Palawan, Pilippines
Today I visited Puerto Princesa in Palawan, a beautiful archipelago in the Philippines, southwest of Manila. Until the Japanese occupied it in 1942, it was unspoiled by the outside world. Due to its strategic location, it played in important role for the Japanese and the allies during World War II. It is infamous for the massacre of 150 American prisoners of war after they were ordered to enter shelters where they were eventually burned alive.
Patrick from London and I took a lovely tour of the island on a motorized tricycle cab with a friendly driver (whose wife works in Rydia, Saudi Arabia to help support the family).
As I was roaming around with no plan, and I heard someone call out my name. I have been considering taking a spontaneous tour with one of the drivers but was hesitant because they were so aggressive. I looked up and saw it was Patrick and decided to join him. He had already begun a tour with a motorized tricycle driver. Although it was a tight squeeze, there was room for two of us.
Our first stop was the cathedral near the port. Next to the cathedral was a World War II monument to those massacred at the hands of the Japanese. It was situated in a beautiful waterfront Park. I found the memorial to be very moving.
Next, we took a very long ride up Rizal Avenue passing by busy markets, restaurants, residences, and more in the somewhat chaotic traffic. Our next stop, was a private World War II museum. There we saw an impressive collection of artifacts from all the major nations who participated in World War II. Included uniforms, gas masks, helmets, bayonets, guns, and even a US jeep. Somewhat unrelated, was a pair of bright red pumps owned by Emelda Marcos. The museum owners were very gracious. We took corny photos outside. The admission price cost less than a dollar per person.
Our driver said our next stop would be the crocodile farm. I told them I preferred that we go to the butterfly Garden and tribal Village. The park was simply beautiful with lots of greenery and colorful flowers, some insects on display such as the stick insect, and finally of course butterflies. Patrick let the Millipede crawl on his hands.
Included in the park was a tribal village where a narrator introduced us to a centuries old Palawan tribe. They are descendants of original inhabitants for many generations ago. They demonstrated such activities as fire making, hunting by blowing a bamboo stick out of a long tube, and music making. I took photos of some of the most beautiful happy children. The admission price was about one dollar US.
Next, our driver suggested that we visit a meditation center known best for it's underground caves and swimming pool.
The name of this place is Kuyba Almoneca. It even included a walking tour for our modest admission price of about two dollars. Our lovely tour guide, Giselle, took us down to the three underground caves and showed us the interesting stalagmite and stalactite formations, carvings that look like Jesus, fountains, and there is even an underground swimming pool. The steep narrow staircases were probably the trickiest I have descended in a very long time.
This is a Catholic meditation center but it was not offensively religious. I found it to be very spiritual exuding peace and stillness. All of the major prayers were strategically positioned on placards throughout the beautiful site. There were several coves with temples such as an area with a beautiful statue of St. Francis holding doves with his prayer posted on a screen next to him. There was even a lovely chapel with beautifully carved wooden benches. At the end, a real treat was to to find nestled inside this serene space, a fish spa located there. We sat down, rolled up our pants and stuck our feet in the pool. The hungry (starving) fish feverishly ate away at our dead skin. I have done this once before two years ago in Greece and laughed the whole time. I laughed again this time. It is such a funny feeling and it tickles wildly. There is no doubt that I will have smooth fresh smelling feet for at least two months just like before!! Our guide, Gisele showed us an adjacent area where you can have a full body treatment with the fish. Yes you can strip naked and step into this large tank where the fish will remove the dead skin from all over your body. That is NOT on my bucket list!!!!!
Our final stop was to a big market where we purchased souvenirs. I bought five beautiful necklaces and a bracelet for $15 US.
I could not have experienced a more enjoyable day if I had planned it myself.
Patrick and I were completely spontaneous and went with the flow the whole day. Each adventure was enriching, beautiful, fun, and thought-provoking.
It was a splendid 4.5 hour day. Patrick paid our driver a nice sum and also tipped him.
Also, I will add more photos later.
.JPG)
.jpg)
