Davao City to be precise.

Checked into a hotel that offers wifi in the room so I was pretty damned excited.  I have had a technician up to the room twice so far today to get it working.  Thought I’d better post while the posting is good.

The view from the room…

President-elect Duterte was there to greet me when I checked in this morning…

Speaking of President Duterte, Davao City is his hometown and he’s been the mayor here for quite some time.  Davao is known as the safest city in the PI and that is largely due to Duterte’s being strong on crime.  By strong I mean that it is said he was not above using hit squads extra-judicial methods to rid the city of undesirables.  Some other things he’s done include closing the bars at ungodly early hours and making Davao City smoke-free.  I really dislike nanny-state shit like that but the people in this area are crazy about him.

I got a taste of the police state this morning.  I was minding my own business and enjoying a little vaping time when I was accosted by a law enforcement officer.  He told me sternly that I couldn’t smoke there.  I responded as I always do in such situations “I’m not smoking, I’m vaping.”  He seemed unimpressed and took me away…

…here. What a pain in the ass. I’ve since learned that Davao City’s smoking ordinance does in fact specifically include vaping. Bastards!

Anyway, this is clearly a city in which I could never live.  Still, I’ve got a full day to kill here tomorrow so I’ll have to find a discreet way to skirt the law.  I’ve already designated my hotel room a designated vaping zone.

Tonight it is samgyapsol for Maria’s birthday dinner.

Look for a full trip report with tons of photos when I return home to Korea this weekend.