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Today was planned as a day of rest at the mid-point of the Philippine leg of the PAN-ASEAN TOURING. So, this would be a day when the riders stayed out of the saddle and toured by bus. After a later than usual breakfast, the ASEAN riders boarded a microbus that took them to their first destination of the day, San Fernando. The route took them down out of the highlands and circumvented the capital city of Manila.
All the while, our Philippine riders, Lester Dizon and Dino Ray V. Directo III, took turns at the microphone as our tour guides. They kept up a lively commentary, telling us things like the town of Santa Rosa we were passing through is the home of numerous subsidiaries of Japanese companies like Toyota, that Lake Laguna was a good place to enjoy fishing, that the model on that billboard we just passed is former President Aquino's daughter, that we were now passing the area where Lester's or Dino's house is, etc.
Meanwhile, the motorcycle police who were escorting us tried to direct traffic to keep the flow moving, but the sheer volume of traffic made for inevitable traffic jams. After we got around Manila the traffic finally began to flow smoothly again. We took a short rest at the town of Marilao but were soon on the bus again and pressing on until we reached San Fernando at 12:20. Here we were welcomed by city administrator, Mr. Ferdinando Z, Caylao and his colleagues and staff from the local Norkis branch office. For lunch we enjoyed local pork dishes named si sig and patatim.
It was an hour and a half ride to Subic and, having just had lunch, most of the riders napped off. It made for a very quiet bus ride. Subic used to be one of the largest overseas U.S. naval bases until the 1992 withdrawal and return of the territory to Philippine governance, after which the town was reborn as a free port. In addition to inviting businesses into the area, the facilities and natural environment of the former base have been used to create a lively resort area as well.
At 4:00 in the afternoon we arrived at the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), which administers the free port and resort area. Here, we were greeted by Commodore Felisiano Saloonga, the Authority Chairman. And, after an explanation of the PAN-ASEAN TOURING event by our Philippine team member, Aristeo Llagan, the Chairman began to ask questions about the ride of the T135 and the mileage it gets.
Leaving SBMA, we next visited the Jungle Environmental Survival Training Camp. This is a camp where you can learn the jungle survival techniques that the native Ayta people taught the U.S. Special Forces personnel. An instructor trained by the Ayta showed us how to make cups and spoons from bamboo and how to use bamboo to steam rice and make fire. The ASEAN riders also got a taste of the water that can be gotten from bamboo in survival conditions. Our Malaysian rider Andy said it tasted like tea. For everyone it was a fascinating 30-minute presentation.
After checking in to our hotel in Subic, we took a 10-minute ride to a restaurant for an enjoyable dinner.
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Tagaytay∼Subic
The ASEAN riders were welcomed to San Fernando by city administrator Ferdinando Z. Caylao (center with microphone)
Our Vietnamese rider Le Huy Hoa tries the water that can be gotten from splitting a stalk of bamboo. All the riders tried some
At the restaurant in San Fernando you could make your own halo halo at the buffet
There was a big round of applause when the survival instructor started a fire using only bamboo
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