Hi Everyone. I am ok. Here is my story:
On 6\13, I went to the National Gallery in
Manila. There I met 2 people who said they were cousins. They were very friendly and asked me where I was going next, i said I'd be taking the bus to
Banaue that night. They asked if I had a reservation, but I said no. I tried calling, but my cell phone is from Korea, and so it doesnt work in the
Philippines. They called for me and told me that there was no spot left on the bus, but that if I wanted to, I could travel with them becuase their family lived near there and they would be going there tonight. i wasn't sure at first, but they were really kind and I was waiting for another one of my friends to arrive at teh airport, so I told them maybe. i really really want to go to
Banaue, so I kept considerign their offer.
We decided to leave the museum and get some food. we went to a mall food court. i told them that even if my friend didnt go, i wanted to go with them, and they said that i would just have to pay PHP300 for gas, which was a lot cheaper than the bus. They were so
nice and friendly that i totally trusted them.
I picked up my stuff from the pension and met them at a MiniStop. we took a cab to their "relatives" place which was a tiny dingy house that was really sketchy, and in a terrible area. but after spending time in
laos, i kind of stopped discriminating. i mean, i felt like they might be poor but that we could still be friends and that it wasnt that weird. we ate and began drinking and then a bunch more family showed up. i was still waiting to hear from my friend to see if he could come with us cuz it seemed like a great deal.
anyway, we were all singing and drinking and having a great time and I felt like I was experiencing part of their culture. they next thing i remember was waking up next to all the girls in a separate room. i thought this was especially weird because i left my contacts in and i never do that, even while drinking.so i think they drugged me that night. I told one of the women, maria, and she said, oh you drink like me... i passed out the same way you did about an hour later. So i just thought i had had too much to drink.
everyone had a shower spearately - they had a scoop toilet - this place was really really poverty. but again, after
laos and
thailand, i didnt think of myself as being their prey, just a fun guest for them, an honored guest if you will.
anyway, the car was supposed to come at midnight, but it didnt come until 7am. we got in and got gas, and this time they asked me for 1000 pesos, instead of the 300 we had agreed upon. but then they promised to pay all my food and drinks and everything, so i said ok.
we drove and drove and then we had lunch by the side of the road. then we stopped at some point for the driver to sleep. we were all drining some combination of coconut rum or whiskey and juice that the aunt was mixing for us. she would say "this is for julia, no dont share it, this one is for you" so i drank mine up and then she made one for all of the others, and we drank round after round of this.
we got back in the car when the driver had woken up, and the next thing i remember was waking up in the guesthouse. i'm pretty sure i had all my clothes on. i did not have any pain or soreness, so i dont think they raped me. i discovered that my moneybelt was out and that everything was missing including $500 and PHP6000. they selectively deleted all the pictures of themselves on my camera and left my cell phone, passport, and $15.
luckily the people at the guesthouse were very kind to me and helped me go to the police and handle my situation, they gave me some money and sent me back to
manila to meet my friend.
If you are interested in the pictures, they are on this website
picasaweb.google.com/...#5483061256751927138
starting at photo 80 and continuing through 140.
At first it was reported that the guesthouse was withholding my passport from me, but they gave it back. i think they were just worried and didnt want me to leave until someone i knew could accompany me back to
manila and they didnt know what to do. overall, they were very kind and did everything for me and asked for no compensation for food or lodging or phone calls, etc.
I have already reported this to the American embassy in
Manila and sent them the photos.
anyway, if you have any information about this or any questions, you can feel free to contact me at
soarejulis@hotmail.com
PLEASE BE CAREFUL AND DO NO TRUST ANYONE WHO RANDOMLY REALLY WANTS TO HELP YOU OR KNOW YOU
(dont je ne suis pas) 