Day 26, Summer in Asia, Tagaytay, Philippines
What’s a visit to Southeast Asia without a visit to an active volcano on the Pacific Rim of Fire? Clocking in with 33 eruptions since 1572, it’s the second most active volcano in the Philippines, Taal. It’s the first active volcano I’ve seen that has a lake within a caldera within a lake within a larger crater lake.
We hired a driver to take us to Tagaytay City, 50 kilometers from Manila. For two hours each way we saw more of the rural parts of the country. On the road approaching the city there were many roadside stalls selling roasted corn, then those changed to pineapples.
In Tagaytay we went to the Taal Vista Hotel, which has one of the best views of the volcano. The Taal Vista has a long and fascinating history. Originally built as a vacation getaway for the wealthy elite of Manila, during the Japanese occupation of the Philipines in WW2 the hotel was used as barracks for Japanese Officers. When the American Airborne Division parachuted in nearer to the end of the war, the Japanese occupation was defeated and the resort eventually went back to the leisure property it is today.
We watched the afternoon rain showers blow over the mountains while we had lunch. One moment it was clear and you could see across the crater lake, the next you were in a cloud, the next it was pounding rain, then clear again. I enjoy the quickly changing personalities of the mountains. We stayed for three hours and headed back to the city.
In the evening we went to the Smokeyard BBQ Restaurant, which is about a block from our house. We’ve been wanting to go there and were running out of time. For a BBQ place, it has the broadest range and tastiest sides I’ve had since Houston, Texas. We took some leftover brisket for Sam, the hotel dog. He tried to eat the takeout box. Then we had a little pie party to end the day with turtle and pecan pie. Great day!
