The first holiday with my boyfriend that required a plane, the first time I celebrated Christmas and New Years away from family, the first time I visited Philippines.
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| Philippines 2015 |
Saturday 19th December 2015
We left for our flight around noon, the journey to the airport was smooth and there was no issues going to Heathrow. We had time to spare. Once we checked in our bags, we did some shopping at duty free and also had some time to eat before our flight. I was excited as it was the first time I was going away with my boyfriend by plane and also because the last few months have been all about work and study. This was finally the time for me to enjoy myself before term 2. It didn't take too long forgetting about work, I managed to slip into the relax mode quite easily, and it felt good. The plane we took was KLM, it was a really nice flight. The first flight was to Amsterdam with a short stopover, almost unnoticeable. It was quick and easy and hassle free. We soon boarded our long haul flight which headed to Taipei. The flight time was 11 hours. I am usually quite good with long haul flights and I actually don't mind them. This KLM flight was no different. I was surprised it had a USB charger on the screen which was handy. I watched a few films and took a nap, food on board was ok. Once we reached Taipei we had to get off the plane, so they could clean up and refuel. This was a hassle. It was the same plane we re-boarded back but we had to take all our luggage and go through security checks again. I found this a bit of a time waster but I suppose it gave some time to move around and use the toilet. I felt quite tired by this point but still surviving.
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| Bedtime |
Sunday 20th December 2015
We finally arrived in Manila. We landed in the evening and was greeted by my boyfriends cousin and girlfriend, Kev and Arnie. Coming out from the airport was a crowd of people, it was probably the most people I have seen awaiting arrivals at an airport all clustered together. It had hit me, I had arrived in the Philippines. We headed back to their condo, aka their apartment and unloaded our luggage. They showed us around Manila and we headed to the shopping mall for some food. We had some Ramen noodles which was quite nice and enough. The portion was just a little too much for me. After dinner, we headed back to their condo whilst passing the malls and the 'safer' areas on Manila. We headed back to the condo and went right to the top of the building to see the view. It was breath taking! It was getting late and despite the time difference, I managed to sleep extremely well on the first night.
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Sky view
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Monday 21st December 2015
I woke up in Manila! It was strange to wake up in December to sunny skies and humid weather. For me, it wasn't too humid so I didn't mind this much, it was quite sunny and was told it had rained the last few days. Lucky! Today my boyfriends brother and wife was due to arrive. We headed out for some lunch at a place called Yellow Cab pizza which was really good. I really enjoyed the pizza. After lunch, we headed back to the condo. We had the opportunity to go out to do some shopping and exploring while we waited for the arrival of the my boyfriends brother and wife but we just chilled out in the condo and did nothing much, strangely I didn't feel bored, in fact it felt quite nice just to chill. Soon, in the evening they arrived. We all gathered at the Condo while waiting for my boyfriends mum to come by to Manila with the van that was going to take us to their house. It was not too long after when my boyfriends mum arrived, we went to eat some dinner and then headed off to Bantangas. It was around 2/3 hour drive. Everyone took a nap in the car. After a long drive, we arrived at my boyfriends house, it was a lovely massive house! It was late so we unpacked, showered and headed to bed!
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| Waking up to Manila |
Tuesday 22nd December 2015
I woke up feeling good. We headed to a place called Villa Escudero, where we had lunch under a waterfall. It was a really nice little place where we got to visit a museum and just be tourists. We paddled some raft boat made from bamboo which was quite fun. In the evening, there was a party we attended which had some comedians and some music and food. It was a lovely experience despite not understanding Tagalog.
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| Waterfall |
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| Boat time |
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| Museum |
Wednesday 23rd December 2015
An early start today. We all had to be ready extremely early so we could climb the Taal Volcano as the later it got, the hotter it was. It was already quite tough doing this in the heat but it was really good fun. It was quite challenging but I didn't think it was as challenging as Snowdon, probably because it wasn't so long. It was good fun, and a good work out. We got back to the house for a short while and chilled for a bit, we then headed to Sky Ranch which was a fairground with rides. I did not realise it would be so cold! A few of us went on the boat ride that swings from side to side, again, it was great fun. I am not so afraid of rollercoasters so this was really enjoyable for me. We headed out of Sky Ranch and went to a nearby restaurant, I had a burger from a place called Army Navy and it was so tasty! It had been a physically tiring day but a much enjoyed one. Great fun!
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| Volcano |
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| Sunset |
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| Sky Ranch |
Thursday 24th December 2015
Christmas Eve and there was lots of preparation for the party later in the evening. There was huge amounts of food and a super duper loud karaoke machine which was hired. It was quite a common thing for people to karaoke extremely loud where you could literally hear it from the surrounding neighbourhoods. We had lots of food and drink and also watched the entertainment that led into the night. We karaoke'd until the morning about 3am where we finally headed to bed. It was such a lovely way to spend my Christmas and one I had never experienced before.
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| Food |
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| Singing |
Friday 25th December 2015
Christmas Day! Today was going to be a more relaxed day. We went to visit some of my boyfriend's family and by this time there was so many faces and names I was just going along with it. More food and more relaxing.
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| Fresh Coconut |
Saturday 26th December 2015
2am we all had to be awake and ready to go! We had to catch a flight to Cebu from Manila. Everyone was tired because it was so early, including myself but I was excited. The journey was long. When we arrived in Cebu, there was a van which took us to the resort, which took another 2 hours. It was tiring all the travelling and moving around and as we approached the resort, I was apprehensive as all I saw was, what I can only describe as 'shacks'. I was not sure what to expect and did not feel ready for what was to come. But as we moved further along, it was a nice little private area which we was staying at. It was quiet and peaceful and very calm. The view of the sea was very relaxing. The people seemed very welcoming, and it was just a really nice retreat. We arrived around late morning/early afternoon so we had time to do some snorkelling and settling in. There was hammocks, darts and a pool table too and some relaxing little huts.
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| Private resort |
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| Starfish |
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| Sunset kiss |
Sunday 27th December 2015
Today was the day for some canyoneering. I briefly watched a video before I came out to see what to expect but I didn't expect it to be that much fun and as scary at the same time. It was probably one of the most exhilarating things I have done to date. We sat on a motorbike to the place and signed a lot of documents. Once at the canyoneering site, we had two guides who took us. They were really good and friendly. Other groups were there too and even children around 6 years old. We was faced with our first jump not long after we arrived. There was a choice of a shorter jump, although to me, it didn't seem that much shorter and also it looked closer between the rocks, so I opted for the bigger jump. We all had life vests and helmets so I was not too scared about drowning. The first jump was fine, I didn't think much and just leapt into the air and into the water. It was so fun and of course I screamed. It was like that throughout the canyoneering with jumps and slides and pit stops for photos. It was just a great experience and I would definitely recommend it. After the long day, we ended up with a filipino massage, which bloody hurt. It was a full body massage which meant expose front and back.. I did not expect that. But it was good. The areas that needed a massage felt good and the areas that didn't, bruised. We chilled, drank and played cards. It was a good day.
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| View from the bed |
Monday 28th December 2015
It was the last day in Cebu. It had been so fun. We spend the last part of the morning at the White beach. Some of us went to snorkel whereas I didn't want to get wet because we had to leave soon. So I stayed on the beach with my boyfriend. It was only for a couple of hours but felt enough. We headed back to pack all our things and then headed back to the airport for Manila. Unfortunately, the plane was delayed which added to the journey time! We ended up heading back to Manila quite late. We met up with my boyfriends eldest brother and sister who arrived today from London. We all headed out to eat some dinner and stayed at the Bellagio. It was someones aparment that was found on air bnb and was a really nice apartment.
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| Dinner time |
Tuesday 29th December 2015
We headed to Fort Santiago. It was time to learn some history and culture side of Philippines. It was change from the physical activity and still really enjoyable. This took most of the day. For lunch, we had Jollibee, it was my first time at this infamous restaurant and I really enjoyed it! The chicken was so good! After our day of learning, all of us went for a relaxing manicure and pedicure! It was so funny. It was my first time doing my nails and although it wasn't the best, the experience and staff were rather funny. In the evening we went to see some light show which was pretty cool too.
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| Fort Santiago |
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| <3 |
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| Jollibee |
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| Manicure and Pedicure |
Wednesday 30th December 2015
We checked out of our stay in Manila and then headed for some brunch. I decided to go for a salad which was nice, until it got a bit dry. I felt I needed something more healthier as the past few days have been heavy foods. We headed back to Bantangas where we chilled for a bit. In the evening, there was a concert nearby which we planned to go. I didn't mind checking it out and even though my boyfriend was sleeping and say he didn't want to go, I decided to go with the others. Later on, my boyfriend joined us. I was surprised he came out again but it was nice. We didn't stay too long at the concert and headed back home.
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| Salad |
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| Outdoor concert |
Thursday 31st December 2015
New years eve was mainly just chilling in the house and more singing and karaoke-ing which was quite fun. In the evening, we all gathered together in the front yard and celebrating the new year. It was different. Very different. It was strange not to see the London eye or even hear about it.
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| Happy new year 2016 |
Friday 1st January 2016
We visited the biggest catholic church in Asia as our last touristy stop for the trip. Which was a nice round off. We did a spot of shopping at a supermarket. My boyfriends brother and wife was leaving today. I did most of my packing when I got back so I wasn't too rushed tomorrow. I could not believe it had already been 2 weeks and it was soon back to reality for me.
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| Fish |
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| View |
Saturday 2nd January 2016
The last day in Philippines. I packed everything and it had been a great holiday and had gone by so quickly yet we did so much. It was nice. Although, my mood was a little dampened the holiday had been a really good one. Everyone was so nice and welcoming, so friendly and it was exactly what I needed. The flight was crazy long! Until next time Philippines.
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| Food before boarding |
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| Goodbye Philippines |
