Inspiring Kabayan series twenty one- The man who lied so much- Drew Gabs, Mr Norman or was it Andrew Aquais?

 

Drew, on the left, with his friends

I first met Drew back in 2013, and like most of my vacation guides , I met him on line.  At the time he was working in a hotel in Puerto Princessa, Palawan and he arranged for a van ( driven by a friend) to take me to Honda Bay, and on another date , to the Underground River. You have to book in advance for the latter, due to it's popularity, and get an Environmental permit. Drew arranged all of this and met me at my hotel, The Microtel in Puerto, when I arrived . He had gone to school with one of the receptionists at that time, Ate Zel, and he also knew some of the staff in the restaurant. We had a great time together and he showed me around the city, down on the board walk , and to the Mall.

Drew at work

The thing about Filipino boys like Drew is they always want money and gifts. First it was a pair of trainers and then he sent me a load of selfies he took  in the changing room of a shop modelling different tee shirts he wanted me to buy for him.

However he was very helpful in arranging everything and keeping me company and we had some great meals and trips. He kept me safe and taught me some Tagalog words and translated when my Tagalog was not good enough. His van driving friend , and the driver's little brother Kevin, who joined us, had a girlfriend at the Underground river and so that saved us time in getting the tickets . He also negotiated a good rate for our boat trip. Drew was meticulous in his research emailing me a table with all the costs prior to my visit.

 

On our first Honda bay trip

Being Pinoy he also took lots of great pics of me , many of which I had mounted on Canvas, framed and are still on my wall as a reminder of our happy times together. He also loved posing for photos and tried all the typical Pinoy shots like this one.....

Drew , jumping for joy, at El Nido Cove in 2013, when he weighed a lot less

I returned to Palawan in 2014, meeting Drew in Manila ( he was then doing his OJT as a welder in Batangas ship yards)  and we flew to El Nido. Back then El Nido was becoming the second most popular resort in the Philippines , after Boracay, especially with backpackers . We had a wonderful time walking on the beach and swimming and Drew got on well with all the young staff at El Nido Cove, where we stayed. Often in the evening he would play volleyball with them or sit at reception chatting to them. My friend , Jane Frost, gave me an i player for Christmas and Drew spent hours selecting and downloading music to it for me. Each night we watched the sun go down and tried different ways to get the best sunset shot!

At Starfish Island in 2013- Photo by Drew, still on my wall!

 

 

He had an emergency at home and so took a van to see his mum and called several times a day to see if I was okay , much to the annoyance of the hotel staff who had to come and find me wherever I was as I did not have a mobile back then!

Eventually we lost touch and he got married to a Pinoy and they adopted a little girl . 

Drew and his daughter

He finally returned to Palawan State University to complete his degree in HRM  and asked if I would sponsor him . We agreed a set of conditions which he at first complied with and then reneged on, blaming a broken phone ! Next he had the cheek to ask if I would buy him an i phone . I told him as I lived very well without a mobile , so could he. He demanded new sports clothes for his new exercise regime ( to loose the weight he had put on since we last met) and then I found out later when I refused to give him more money that he had sold them!

He started so well on day one, then of course he wanted a laptop to record his progress!

 

Exercising in his new trainers, socks, shorts and tee shirt on the Boardwalk

When he found out I was returning in 2019 ,  and coincidentally when his next college fees were due , he got back in touch again.

"Hello Tatay, are you still mad at me?""

and 200 other inane messages, offering to arrange car hire for me ( so he could get the commission I later found out) .

Finally he says "will you pay my fees again?"

"No!"

 "Why?"

Then he offered to join me for 10 days of my vacation, an offer later withdrawn after he realised he would be at college! 

Like so many other of my so called "friends" over the years, when he wanted something , he wanted it there and then and he always wanted the most expensive version available . Then when I wanted something , like taking a sandwich to my Anak Jhoanna when she had no food and had not been paid, he was "too busy and had no money". Then a few weeks later he tells me he is off to El Nido to climb a rock with a friend ! 

There are  lessons to be learnt from this blog:

For Drew- if you are going to lie, lie consistently

 Drew and the British Kabayan, in El Nido, back in the day!

 

For me- don't fall for cute boys 

Until the next time , this is the British Kabayan, waiting for the next begging email from Andrew Aquais or whatever he is called this week, so he can finish his final year at College.