The next ten days we spent on a remote island called Palawan. Traveling around this island was extremely slow and wearing on the body-riding for seven hours atop trucks heavy with people bulging out the sides on unpaved, gutted mountain roads or across bridges made only of two, thin boards which cracked and buckled as we crossed or through muddy riverbeds. Sometimes these "roads" are completely washed away, and you are forced to wait until they are repaired. Your only other option is the infamous Philippine ferries. After being stranded in a small village for two days, we decided to board the ferry. It appeared not as I imagined-big and sturdy with a vending machine inside-but rather like a small fishing boat. We spent nine hours on one such boat (covering a distance of 40 km) on what I think would be considered the high seas. Some people may say I was just seasick but I think it was worse-I thought I was going to die.

Once we arrived at our various destinations we had a very enjoyable time. Everyday we rented a boat and hired guides to take us to different groups of islands. There we snorkeled or swam or scuba dived through the brilliantly clear water and discovered a new, colorful world of corals, tropical fish, sea flowers, turtles, and other creatures. For lunch we built a fire and grilled fresh fish, sat down on palm branches and ate rice, fish, and bananas with our fingers just like our guides. Well, sometimes we used a fork. We spent both Christmas and New Years here in Palawan where in most villages the generators are turned off by 9:00, so our millenial celebrations weren't long but nevertheless enjoyed.