Trip to Southeast Asia Part IV - Meeting in Manila and 2 Stops in Taiwan

Meeting in Manila

One of the biggest highlights of our trip was getting to see John and Cindy in Manila!  They are serving an 18 month mission there - teaching self reliance to the leadership of the wards and stakes.

In the early morning as we sailed into Manila, we were treated to this beautiful sunrise.

After breakfast, we got off the ship to meet John and Cindy.

We stopped to take this photo of our ship in port: Holland America's Westerdam.

John and Cindy had left very early to pick us up due to the busy and unpredictable traffic of Manila.  They made good time and arrived at the pier an hour early.  They tried but were unable to let us know (we had no Internet or phone service on board) so they had to drive around for an hour until we met them at our designated time: 9:00 AM.  We were SO glad to see them!! We got into their car with them and began the trip through the city to go to the Manila Temple, Church Offices and MTC first.

John and Cindy are so cute together - they have a system as they travel through Manila - Cindy navigates and John drives. They do a lot of traveling as they visit the wards and stakes to do training every Saturday and Sunday.

We saw lots of motorbikes, side of  the road shops, cars and people.  Manila has a population of 12 million and is one of the world's largest capitals.

This photo shows some creative side of the road landscaping.  John told us that Manila has VERY few parks, so the people beautify the city in some very creative ways!

I was fascinated with the many colorful Jitney/Jeepneys loaded with people. They are made from military jeeps from WWII vintage and are the most popular way to travel in Manila.

Our first stop was to see the MTC and church offices. In the photo below, the MTC is on the right and the church offices are on the left.

The MTC serves all missions in the Philippines and Asia areas and has a dental clinic which is staffed by Senior Missionaries.  We were able to see this modern clinic in action.

The photo below is a view of some of the missionaries in the inner courtyard of the MTC.

These photos were taken inside the Church Office building.

Directly across a private street from the MTC and Church Offices is the Manila Temple.

We watched a happy bride and groom with their friends and family playing some kind of a game on the temple grounds.

Our next stop was the meetinghouse where John and Cindy have their office.

John and Cindy in their office

John and Cindy are great storytellers and they have lots of fun adventures.  They told us the story of John tipping his office chair over, among other funny stories.

From their office, we drove to their apartment building - about 15 minutes away.

They are in a nice apartment with great security and the location is right across the street from a huge shopping mall and many restaurants and stores.

Their living room

Their kitchen with Cindy showing me her small "easy bake oven".

They had our name for Christmas gifts and Cindy had 2 nativity sets displayed and let me choose which one I wanted.

John had 2 Filipino shirts for Hal to choose between.  They are always SO generous with their gifts!

We spent a few minutes visiting in their cute apartment before we went across the street to the shopping mall to eat lunch together. It was February 5th (Mom's birthday) and the Chinese New Year's Day - a holiday in the Philippines and throughout the Orient. The restaurants were unusally busy because of the holiday. We finally found one that could seat us right away and John and Cindy treated us to lunch.

We enjoyed soup, salads and sandwiches, mango smoothies and of course, time to learn more about their mission and to catch up on each other's lives!

 After eating our late lunch we walked around the area outside of the mall looking for the Dragon Dance which was to be performed there for the celebration of New Year's Day. We saw some other entertainment and preparations and costumes for the dance before it was time to head back to the ship. Our time together was way too short!

On the drive back to the pier, we drove through the Intramuros, or the old Walled City. This area reflects the Spanish influence on Manila. You can see the old wall in the pictures below.

We loved being with John and Cindy and seeing Manila through their eyes and experiences. We are so proud of the important work they are doing there to help the Filipino people!

2 Days in Taiwan

After a day at sea, We arrived at Kaohsiung - Taiwan's largest port and 2nd largest city on the south end of Taiwan.

We arrived in Kaohsiung early in the morning and after breakfast left the ship.  There were Taiwanese entertainers on the pier dancing and singing.  After we got off, we hired a taxi to take us to Lotus Lake which was on the east end of Kaohsiug.

 Lotus Lake is a popular tourist destination with lots of temple and pavilions. When we arrived, we were surprised at how busy it was and then we were told that it was a holiday (Chinese New Year).  Apparently they celebrate for many days. We walked through the market area and saw lots of food and souvenir booths.  It was interesting to see the many unusual foods.

Different kinds of beef

Interesting fruits

"Year of the Pig" piggy banks - large and small

We weren't sure if these large bowls were filled with insects of some kind of seafood.

We next stopped at the Cih Ji Palace/ Temple which is Taoist - a Chinese religion emphasizing living in harmony and joy.

It was ornately decorated inside and outside.

We saw and heard a monk chanting in the market area outside.

Next we went to see the Dragon and Tiger Pagodas. 

From the bridge leading to the pagodas, we could see the lotus plants in the foreground and the Five Mile Pavilion (with its bright yellow roof) at the end of the bridge in the distance.

We first went inside the Dragon Pavilion and climbed the 7 stories to the top.  On our way up the walls inside the pavilion were decorated with ornately painted, raised designs of Taiwanese history.

From the top of the Dragon Pagoda we could see the zigzagging bridge we had taken leading up to the Dragon and Tiger Pagodas. We could also see the Tiger Pagoda. In the background of the picture (on the right below), you can see the

Cih Ji Palace/Temple that we had just visited.

We exited the Dragon Pavilion and then climbed to the top of the Tiger Pavilion for more great views.

We headed back across the zigzag bridge and then continued walking around the lake to the Spring Pavilion (on the left) and the Five Mile Pavilion (on the right) in the photo below.

Five Mile Pavilion

Spring Pavilion

Close up view of the dragon at the Spring Pavilion.

After we had seen enough temples and pavilions, we walked back out to the street, explored some shops in the area and then hailed a taxi to take us back to the pier.

We stopped inside the pier terminal to take our photos with this colorful figure - we weren't sure what the figure represented, but he was cute and smiley!

Another photo in front of our ship

It was a very warm day and we were welcomed by members of our ship's staff with cool, wet washrags to wipe our faces and hands. It was another interesting day seeing a little of the Taiwanese culture.

Day 2 - Keelung, Taiwan

Keelung is Taiwan's 2nd largest port and on the north end of Taiwan.  The city is surrounded by mountains and is known for it's sheltered harbor.

It was a rainy, cool day in Keelung. We left the ship and walked to a nearby shopping area to explore.

We crossed a bridge to access another part of the city.

Lots of the shopping was on narrow side streets. After exploring we returned to the port terminal and our ship.

A view of Keelung City

The next day was a day at sea with a formal dinner that evening.

The Steak Oscar was delicious!  The food on the Westerdam was exceptionally good!