Sept. 2, 2016 - Friday - Departure from Manila to Tacloban

It was the day of our flight to Tacloban and we were traveling in 3 groups. Being the budget travelers we are, we booked flights as the cheapest ones became available, therefore, it was expected that we won't all be on the same airline.

Flight Schedule

A lot has changed at NAIA Terminal 4 since the last time I was there in 2015. There are more seats now, better air-conditioning and additional wide screen televisions all over the place. I only wish the screens were used to flash flight schedules/status because their PA system sucks. Also, there was free wifi! It helped pass time while waiting to board without consuming precious data. :)


Since we were not arriving all the same time in Tacloban, we decided to stay the night in the city and start the adventure the next morning. We booked with Go Hotels, which, by the way, is our go-to hotel because it is affordable (they have rooms for P888+/night) and always beside a Robinson's Mall. It's always convenient in case you need to do a quick visit to the grocery for things you forgot to pack. Their rooms are also super clean and bathrooms are great (this is a deal-breaker for me).

As a side-note, be sure to check with your hotel as to what the arrangement is if a third party booked your room and won't be there upon check-in. In our case, Go Hotels was very prompt in answering my email inquiry about this and was told to just bring the confirmation of the booking, authorization letter from the party who booked the room and his/her valid government ID.

Tessa, Marcie and I were last to arrive in Tacloban. We did not want to be harassed by the men offering taxi/van services for 300.00 pesos from the airport to Go Hotels so we decided to walk to a nearby eatery and asked how we could commute instead. We were told that we can hire a tricycle for 150.00 pesos. As we were heading to the tricycles, a guy offered to take us to our destination in his car (a brand new Hyundai Eon) for 150.00 as well. We hopped in since it was the same rate as the tricycles and it was super hot that afternoon and exposure to AC is very much welcome. Apparently, Kuya Tisoy, the driver, owned one of the eateries outside of the airport and is also into a rent-a-car business. He gave us his business card and asked to just call in case we needed transportation for our city tour.



By then, Earl and Pao have gone to the mall to grab merienda as well as TLC, Ruth and Ahms. After checking in, we met them at the mall and headed off to Sunzibar Cafe for dinner. I remember asking the Go Hotels guard for directions how to get there and were told to ride a jeep going to Marasbaras. Fare was 8.00 pesos. He laughed at me when I had this semi-violent reaction because I explained that it was only 7.00 minimum fare in Manila. Haha. We stopped in front of Divine Word University and rode a tricycle to Sunzibar. Apparently, it was just walking distance. Oh well.

In Tacloban since 2000

House specialty: Diablo (spicy ribs)

After dinner, we walked our way back to the front of Divine Word University and rode a jeep back to Robinson's. We made a quick grocery run because we had to buy supplies for our trip to Palompon the next day.

The Go Hotels hallway

We got back to our rooms early but had to prep all our stuff for an early check-out the next day. We were off to Palompon to see and experience the famous Kalanggaman Island!