We had to cancel the stop of Kolor, Palau, an island country which extended our stay in Manila, Philippines to two days. This was a very welcomed change as many of our crew members are from there. As long as it was arranged in advance, people got to invite family and friends on board the ship to see where they work and live. We had over 1400 visitors in these two days! It was a madhouse but such a great thing for the crew.
The “jitney” parked in front of our ship during our stay was owned by our Executive Chef who is Filipino. These are very common public transportation vehicles all around the country.
I was able to take a tour here to learn more about my co-workers lives. We drove out of the city that took us through horrendous traffic jams. To keep on schedule we had two police on motorcycles “guide” us through all the traffic. At first it was a bit scary as we weaved in and out of it and sometimes were driving on the wrong side of the road, almost playing chicken with oncoming vehicles. We soon gained confidence in their skills and had a great day visiting some local artists homes. These guys truly enjoy their jobs but said they didn’t tell their wives what they do.
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