Combined day... 3? And 4? In Manila. It kind of bled into one.

So at the hostel the previous night I met James. James is a Korean American in Manila for just 1 day, and was "from Kentucky". Despite him being a UofL bastard, we headed out together.

Since it's the start of Chinese New Year, we went off to a much livelier Chinatown. It was a massive night market, basically. I bought some clothes, and we just kind of went around looking at stuff. At some point we went into a church for some photos. On the way out a lady said we couldn't take photos. Since we were done, we said thanks and were on our way.

Afterwards was another trip to Intramuros, but seeing as how it was afternoon, a lot of stuff I couldn't do, I now could. We got a tricycle tour thing of the area, agreeing to 150 pesos. Along the way, the guy was very informative, funny, and patient. I was going to give him 200. Then he said it was actually 150 for every half hour. Since this was the first we had heard of this, we told him to get bent. He got frustrated, refused to accept anything and started to leave. I threw the 200 in his seat, and then, we went on our way. As you do.


Now dinnertime, we were going to head back for dinner, and who knows what. Manila is one of the few cities in the world that I don't really feel comfortable in after night. I'm not really worried about violent crime, but with so many people, I'm sure I would have something stolen at some point. In fact, several people at the hostel have gotten pickpocketed so far - except me, knock on wood. Anyway we were going to take the LRT, but NOPE. I have never seen a line that long for public transportation in my life. Maybe an hour, just to buy a ticket? And god help you if you want to get on the train. James told me he actually has to meet a friend at the airport in 45 minutes. I chuckled at the absurdity of that possibility. But we found a jeepney heading back in the right direction! It was packed to the brim. James got a seat, but I had to hang off the back like a garbage truck. Totally safe. Not having any idea how the fare system works, our jeepney friend Alex took care of it. Thanks Alex! I jumped off at the hostel, while James took it closer to the airport. I got some local food and settled in for the night. It was Chinese New Year, so we all gathered on the roof to watch fireworks. I finally passed out around 3.

The next day, a bunch of us were to go climb Taal Volcano. I just had to wake up at 530. So after a wonderful 2.5 hours of sleep, we piled into a van for a 3 hour drive. At least I got some sleep on the way there. After arriving, we got onto a boat for 30 minutes. Also, our boat captain was a boy about 7 years old named Jay. You could tell that this was not a normal day for him. He tried to be cool about it, but if you snuck a peak he was so totally pumped to be driving a boat. I mean, I can't blame him, I would be too. He was a total pro though. The other 2 boats got drenched, whereas we didn't have a drop. I made it a point to rub it in how much better our captain was.

So on the other side, we get to a native village on the side of this volcano. The entire ground was covered in fine ash. Even some 24 hours later, I still find this ash in places I didn't know I had. We met our guide there, and hiked for about an hour before making it to the top. It's actually a volcano inside a lake inside an island inside lake. (Volcanoception!) We were enjoying the view, when I saw a lady walking up to us carrying a golf club and balls. My face turned to one of pure joy. This is actually happening. I didn't even haggle, even though it was a paltry 50 pesos per ball. I wanted to waste no time before getting to hit golf balls into a godamn active volcano. A few people were hesitant, when a Scot in our group delcared he refuses to let anyone leave this mountain before letting them experience a once-in-a-lifetime chance of hitting a ball into a volcano. I agree. Also, I threw a rock and peed into the volcano. 3 bucket list items I didn't know I had, check.

Back down the volcano, and back on the boat, we landed when there was a ruckus of people a ways away. Curious, a few of us wandered over to find a makeshift stadium, and a 100% genuine cockfight. The driver asked us if we wanted to see. Definitely do. A guy inside that I sat next to asked if we wanted to bet, but I didn't know how long we'd be there, or even how things worked. Although culturally interesting, cockfights are brutal, and I totally understand why people are and should be against them. The birds were coaxed into fighting each other, and had big knives on their legs. One fight ended when they each could no longer stand. Another ended far more quickly and decisively. We were only there about 10 minutes, but this was not my only experience with Manila cockfights - more on that next time.

Back to the beach, we stopped at this seaside restaurant for an amazing BBQ lunch and sightseeing. The lunch was pork, otherwise I'd assume we were eating a former champion. After lunch we took the van to the top of another hill to get a view of the lake. The park was really touristy, crowded, and not worth the time. Still, got a few photos.

Everyone was proper exhausted by now, and we started the drive back. I really just wanted to sleep, and everyone else felt the same. At some point, these two German girls in the front passed out. Our guide passed a note around that said "Let's count to three, then all scream at the same time." He started recording a video, and did the countdown. The girls woke up screaming, freaked out as could be. Anyway, that's my new favorite game to play in the car. We actually got another guy with it as well about an hour later.

Back at the hostel, some people were heading out to the bars, but I was in no condition to do that. I went out and got a burrito, and had a few drinks. I passed out early, and here I am again Saturday morning - ready to head out, just with no idea where. And I like it that way.