Everywhere, anywhere. Hostels, locals, guest houses, cheap hotels. Everything and anything. Climbing volcanoes, trekking to waterfalls, cliff jumping, clubbing, new years eve full moon party in Koh Phangan, riding motorcycles, meeting people, just swam with whale sharks two days ago, now I'm headed to Malapascua Island to complete my PADI divemaster all the while swimming with some of the rarest sharks on the planet nearly every day. Malapascua is actually the
only place on earth where you can find thresher sharks every day. Just left Donsol yesterday where I was living with a local Philippino family for a week. Eating with them, speaking with them as much as possible, hanging out with their baby, and drinking with the son of course. In Donsol you could walk out into the street and get pulled into sitting down with a group of 10 local guys just passing around a shot glass and chatting or gambling for hours. The Philippines is great like that, people are SO friendly. Tomorrow I'm going to stay with a professional poker player from Belgium that I found on couchsurfing.com. You get the point.
The possibilities are endless, and I don't mean to gloat; but that's my life at the moment and I'm telling it like it is.
On another note, my biggest worry down here is that I'll get in an accident on a bus. Other than that there really isn't anything to worry if you just use your common sense. A week ago in Cambodia I walked through a group of 8 men in a dark street alone (stoned and paranoid) and just kept to myself, nothing happened. They looked at me odd, but I guarantee a few groups of guys in North America would try to start shit in the same situation "wtf are you doing here" etc.. I'd even venture to say it's more safe than North America if you do so. Everything in our media is so played up it's ridiculous. There are more kidnappings in New York state annually then there are in all of the Philippines annually.. where should we really be afraid of.
I saved up roughly 8000 dollars over a period of probably six years when I was younger. I'm 18 now. My one way ticket here was my grad present however, so that saved me 600. I'm going to be in a bit of debt when I get home but fuck it I'm working asap, and travelling more.
Now or never.
