Mason flipped out in the Mall when we went by a store that had an Elmo in the window. Here he is about 30 seconds later with that same Elmo. Dad is a sucker but how can you resist when it makes him smile like this.
After the Naga Wakeboarding letdown we took a break in Manila and waited for Anna's brother Jose to arrive before we took our next trip. It was kind of up-in-the-air as to where we would go. Boracay(again), Cebu, Bohol? I had time to plan so I procrastinated and chilled out a bit.
Food, food, food! It's all about the food here in Manila. The last time we were here Pa took us to this place called King Crab. It's just the name. They don't have King Crab....but that have awesome crabs. Not sure what kind but they're big like Dungeness crabs. Instead of boiling them they fry them in Garlic, Sweet Chili, Seseame Miso, Ginger, Sezchuan, ect. It's unbelieveable. Mason didn't know what he was looking at and he was okay with not getting to know dinner. Here he is looking a little concerned.
He's going through this stage now where he likes shoes, Mom and Dad's clothes and shoes and hats. Sometimes he'll just be in a diaper and go put his shoes on. Then 5 minutes later he's got a different pair on. He gets this from his mom. It's the same sometimes with shirts. He'll say "shirt off" and then go to the closet to get a new one. A couple minutes later he'll want that one off and then goes for another. Little Brat! Again, he gets this from his mother. Here he is with my shirt on and my hat on. He loves copying daddy and mommy.
Mason started School at Mother Goose Montessori School and goes every day from 8:30 to 11:30 am. Yesterday he scored 2 goals at recess. I missed it but Anna was walking by the park with Ma and Pa and they all saw him score 2 goals. On the second he raised his hands above his head and clapped yelling yeah!!! He's a natural like dad I guess.
Here he is walking the steps to school. We hear from his teachers that he listens and communicates well, he interacts with the other student and he talks a lot. A little social butterfly like Mama.
And lastly here is Mason in the ball pen at his cousin Enzo and Manu's house. Anna has no nieces. All boys. Robby, Luis, Enzo, Manu and Mason. It's a trip watching them all play. The family is counting on Anna or her cousin Ria to have a girl. We shall see. I think Mason needs a brother to surf and play soccer with. Then a sister later so the older brothers can bully any potential boyfriends. But "life is what happens when you're making plans" right Pop.
When we were last in PI in 2007, Pa took us to Tagaytay(Ta-guy-tie) and more importantly to a restaurant there called Antonio's. The town is up in the mountains and over-looks Mt. Taal (Ta-all), an old volcano that sits in the middle of Lake Taal. We were leaving for Naga the next day but it didn't take too much convincing when Pa asked if we wanted to go with him to Batangas....we would stop at Antonio's in Tagaytay for lunch on the way. We were in! And so was Mason.
Since we last came here, Antonio's has opened up a second site which is not as fancy but has the same awesome menu. It's high end traditional Filipino. I was in the mood for something different. Several years ago when I proposed to Anna in Hawaii (she eventually said yes after lots of bribes) the Filipino Mafia (the deck department on the ship) through us a party in Kauai. One of the guys who lived there and made a goat stew. I was hesitant but it was awesome so when I saw it on the menu I didn't think twice. Again, it was awesome. Anna wasn't paying attention and ate a couple bites. Had she known it was goat before trying it I'm not sure she'd be into it. But it was too late. She loved eating that little goat! As you can see, the food had no chance. Ma hates wasting food so we did our best to make sure there were no leftovers.
It was a really hot day but the view was amazing. That's Mt. Taal in the background. Mason was all about saying "cheese" for the camera on this day. At some point in time after Taal irrupted a lake filled in around it. Now fish farms cover the whole lake and restaurants cover the cliffs of Tagaytay.
After Lunch and pictures we went down to Batangas, a coastal town about an hour south of Tagaytay. Pa designed a house for a friend and had to go down and discuss the plans. It was unbelievably hot but lunch at Antonio's made it all worth it. Tomorrow we would leave for Naga so after the meeting we drove back to Manila to pack and start Chapter 7. But sadly no pictures of Mason because he had to stay in Manila to start summer school at Mother Goose Montessori School.
After a week of relaxing in Manila it was time for Anna and I to hit the road again. I can only stay in Manila for so long before the urge to explore and find some country kicks in. Apparently the "Best Wakeboarding Park in the World" is a 6 hours south of Manila in a town called Naga. It's called Camsur Wakeboarding Complex (CWC) and it was dubbed the best in the world by wakeboard magazine and held the 2011 world Championships. I'm in! Got some boards and gear from some friends of Anna's Cousin and we were off to Wakeboard at a cable park. Instead of being towed behind a boat there is a 6 point cable that pulls you around the park to hit the jumps and rails. I was really excited because I hadn't surfed in a while and any board sport was fine with me. Anna was also curious to try it so we left for 2.5 days.
We arrived at the airport 2 hours early and experienced a new type of customer service from Cebu Pacific. Apparently, instead of rewarding those passengers that arrive early, they choose to make them suffer and stand in line while they call all the dumbasses that arrived late to the front desk to check in before it's too late. Anna and I stood in line about 5 people back and didn't move for 1.5 hours. Then, with 45 minutes till our flight we were finally checked in. In the US we are used to getting our bags weighed. They do it a bit different here and I like it a lot. They weigh you. Thankfully I didn't have to pay any extra. I guess if you are too fat you pay extra. I was prepared to argue that any extra pounds could be transftered to Anna as she would be well under. But none of it was necessary. We both made it.
Naga is in the South East region of the Luzon Province also known as Camerines Sur. It's lush and green and also sometimes hit by typhoons. The region is definitely a lot different from Manila and has been evolving as an X Sports destination with wakeboarding, kiting, surfing, hiking/climbing and skateboarding growing in popularity. Our flight was quick and we were off to CWC after a few domestic flight pictures.
Sometimes in life you have to take the good with the bad. And this time ranks high up on the list. After checking in and getting the credit card swiped we found out that the park was broken. It was hard news to swallow and the sweet little girl at the recepetion saying it all cute and polite made it even worse. I told her that kind of information was kind of important and next time it would be better to hear it before getting my card swiped. They informed us they hoped to have it up the following morning.
Anna in her Nipa Hut
The fun and broken cable park with Mt. Isarog in the background
Things got worse when we found out the next morning that it was not a simple fix. A cable bearing had broken and parts were being flown in from Manila. Now we were looking at the very good possibility of not being able to use the park at all. Things happen but what really got Anna and I mad was the fact that we called them the morning we left to confirm and they already knew the park was broken. They said nothing and we got on our flight to Naga. That changed my whole outlook on things and I marched up to the desk and demanded they comp our stay and also pay for our ticket change fees if the park was broken again tomorrow. They comped the room but did not agree with helping us change our flight. So we dealt with our anger by getting drunk! We headed out into the town of Naga and had some dinner.
Bob Marlin Restaurant and Cafe Rasta did the trick and the good food and alcohol turned our frowns upside down.
Our luck didn't change and the next morning the park was still broken. So we went to hike Mt. Isorag and checked out a waterfall. Anna and I said the Mountain and hike reminded us of Maui and Haleakala. Sort of like we were up in Kula looking down at the bay. For those of you who are familiar with this, you may see what we are talking about in the picture of Anna below.
The only thing we saw on the hike was this Caribou so we hoped that we'd have the waterfall all to ourselves. Unfortunately it turns into a local drinking hole on hot days. It was a hot day and da local Filipino Boyz were very happy to see Anna headed down the trail. We were both our normal selves. I was clueless of the 12+ perving out half drunk Filipino guys grunting at Anna all waiting for her to take off her shorts and top. She never got down to the Bikini. Of course she never said anything either and as normal I was supposed to read her mind. So the waterfalls were a let down for Anna but it was too cold for her anyway. I almost forgot to tell you that on the way down she saw a snake and instinctively grabbed my balls and squeezed unmercifully. Not sure if a second child is now possible. It was really weird that she chose that as a defense mechanism. But I'll be ready next time we see a snake.
We never did get to use the park and heaed back to Manila with our tails between our legs. We got punked big time. The icing on the cake was looking out the window on the left side of the plane and seeing the cable park up and running. Some how, some way I will find a way to come out on top down the road.
32. I was born at 8:++ pm on the east coast of the US on April 18, 1979. As you all know the Philippines is a day ahead so technically April 18 here in PI is only 364 days since my previous birthday. So I tried explaining to my wife an in-laws that my real birthday was on the 19th here in PI which would make it the 18th back in the states. We argued about it and eventually decided that we were both right and I would have 2 birthdays this year- one on the calender day April 18, and one to officially mark the 1 year after 31. I'm right but I couldn't pass up 2 birthdays. So here is a picture of me about at 31 and 364 days old.
Pa took the Family to Carpacio, the best Italian restaurant in Manila. It was really good. It was the Gervasio, Arellano and Facciolo families. Sounds like good mob families names right! Mason was a handful and made sure the waitresses worked twice as hard to keep us happy and him out of trouble. He covered every square inch of the restaurant twice. He would not sit still and all 15 of us played hot potato with him.
Where is Waldo?
Robbie and Luis take their turn. Batang Lilaki's. That's young boys in Tagalog. I'm almost fluent. Now i just have to work on my english
Towards the end of dinner Mason had all the waitresses wrapped around his fingers...until he looked at one of them who had braces and said "Dirty teeth, Dirty Teeth!" He didn't know what they were so that's what he thought I guess. She was so embarrassed and ran away. All her co-workers laughed.
Heads of the Gervasio and Arellano Families. Don Tito Benj and Don Tito Arturo.
Lolo and Lola and the little man.
Who knows? Maybe we have a future bull rider in the family.
After the Birthday Dinner we went to watch Anna's cousin play their last gig before he left for Boston College of Music. Pa joined us young kids along with Tinchu's Mom and Dad. Tita Nina and Tito Nards are without a doubt the funniest Filipino's on the planet. Tito Nards had us laughing from start to finish and I tip my hat to Tita Nina for putting up with such a character. I was glad to meet them. Tinchu's Band stayed consistent with the way concerts go. We were told they started at 11pm but there were 2 bands before them and they didn't play to around 1am. Then we all went out to "The Old Swiss Inn" for post concert drunk comfort food. We rolled into the house about 2:45pm with bellies full of beer. Special recognition goes to Don Arturo for hanging with the young bucks.
Tito Nard and Tita Nina had never been to any of Tinchu's live shows because he plays so late. They made sure to see his last show bc they were leaving with him for Boston in 2 days and didn't have to work. Tito Nards was joking about being old and it being ages since he'd been to a concert. He was saying he should "bring some grass" since it was a concert and did his best to comb his hair like Justin Beber. That should explain the insinuating hand gesture in the picture. Tinchu's band was really good. They were like Jamiroqual.
The next day we all slept in but it was Mason boy who seemed to need the most rest. Here he is is his standard stroller pose taking a nooner.
Mason loves balls and this one caught his eye. But he seemed a little intimidated by it's size. He would get close but was scared to touch it. And on the right he does his Wizard Merlin impression from King Aurthur.
DanDan had her birthday just a few days after me. Mason seemed more excited to wish her a happy birthday than when it was my birthday. Smart boy!
Pagudpud is at town in the Ilocos Norte province 12 hours north of Manila. It is nicknamed the "Boracay of the North." It's remote and mountainous, there are reefs, and the sand is not fine like Boracay so I'm not sure how it got that nickname...but I like it a lot. As you can see from the pictures it share similar geography to Hawaii. I read about a resort up in Padugpud called the Kapuluan Vista Resort. Check it out on the web. It has a Tahitian surfer vibe to it and although this was not the season for waves, i wanted to go check it out anyway.
By the way... Buco, Aso and Balut are Tagalog words. Buco is coconut, Aso is dog, and Balut is a fine Filipino delicacy. Google Balut if you dare!
We arrived at Terra Rika in Suad Beach around dinner time and got right to drinking. San Miguel Lights and this aweful cocktail drink called Sling were on the menu. It seemed like something you would find at a frat party. Just a bunch of cheap liquor mixed with Hawaiian Punch. We drank the whole pitcher anyway. Ma won't let us waste anything. The food was good as usual and there was a band playing. We turned in around 10:30pm for what we thought would be a good night's rest before heading to Blue Lagoon Beach and Kapuluan the following day. The Kapuluan Beach resort was booked because of a wedding so we planned to go for a day trip. What Anna and Ma didn't tell me was that when we got the room, they offered us an upgrade but warned us that it was a bit loud when the band was playing. This was very true and I was serenaded to sleep with Lady GaGa, Black Eyed peas and No Doubt cover songs until 2am. Awesome!
The next day we had breakfast and then spent the morning at the beach. I broke my back and got sunburned building a sand castle with a tunnel for Mason. No shovel. Just as I finished and admired my prize, some little bratty Korean tourist kid came down the beach with a giant inflatable soccer ball and sat right next to us. Mason had no interest in the sand castle once he locked in on the ball. So I sulked for a while and gave the 5 year old Korean family stink eye for the next hour. I did get some satisfaction when I saw the Korean dad make a really shitty sand castle for his kids. It wasn't even close to as good as mine and he had a bucket. I guess he had a manicure or something and didn't want to ruin his pretty hands. But as karma would have it, just has I was beating my chest as the alpha male, my tunnel collapsed and my castle turned into a hole in the sand. I cried for a little and then started drinking San Miguel's to ease my sorrows. It was 10:30am so that was late enough.
We packed up the car and headed out on a 30 minute drive up over the next headland to Blue Lagoon and the Kapuluan. You come in from the east side (back side) of the mountains in the background of this picture so you don't really get to peak at anything until you drop down into the lagoon. It was a pretty pleasant and surprising view when we got there. Just beautiful beaches and well maintained farms.
this reminds me of Kauai
believe it or not there would be 2-3 foot sets that would roll through here
Anna pretty much fell in love with the resort right away. She wanted to get married again I think. We sat down and eat an awesome lunch. The place has a killer restaurant and grows all their veggies orangicly on the property. After lunch we just walked around and I probed the resort staff for information on the surf and other breaks in the area. Anna took 200 pictures. Mason played with his new friend Ziggy the puppy. Ziggy was teething and liked Mason a lot.
While dad surfed Mason nabbed some chick at the pool. He was a gentlemen in true form and followed the bros before h*s creed when he ditched the babe to showed dad the fresh water rinse-off buckets after the surf.
Mason scoring some older woman on the beach
the wave comes in and breaks right on a seaweed covered reef shelf. I can't wait to come back when it's in season with some size!
I found out from Anna that they rented boards there. A guy walked by with a longboard to go surf. I followed him out to gauge if it was only longboardable or if a shortboard would work out. It didn't take me long to go back and sort out a board. It was thick, dinged up and heavy but the closest thing to a fish and it worked out fine. It was just an Aussie guy named Troy, the Filipino longboarder named Mike and me. Turned out that Mike was the owner. He and his Filipino wife did a surf trip here several years ago and kept coming back. When the land went for sale they bought it and started the resort. Seems to be working out for them as the resort is full a lot. In the back of every surfer's mind is a fantasy about finding some cool surf spot not so well known and opening up a surf resort. I admired this guy's vision. He bought it when he was 25.
hollow and off-shore but just a little too small to grab a barrel
After the surf and a few more San Miguel's we packed up and headed back to Terra Rika. Tomorrow we would leave after breakfast and drive 10 hours back to Manila stopping in Vigan and San Fernando for meals to break the drive up. It sucked bad!
