Home!

This is my last blog post of the trip. It has been an amazing experience, well beyond what I had imagined.

I have learned so much, had an incredible time, and met many great, great people.

That said, I have been counting down the days until I fly home for Christmas; I can’t wait to come home!

After the excellent hiking I did in the rice terraces, I made a stop for a day in a small mountain town to do some exploring of the local caves.

My guide, Sam, led me down with a kerosene lantern --- WAY down. According to him, we descended 200 metres below the surface.

The rock formations were stunningly beautiful, and we encountered an underground pool that I did some diving and swimming in.

After Sagada I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do for my last couple days. A friend had recommended I stop in another mountain town, and I was considering climbing Mount Pinotubo, which is near the airport I fly out of.

However, I thought it would be wrong to do abandon the theme of my trip when there is such excellent surfing nearby in San Fernando. Thus, I spent my last few days frolicking in the sea under the hot Filipino sun.

Thus, the sun sets on my Asian journey. I know I will be back some day in the future, but I don’t know when exactly.

Merry Christmas, and thanks for reading!

Magic in Surigao

Everything about my 7 days spent in Surigao Island, Philippines can only be fairly described as magical. This stop is the reason I came traveling to Asia.

I am very fortunate that the owner of the ecolodge I was staying at in my previous location, Ros, was heading to Surigao the same day as I. She was very kind and invited me to come stay at her friend’s cottage where a group of her friends were conducting an art workshop with the local children.

Her friend, Lee, has a dream cottage located on the beach of a very quiet, curious fishing village on Surigao Island. His house is perfectly located beside a white sand swimming pool-like bay, with mangrove forests and hidden beaches within short kayaking distance.

I was pampered with the warmest Philippino hospitality, eating freshly caught seafood at every meal: crab, fish, prawns, shrimp, and clams.

Lee’s house is very near to quiet, secluded surf spots that most of the foreign tourists don’t know about. I spent 2 perfect days warming up with some surf at a spot within walking distance of his house. I can’t imagine a more scenic place to surf, with emerald green water, white-sand beaches, and palm trees lining the shore.

On the third day the others were finished their art workshops, and so we all took a Bangka boat ride out to one Lee's friend’s favourite secret surf spots. On the way there, we were delighted to see flying fish skipping across the water within a few metres of our boat.

While we were surfing, a perfect rainbow formed above our heads. According to the people on shore, there were actually two rainbows surrounding us and a day moon in the middle. Magic.

At night we had fun: One evening we took a boat ride out to a tiny deserted sand island for a bonfire, another we partied at the local jungle disco, and for the final night’s send-off we enjoyed some classic Philippino karaoke.

After 4 days in heaven I decided to spend a day or two with the foreign travelers at the big surf break called Cloud 9. The surfers were unhappy because the waves weren’t going, but it was perfect for me because there were plenty of smaller waves to be had that are more suitable for my ability level.

I finished the week off with a day trip to a nearby island were they have some caves that can only be reached by swimming.

The caves were amazing, and my favourite cave was one where we swam in through the bottom, climbed up a natural ‘staircase’ to a cliff on the outside, and then dove from the cliff back into the water.

On our way back I was treated to the most beautiful sunset I have ever seen. The picture at the very top shows the view pretty accurately. I don’t have any photo editing software on my computer, so the all the photos I put on my blog have the actual lighting and colours.

Currently I am typing this post on a sleeper ferry that is heading to a big city called Cebu. Cebu is north of my current location, surrounded by a group of islands that should have many fun activities and beautiful sights.

I think I just had my final send-off from Surigao: While I was on deck admiring the full moon and silhouette of a volcanic island, I heard splashing. Below me were two dolphins jumping along beside the ferry. Wow.

Surfing West Java

There are lots of tourist attractions on Java Island, Indonesia’s most densely populated island, but I only came here to learn how to surf.

The travel guide book recommends a couple of beaches in West Java for surfing, so that is where I wentafter touching down in Jakarta a week and a half ago. I endured a noisy, rocking night bus ride to the beaches and where I met a teacher who offered to give me a ride to the hotels. The unwritten part of the deal was that I go to his school and meet his class and practice English with them. Not the easiest thing to do on almost no sleep, but rewarding all the same.

The beach I stayed at is called Pangandaran. Each night there were beautiful sunset surf sessions that I took part in. I stayed in Pangandaran for 5 days, surfing 4 of them.

On my rest day I took a stroll through the national park where monkeys and deer roam.

I also took out a scooter and drove it through the countryside to a quiet spot in the jungle where I went swimming beside some small waterfalls. There was a swarm of photographers taking pictures of a girl dressed up like an Indian, so I took my best paparazzi shot.

After four days of surfing at Pangandaran I was ready for a change of scenery, so I took a bus about an hour up the coast line to another surf spot called Batu Karas. I am very glad I did, because Batu Karas turns out to be the perfect spot for beginners. While the waves at Pangandaran are hard to paddle out to, inconsistent, and very tiring, Batu Karas is the opposite. The waves keep rolling in all day long, and the breaks are a nice consistent size and shape.

Everybody rocks longboards at Batu Karas and are very friendly and welcoming (even when I accidentally cut them off). By my last day surfing, I could catch the waves and ride them all the way in to shore. It was a ton of fun!

Now I’m in the airport in Jakarta again waiting for a flight to Indonesia’s larger but more remote island to the north-west called Sumatra. I can’t wait to see more of Indonesia.