Adventures of a Bygone Era: The Philippines in 1984 (page 3 of 9)

Hello, What a treat this travel journal is! My only trip to the Philippines was in May 1980. I left Thailand, where I was working, and my journey lasted 3 weeks: Manila-Mindoro (a few days in Puerto Galera)-Tablas-Boracay-Panay-Negros-Cebu-Bohol by boat or bus, including a long ride in an open-sided wooden bus to reach Carmen and the "Chocolate Hills."

I scanned and posted a few photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/yvesguillemot/albums/72157674661398407

Awesome, thanks for the link 😇

Back to the Future... Amazing... There's so much to say about your travel journal gem, THANK YOU Christian!!!!!

In my quest... 1984, I see myself with more backpackers in the Philippines. I'd spent a few weeks hanging out in Sagada at Julia Guesthouse (now Masferre Country Inn) and had crossed paths with quite a few travelers—even distant memories and feelings from several weeks in Puerto Galera. After that, I pushed all the way south to Puerto Princesa via Coron. That was *the* Solo Americano in the World! It’s silly, but the only travel memory I have handy from that famous year, 1984, is a newspaper clipping... I’m posting it so you can check out the journalist’s "hellish optimism" (at the end of the text)... and thanks again!

In '82, there were still quite a few people around. Ermita was really lively. In April and May, Boracay had quite a crowd too, even if it wasn’t immediately obvious since it was spread out over the 3 km of beach.

A lot of backpackers from Thailand and India had started venturing further out. Alternative tourism in Thailand really began around '75/'76.

Love the photos of Bohol’s Chocolate Hills! 🙂 I really wanted to see them, but the journey was too much—had to take an old rust bucket between each island, long and dangerous trips... we decided to skip it.

I remember that not long after our trip, the worst peacetime maritime disaster happened: over 4,000 victims, but only 1,586 were officially recorded because that was the max allowed!

Just did a quick search on recent years: 828 deaths in 2008 12 deaths in 2009 31 deaths in 2013 2 deaths in 2013 70 deaths in 2014 251 deaths in 2017

Makes you think twice about taking boats in the Philippines 🙁

True, the "if everything goes well" 😏 is optimistic 😏 😏

Looks like it didn’t go too smoothly... at least you didn’t stay long 😊

As for Sagada, like I said: no memory of it, but it’s odd—we only met one tourist in that whole region (the one who nearly got us killed in Maligcong), while you saw tons in Sagada. Maybe it was a backpacker hotspot, some kind of 60s-style Kathmandu?

True, the "if all goes well" 😏 is optimistic 😏 😏

Apparently, it didn’t go too well... at least you didn’t stay long 😊

As for Sagada, like I said: no memory of it, but it’s odd—we only met one tourist in that whole region (the one who nearly got us killed in Maligcong), while you saw tons in Sagada. Maybe it was a backpacker hub, some kind of 1960s Kathmandu?

Yes, that was it! Hippies were always the pioneers. Goa, Kathmandu, Bali, Thailand, the Philippines... then mass tourism followed. 😇 With its pros and cons. You could say "we" were lucky to be born in the second half of the 20th century. The generation after us had far fewer opportunities for discovery, if any! What about today’s youth...😕 Adventure barely exists in the 21st century. Or almost doesn’t anymore.

Honestly, Christian, I’m still in the Philippines! I did get back from my round-the-world trip in 1984... but in the end, it was a trip with no return!

It's true! Adventure is different today... Instagram is too powerful... but all you have to do is push a *banca* in the opposite direction, deliberately miss the bus everyone raves about on Google... and miraculously, in the Philippines, you find yourself right back in 1984....

Thanks so much, Christian, for these photos—and, as you put it, the blabla that goes with them, which I appreciate just as much... can’t wait for Thursday for the rest! 😎

That's true! Adventure is different today... Instagram is too powerful... but all you have to do is push a bangka in the opposite direction, deliberately miss the bus everyone raves about on Google... and miraculously, in the Philippines, you find yourself almost back in 1984....

Exactly!!... and thankfully, there are still quite a few countries like that!

Otherwise (to laugh or cry?!), I think we’ve never been closer to *1984* (the book) 😕

I remember this like it was yesterday, even though it was 35 years ago: our friend steps back to stop him from taking the pack, then the guy raises his spear and pushes him back to gain momentum and plant it in his stomach. That’s when we saw our friend’s quick reflexes: in a flash, he held out his pack of cigarettes to the charming little man. A few tenths of a second later, the story would’ve ended there for him—and a few seconds after that, for us.

This is where the warnings on cigarette packs like "Smoking kills" and their various versions come from.

😏

Thanks for this stress-relieving trip report!

🙂

Honestly Christian, I’m still in the Philippines! I did get back from my round-the-world trip in 1984... but in the end, it was a trip with no return!

Our great poet would’ve loved it—he’d have just swapped the Camargue rice fields for those in your adopted country.

https://youtu.be/k851Y4nGYu8

That's true! Adventure is different today... Instagram is too strong... but all you have to do is push a banca in the opposite direction, deliberately miss the bus everyone raves about on Google... and miraculously, in the Philippines, you find yourself almost back in 1984....

Exactly!!... and thankfully, there are still quite a few countries like that! Otherwise (to laugh or cry?!), I think we’ve never been closer to *1984* (the book) 😕

Absolutely! It even seems like some people are anticipating it 😉

We can say that "we" were lucky to be born in the second half of the 20th century. The following generation no longer had the choice of discovery, or so little!

I’ve often thought the same thing: what luck to have known Chiang Mai with just bicycles, to have smoked opium pipes in the Golden Triangle with the village "sorcerer," stayed in Boracay on a deserted beach with no resort hotels, swum in the pools of Pamukkale, and also taken an 18-hour bus ride to Phuket (you can even get there direct from Dubai now!). And above all, to have traveled without the internet, forced to book months in advance.

What can you say about today’s youth...😕 Adventure no longer exists in the 21st century. Or hardly at all.

How many times have I seen "young people" arrive in some remote spot and rush to their smartphones to check for a signal ... I’m not sure they’re missing out on "adventure."

Ahhh yes, the opium pipes I didn’t skip during my 4 trips to the Chiang Mai area... 😛 in sets of 12. Please. I still remember the sweet, caramelized taste.

Ahhh yes, the opium pipes.....

I’m drifting away from the Philippines, but since we’re talking about opium—and to keep you waiting—here are a few photos taken in 1983 during a several-day trek in the Golden Triangle with a guide I found in Chiang Mai.

After seeing the poppy fields during the day, in the evening the village elder would let us try opium pipes in his hut. He’d put the little opium ball at the end of the pipe and heat it up... it reminded me of Tintin!!



Great smell, but after 2 pipes, a guaranteed 12-hour headache.

He smoked 10 to 12 every night and was up and about the next morning, full of energy.

The hut where we spent the night (did we sleep?). It had a raised wooden floor because of the slope, with pigs and chickens (no avian flu back then!) passing underneath.

The village in its setting:

A much less perilous trip than in the Philippines, though there was one bad moment:

We were washing up in the stream when about ten armed men showed up and threatened us... what a scare! Our guide stepped in and talked to them, which eased the tension. It makes sense—every clearing was covered in poppies (like purple poppies), and they were there to guard them.

Every now and then, the army would raid by helicopter and destroy everything, sometimes ending with quite a few deaths. As a result, the mountain villagers would take revenge by killing anyone who passed through. That’s why there were army checkpoints on some roads and rivers. Near Chiang Rai, there was a checkpoint where they took our passports and noted the time we passed—so they could more easily track down the culprits if we disappeared!!! We went back to Chiang Rai in 2015—what a different era 😎. On the return flight, we read in the Bangkok Post that five tourists had just disappeared in that same area...

The villagers collected poppy resin, which was then turned into morphine in clandestine labs. It fed a trade that seems to be over nowadays.

Next episode after this Thai interlude : back to the Philippines in Banaue

Headaches? Opium is a drug, probably the best one mankind has ever found! It makes too much money for it to stop. Just like Moroccan hash... Tons are consumed every day. We seize 1 or 2 tons... only to let 10 slip through elsewhere!

Episode 3: Banaue continued

After leaving the bus, our walk to Banaue wasn’t very long—maybe 1 or 2 hours. Like Bontoc, Banaue only had 2 or 3 small guesthouses with a beautiful view of the rice terraces in the valley.

Our walks around Banaue over the next few days were much quieter than in Maligcong.



At the guesthouse, we met our third and fourth tourists—a American married to a Filipina. We did some of our walks together:

I have no idea which way we went 😊, or which villages we visited—just memories of beautiful rice terraces, steep climbs in a mountainous region, and chance encounters along the way (no more spear attacks this time 😎). Here are a few random photos:









Rain and sunshine alternated all day, as the shadows and light in the photos show—sometimes backlit 😛.

Other times, a mix of rain and sun (at least, that’s how it looked from the guesthouse, if I remember right).

Looking through travel journals, I see photos of the Batad rice terraces, which don’t ring a bell. Since I can’t find any photos of them, I assume we didn’t go—probably because no one mentioned them to us. What a shame—they look stunning in pictures!

After a few days, we left this magnificent remote region to head to the island of Negros, where we had a visit to make... and once again, it wasn’t without surprises.

So, back on the bus to Manila without any particular issues—though it felt quite long, probably a full day.

Next episode: Negros

Hello, hello,

I love it… thanks 😇