As promised, here is a quick after-action report from my weekend in Pozorrubio, participating in the annual Haggis Bash with the La Union Hash House Harriers.
Getting There
I caught a ride to Pozorrubio with my neighbor and fellow Hasher, Simon (Leech My Nuggets). On the trip up, there were seven passengers in Simon’s car, which meant we had a middle rider in the backseat with me, making it cramped and uncomfortable. At a rest stop halfway there, Simon’s wife elected to sit in the rear with two other female passengers, giving me the front seat. Much better!
Lodging
I would rate the MGM at two stars. The sad thing is, it has the potential to be much higher rated with better management. There was one of the nicer pools I’ve seen, but it was empty and unmaintained. An outdoor bar and rooftop disco were also closed. My room was similarly in need of attention. I was shocked to discover there was no showerhead in my bathroom, and the thought of standing under a pipe of running water to bathe wasn’t appealing. I found the showerhead lying next to the sink and re-attached it myself. That problem solved; I then discovered there was no hot water. I hate cold showers. No toilet paper either, but I bring my own wet wipes, so no issue there. Two bath towels but no washcloths or hand towels. No WiFi connection. The hallway outside my room was unlit, and I needed to use my phone flashlight to see the keyhole. And they didn’t have housekeeping between day one and day two. All said it was one of the worst hotel experiences I can recall. The room was 2400 ($48.) a night, which was way too much for what I received in return.
The MGM was 8K away from the On-Home farm venue, but luckily, the hotel provided van transportation for only 60 pesos a head. Given the logistics, that proved to be a Godsend.
For a city with over 70,000 residents, I was shocked at the lack of services and conveniences (oh, did I spell bars wrong?) Seriously though, there were very few options for dining out or having fun in this town. Nothing at all within walking distance of my hotel. The other hotel in town is more centrally located, but according to the Hashers who stayed there, the only place to gather was an outdoor beer garden. Better than nothing, but no help to me from where I was ensconced. Luckily, I drank my fill at the Hash, so I didn’t need to go out, but damn, I can’t imagine living in a place like this. Barretto may be small, but we have many restaurants, hotels, and bars to patronize. Pozorrubio is not a nice place to visit, and I definitely wouldn’t want to live there.
Friday on the farm
After getting checked in and unpacked, we took the hotel van to the CIJ farm, which is apparently a local icon. At least everyone seemed to know where it was located. It was 5K on the highway and another 3K on backstreets to get there.
There was a short 4K Hash trail scheduled to begin at 2:30. It was mostly through farm country and blessedly flat. It was a very pleasant hike and I enjoyed seeing some new vistas.
In keeping with Hash custom, multiple beers were consumed with the added treat of some “Scottish stew” to keep the hunger pangs at bay. Someone called the hotel van and left on the early ride around 7 p.m. A good Day 1 at the Haggis Bash.
Sunday’s marathon
Sunday’s trail began at 9:30 in the morning. I opted for the 6K version, and it was a good fit for me.
Back On-Home for all the after-Hash activities I mentioned in yesterday’s post. I chose not to participate in the games and sat in the shade instead. Had a nice chat with another like-minded Hasher and passed the time with plenty of San Miguel Zeros.
A wet and wild Hash circle followed, then more beers and my first taste of haggis. I was running out of gas by 7 p.m. and asked someone to call the hotel driver. He wasn’t available, so she called for a trike instead. Now, it’s a goodly distance (8K) back to my hotel, and I was prepared to pay 200 pesos for the ride, which is more than fair. Given my lack of options, I could have been talked into 300 pesos, but when the trike driver insisted on 400, I wasn’t willing to pay the skin tax. I told him never mind and walked away. I was pissed but bit my tongue. Nothing good comes from making a Filipino lose face.
We called the hotel again and were told the van would be available at 8:00. Nothing to do but drink more beer and wait it out. Our group exceeded the van’s capacity, but we all squeezed in anyway. All but me and another guy got out at the beer garden in town, but there was no way I was going anywhere but back to my hotel. So, my night ended peacefully with me in one piece.
A Sunday drive
The plan was to leave for Barretto at 9:30 in the morning, but I got a knock on the door an hour earlier, saying everyone was ready to go. Luckily, I had packed, so I put my blog post on hold, closed up the laptop, and headed downstairs. Only five of us on the trip back, so much more comfortable. I had the front seat again, which is always nice. Simon took a different route to the expressway, so we were seeing some new sights. And then we went under a bridge that carried the expressway and saw no on-ramps. We kept our northward heading, and I pulled out my map app to show us the way. We wound up taking a 6K detour in each direction through a small town with gridlocked traffic, but we eventually made our way back to the highway home.
Epilogue
We arrived safely just before noon, and I resumed my Barretto life. That included the Sunday feeding at Hideaway. Swan joined me at the new Oasis bar after church, and we spent some quality time imbibing (beer for me, wine for her). We made Sloppy Joe’s our nightcap venue. The Sit-n-Bull waitress came by, and I asked about pecan pie availability, and she said yes. So, two pies to go, please! Came home, had dessert, and then a lovely welcome home from Swan.
And that’s where things stand as of now. I’ll be Hashing again today and likely shortcutting since Leech My Nuggets is the Hare. Still don’t want to push my luck going up into the hills.
And here’s a two-fer in the bad puns of the day offering:
Back tomorrow with the latest happenings!
That picture of the dogs near the end says a lot about your pets.
Sorry to hear about the poor quality of the hotel. I’ve never been in a motel with a missing shower head, but I’ve had plenty of experiences with no toilet paper. In my case, I generally just resort to the Kleenex boxes. In some motels, there are two such boxes: one by the bed and one at the vanity table. At other motels, there’s only one box. On rare occasions (it didn’t happen this time around), it’s necessary to go out and buy a roll of toilet paper (easier than tracking down the always-absent manager and requesting a roll). Just the reality of motels in Korea. That said, $45 strikes me as cheap, but I think in ROK/US terms.
Otherwise—quite an adventure. I guess this is a once-a-year thing. No camping for you, eh? Too bad. That might almost be a nicer experience unless it’s pissing down rain.
“Pond or lake” sounds like a philosophical conundrum akin to the heap problem. I’d venture that a pond is generally smaller than a lake, but when is a pond big enough to be labeled a lake?
I’ve heard that haggis sounds dramatic but tastes prosaic because the Scots use oats as a filler, giving the haggis a bit of an oat-y texture and tamping down the taste of the offal inside the sheep’s stomach. I’d like to try some.
Anyway, welcome back to normal life. This was a worthy side quest.
One of the enduring facets of life in the Philippines: three uninspired people are typically employed to do the work of one competent person, yet so many obvious minor problems remain constantly ignored.
If nobody in a position of authority specifically instructs a subordinate to fix a problem, and surplus employees are not encouraged to think and reason and take appropriate action, problems generally win.
The mind boggles…
DS: Yes, I’ve noticed the same thing. Making sure guests have what they need to be comfortable shouldn’t be a difficult concept to embrace. I want to emphasize that all the staff I encountered were friendly and pleasant. Also, they were usually just sitting around, but I never saw anyone who gave off a boss-like vibe.
Kev, I prefer wet wipes anyway, but I use the toilet paper as a substitute for Kleenex, which I don’t recall seeing in any of the Filipino hotels I’ve visited. The room was overpriced for the quality of services offered. I’ve had superior lodging in the PI for 1500 pesos ($30) or less.
Yes, the Haggis Bash is an annual event. As for the camping, no, thank you. I grew up spending vacations in tents and enjoyed it. Now, I want creature comforts like a bed, a flushing toilet, and a table for my laptop. The perks of old age!
Thank you for the link. I’d never heard of the Sorites paradox. Reading about it gave me a heaping headache. And since I was in an early morning learning mode, I tried to find an answer to the pond versus lake conundrum. Turns out it is another paradox. And while size matters, it is not the defining difference. Still, I’m going to declare the body of water pictured as a pond until someone proves otherwise.
Yeah, not knowing the ingredients of haggis before consumption would be blissful ignorance. I couldn’t taste any of the creepy stuff in my sample. Oh, and I forgot to mention that a splash of whiskey was poured on top as the haggis was served. I’m not sure if that was ritualistic or a regular topping. Regardless, I couldn’t taste the alcohol.
Yes, getting out of town and seeing new faces and places is good. It also makes you appreciate the comforts of home once you return.