Well, I’ve been to the Philippines and back. It’s a long flight from my home. I did not get to Ilo-Ilo, the place I posted about that has historical buildings.
To start, I stayed in a villa called “Oasis.” I loved this place (see above). It’s locally owned and there’s a sense of community, and malleability, not of corporate stiffness.
Next we stayed, as an entire wedding group, in two large houses on the same street. No one knew we’d be a few doors from each other. One house was the groom house – occupied by a number of my son’s oldest closest friends. I was touched that they made this great long journey to be there for him. And they had a blast. The house had pool table, pools, etc… All the fun stuff.
I stayed in the bride house with my new daughter-in-law’s family and friends. It was special to be together for meals, to sit around the large square table talking. A bonus was spectacular storms that kept the air cool. (You can see more photos of the scenes I saw in the instagram photos below.)
The final location, Shangri-La Resort, reminded me of Jurassic Park. Not my general type of destination, but my son’s wedding itself was a beautiful occasion, with touching vows and even a choreographed dance by the marrying couple,
So, all in all, a well rounded experience! Our last activity before parting was helmet diving! This photo isn’t of us but gives you the idea. A heavy helmet with clear windows is settled on one’s shoulders before one is dragged down 25′ to a sandy shoal with a small reef full of fishies.
Did I mention it’s an insanely long flight from here? Yet a memory-making week, to be sure.
Instagram pics:
