Corregidor-Mt.Pinatubo-Ms.Saigon Trip (In Reverse Order)

Miss Saigon. The children grew up listening to this musical. We've watched Youtube snippets of the same, including the 25th anniversary special. So when I received in my email that the tickets are on a discounted pre-sell rate, I closed my eyes and grabbed us some.  I was overseas and I couldn't ask the children what suitable dates are for them, considering school and other activities.  I remembered Holy Week and looked for which day have shows in them. For sure the children won't have classes then.  I saw that there are 2 shows on Holy Thursday.  So I booked that right away. I was not sure if I should book the afternoon one or the evening one. Considering flight times and how frequently airlines re-schedule flights for a latter time these days, I decided that the night show would be safest.  How wrong I was! But more of that later.  

And so the day finally came. I was still reeling from an almost 4 month deployment in Syria. Nonetheless, off we went. Since we have the entire weekend off, I decided to book tours to Pinatubo and Corregidor as well. It was a bit of a squeeze but it was so worth it.

First stop: Miss Saigon. As expected, it did not disappoint. It felt surreal to be watching it first hand on the stage. It was all the more special because we're watching it with the kids. We all made an effort to dress up. Since the Pinatubo tour I booked had their pick up time really close to when the show would end, I requested that we be picked up at Solaire instead than us going to the pick up point at MOA.  With the traffic, it would take us ages to get there even if it is quite near.  Good thing the operator agreed.  The funny thing though is that we would not have time to change into hiking clothes.  

What we did -- we lugged with us our backpacks with everything we needed for the climb to Solaire. We deposited them at the concierge before proceeding to the show.  The show started late so the end time was also moved, making it much closer to our pick up time. The thought of having to get our bags, to wait for them and then having to rush to the entrance almost gave me a headache.  Also, Forest left her phone in the grab taxi we hailed so Tatay had to exit the show early just to meet with the guy and get her phone. Imagine that!

In the end, we all managed to get our bags, Forest's phone and board our pick-up on time.  There was a couple and another person who joined us for our tour to Pinatubo.  They waited with us at Solaire's entrance for the pick up.  

Pinatubo! We were so tired and a bit harassed by the whole thing that we slept most of the way.  At one point, we were awaken because we had to sign a log book at check point and had our picture taken. So there we were in our casual formal and our companions in their hiking get-up, looking quite mismatched, standing in line to have our picture taken.  The officers must have been wondering what we were doing in fancy dresses, polo's and slacks, if we were intending to climb Mt. Pinatubo.  

Finally we made it to the jump off point.  We had to wait awhile for the 4x4s that would take us to the beginning of the trail to be ready.  At least we were able to change to proper hiking attire.  I would have wanted to sleep though but there was just a few chairs available, no place to recline on.  At daybreak, the host of medical personnel checking our BPs and fitness converged. We had to queue as the other climbers have started arriving.  I had an elevated BP so I had to re-take it again. After that, I was cleard to go.  

 4x4. I've known from other posts that getting to the peak takes a combination of a 4x4 ride and a hike.  And it turned out to be pretty exciting.  What I was not able to anticipate though was the distance.  From the jump off/registration area, it took a while before we reached the point where the hike up should take place. Somewhere in the middle of the ride we made a stop in a picturesque landscape to take some pictures.  It was quite a sight -- looking at all the other 4x4s parked.  It sort of underlined the "advernturesque" atmosphere.  The "photo-landscape" is this clustered hill-like formations from the when Mt. Pinatubo erupted.  I could imagine it had shifted through the years but it does look beautiful.  No wonder it has become a designated pit stop.  

The Trek.  I've been to too many hikes and I could say, nothing quite spectacular with Mt. Pinatubo but as with any hike, it's a good trail. In terms of the level of difficulty, it's easy to moderate.  The trail progresses in a "mild" manner; no sheer drop or sudden vertical climb to navigate.  What's "challenging" though is that most of the trails, particularly the first 2/3rds do not have tree covers.  So it is quite hot and humid.  It was the height of summer when we climbed so the heat was quite exhausting.  We criss-crossed through a river/stream but it is easy to imagine what it would like in the event of a flash flood.  It would be quite devastating and unsafe since there seems to be no stable upper ground to go to in the event of.  Parts of the trail are bordered on both sides by lahar-shaped "structures" that might easily crumble in a flood.  After awhile, we made it to the signage, "Mt. Pinatubo" and we took lots of pictures.  We soon found out, the peak is still another trek away.  Eventually, we reached the peak/ crater lake and it was beautiful! Jaw-dropping view! Our photos with the lake in the background looked like we were posed in front of a tarpaulin photo. It was that surreal.  

From the peak, there are steps leading to the lake below.  It felt daunting though looking at the many steps.  Looks like several hundreds from where we are standing.  Coming from a long, hot trek, it feels too much to be wanting to go down further.  It's not actually the going down that is difficult.  That should be quite easy.  It's the thought of maneuvering those many steps, going up that gives one pause.  One could ask, "Do I have enough wind left in me to manage that going back up and then taking the trek back to where the 4x4 rides are waiting?"  But go down we did since we're already there anyway.  And the extra effort required was worth it.  No wonder we were all asleep in the jeep going back.  It was only in going back to jump off point that we realised the whole 4x4 route was quite long.  This morning, we were too excited to get started and the views sustained our energy.  When all our strength were spent though, it felt like it took forever to get to our van, that would in turn take us back to Manila.  

It was already a bit late when we got back to Quezon City, all the way from Bataan.  We were too tired to eat so we had another grab delivery. We turned in early since we have another early call time the next day for the Corregidor trip I booked. I'm excited for the children to see Corregidor and them learning more about that part of our history as Filipinos.  

Corregidor. We woke up early and headed to Farmer's market were the designated pick up point was.  The agreed time was 4 am and so we made our way there way before.  We had a bit of difficulty finding the actual spot and the tour operator was late.  At around 5 AM, we left Manila for Bataan. Half-way, we stopped by for brunch somewhere in Tarlac or Pampanga? (not quite sure).  They took us to Mc Donalds.  T We had to stop by the operator's office in Bataan which again took some time. The waiting for the boat ride took time as well.  he kids and I looked at each other and decided to look for alternative.  We ended up in Burger Machine next to it, which is basically the same thing (among our list of cancelled brands because of IA support controversy).  

And soon enough, we're off.  The sun was already way up and relentless when we finally rode the banca.  We alighted from the banca.  Seeing the sign by the bay, "Corregidor" filled me with excitement.  

As it was from my experience in the past, we had quite a lovely and tour guide.  We rode some kind of a tour vehicles with rows of seats and sides open.  We went to the different parts of Corregidor while also being regaled with anecdotes, pieces of history and funny commentaries.  I was very happy to have given this opportunity to the kids.  They should know their history intimately.  It is the only way they can foster love for their country too. I'm afraid, nowadays, the youth do not even know who the country's heros are and what they have done to deserve being called one.  

I was also happy that they got to hear about Jabidah massacre. Being Mindanaoan, this is an integral part of our history and they should know about this.  (Now that I'm writing this, I've resolved to tell the story to Forest as part of our winding down rituals at night. I'm waiting for her to finish communicating with some classmates over chat.  All the while, I'm asking her if she ever remembered about Jabidah which she learned during our Corregidor trip.  

It was Easter Sunday, the day after our trip to Corregidor. We went to Perpetual Parish for Easter Mass. For some reason I was reminded of the Kileleshwa Church I used to frequent back in Nairobi for Sunday Mass. It was there where I attended my last Mass before the pandemic, and priviledged to do the First Reading. I think it was a good send off, leaving for the UK, then to Serbia and home.  I left an apartment waiting for the entire family and then pandemic happened :) But yes, I digress. Sharing here some lovely photos of the trip.