TAGAYTAY

Nestled in the highlands, a couple of hours to the south of Manila, Tagaytay overlooks Lake Taal.

Interspersed with various theme or ethnic restaurants, the resort offers a variety of culinary flavors. It was amusing to dine in a “Western” steak house in a log cabin design served by “cowboys” and “cowgirls”. Although there seemed to be a large number of Indian guests, there wasn’t any Indian cuisine. For those who wished to exercise their vocal chords, the KTV offered a public and private lounge.

The $20 massages were hard to resist by many. I preferred the challenges of the Midlands Golf Course, a complete course. For only $50, cart and caddy were included. Unfortunately for Ralph Rudd & I, we had to bring our own game. The caddies could read the putts but had difficulty communicating the speed. After a hard day on the course, the meaning of “Miller Time” comes to light. After a cleansing shower, dining out completes the day. After dinner, karaoke seems to sound fine with a bottle of wine. I don’t know how it sounds to the teetotaler but that’s their problem.

The boys from Manila showed up to make the hold-em tournament reasonably successful. Changing it to a re-buy format, the prize pool reached almost $20,000 for a $500 entry. Although Wally Sombero had the early chip lead, Australian Jonny Vincent ended up with all the chips. The Dang brothers, Danny and Travis, survived to finish 2^nd and 3^rd respectively. The action continued until early the next morning. Wally seemed to have won more than 1^st place money in the $100 Chinese game. The 1000-2000 peso no-limit game saw many big multi-way pots. The game of no-limit has traversed the globe but the skill level is still lagging.

The Philippines is not as dangerous as it is reputed. It is true that there are terrorists but they are far to the south in Mindanao. Although the world is progressing rapidly in technology, it is not keeping pace with social services and opportunities. Unfortunately in the Philippines, corruption is the primary obstacle to this 3^rd world nation. Hong Kong is living proof of how a society and economy can prosper when the government stamps out corruption. Like the Wild West, one must understand its systems. With too many hands to grease, it can be an expensive place to do business.

There are a couple of nice areas next to Manila. Makati City has most of the nicest hotels and restaurants in the area. The shopping is not bad. You pay 1/3 of what you would in the states. Nearby is the Fort, which is a condo, shopping, and nightlife area. There is an excellent Italian restaurant called “Barola”. As the name might indicate, the Italian wine selection is outstanding. We were drinking $200-$400 U.S. priced wines for only $60-$80.