A Single Vegetable

Hello again! You find me still in Banaue, enjoying yet another San Miguel, except this time I earned it after going on a wee hike this morning. The term hike is used relatively loosely here, since the majority of the inclines and declines involved steps. But the inclusion of rain, narrow ledges, wet moss, and my complete inability to stay upright made it worthy of an upgrade from a simple 'walk'. My driver picked me up at my hut hotel this morning, and brought me to the beginning of the 'Elvis Trail'. I think it is called the Elvis Trail, because if I had actually done the entire trail, I would have died a fat, pathetic death, facedown in a pile of something brown. Since it had been pouring rain all day and night since I arrived, old Busted-Ankles-Buskell over here was feeling a bit of trepidation about the slipperiness of the trail, particularly after chatting with one of the owners of the hotel, who said she'd never do it in these conditions. My guide, ...

Good day, fair friends. I write this from the most stunning viewpoint in Banaue, sipping on a cold San Miguel Pilsen, and listening to the leftover raindrops falling around me. I arrived here after a long bus ride from Manila - 10hrs to be precise. This area of the Philippines is not accessible by plane. The closest airport is, I believe, Manila. To get here, you have to either drive or suck it up for the long coach ride, and let me tell you, after witnessing traffic around these parts, I wouldn't attempt to drive here if you paid me a million bucks. The city is fucking mental, and the twisty windy roads on the approach to Banaue are enough to give you motion sickness just looking at a map. But, the long and mostly uncomfortable coach ride was well worth it, even just for this view. Come about 6am, the sun was just rising as we started driving through the hills and valleys, which were almost completely obscured by clouds, save their very peaks. As we wound further an...

I'm writing this, refreshed and sipping on a much needed cup of coffee, from my room at the Hyatt City of Dreams in Manila. Let me tell you, that hotel name is no joke. I was lucky enough to somehow score an upgrade to a suite here, and this room is like twice the size of my apartment. The bathroom alone is bigger than my living room, with a huge walk in rain shower, and massive soaker tub that you better believe I took full advantage of last night when I finally arrived here after 18+ hours of travel. I slept like an angel in my king sized bed, after doing something I only ever do on holiday... watching Keeping Up With The Kardashians. That show is pure trash, as you know, but it is often the only thing on English TV in foreign countries, and also a  really fucking awesome way to fall asleep. So, I haven't blogged in a while, obviously. While this isn't my normal blog subject matter, I figured picking this back up again on my travels might be fun! I've never ...