On Tuesday, Sally and Victor were up and around and, having heard of the goodies me and Jerry experienced in Bo's Coffee Club, had to try it for themselves. They called me to meet them there and so off I went. The plan was to go to Minglanilla, way out in the boonies. The problem, though, was finding a taxi driver that would take us there without trying to hustle for some unrealistic price.

Hustling seems to be standard procedure for some out here in the Philippines. Last week, Sally, Victor and Jerry took a boat to the island of Bohol and apparently many people there, from taxi drivers to shop keepers tried to put one over on them. They were charged as much as 1000 peso for rides that should have cost 150 or so. This type of thing never happens to me, but I guess, being Korean, many locals assume they have plenty of money to burn and, not understanding English so well, make for good targets. Even as we stood outside Bo's Coffee Club I heard drivers asking for 600 peso to take us to Minglanilla, which is nowhere near as far as that film studio I went to on Mactan Island for only 250. Finally I decided to talk to a driver and got him to agree to 200. He even offered to wait for us for two hours while we enjoyed the beach.

It was a long drive out to Minglanilla. To make matters worse, we didn't know where we were going once we got there. Luckily, I remembered that Marifel lives out there and she lived right by one of the well known beach resorts. I couldn't remember the name unfortunately, but I figured I would know if I heard it or saw the place, as I remembered the picture of it from a magazine. When we arrived in the small town the taxi driver asked a couple of people and one mentioned Palm Beach Resort, which sounded familiar, so we went.

Now, to find the pristine picturesque beaches like you see in movies or magazines, you have to leave this island of Cebu. Here, there are only what some call "dirty beaches"; dark sand, rocks and generally not very pretty. Still it was so awesome to be at the sea and the sound was relaxing. If I had known this was the plan, I would have brought my swim wear, but I was wearing long pants. Sally and Victor were content to sit in our booth on the beach, but Jerry wanted to go in the water and look for shells. Not content to go in alone, she rolled up my pants and dragged me out to the water. It was a lot of fun, even though we got completely wet anyway. Any shells which had a good look or a good sound we kept. The rest we threw back.

Eventually we decided to explore the area a bit, but most places only ended up in areas where locals were standing around just staring at us. Remember this is not Cebu City. We were in the boonies. There were cows and chickens walking around. Sally didn't feel we were too safe. As the sun began to set we decided it was time to head back, but we were surprised to find our taxi driver was gone! So now we were out in the middle of nowhere, with no transportation and everyone staring as though they had never seen foreigners before. We went to the hotel receptionist to see if they could call a taxi for us. She said she didn't know any numbers, but that we should walk out to the main road and find a trike to take us into town.

We set out walking, taking note of the goats, cows and chickens, but also being aware of anything else around us. Aside from this little path it was almost like jungle around us. It certainly seemed like a scene out of a horror movie where we were the young crew to be killed or eaten and I would be the black dude who dies first.

We got to the main road and were quickly surrounded by a large group of people, mostly kids. No trouble, just curious smiles and questions. They were very helpful in telling us how to take a trike into town where we might find a taxi. A trike soon arrived and we had another dilemma. A trike is basically a motorcycle with a large sidecar made to ideally hold two people, but could probably fit three or four Asians. With me being a big guy and Victor being a champion bodybuilder, though, it was unlikely we were all going to fit. The driver seemed to think it could work though. We finally decided that I would sit in the front cart, Sally and Jerry in the back of the sidecar and Victor sat on the back of the motorcycle with the driver. We waved goodbye to the crowd of smiling people and the kids and off we went.

At this point we were still on dirt roads with cows and chickens, so it was a rough ride before we came to something resembling a town. We eventually stopped on a busy road and got out of the trike, but some guys standing around on the street said that taxis are rare here so we need to go to the center of town. We all piled back into the trike and off we went. The town center was busy and crowded, and looked more like what we were used to. The trike driver saw an empty taxi driving near us and beckoned him to pull over. We paid the trike driver a total of about 50 peso and transferred to the taxi. Luckily, this guy had no problem taking us back to Cebu City on the meter. Being the only guy around he could have easily switched off the meter and charged whatever he wanted. That's what many hustlers do. This guy was cool, though, and happily took us back, making light conversation about who we were and what we were up to. I guess an American with three Koreans is a strange combination to most here.

Once back in the familiar Cebu City, we went to the amazing City Grill, a place I was introduced to a while back by Alona. We ate like we hadn't eaten in ages. We had two big bowls of Rumi soup, about eight pieces of fried chicken, six pieces of barbeque chicken, a large tuna steak, three orders of pork belly, and 6 or 7 orders of rice. City Grill has to be one of the best places to eat in Cebu. They have some really fresh stuff that you see and choose before they cook it. They have large crabs still walking around in the tanks there.

After that we went back to the hotel and were relaxing and nearly falling asleep. I checked my phone was surprised to find it was only 8:30 PM! Sally said it's because we're sitting here doing nothing. We need to go out and do something. In the past, the girls have, kind of half jokingly, said they wanted to see a strip club. this time we decided to really go to one. So we all got up, went back into a taxi and went to one of the clubs near the hotel.

Going into a club like this with the girls is a very different experience. You get a very different perspective on everything, from the girls to even the customers in the club. Needless to say they pulled no punches in their assessment of things. Granted, there were no super models in this particular place, many of the girls clearly had already had babies and sported the stretch marks to prove it. A couple were pretty hefty as well. Still, you see things very differently through their eyes. Victor seemed oddly embarrassed to be there and sat facing me, Sally and Jerry instead of the stage. A couple of girls did sit down and chat with us for a while, but if guys already have girls with them, they probably don't think things will go very far.

After becoming bored with that place, Sally decided she wanted to see a gay bar. I was happy to report that I had no idea where such a place might be. Wouldn't you know it, though, Sally just happened to pick a taxi driver who just happened to have worked in a gay bar before and knew were one was. When the driver realized we were mainly just "bar hopping" for the night, he offered to be our driver for 200 peso per hour. Since the previous bar only had girls dancing in bikinis, he said he knew where the all nude dancing was. Still it was too early, so we had to visit the gay bar first.

The gay bar was equally boring. There were oiled up guys dancing on the stage who all pretty much looked and danced exactly the same. There were a couple of ladyboys doing lip sync and dancing shows. They ladyboys sat down and chatted with us for a bit. Jerry and Sally concluded they must be rich because, for one, they had completed their operations, and, looking at their show, you would believe them when they claim to be pro level dancers having won many big contests. On the whole, though, it wasn't all that interesting, to any of us.

Finally we went to the club where there was supposedly all nude dancing. Inside, we immediately could see this club was on a whole different level that the first one. Drinks costs three times as much as the other places and here, the girls really did look like super models. No stretch marks seen in this place. Unfortunately, the girls didn't seem too happy that we brought girls with us, and many were shy to take their clothes off on the stage. As the night wore on things degenerated even more, and we started to hear a number of Korean obscenities being hurled at us from the girls. Eventually Sally got angry and mentioned this to our waiter who said he didn't hear anything. Even I heard it, and that's about all the Korean I know.

Finally Sally decided we should leave and so we went outside and back into the taxi. Victor, though, got out of the taxi and went back inside, saying he had to use the restroom. While we waited, I explained the many reasons to never make trouble in the Philippines to the girls. Eventually Victor came back and we left. The story I later heard from Sally, though, was that Victor went back in and demanded an apology from the manager and from the girls. He caused them all to line up and asked them why they are so unprofessional. He asked them if they even knew what the bad words they were using meant, which they did not. He then explained to them what they meant and told them to never use such words again. He then asked them to apologize, to which they mumbled an apology, causing him to yell, "I can't hear you. Sound off!" Then they apologized out loud. Although a very nice guy and usually quiet, if he gets upset, he does this kind of thing. Another story I heard was that back in Korea, some wannabe gangsters were bothering Jerry and he did something similar to them, causing one of them to even cry.

So we went back to the hotel and ate some Ponkan and talked about all that we had seen that day and night. Overall it was an amazing day and we covered a lot of ground. Yesterday, we went for a more simple night of swimming and hanging out in my room eating Ponkan and ramen. I am wondering what they plan to get into today.

A few days ago, on Monday actually, Sally and Victor were down sick. Victor had something like a continuing cold that he brought with him and Sally was affected by some kind of food allergy. Jerry, however, was pretty much recovering from her previously mentioned ailments, which is why she was tasked with a mission. Sally and Victor needed medicine and they all needed their travel visas for staying here in the Philippines. Jerry, however, being young, and not quite yet fit to accomplish such things on her own, was afraid to take on this task, and so she called me. She was using Victor's phone, though, since her own was out of cell phone load. After using up a 500 peso load to call and talk to me for hours, I guess Sally and Victor decided she gets no more.

Anyway, I went to their room and was filled in on the parameters of the mission. We had to go to the Korean Consulate office and get their papers, and then go to Ayala to get medicine. Unfortunately, all the instructions they had written for her were in Korean, so if there was any problem, I'm not sure how much help I could have been anyway. We went downstairs, hopped in a taxi and off we went. Jerry explained where we were going to the cab driver. I was already worried, because if he couldn't understand her, or didn't know the place, I could not help as I had no idea even what it was let alone where it was we were going. They had only told me the Korean name for the place.

When we arrived at a Filipino college campus I was certain we took a wrong turn somewhere. The taxi driver assured us, though, that this was the right place. Jerry also seemed to think it was correct. We went inside the campus and to the information desk where Jerry tried to ask the guy working there to point us to the visa office. The guy wasn't sure what she was talking about and asked to see the instructions she was reading from. He was surprised to see they were all in Korean, but then, at least, he figured out we were looking for. He told us to go up the stairs to the second floor. On the second floor there was a large sign with two directions. One read "Korean Consulate" with an arrow pointing one way, and the other read "Korean Community Association", or something like that, with an arrow pointing the other way. It was written both in English and Korean. Jerry said we had to go the Community Association place, but I was sure that for travel papers we needed to go to the consulate. Since I seemed so sure she decided to believe me and we followed the arrow to a hallway that ended in a dead end.

We decided to try the Community Association and that turned out to be the right place. Yes, Jerry laughed at me and I knew she was going to go back and tell Sally and Victor all about my mistake. Anyway, we quickly got their papers and off we went to find another taxi. Why these offices were on a Filipino college campus, I will never know. Find a taxi, we next went to Ayala. On the second floor, past the game arcade, there are two drug stores side by side. One called Rose Pharmacy and the other called Mercury Drug. We tried Rose Pharmacy first. Jerry asked them for ten tablets of Tylenol, which they didn't have. She asked for two tablets of some unpronounceable drug which they did have. She then showed an empty package of something else she needed, which they also didn't have. We decided to move on to Mercury Drug.

Mercury Drug was bigger and much more crowded, leading me to believe it must be the better place. In fact, I remember having been there before. We took a number and, knowing we would be waiting a bit, decided to look around. Jerry picked up some Shampoo, but we mainly looked at snacks and junk food. Finally her number came up and we got everything she needed. The next stop was the main downstairs supermarket in the Metro part of Ayala. There we were meant to get Ponkan, a type of Chinese orange, and a couple of other things. After we paid and were walking out, Jerry remembered that Sally also needed feminine products.

We went back in to shop for the needed products. At this point I am not entirely uncertain that Jerry wasn't asking me silly questions about what labels meant just to embarrass me while other people were around. She said it's normal for a Korean husband to go and shop for this kind of thing for his wife and that if I'm embarrassed about it, I'll never make it as one. regardless, I was happy when she got what she needed and we were out of there.

Next she wanted to go to Starbucks for something to drink, but I decided to school her in the ways of Bo's Coffee Club, which rules here in the Philippines. We went into Bo's and she seemed immediately pleased with the choices. I got a mint chocolate chip shake and she got something with strawberry. I tried to get her to follow me in getting a small "Super Moist Cake" but she wanted a brownie. After we sat down, I could quickly see that she was not too happy with that choice. After she tried my cake, I knew I had to get her one too. I also tried this other cake, which, on the outside, looked like the super moist cake, but inside had cream filling and bits f fruit. The fruit inside, though, was fermented! I guess that one had been sitting around a bit too long.

As the day wore on and the sun was going down, I thought, Man, Sally and Victor are probably dying in the room while we're out here having fun. With that, we went back. Luckily they were fine and we pulled out the bag of Ponkan and ate while relating the story of our mission. Jerry was more than happy tell of my mistaking the Korean Consulate office and of our time shopping for feminine products. After that, we ordered a huge hawaiian style pizza and wings from Yellow Cab and watched an extremely violent UFO level movie about zombies in an insane asylum. This was one of our more normal days.

Alona hasn't been around for a while and, for all I know, may not be back. I guess I haven't been around either, though, as I have been spending all my time with Jerry, Sally and Victor. After another night of drinking games, though, now Jerry has a really bad cold and is down sick. She is resting and I am back in my room having realized I am running out of clean clothes. I am so used to Alona doing the laundry I never thought about it before.

Now I could have easily taken the clothes to any of the many laundry services within walking distance from where Jerry, Victor and Sally stay, but my one worry is that I have so few clothes, they may not accept them. I really didn't bring that much with me and I doubt it would even make for a full load in a large machine. I suspect they would scoff at the idea of washing two handkerchiefs or a few pairs of socks, if they have to be separated from the other things I have.

So I figured, how hard can it be? I've seen Alona do it many times. I will try to wash them by hand myself. So I filled the red tub with water and probably way too much Tide and went at it. It wasn't bad actually. In fact, it was kind of relaxing and there was a great since of accomplishment when it was done. I don't know if I did as good a job as Alona might do, or if they will even come out nice, (after all I did have to get Jerry's vomit out of some of them), but I can at least say I did it. Having tried, I think I can better understand what I see on the terraces of this building now. Based on what I see, and now on my own experience washing, I think most people do just a little bit each day, and then hang that little bit out to dry. I remember the first time Alona washed my clothes, she did everything, and hung it all out to dry and it took forever. With only a shirt or two hanging out, though, they dry very quickly.

I think from now on, I might just continue to do a little bit everyday. It would take all of ten minutes to do a couple of items and they can go on the rack and dry very quickly.

In other news, the holidays are fast approaching here in the Philippines and it is a big deal. I hear carols at this very moment actually. At night, I see ships fully decorated in lights cruising the waters outside my window. I see fireworks very regularly now. I can't imagine what it will be like in a couple of weeks.

I've been spending so much time with Victor, Sally and Jerry lately that I haven't had a chance to write. Victor got sick now, though, which maybe he caught from me since I am a bit under the weather too, so they are resting in their room and I in mine. It's been something of journey these few short days, though, and I can't say what it is, but I have never felt so connected to a group of people as these, and they seem to say the same. It feels like we've known each other forever and things just flow. There is a lot more to this flow, however, than meets the eye.

So, as I mentioned before, they were renting a room across from me somewhere and their roommate, though also Korean, was totally jacking them on the price, as much as 3X what I pay for this place which I have all to myself. They made a plan to move into a townhouse, so as to have more space for themselves, but this place was owned by the same roommate. Although they say they have never discussed with her how much money they have to their name, I can only guess she must have overheard them talking about it because she wanted to charge them basically all the money they had as a deposit to get into this house. That's where their day started to spiral downhill, except that it seems there was a power protecting them.

At first they went on to online banking to try and transfer the money to pay this outrageous amount, but their internet stopped working. So next they figured they would go to Ayala, where they could both eat and use the machines there to get cash for their roommate. Upon arrival though, they were surprised to find they forgot all their cash and credit cards! Now they were hungry, upset and heavily stressed and they returned home and began a vicious fight amongst themselves. It is at this point that I surprised them with a call inviting them to dinner.

We went to a Japanese restaurant Chiba-San took me to before and had a great time eating and trying different things. After that, we stopped at a convenience store to buy $1 rum and snacks and returned to my room for drinking games and fun conversation. Jerry wasn't too into the drinking part, fearing a repeat of her previous experience. Anyway, at some point the subject of this house and the contract came up and I asked to see the contract. My eyes went wide when I saw what this person was charging them. Imagine someone simply added a zero to your monthly rent and handed you that contract. You could find nice places in New York cheaper than what they were being asked to pay! I told them under no circumstances, never sign this. I was so happy to find that they hadn't singed yet. That is when they told me the story of all the mishaps that kept them from moving forward on it. They were both happy and relieved.

I proceeded to explain about the pension house I stayed in for two months when I first arrived here, and the rates of that place, which astounded them. So, even though they had moved their stuff to the new house, since they didn't sign anything, they made plans to sneak off into the night, get all their stuff, and vanish like the wind. Realizing how money they were now going to save, they decided to stay a couple of days at a really fancy hotel before transferring to the pension house. I was there with them a couple of days and we had so much fun. Drinking games, card games, watching anime, you name it. The night before last, the last time I was with them, we had finally found something even Jerry could enjoy drinking. They were these Vodka Cruisers or something, a type of fruity drink with only 5% alcohol. The next morning, Victor and Sally went to sleep and me and Jerry went to breakfast, but I really don't remember much of it. I lost a lot of the games.

None of that, however, is what this post is about. It's about shrinking! You see, all my clothes are just plain too big! Lucky for me, while most Americans who come here cannot buy the local clothes and must use a tailor, though still super cheap compared to getting clothes in the west, I can finally buy clothes at a local shop and fit into them. Not everything, mind you, I still buy the local XL sizes, but at least I don't need custom stuff!

So today, after some experimenting on my business site which brought in some decent cash, I decided to go and buy a bit of clothes. I also decided to do a little eating at The Desert Factory. I deserve it! If these experiments on my business site continue to bring rewards, I am back in business! I already have plans on how to expand on this small success so the adventure should be going full steam again soon!