May 3-7,2016

We lived like royalty in Cebu. Due to Alan’s connections and the generosity of his aunt, we were able to stay at his aunt’s guesthouse for free. This guesthouse was unlike anything you’d imagine. It was 7 stories tall and each floor pretty much served as a separate apartment. To top things off, Alan’s aunt was away in London so we had her personal driver throughout our entire stay there. It came complete with maids who tidied up the room and a laundry maid who did our laundry. Un-freakin-real.

Side note: When we first arrived in the Philippines, I was somewhat shocked that people regularly hire others for their services (laundry, massages, cleaning, driving, etc.) In the US, this is a luxury that only the wealthiest are entitled to, and it made me uncomfortable to be on the receiving end. I felt like having someone else do your dirty work automatically divides people into classes and I didn’t want to come off an entitled prissy American. While trying to justify my need to have someone drive me around and wash my clothes, I realized that it’s not as bad as I originally thought. People aren’t rich enough to own a laudrymat here so instead of charging you to use their washers, they do it themselves. And with drivers, they’re no different than Uber drivers, but instead they are paid regularly and have consistent business through one specific person/family. By getting massages at home and paying someone for laundry, we were pumping money into their little community and giving money directly to the little guys. I’m starting to see it in a different light, but it might just be me trying to rationalize. It’s still awkward though.

Back to Cebu… Most of our stay consisted of time working. Sounds kind of boring, but it was actually nice to slow things down and take advantage of the area we staying in. The guesthouse was within walking distance to IT Park, an area filled with companies specializing in IT. As a result, the area was also booming with restaurants, cafes, and hippy juice/smoothie shops. We spent larges chunks of time working in a coworking space and indulging on good eats. Considering the rest of our trip would consist of beach towns, this was the perfect opportunity to get stuff done before turning into beach bums.

…But if you work hard, you have to play hard!

We took one full day to go island hopping while we were in Cebu. Our driver brought us to Mactan early Thursday morning where we rented a private banca boat to take us to three separate islands. Highly recommend Mactan Island Hopping! (http://www.mactanislandhopping.com)

The first stop was Hilutungan. After the boat anchored itself to a larger boat offshore, we put on our gear and jumped into the water. We snorkeled around the government protected reef, Olango Reed, marveling at fish and coral. I was in awe at how calm and clear the water was! It was also the first time in my life where I was able to swim as long as wanted without feeling cold at all!

By the time we returned to the boat, there was a local fisherman trying to sell us fresh seafood he just caught. We got a pretty good deal with Alan’s haggling skills and agreed to buy a meal for two to share. By the time we turned around, the guy disappeared from our boat and began swimming back to the island where we agreed to meet him at the beach on the other side.

As soon as we docked onto the beach, a group of local kids approached our boat and began goofing around, climbing on the outriggers and dancing to the music we were playing. One kid in particular LOVED showing off his moves and was clearly trying to get the attention of Corey. Of course, Corey joined in on their party and before we knew it they were all climbing on him waiting to be thrown into the water. That’s exactly why I fell in love with this guy ages ago! The man has a heart of gold! <3

After at least 40 minutes, our food was finished and we were off to island #2, Caohagan!

Caohagan looked gorgeous! There was huge sandbar and island appeared to be covered with a jungle of palm trees. When we arrived, it was low tide and docking would risk the boat getting stuck. Considering we just ate, we opted on skipping island #2 since we weren’t in the mood to sunbathe or eat again.

We started off island #3, Nalusuan, with the fish sanctuary. Initially the area was swarmed with Korea tourists. It was hard to maneuver around because it was wayyyy overcrowded! Luckily Corey found a bait ball and we retreated to edge of the sanctuary where we had some fun separate from the other tourists. After they left, we pretty much had the whole sanctuary to ourselves! Crystal clear waters and beautiful marine life all around us! It was such a surreal feeling to be snorkeling and chasing fish in the perfect waters. It was one of those moments where you just forget everything and in this case, just kept swimming. It has definitely been the highlight of the trip for me!

Once we were done pretending to be fish, we grabbed our gear and found a place to relax. The guys spent time doing their guy stuff- drinking beer, eating, and talking. And I retreated to a hammock to read Harry Potter (finished book #4!).

We timed our departure to view the sunset during our 45 minute boat ride home.

And the end the perfect day…

Other Cebu stuff: