One thing that was very striking about the Philippines is how religious it was. Catholicism is very prevalent and it seems to influence the lives of the Filipinos quite a bit. Every town we went through, no matter how tiny, had it own church. Every single tricycle, which there are tons and tons of on Bohol and Panglao Island, had a religious slogan painted on the back of it. They said things like "Pray to the Rosary Daily" or "God loves my Family". They were all different, and some of them were very creative. My favorite said "Prepare to Meet God", which isn't exactly a comforting sentiment when you are about to get into one of those little, old, rickety tricycles to whiz through traffic. I wonder if the tricycle drivers are required to write things about God on the back of the tricycles. Do they think of the slogans themselves? Oh, and everything in the Philippines was decorated for Christmas. They really go all out. Our boatman, LouieGie, said that Christmas is the time when Filipinos from all over the world come back to the Philippines to see their families.
Luckily we made it out of the Philippines just before a huge typhoon hit, and over 500 people were killed. The typhoon hit Northern Luzon, which is much further north than we were, but it was still good to have left before then.
Tricycles in front of the Bilar Market
Matt at the tiny Tagbilaran Airport
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