The time has come again to travel to far flung reaches of the world. Since the completion of our original Seven Wonders quest, we've been on a mission to add somewhere new and exotic to our list of destinations. The island of Palawan in the Philippines (TripAdvisor voted this the most beautiful island in the world in 2015) and the Indonesian island of Bali seemed to be a fit for our wanderlust!
And so it begins! A long transpacific flight brought us first to Manila. Day one was a walking tour of the Intramuros, the old walled city first established in the 16th century. The area, almost completely destroyed by fires, earthquakes, typhoons and the Second World War, has consequently been built and re-built over the past five centuries. Fort Santiago and the Cathedral of Manila were highlights of our tour.
A side trip to the Mall of Asia, the third largest mall in the world, beautifully decorated for the Christmas season. Being a holiday long weekend, the mall was predictably madness BUT it did allow for one of the quirkiest activities that we've ever experienced on one of adventures...ice skating, half way around the world in SE Asia when it was +30 outside!
As with many of our holidays, it is the kindness of strangers that makes our trips so special. Many thanks to Pete and Linda, local relatives of acquaintances back home, for introducing us to Filipino cuisine and all the hospitality that they have provided to us!
Our walking tour took us through Rizal Park, one of Asia's largest urban greenspaces, with a stop at the monument dedicated to national hero Jose Rizal
After our short 2 day stopover, it was off to the town of El Nido on the island of Palawan. This has been called the last undeveloped frontier in the Philippines and it is certainly a world away from the urban sprawl of Manila. TripAdvisor has labelled this the most beautiful island in the world in 2015 and it certainly did not disappoint. NO major development here, aside from a few HIGH end off shore resorts, and well deserving of it's island paradise moniker.
After a 6 hour bus ride to Puerto Princesa...a visit to the Underground River, one of the Seven Wonders of the natural world, and a day on the water, cruising the islands of Honda bay!
And so we're out of the Philippines after an amazing 11 day stay! Off to Bali, 4:00am flight :( More surf, sun, sand, temples, spas, fresh seafood dinners, shopping, snorkelling and generally lazing about...its a dirty job but I'm thinking we're up to the task!
...an AMAZING day off the coast of Bali on the island of Lembongan...Dream Beach, Mangrove Point and incredible snorkeling!
A trip to the country and a visit to Ubud...monkeying around, temple trips and the final few days back on the beach...a fine adventure it has been...again!
