Kidapawan – I’m Back… Again! – Chris' Contemplations

This trip was the trip that very nearly didn’t happen. Though it did happen a week later and a week shorter than originally planned.

There was an earthquake off the coast of Davao and it was quite a big one.

Out of an abundance of caution, I decided I wouldn’t go until I was sure the danger of the earthquake had passed.

I decided to rebook for a week later.

I didn’t really do much during the time I was waiting. I worked and that was about it.

I patiently waited for the day to arrive when I needed to leave for the airport.

Day 1

Today turned out to not be a very good day. I slept until about 11 (2 hours past when we said we would go out).
The weather wasn’t the best either. It was raining (spitting I would call it) so we decided we would just go to Hillside and get some food.
I wasn’t really feeling any food from there but we went anyway. I just had chicken and fries. I was all out of an appetite for rice.
I had said to Addy that I wanted to see some waterfalls and he said we could go back to the same ones.
I said I wanted to go to different ones that I hadn’t seen before but we couldn’t agree on whether or not to do it.
We had the food and went to see his sister and then we went back to the hotel. When we got back, we couldn’t get into the room. That annoyed me even more. It turns out that at 12 noon every day they reprogram the keys. What utter crap. Couple that with having to log back into the wifi with another voucher after 48 hours. Whilst the hotels here in the Philippines may be cheap, they come at other costs.
I slept for pretty much the rest of the day as I was in a bad mood.
We talked and I told him it wasn’t super cheap to visit and it took nearly 48 hours of travelling to get there. I said to him that I could have just stayed at home in my own room and saved the time and money of coming over. I also said that if the plan was to spend the whole time in the hotel, then I would just look for a ticket and come home.
He eventually said that it was a safety issue for him not going to go see waterfalls. I told him that if he had said that, I would have understood why he didn’t want to go. I still would have been upset that we were going back to the hotel, but at least I would have understood.
We put that issue to bed and then went to sleep, ready for tomorrow and going to Apo Flower Garden.
Total steps: 6,486

Total miles: 2.91

Total kilometers: 4.68
Day 2
Today we got up early and decided to head to breakfast. Addy steered us wrong and breakfast started at 06:30 and not 06:00 as he said. I went down to reception to enquire about how to order food and then went back up to the room.

We went to the place for breakfast and it wasn’t very good at all. You have to tell them the night before what you want for breakfast. It consisted of a tiny bit of meat, eggs (scrambled or fried or omelette), rice.

I told them I wanted ham and scrambled eggs. They garnished the eggs with spring onions. The crunch makes me feel sick even just thinking about it. I took them back and said I just wanted the egg with nothing on it. They sent it back, only having taken the spring onion off (but they left some on without realising). I went back and told them it needed to be made fresh with no spring onions. They did it, but they were not happy about having to do it. Oh well, don’t offer breakfast!

We left the hotel and then got our stuff together to head out. Our plans were as follows:

School for Addy

Family house to give over some info about the reunion

City for hotel food/drinks and a SIM card

Drive to Kapatagan to Apo Flower Garden

We left and then went to his house so he could change into his principal’s uniform for school. He said you are not allowed to be in school in a non-school uniform on working days.

We then headed to the school and I sat there for a couple of hours whilst he did the admin. I was slowly cooking from the inside out and getting sore eyes from the pet fur too. I was so glad when it came time to leave.

I don’t think Addy has ever seen me move so fast, though. He opened the boot of Green (his name for his van) and along ran the biggest spider I have ever seen. I was truly freaked out. I had goose bumps for ages. It ran into the van and under his case. He pulled his case out and the spider dropped to the ground and ran to the wheel arch. He pushed it out with a stick, and it ran away. I was still covered in goosebumps.

When I say this thing was huge, its body was the diameter of a small padlock and the entire thing was more than the top of a pop can. Nasty thing that it was.

We left here – thankfully – and went to his house so he could change. I told him I would stay in the van as my head was hurting. He was super fast at changing.

We left here and went to the city. I was still feeling feverish and we found the phone shop. They didn’t do prepaid SIM cards. Addy tried to get his sorted and he has to play a waiting game for it now. The impression I have of the Philippines is that things will get done when they feel like they should be done. There seems to be no urgency to anything.

We left the phone shop and went to look for some flip-flops for me. I couldn’t stay in there for very long as I felt my stomach turn and that only means one thing… a bathroom and right now.

We went to Jollibee and I used the bathroom there then we had some food.

Whilst we were eating, some students from Addy’s school came in and they offered us cupcakes. I took one and it was delicious. A chocolate cupcake with a flavoured frosting that I can’t put a name to – but it was delicious nonetheless.

We left here and went to the mall to look for a SIM card and then get some stuff from the supermarket.

I didn’t manage to get a SIM, but we managed to get what we wanted from the supermarket.

We headed back to the van and then started on our way to Kapatagan. Addy said he had a favour to ask of me. I said to go ahead and ask. He said that I should smile more and not be so aggressive when speaking with people. I can’t help how my face looks, though. I told him I would do that, but in return when I told him what I wanted (in the shops) that he is to trust me and not offer things that he thinks I want.

I wanted a data-only SIM card and he asked about minutes and messages.

Anyway, the drive to Kapatagan was fairly uneventful. I was so glad when we turned off and started to climb. The temperatures were much better and much colder. Enough that I could put a warm drink out the window for a few minutes and it cooled right down.

The drive here was quite nice. Some of it I didn’t remember from last time, some I did.

It was nice to see some stuff I didn’t remember, though. Even still, it was a nice drive anyway.

We got to Apo and checked in and found that the fan in the room didn’t work, so we had to ask to have that changed. They changed it and then we went out for a drive – up the hill I wanted to go up last time. Green was good and she made it up the hills. The views were incredible.

We went as far as the road did (well, a little into the dirt since we needed to turn around). We didn’t want to go too far as we didn’t know what the road was like. It turns out that where it ended, there was a deep drop below and we didn’t want to be in that.

The drive back down was equally as nice and we both decided that we would go there at sunrise to get some pictures and maybe a time-lapse of it.

We stopped partway down to get some barbecued pork and hot dogs. I had the hot dog and it was nice. Addy had the pork in some sweet sauce and he said he liked it. Each piece was only ₱10. That is about 12p per skewer. Well worth it.

We got back to Apo and then went to get some food and just chilled outside, admiring the views.

It got dark really quick, too and that was it for the pictures. The iPhone camera isn’t very good at taking decent night shots.

We had ordered our food and waited for an hour for it to be brought to us. The burger was nice, but the fries were awful as they were partially undercooked at best.

I asked for the fries to be taken off the bill, but they wouldn’t at first as it was part of a combo. They eventually said they would take the cost of the fries off the meal.

Today was a better day than yesterday. We have our own room under the swimming pool area and we can sit outside at the table and chairs and just chill.

Tomorrow will be an early one to catch the sunrise and then back to bed for a couple more hours, I think and then out to adventure around the area.
Total steps: 624

Total miles: 0.27

Total kilometers: 0.43
Day 3
Today started out as a VERY early day. We wanted to head up from the resort to overlook the valley and get a view of the sunrise.
Our alarms went off at 5 and we got up and got ready and headed out in Green to the place we decided to park to overlook the valley and Davao to watch the sunrise. We were still a little late as the sun was above one of the mountains already, despite sunrise being reported at 05:25.
I tried to get a time-lapse of it, but it had stopped partway through and it didn’t turn out very well. If I do it again tomorrow, it will be from the resort and I will sit at a table where I can see what the phone is doing.
As I was taking the timelapse, all I could hear was the Dawn Chorus of cockerels.

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We came back to the resort to see if it had opened yet, as we needed to talk to someone about the toilet and the shower in the room. The toilet water couldn’t be kept on as the cistern was leaking and water was all over the floor. The shower was awful too – no hot water and barely any flow. There is no way you could use the bathroom here.

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The reception opened at 07:00 and we went straight there. They thought we were there for breakfast. They were wrong.
They asked us to show them the issues and we went with them to show them. I had also asked the manager to speak to the pool cleaner and ask them not to play loud music at 06:50 when people were still trying to sleep. He did just that, too. He gave him a proper telling off for being inconsiderate of their guests.
We were moved from room 2 to room 3 and we were happy with that – that is, until the shower gave no hot water despite everything we tried.
When we went for breakfast (which was awful) we made them aware of the issues with the shower in this room and they sent their engineer to have a look but they couldn’t fix it. The solution was to allow us to use the shower in another room that had hot water and decent water pressure. It wasn’t ideal, but it was a means to an end and it will be like that until we leave on Thursday.
It was about 10:30 and we both were showered and ready and we headed out. It had started to rain a little at this point. Addy suggested that we go to Camp Sabros first. On our way there, the rain got heavier. I was beginning to wonder if we would get to see or do anything there.
We got to where it was and it was quite a climb for poor old Green. It didn’t help that the climb was done when it was still raining – this left it muddy on the way up. Green did her job really well and got us right to the top. It was ₱100 entrance (of course it was, nowhere to visit in this country seems free!). I gave them ₱500 and they had to give me a note saying they owed me change.
We parked up and waited for the rain to stop. As we were, we saw the cable car that they had and I asked Addy if he wanted to go on it – I also asked him if he wanted to go onto the Hanging Bridge. He said he was OK with the cable car but not with the bridge – he doesn’t like heights, so that’s fair.
The rain eventually stopped and we went out to get our tickets for the cable car and the bridge. It cost ₱250 per person for a round trip on the cable car and ₱250 per person for a round trip on the bridge. I got us 2 tickets for the cable car and me 1 ticket for the bridge.
We were told they had a break from 12-1. We decided we would use this time to go get some food and just wait for the rain to fully stop.
The place itself is styled in the Old Skool American style. There were retro logos, statues and an old-time diner too.
We went in and got our food and just sat overlooking the valley watching the fog roll in. We both got 2 burger patties with rice and an egg. I ordered some chips and then we each had a can of Sprite and a bottle of water – the total was a HUGE (note the sarcasm here) ₱800. In Charlie’s money, that is about a TENNER! Yep, you read that right. TEN WHOLE POUNDS. Cheap as anything.
We sat here and finished our meal and then we were ready to go and the fog rolled in again. I managed to get a decent time-lapse of this.

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We left here and then decided we would go on the cable car. Addy still wasn’t convinced about the bridge, though.
I took a time-lapse of the cable car, but it never saved and I was really annoyed. Grrrr. I wanted to do a time-lapse one way and then a video the other, so I could also take pictures.
Addy kindly decided to take a timelapse on the way back so I could take a video and get some pictures. I really enjoyed the cable car because you got to see above the treetops and also out across the valley with the mountains in the background.

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Once we were back at the other side, Addy decided to conquer his fear and we got him a ticket for the bridge too. I was proud of him for doing it.
I decided I would take a video of myself walking all the way across.

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In the video, you can see that it doesn’t perfectly align – that’s because at points I would stop and wait for Addy to get there so I could make sure he was OK with it.
Once we were on the other side, we sat for a little while and just enjoyed the sounds of the forest. It really was nice just to sit there.
We then decided to head back and I was happy that I could take some pictures as I was walking across. As I was walking across, all I could think about was that the only way to see sights like this was from the Attenborough nature documentaries from the BBC. It was so surreal to see it in person – albeit just a tiny fraction of what is out there. It really was cool to witness it in person. Yet another reason I am so lucky I can travel like I do.

Once we got back to the other side, Addy said that we should head to Land of Peace. It is a sculpture garden that has a lot of indigenous artworks. The sculptor is called Kublei Khan. It was pretty cool to see it. Addy said that it used to be the only thing in the area to see, and it was always so busy – that is, until the resorts started to pop up. Now it’s not so busy. It’s good too because it is free to go and see the sculptures.
We parked up and then got out and had a walk around. It was really cool to see the sculptures depicting what the indigenous people did.

We left here and then headed back to the hotel. We had done everything we wanted to do today and the rain was starting to get heavy, so we thought it better that we stayed in the room.
Total steps: 5,747

Total miles: 2.58

Total kilometers: 4.15
Day 4
Today was yet again another very early day. I had set the alarm for 04:50 so we could go out and get a view of the sunrise. We decided we would stay at the resort this time and find a table and set up the camera there.
It still wasn’t starting to get light, so we went back inside the room for 15 minutes and then headed back out. This time it was starting to get light. I found a table and set up the camera and started the time-lapse. We never got a sunrise, but I still let the time-lapse run. We got the clouds moving and dissipating – with the added bonus of a horse.

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I like the time-lapse because you can see the change in colour of the sky and you can also see the horse.
After this, we came back to the room and I went back to sleep as I was super tired. I slept until about 09:50 and then got up and showered and got ready for the day.
Once we were both ready, we headed to Jardin De Senorita. As we were crossing the road, a group of people were assembling for a photo in front of the entrance. I told Addy that we should hurry so we wouldn’t have to wait for them. I was told to wait and let them take the picture. Aside from waiting there, we then had to wait for them all to buy their tickets (₱110 per person for entry).
We got our tickets and we had a walk around the top before heading to the Purple Hill and the Paris area of the garden.
Purple Hill is so called because of the purple flowers that grow and also because it’s on an incline.
Once we got to the top, we decided we would have a bit of a rest – it’s steeper than it seems and our legs were tired.
We rested for about 20 minutes and then carried on walking around the garden. It’s a shame the flowers weren’t in full bloom anymore. It’s also a shame they still charged full price to get in.
We went to take some pictures by the Eiffel Tower and a family jumped in, so we had to wait. They looked at me with my camera pointed, but still chose to be idiots about it and jump in.
They left and this couple tried to do the same thing, so I rushed to get my spot so they knew they had to wait. They also looked at me with a camera poised and decided to go ahead anyway. I am now past the point of being patient and waiting. If I want the picture, I won’t wait for people to queue jump and I’ll just go and get the pictures I want and they can do the waiting this time.
We carried on with our walk and decided to go and get some food. I didn’t have breakfast and Addy didn’t have much of one.
On part of the walk, we came across the Mexican Wings – the wings are used to bully the indigenous people. They call them Mexicandin, which is used instead of calling them indigenous people. It is used as a derogatory term.
We spent about 90 minutes walking around the garden. We spent about 2 hours in the cafe – mostly because it was really foggy and visibility was practically 0.
In the cafe, they have Piso Wifi – wifi that you pay for. That is a whole other story. You connect to the hotspot and then pop coins in the slot and you get wifi access. It’s ₱5 for 30 minutes. I connected to the hotspot and as I did, it was asking for coins and registered ₱10 that someone else had put in. I didn’t even mean for it to do that. Free wifi though – bargain.
We had our food and then once the fog had lifted, we decided to venture out to a place called Twin Mountain View Resort. Addy said it had a glass bridge that we could walk on and the better views were from there.
He wasn’t wrong. We paid our ₱120 per person entry and this got us a ₱20 ticket for the glass bridge.
We went down to where it was and then waited for our turn.
We went on and I have to tell you that I was somewhat nervous about it. It didn’t feel super steady and I had to tell Addy to go ahead of me so I could then get onto the bit he was on after he got off.

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Once we were off the glass bridge (I took myself off the bridge pretty quick because there were a lot of people and I didn’t want to land at the bottom of the valley), Addy asked the guy there where the waterfall was. The guide told him and we ended up deciding we would go there. Addy said he needed me to make a decision to help spur him on.
He went and got us some bottles of water so we had something to drink on the way back up.
The way down was ok. Some steep stairs, but mostly shallow steps and a bit of flat ground.
Once we got to the bottom, it was fairly close to go to the falls. We thought there was only one, but there were 2 falls there. One was pretty high, the other really not at all.
I loved being here. I just love water and I would have sat here all night if I could have done.

[BR]

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It was time to leave and I wanted to get a time-lapse of the fog rolling in and covering the waterfalls, but we didn’t get it. As we left, the fog started rolling in, so I asked Addy if we could go back. We did, but I could tell he wasn’t happy about it. He later told me that he had an uneasy feeling about staying down there. On the way down, a lady told us we should be quiet because it was enchanted.
Addy said he didn’t believe it until we were down there and he felt this uneasy feeling.
We left and made our way to the top, with several stops needed because of the climb. There were 265 steps down and 265 up. I felt every one of those 530 steps once we reached the top.
We left here and decided to go to the store to get some food and drink for the night as we knew the restaurant at the resort would be closed until tomorrow.
The fog was really bad. 0 visibility for most of the drive, too. Most of the time you could only tell you were on a road because of the vehicles coming towards you. It was a really slow drive back to the resort – and I am thankful for that too!
We stopped at the store and got our bits. Addy decided to have a Balut egg – look it up, I’m sorry if you did.

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We made it to the resort only to find that the door was closed and locked. We rang the bell a few times (well, Addy did and he was starting to get annoyed too). I reached my hand around and popped up the pin and slid the door open and we got in. I slid the door closed and popped the pin back in.
It’s so weird that nobody answers the bell and that the door is closed so early, with no way for the people staying here to get in.
Today was a really good day, though. It has to be another early night since Addy wants to see the sunrise again tomorrow.
They say the third time is a charm – so hopefully we get a sunrise timelapse tomorrow!
Total steps: 5,269

Total miles: 2.29

Total kilometers: 3.69
Day 5
Today was the day we had to check out from Apo Flower Garden and head back to Kidapawan. We had also decided last night that we would get up early again to see if we could catch the sunrise and actually see the sun. The third time is a charm, as they say.
We got up at 05:10 and then headed to our favourite spot and I set up the camera on a time-lapse and I managed to capture the sunrise.

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Once I had captured this, I decided I wanted to go back to sleep. I wasn’t a fan of the breakfast here, so I was happy to skip it.
We got up and showered and left by about 10:30.
We had decided last night that we would just drive along the road where we were last night. We couldn’t do it then, as the fog was so thick.
As we were leaving, the rain had started and as we were in the van driving away, it got heavier. I was so glad to be in the van. There were no, or some poorly maintained, drainage ditches along the road. As a result of this, the rainwater was just flowing down the road and it looked like it was going to flood – thankfully, it didn’t.
It was also getting foggy, but that just depended on what part of the road you were on. We got to the road we were on last night and went along it. It came to an end and it was dirt and you could only really go further if you had a horse.
The views were stunning, though.
We were also going to try another road, but Addy decided it was too steep for Green, so we just turned around and headed for Kidapawan.

As we got closer to Kidapawan, you could feel the temperature change and it was not a good change. It got warmer and it was also humid. A yucky combination.
We had to stop as there was a highway patrol checkpoint and Addy said they are quite strict. We crossed the street and parked up until they were gone – we didn’t know how long this would be either and we were both worried about getting back in time for some sleep before starting work.
We stopped at a place called a Karinderya (basically a cheap restaurant) and had some food. I had some Ginamay and it was really good. It is pork with boiled potatoes and carrots and a sauce. It was really nice. So good that I had 2 portions!
The highway patrol checkpoint was clear and we were able to head back to the city.
We went straight to the hotel so I could shower and set up for work.
We had to go to the mall and get some supplies. I also needed to get an extension cable and a cable powerful enough to keep my work laptop charged. The cable I had was too small and the longer ones I had were not rated highly enough for the power needed to go through them.
We got to the mall and we found the extension cable. It was about ₱400 for that. We then went downstairs to get the other bits needed. This is where it was a little uncomfortable for all involved.
I selected the 65W plug (₱550) and then I saw a 100W USB-C:USB-C cable. This was marked on the box for ₱275. The sales lady took it to the store next door and came back and said it wasn’t that price, but it was ₱395
I wasn’t happy with this and felt like I was being taken advantage of because I was a foreigner. I told them I didn’t want it. I then changed my mind and said I wanted it and that I needed to pay by card. They said the amount was too small and they couldn’t add it to the receipt that was already written up. I just couldn’t fathom the absolutely appalling process of how they sell things here.
If the item is already written on the official receipt and you don’t take it, the company will deduct that from the wages of the worker AND keep the item. So pathetic and such a backward way of doing business.
I walked out of the store to cool down and then I went back in. They said I could pay card for the cable and cash for the plug – I had to pay cash because it was already on the receipt. Again, such a stupid, pathetic, backwards way to do business.
I knew I had made Addy mad because he didn’t say much after and didn’t really say much walking around the supermarket. We got what we needed and went back to the van to go back to the hotel.
We talked about it and he explained his side and I explained mine and it is all done with now.
I will say it again, though: Philippines – WHAT A BACKWARD WAY TO CONDUCT BUSINESS. It’s 2025, get into the digital age!
Total steps: 5,662

Total miles: 2.51

Total kilometers: 4.04
Day 8
Today, we decided that we would go out and do stuff. We left the room around 11:30 and then went in search of water. I like water. It’s soothing. It’s mesmerising.

We had a few choices of where to go and we ended up going to Mook River. The place used to be super popular and had construction of cottages (small rental shelters) that disrupted the natural flow of the river. They also charged you to go there.

After the earthquake in 2019, the DENR decided that it would no longer allow these cottages and would stop any further construction of them. The buildings that were there before the earthquake are still there and can still be used, but they no longer charge for them.

The views travelling there were, as ever, amazing. I really love this area and the rurality of it. It really makes for good pictures.

We got there and parked up. We then took the short walk to the river. We had to walk alongside houses to get there. How it doesn’t annoy the people that live here, I’ll never know – especially when some of those visiting are super loud.

As soon as we got there, the flowing water and the sound of it was amazing. It was music to my ears.

We had to walk across what seemed like a rickety bridge. I asked Addy if it was strong and he said yes. I decided I would cross it too.

The picture below shows what one of the said cottages looks like.

We set up in this one and I put our stuff down and just started taking pictures and videos. I was really happy being here. The older I get, the more I don’t care about being connected to civilisation (digitally speaking). I had no mobile service and I didn’t care either – I must be getting older!

The views were really cool, though. The flowing water and the nature – truly amazing.

You can see the place in the videos below.

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Addy decided he was going to go swimming and asked if I wanted to go. I did want to get in the water, but I had no spare clothes and I didn’t want to get my t-shirt off in front of people.

He had a good time in the water, though.

I remembered about an app I had on my phone called Slow Shutter Speed. I decided to use it (since I had a tripod) – given we were at the water – and get some long exposure shots of the river.

Once Addy has finished swimming, we decided we would head to Hillside to get some food and then on to Tousuvan Falls.

Once we parked up at the falls, we had to pay ₱35 per person entry and then ₱5 per person environmental fee. The parking was ₱30. The lady at the counter wanted to charge us ₱150 and I told Addy the right amount was ₱150.

The lady apologised and said she thought there were 3 of us for entry, as Addy told her 2 but held 3 fingers up.

We paid our dues and then walked down to the falls. There were so many people there. Addy said it was because it was All Souls Day and that it is usual to have a lot of people there on the holidays. It is a popular place to BBQ and to picnic.

We managed to find a cottage (see previous description) and sat there in the hope that nobody would come and ask us for payment for using it. We were lucky and got to sit there without being charged.

There are notices all over asking you to clean up after yourself and follow the ‘Leave no trace’ principle. Sadly, people are too stupid to understand that request and a lot of the groups left their rubbish on the table. It boiled the piss of both me and Addy. There are bins all over, so there is no excuse not to clear it up.

We enjoyed sitting here listening to the flowing river and the waterfall. We stayed here for around 2 hours. I managed to get some pictures (normal and long exposure) and a video. I also got a video of the walk back up from the falls, too.

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As we got to the top, we knew it was going to rain heavily. The sky was so grey and dark.

As we were leaving, the rain started lightly and then partway along the drive, it got super heavy and then a little lighter. You can see this in the video below. Forgive the drop and zoom on the video – I nearly dropped the phone and had to quickly catch it.

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I stopped the video as I thought Addy was asking me to wind up the window, so I had to check. He just said that I was getting wet from having my arm out.

I carried on recording on the way to his house and as we were driving there, the sky got really orange and you could see the sun starting to set. It was really cool to see against the backdrop of rain clouds.

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We left his house after picking up some stuff and the rain was starting again. The sky was a grey-orange colour and it was really weird. I have never seen a sky like that before.

You can’t really tell from the pictures I took.

We stopped at the house of his aunt and went inside. As soon as we got in, the heavens opened and the rain was super heavy. The lights flickered too – they were expecting a brownout (a blackout we call it in the UK).

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We stayed here until the rain had eased. One of his relatives told us that a tree had fallen because of the wind and rain, so we also needed to wait for that.

His family really are cool. They were trying to speak with me in English, but were so shy because they didn’t think their English was good. I didn’t mind because they were at least trying to speak with me in English. I know no Tagalog or Bisaya (the native language in this area).

As soon as the rain eased, we decided to head out and if the tree was still in the road we would just wait. I was glad when we left, as I wanted to get back to the hotel so we would be somewhere safe should the weather turn nasty again. The weather was like this because it was on the tail end of a typhoon off the eastern coast of the island.

As we were driving back, there was still loud thunder and a lot of lightning. I love this kind of weather. I don’t care if I’m indoors or outdoors with it. I love it still. I took some normal and slow-mo videos so I could capture the lightning.

We came across the tree that had fallen and already the City DRRM were out clearing it. You would only get that speed in the UK if it were on a motorway. You’d wait hours if it were any other type of road.

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We stopped off at the embassy so I could get a McFlurry (or 2) and then we came back to the hotel.

I wanted to watch a news conference regarding stabbings on a train that was between Peterborough and Huntingdon .

Today was a really good day here in Kidapawan.
Total steps: 1,712

Total miles: 0.77

Total kilometers: 1.24
Day 9

Today was a day when I didn’t really do anything. I have work at 02:00 the following morning (18:00 Monday UK time). I caught up on some home TV and then looked at some stuff for an upcoming trip and made some bookings for that trip (when Addy & I go to Singapore and Kuala Lumpur).
Aside from that, it has been a pretty chill day and I have stayed in the ice cold of the hotel room rather than venture out into the awful humidity.
Total steps: 3,018

Total miles: 1.36

Total kilometers: 2.19
Day 16
Today is the final full day here in Kidapawan and we decided last night that we would go to the River Matingao. The Super Typhoon Fung-wong (or Uwan in Bisaya. It means rain) had other ideas for us. Here in Mindanao, we caught the outer edges of it. The rain was super heavy though and it woke us both up this morning around 07:00. We even heard it over the AC, THAT’S how loud it was!
We stayed in the room just chilling until Addy felt it was safe to go out. We finally got to leave around 13:10.
Addy needed to drop some stuff off at home and he also decided that he wanted some chicken and rice from Hillside.
We made our way to his home and you could tell the storm was here.
We got to his house and we dropped some stuff off and also picked up some stuff for the bus to Davao tomorrow.
We left there and as we did I saw a hen with her chicks just wandering across the road. I asked Addy to stop so I could get some pictures and videos. He dutifully obliged.

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We left here and then headed towards Hillside. We were stopped in our tracks by the river that was overflowing. When I say it was overflowing, it really was. It was so brown from the mud, too. You could smell the mud as the water was flowing.
This river is called River Marbol. Addy said it is usually a blue/green colour (like a turquoise or aqua colour).
I was loving being here. I had water, I had overflowing water, I had the sounds of the water. Heaven for me and it certainly beat staying in the hotel. The best bit is that it wasn’t raining either.
There were so many people on either side just waiting for the levels to subside so they could get across. There were some in 4x4s and some in vans that were able to cross. There were some who were on motorcycles and just rode across anyway. Those are the ones I was worried about since the river was flowing so fast. Others also crossed on foot. You could see them struggling, given how strong the current was.
There was a strong community spirit here. There were guys putting logs through wheel spokes and carrying motorbikes across. Others in vans and 4x4s were helping people across. It was so cool to see. Addy said the ones carrying the bikes were probably charging a nominal fee to help the people across. I figure that’s only fair given they were risking their lives to help – especially with how fast it was flowing.

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Once the water level had receded enough, we decided to cross and make our way to Hillside.
As always, the food was good. I had Chicken Inasal and Pork Sinigang. Addy had a Sikwate coffee (it is cacao-based) and Putomaya (a sticky rice)
We left here and then took some food to his mum before heading back to the hotel.
On our way back to his house, I had Addy stop so I could take some more pictures of something that had caught my eye on the way to the Marbol River.
Tell me that you wouldn’t feel scared if you saw the river levels rise. Thankfully, we didn’t see the river any higher than it is in the first picture.
It was a really good last day, not least because of seeing the hen and her chicks and the overflowing Marbol River.
You can see the status of the Marbol River in the pictures below. This was all over the course of 90 minutes.
You can really see how overflowing it was and how fast it had receded.
The image below is when we were crossing after coming back from Hillside. This was another 90 minutes later.
All in all, it was 3 hours from when we got there and it was overflowing until we passed again and it had receded and was flowing normally through the culvert/pipes under the road.
I asked Addy if we could go to the supermarket on our way back to the hotel. He said that was fine. Once we got there, we parked up and went inside. This was at 17:45. There were quite a few people inside still. I got what I needed and we went to the checkout. Nothing seemed to be moving. All of a sudden, I heard religious stuff over the tannoy. Addy said this was the 18:00 prayer. It lasted a few minutes and then once it was over, it was back to normal. It was so weird to hear it in the shops. Addy said that because they are a catholic country, most places with religious owners do this.
As we were waiting in the queue, I turned to Addy and asked him if he had seen someone behind him with 3 or 4 things and he had 2 baskets full, would he let them go ahead and he said no. I told him we don’t do that in the UK and that we would offer the person behind to go ahead of us. The couple in front must’ve heard because a few minutes after I said that, they offered. I was really glad they did, though and I thanked them several times.
We then headed back to the hotel to finish packing (I did most of it earlier when we were stuck inside because of the rain) and then relaxed for the night.
Total steps: 3,064

Total miles: 1.75

Total kilometers: 2.82
Day 17

I was woken up today at 05:30 by Addy’s alarm. He had to get up to go to work at 07:00. It turns out he turned off his alarm and woke up at 06:15 when I woke him up.

He told me that he got a message to say that the schools were closed in his Barangay and lessons moved online. He was happy with that as it meant he could lie in bed some more once we had breakfast.

I came back and my alarm was set for 10:30 and I slept as much as I could, knowing that we would be on the coach to Davao for about 4 hours and I wanted to be well rested in case I wasn’t able to sleep on the coach.

We got up and had a shower. I heard the phone ring as I was in the shower, so I had to go answer it. It was reception telling me that checkout was at 12 noon. I advised that I knew that and that the info on the reservation and the email they sent me was enough and that they didn’t need to make a call.

We got ready and then headed out as we wanted to get the coach at 12:30 from Kidapawan to Davao.

We got to the terminal around 11:30. I didn’t mind the wait there as it was in the shade and there was a nice breeze. I said I didn’t want to wait more than an hour for a coach – especially since it was 4 hours to Davao.

We got on a coach at 12:40 and then waited. As we were waiting, I saw the Davao Metro Shuttle coach pull in. I told Addy that we should get that one since it was better. He didn’t want to because he said it would be rude and that we would be mocked for doing so.

He asked what I wanted and I told him. We then switched coaches and I am so glad we did. The air was cooler and there was more legroom.

We finally left Kidapawan around 13:15. On the way to Makilala, there was a preacher on there preaching away. I just rolled my eyes. I don’t want religion when I want a peaceful coach journey. After he was done preaching, he dutifully walked the aisle looking for money. He got none from us.

He got off in Makilala and then we just set off on our way to Digos and Davao.

On the entry to the city limits of Davao, the Task Force got on and asked people with luggage to get off so it could be checked. The soldier woke Addy up and he had no idea what was happening. Haha.

He got the luggage checked and got back on and sat down and promptly fell asleep again. He was asleep for about 75% of the journey.

We got off at SM Ecoland mall and then went in for some KFC and I wanted a DQ after.

We were looking on the Grab app for a taxi, but it was only letting us book for 19:30 at the earliest. I force closed the app and then opened it again and all of a sudden there were options for cars right there and then. I was so glad. We were both tired and just wanted to get to the hotel to relax.

I checked us in and asked about extending the stay. Reception said I could, but not at the rate on Agoda. Agoda charged ₱1100, the hotel wanted to charge ₱2000. I told her no.

The room is really good. Quite spacious. The AC is great. The water is hot too. Perfection after some of the hotels we have stayed at here.

Today has been a long day because of the coach. It’s now bedtime and I won’t be leaving this hotel until checkout time at 12 noon tomorrow!

Here are some pics of the hotel. Forgive the scruff in bed. Haha.

Total steps: 2,408

Total miles: 1.08

Total kilometers: 1.74

Today was a bit of a startler (if that’s even a word. If not, it should be) for us both. At about 09:00, another guest opened the door of our room with a key card. Addy said the guy was startled and jumped back. I remember just saying “what the hell” and then rolling back over.

About 10 minutes later, the phone rang and it was reception asking why we were in the room and if we had booked it. Well, what do you think person at reception?

We got up about 10:30 and showered and checked out. I spoke to the manager about this and they apologised and said it wouldn’t happen again. No other offer of any compensation for it. I explained that we could have been out and someone could’ve taken our stuff. Worse still, we could’ve been in the throes of passion!

It turns out that when we checked in, the front desk person didn’t do it properly and didn’t block the room off!

We ordered a Grab (think Uber) and headed for the mall. What a palaver when we got there, though: I had to open all my bags for them to check. Grrrr.

We found the lift and sat in the food court for nearly 9 hours. When I tell you I was bored, I was really bored. There wasn’t much else we could do, though. I didn’t want to pay the ₱2000 for another night.

Once it was about 20:30, we went to the store to get some water for us both and then booked a grab to the airport.

Once we got there, I told Addy he didn’t have to stay as he had to take a Grab back to the bus terminal and then a 4(ish) hour coach trip back to Kidapawan and then about 20 minutes in Green back home.

Once I saw him off, I went to the check-in desk and dropped off my case and then just sat for an hour or so before heading upstairs to go through security. It was so busy. Busier than I’ve ever seen it.

I got through and sat at the gates and that was manic too. There were about 4 flights departing around the same time, so there were hundreds of people.

The gate agents for my flight said that the flight was full, so they asked for volunteers to check their carry-on bags. Result for me. I did just that, too.

This flight was uneventful, even though it did leave late and took time away from my connection window. The original connection time was 3 hours and ten minutes.

It took 70 minutes to get off the plane and then have my luggage show up on the carousel.

I was stressed because I also had to get a transfer shuttle. Thankfully, there was no queue for this so I got on straight away. I asked how long before we left and he checked and he said we could go then. He said it would take 30 minutes. We had to stop at T2 for about 10 minutes for more passengers.

This airport is so not connected, it’s unreal. This is the airport in the capital city, too. We had to go outside of the airport onto the public highway to switch between T3 and T1. It took about 23 minutes for this.

I got my luggage from the driver and went and checked in. I asked for an aisle seat on the flight from London and I was put near the front door. Great for me to get off quick in London.

The check-in agent asked me if I wanted to check my cabin bag too. I hurriedly said yes (obvs) and that was that. I got my boarding passes and headed to immigration. Once in the queue, I remembered I had Lithium-Ion batteries in that carry-on.

I had to go back to the check-in desks (bear in mind I had about an hour at this point to get to the gate ready for boarding) and it took them about 20 minutes to retrieve my case so I could get the batteries out. Phew. I still had 30 minutes until boarding started.

I went back to immigration and got through fairly quick. It seems a lot quicker for foreigners than it does for nationals.

Thankfully, security was quick too. I made it to the gate just as they announced boarding was starting. Too close for comfort.

I had a window seat right on the last row of the plane. I was beginning to think it wasn’t such a good idea when I saw that the time for leaving had passed. We ended up leaving about 20 minutes late – not usually a problem, but I only had 2 hours and 10 minutes to make this connection in Beijing. Thankfully, I didn’t have to change terminals.

We were late landing and it seemed to take ages to get to the gate. I think we taxied for around 15 minutes. PEK is a huge airport, though.

I rushed off that plane and had to push past the dawdlers on the travelator. I reached the transfer area and it was still as crappy as I remembered it from a few weeks ago.

Not a huge queue, thankfully. I had my passport and boarding pass checked and then went through to security. Security here in Beijing is ridiculous – all of the Chinese airports are equally as ridiculous.

They had me take everything out of my bag to be checked because I had keys and a cable and a bag of crisps in there. Annoying doesn’t cover it. I could understand if I were coming into the airport from outside in Beijing. I got off another flight where I had already gone through airport security. What on earth are they expecting to happen?

I was at the gate for about 10 minutes before there started the boarding announcement started. I was so glad to hear it, as I knew I was at the right gate. The boarding pass said E13. The Air China app said E26.

I was able to relax knowing I was at the right gate.

The climb out of Beijing was really turbulent and I was really not a fan. Thankfully, I fell asleep for most of that bit.

I don’t remember a lot of the flight. This is good because it means I slept for a good few hours – I never usually do that, so I’m impressed I did.

The climb down was also a bit turbulent and I was happy to be on solid ground.

Now for the WHSmith meal deal and the journey home.

Total steps: 60,259

Total miles: 27.47

Total kilometers: 44.21

You can view all of my Kidapawan pics here

chris | Thursday November 13th 2025 | Travel| Asia, Kapatagan, Kidapawan, Philippines, Travel | 0 Comments

Kidapawan – I’m Back… Again!

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