I can’t even count the number of times I tried to talk myself out of going. But no matter how many reasons I could come up with, my heart eventually won out.
I’m going. I’m going damnit. To the Philippines!!
I’m glad to report that it turned out to be a fantastic choice, rewarding my instincts ten fold. My mind was telling me that I didn’t have enough money, I didn’t have enough time, and that I would be lonely traveling by myself for the first time. But I shook off the doubts and took the plunge. Ultimately I reasoned that, because I was between jobs, there was never going to be a better time to go. Once I made my next career commitment, the opportunity to travel for more than a week at a time would be rare, possibly non-existent. Plus, after seven years of working my ass off, I needed an extended break to refresh and reset before starting the job search.
MY PHILIPPINES TRIP
There were many interesting destinations in Asia to choose from but I chose the Philippines for two big reasons. The biggest being the lack of a serious language barrier. The second was that I had a good friend moving to Hong Kong, and Hong Kong and Manila are just a short two-hour flight apart.
Going to China, Japan, Korea or Taiwan were basically out of the question because of the whole character writing thing. I had heard that it can be extremely disorienting to travel in any of those places because even the letters are completely different. Finding your way around is much more difficult and I couldn’t afford to hire a guide.
LANGUAGE BARRIERS
The great thing for Engligh-speakers and Philippines travel is that even though people primarily speak Tagalog or Visayan, locals commonly understand English at an impressive level.
Communication wasn’t a problem in the Philippines. And that was huge. This advantage became even more apparent to me when I arrived in Hong Kong for a few days at the end of my trip. It was really frustrating to suddenly have this major language barrier with just about every local, and Hong Kong is supposed to be this great international city.
Don’t get me wrong, I loved Hong Kong in its own way, but the language barrier was real, especially after getting used to travel in the Philippines. This ability to communicate enabled friendships to develop with the local Filipino people that was at the heart of the trip. I wasn’t able to experience that in Hong Kong and I think this was a major reason why I felt so welcome in the Philippines, because we all could communicate and understand each other so much better.
SOLO TRAVELER
The thought of being lonely as a first-time solo traveler was something I came to laugh about. Fear can play stupid tricks on the mind. In reality, traveling alone forced me to meet other travelers. From the day I arrived in Manila to the day I returned home, I collected a vast number of new and interesting friends who I will never forget. The preconception that I was going to be alone when traveling by myself turned out to be completely false.
I stayed in hostels, which are designed to foster interaction among travelers. It also helped keep my budget at a reasonable level. Being 35, I wondered how well I would be able to connect with others if a majority were in their late teens or early 20s. But my eight-person dorm room in Manila the first two nights was a full spectrum of ages. Within eight hours of arriving in Manila, I found myself eating dinner with six other travelers from around the world.
BUDGET
The other benefit of staying in hostels is the price. I was able to keep my daily expenses throughout the trip to an average of $50 US per day. This didn’t include the domestic airfares, but it did include basic transportation costs using buses or tricycles. Fifty dollars covered lodging, food, beers, transportation and basic activities.
Somedays I spent as little as $30, while my most expensive days were the three days I went scuba diving on Malapascua Islands. Motorbike rentals were never more than $10 for a day, a surfboard rental in Siargao cost me $6 for the day, meals for less than $2, etc. Of course I could have easily spent more money, but I avoided “touristy” activities like organized island-hopping trips catered for foreigners as this would have driven up my daily costs considerably. Making friends with locals goes a long way as they will help you not get taken advantage of.
Clearly I appreciate value and the Philippines offers just that. I will never forget getting a haircut one day for $2. The guy nailed it. Best haircut of my life.
HONG KONG
Another big reason I chose the Philippines was that a good friend of mine was about to move with his wife to Hong Kong. I had never been to Asia before and this presented a good excuse to look tht way. I have made a handful of trips to central and south america, but Asia always seemed so far. Having a great friend there, and having the extra time, helped push me in that direction. Having already crossed the previously mentioned countries off the list, the Philippines jumped out at me as being practical in combination with Hong Kong.
Cementing the decision was that when I looked into the possibility of going, I found a three-way ticket from Los Angeles to Manila, Manila to Hong Kong, then Hong Kong back to Los Angeles for $817. Seemed pretty good to me.
In closing, Philippines travel offered plenty of good reasons to escape there as an English-speaking solo traveler who also happened to be going to Hong Kong. I strongly recommend!!!
