Cabanatuan City

Leaving Island Cove in Cavite I knew things were changing fast. I had just said goodbye to my friends who I'd got to know over training and I was now speeding away from to a whole new city I'd never been to. This was the final cut that separated all of us from Americans we'd see everyday. We all knew it was coming but it was still a little jarring.

I found myself in a better situation for travel to site than some of my friends who had to catch a bus from manila. I was with my CP and supervisor being driven in a City Hall vehicle headed straight to Cabanatuan City. The driver was scary in how he handled the vehicle in the rain, speeding, passing, he drove like an impatient maniac.

It took about four hours to get into Cabanatuan from Cavite, my white knuckles wished we had arrived later. The surrounding scenery is flat and continues far off into the distance, fields of grass at about chest height. That all ends when the city starts, Cabanatuan is a grand series of streets and buildings, little nature is about the city. It looks like a city from the states except with trikes everywhere.

There are two malls and there will be a high-end grocery store (PureGold) that will be opening in a couple months. There are two cinemas, I hear one of which is far superior to the other, I don't know which that is though. There are two open air markets that cover any fresh food needs. It's a full service city.

As it stands today, I don't have any complaints. I've had a little time to explore and gather my bearings about the city. I now can navigate downtown with minimal confusion. I even found a few bike shops!

Anyway, that's Cab-City.