YMCA Manila

... limpias, pero no podian cubrir la petridez del sudor acumulado en la almohada quien sabe durante cuanto tiempo.

Lo peor de todo sin embargo, lo que me cabreo, fue que no solamente no habia Wi-Fi, sino que depues de pasarme cuatro horas en el ordenador del hostal despues de cenar, se me anuncio que debia pagar 20 pesos por hora. El precio era una memez, pero no habia ningun cartel que dijera que tenia que pagar. Cuando la chica del ...

... in conversation that they had a b*** and, like a Pavlovian instinct I started thinking “Oh great! How big an ego must they have? Oh please let me read your navel gazing thoughts about your twelve hour bus journey to the middle of nowhere and how you met up with an Indian shaman and ended up getting drunk on rice wine or some equally obscure...” at that point I realise I am, indeed, criticising myself. It is shocking hypocritical but the connotations are unavoidable. So I ...

One year on and whiplash after a bus crash in India that is still making my neck click from time to time, a strange infection resulting in (the process of) losing two fingernails and lots of scars on my feet plus I’m also covered in nasty bites all over my feet after being attacked by ants (twice!) leaving my feet looking like something David Blunkett might want to read but only a handful of negatives in what has been a year full of ...

When you make a life change like this you learn a lot about yourself in the process. Some things are so elementary that you wonder why you didn't know them long ago. Today I found out I am claustrophobic.
I abandonded Wii training and pretty much all other physical activity due to severe pain in the area of my shoulder. It's a recurring problem that came and went for years but this time it came and stayed. I think it was ...

... recognizable to potential passengers, who flagged them down based on the destinations stencilled on their sides. As business boomed, ingenious operators recognized the chance to maximize profits and the Jeeps were cobbled together with longer frames; welded and stretched to accommodate more customers and fitted with bench seating running from front to back. Nowadays they are like festive rolling murals; daubed in vibrant hues and covered in flags, religious ornaments ...

... now takes me over to the next office "cubicle" where I will get my "physical". This time they at least had the cost posted (100 pesos), a card table, four or five chairs, bathroom scale and a height scale taped to the wall which made up the "waiting area". They took my name, money, had me stand on the scale and against the wall for my height and told me to sit down. Shortly I was called to the back of the room for my eye exam, which was just was ...

... with their hair on fire? Are they just so conditioned that it doesn't bother them? Jane's texted her source of all things Filipino asking if there had just been a quake and sure enough, Yes there had been. We had dinner that night with people Jane works with (some from the US) and we asked if they had heard anything about an earthquake or if anyone else had felt it. One of the people from the US said ...

... beauty of being alive. I couldn't close my eyes. The spectacle might end and I'm afraid I might miss a dint of magic. So I said a silent prayer with eyes looking at the sky. But everything did end. Soon, the place was quiet and all that was left were tons of garbage and thousands of tiny paper cups scattered on the field. I couldn't sleep last night. I was haunted by dancing lights, colorful lanterns, and the sight of a bright full moon.

... seems to acknowledge the horns in any sort of manner, that includes someone walking down the street on a collision course with a huge truck laying on the horn as well as the drivers themselves. Which I guess begs the question, why are they honking? The last thing I need to mention are the people. Living in Toronto, I'm very used to diversity. On a daily basis I see and interact with people from every corner of the world. The scene here ...

... kom om bord viste det seg at jeg (Olav) nesten var den yngste ombord. Bortsett fra 3 danske gutter var de fleste andre passasjerene fra 50 og oppover. Men de aller fleste var veldig morsomme mennesker. Seilingsruta var ned vestkysten av Mindoro og saa vestover til noen smaa oygrupper og saa tilbake til utgangspungtet. De forste par dagene hadde vi fint vaer og var innom noen flotte strender med suveren snorkling. Svaere ...