I started thinking about plans for Chinese New Year around October. I wanted to stay somewhere close to home, but outside of Taiwan, and not spend too much money. The Philippines is a close option and tickets are always cheap.
My original plan was to go to Cebu. The whale sharks are in Oslob around this time of year and it's something I’ve always wanted to do. In doing more research about Cebu, it didn’t seem like the safest option for a solo traveler. Everything is quite spread out and it takes hours to get from one destination to the next. I found myself eyeing the smaller neighboring island of Bohol on Google Maps.
Bohol is said to be safe with a lot less traffic and people. The chocolate hills are there and it’s the right season to see them in a chocolatey color. When I started pricing flights, I realized there are no direct flights from Taiwan to Bohol, like there are to Cebu. I would need to make a stopover in Manila. I then remembered the Taal Volcano, a place I’ve wanted to see for many, many years. It was my selling point on going to the Philippines.
I had booked a five-day layover in Manila so that I go to the city of Tagaytay, which is about 50KM south of Manila to see the Taal Volcano. I booked a place for five nights at the SMDC Wind Residences. They rent apartment suites with a wonderful outdoor pool. The place is near the city and has a wonderful view of the Taal Volcano in the distance.
Weeks later and after more research, it seemed like the attractions in the Tagaytay area weren’t anything spectacular. My reason for going to this area was to see the volcano, which is about a 45-minute drive away from the residences. I started searching Google Maps for resorts on the lake closer to the volcano.
I found a lovely resort called the San Roque Paradise Hotel that sits on the lake across from the Taal Volcano. While there was no pool, you could jump into the lake from their property. The family had a boat that would take guests over to the volcano. According to maps.me, there were a few different trails to hike up to the crater and I had hoped to hike them all.
Cancellation for the SMDC Wind Residences was free, so I canceled and booked five nights at this lakeside resort. I then started looking into taxi prices from the Manila airport, as it seemed like that would be the easiest way to get there.
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| The Taal Volcano eruption (image:??) |
When I awoke on Monday, January 13th, I opened my iPad while still in bed and looked at my Facebook feed. The first thing I saw was a gorgeous photo of an erupting volcano. The person who posted it is a friend who resides in Manila. Her post read, “To my fam and friends back home. Don’t worry I am a safe distance away …” and I was like ... NOOOOO. I read further, “... but it’s crazy to step outside and feel dry black snowflakes land on your body ...” and again I was like ... NOOOOO. She continued to write, “ ... school is canceled cause of the health risks …”
A small voice inside my head kept repeating the word ‘no’ over and over while I frantically closed my Facebook page and opened Safari to google the Taal Volcano. Sure enough, it had erupted on Sunday afternoon.
I had done a lesson on this volcano at school a few months prior as we were learning about dormant and active volcanoes. I knew that the volcano had last erupted in 1977 and I told my students what was really neat about this volcano is that there is an island in a lake that’s in the volcano which sits in a lake on an island in the Pacific Ocean. I mean, think about that. It’s pretty cool.
I was devastated to learn that it had blown. My hotel was booked for the 23rd of January. When I learned about the eruption, I thought to myself that my trip was a week and a half away and perhaps I’d still be able to see it, obviously not fully understanding the implications of a volcanic eruption. I mean, why would I?!
I got out of bed and googled how long it took for ash to clear after a volcano erupted. It suggested it could take weeks to months depending on the severity and the resources. My heart sank.
It was later that day that I saw the news on CNN that the Philippine authorities wanted a total evacuation on a 14KM radius around the volcano. I started looking into changing my flight. It took two days to find someone at AirAsia to help me. Their website was showing cancellations due to the closure of the Manila airport and I could only imagine how many people were trying to make rearrangements.
After my flight change was confirmed, I contacted Agoda to cancel my reservation at the San Roque Paradise Hotel. There was a 50% cancellation fee, which I didn’t really want to pay. I sent them a note explaining the situation and asked for guidance. Two days later, Agoda sent me a note to say that I would be fully refunded for the room.
I’ve been watching the news about the volcano. It’s still listed as a danger zone. The images are unreal. Just grey. Roofs have caved in under the weight of the ash. Animals are dead. There’s no electricity or water. It's devastating.
I feel lucky that I wasn’t there during the eruption although it would’ve made for a much more exciting story than this one here. I guess the Taal Volcano goes back on my list of places to see though I wonder what the future of the volcano holds.
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