Philippine Trip (2-17-08 thru 2-27-08)

Philippine Trip (2-17-08 thru 2-27-08)

It was time to return. As the stars align and the timing is right, Harris, Scotty and I went to the Philippines to revisit a part of our life that we hold so dear. The following blog diaries, briefly, the trip and shares some fun and important moments to each day. There are emotional items that I can't obviously share via a simple document, but none-the-less enjoy what I hold dear to my heart........The Philippines.

Day 1 - Taipei

Flight Over touchdown in Taipei

After a long trip from our respective homes to Taipei Taiwan, we burnt a little steam off riding the Taipei Ferris Wheel. It was a great way to see the night views of Taipei and just relax.

Dinner in the Market

After finishing the Ferris Wheel, it was time to finally eat. In the local market place we partook of a local dining experience, which consisted of some good rice and some various meets. It was a refreshing meal and fun to get back into the open markets of Asia. The gentleman sitting next to me took it upon himself to train me on the proper use of chopsticks.

Night Market

At night it is customary for everyone to come out and visit the Night Markets. These markets are fun to peruse through and shop. This is an absolute must for people who visit Taipei, very fun.

Hotel

The hotel was a standing joke throughout the trip. We took a chance and arrived in Taipei rolling the dice on a hotel. The hotel was fine for what we paid, but it was definitely a part of the overall memory of the trip.

Seeing Scotty and Harris crammed into one bed was hilarious and yet they were really good sports about that portion of the night. It was also the night that they were introduced to my horrible snoring habit, which caused Harris to go purchase noise canceling headphones to deter the sound of my sawing.

Day 2 - Taipei

Taking the Streets in Taipei

Taipei has some tremendous public transportation, including the subway. It was very smooth and fast, it was a good way to get around.

Taipei Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall

The décor of the section of town that we went to was very royal looking with the museums and halls. This hall is large and beautiful and on some decadent grounds. It was just up the street from the LDS temple and it was clear why that area is kept up so well.

Taiwan LDS Temple

Just down the street from the memorial hall is the LDS temple. It was interesting to be walking down this very clean street and then up pops a temple. The temple was right across the street from the Vatican Embassy, which was really neat to see both of them together. Inside the grounds was a meeting building and local headquarters. They mentioned inside that they work closely with the Vatican and are good friends.

Taipei 101 Outside

The 101 is currently the tallest building in the world. It is evident how tall this building is, but what was so impressive was how the outside looked much like a bunch of Chinese take-out boxes stacked on top of each other. Also, from the inside, there was no movement on the top floor which was a testament to the engineering of the building.

Taipei 101 City Shot

A shot from atop the 101 of Taipei.

Sun Yat-Sen's Memorial Hall

The Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hall is a memorial commemorating the life of Sun Yat-Sen. This hall has the changing of the guards, which was fun to watch the change.

Day 3 - Philippines

Return to the Philippines

After visiting Taipei and a night in Manila, we made our way to Angeles to visit some of the old areas we lived in. Of course we expected some changes, but one thing that didn’t change was the hospitality that of the Filipinos. Visiting one of our areas we went into our old homes and visited the grounds. The Filipinos that owned the homes were willing to let us in and visit. There are a lot of good memories in these homes.

Jackfruit

One of the fruit indigenous to the Philippine area is the Jackfruit. It was fun to see some of the old fruits that we couldn’t see in the states.

I’m Lovin It

The one thing that changed was the amount of McDonalds in the Philippines. Previously there were two McDonalds in the entire mission, which is where we are eating in this picture. Thank goodness there were more than the two throughout the mission though, because we ate plenty of McDonalds throughout the trip.

Day 4 - Philippines

Mt. Pinatubo Hunting down transportation

One of the highlights of the trip was taking the advice of a couple of missionaries in the area and visiting Mt. Pinatubo. We went outside of the former Air Force base, where we were staying, and hunted down some transportation in a town called Biac Na Bato. This town was previously swallowed up by the lahar, so it was neat to see the changes that have taken place which were very positive.

Mt. Pinatubo Trip up to Volcano

14 years ago, the homes in this area were being swallowed up by the liquefied ash (referred to as lahar). It is nice to see the area settled down and the growth, which include the homes on top of the lahar.

Mt. Pinatubo Trip up the Lahar River

When we lived in the Philippines there were rivers of Lahar flowing throughout various areas. The pitch on the sides of the river has diminished over the years, but the effects are still visible. This was our pathway to finding Pinatubo, as the river ends at the road up to the trail.

Mt. Pinatubo Trip Carabao Lahar Bed

Along the way there were various animal, but the Carabo is one that the kids always like to see when I show them pictures. Here are a heard of Carabo living in the river area.

Mt. Pinatubo Road

It was fun to see nature playing its role and beatifying the area.

Time to walk into Pinatubo

After about a three hour drive from base to this spot, it was time to hike into Pinatubo. This hike took about another hour and wasn’t too bad. It was interesting to see the sulfur streams and the thick greenery, which was destroyed 16 years earlier.

Inside Pinatubo

As we hiked back up in the area we came over a little hill. When we hit the peak of this hill, the caldron of volcano was visible. The walls of the valley were half ash and half grown over. The years of rain caused slides into the valley, but parts of the walls had overgrowth.

Lake in Pinatubo

The most visible beauty of the area was the lake inside of Pinatubo. With all the minerals in the water, it was a lush blue. It was a massive lake that developed right after the eruption, as is common with these types of volcanic activity. The most exciting thing to witness was the dominance of the splendor vs. the dominance of the damage when we were there earlier.

Bataan Death March Shrine

If there was no significant personal emotional reason for someone to visit our areas we once lived in, it wouldn’t take long to lure someone into many subjects that would interest you. Mt. Pinatubo, visiting some of the historical sites for Philippine history such as where the constitution was signed, the beaches and fishing villages, and one of my favorite…the World War II history.

One of the most interesting parts was Corregidor and the Bataan death march. Throughout this blog you will see more discussion, but this portion of the trip brings us to the end of the trip for many soldiers. After the Japanese took over the Philippines, the Japanese took the POWs and marched them from the American’s various posts up near this area. Many soldiers died along the way and just many died from the conditions of the camps they put them in.

This shrine commemorates the final marching point for these soldiers before they were shipped up a couple of miles west to concentration camps.

Bataan Death March Cemetery

In this area the soldiers died of various diseases such as dysentery and malaria. When they died they were carried by their fellow soldiers to mass graves and buried. This spot is where 600+ soldiers were buried in this area and a large marker and statue stands above ground to commemorate their dedication.

Day 5 - Philippines

Mt. Summit from afar

On top the mountains of Bataan, sits a giant cross built by the Philippine people to remind us of the wars that took place in these areas. The cross is visible from most of the province.

Philippine Life

The areas were lived in were very diverse. Some areas had the American McDonalds and people who were much Americanized. Other areas had the beaches and fishing villages, while the other parts of the Philippines had rice patties and Nipa huts. This landscape struck the heart strong as it was one of the first traditional Philippine landscapes that we saw on our return. You can now see why it was hard to leave that area.

Mt Summit up close

Here is a picture of Mt. Summit up close.

Bataan Death March Mile Markers

As mentioned earlier, the Bataan Death March started in various areas in our old areas. This marker demonstrates that this was one of the starting points of the march in the village of Bagac.

Bagac Resort

When I lived in Bagac a little of 14 years, I remember stumbling on this resort. We took the chance and decided to head into Bagac for a chance. It was a good bet which we would obviously do again. Very secluded and quite. Great views and great food.

Day 6 - Philippines

Bataan Rice Fields

Another beautiful view of the Philippines are the rice fields.

Corregidor Boat

On our sixth day on the trip, we decided to take another little venture. This time we decided to take a trip to Corregidor on a local boat. Harris had never been there, so it was naturally one of my favorite memories of the Philippines. Of all people, Harris had to make the trip.

Corregidor

A picture of us approaching the island of Corregidor.

Corregidor Tunnel

One of the unique things about Corregidor is the many tunnels. As a safety feature in the island, one of the major mountains was hollowed out and made into a tunnel. Here is a picture inside the tunnel.

Malinta Tunnel

Here is a picture outside of the tunnel to demonstrate its magnitude.

Old Barracks at Corregidor

These are the Old Barracks at Corregidor.

Battery Guns at Corregidor

Throughout the island are different artillery sights. This is a good example of some of those sights that they used to defend the Philippines.

Corregidor Brothers in Arms

This is one of my favorite parts of the island. On the main area lays a memorial to the Americans and Filipinos who fought together. One of the status show two men carrying each other through the endeavor which is entitled ‘Brothers in Arms’.