24th Nov – Puerto Princesa, Philippines.
Puerto Princesa, is a city of a quarter of a million people – the least densely populated city in the Philippines. It’s mainly about tourism. The government is really committed to things like environment and sustainability. 
An example – the ‘dynamite fishermen’. As in dropping sticks of dynamite into the water and collecting dead/ unconscious fish. This is a devastating method as it kills many unusable creatures as well as the reef etc. The government retro fitted the fishing boats, offered training and support, and set up a tourist industry of boat trips. The island hopping trips. Good job Philippines!
I did a tour – Batak Experience and River Trip. We drove through Puerto Princesa and out into the country – a great drive down the coast line and saw many lovely islands and where the island hopping trips go.
First stop was at a ‘display village’ of the Batak people. The Batak are the indigenous people of the mountains. There are only 300 Batak people left.
The have a village in the mountains. Turned out we were not going to their village but to a fake village, where the people were bussed down to put on a show for us!
We were told that you are not allowed to give things to the people, that the government is keeping them away from ‘the modern world’ – like don’t give them lollies or technology. Yet they bring them down from the mountains to put on a show for the tourists. Very uncomfortable and weird.
Then to the Sabang Mangrove Forest boat ride.
Mangroves are basically the lungs of the oceans. They act as a filter and protective covering between the sea and the land. The eco system within the mangrove is immense – from the tree tops to the bottom of the mud. The waters are a spawning ground and a nursery from many species of fish and crustaceans. Monkey in the trees. And snakes.
We hopped into the small outrigger canoes for a paddle up the river. The trip lasted about 40 minutes and was great.
Then down to an off the grid resort for a fancy lunch. 
Elephant Foot rock – as seen in The Amazing Race.
Next tab – Kota Kinabalu