Articles by Doug Nienhuis
I am a Canadian, and I am currently traveling through Asia with a touring bicycle. These are stories and pictures from my trip.
Taking a Ferry to the Island of Catanduanes
I treated my time in Legazpi as kind of a shakeout period for me and my bicycle. I was just getting used to not working anymore, not being in Taiwan anymore, and learning to ride my bicycle again with a full touring load. Before I left Legazpi, I decided to go to the island of Catanduanes. The idea was to take a casual ride around …
Cycling Catanduanes 2 – A Night in Salvacion
The real adventure began at the end of my first day when I stopped at the little barangay of Salvacion and met Grandpa and his sea of granddaughters. As I rode along, I pondered just where I was going to spend the night. I was prepared to spend the night in my tent, but I wasn’t fully organized for that. I did not have food …
Cycling Catanduanes 1 – “Are you sure?”
The manager of the hotel in Virac raised her eyebrows at me when I told her of my plans to ride my bicycle to Pandan – the town at the northern tip of Catanduanes.
“Are you sure?” she said, with her eyes widening and her voice rising a couple of octaves at the end – sounding almost panicked on my behalf.
“No,” I said. “I’m not sure …
Photo Walkabout in Virac, Catanduanes
Friday April 12, 2013
6:30 a.m. Virac, Catanduanes, Philippines
I lost the war of the little things this morning. The man in the room beside me was snoring like a freight train and at an incredible pace. I can’t imagine breathing that fast while sleeping let alone snoring that loud at the same time. I wonder how snoring has managed to survive as a human trait? Wouldn’t …
Exploring Virac and Catanduanes
Thursday April 11, 2013
6:30 a.m. Virac, Catanduanes
If I were informed that I was here on this world as a kind of messiah to deliver my important message, I know exactly what my message would be. “Hooks,” I would begin my first sermon, “are good! Hooks cost next to nothing and make life a thousand times better. Go, my children, to the hardware store. Go today! …
Cycling to Tabac; Ferry to Catanduanes
Wednesday April 10, 2013
6:00 a.m. Boat from Tobaco, Luzon to Virac, Catanduanes, Philippines
I almost didn’t make it out of Legazpi yesterday. I woke up feeling that I just wanted to hang out for another day. That feeling was reinforced by everything – the relative comfort of my private room (despite the presence of a family of very large cockroaches in the bathroom), the cloudy skies, …
Changing Money, Getting Water, and Finding the Post Office
Tuesday April 9, 2013
7:00 a.m. Legazpi, Philippines
It’s funny how the little things affect one’s life. I’m thinking in terms of living and traveling in a relatively poor country. For example, I’m inside this little canteen in Legazpi and having a cup of coffee. A pleasant experience. However, the table is plastic and the chairs are plastic. They all wobble and aren’t very secure. The table …
Bubble Milk Tea in the Philippines? Yep – with “sinkers”
Monday, April 8, 2013
7:30 a.m. Legazpi, Philippines
There were no adventures large or small yesterday, so I don’t have much to say this morning. It was a Sunday, and I noted that Sundays really do mean something in the Philippines. The streets were nearly empty, the jeepneys had ceased their endless parade, and most of the shops and stores were closed.
After my morning coffee and a …