The Castle Hotel Iloilo City

... of the bands were quite good. It was sponsored by Colt 45, so that brand of beer was for sale...26 peso each..or about 60 cents.

It seems that the entire town shows up for these events, and with this being the first event this year, this was particularly well attended.

After all the travel, the heat, the beers and the music, it was surely time for bed and sleep..There is a whole week of fiesta ahead of us.

The ...

... 4 dollars. Or 200 pesos. We all got a pair. Allan, the male Imelda Marcos got two pairs.

She took our sample slippers to the lady at the desk, who the walked over to a post and called something into a microphone and second later our shoes came falling from a hole in the ceiling. Watching for a bit that's how elk the shoes came. The salesgirls were pretty good at catching the orders and tossing back up the ones people didn't want.

Then we headed over to l ...

... Indak also lives here, and she mans the store they operate roadside. Allan's sister Catherine is also visiting. She lives in Mindaro with her husband Alvin, who is in the military, and was unable to get time off to visit. Lastly Andoy, a 16 year old boy who is a cousin from the country and Putin a 9 year old girl who is also a cousin from the country. Also visiting is Ginnie (Ginnetta) who works fairly close by and Rosita, visiting from Manila - both sisters of ...

... with more poeple. But it does mean I need a lot more time to do things, I am definatly not in a rush so it is all good. So Iloilo City is nice, I found a good cheap place. There are no backpackers around and I think this may be a theme for the Phillipines. I ate some gorgeous fish at a nice cheap place and walked around a bit and got an early night. Now today, I ...

... of pure fireworks. With a few breaks and some misfires, the evening lasted almost four (4) hours! By the eighth (8th) show or so, we became rather spoiled (and very judgmental). We began criticizing the displays with remarks about the colors, elegance, sophistication, grandeur and whatnot. The best show in our opinion was given by a company from Dumaguete. When we heard they actually won the contest we were in no way surprised and felt very proud ...

... and found ourselves walking the streets, following the noise, and eventually even dancing with the tribes as they walked the streets with no apparent plan or route. The dances went on even when it rained hard and the body paint began to wash away. It was a wild party which lasted until late in the evening, when the focus moved to Magsaysay park where local rock bands performed both original and cover music. The performances were woven with "Viva Kay Seņor ...

... as we arrived. FUNNY! Man o man a bit of white skin and blonde hair and suddenly you're a superstar. After #2 we headed out and walked back to Lau-a's which was just down the road. Decided to have a night cap out on the main floor veranda and take in the clean night air. We were so tired from our busy day and all the festivities that it was short lived. We packed our bags up in preparation for our journey the next day to Manila and Bangkok. Had a great nights sleep.

Here it is - the biggest fiesta on the Philippine's calender. At least that's what the book says! It's in a usually sleepy but pleasant town, but it goes crazy for this one weekend. The Ati Atihan festival originates from the indigenous tribes that are thought to have arrived from Borneo (I think) and this explains the reason that most of the dancers are daubed in black paint. I had accomodation sorted ut, having met up again wth an American ...

... him.

After that, I decided to check out the beach. It was just as nice as the beach on boracay, but completely empty. After a leisurely dip, walked to probably the only place to eat on the island, listened to a middle aged filipina woman sing karaoke to me while I ate some calamari and beef dish, that cost about 75 cents after beverages. I picked up a kilogram of the most delicious mangoes i have ever eaten (5 for 1$), and some extra beef stew for later, and ...

... alternative.

Another Ilonggo delicacy that’s been tickling many Pinoys’ taste buds, including mine, is inasal (grilled chicken) which can be found in almost every restaurant in Iloilo. A marinade of local herbs and spices gives this mouth-watering dish its unique flavor. Tasty but not salty, it has the right amount of sweetness that leaves you hankering for more. Inasal, which is cooked over hot charcoal, is ...