A Vegan in Vigan

Here's some of what you'll find in the northern Philippines: The mountain/college town of Baguio, where now in winter temps drop down into the 50s (brrrr!); surfing in San Juan, a 2-hour bus ride northwest from Baguio; and Vigan, 3 hours by bus north up the coast from San Juan. Vigan, a "Spanish-colonial fairy tale," barely escaped American WWII carpet bombers, who aborted their mission at the last second after Japanese troops fled the city. It's interesting to note that at Cafe Leona, a popular Vigan restaurant, in honor of the town's name all vegan dishes on the menu are marked with an asterick.

Holiday Time in the Philippines

Dumaguete

To reach Dumaguete from Moalboal, I took a moto-trike, a 2-hour bus, a moto-trike, a 45-minute ferry,and then yet another moto-trike. Population 116,000, Dumaguete is a vibrant college town located in the Negros Oriental province of Negros Island. The small college there is gorgeous, but has the rather goofy name of Silliman University.

Moalboal

Moalboal, one of oldest diving towns in the Philippines, is in the Visaya chain of islands, about a 3-hour bus ride south of Cebu City. It's a raucous little place, full of divers, drinkers, bikers, and tourists.

Cebu: First stop in the Visayas

Cebu, the capital of the Visaya islands, is a 23-hour ferry ride from Manila. It's about 90F and sunny here, not at all like winter. There are many aid workers at the hotel where I'm staying, likely heading northeast to Tacloban, the city recently decimated by typhoon Yolanda.

Manila: Life in the Capital

Mush!

Several times while taking an evening stroll along Manila's Baywalk I've seen this white dog pulling the man on his bicycle snack cart. In one photo, where the dog understandably appears very tired, you can see his brand new green dog harness. And the photo of the woman shows the bicycle/snack cart after it's opened up for business.