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Swizzyland's Harsh Winter - Heading for Somewhere Better
From Swizzyland’s harsh winter to the hot’n’humid Philippines. A month later than planed – bullshit happens. After a short stop in Manila, it’s on to Busuanga Island for sun, sea’n’snorkeling. What else could it be.
Manila 2 Coron
Luzern, 6th December
Outside temperatures around 0° , foggy, cloudy, some rain, rarely any sun, or snow. Nothing special, just normal weather in November in Luzern. Well, no problem for most Swizzy’s – they have no time for bad weather, they’re way too busy getting ready for the X-mas craziness. And for us – time to prepare for something better.
Fortunately, our post-Prado-concept is well developed and easy to realize: after 12 years of overlanding the world, all emphasis goes to islands not easy to reach directly by car. Great, isn’t it?
Just remains the big question: where have we never been?
Well, the South Pacific.
Just the flight is a bit too long. So, we need some stopovers in between. 1 in the Philippines and 1 in New Zealand. And we have our plan for this winter.
Still, let’s start where it starts. In last July when we came back from our trip thru Northern Europe.
Summertime in Swizzyland, festival time in Luzern and hiking time in the mountains. So, many opportunities to recover from the stress, the cold, and the mediocre food in Scandinavia. To enjoy what the town has to offer …
… and to head for a week-long hike thru the mountains in the Canton of Ticino.
Definitely, this summer doesn’t spoil us with perfect warm weather. Most of the time it’s just cloudy and raining.
Still, the time we were hiking in southern Swizzyland there’s exceptionally hot and humid weather. Most of the time well above 35°.
So, we definitely know what we’ve done after an 8h hike up and down Ticino’s mountains. And time for beer-happy rehydration in the evening.
Of course, we also need some hiking a bit more geared towards high alpine landscapes and glaciers.
So, what could be more obvious than a hike to the famous Moiry Hut.
Surely, a place a bit too busy with selfie-induced Insta tourists, but still a unique place to visit…
… and definitely the place to have an overpriced beer with a fantastic view.
Then, autumn is already approaching. Nights are getting longer again, they try to keep spirits up with the yearly funfair making kids happy and their parents poor.
For us, time to concretize our next trip a bit, to get some flights as long as cheap seats are still available, and to finalize a trip thru some French Polynesian islands with a freight ship.
So, a great time to get us ready for our departure in the 1st week of November.
Then it happened – just 3 weeks before we’re boarding for Manila.
Martin tore a few muscles – and with a leg he can hardly move anymore he’s no longer of any use for the near future.
What the hell, don’t imagine an accident during bungee jumping because he forgot the rubber band, or a fall into an eternal deep glacier crevasse because he considers a rope an unecessary luxury. No, that would be too understandably – but it just happened in the own kitchen. Lousy, isn’t it?
Whatever, the next days he mainly spends with doctors giving him good or bad advice, proposing everlasting surgeries, and whatever terrible treatment they could imagine.
Well, to make it short, finally no surgery, just some specific training to get back to life – and the shift of the trip by a month. Then maybe not fully recovered, but hopefully able to travel a bit.
In the weeks following this mishap, we had a lot of time to read newspapers, watch stupid TV series, and observe how it gets colder – every day a bit.
And to observe how politics get worse every single day. It looks like the wave of Trumpian politics of power reaches the shores of Swizzyland. It’s mainly due to the country’s honor to get some of the world’s highest tariffs for products exported to Donny’s own country.
True, our esteemed Swiss Fuddy-Duddy Party (Schweizer Vollpfosten Partei) feels very close to Uncle Donny’s politics of extortion. A position not easy to maintain under these circumstances. So they remained quite silent for some time. Especially because the so much hated European Union got much lower tariffs.
Whatever, it just took a few weeks until the party’s chief windbags (just to avoid calling them bullshitters) blamed the EU for Swizzyland’s super high tariffs and saw it as proof that we should avoid all contact with Europe. Of course, they didn’t make a simple statement to clarify their strange position – no, they accompanied it with a whole fiddle-faddle of medieval halberds to underline Swizzyland’s heroic past. Slapstick populism at its worst.
Don’t remember their arguments – either too complicated or too weird to understand. Probably the latter, because the opposition to any EU-related issues is simply a matter of survival for these right-wing nationalists.
Whatever, enough nonsense, let’s head for the real things.
Manila, 8th December
Finally, it’s 7th December. St. Nick’s day is on the ash-heap of history and we’re on our way to Zurich airport. Of course, nothing exceptional during this part of the trip. Just cold’n’rainy weather and we have to take a long detour with the train because of some maintenance works – everyday reality in perfect Swizzyland?
Then we’re on Thai International to Bangkok. Rather boring flight, 11h jammed in like sardines in their tin. True, the plane looks a bit old and a little worn-in, but at least the food isn’t any worse than anywhere else.
In Bangkok we just have time to run to the next plane – to Manila. And off we go, another 3h to reach the Philippine’s proud capital.
There straight to 1 of these adjacent airport sleeperies. No doubt, not because they’re beautiful or they’re in a spectacular setting. No, it’s all about cracking the bones back into place after 14h in an oh-so-comfortable airline seat. At least, they have an eatery for a beer and something to munch on.
Coron, 11th December
Of course, we do not intend to spend all our time at Manila’s airport.
So, early next morning we’re ready for our next flight to Busuanga Island, north of Palawan. Just 1h followed by a short trip in a minibus to reach Coron. A bustling, lively town and the gateway to several island hopping excursion.
It’s definitely true, nobody comes to Coron to enjoy the outstanding beauty of the town. Despite all efforts of the local government and the citizens it still hasn’t become a UNESCO World Heritage Site for the world’s worst architecture.
Whatever, it’s our 1st town in the Philippines, so we’ve got every reason to start getting used to things like that.
At least to give the poor travelers a tiny mood boost, the Coronies built a 722 steps staircase to the top of Mt. Tapyas. A pleasure to climb in the tropical temperatures and with what feels like 150% humidity. Still, it’s not too far, the sunset is awesome, as are the numerous more or less beautiful people taking their once-in-a-lifetime selfies.
And after that – you have the choice of ugly burgers for deplorable US citizens to banana pancakes for real backpackies to pretty nice Mexican tacos in a cool eatery.
As you’ve seen now pics of the most photogenic corners in Coron, surely you’re wondering why the hell any traveller should ever visit this place. And you’d be right if there weren’t Coron’s famous boat trips to its neighboring islands. That’s exactly where we’re heading next, as well as countless other visitors. Now you’re warned – don’t expect pristine beaches that have barely seen a human before.
At certain points it becomes quite visible that you’re not the only guy that has this idea. Still, the captain is lovely enough to turn the boat regularly towards a no-people background to allow all selfie-addicted participants to follow their instincts.
Then it’s already time for lunch. Of course, if you’re snorkeling the whole day among all kinds of fish and other monsters of the sea, why not have a few 1s for lunch. Maybe a logic to remember during your next visit to a goat farm.
On to the Twin Lagoon. Heroic people use a kayak to explore. Girls like Monika don’t care to swim the whole distance.
Finally, we head to the 2 famous sweet water lakes on Coron Island. Yeah, to reach them you have to walk a few steps, and you’re not alone.
Then it’s already time to be back in not so beautiful Coron. Just in time for a sundowner.
Now, what’s up with this excursion. Easy, they are the only reason for your visit to the island. So, don’t complain if you share your adventures with a few other people.
Of course, there are possibilities to visit other islands between Coron and El Nido. A few days sailing from 1 island to the next – our initial plan which just didn’t happen after Martin’s adventure in the kitchen at home. Still, even there, you won’t be the ultimate explorer ready to discover a new continent.
Esteemed readers,
that’s definitely enough for the 1st post of this trip. We have to get used again to all this poetry, lies, and exaggerations. And you – to read all this boring nonsense.
So, enjoy, remain jealous, and don’t forget our next post with a lot of stories, adventures, and pictures you haven’t seen before.
Cheeeers
Monika’n’Martin