Day 52 - Manila, Philippines

 

Date:  March 1, 2007

 

Location:  Manila, Philippines   

 

Next Port:  Shanghai, China, March 4

 

Quick Summary:  Voyager visits its “home port.” Manila might as well be called this since the vast majority of its crew is Filipino. It was a wonderful homecoming…with more than 1,300 family members visiting the ship and crew members going ashore for more private family visits. We are sure today’s tear-filled sail-away will be the most memorable of our entire odyssey.

 

Report:  We cruised into Manila Bay early and were docked by 7:00 a.m. Last night and this morning, there had been a great movement amongst the guests to tell our stewardesses that we needed “no morning service” to our suites. We wanted them and the waiters to have as much time with their families as possible.

 

We were both on tours so didn’t get to see the families arriving. However, when we returned in the afternoon, we were swept into the departures. Crew members and their families were coming off the ship with tons of souvenirs that had been picked up in South America and Africa. We don’t know how many 3- and 5-foot giraffes came off, but a lot. (We heard that earlier in the afternoon many were coming off with mattresses…we understand that the ship changed out its bedding some time before our voyage and the crew was given access to it.)

 

The decks and dock area was swarming with young children running around, parents, boyfriends and girlfriends, relatives…and passengers taking photos and meeting family members.

 

For the sail-away, we stood on one of the crew decks and had several crewmembers point out their families. The Voyager was decked out in Philippine flags and bunting, some of the colored spotlights from the theater were brought out to sweep the dockside crowd and Filipino music was blaring from special speakers. It was quite a scene. Passengers and crew alike shared waves and tears. Once we cleared the end of the pier, Capt. Dag took the Voyager through one of his tight 360 degree spins as we sailed off into the night.

 

Today, we took separate tours. Larry visited Corregidor and Karen went on a rafting trip to Pagsanjan Falls.

 

Corregidor (Larry’s report): Located 26 miles from Manila, this famous island fortress guards the entrance to Manila Bay. “The Rock” was the last real estate in the Pacific to fall to the Japanesein World War II.

 

A 20 min. bus ride took us to the ferry located in the Manila Yacht Harbor. The one-hour ride on the modern, enclosed ferry was very smooth. Enroute one of the guides gave a very interesting history of the island to our group of about 60.

 

On Corregidor’s pier we boarded open-air motorized trolley cars, for our tour of this fairly small island. It’s shaped like a tadpole and is located about three miles from the Bataan Peninsula. In 1942, it was manned by some 12,000 to13,000 Americans and Filipinos. After Manila, Bataan and the rest of Luzon fell on April 9, 1942, Gen. MacArthur and the Philippine government moved to Corregidor, as did Lt. Gen. Wainwright.

 

On April 12, President Roosevelt ordered Gen. MacArthur to Australia to plan the retaking of the Pacific islands and the assault on Japan. It was this point that MacArthur made his famous, “I shall return” promise.”

 

The Japanese knew they had to take Corregidor if they were to control the deepwater port in Manila Bay. After many days of shelling the island and its tunnel system, the Japanese finally attacked on May 5, 1942. On May 6, General Wainwright ordered the surrender of the remaining allied forces to the 75,000 attacking Japanese. The 13,000 American and Filipino POWs were held for 18 days in a valley off a small beach (in miserable conditions) before being taken to Manila and then on to various Japanese POW camps. More than 1/3 of the survivors died as POWS.

 

The island was retaken Feb. 16-26, 1945. All the islands retaken previously had been by Allied beach assaults. However on Corregidor, American paratroopers surprised the defending Japanese by landing on top of the main hill. From here they cut off the Japanese manning the beach defenses and those in the Malinta Tunnel.

 

I was surprised that the pre-War War II buildings on Corregidor were made of heavy concrete; I had expected wooden buildings that would have been destroyed in the battle or deteriorated long ago. We saw huge bombed out structures still in place all over the island. What is not generally known is that the defenses were extremely inadequate …consisting mainly of large mortars and cannon of pre-WW I vintage, built around 1903.

 

We saw several memorials, including ones to Generals MacArthur and Wainwright, as well as the parade ground where the U.S. paratroopers landed in the battle to retake the island.

 

We had lunch on the porch of the Corregidor Inn and then attended a light and diorama show inside the main Malinta Tunnel. It was here that the most of the troops holed up during the days and nights of the withering Japanese bombardment. It was a field hospital for more than 1,000 wounded. Plus, it was the broadcast location for the Voice of Freedom which was heard throughout the Pacific by both sides. At the time the broadcasts were only identified as coming from somewhere in the Philippines.

 

Pagsanjan Falls Adventure (Karen’s Report):  Twenty-seven guests joined together for a 2-hour drive southeast of Manila through quaint provincial towns, rice fields and coconut plantations to the town of Pagsanjan. 

 

Upon arrival, we were greeted at the square by the town mayor.  We then enjoyed a brief tricycle ride to the Pagsanjan Rapids Hotel where we changed clothes for our ride up the river in 2-person dug-out canoes. The river cut through beautiful rising gorges and steep canyons covered with lush vegetation. 

 

We passed many small villages with women washing their clothes in the river next to water buffalo. (I will never complain about doing laundry again!) We also saw many young children playing in the river and enjoying family time. The falls were beautiful and some of our guests rode rafts under the falls to cool off. (I wimped out!)

 

The tour description stated: “Experience the thrill of a lifetime “shooting the rapids in a breakneck downriver descent, expertly steered through swirling waters and tricky passes by brawny boatmen.” It was exciting but hardly the “breakneck downriver descent,” (perhaps more so later on during the rainy season). The boatmen were amazing with their jumping from side to side to push us through some of the rocky passages. Their feet must have toughened souls to work the rocks.

 

We returned to the hotel where we were served a buffet lunch of local specialties overlooking the river. We then returned to the ship.

 

 

It was a very memorable day for both of us….Karen and Larry

 

Photos of our cruise are available at the web site:

 

picasaweb.google.com/larryworldcruise

 

3 albums of photos from our visit to Manila have been added.