The following day, with the information centre still closed due to All Saints Day, I set about trying to organise my own camping trip to nearby Lugbung Island. Virgie, the very helpful and accommodating concierge at my hotel, kindly introduced me to her father, Sinando, who agreed to take me over and pick me up the following morning for the sum of 500pesos. We agreed to set sail at 4pm, so I went off to the beach I’d discovered the previous day for some fascinating snorkelling. The first thing I discovered was that I’d been lucky not to stray too far during my previous day’s swim – the seabed was a veritable minefield of lethal-looking sea urchins the size of footballs! Even in the shallows, all manner of marine life scooted around and under lumps of coral and granite…hermit crabs, parrot fish, clown fish, clams and five different species of brightly coloured starfish. After an hour, with the sun beginning to feel hot on my back, I trotted off down the road to find the peaceful beach resort of ‘Tiamban’, where I found the ubiquitous tuna sandwich and some refreshingly cold San Miguel. Sat, alone and unmolested, in the cool shade of the palms I looked forward to the peace and isolation of my camping trip on tiny Lugbung…funny how things never turn out as you expect…and how much you appreciate them all the same.

Back in town, at Jak’s bar, I finally discovered what San Miguel is like ice-cold…whatever they use for refrigeration in that place, the rest of the Philippines could do with copying! David and Bob wandered in and we shared a few beers and talked about their lives as ex-pats until it was time for my boat. A slightly damp trip through the strong currents and across the monsoon winds brought Sinando’s pump boat ashore at what looked like a reasonably well-populated little island. At my companion’s insistence, we went to meet Rodel, the local Barangay Captain. (A Barangay being the local equivalent of a parish.) Rodel turned out to be a well-educated and affable chap, with a gift for putting people at ease. We sat and had a coffee and talked about my trip, the small island’s economy and his efforts as Barangay captain to improve education and conservation in the area. It soon became apparent that Lugbung was no deserted paradise, but a thriving fishing community with a population nearing 1000. My plans for a peaceful night camped on the beach and a solitary dawn were fast evaporating. Rodel explained that an ex-pat Australian called Tony lived on the island – in fact he was married to Rodel’s sister, Violet. It seemed that Tony had heard I was coming over and had invited us over to his place for drinks. Ever willing to go with the flow, I agreed to head up there with them after I’d seen the sun go down. Shortly after, I sat, undisturbed, on the sand-spit point of the island, watching the sun sinking behind Tablas’s mountainous backbone. I began to notice the wind increasing in strength and, as I turned to see ominous black thunderheads, the first spots of rain began to fall. In the 3 minutes it took me to walk back to Rodel’s, I managed to get completely soaked. However, the rain was so pleasantly warm that it was like stepping into the shower with clothes on. Forced to take cover by the tropical downpour, I sat talking with Rodel and some of his fishermen buddies, while the rain hammered against the corrugated tin roof. Although quite spacious and containing a newish TV, the shack was pretty basic…earth floors, plastic garden furniture and a dark recess in one corner, containing the toilet and a bucket for manual flushing. The work surfaces and crockery, however, were scrupulously clean – and the two healthy-looking kids being spoon-fed rice and fish by Rodel’s wife looked perfectly happy. We supped brandy and sprite as we chatted about the local politics. It seemed the previous Barangay captain had been corrupt and, despite bribes and threats during the election, Rodel had been returned in a landslide victory by a population that was sick of being conned. Rodel had already instituted regulations preventing fishing of the island’s waters by outsiders. He was also in the process of helping one of the island’s ex-pats set up a marine sanctuary on a reef – something that would ensure future tourist income on the island, as well as protecting its natural resources. It was refreshing to see democracy being given a chance to work in a place, like the Philippines, renowned for being corrupt. Despite their strong belief in Rodel’s leadership, it was plain that some of the men didn’t agree with all his policies. The biggest bugbear of the fishermen was that keeping the kids in school all day (8-4 here as opposed to 6-12 elsewhere), prevented them from helping their parents. As Rodel pointed out, education is the one thing that will help the next generation move forward – and keeping the kids in school also helps avoid problems such as delinquency. We were all agreed that Filipino children still have that degree of innocence and a respect for authority that is sadly missing in western society. Eventually, the rain subsided and Rodel took me round the other side of the island to meet his sister and brother-in-law.

First impressions of the Field family were extremely favourable. We were warmly welcomed and, before I knew it, plates of fish, rice and vegetables were being eagerly thrust under my nose. Violet turned out to be an attractive Sino-Filipina in her early forties…Tony, a little older, and looking very much like a white man who had grown used to the merciless heat of the tropics and now coped with ease. Their 19 year-old son, Joe, was intelligent and amiable - with a playful sense of humour. I was made to feel at ease by my gracious hosts and, before long, Tony was giving me a brief history of his time on Lugbung. As Rodel, had already suggested the local politics had not been conducive to progress in the area…many of Tony’s plans and dreams over the years had fallen by the wayside, due to a lack of support or filibustering by local politicians. The way Tony spoke about the island and the local people, you could see there was a genuine affection. Despite the shortcomings of living in the back of beyond, it seemed Tony was still committed to making a difference. Absorbed in our conversation, I didn’t notice time passing, but suddenly Rodel was seeing if I was ready to leave. Without warning, Tony and Violet were insisting that I stay in one of their empty houses and head back to the sandspit in the morning. Despite the fact that I didn’t have my toothbrush or a change of clothes, I could feel fate pushing me down this path and agreed. To my surprise and delight, I found a new toothbrush, toothpaste, soap and a towel in my beachside villa. Tony and I sat on the roof as the Milky Way rolled into view above the palm trees - and talked long into the night to the sound of waves breaking on the beach below. Tony prefers the simple life – shunning electric lighting and eating fruit grown mainly on his land. In his own small way, I could see that he was doing as much as anyone to preserve the ecology and the beauty of his surroundings. The scale of his project would become apparent in the light of day.