Thank You, You're Beautiful

30 days in the Philippines has come and gone. It's been a great month filled with endless white sand beaches, waterfalls, motorbike rides, and underwater adventures. However it only takes a couple of hours in Manila and I'm ready to get out of here. I can spend weeks on the beach but the hectic city is not for me. I'm not sure if it's the swarms of people, the foul smells, or the thick dirt filled air but I know once I arrive in the city I'm counting the hours until I leave. I'm sure there are some beautiful parts of the city so I don't want to hate on it too much as I haven't spent enough time here to judge but I will choose the islands over the city any day. And aside from Manila, I will miss the Philippines. Minus the food, which has been pretty disappointing. I've had a great month and I've learned some valuable life lessons.

The trip has been eye opening and has reminded me how blessed I am to live the life that I do, filled with endless possibilities and opportunities. There are people in this country with next to nothing and yet they still go out of their way to help a lost foreigner, to feed a stranger, to get to know someone who they will never see again. The kindness and hospitality that I have experienced this past month has humbled and inspired me. I am constantly in awe of the generosity and warm smiles extended my way. It's sad that it isn't the norm in America but I hope that can change. After an entire month in the country I have only learned 2 words of the language. They are all the only 2 I've needed and I won't soon forget them. Salamat and maganda ka, thank you and you're beautiful.

Thank you for an exhilarating and enlightening month Pilipinas, you're beautiful!

Laura and I had a great week on Bohol. One of the days we rented a motor bike and went to a completely deserted waterfall where we swam for an hour waiting for the crowds to show up but they never did. Then we went to the Bohol Bee Farm for lunch. The Buzzz was our favorite restaurant on Alona beach, we ate atleast one meal a day there, despite the prices being high- I was too excited for healthy food that I didn't care about my budget. We laid on the famous white sand beaches, got massages, face scrubs, and foot scrubs, ate ice cream every day, and even maintained a morning workout routine on the beach. It was the perfect start to our travels together and we're both dying to get to Thailand. Number one on both of our agendas? Pad Thai of course!