten here... but this woman touched me in an odd way. In the end, I gave her 200ps and vowed that I would just not eat the next day to make up for the cost of this donation. She thanked me, still crying.. It was an utterly surreal experience. We parted then, on different paths. I had no sex. I slept alone and I felt vacant; as if I had been visited by a ghost. I still do.
Next morning started the long haul back to Lagonoy: Taxi to airport to plane to taxi to bus to bus. All told about 12 hours and I was back home in Lagonoy by around 10:30. I am back here now in my favorite spot in the mayors office... sweating and typing and typing and sweating. I just ate for the first time in over 36 hours - a donut.
Each administrative office lines up in single file as a team. You can see that in the pics. Today, was a special day! For one, a Catholic mass immediately followed the flag raising (this happens on the first Monday of every month). Second, the Mayor was in attendance and he stood to announce that Year End Performance Based Bonuses were on their way for all permanent employees! Cheers went up in the crowd (not caught on video). While good news for some, others appeared sad.... remember that there is a cadre of 'employee' here who loyally come to work daily but who don't get paid. They are the "contract" employees (vs. the permanent employee). For them, the money ran out at the end of August. So, they stay on... with no better options... knowing that in January there will be a new budget. And so it goes.... 
