New Beginning

After living in Phuket for two years, we were ready for new adventures. I was going to finish the school year and then we would go traveling and look for work elsewhere. We had our minds set on Hong Kong, but we were pretty flexible as far as a destination. One of the main reasons for wanting to leave was that although Chris had been doing some freelance work as a web designer, he was looking to gain more experience in an office environment. However, a month or so before departure, Chris got offered a position as a web master for a company here in Chalong, Phuket. It was the opportunity he was looking for! Although we were a bit disappointed we wouldn’t get to travel, he arranged the have two months before the start of his contract so we went to the Philippines and Vietnam. A mini-adventure began...

The Philippines

Boracay

We started our exploration of the Philippines with the famous Boracay. It seemed like an easy first pick to get accustomed to the country and get an introduction to this archipelago of more than 7,000 islands! Boracay is a major tourist destination and is surrounded by white sand beaches. Wind surfing and kite surfing are very popular and these sports dominate the beach scenery. Because we arrived in hurricane season, we got to experience both the sunny, lazy days on the beach and the intense, windy storms typical to the Philippines.

 Sunny day at the beach

 Kite Surfers at Sunset

Approaching storm

Most visitors go around on motorized tricycles, which act as the island's taxis. The tricycle seats are located right above the vehicle exhausts and the bumpy roads are hard to navigate, so it’s definitely not the easiest way to travel. We often opted to walk instead of using taxis.

Tricycles

Being low season, we did not experience the crazy nightlife often associated with Boracay. Our first impression with the country was great. We were amazed at how good Filipinos speak English (especially compared to Thais!) and thought overall they were friendly and helpful.