Philippines and South Korea

Pictures and narratives from my trip to the Philippines with a quick stop in South Korea

Click a photo for a larger view.

In 2017 I posted a picture of a large cube on Facebook as a clue as to where I was located on my birthday.  I did not end up posting this picture on Facebook as I had trouble maintaining a VPN connection while in the Philippines - but my intent was to post a picture of another cube on my birthday.  So - here is the cube.  :-)  

View of the countryside in Cebu

There are coconut trees everywhere. 

They are so abundant that I cannot imagine a person paying for a coconut if they live outside of the city.

The Chocolate Hills in Bohol

There are 214 steps that take you up to a viewing platform at the Chocolate Hills near Carmen, Bohol.

Bats in Bohol.   These are one of the world's largest species of bats. 

They are known as giant golden-crowned flying fox or golden-capped fruit bat.

I have only seen one other bat in my life that came anywhere near the size of these bats.

This is on the road near Clarin, Bohol. 

There is a bit of history surrounding this checkpoint.

Tumalog Falls near Oslob, Cebu.

This lady was cleaning the pool of water at the bottom of Tumalog Falls. 

She started laughing when I told her I wanted to take her picture.

People where extraordinarily friendly and had a great sense of humor.

Magellan's Cross.

The original cross planted by Ferdinand Magellan on April 21, 1521 is encased in this cross.

Cannon at Fort San Pedro

Snacks are referred to as "delicacies".   Really.

This is at Taboan Public Market.

I went on a self-guided foot tour of Cebu City and came across this market.  There were no other foreigners at this market and definitely no westerners.  I got a lot of looks here - but people were friendly and had big smiles for the camera.

Taboan Public Market

Dried fish is a big deal in the Philippines.

I was impressed by the symmetry of how this lady arranged the dried fish.

Taboan Public Market

One of the meat counters at Taboan Public Market.

Taboan Public Market.

The influence of Spain and the Catholic Church is very apparent in the Philippines.

Many towns celebrate "Fiesta" to honor their patron saint.

There were road closures and people and vendors in the streets of some of the towns I passed through - all celebrating their Fiesta.

Simala Church

Prayer candles in Simala Church.

Each color represents a different symbol/meaning.

(Red is love, Green is prosperity, White is purity, Gold is healing....)

Sunrise on the Bohol Sea near Oslob.

Whale shark feeding at the surface.

One of the giant hands at Sirao Garden

Temple of Leah near Cebu City.

This was built by a private citizen as a tribute to his wife of 53 years.

There are several American retail stores and franchises in the Philippines.

This is truly the one and only sign that I saw in the Philippines that was not in English.

In case you are wondering....  This sign is at a pay toilet (aka comfort room).  Three (3) pesos if you need to go pee and five (5) pesos if you need to ....  defecate.  The literal translation if the sign is urine and "poop".   I did not have to ask.  It was strangely self explanatory. 

South Korea

This is inside the airport at Incheon 

This is an extremely modern airport.  Well organized and clean with cultural exhibits and demonstrations.   If you are on a long layover, there is a FREE tour that you can take from the airport to a number of attractions in the Seoul / Incheon area.  It was raining while I was there, so I took a tour that included a cave.  :-)

Housing

Inside Gwangmyeong Cave.  

This is a former mining cave that was been turned into an underground theme park.

It was Korea's Independence Day (August 15) on the day that I visited, so many people were off work and the cave was busy.

Lots of umbrella's.  The tour guide was a bit surprised that I declined to use an umbrella. 

I explained to him that I live in a desert climate and it rarely rains.  The rain felt good.