Darren Everett Criss
Neighborhood Facebook page is BLOWING UP b/c the local Filipino bakery started selling rugelach but calls it "Jewish Chocolate Croissant."
— David Ziff (@djsziff) September 6, 2015
Karen Bowerman: Jews have been arriving in the Philippines since the Spanish Inquisition in the 16th century
I catch up with a local guide, Angelo Alon, for a tour of Intramuros, Manila’s historic quarter, built by the Spanish, destroyed in the Second World War but since restored with the old citadel, Fort Santiago, forming the centrepiece.
Manila is also home to a tiny Jewish population
The rain ricochets off the river; I note the paparazzi are in the dry. I brave it out, and, at the risk of a wobble, wave and smile. A man fires off a volley of shots then waves and smiles back. Such is my introduction to Bohol, "the Island of Friendship," in the Philippines.
As the sky clears, my instructor, Troy, and I paddle through dripping rainforest to the small Busay Falls. Clearings reveal patterned huts woven from banana leaves. A man fishing for tilapia drops a line from a bamboo pontoon. There’s the smell of meat cooking on hot coals.
But it’s another form of wildlife for which Bohol is known; it’s the Philippine tarsier, said to have been the inspiration for the character of Yoda in Star Wars.
The nocturnal, fist-sized creature is among the smallest primates in the world. Its eyes cover three quarters of its head and it has an exceptionally long ‘middle finger’ or tarsus bone, hence its name.
I creep through a forest protected by the Philippine Tarsier and Wildlife Sanctuary near Corella. Amazingly, I’m in luck; clinging with its sucker-tipped hands to a narrow branch, I spot a shy fellow snoozing. It opens its goggle eyes and almost seems to smile.
I visit during the May-to-October wet season, when everything is green. But it’s all still pretty dramatic, as the hills seem to glow under a brooding sky.
Modern Jeepneys are now produced with surplus engines and parts coming from Japan. The decorations are entertaining – "God is the answer," one vehicle claims. "In God’s speed," declares another. But my favourite is "Thou shalt not kill" – always worth remembering when you hit the road.
From Manila, it’s a short flight south-west to Busuanga in the island province of Palawan, for a relaxing end to my stay. I catch a boat to the privately-owned Dicilingan Island, occupied solely by the Huma Island Resort and Spa. I’m welcomed with garlands and song, and dine on locally-caught lapu lapu and cassava cake made from a grated root vegetable, eggs and coconut milk.
Then it’s off to my over-water villa and outdoor Jacuzzi, from where I can spy the setting sun and say a fond farewell to the Philippines.
