Jeff Evans visited the Philippines to attend the Pacific Coast Association of Magicians convention. The convention was held in Manila, but the morning after the convention Jeff was on a small jet for the rural island of Palawan.
The purpose was simply to play tourist: diving, snorkeling, island hopping, and having an authentic experience in the beautiful Philippines. But being a magician is like having a super power: everyone loves the feeling of amazement, and Jeff made it a point to perform for each of the host families at the three airbnbs where he stayed and for the crew and fellow passengers on the island hopping tour.
“I brought some magic props with me for a couple of reasons; first, I knew I’d have some free time and practicing magic is how I like to spend my time. But I also really wanted to perform magic for the people that I met while traveling. It was definitely the right decision: magic is universal, and even though many of the people I met and performed for spoke very little English, there was never a problem communicating with them when performing magic. The art of magic works in all languages and cultures.”
-Jeff Evans
Jeff spent time in Coron, where he made six scuba dives to Japanese vessels that were sunk the end of World War II by United States Navy. After that he joined the Tao Philippines island hopping tour: five days spent on different islands. The crew provided fresh, delicious meals and snacks each day. Each evening was spent on a bamboo hut on a different island. During the day the ship would sail to different locations for snorkeling, visiting local villages, or for exploring pristine, deserted beaches. The cruise ended up in El Nido. After one day outside of El Nido, Jeff traveled south to Sabang and the Puerto Princesa Underground River National Park.
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I was cheating with a rope harness; the locals scamper up the trunks with their bare feet.
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Cutting open the buko, or coconut, for the fresh milk
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That’s a giant clam, and it quickly closes when you bring your fin (or anything else) nearby. I had read about these as a kid growing up, and it was very cool to experience it in real life.
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Picture perfect: our colorful huts were just yards from the water.
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Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park in Sabang
The real magic of the Philippines isn’t a card trick. It isn’t a fresh coconut, or sandy beach, or colorful coral. The real magic were the wonderful, friendly Filipinos who were happy to help, fun to be around, incredibly hard-working, and super-friendly. Salamat!
