Suddenly we are in the Philippines! After all, we flew four hours by plane from Kuala Lumpur to here - so we mostly avoid the rainy season in Indonesia, and we wanted to go to the Philippines anyway. Since we come from far away, we land in the capital Manila. It's a tough place here! Already at the edge of the airport, we see something like 'slums' for the first time in Asia. Through the horror traffic, we eventually make it to our hotel, which is located in the traditional tourist district. But the surrounding area is anything but inviting, Manila greets us oppressively gloomy, between skyscrapers are ruins and dark, empty backyards, dozens of stray dogs roam the streets, there is a strong smell of urine every few meters, and we see many beggars - even worse: begging children who run in 'gangs', touch our forearms and hold out their hands, with their dirty black feet, and sad eyes. Manila is overall hard to bear. The Philippines are a little different from the rest of the countries in Southeast Asia because there is a Spanish colonial history here, which is still noticeable in the city and family names. Because here everyone is called Jimenez, Guiterrez, Guerrero, or similar, and the cities are called Buenos Aires, Puerto Princesa, or Medellin. And occasionally, we also hear some Spanish words that have crept into Filipino, for example, for measurements, numbers, months, or simply in between. But it's not that just because we understand Spanish, we understand Filipino - the language is completely unrelated to Spanish.Why we plan a day in Manila: because firstly, we think we want to see it, although we have heard bad things before, and secondly, because it's Chinese New Year and there is supposedly the oldest Chinatown in the world. So off we go! We experience crowds of people pushing through the streets of the Binondo district in a festive mood. We marvel at dragon dances taking place on the streets or in front/inside shops and stores. In addition, there are some goodies that can be bought, which we don't understand (special New Year's cake, lucky amulets for the Year of the Pig, and more).For us, these are conditions that are very similar to the Lucerne Carnival: exuberant mood and narrow streets full of people and drums and music from all corners because, which surprises us a lot: there are drum groups that sound like samba groups, and that really doesn't fit in Asia. We enjoy the exuberant and joyful atmosphere and after three hours of New Year's festival visit, we are very relieved to be able to leave Chinatown again because our nerves are exhausted, and we need some peace and quiet from the crowds, drums, and dancing! We take a look at the old part of Manila, Intramuros - there we find beautiful colonial buildings, but also no real life because everything here seems a bit like a movie set.We are not upset that we leave the next day. But the departure from Manila is difficult too because the city does not have a central bus terminal, but many private small bus terminals scattered throughout the city. But when we arrive at one of them, suddenly everything is very simple, the ticket is cheap, and the bus is ready to depart in ten minutes. We head north. We drive about two hours to a city called Capas, and then we continue with the trycyle. What is that? It is another new vehicle in which we ride! Namely, we ride in a sidecar next to the motorcycle. So, only Elena and the backpacks, Claudio sits behind the driver on the motorcycle. The journey goes to Santa Juliana, a very, very small village on the edge of the Pinatubo Volcano restricted zone. On the way, we pass through military checkpoints because there seem to be several bases and restricted areas in this area. And then we arrive in a village with frequent power outages and no internet, which means something in today's time. We are here because we want to visit the Pinatubo volcano crater, which we are supposed to reach first with a jeep and then with trekking, and we are happy that we can finally move around in nature again. When we sit down for dinner, we suddenly feel a little uneasy, and we hold each other's arms because: the earth is shaking. Or rather: it slides from left to right to left again, as is usually the case with earthquakes. And we look at each other, widen our eyes, and laugh and swallow at the same time because earthquakes in these areas are not always easy and harmless. Elena in great excitement, but the kitchen and hotel staff are completely unaffected by the small earthquake, so it seems to be normal. The next morning, we get ready, we get into the jeep with a guide, the driver, and another hotel guest, and we set off for Pinatubo! It's early in the morning, the sky is pastel-colored, and the sun is not really there yet, it's even quite cool, and we drive through a lunar landscape. Then suddenly we stop without anyone saying anything to us, and the other eight jeeps that were in front of or behind us also stop. And then we wait while a helicopter circles above us. What is this? When a loud bang is heard and something hits the sandy ash about 500 meters in front of us, we also see the soldier with his huge radio. Okay, there is shooting here! We wait for another ten minutes while the helicopter fires shots three more times with whatever it has, then we are allowed to continue driving. The uneasy feeling remains. Our own jeep is not very reassuring either, it rumble like all the other jeeps and shakes us up properly, but it also often makes a conspicuously loud cracking sound, it is somehow slower than the other jeeps, the gear lever is loose and needs to be tied with a string when the car is in third gear... well. Claudio says that this will probably be the jeep's last ride. Our journey takes almost two hours, and the landscape is really interesting to look at. Jagged rock formations, plus the meter-thick gray ash on which we drive, thousands of small but also super large stones and boulders that the volcano erupted almost twenty years ago. The dimensions are enormous! We then walk the remaining distance on foot through a gorge, and then it becomes a little green around us, and after a distance that is too short, before we have even made an effort, we are already there. The view is fantastic, even if today you can no longer imagine that the lake in front of us is a huge crater and that we are standing on an extinct volcano. The way back with the jeep feels even bumpier than the way there, and suddenly, with a loud creaking sound, we come to a stop, and the ride is over. It should be mentioned that during the ride, several metal bars that were attached under or to our benches broke off, and the seat collapses. Meanwhile, the driver is equipped with tools lying under the jeep... and then he reappears and throws a large engine part up to us. Hm..After a few minutes, luckily, we continue, although we no longer trust our vehicle, we still arrive home in one piece. Fortunately! Conclusion: The landscape is fantastic and moon-like, the other conditions: adventurous!
