The weekend started off Saturday afternoon (as it often does on our project). A couple of us decided to take a half day off from work and travel to a local cable lake park. Cable lake parks are man made lakes (pond is a better word) that have cables running over the water with tow tethers dangling freely to the surface of the water. By simply strapping on skis or a wake board and grabbing the tow line, you can simulate being pulled by a boat. The cable runs in a continuous circle around the lake and one can jump on the circuit whenever they please.
It's hard to make out the cable, but this is the lake (with
ramps). In the background is the majestic Mt. Apo.
Frequent visits to my uncle's place at Pomm de Terre lake in Missouri taught me how to water ski. However, I never attempted wake boarding until this weekend. It was different. Much different. I think that a good analogy is comparing snow skiing to snow boarding. Between the two, your orientation and maneuvering techniques have little in common. If you don't know snow skiing and snow boarding, then I will just say, "it was tough." I could get up and going on the board with ease, but making the turns in the lake was difficult. But nothing that a little practice can't help!
Saturday was capped off with our official going away dinner with the office at night (there is a reason it was three weeks out from our departure date). The office will see a significant change in the next four weeks as Justin and I are only two of four people that will be leaving the job site before mid-August. One other professional is transferring closer to home and family in Jakarta, while the other is taking on a new role for a different project in Thailand. So the dinner included celebrations for these individuals as well as Justin and me.
We had the dinner at a traditional Philippine restaurants called Delongte's where the food was amazing. We had endless amounts of kinilaw, tuna belly, rice, chicken, fried pork, and Sam Mig Light. It was delicious and filling. I am really starting to appreciate Philippine cuisine much more now. I may have even surprised the waiter last night when I recognized the dish in front of me was the local speciality, kinilaw.
After dinner and some pictures, we headed to a local karaoke establishment (it wasn't a karaoke bar like those in the US) to finish the night off with some group singing. We filled a room with a capacity of 24 and sang for a couple of hours. I even joined the fun as I served as the back up vocals for our rendition of Bohemian Rhapsody. I thought we did fairly well, but it was nothing compared to the singing of all the Filipinos. They are a truly musical culture and I swear that they are all born with golden voices. Every song they sang sounded in tune and incredible. It's no surprise that the Philippines are the birth place of karaoke!
After a good night's rest Saturday night, a group of eight of us headed out again to the beautiful island of Samal and went diving at some waterfalls. It was as amazing as it sounds. The island of Samal is absolutely beautiful and is the source of at least half the pictures that I have taken since being here.
Getting to the falls was an interesting trek. It is part of a national park, so there area wasn't heavily developed or commercialized. After we disembarked the ferry, we made our way through the crowded sea villages to the interior of the island. We winded our way up the roads for several kilometers until we came to our turn. Once we turned off the main road, we traveled on a very precarious path to the falls. This road consisted of nothing more than two narrow strips of concrete big enough for a tire; they were like two pieces of ribbon casually set on the hills. We made our way slowly and leaving the road occasionally so another car could pass us going the opposite direction. After about 15 minutes and several nervously chewed finger nails, we made it to Hagimit Falls.
Tucked away in the hills of Samal, it is a little oasis among the trees and yielded some good opportunities for photos.
Me observing a brave soul take the plunge.
We spent the rest of our day resting by the waterfalls. Every once in awhile, we would jump from rock about 10 feet high into the cool, clear water below. It was refreshing to say the least. There was even a small cave carved out by the powerful water that we could sit in. The front of the cave was covered in a cascade of water that was almost like a massage if you stood under it just right.
The waterfalls were amazing. It was one of those days where you wish you could freeze an instant and just enjoy it a little longer. It still blows my mind at how easily it is to do amazing things here in Davao. Distance or cost are rarely an issue in this paradise. Swimming in the ocean and under waterfalls are something I don't have the opportunity to do all the time back home, which is shocking for Kansas. So when I get to do them here, I enjoy every last second of it. I am just glad the the rain held off so that I was able to experience the 'falls of Samal!
With another week around the corner, there comes the potential for another amazing experience. Keep an eye out for a new post!
(One post on the crazy traffic here should be coming soon ... I think.)
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