Costa Rica Travel Surf Expat blog for Norm Schriever

Cocaine Surfboards & Maui Mafia: The legend of Mike Boyum continues

11/10/2019

In part one of this three-part series documenting the made-for-Hollywood life of surfer Mike Boyum, we left Mike struggling to keep his G-Land surf camp in Indonesia. Now, we’ll continue with his legendary story.

***

No one can ride a single wave forever. Most surfers last little more than 10-20 seconds on their board. In fact, out of an hour on the water, the average surfer is paddling for more than 35 minutes of that time and waiting in the lineup for another 20 minutes or so. Therefore, only about 8% of their time is spent actually surfing a wave – about 290 seconds, even on a good day.

No matter how epic the ride or high the thrill, nothing lasts forever. And the tide had gone out for Mike Boyum in Indonesia.

His larger-than-life reputation as G-Land’s founder had grown quickly as surfers from all over the world came to spend time at his camp – and fork over a hefty fee to do so.

But success attracts a lot of the wrong kind of attention in developing countries, and soon, the local officials who once gladly granted him use of the abandoned beach demanded a bigger piece of the pie. (As well as quite a few shakedowns and threats by locals and police alike, if my experience is accurate.)

Burning down his camp’s nipa huts and tree houses, Boyum was forced to relinquish control of his G-Land surf camp (eventually, an Indo local surfer took over and it’s still thriving today).

However, there was another pressing reason to flee G-Land, as became the target of numerous drug investigations by Indonesian authorities.

In the late 1960s, drugs were synonymous with the exploding counter-culture movement, including the music scene with festivals like Woodstock, protesting the Vietnam War, and, yes, surfing.

Marijuana was everywhere, hundreds of thousands of young, shell-shocked troops came back from Vietnam addicted to heroin and opium, and psychedelics were on every college campus, with Timothy Leary encouraging the youth to "Turn on, tune in, and drop out.”

Hell, it was the CIA who first started experimenting with LSD in an attempt to make “super” soldiers, and it wasn’t even illegal until 1968 and considered a Schedule I controlled substance until the 1970s.

Surfers were no exception, and one notable LSD smuggling operation out of Orange County, California included rainbow surfboards as the smuggling vessel of choice.

The big backlash came around 1969, when local police and federal law enforcement alike cracked down on the rampant drug use and looked to tame the long haired “hippies” that threatened the decent way of life.

Anyways, a few of these surfers ended up in Indonesia, as I mentioned, and guys like Peter McCabe, Jeff Chitty, ad Gerry Lopez were nearly as essential to establishing G-Land as Mike Boyum. Some of them funded their nomadic surf lifestyles by hollowing out the fins of their surfboards and filling them with plastic bags filled with heroin, hash, or Bolivian cocaine before sealing them up again.

Mike Boyum was disillusioned and heartbroken from his experience in Indonesia. Every penny (Indo money) he’d earned over the year stolen from him; he was forced to leave G-Land with nothing but the shirt on his back.

At rock bottom, Mike started riding that dark wave and smuggling drugs, something that would come to define – and doom – his remaining days.

However, this is where fact takes a detour from the simple narrative again.

A friend of Mike’s I interviewed for this article told me that Mike never smuggled drugs until he’d been forced out of his surf camp. In fact, Mike had been relatively anti-drug, as he saw heroin addiction mess up a lot of his fellow surfer friends and snuff out otherwise promising lives. Boyum even used G-Land as a place to help addicted and strung-out surfers and others, as they could exercise, eat healthy, and be at one with nature while detoxing.

Mike “just wasn’t good at it [smuggling],” his old friend suggests, memories playing in his head like home movies, his cautious words revealing that he wished people knew the generous, always smiling, larger-than-life Mike that he was cool with.

It seems that while just about everything Mike touched turned to gold with legitimate business ventures, the criminal underworld just wasn’t for him.

The beginning of his very long end may have come on one such illicit operation in 1984. It was then that Mike Boyum was arrested Noumea, New Caledonia (a French-colonized island east of Australia) along with Peter MCCabe and Jeff Chitty, as the three tried to smuggle half a kilo of Bolivian Marching Powder into Australia.

Boyum and Chitty managed to smuggle two kilos of coke from Brazil to Jakarta in a suitcase. Then, about half a kilo of the cocaine was packed into condoms that Chitty swallowed before boarding his flight to Noumea, where McCabe and Boyum were waiting for him.

It was there they planned on recovering the cocaine from Chitty and packing it into hollowed-out surfboard fins before someone else took the boards to Australia.

However, they didn’t get that far.

Chitty was confronted by customs agents upon landing in Noumea, who suspected him of carrying drugs internally (we’ll never know if they were just singling him out because he was a hippy surfer, or they actually had a tip because someone dropped dime on him).

Pressed by the aggressive agents, Chitty tried to keep his cool, but he knew he was fucked when they said they were taking him to the hospital to be x-rayed. But, improbably, they suddenly decided to let him go, telling him to “get your English arse out of here.”

Sweating and rattled, Chitty couldn’t believe his luck, but he was free to go. He recounted the whole story when he met up with McCabe and Boyum in their hotel. To celebrate their good fortune (and, coming monetary fortune), the three wild-men hit the town for a night out drinking.

When they got back to their hotel at 3am, they were snorting lines of their own product when police knocked on their door.

Note: I assume the police let Chitty go just so they could follow him to find the source or his buyers, but I have no evidence of this.

The police kicked in the door and arrested McCabe and Chitty on the spot. Boyum, however, scrambled out the hotel’s bathroom window before they could get him. Despite a massive manhunt conducted by local police and military, he evaded capture for a whole two weeks, hiding in the jungle and living off the land!

Quickly ingratiated into the dark underbelly of the local surf scene, Mike got tight with members of the Maui mafia, presumably doing some sort of deals with them.

But he made an epically-fatal choice when he made off with one million dollars of their money, as it’s widely reported – a shit-ton of dough back in the 1980s.

Ripping off the Maui mob is bad for your health, and Boyum was now running out of options – or places to hide. By then, he’d been red flagged by just about every airline and international agency, so he didn’t stand a chance when he tried to extend his career as a drug smuggler posing as a surfer.

I’m told he kept getting arrested, evading capture, fleeing, and hopping from country to country to try and evade arrest again. He got back to Asia and we do know he spent time in Thailand, but that was probably too obvious to his Hawaiian mobster friends.

On the run, without friends he could trust, looking over his shoulder with every unfamiliar face and jumping at every backfiring motorcycle, the life on the lam didn’t suit Boyum.

They only finally caught him by dropping a net on him from a helicopter, it’s reported. However, according to a friend of his who served as a source for this article, a more accurate version of events was that Mike was just exhausted so he stopped running one day so it could all be over.

McCabe did 18 months in a New Caledonian jail for that one after being sentenced to three years; Chitty got the same sentence. Boyum was slapped with a four-year prison sentence because he also eluded police, according to my information, and did all four years in jail, roughly account for the years between 1984 and 1988.

However, I couldn’t find any account of his time in prison or any details of his life during those years.

It’s also worth mentioning that Chitty and McCabe continued with the drug trafficking vocation, eventually serving 8 and 14 years in Australian prisons, respectively.

Following his spotty post-jail timeline, we do know that Mike Boyum headed back stateside once he was free to leave New Caledonia. There’s a story that places him in New York City, too, where he was hanging out with old school surfer and friend, Ricky Rasmussen.

Unfortunately, Rasmussen’s heroin problem had grown from bad to worse and he was a full-on junkie by then.

Sitting in the back of a taxi cab, the driver turned around and shot him in the head, as the story goes – perhaps retribution for a heroin deal gone south.

After that, Boyum didn’t last long in New York, and we hear about him living in Hawaii, where he got into even bigger trouble.

Soon ingratiated into the dark underbelly of the local surf scene, Mike got tight with members of the Maui mafia, presumably doing some sort of deal with them. But, he made an epically-fatal choice when he made off with one million dollars of their money, as it’s commonly reported – a shit-ton of dough back in the 1980s.

Sometimes referred to as The Company or The Syndicate, no matter what you call them, ripping off Maui heavy-hitters is bad for your health. And Boyum was now running out of options – or places to hide.

By then, he’d been red flagged by just about every airline and international agency, so he didn’t stand a chance when he tried to extend his career as a drug smuggler posing as a surfer.

I’m told he kept getting arrested, evading capture, fleeing, and hopping from country to country to try and evade arrest again. He got back to Asia and we do know he spent time in Thailand, but that was probably too obvious to his Hawaiian mobster friends.

On the run, without friends he could trust, looking over his shoulder with every unfamiliar face and jumping at every backfiring motorcycle, the life on the lam didn’t suit Boyum.

Still a surfer at heart; perhaps longing for those simpler, pure days when he first discovered G-Land with his brother, Boyum needed to find a place that was virtually unknown, where he could really hide out.

It was then that Mike Boyum took out a ripped and faded world map, scanning for the ideal place for someone who wanted to get lost, his finger stopping on a little-known country called The Philippines.

And it’s there that his story takes an even more unpredictable turn…and comes to its tragic last act.

-Norm :-)

***
Subscribe to this blog and stay tuned for part 3 of Mike Boyum’s life story coming next month.

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Your March 2019 Postcard from Norm: Why don't they clean up the clothes in the photo? A case study in social change.

3/26/2019

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Last year, I posted this photo taken on the island of Boracay, a tropical paradise that has been voted the top island in the world several times. However, I wasn't on the idyllic white beach that's spotted with luxury resorts and sun-worshiping tourists, but the "local" side of the island (actually, right across the narrow seaway that separates them) when I took it.

On a "walkabout" one day, I stumbled upon on this seaside hamlet where I saw crumbling hovels, flooded mangrove swamps, and a whole lot of poverty along the battered shore.

I snapped a photo, which I posted on social media with this caption:

"Wandered into a poor fishing community in Caticlan directly across from #Boracay. I saw all of these clothes in the water and at first, thought they were doing laundry (but that would make no sense in sea water, of course).

But one of the ladies told me that those were just the discarded garments that washed up from Boracay — basura, or trash."

To me, it wasn't a big deal, as I see this kind of thing every day here in the Philippines. So, I was surprised by the wave of outspoken opinions, condemnations, and even outrage that followed.

Scott, a UK expat living in the Philippines, commented, “Why aren't they picking them out of the water?”             

Voytec from Nicaragua commented, “‪I know there is a problem with education and culture, but for me, they are just dumb and too lazy to pick it up. We have the same here in Nica.”

But it wasn’t just foreigners that were perplexed, as Filipina Alijane expressed her disbelief with, “Why is this!?”

Bray, scuba diving tour guide in the islands, followed that with, “No one has the initiative to pick it up?!”
  
On it went, but only one or two people tried to paint these villagers in a different light and float a reason why it was, if not right, then understandable. My old high school friend Barbara from the U.S. offered, “‪Maybe their island dump is already full of other people’s trash? If it happens often, they may just get tired of looking for places or ways to dispose of it.”

Again – no one is “wrong” in this discourse, but it fascinated me that this one photo could evoke such strong opinions. So, I wanted to dig deeper into the issue not from an environmental perspective, but a cultural one.

Some things to put it in context:

To start, do you notice how we always condemn the end user or last person on the daisy chain? For instance, NO ONE seemed sympathetic that these people were the victims of such pollution. Someone else manufactured the cheap clothing (probably China), creating even more pollution in the process, someone else purchased them, shipped them, sold them, wore them, etc. Ultimately, someone else threw them out – in a landfill, on the side of the road, or, as is too often the case here, right in a local creek or waterway that serves as a big trash receptacle and eventually washes into the ocean.

The people in the photo – poor locals living in shanties and surviving on a few dollars a day – were complicit with none of those actions, yet everyone blames them because the waste happened to wash up in their "backyard."

If these poor fishermen and their families did go through and pick all of the clothing that washed ashore, where would they put it? There isn't waste management in this tiny village (a trash truck would never make it through their impossibly-narrow sand paths!) and no dump nearby.

For people who spend most of their time eking out a meager existence, trash is a part of life and the backdrop to their surroundings and always has been.

And if they did take the time to collect everything, wouldn't it just ash up again tomorrow? Why should these impoverished locals take the initiative to clean up after rich tourists from the other side of the island (Boracay).

Do we hold up to our own scrutiny?

Conversely, show these same humble villagers a photo (or headline) about Flint, Michigan, and they'll be twice as shocked and perplexed why the wealthiest country in the world doesn’t even
provide clean, poison-free water to its citizens.

Superimpose this scenario onto your own lives, and we might not hold well under our own scrutiny. Do you clean up trash that isn't yours? I'm sure you would if someone littered in your front yard, but these people don't own the beach (or the land their huts stand on).

When was the last time you went to a public park and started picking up trash? Or a pile of trash that sat at the end of your street?

I try to do my part, but I'm guilty of this too, of course – selective indifference.
I just walked by a discarded soda can and a pile of cigarette butts on the way to a coffee shop to write this.

It's hard to save the world on an empty stomach – Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

There's another, more clinical way to look at this one snapshot – or any social issue on a larger scale: through the prism of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs.

In summary, this psychological theory states that if people are hustling daily just to eat, keep a roof over their heads, or stay safe, then we can't expect them to be "self-actualized." That's a fancy way of saying that they're concerned with more lofty precepts like the Greater Good, personal development, the meaning of life, etc.

This is a perfect real-life example of that theory as, to the people in the photo, there’s no tangible benefit to picking up the clothing and trash (unless Philippines’ Pesos start washing up!).

Is it a matter of edu-ma-cation or poverty?

So, are they just uneducated and that's the problem?

While there may be a correlation between a lack of education, poverty, and litter or blight, we can’t attribute that to causation – and it doesn’t tell the whole story. Wealthier or educated people may be more ecologically conscious on the whole (just an assumption), but they don’t necessarily pick up the trash and clean up themselves – they pay for others to do it most of the time.

Additionally, there are a whole lot of CEOs and politicians that went to Ivy League schools who are choosing to do the wrong thing and pollute our world just to squeeze out a few extra dollars.

The Broken Windows Theory

But we can take clues from something called The Broken Windows Theory, a sociological study that earned its merits by helping transform New York City from a cesspool of crime, filth, and community hopelessness in the 1980s into the (relatively) safe and shining example of a major city it is today.

Broken Windows Theory was an academic concept introduced by Stanford University researchers, James Q. Wilson and George Kelling in 1982. It proposed that even minor "disorder and incivility” within a community opened the floodgates for more serious crime.

Wilson and Kelling's theory was based on a study where they placed two identical cars in two vastly different neighborhoods – one in the South Bronx and the other in a nice area in California. While the car in the Bronx was quickly broken into, had its tires stolen, etc., the abandoned car in California stood undisturbed.

That is, until the research team came back to the Cali car and intentionally broke one of its windows and then, left it again.

What happened next laid the groundwork for their theory, as the previously-untouched car was quickly vandalized and broken into, too. This reinforced (if not proved) their assumption that when people see and experience minor transgressions that are obviously tolerated or unpunished, far more chaos will ensue - and escalate.

The Broken Windows Theory became the premise for sweeping change in New York City under Police Commissioner William Bratton from 1990-1992, when he ordered a massive crack-down on impropriety in the Big Apple’s notorious subway system, including swarms of visible police and a zero-tolerance policy on relatively minor infractions like panhandling, graffiti, turnstile jumping, drinking in public, urination, and more.

They also took their efforts to the streets and trains above, where they cleaned cleared the sidewalks of petty drug pushers, prostitutes, beggars, solicitors, unlicensed vendors, and scam artists like those who jumped out and started washing your window at traffic lights.

Of course, many questioned the common sense behind this all-out war against PETTY crime, since muggings, murders, major drug deals, rapes, and serious theft was rampant. But the Broken Windows Theory proved sound and the transformation to the city was nothing short of miraculous.

In fact, by the time Bratton resigned as Police Commissioner in 1996, not only were the subways, sidewalks, and street corners safe and civil once again, but major felonies were down 40 percent and the homicide rate was cut in half!

It turns out that social depravity – no matter how seemingly minute – was such a slippery slope that the whole city inadvertently snowballed down it.

Can government fix our environmental problems?

Of course, the United States is one of the biggest offenders when it comes to consuming non-renewable natural resources, creating greenhouse glasses, and producing waste. What’s even scarier is that many politicians on one particular side the aisle still don’t even acknowledge climate change or the environmental disaster we've created.

But this problem won’t be solved by regulations and policies alone (although those are sorely needed), as governments are usually just the tail that wags the dog.

For instance, the island of Boracay – the #1 tourist destination here in the Philippines - was recently shut down for six months when Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte observed it had turned into a "cesspool" and ordered it cleaned up.

With Boracay closed for an environmental overhaul, thousands of locals making a humble living as taxi drivers, waitresses, tour guides, and clerks lost their only source of wages. Many of them were barely making it to begin with and sending money back home to support their families.

Still, despite the hunger, hard times, and uncertainty they faced over those six months, they supported the cleanup for the most part. These brave unwitting activists championed the cause, taking pride in their island that would soon be one of the cleanest in the world.

Once Boracay reopened as a textbook example of conservation in action (and a stern warning to offenders), others took notice. More islands and communities started "cleaning up their act" proactively, worried the government would come in and shut them down, but also because they now realized the potential for change.

A matter of culture

We are largely products of our environment and adopt the norms, mores, and expectations that are placed upon us – a base anthropological definition of culture. Without getting into the whole debate about nature vs. nurture (go watch Eddie Murphy’s Trading Placesto learn about that!), people in any society, neighborhood, tribe, or even family will conform to the culture of that group.

So, in order to clean up the beach in that photo…and this part of the world…and our entire globe eventually, we have to initiate a culture shift, first.

We have to make it unacceptable to litter, pollute, deface, vandalize, and harm our planet. And there needs to be social status and affirmation awarded to those who do act as agents for change.

So where does that culture change start?

Any true solution will come from people, as we basically need to “make it cool” to care about the environment. Expectations need to be raised and universally adopted. Children need to be taught to love, respect, and care for the world we live in, and, in many cases, children need to teach their parents, too.

Consciousness is the start of that, and already there’s a small glimpse of hope as environmental action is the #1 political concern for Millennials in the United States.

I also see the early days of a massive culture shift here in the Philippineshumble environs, too.

In Dumaguete, where I used to live, I saw patrons implore their favorite local restaurants to start using metal straws instead of plastic ones (cleverly labeled 'Straw Shaming').

On the idyllic little island of Siquijor (rumored to be haunted and rife with witches!), a few of my local friends started organizing clean-up days at their beaches, invite tourists to join in. These became fun, must-attend events, and they even cooked big feasts for the volunteers.

The photos, stories, and friendships returned home with these tourists, and beach cleanups became almost a bucket-list item for conscious travelers.

Tour guides, dive masters, and locals started to push back when people did litter or violate conservation standards, spreading their messages through social media and word of mouth alike.

One by one, municipalities are cutting down or eliminating their consumption of single-use plastics, too. Electric vehicles are slowly but surely popping up on the roads.

When I traveled to the incredibly wild and remote island of Batanes last year, far in the northern sea, I was dazzled by how the locals kept their island spotless and organized when it came to waste and recycling, despite a stark lack of resources, education, and technology.

From remote islands to Manila Bay to mainstream media

Here in the Philippines, the movement is growing organically, picking up steam at a faster rate than I ever anticipated.

Recently, Manila Bay, a toxic stew of plastics, trash, chemicals, and other waste, became the cause célèbre when thousands of volunteers - especially youth – mobilized to pick up trash and start the long road to rehabilitation.

On my birthday in February, I met two really cool Filipina sisters at a bar. Chatting over (many) drinks together, they told me that they had a clean-up event to attend early the next morning, shattered my preconceived notions. (And gaining my respect when they actually made it there, despite the hangovers!)

These new friends even travel (on their own time and dime) to outside of Manila on the weekends, volunteering to clean up the beaches there, too.

Bolstered by media coverage and social media sharing, the concept has mushroomed into a movement. Don’t get me wrong – these micro-efforts probably haven’t even amounted to more than a drop in the bucket, and we need to magnify that effort by 1,000 – no, 10,000 – to see the real impact.

But regular people – and particularly Filipino youth - are starting to feel empowered. They realize that they can immediately and directly affect their surroundings in positive ways without waiting for the government, politicians, corporations, or even each other to sign off.

This momentum (and measured progress) will continue to grow until we reach a Tipping Point, as author and social statistician Malcolm Gladwell calls it.

Thanks to these small sparks that ignite a blaze of consciousness, the culture of how we treat our Mother Earth will truly have changed.

At that point, we might look back at the photo in this postcard and think not, “Why didn’t THEY clean it up?” but, “Why didn’t WE clean it up?”

-Norm :-)

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Sitting down with Dumaguete’s Chief-of-Police, Jonathan Dojoles Pineda.

4/24/2018

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It’s a funny thing about a police force: the better they do their job, the less you notice them.

That’s the case here in Dumaguete, too, as I’ve had little interaction with the local police in my year living here, but I certainly enjoy that our City of Gentle People is one of the safest places in all of the Philippines every day.

Recently, I had the opportunity to sit down with Chief-of-Police Jonathan Dojoles Pineda, who’s tasked with keeping us safe. I walked away with a new respect and even admiration for the Dumaguete Police Force.

Profusely apologetic that he was just few minutes late because he was out on a call, he turns on the air con in his office and welcomes me to sit down across from his desk. Pineda exudes authority with a quiet, no-nonsense confidence, more like someone you don’t want to disappoint than someone you don’t want to cross. But he also appears at least a decade younger than his 45 years and is still in shape like a soldier out of boot camp.

Pineda has served as police chief of our Gentle City for five months now, since November 2017. Before that, he distinguished himself in the chief provincial investigation and detective management branch in Sibulan. Originally from Negros Occidental, he’s been a police officer for 21 years now – almost half of his life.

He’s also a devoted husband and family man, and when he’s not working (which is almost unheard of these days, as he works seven days a week), he enjoys playing basketball, volleyball, biking, and jogging.

I started by asking Chief Pineda what the biggest priorities were for his police force these days.

“Tell the community that we’re not only focusing on criminality, but anti-terrorism,” Pineda said. “We cannot deny that terrorists can strike anywhere. And most especially on the south portion of the country.”

Pineda also wants the Dumaguetenos to know that he’s focusing his efforts on drug clean-up operations. He makes the rounds to local barangays, talking to officials and urging adherence to the national government’s drug enforcement program. His aim is to clear 20% of all barangays of drug pushers and users by the end of the year, a lofty goal considering that there are 30 barangays here.

But far from a totalitarian enforcer, Pineda stresses the human element of the drug eradication program. Drug users will receive rehabilitation, then are sent to school or technical programs where they can learn valuable skills and earn a living. For many, it will be the first real opportunity they’ve had in life, and Pineda acknowledges that poverty is one of the main reasons why we have a drug problem.

To help counter terrorism and deal with the bigger, potentially violent drug busts, he’s instituted a special group of 10 elite officers who wear black uniforms and travel by motorbike, called the “Motor Riding Unit.”

Since Dumaguete is growing so quickly, what challenges does that bring for Pineda and his force? Without hesitation, he answered that the police force was undermanned, and that problem will only become more profound as the population grows. In fact, Pineda has only 100 police and 20 auxiliary officers at his disposal, all working 12-hour shifts.

An ideal ratio for police-to-population is 1 to 500 in any city, but Dumaguete’s 100 officers serve a nighttime population of 130,000 people and a daytime population of 400,000 or more. That means instead of 1 to 500, the police-to-population here is only 1 to 1,1300 or 1 to 4,000, respectively.

But this year, they’ve been promised reinforcements, as Mayor Romello will procure six new motorcycles, a 4-wheel vehicle, two drones, 30 handheld radios, eight bulletproof vests, and eight body cameras for the police force. There is also talk of installing 350 CCTV cameras across all barangays in Dumaguete.

My appointed time with Chief Pineda is supposed to be up, and I know he’s a busy man, but he encourages me to continue our chat. “Please, go on with your questions,” he says with earnestness. ‘This is important for Dumaguete, so it’s important to me.”

***

For foreigners in Dumaguete, whether we’re living here permanently or just visiting, there are always special concerns, including theft, crime, and even terrorism. So, I asked Chief Pineda if there were specific problems created by the growing number of foreigners in Dumaguete?

While Chief Pineda didn’t see foreigners bringing extra problems for the police, his force and others do deploy extra police and carefully review of policies in high-tourism areas like Manjuyod, Bais, and others, called the Summer Vacation Implementation Security Plan.

He also clarified that Dumaguete’s Tourism Police force (often out on Boulevard) are separate from Pineda’s regular police force, but they all have the same job: to keep everyone – including tourists – safe in Dumaguete.

A lot of that comes down to informing tourists and foreigners what’s expected of them -and what not to do.

“That is my intention,” Chief Pineda said. “To communicate with the tourists coming to Dumaguete. It’s the same as when you fly to Davao – before the airplane lands, they get on the loudspeaker and say, ‘Be advised that here in Davao, smoking is prohibited.’ I want to coordinate through tourist agencies what our policies and ordinances are so that they can pass them along."

Chief revealed that he wants to get civilians more invested in their own city, fostering their sense of pride. We chatted about the Broken Windows Theory of policing that helped transform New York City from a seedy hotbed of violence, drugs, and criminality in the 1980s to one of the safest major cities in the world only decades later.

To that end, he’s rolled out the well-documented Discipline Zones program, which was introduced by the national office. In an effort to organize and clean up the streets, individual task forces (like parking, jaywalking, anti-vending, littering, etc.) have been combined, working in concert to implement city, local, and national ordinances.

Dumaguete’s Discipline Zone is in its pilot stage, a trial run along the national highway from downtown to the Robinson’s Mall area. The police are carefully tracking what works, what doesn’t and what needs changing, with weekly and monthly evaluations, before the program is extended to more locations and longer hours.

But Pineda’s inclusive policing encourages civilian volunteers to take part in enforcing the Discipline Zone program. Volunteers receive training and then are instructed to monitor activity on the streets, talk to and educate citizens, and call the police if they see illegal activity – but never engage or make contact.

Since the force is understaffed (the Discipline Zone is supposed to run 24 hours a day, seven days a week), the police are welcoming more volunteer groups to be of assistance. Recently, a motorcycle club came out to patrol the Discipline Zone, and other civic organizations are getting involved.

Since the position of Chief-of-Police only extends through two years, I asked Pineda what’s next after he steps down. Contemplative, he was certain that he wants to continue serving and helping people, maybe with the police force on a provincial or regional level, or possibly by pursuing elected office. “If my wife allows me to be in Manila,” he says with a smile.

With that, I asked Chief Pineda what Dumagueteños can do to help make their city safer? He assured me that if they see illegal activity, they should contact the police immediately. The Dumaguete police force has a 24-7 contact number in case of emergency or if people need assistance. They can even text the police instead of calling, or submit a message on the official police Facebook page.

Thank you, Chief-of-Police Jonathan Dojoles Pineda for your service and hard work to the people of Dumaguete, and for spending some time with the Metro Post!

***

-Norm :-)

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The Philippines is hoops-crazed, but has there ever been a Filipino in the NBA?

4/17/2018

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The National Basketball Association (NBA) playoffs just kicked off in the United States. While it may seem like a strange marriage at first glance, NBA basketball is actually a huge deal here in the Philippines where I currently live. Not only do most Filipinos watch games when they can, but they know the players, the teams, and the championship storylines.

They also can play. In just about every barangay, street corner, and province clearing, you’ll find a makeshift wooden hoop ready to fall over, surrounded by little kids, teens, and grown men (and women!) alike, running and jumping barefoot or in slippers, playing the game they truly love.

But while the Philippines is huge on hoops, they fall shy on exporting their own Pinoy players to participate in the NBA. So, has there ever been a Philippine-born player in the NBA?

Let’s find out by reviewing some possible candidates:

Jordan Clarkson

The embodiment of Filipino hoop dreams, Jordan Clarkson is a legit Pinoy player who is enjoying a solid NBA career. However, Clarkson, born of an African-American father and half-Filipino mother, is only ¼ Filipino by blood. And while he was born and raised in the U.S., he's carried a Philippines passport since 12 years old. Just as important, Clarkson identifies with his Filipino heritage and roots.

"After one of the natural disasters they had over there, I saw a picture where it's flooded, and kids are still playing basketball with the hoop still standing," Clarkson told a reporter after Typhoon Yolanda. “Just showing love for the game over there and how pivotal basketball is, how far it stretches.” He started his career with the LA Lakers and signed a 4-year, $50 million contract before being traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers in February, where he shares the court with Lebron James.

Erik Spoelstra

The conversation about Filipino players in the NBA often quickly turns to Erik Spoelstra, the head coach of the Miami Heat who is also half Filipino (on his mother’s side). Although he never played in the NBA, Spoelstra was one of the youngest head coaches in NBA history, as well as the first Asian American head coach in major U.S. sports, and won multiple championships with the Heat.

Raymond Townsend

Most Filipinos under thirty years old might have only heard of the name "Raymond Townsend" from their father or grandfather, but Townsend is a half Filipino (his mother is from Batangas, his father, an American). However, Townsend was born in San Jose, California, not the Philippines, although his credentials on the basketball court are not in doubt. After productive collegiate years at UCLA under the storied coach John Wooden, Townsend was drafted by the Golden State Warriors, where he played until 1981. In 1980, Townsend accompanied a group of fellow NBA players as they visited the Philippines, playing exhibition games in Manila, Olongapo, and Cebu.

Nate Robinson

Wait, Nate Robinson, the diminutive 2010 Slam Dunk Champion who appears to be African-American is Filipino? Possibly. Maybe. A tiny bit. In fact, Robinson is on record that he's 1/8 Filipino. “That is true,” Robinson says. “I’m like 1/8th, on my momma’s side. But that’s like digging down the line though. It’s like great, great grandparent.”

Andray Blatche

Now, it’s starting to get weird. This New Jersey Nets and Washington Wizards player was drafted into the NBA in 2005 and enjoyed an unspectacular journeyman career. Curiously, Blatche once publically claimed that he was Filipino. When further questioning revealed that neither his father nor mother are Filipino, it was revealed that he just wanted to become naturalized as a citizen so that he could play for the Philippines in the 2014 FIBA World Cup. You can't blame the guy for trying – even if he is African-American, stands 6’11” and plays center.

Lewis Alfred Vasquez "LA" Tenorio

Google “LA Tenorio Houston Rockets” and, at first glance, you may think that we finally found a Philippines-born NBA player. But no.

Tenorio grew up in Makati and played college ball at Ateneo de Manila, then for PBA powerhouses Ginebra, San Miguel, and Alaska. In 2014, numerous reports and articles circulated across the Internet claiming that LA Tenorio just signed a 2-year contract with the NBA’s Houston Rockets. He was widely celebrated as the first pure Filipino ever to make the NBA…until it came out that the report was a hoax. When asked point blank if he ever signed with the Rockets, Tenorio said, “I wish that was true, bro.”

Kobe Paras?

This isn’t an article about what could have been, but Filipino Kobe Paras (PBA superstar Benjie Paras' son) carried the torch for a while as the best chance to make the NBA.

He played a season of college ball in the U.S. at Creighton, before transferring and then dropping in 2017 out to pursue a pro career, instead. It might be in the PBA or the Euroleague, but it doesn't look like he'll be playing in the NBA.

So, who will be the first native-born Filipino to play in the NBA?

We don’t know, but he’s out there somewhere, running around barefoot, shooting a worn ball at a homemade rim with NBA stars in his eyes.

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Geeking out on the Philippines, once again.

2/12/2018

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In an earlier blog, I “geeked out” on the Philippines by sharing ten facts I've learned about this amazing country. Always discovering new things as I live here, let's geek out again with ten more facts:

1. We all know that Filipinos are crazy about basketball, but did you know that the country’s professional league, The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), is the second oldest hoops organization in the world, behind only the NBA?

2. With a dazzling array of flora and fauna, the Philippines is one of the top ten most biologically megadiverse countries in the world. In fact, more than 170 species of birds and 100 species of mammals habitat these 7,500 islands but nowhere else in the world! Just in the last decade, sixteen new mammals have been discovered in the Philippines. Amazing!

3. When a baby girl was born sometime in 2014, the Philippines population officially crossed the 100 million threshold. With a current estimated population of 106 million and change, it now ranks as the 12th most populous nation in the world. It’s also one of the fastest growing countries in the world with an annual growth rate of about two percent.

4. You may think I’m hitting on every stereotype about Filipinos when I mention their love of karaoke, but I didn’t know that a Filipino named Roberto del Rosario was the first one to patent the “Sing Along System” in 1975. It was actually invented by a Japanese man four years earlier ("karaoke" means "Singing without accompaniment" in Japanese), but this intrepid Filipino was the first to register its patent.

5. The country suffered one of the largest volcanic eruptions in history on June 15 1991, when Mt. Pinatubo erupted. The blast was so powerful that it shot 10 billion metric tons of magma and 20 million tons of toxic sulfur dioxide 25 miles high into the stratosphere. Mt. Pinatubo’s sent such a big mushroom cloud of ash into the atmosphere that it created a haze of sulfuric acid all around the world for two years, causing global temperatures to drop by one degree Fahrenheit!

6. We see them every day here in the Philippines, but jeepneys are a remarkable form of transportation that exist nowhere else in the world. Converted from the mass surplus of army jeeps that the U.S. military left after World War II, there are still 50,000 smoke-billowing jeepneys operating just on the streets of Manila.

7. Filipinos love hanging out at their local shopping mall. (I get it – they're clean, safe, and the AC is kicking.) But I never knew that the Philippines is home to three of the ten largest shopping malls in the world: the Mega Fashion Hall of SM Megamall (third-largest in the world, encompassing 5,451,220 sq. ft.), SM City North EDSA (fourth largest) and SM Mall of Asia (tenth largest).

8. The island of Camiguin stands out even among the many natural wonders of the Philippines, as it’s home to the most volcanoes per square mile of any island on earth. Only about 14 miles long and 8.5 miles wide, Camiguin also holds the distinction as the only island on the planet with more volcanoes (7) than towns (5). But don't worry – they've been dormant since the 1950s.

9. Typhoons wreak havoc in the Philippines all too often, but in 2013, it was Super Typhoon Haiyan (called Yolanda locally) that ripped through the archipelago. Yolanda brought the strongest winds ever recorded at landfall as well as the strongest one-minute sustained wind speed of 195 mph. Sadly, it was also the deadliest typhoon in Philippines history, killing at least 6,100 people and displacing millions according to government reports (although locals estimate the death toll to be closer to 15,000, and a thousand people are still missing).

10. Since all Filipinas are beautiful, inside and out (I’m trying to earn major points for that one), beauty pageants are a big deal here. But our contestants have also shined on the world stage, as a Filipina won Miss Universe three times (as recently as 2015), Miss World in 2013, Miss International six times, and Miss Earth four times.

Maganda! (That means 'beautiful' in the Filipino language.)

-Norm :-)

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9 Things you didn't know about Siargao, the Philippines' surf capital

1/22/2018

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If you don't live in the Philippines then you've probably never heard of Siargao, a green and tranquil island in the middle of the Philippine Sea. But if you're a proud Filipino, chances are that you're familiar, either by reputation or because you’ve had the chance to visit.

I'm actually there again this week with a few friends, so I wanted to share some insight about the island.

Of course, most people know Siargao as the surf capital of the Philippines and home to international surf competitions. But there is far more beneath the surface of the island with white sand beaches, palm groves, friendly and laid-back locals, and a distinctly Rasta vibe.

Here are nine things you may not know about Siargao:

1. Often described as a "teardrop" shape, Siargao encompasses 452 square kilometers, making it the 25th largest island in the Philippines. (For comparison, Bohol is 3,269 km² and Negros, 3,328 km².) It also includes 48 smaller islands and islets.

2. Siargao is the closest major island to the Philippine Deep, the lowest point of the Philippine Trench. (That's also what helps create the great surf waves.) The ‘Deep is a full 10,700 meters (35,104 feet) below sea level, the third-lowest recorded depth of any ocean behind the Mariana Trench and the Tonga Trench. That means you could easily fit Mount Everest, the highest peak on earth, inside the Philippine Deep since Everest reaches “only” 8,850 meters (29,035 feet) above sea level!

3. Siargao is home to the largest mangrove forest in all of Mindanao. The island has huge mangrove swamps on its southern and western sides, and particularly at the Del Carmen Reserve.

4. Don’t worry about sharks as you splash around in the waters off Siargao's shores (because there aren’t any). But there sure are some big and dangerous crocodiles in certain areas, especially the mangroves on the western side of the island. In fact, the Indo-Pacific saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) is native to the area, with a gigantic croc measuring 14 feet, 9 inches found dead there in 2016!

5. Siargao was the hideout for a notorious American surfer turned drug smuggler named Mike Boyum. After stealing more than a million dollars from the Maui Mafia to fund his drug smuggling operation, he went on the run to avoid capture or arrest, settling into the little quiet surfers' paradise of Siargao in 1988.

However, he mysteriously disappeared soon after, although his death has not been confirmed and his body never recovered. Some say that Boyum died in April 1989 after a 44-day spiritual fast, others say he was killed surfing Cloud 9, and a few even believe that he’s still alive and hiding out somewhere in Southeast Asia.

6. Why nine things and not ten on this list? That's in honor of Cloud 9, of course, Siargao's most popular surf spot. In fact, it gets inundated with so many surfers and tourists that it's often called "Crowd 9" by the locals.

You’ve probably heard about it and seen plenty of photos, but do you know how Cloud 9 first got its name? It was named by an American surfer and photographer named John Seaton Callahan in 1980, who though the reef and barrel reminded him of the texture of a chocolate bar called - you guessed it – Cloud 9.

7. A movie called Siargao was released in the Philippines in 2017 to rave reviews. Set on the island of the same name, it stars Filipino actors Jericho Rosales, Erich Gonzales, and Jasmine Curtis-Smith. Even two of the Philippines’ top surfers, Wilmar Melindo and Luke Landrigan, made cameo appearances in the movie. The island was already one of the country’s up-and-coming hot spots, but the movie has brought even more attention.

8. Most tourists take a break from surfing long enough to go island hopping on Siragao’s Naked, Guyam, and Dako Islands. But far fewer people get to explore the Sohoton Caves, which you reach with a two-hour boat ride from General Luna. Accessible only at low tides, these caves and lagoons are a fantastic place to swim, snorkel, and kayak, sharing the waters with hundreds of stingless jellyfish!

9. Cloud 9 has served as a muse for plenty of artists and musicians. A Ukulele player named Eddie Florano wrote a song, "Surfin' in Siargao," that made it onto an international ukulele compilation album in 2006.

But it was Anthony Kiedis, iconic lead singer of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, who became Siargao’s biggest celebrity surfer. After performing a 2014 concert in Pampanga, Kiedis made his way down to Siargao, where he rode the waves at Stimpys. He even reportedly stole a wave from a local, but Keidis later thanked her for giving him the wave, and she was cool.

Inspired by the island that he called “paradise,” he wrote a song called “The Longest Wave” in honor of Siargao, which appeared on the RHCP’s next album, The Getaway.

***
Enjoy Siargao!

-Norm . :-)

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5 Things that would make Dumaguete a world-class tourist destination

1/9/2018

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Dumaguete is growing up right before our eyes, blossoming into one of the most recognizable tourist destinations in the Philippines. But if Dumagueteños really do want to promote tourism in the city (and reap the financial benefits), there is still work to be done.

I've lived and traveled all around the world, and I've seen these work incredibly well to enrich communities from Nicaragua to Costa Rica, Vietnam to Thailand, and many others. When making this list, I was cognizant of not just binging in armies of tourists, but these three things:

-Making sure these ideas generated income for locals and revenue for Dumaguete
-Benefiting the daily lives of locals, too
-Attracting the right kind of tourists (not young cheap partyers or sexpats)

Here are my 5 things we can do to turn Dumaguete into a world-class tourist destination:

1. A tourism information booth
I’ve only lived in Dumaguete for eight months, so I’m still learning about the incredible things to do and see here. But imagine how lost you would feel if you were first stepping off of the plane/bus/ferry into our fair city. Too many visitors flounder around and waste time trying to piece together information from various Facebook pages, old TripAdvisor reports, or just rumors.

Now imagine if a bright, shiny, new tourist info booth was here to guide them. Tourists could get valuable (and correct!) information, as well as help with booking hotels, excursions, or even fairs, festivals, cultural events, nightlife, and restaurants.

Even locals and expats could check in at this tourist info booth (there would be an online version – sort of like Craigslist.org) and find out what’s going on.

2. Fun and fantastic photo ops around town
Tourists HEART taking photos! Filipinos and foreigners alike often seek out places just for the photo op. In fact, there are 95 million photos shared on Instagram every single day (about 87% of which are girls taking selfies on the beach.) So why don’t we make Dumaguete even more photogenic for travelers?

We can encourage home and business owners to paint with bright colors, promote a flower-planting campaign so our city becomes known as the Philippines’s floral city, or add a few colorful “Welcome to Dumaguete” signs or other props for photo takers.

We can let our imaginations run wild, but the simple fact is that more fun photo ops = more tourism.

3. Tourist police with teeth
No offense to the tourist police we have, but rules, ordinances, and laws need to be enforced. When someone drinks in public (or kicks a dog) along the Boulevard, give them a ticket (or haul them to jail). When they litter, smoke, or become a public nuisance, give them a ticket. Hold foreigners and locals to the same standard, as we shouldn't let a few people make others feel uncomfortable or unsafe, spoiling the perception of Dumaguete as a city of and for gentle people.

4. A shuttle bus for tourists
From the Manjuyod Sandbar to Apo Island, Siquijor to the Twin Lakes, Casaroro Falls and Tierra Alta, we have an abundance of local treasures in and around Duma. But these points of interest can be downright difficult to get to, especially for tourists.

A tourist shuttle would solve that problem. A single jeepney dedicated to driving to and from these destinations every day on a set schedule (it can even leave from the tourist booth we’re setting up) would be an amazing resource for tourists and locals, alike. I know I’d use it!

5. Close down the Boulevard to traffic
This is our opus. Not only would it turn Dumaguete into one of the top destinations in Asia, but it would be imminently more enjoyable for everyone who lives here. There's no reason why big trucks and buses should be ripping down the otherwise placid Boulevard, spewing smoke, causing an ear-shattering racket, and ready to flatten any pedestrian that's unfortunate enough to be in the way. Instead, all buses and trucks will need to take the national road except for set delivery hours.

Even better, on nights and weekends, we’re going to ban all traffic from the Boulevard and open it up for vendors to set up tents, booths, and kiosks. Restaurants can come down and offer their food, artists and craftsman can display their work, musicians can play, and the whole area will turn into a festival-like atmosphere.

Having a vibrant, fun, and family-oriented night market along the Boulevard will attract droves of tourists to Dumaguete, generating revenue to pay for everything on this list - and then some!

-Norm :-)

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How does Philippines tourism measure up with the rest of the world?

9/27/2017

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This week on September 27, the world commemorated World Tourism Day, a time to "foster awareness among the international community of the importance of tourism and its social, cultural, political and economic values," according to the United Nations.

In honor of World Tourism Day, I thought I'd take a closer look at the state of tourism in the Philippines by examining the highly respected Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index for 2017, published by the World Economic Forum and chock full of insight. For instance, they report that over the last ten years, international tourism has contributed over 10% to global GDP, accounting for 1 in every 10 jobs on the planet.

This year, the Index has the Philippines ranked #79 out of the 136 countries listed for tourism, or the bottom 42nd percentile (they only rank 136 countries in the world, not the 195 or so in existence).
In fact, in 2016, the Philippines saw more than 5.3 million foreign tourists cross its borders (not counting Filipinos). The average tourist spent about $984 for each trip, which means that we received about 125 million dollars from tourism, accounting for 4.2% of the Philippines' GDP.

More than 1.2 million Filipinos also worked in tourism last year, accounting for 3.3% of all employment.

But despite the perception that the Philippines is no longer a secret among Southeast Asian backpackers and travelers, our tourism industry actually took a hit in 2016 – and will probably sink even further in 2017.

In fact, the Philippines dropped 5 places from the same report in 2016's report, when it was ranked #74 in the world for tourism (out of 141 countries listed). I'm guessing that headlines about extra-judicial killings, extremist kidnappings and beheadings have something to do with that.

Indeed, the Index reports that security concerns among tourists – from street crime to terrorism – remain extremely high in the Philippines, earning us a #126 blemish out of 136 countries.

A lack of confidence in the police, substandard quality of roads (#107), a restrictive visa policy (#60), and the fact that the Philippines government reduced their travel and tourism budget by almost half all were contributing factors.

However, there was also a lot to redeem the Philippines as a tourist destination, including the relatively low cost (#22) to travel here, the country's rich natural resources (#37), and the ease of air travel.

Within Southeast Asia, the Philippines ranks #7 out of 9 countries for tourism, falling behind Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam (in that order) and only ahead of Lao and Cambodia.

On this year's list, the Philippines sits behind Egypt, Jordan, Dominican Republic, Uruguay, and Bhutan (countries no. 74-78), with Kenya, Kazakhstan, Namibia, Cape Verde, and Armenia ranked behind us (#80-85).

Spain is the overall #1 ranked country on this travel and tourism index, and Japan the first Asian country listed, sitting at #4.

While I doubt the Philippines will ever reach those heights, perhaps modeling our tourism sector after Thailand (#34) is a great goal?

However you interpret the report, it's interesting data that puts tourism in the Philippines in a world context.

-Norm :-)

Originally written for my weekly Dumaguete MetroPost newspaper column.

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Guest DJ'ing a radio show on 93.7 ENERGY FM in Dumaguete, the Philippines

9/10/2017

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This week, I had the opportunity to guest DJ an hour-long radio program on Dumaguete’s own 93.7 Energy FM.

Taking over for the time slot usually reserved for Jeff The Solar Guy (who reminds me of The Dude from the movie, The Big Lebowski), I was lucky to have a few abundantly entertaining guests - the Wonder Twins - as well as Jera.

We had a blast talking about their amazing Karma Cafe here in Dumaguete, solar energy facts, International Coastal Cleanup Day, and played a hilarious game called Twin Confusion.

It was a great experience and I'm eager to get behind the mic again soon!

You can check out the show here:

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10 Reasons why Filipinos should visit Cambodia

5/6/2017

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I want to introduce you to someone I think you’ll really like. I have high hopes that you two will hit it off, and maybe even form a loving, long-term relationship.

No, this isn’t like the time you tried to set your Ate up on a date with Boboy from the barangay basketball team. Today, I want to introduce my Filipino traveler friends to the wonderful country of Cambodia.

Easily accessible from Manila, inexpensive, safe, and FUN, you'll find the Kingdom of Cambodia to be like your 7,500-island nation in some ways but so different in most. ("Same, same, but different," as they say.) In fact, if you added up landmass of the Visayas and Luzon, it would be about as big as Cambodia. However, there are only 15+ million people in the whole country of Cambodia, while Manila alone has more residents than that! Whoa! You'll also learn that the people and culture are called Khmer, not “Cambodian,” and the country has the longest standing leader in all of Asia, Prime Minister Hun Sen.

It also has a unique history, from one of the most impressive ancient civilizations in the world to French colonialism and then the tragic, dark period of the Khmer Rouge. But today, Cambodia is awake, alive, and full of amazing things to do and see – and waiting for you!

I’ll give you 10 reasons why Filipinos will love to visit Cambodia here, but I also encourage you to email me with any questions.

Getting there and around is easy
Filipinos will find that it’s easy to get to Cambodia. In fact, CebuPacific offers nonstop flights leaving Manila and touching down in Siem Reap, Cambodia that only take 2 hours and 55 minutes, saving you a whole lot of time and aggravation by avoiding connecting flights and layovers. The best part is that it costs less than 5,000 Pesos each way! That's about the same as Manila to Dumaguete, Coron, or Caticlan - not bad for an international direct flight, Coron, or Caticlan.!

Once you're in Siem Reap, getting around is effortless with charming tuk-tuks you can ride around for 100 Pesos or so, or you can rent a motorbike or bicycle to tour around.

If you have more than a few days, you can easily take the bus or van (5-6 hours/250 Pesos – 500 Pesos) to the dynamic and charming capital city, Phnom Penh. (Yes, they have night buses so you can wake up in your destination and save the cost of a hotel room for one night!)

Since Cambodia is wedged between its Southeast Asian neighbors, you can also take a bus or van to Thailand or Vietnam for intrepid travelers.

Angkor Wat in Siem Reap
The highlight of any trip to Cambodia, Angkor Wat is the largest religious site on earth and a UNESCO World Heritage Site (although not a Wonder of the World – yet!). Construction started on this massive temple complex in the 12th century as a Hindu religious monument, although it later transitioned to Buddhist use. Today, you can witness the sheer magnitude and magnificent splendor of Angkor Wat and nearby temples, including Ta Prohm temple that you might remember from the movie Lara Croft, Tomb Raider with Angelina Jolie. You can purchase a one-day pass, three-day pass or week-long pass to enter the temple grounds and cruise around as much as you like, so bring comfortable walking shoes, your sunblock, and your selfie stick because you’re in for a crazy adventure!

Cambodia is inexpensive!
Filipinos will be delighted to find that Cambodia is still very affordable (it’s probably cheaper than traveling around the Philippines!). You can still get a great 4-star hotel with a pool and breakfast for around 1,300-1,500 Pesos a night, and there is an abundance of clean and safe hostels, guesthouses, and accommodations for as low as 150 Pesos per night! You can also find delicious food that’s inexpensive everywhere in Cambodia.

The Angkor Wat temple complex – the main attraction in Siem Reap – does cost 1,850 Pesos for a day pass, but you can use that to explore multiple temples in the same area. From dawn until sundown, you'll see some of the most amazingly beautiful temples in the world, taking enough selfies, groupies, and jump shots to last a lifetime!

Yummm...the food!
I know that you love to eat! But since mealtime (otherwise known as "all the time") is about trying new, exciting dishes and making memories with friends and family, you'll love the food in Cambodia. In fact, you'll find the best of Thai, Vietnamese, Chinese, French, European, Western, Indian, and, of course, Khmer food. You'll also be blown away by how many funky, creative, and fun cafes, restaurants, bars, and street food choices there are. By the way, you can try spider, snake, or even insects in Cambodia! Who's brave enough to take a bite?

Incredible natural beauty
The Kingdom of Cambodia may be right next door to the Philippines, but it looks so different that it might as well be another planet. Mostly landlocked (except for coastal areas in the south), life in Cambodia is centered around the colossal Lake Tonle Sap and the rivers that feed it, like the mighty Mekong.

However, some things will look familiar – regal palm trees, sprawling rice fields, and the endless sun-kissed beauty of “the province.” But you’ll also find floating villages of boat people, tropical jungle, rivers to play in, butterfly farms, pepper plantations, dusty villages with friendly locals, and breathtaking Bokor Mountain and National Park.

If you make it south to Phnom Penh, consider another 3-4 hour bus/van ride (that’s nothing for eager Filipino travelers!) to the charmingly surreal river town of Kampot or the super-chill coastal enclave of Kep, where you can lay in a hammock and eat fresh seafood to your heart's content. I really think you’ll love those places.

One thing I haven't mentioned much is Sihanoukville (the name of their former King) in the south of the country. While it's a hot spot for backpackers and travelers, I don't suggest it for Filipinos. It takes about 6 hours to get there from Phnom Penh (and takes you even further away from your flight out of Siem Reap), and it's attracted a sleazy, unsafe element. While nearby Koh Rong Island is beautiful, you have far more (and better) islands back home. So my recommendation is to come to Cambodia for the culture, temples, and exploring the main city, but skip Sihanoukville.)

A dark and storied history
Wow, where do I even begin? I can write ten blogs on the history of Cambodia, but suffice to say this – the modern developing nation you see today has one of the richest, most ancient, and interesting histories of any country in Asia. However, Cambodia was also home to one of the worst genocides in human history, with the Khmer Rouge killing almost a quarter of the total population of their own country in the months between 1975 and 1978.

History buffs will experience all of that – pride in their ancient civilization, the surprisingly-European influence in art, architecture, food and culture from French colonialism, scars from the Khmer Rouge’s atrocities, and today’s hopes to heal and build a modern society.

Filipino tourists don’t even need a visa to visit Cambodia!
I know the process of applying for a visa can be long, expensive, and frustrating for Filipinos. But here's some amazing news, straight from the TourismCambodia.com website:

Visa Exemption
The nationals of the Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Brunei Darussalam, Myanmar do not need a tourist visa and may stay in Cambodia for 21 and 30 days respectively.

Experience Buddhism
While the majority of people in the Philippines are Roman Catholic and Christian, Cambodia is predominantly Buddhist. Filipinos will be delighted to experience such a cultural, historical, and yes, religious contrast. You'll find that Buddhism, its temples (Wats), and its people, very welcoming. From Angkor Wat to the temples and pagodas around the picturesque royal palace in Phnom Penh to gonzo celebrations like the water festivities for Khmer New Year, Filipinos will love being immersed in a Buddhist society.

Plenty of pasalubong to take home
Everywhere you go in Siem Reap or Phnom Penh, you’ll find stalls, stores, and night markets selling t-shirts, wood carvings, handmade jewelry, local art and crafts, designer brand (knock-off) clothes and purses, hats, refrigerator magnets, postcards, silks and other exotic fabrics, spices, and just about every other gift you can imagine. For 1,000 Pesos and some smooth-tongued haggling, you'll return home with a backpack full of pasalubong that will even make your sometimes-complaining (and still single) Ate happy!

Connect with great people
My Pinoy friends will have one frustration in Cambodia, as people come up to them on the street and start speaking Khmer all the time, thinking they are from Cambodia. But the good news is that people are generally friendly, happy, and open to foreigners in Cambodia. Of course, English isn't their native tongue, but anyone that works in tourism will speak enough English to get by and interact, and you'd be surprised how fast the younger generation (like kids on the street) are learning it.

Likewise, you'll meet some AMAZING fellow travelers from all over the world while you're in Cambodia, making new friends for life who might even invite you to their home countries.

I’ve found that in some places (like Thailand, etc.) the country is beautiful but I leave feeling like I’ve lacked a meaningful connection to the country and its people. But in Cambodia, there are endless opportunities for an authentic human bond and even friendships, enriching both of your lives.

My favorite thing to do when I visit Cambodia is get involved with local charities. I have a few that I REALLY trust, believe in, and have been helping for years, like the Children’s Improvement Organization orphanage in Siem Reap and the Connecting Hands Training Café in Phnom Penh. But be careful – you’ll fall in love with the kids and these people and not want to leave!

***

For these 10 reasons, I promise you that Cambodia will remain in your heart long after the stamp in your passport fades!

-Norm :-)

Disclaimer: I am not Filipino, but please don’t hold that against me – nobody’s perfect! 

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Cocaine Surfboards & Maui Mafia: The legend of Mike Boyum continues

Your March 2019 Postcard from Norm: Why don't they clean up the clothes in the photo? A case study in social change.

Sitting down with Dumaguete’s Chief-of-Police, Jonathan Dojoles Pineda.

The Philippines is hoops-crazed, but has there ever been a Filipino in the NBA?

Geeking out on the Philippines, once again.

9 Things you didn't know about Siargao, the Philippines' surf capital

5 Things that would make Dumaguete a world-class tourist destination

How does Philippines tourism measure up with the rest of the world?

Guest DJ'ing a radio show on 93.7 ENERGY FM in Dumaguete, the Philippines

10 Reasons why Filipinos should visit Cambodia

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