Jun 3 - Odette has an ear infection, so we forgo another wet island tour today. It is a pity, as the weather is improving and we see hardly any rain. Put a big load of clothes in the full-service laundromat and go in search of a doctor to prescribe antibiotics. Finally find a tiny clinic with a couple of pre-teen girls sitting around. One goes off to summon the resident doctor. We get some medicine and start the treatment.
Don’t get much else done today, other than tying up loose ends with onward travel.
So, a little about the history of Palawan.
The flora and fauna of this region is more like Borneo than the rest of the Philippines. In prehistory, a land bridge existed from Sabah. This is also reflected in the early human settlement patterns. There are caves here with fragments of human bone that date back almost 50,000 years.
The Spanish only took control here in the 17th century. They established some missions and were compelled to fortify them against attacks by some of the indigenous groups like the Moro.
Like everywhere else in the country, the Japanese invaded here during WWII, and many of the towns were destroyed by US bombs to dislodge them.
Philippines