Taiwan and the Philippines

Taiwan is a good country to get to know Chinese culture or experience Asian vibes for the first time, but you won't find many surprises here. The food is perhaps an exception, as it felt too 'Western,' too organized, and too structured for my taste. Moreover, the landscape is not really impressive, except for a few exceptions, especially if you have just spent two months in Indonesia. The cities are also very gray, following a communist model. I almost circled the entire island, only skipping the southwest. Generally, the less populated east is the interesting part, while in the west, you feel like you're driving through one big gray city for about 400 km. Additionally, every corner is marked as a tourist attraction on Google, so it's not uncommon to find yourself standing in front of a large boulder with Chinese characters after a short walk. But that doesn't stop local tourists from queuing up for a photo just like at the airport.

Since even the most remote places and viewpoints have well-built and concrete paths, I was only truly impressed once in Taroko National Park. A few days earlier, I met up with my brother and his friend Christian to travel together for a few days. We rented a scooter to explore Taroko National Park, and it was a lot of fun! In the end, we were rewarded with an outstanding view and a cave where water had seeped through the ceiling, creating a spectacular scene.

Some streets and neighborhoods are also called 'old Street.' However, you won't find old buildings or streets as you are used to. It's usually just a place that was used by someone in the past and has now been transformed into a market. On one of these streets, hundreds of plastic lanterns were sold, painted with wishes and sent up into the sky. I wouldn't want to see the forests downwind. That's pretty much all there is to write about, so here are some photos of the food. Because the food has been the most interesting and diverse part of my journey so far!

The Philippines welcomed me with a child defecating on the sidewalk and an Englishman (owner of my first hostel) who regularly receives death threats and has already survived two attempts on his life. Before going to bed, he showed me his weapons and some nice photos. No one came by that evening, and I started my journey to the Philippine highlands. My first destination was Baguio. I chose this city because it is known as the "Summer Capital." Filipinos come here to escape the heat of Manila, but in return, they get smog like I have never experienced before. The city is located in a valley, and hundreds of old jeepneys drive through the streets, making it almost unbearable to be here without a mask. I woke up in the morning because of the exhaust fumes in my room... The room was on the 3rd floor, and I had to get out by 8 am. Besides, the city is pretty dreary, and there isn't much to see except for one viewpoint.

However, one thing caught my attention immediately: many people here are really fat. You can see the reason everywhere – every other store is a KFC, McDonald's, Dunkin' Donuts, Pizza Hut, or a local imitation. But the local food wasn't that bad. Especially the various preparations of roast pork caught my attention!

Next, I went to Sagada.

The landscape here was absolutely breathtaking, and I saw the largest and most impressive rice terraces in the world. They are rightly referred to as the eighth wonder of the world by Filipinos. I also took part in a hike through an underground river and saw a somewhat different and special cemetery. Here, coffins are attached to cliffs. Only those who were born in the village and died a natural death are buried here. After 5 days in the mountains, I took the arduous journey back to Clark to catch a flight to Puerto Princesa. Here, I met Hannah from the USA, whom I had already met in Indonesia.

I had high expectations for Palawan, but I was slightly disappointed. Only the small town of Port Barton with its surrounding beaches and islands convinced me. Otherwise, all the attractions were hopelessly crowded. I will never get used to all the Instagram, drone, and selfie tourists who block access, stairs, and even entire attractions for minutes. Of course, I take photos too, but not with four different devices, and I certainly don't pose for hours to get the perfect Instagram photo...

Palawan is stunning with its lagoons and islands, but the beauty is marred by the crowds, which seems to be the case at almost all popular destinations now. Additionally, the food, except in the north, is not worth writing home about, so you often end up with Western food at Western prices. I can't remember the last time I went to McDonald's, Pizza Hut, or KFC so often.

From Palawan, I went to Cebu, where I was punished for my newfound recklessness. As I had done many times before, I put my bag on my bed and went to the toilet. Two minutes later, my cash had changed hands, and I was about €100 poorer. Annoying, but I will be more careful in the future! It's still audacious that someone would climb onto my bed, open my bag, and search through it while I could have come back at any second. It's a shame I was a little too late.

Then I went to Moalboal, a nice town with a lot to discover. Snorkeling among huge schools of sardines, canyoning in turquoise waters, and another great motorcycle tour to the highest mountain in the area. Siquijor, the next island, is considered a mystical island full of witches and supernatural phenomena for many Filipinos. That's why I immediately learned how to fly on a broomstick. It wasn't that difficult. Otherwise, the island is absolutely peaceful and beautiful. There are some nice beaches where you can have them all to yourself. It's strange when all you can hear besides the sound of the sea is silence. In addition, it's worth circling the island on a scooter and exploring the numerous waterfalls.

From Siquijor, I continued to Bohol, where a lot was happening, and I found myself actually eating at McDonald's three times in a row. Well, the local food just doesn't get any better, so I had to try Vanilla Coke, McSpaghetti, and Cheesy Fries. Here too, I rented a scooter; by now, I have covered about 2700 km on various motorcycles or scooters.

The penultimate island is called Siargao and is located in the far east of the Philippines, which is where I headed. From Bohol, it took three hours by ferry to Cebu, where I had a layover of five hours before another nine-hour overnight journey to Surigao. From there, it was another four hours to my hostel. This island is quite well-known among surfers, and I considered taking a course. However, after seeing the first injured surfers who had kissed some rocks, I decided against it and explored the island instead – once again, with a scooter. I took the same long way back towards Malapascua, my last island in the Philippines.

My original plan was to spend four nights on this island, and the start was very promising. Finally, good and really cheap food, just as I had expected from the beginning. Beautiful beaches and one of my best dives so far. In the morning, we set off on a small boat at 4:30 am, heading towards the sunrise, and I went into the water for my first dive with a private instructor. After only 10 minutes, we saw the first thresher sharks, as we were the first ones there, completely alone. We saw around 30 sharks in small groups – incredible! Moreover, the sharks were not as shy as I had expected. I estimate that they were no more than 5 meters away, absolutely impressive.

Unfortunately, that was it with the good news. Due to a second typhoon in the Philippines, all the afternoon dives were canceled. Since it couldn't be guaranteed that the ferries would still be running, I decided to leave Malapascua two days earlier so that I wouldn't miss my flight to Hong Kong. It's a shame because Malapascua was one of the best islands, but in the end, it was the right decision, as all the ferries were canceled two days later. After six and a half weeks, I'm relieved to leave the Philippines. The country didn't captivate me as much as it did other travelers – the food, the beaches, the crowds of tourists, the relatively high prices, and a few personal reasons all came together during the past few weeks. Now, I'm excited to travel to Myanmar, India, and Pakistan and see something completely different after half a year in Southeast Asia! But first, I'll spend a few days in Hong Kong!