Apo Island-near Dumaguete Diving Apo The sanctuary is loaded with clownfish hanging around in the massive soft coral beds. The Coconut drift is sweet. You can get swept along in the current surrounded by jacks, trevalleys, and barracudas. Read more...   Sagada caves Sagada caves There is a connecting passageway between Lumiang and Sumaging Caves in Sagada. This is a sweet 3 hour hike if you go slow and enjoy the beauty down there. Read more...   Jungle hunter Rainforest Gil is a jungle hunter in the high mountain regions of the Cordillera Mountain Province in the Philippines. He hunts when he is not tending his terraced rice fields and taking care of his family. To see some unspoiled tropical rainforest,  Gil is the man to see. He flows through the jungle like it's his backyard but even he ran into problems with the poison leaves of the luba plant. Read more...   Around Banaue Banaue is surrounded by rice terraces that were notched into the rugged mountains thousands of years ago. They require constant maintenance to keep them in shape producing mountain rice. Read more...   Puerto Pension - Palawan Puerto Pension - Palawan This place advertises itself as being recommended by the "Lonely Planet" guidebook. It had a grand view overlooking the harbor and a very comfortable restaurant on the top floor. Read more...   Around Dumaguete Around Dumaguete Dumaguete has to be one of the most comfortable places to live in the Philippines for the expat. It is a well organized, clean college town with a low cost of living. One of the nicest features of this city is the walkway alongside the seawall where food vendors set up tables and chairs every night and cook fresh food. Read more...   Around Zamboanga Around Zamboanga Zamboanga is a vibrant city that reminds me a lot of Dumaguete with it's centuries of Spanish influence in the layout of the city, parks and old Fort Pilar. Read more...   Friendlys Guest House Friendly's Guest House - Manila By far the best place for the backpacker to stay in Manila is the Friendly's Guest House in Malate, Manila. The upper deck has a spacious lounge area with big screen tv and internet. They charge 30 pesos per hour if you use one of the house computers but wireless is free if you bring your own laptop. Read more...   May whale shark update May 2008 Donsol whale shark update We took a trip to Donsol to see if there were any late season whale sharks still in the bay. Read more...   San Juanico Bridge San Juanico Bridge The San Juanico bridge links the islands of Samar and Leyte together. Read more...