These are travelers who take the road less traveled and as Robert Frost said, "that has made all the difference." Their travels are exciting, never predictable, never conventional. They have hitchhiked, got lost for days, slept on a park bench – and have become wiser for it.
Through the years, this column has heard some of the funniest and strangest stories that people do in foreign countries. Indeed, as somebody else said, "happiness is not a station you arrive at, but a manner of traveling."
Margie Moran Floirendo: I went rambling across the Cotswolds, which incidentally is the "Garden of England." Naturally, not being an honest-to-goodness rambler, I got lost. Before I knew it, I ended up at somebody’s lawn party and the gracious host invited me to join in. I met an interesting, wonderful set of people and I must confess I enjoyed the afternoon immensely.
Jamby Madrigal: Purchasing good cotton linen at Harrods. I was a house guest in London at the spare apartment of a friend. The pillows and the duvet were made of polyester. I was perspiring all night and simply could not sleep. Get me Ilocano cotton any time. I simply had to go buy the real thing.
Pitoy Moreno: Aureo Alonzo and I were leaving our hotel in Rome when a jeepful of Italians greeted us and offered to show us around their city. Thinking we knew them – you know how it is, we had been meeting so many people during our shows – we joined them. After a city tour, we ended up in a bar and the girls started to have drinks in rapid succession and the guys ordered us in the most brusco way to do the same. We refused and they insisted. By then we were suspicious, very suspicious. We tried to leave. They held us. At this time we said Aureo was a priest. Only then were we released.
Richard Gomez: It was during the Southeast Asian Games in Chiang Mai, Thailand.There were lanterns made of paper and cotton and they started to fly in the sky. I looked up to watch but could not hold it for long, I lay on the ground so I wouldn’t miss the spectacle. At first I felt so strange being the only one on the ground. But before long, others did the same and we all watched the lanterns.
Ming Ramos: In Belgium, upon the invitation of the Minister of Environment who happened to be a woman, I visited the sewage treatment plant where the entire process turned toxic waste into something acceptable which was eventually dumped – in the nicest sense of the word – into the Danube River.
In New York, I observed the wonders of one out of four similar treatment plants. The officer announced that I was the very first First Lady who had requested for such a tour to which I replied, "I am the only crazy First Lady." Some of our Cabinet ladies equipped with hankies could not continue the visit. The smell was almost unbearable.
In Paris, I observed the sidewalk toilets where, for a coin, all things that had anything to do with water, soap and air were accomplished mechanically. It even disinfected itself. A bit of warning though: Time is of the essence. Whether the job is finished or not, that door swings open.
Paeng Nepomuceno: With much regret, I had to dump one of my championship bowling balls in a trash can at a London airport due to prohibitive excess luggage charges. Remember I always travel with five bowling balls that weigh 16 pounds each.
Vicky Quirino Delgado: Having to travel with my broken right arm – yes, my right arm at that – on a sling. It’s uncomfortable, to say the least, when you are at home with all the help available. Can you imagine traveling with it? It was a nightmare.
Rachy Cuna: I unknowingly had a full-course snake dinner with friends – from appetizer to dessert. They even served snake wine but I doubt if I was allowed to drink it. After all, I was only 10 years old. At the end of the meal, without any warning whatsoever, the restaurant owners introduced the customers to the snake pit. Only then was it revealed what we had for dinner. For the next couple of days I could not eat. I was so nauseated, traumatized. I went on a hunger strike of sorts. Oh, there was famine!
Margot Osmeña: It was the Semana Santa and we were in Rio de Janeiro where Portuguese is the national language. My dear Lola Millie insisted that we must all go to confession in preparation for the Easter season. But first, we had to look for a Spanish-speaking priest. While the search was in progress, I had to confess before my Lola. She in turn translated my confession into Spanish and wrote it all down for me to read. With the Spanish priest in the confessional box, I started reading, "Padre, por favor bendiga me."
Ben Chan: Being a very rigid person and very orderly in everything I do, it is seldom that I travel without any agenda. Perhaps, one of those rare times was when I was much younger. I recall taking an extended trip around Europe in the late ‘70s with two of my better friends, Joe Salazar and Rusty Lopez. We barely had funds to spend but since we all agreed that the holiday would be indefinite, we would stretch our journey until we had nothing left. In spite of it all, we had so much fun. We boarded the Eurorail trains, decided which places to disembark and visit as the announcements appeared on the marquees, dozed whenever we could. I even skipped meals to save money so I could get myself a Louis Vuitton.
Another strange thing happened recently while I was at Beverly Hills Center. We chanced upon a hair-coloring salon and watched young dudes having their crowning glories highlighted. My friends put me up on a dare. And what do you think happened next? Back in Manila, I was conducting board meetings and appearing on TV interviews with a cool spiked ‘do!
Ben Farrales: We were in Jerusalem when I spotted this maleta made of shells. It looked very stylish and was the craze of the moment. I paid for it and was surprised it was inexpensive. As a matter of fact, the price was cheap as in cheap. While we continued on our pilgrimage around Israel, I continuously purchased more items, filling up the maleta to its limit. There came a time someone like Edgar Ramirez had to sit on it to enable us to close and lock it. I watched the maleta being thrown in and out of the coach but it was doing well. But as we got to the check-in counter at the airport of St. Petersburg in the middle of a busy day the maleta – horror of horrors – simply gave up. Bumukas, throwing all its contents all over the place. Together with my traveling companions we searched, begged and borrowed string, rope, sinturones, tapes – anything that would put it together again. As you see ngumanganga. Lesson of the story: Never buy a cheap maleta, with style or no style and don’t believe in the saying that there is still space for one more item.
Jun Magsaysay: My wife Marilou and I were in picturesque Switzerland when we decided to explore the country on our own. So we rented a car and drove around. For the next five days or so, we constantly got lost and forever showed up, much against our wishes, in the wrong towns. For over a dozen times, we tried to go somewhere definite but somehow ended up somewhere else unplanned. This comedy of errors, which we didn’t think was funny, was a bit too much to handle. We finally gave up, returned the car to the nearest rental garage and settled for the wonderful world of trains. Soon we started to smile again.
Juvenal Sanso: Coming out from a subway station in New York and without any warning, I got caught in the middle of a blizzard. As I clung to my portfolio for dear life, I was literally blown off from the sidewalk with no one to seek assistance from. Struggling to keep my feet on the ground, I had this great fear of falling flat on my face, with "my babies" scattered all around, some up in the air like loose feathers dancing in the wind, while slowly, very slowly freezing to death. Ah, the battle with the elements! Never again.
Gaita Araneta Fores: Taking an ambulance and ending up in the emergency room of a London hospital for treatment of bruises all over me and stitches on my face! After leaving Liberty of Regent Street, I stopped to smell the flowers just outside the building. I then made a quick dash to cross the street with no time at all to check both sides for any vehicular movement. Guess what? I was sideswiped by a white car!
Lisa Macuja Elizalde: Funnily enough, it was when I pretended not to understand, much less speak Russian. I was at a hotel coffee shop alone in Tbilisi, Georgia for a guest performance with the State Ballet. A giant of a Georgian man – oh, they are so huge – approached and inquired if he could share my table, an accepted mode of conduct in the Soviet Union. But soon after, he attempted to start a conversation – more of a come-on. I immediately played dumb. Didn’t say a word. But he went on and on. The waitress came to my rescue and ordered him to leave the poor girl alone. I understood perfectly well what was going on and was secretly highly entertained.
Charo Santos Concio: I was in Zurich many years ago, on my world trip as the Baron Travel Girl. My official chaperone excused herself for the day, so I decided to have lunch by myself in the hotel restaurant. I noticed two men looking intently at me, probably wondering what an Asian girl was up to. After hurriedly settling my bill, I went to the magazine stand at the lobby. It was then that they approached me and propositioned that I join them on a trip to Paris. Taken aback momentarily, but quickly regaining my composure, I thanked them for the invitation, and politely declined, giving the lame excuse my husband was meeting me shortly. Of course, I suspect they did not believe me since I must have looked like a school girl of 16 – though I was 21 then – and maybe too young to have a husband.
Luli Macapagal Arroyo: Together with some friends, we watched a black light theater performance in Prague last year, and we were seated near the front row. One of the scenes had a giant spider hovering on strings over the audience, basically trying to scare or surprise us. So I caught one of the spider’s legs and hung on to it. The actor was not amused.
Piolo Pascual: Slept on a bench in a park in Madrid for an entire afternoon in the middle of winter. Strange? I doubt it. Crazy? Definitely yes!
Loren Legarda: When I was 21 years old and touring Europe for the very first time in the company of friends such as Mons Romulo-Tantoco, we all agreed that the men – waiters included – looked so gorgeous and handsome. The girls dared me to don a bright violet knitted headdress with all the sabit-sabit. And guess what I did?
Robert Jaworski: It happens during most trips. You see, I always venture to try, at least once in my life, more than just the usual local exotic food preparations. I go a step further. I test and taste dishes with beetles, bugs, worms, turtles, snakes...
Araceli Limcaco-Dans: Once when I was walking with my husband on a crowded street, before I knew it, I was holding on to the arm of a complete stranger. Embarrassing!
Martin Nievera: Though I am not a prude and have an open mind, sharing an expanded hot tub with 15 other naked men was just a bit too much for me. But when every single one did squat on a stool and scrubbed themselves thoroughly inch by inch, I was in a total culture shock.
Criselda Lontok: Many years ago, when I dropped by the California Mart in Los Angeles, I accidentally crossed over through an exit door which I, two seconds later, realized was not for public use. But it was a bit too late. I tried to re-enter, but the door was locked. I knocked, but no one heard me. I rushed down to the lower floors and kept on knocking. No response at all whatsoever. Oh, I felt so all alone. I went back to the floor where I originally got locked out and pounded on the door with all my might until an angel rescued me. Lo and behold, was I glad to be back in civilization.
JOSIE LICHAUCO: It may not be strange, but while I was still with the government, I would automatically volunteer to take photographs of the Philippine delegation attending conferences around the world. With important meetings in progress, we hardly had time for other activities. So in order to capture the moments, I would hurriedly snap photos or else we would have missed the opportunity.