Cracked Under Pressure: what not to do when you’re learning to SCUBA

This story takes place in 2011. Please forgive the younger version of me for her writing style.

On the plane ride from New Zealand, I   perused a Philippines guide book. I came to the “Diving” chapter and automatically thumbed past it. I’ve never traveled longer than three months at a stretch, and I’ve always traveled on a tight budget — never spending more than $1,000 a month. Learning to SCUBA dive runs $400 at best, making it an activity that could never be part of my reality.

As I read entry after entry about “world class diving,” I started to re-think my position.

Legal Until January 9th!: how to survive a Filipino immigration officer

Since I’d landed back in Manila, I decided to brave the Immigration Office. I had planned to get my visa extended in one of the smaller provincial offices to avoid the rumored headache of the main branch. I rocked up just before 8 a.m., filled out the paperwork, got chatty with a young guy from California, was friendly with the clerk who did my intake, had to beg 30 pesos off my new friend (why did I buy that water?!) to pay the inflated fees, and settled in for my one-hour wait. End relatively-normal-bureaucratic-process.

Ms. Aruba & Ms. Wyoming vs. PHP: how to make the most of Manila

The shirt that I picked up in Chinatown

My second day in Manila was a lot more interesting than the first. (The first having involved long hours spent at a bank, cooking, and going to bed very early). Nelienne had her heart set on exploring Chinatown. Besides being crammed full of treasures from every corner of Asia with fruit stands spilling into the clogged streets, it wasn’t really like any Chinatown I’ve ever been to. In fact, one of the city’s most beautiful Catholic churches and a gorgeous mosque are the focal points of the area. And almost nothing was in Chinese!