Goodbye Philippines, Hello Singapore

I pulled into Manila's Ninoy Aquino airport around 8:30pm with the plan of finding a quiet place to sleep somewhere in the lobby, as going into the city would cost at least $50 and I'd just have to be back at the airport early anyway. Unfortunately terminal 3 is nowhere you'd want to spend the evening, and I ended up being forced into an even more expensive hotel close to the airport.  Oh well, at least I got to wash all my clothes before moving on.

Thanks Uncle Marty!

The Philippines have been great, but I'm ready to check out some different places.  The people here have got to be the friendliest I've met anywhere, and it's nice that it isn't too spoiled by tourism yet.  I had the night in Manila to catch up on some local news, and found that the earthquake in Bohol killed 213 and displaced over 300,000 people in Bohol and Cebu.  This happened just a few days after I left.  Typhoon Nari, which scuttled my boating plans in El Nido, also swept through Manila killing 13 and doing quite a bit of damage.  Seems crazy that this stuff went on and I was only vaguely aware of it.  Anyway, that night I had my last San Miguel beer and bag of Marty's Cracklin' spicy vinegar flavored Old-Fashioned Guilt-Free Vegetarian Chicharon, which had pretty much been sustaining me so far.

The next morning, I headed back to the airport and literally bumped into Dmitri (the Russian rocket scientist) who was waiting for the same flight as me.  Turned put we were even seated right next to each other because my life just works like that.  As usual, I just fired off question after question and Dmitri explained it all away.  Topics covered included how the human body absorbs and synthesizes vitamins, the intricacies of owning a business in a foreign country, international work visa strategies and programs, and the evolution and migration of wildlife in Siberia.  Needless to say, it made the flight awesome.

Singapore's Merlion

Dmitri and I said our goodbyes in Singapore's Changi airport, as he was transferring on to New Zealand, and I couldn't wait to get out and explore the city.  I quickly checked into a nice little hostel, though shockingly expensive at $25 a night for a dorm bed.  I had some shopping to do since my phone and flashlight disappeared from my bag between Port Barton and Puerto Princesa (I really need to start taking better care of my shit), and I had about 10 meals to cram into my 36 hours in town.  Coming from the Philippines, Singapore was a whole new world.  The smell of spices and curries and grilled meats and fresh fruits filled the air and somehow the cars don't seem to create the same pollution that they do in pH.  I wouldn't even be surprised if someone told me that there weren't any cockroaches in Singapore.  My only disappointment was that the "topless bus tour" turned out to be very different than I was hoping.

The restaurant I ate at proudly proclaimed "Authentic Pig's
Organ Soup!"  Because let's be honest, my concerns over
authenticity have been the only thing stopping me from
plowing through a bowl of pig organs.

I could have used another day to knock a few more food items off my list, but in my one full day I had Indian parathas with sambal in little India (along with some lovely ginger tea), pig organ soup in Chinatown, 3 noodle dishes that I don't even know, braised duck, rice porridge, the famous chicken rice, and 1266ml of Tiger beer.  Success!  Between stuffing my face, I wandered around exploring the crazy malls.  My favorite was Sim Lim tower, which was 8 floors of dimly lit shops selling all kinds of electronic junk. Need to buy some coax cable by the foot?  How about a hand-held metal detector wand for the kids?  Are you unsatisfied with the megaphone selection at your local outlet?  Or maybe you'd like to add another dusty circuit board to your collection?  Sim Lim's got you covered. 

I had a flight the next day out of neighboring Johor Bahru in Malaysia, and for $2 I hopped a bus to take me across the border, through immigration, and then to the airport.  My two hour flight to Kuching from there cost a whopping $21 (thanks AirAsia!) and went off without a hitch.  I'm ready to get out and start exploring the jungles of Borneo. Borneo!