Cebu-Clark, Philippines

The time had come for my multi-sector trip to the Philippines. The first leg of the journey was Dubai to Cebu, followed by Cebu to Clark, and then Clark directly back to Dubai. I actually bidded for this trip and was over the moon when I was rostered it on my birthday – unfortunately though I got very sick and my plans changed.

I really wanted to visit the Kawasan Waterfalls or go swimming with Whale sharks in Oslob, but when I landed in Cebu, my ears were completely blocked and I had a terrible cough so I didn’t feel like venturing out. It was such a shame because I spent most of my birthday in a hotel room but luckily I celebrated a few days prior in Dubai.

Cebu

Hotel lobby Christmas decorations

I only went downstairs to the hotel reception for a walk as they had a huge Christmas display and grotto right in the lobby! The Philippines go crazy for Christmas decorations and apparently they start decorating in September! I spoke to some of the hotel staff and they recommended I drink some hot ‘Calamansi’ juice and honey to feel better. Calamansi Juice is the Filipino version of lemonade and limeade and it tasted soooo good and made me feel a lot better! After a full day of resting, it was then time to fly to Clark which was a nice and easy 1 hour flight.

Calamansi juice

Here’s to turning 26!

We arrived in Clark to yet another beautiful hotel lobby decorated with the most over the top Christmas decorations! As it was still my birthday, all the crew met downstairs for a buffet dinner and then sung Happy Birthday to me! It was so sweet and definitely cheered me up after my not so eventful day in Cebu!!

Beautiful rose Christmas tree

Birthday buffet

The next morning, me and a couple of the other girls had arranged a day trip to a nearby spa/wellness retreat. I was really looking forward to this as I’d seen pictures from other crew who had been and it looked amazing. We arrived at Puning Hot Springs around 9am and we were given a very stylish outfit to wear for the day! We then drove in a 4X4 jeep through the mountains to the hot springs.

I Love Puning t-shirts

Jeep ride through the jungle

We then arrived at the most gorgeous hot springs! It was also really quiet so we pretty much had them to ourselves. There were loads of different pools so we tried a few and took in the incredible views.

Beautiful views

We then drove onto ‘station 2’ which involved laying in a hot volcanic sand pit whilst someone walked over you! It was the strangest thing ever, but surprisingly so good. The sand was boiling hot and really heavy so we had ladies fanning us whilst we were laying there! Then, one of the locals walked all over our body which felt like a gorgeous massage! Bizarre but brilliant.

Volcanic sand pit

Next up was a full body scrub and mud mask. This was so relaxing and the perfect way to finish off the day! After this, we drove back to the main area and had a shower to wash off all of the mud.

Mud masks

Our lovely spa therapist

We then had a buffet lunch and sat outside in the gardens before our bus picked us up and took us back to the hotel. It was such an incredible day, and definitely a spa experience I’ve never had before, but I loved every second.

Buffet lunch

We got back to the hotel a few hours before the pick up which mean’t we could have a little nap before the 9 hour flight back to Dubai. I had an amazing time in Clark and I’m so glad I was able to go out and explore. I’m still gutted that I didn’t do anything in Cebu, but I will try my best to come back another time.

Thanks for reading.

Kerry May xo