For Real!? Seven Philippines tips that may blow your mind.

So you’ve finally decided to visit the awesome country of the Philippines. The flight is booked, you know where you’re staying, and even have the itinerary planned. But wait! There’s still something you should know about Paris before taking a step on that plane. First, check out these awesome Philippines tips:

1. Holy Traffic!!

We were warned that Manila has similar traffic congestion to Los Angeles, but we were still unprepared for the reality of it all… Loads of people, very few highways, and scant public transit equals gridlock… There’s truly a sense of insanity as drivers push their way through.. Traffic signals seem merely recommendations, five lanes transform into one-ways in either direction by the moment, a scene only complete with a chorus of horn blasting…

And the traffic is not Manila-centric… Even in Cebu, traffic is a serious consideration when bouncing through the tiny island villages… Shuttle and taxi rides reminiscent of bank-robbery getaways seem to get nowhere quickly, especially at midday… A two and a half hour journey at 4am might easily become four and a half hours during the same trip around noon…

2. Good thing there’s… Jeepneys!!

The number one choice for navigating through the craziness? The Jeepney, which also happens to be the number one coolest thing to look at while sitting in traffic. I’m told that these brightly painted, stainless steel, bus-like vehicles with front-ends that resemble Jeeps, are custom-built with spare parts… Each Jeepney has an entry in the rear, two long benches for passengers, and are covered in personalized graphics, bright LED lights and even banging sound-systems… People hop on and off at designated stops for only a few pesos, but grateful to travel in air-conditioned comfort, we were able to simply admire the rolling works of art…

3. Did I mention there’s a lot of people here?

Eight of the top thirty most densely populated cities in the world are right here in the Philippines, and Manila is right at the top, with 111,000 people per square mile… Mind-blowing, really… It’s a good thing that…

4. Filipinos are awesome!

The people seemed genuinely happy and outgoing everywhere we went, greeting us warmly or smiling with curiosity… “Hello ma’am(sounds like “mom”), hello sir, good morning, good evening, do you need….?” When visiting The Philippines, do yourself a favor and take a walk… Leave the hotel, resort, and tours behind, even just for a day… Get some real Filipino culture in the neighborhoods and villages where the locals work and play… And make sure to bring a camera, because many love to “ham it up” for a shot…

5. Speaking of culture..

As a Spanish colony for three-hundred years, a United States territory for fifty years, and home to many Chinese immigrants for centuries, you’ll notice bits and pieces of each infused into the native culture… The native language is Tagalog, but we noticed that numbers and some greetings are spoken in Spanish, and most people can speak and understand at least a bit of English… The Philippines are also one of the largest Catholic countries in the world, a reminder of Spain’s rule here between the 16th and 19th centuries…

6. ..And the food!

What if I told you that there’s a place in the world that you’ll likely feast on heaping plates of fresh seafood, pork, and rice for every meal? Well, we’ve found it, and it’s The Philippines! Better yet, everything’s prepared over an open flame, flavored with the salty, vinegary, garlicky goodness that is adobo…

Nearly every meal, starting day one with Michael, through the end of our stay, we ate an embarrassing amount of this unbelievable adobo goodness… They just kept bringing course after course of pork-belly, seafood both raw and grilled, and heaping bowls of rice(of course!).. Well, we just couldn’t seem ungrateful to our hosts, so we had to eat everything, right!?

7. Quite possibly our best meal..

Was during one of the best days ever. Like ever, ever. Rewind.. We had just finished snorkeling with whale sharks in Oslob, (which is pretty awesome by the way, we recommend Island Trek Tours for a much better deal than you’ll find elsewhere), and were headed for some cold beer and rum at one of the nearby roadside stands in Lapu Lapu, when Jhon approached us about an island hopping trip from the nearby pier.. We were skeptical at first, but the guy was really friendly, and we ended up negotiating a deal about half the price than the big tour operators were charging… So we shook on it, and two days later he introduced us to Captain Allan…

We knew things were going well when we were the only people to hop aboard the large boat, appropriately named “Allan.” We took off towards the islands, just me, Krissy, Allan, and first mate Junior… The guys were super friendly, and it turns out Allan is quite the photographer too, directing us around the boat for some great shots… When we arrived at one of the small nearby islands, Allen started up the grill and we hopped in for some snorkeling… They even made sure we had some bread, so the fish would give us extra attention… We really had a blast, and when the big tour operators pulled up, packed with over twenty people per boat, we pulled up anchor for another island…

Allan explained that we weren’t on any schedule, we could do what we pleased, and sat us down for a feast of raw conch, and grilled pork belly, abalone, prawns, and chicken… Rice on the side, and of course, sweet local mango and pineapple for desert. Best. Meal. Ever. When we were stuffed, Chef Allan said simply, “Where to?”

We headed to another island, walking through crystal clear waters around the entire island, finding colorful starfish and other interesting creatures along the way… When we hopped back on the boat, Allan plugged in our music, and we spent the rest of the day alternating between fishing, swimming and laying in a hammock, not heading back until we said the word…

Best. Day. Ever. And we want to return the love and send more clients Allan’s way… Please message us if heading to Cebu, Philippines for an experience that you’ll never forget!

Philippines, we hope to meet again someday!