South from Cebu by bus to Oslob, we found ourselves in a traditional, charming, un spoilt village of incredibly friendly Philippine locals and were in our element. Wandering the fresh food markets, playing with the local dogs and exchanging smiles and waves with the locals, this was what travelling was all about. A few fresh bread rolls and a rotisserie chicken by the side of the road was a fitting evening meal and we headed to bed for an early start in th...

On the ferry this time we headed back to Manilla and after narrowly avoiding being conned in a taxi we boarded a plane to Cebu. Before long we were safely housed in a guesthouse complete with a Philippines wedding with compulsory karaoke underway and a Tom Cruise impersonating bell boy. Never ones to miss out on a party we headed into the heart of the city to party town and had a hilarious night with Emilys brothers wifes, brothers wife, Jessa and her Japan...

Having rearranged our travel plans a few months previous we found ourselves aboard a plane headed for Manilla in the Philippines. Many a traveller had told us of the wonders that awaited us and our excitement grew as we approached. Having linked up with Sophie a friend made whilst diving in Sipidan we planned a extravaganza around the best diving spots the Philippines had to offer, our only limitation being the 2 weeks we had allotted ourselves in which to ...

We were up at the crack of dawn an driven the 2 hours to the base of the mountain to meet our guide and get our mountain passes. What ensued was essentially a 3-5 hours climb up uneven rocky stairs, not for the faint hearted but perfectly manageable with determination. With Emily feeling a little ill and Martin feeling particularly and uncharacteristically fit, he surged ahead to set a good time. Almost 2/3 rds of the way up we stopped for the night in some...

Ever onwards we made our way to the town of Tawau with one day to spare before our flight to KK we headed Teck Guan Cocoa Village one of the many cocoa plantations for which the area is well known. Our tour guide for the day took us in style through the plantations, we enjoyed a waterfall walk and were made guests for the day in the incredible summer house where we feasted of various cocoa infused products including cocoa noodles and cocoa spring roles. We ...