My New Roommate

I am not sure when he moved in, but I was delighted to discover this "intruder" in my quaint rice house. I have company now:)

Galungan

Today is Galungan. I missed the ceremony in the morning, but in the afternoon I went for a walk in the village and saw many elegant penjors.

Giant Passion Fruit

It was a shock to see such a giant passion fruit! The flesh is edible, too! It tastes like marrow!

Butterflies

I spotted these lovely butterflies several times during my walk on the trail leading up to the summit of Batukaru Mountain. I have not identified it but was told that a literal translation of its name from Indonesian would be "paper butterfly". Perhaps it is because of the large size of their wings, their movements are very slow, as if it is in slow motion.

A Night with the MADZ

Philip told me that he was going to perform for some event and asked me if I was interested in coming along. Wearing shorts and slippers, I followed him to an art centre in Fort Bonifacio, an emerging posh and exclusive division of Taguig city next to Makati. It turned out that the "event" was a gala for the opening of a new theatre. Among the guests was the country's former president Ramos, and the performers were the country's top artists. Philip did not tell me that it was such a formal occasion because he knew I did not like dress codes. I had no fancy clothing to dress myself up with anyway.

So I evaded cocktail and just hid myself amongst the smartly dressed bunch of glitterati and watched the performance. What I enjoyed most of the night's show was the songs by the Philippine Madrigal Singers, an internationally acclaimed choir of which Philip is a member. Their voice was heavenly!

Philip showed me around the chic Bonifacio High Street after the show was over. We had frozen yogurt at a toy shop called Hobbes and Landes before heading back home. It was a joyous night of musical and gastronomical treats:)

26 Hours in Camotes

Arriving in Big Banca

San Francisco, the Main Town in Camotes

Garbage Separation in the Village

Funky Waterside Park

Boracay

Lucky me! I asked for a couch but got offered a beach front house complete with every convenience within the resort 7Stones. Thanks to Andy's hospitality, I was able to indulge in this most popular tourist destination in the Philippines with a tiny budget.

True to its fame, White Beach was sensational! Even though the waves were big and there were lots of kitesurfers whirling around, I enjoyed my daily dip in the sea. I was very much tempted to try Kitesurfing, but the tuition fees are quite expensive; and above all, I still am not a confident swimmer...

Twinkle, Twinkle, Fireflies!

My persistence in finding a banca paid off when thousands of fireflies greeted me as I paddled up the picturesque Loay River flanked by sea coconut (??? need to check, they are not real sea coconut trees) groves on both banks.

As it got darker and we ventured further upstream, thousands became millions and we spotted quite a few "Christmas trees" lit up entirely by fireflies, exactly like what I saw in the pictures that the "firefly-watching cruise" operator had shown me.

It was a moonless night and there were no other boats around except for our small banca. Perfect for firefly-watching!

Too bad, though, that my camera was not capable to record this most spectacular show. Nevertheless, I did manage to catch the silhouette of one representative of the millions of fireflies with my inadequate camera:)

Rediscovery of malonggay

One of the gains during my stay on Bohol Bee Farm was the rediscovery of Malonggay (Morina oleifera). Last year when I was in Palawan, I saw people putting malonggay leaves in their soups, claiming it to be a magical herb. However, not unitl I finally looked it up on the Internet, did I discover that it indeed is such a wonderful plant. Henceforth I would start my day with a cup of malonggay tea and whenever I cook soups or porridges, I would sprinkle a bunch of malonggay leaves in them.

The Violet Plate

It was simply incredible! I was served again with the same one and only plate with violet patterns in the small Vietnamese restaurant where I had my first meal in Puerto Princesa one year and a half ago! Sure enough! I looked around and did not see another customer who had a plate like mine!

Dolphins! Dolphins!

Dolphins! Dolphins! I run to the bow as soon as I heard the cry. A school of over a dozen dolphins gathered in front of our boat and were swimming along with it. It was my first time to see them up close in the ocean. They followed us for about 20 minutes, so I had ample time to run back to my cabin to get my camera and shot some photos. In fact, they only went away after Tara and Ruben were hung by their father the captain on a rope to try to touch them.

A Glimpse of Mt. Kinabalu

Mt. Kinabalu

My CS host took me and two other couchsurfers to the Crocker Range National Park. Our first stop was at the Rafflesia Information Centre. Luck did not struck me this time as there were no rafflessia flowers in bloom today and the trail was closed to visitors.

Then we proceeded to nearby Mahua Waterfall. The trail leading to the waterfall was short but very pleasant. However, I did not have much time to examine the magnificent plants, as my companions were moving fast. We met a group of students who were picnicking there. They were so nice and offered us a lot of food that we left the place stuffed.

On the way back, we passed the Kundasang veggie and fruit market where we bought some interesting foodstuff. Again, we were in such a hurry that I did not even have time to ask for the names of the unknown fruits I bought.

The highlight of the day was the last stop at the Pekan Nabalu Lookout where we enjoyed a breathtaking view of mighty Mt. Kinabalu, which I am returning to explore next weekend...

Jalan Gaya Sunday Market

These exquisite bowls made of coconut shells has a strong cinnamon smell. The pattern you see are embedded cinnamon chips.

Giant figs (can anyone help me find out what they really are?)

These sweet seedless lemons are a hybrid between lemon and bergamot

I love the mellow taste of rose apples

Orchids were sold like this

The Sunday Market was a blast. There was a lot of fruits, flowers, leaves, barks, roots, twigs from plants I do not know. The diversity of the bounties of the tropics was simply amazing...

Kaamatan

Gate of KDCA was guarded by Uncle KFC

Bamboo orchestra

Tug-of-war

I arrived in K.K. in time to run into the last two days of the month-long Tadau Kaamatan celebrations, which took place at the Kadazandusun Cultural Association (KDCA) complex. There were displays of traditional arts and crafts, local produce and specialties, music and dance shows of the ethnic groups and traditional sports competitions.

The festivities were interesting and the eye candies amongst the sportsmen were invigorating, however, the unrelenting sun and tropical heat made me feel languid. So I returned early in the afternoon not long after the bamboo orchestra kicked off...

To the officer who turned down my visa application

I sent this message to the US consulate in Chengdu.

To the officer who turned down my visa application:

It is absurd to make assumptions on the basis of the answers to a few ill-intended questions and judge every applicant with the same well-trained rigid mentality.

If having a "normal" job and a house are prerequisites for obtaining a visa to visit the US, that should have been explicitly stated in your visa application guide, in order to rule out possible accusation of scam.

Freedom of travel is a basic human right. Nothing will prevent me from proceeding to embark on my voyage.


P.S. Perhaps some people with a "normal" job and a house but is confined to a chair behind a tiny window having to repeat mechanical inquiries day after day (I believe some people do have fun doing that.) is just jealous of someone without a "normal" job and a house but still being able to freely trot the globe and sail to exotic islands...

寶興尋桂

Unidentified violet 1

Unidentified violet 2

Unidentified violet 3 (1)

Unidentified violet 3 (2)

寶興桂花（Osmanthus serrulatus）

An Osmanthus tree growing on the river bank

Attracted by China National Geography's report about the newly discovered wild osmanthus forest that extends tens of miles in Donglashan Canyon (東拉山大峽谷) in Baoxing (寶興) , I made a special trip there with hopes of being intoxicated by the fragrance of this sweetest-smelling flower.

After a weary prolonged ride by bus, minivan and motorbike, with an overnight stay in Baoxing township, I finally arrived at the starting point of the trails leading to two of the valleys with the highest concentration of osmanthus colonies: 趕羊溝 桂嬙溝

(To be continued)

Songkran

We drove into town in the late afternoon to join in the Songkran celebration. I took my camera with me but was not able to take a single picture as we all got soaked from head to toe. My camera was not waterproof so I had no chance.

The water splashing was fun. Some people used ice cold water which made us shiver even in the tropical heat. What I did not like was the occasional attack of colourful water (dyed with chemical food colourings supposedly) which I had a hard time trying to avoid.

Yellow Gardinia & Baby Pineapples

Delightful discoveries during my bike ride near Wat Chalong today...

Out at sea

Ao Yon Bay

Straight off the plane, I got on board Infinity and we sailed to Racha Yai. The trees are green (back home the trees are all gray, covered with dust); the sea is blue (back home the rivers are black and stinky); the air is clean and fresh; the sunsets are magnificent; the night sky is painted with stars... I am forgetting all the troubles at home... No more cencored websites; no more disgusting propoganda; no more poisnous milk...

I am feeling free as a bird...

The Best Job in the World

An Australian state is offering internationally what it calls "The Best Job in the World" -- earning a top salary for lazing around a beautiful tropical island for six months. The job pays 150,000 Australian dollars (105,000 US dollars) and includes free airfares from the winner's home country to Hamilton Island on the Great Barrier Reef, Queensland's state government announced on Tuesday. (AFP/File)

How I wish I were eligible to apply for it!!! But I am no good swimmer!!! Alas!

P.S. The website must be receiving tons of visits, for it extremely slow if not impossible for the pages to load...

Yacón

Smallanthus sonchifolius (Illustration taken from the web)

When I first saw the Yacón tubers on sale at the Fruit section of a local supermarket, I mistook them for sweet potatos. On a closer look, I noticed the name on the price tag was "雪莲" or snow lotus (Saussurea sp.). Obviously it was another case of confusing misnaming of an introduced crop. Eager to sample new edible plants, I bought a few home.

Yacón tubers have a mellow, agreeable taste. Eaten raw, both the flavour and texture are most reminiscent of the Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus，菊芋). The Yacón is slightly sweeter, though.

Given the fact that it is a member of the Asteraceae family and its tuber resembles the sweet potato, I think that "菊薯" would be a proper Chinese common name for it.