We had no idea the Philippines had over 7,000 islands. We also had no idea we'd want to visit all of them. Palawan alone nearly finished us — in the best possible way. Hidden lagoons appearing around every corner, water so clear you could see the reef from the boat, and fish that seemed genuinely unbothered by your presence. We island-hopped, we snorkelled until our fingers pruned, we ate fresh catch on beaches with no names. The Philippines has this chaotic, joyful energy that gets into your system fast. We arrived for ten days. We reboooked for another three weeks. No regrets whatsoever.