Philippines is one of the most beautiful South-East Asian countries which is visited by millions of people. Read on to know about some of the unique experiences in the Philippines.
1. Eat Balut
Whenever we visit a new country or place, one of the first things that we would want to do is to get a taste and a flavour of that place. And the best way to do that is by food. Balut is one of the speciality dishes of the Philippines. The best way to describe the Balut would be – a hard-boiled duck egg with the embryo being formed inside. It is said that you need to eat the fetus to taste the actually Balut. Whilst this might not sound like the most pleasing thing to eat, it is protein-rich and is devoured in the Philippines and eagerly tried by a lot of the travellers as well. The Balut is usually found in the street food markets of Philippines.
2. Riding the Philippine Jeepney
Jeepneys are the major form of transportation for intercity commute in Philippines. The Jeepneys are compact jeep-like vehicles which were left back from the time of the American Colonization of the Philippines. Even though they are compact and small in size, they are known to pack a lot more people than the vehicle is meant for. The payment is done through local philippine coins and is passed from one passenger to the other until it reaches the driver in the front. If you are to visit the mountain ranges of the Philippines, you would be able to find people travelling on the top of the Jeepneys too. While this is risky, it is a regular sight as well.
3. Get a tattoo from a tribal artist Apo Whang Od
The tribal artist and tattooist Apo Whang Od is not the artist that you would find on Instagram posting rad tattoo art. She is a 100-year old tribal tattoo artist from the ButBut Tribe in the Buscalan area in Kalinga located in the Philippines. She practices the mambabatok form of tattooing which is a hand tap technique used by tribal tattooists. She is visited by a lot of locals and foreigners alike to get artwork tattooed on themselves by her. It is definitely a one of a kind experience that we would not get to have in most of the places in the world. Long live Apo Whang Od!
Image credits: Google
4. Bathing in a large cooking pot
In olden days, Philippinian women used to prepare sugar in a large cooking pot or Kawa as it is called locally. These Kawa’s can fit an entire mid-sized person into them, how is that for scale! The Kawa’s are used to cook in large quantities using fire. Since the last couple of decades, with modern methods of preparation coming into play, the usage of Kawa’s also reduced. But these huge pieces of artwork could not be thrown away or destroyed. The luxury resorts of the Philippines decided to refurbish the kawa pots and use them as large jacuzzi tubs or bathtubs for people to relax in. This has become such a rage with people visiting the Philippines and everyone wants to relax or rather be cooked live in one of these pots. Quite an experience isn’t it!
5. Bike in the air
As kids, we have all seen the Harry Potter Series of Movies. And our favourite memories are the ones where Hagrid rides a bike that flies, Ron drives a car that flies and not to mention the infamous broomsticks which fly! We have an obsession with flying, don’t we? If you are part of that gang too, then this is the activity for you.
Bohol in the Philippines is not just famous for the tarsiers and the chocolate hills but it is also for biking in the air. This is an activity where people get to ride a bike on ropes that are suspended 100 of metres above the ground making it seem like you are biking in the air. You do not have to worry about your safety, as you are allowed to go for the experience only after all the safety measures are checked upon. This one of a kind activity is such a memorable experience.
6. Climbing El Nido’s limestone
El Nido is one of the most famous places in the Philippines and is in the bucket list of all the travellers visiting this beautiful country. El Nido is not just for hopping between islands and just getting a glimpse of the beauty. You can climb these limestone hills and go on to summit them. What one has to keep in mind is that it is not an easy climb with pavements. It has to be climbed by hands. But once you climb to the top of the mountain, all the efforts put in the climb are going to be worth it.
If you want to experience these as well, reach out to the destination experts at Pickyourtrail.com to customize your Philippines travel package.
