As I walk around town, or even outside of town going to the beaches (or whatever I am heading out to see), I notice them. They are in small yards and pens. They are on porches or in an open field. There is a short rope with one end staked into the ground and the other around one leg of the animal. The welcome signs here say, "Welcome, It's More Fun in the Philippines!". 

There are many things to love about the Philippines . The beaches and clear, beautiful waters to snorkel or dive in here are legendary. English is the second language in the Philippines, so it's great for English speaking tourists. The Americans set up English schools during their occupation of the islands and many of the locals speak with an American twang. The Filipinos speak Tagalog as the local language but English is just as widely used!

Other things to love about the Philippines is that on every corner, it seems, there is a bakery filled with fresh baked, delicious bakery items. At every one I see there is always a line of locals waiting to get their pastry fix for the day.

My favortie, though, are the crispy fried chicken stands, not only on every corner it seems, but also often in the middle of the blocks. You can buy your favorite chicken part by the piece or with a meal. I will choose fried chicken over seafood or steak or most other meats any day. So, this is great for me .

I hear them in the early morning hours and I hear them during the day. It seems from around 4 a.m. until around 2 p.m. they are busy crowing. There is a rooster next door to where I am staying that spends much of his day on the roof. I see him prance around. He cocks his head and listens. Another rooster far away crows loudly, but it is a bit faint here. Then a minute later another rooster crows somewhere closer. My rooster on the roof cocks his head, listening to each crow. After the second rooster crows, my rooster takes his turn. Cocking his head he lets out a ear-piercing crow. Then he waits for the 1st rooster to crow again. This goes on all day long. Around 2 or 3 p.m. I don't hear them much anymore. But, then about 4 a.m., while I am sleeping they start the routine over again. Aren't they supposed to wait until daylight?

 Walking around the town, though, in many yards I see a rooster staked out on a short rope or in a cage . Cockfighting here is a popular past time. Even many of the boys seem to have their own rooster staked out somewhere, waiting for a fight. I asked a 14 year old boy and he said yes, he had one also. With the around the clock crowing, I don't see how the Filipinos get any sleep. 

The Filipinos seem obsessed with basketball and cockfighting!

There are legal cockfights and then illegal ones in backyards and open fields. Betting is a big activity and the roosters fight, with razors strapped to their feet until one is killed or too week from loss of blood to go on. The loser ends up on the dinner plate the next day. Is there a connection to why fried chicken is so available here? When will my 4 a.m. crower be scheduled for his fight?

I didn't get to see a cockfight, although I wanted to. I guess one is all I would want to see, though. I remember the bull fight in Mardrid, Spain I went to one time . The matador fought the bull with swords until he eventually killed the animal. I do not want to go to one of those again, though. I think it would be the same with the cock fights in the Philippines. I would like to go to one because it is such a big part of their culture, but once would probably be enough!

Today I am in the city of Tagbilaran. It's a very interesting and popular city on the island of Bohol. I flew to this island from the Palawan Island. The Philippines is made up of many islands and sometimes you can use a boat to travel between them, but often you must take a plane.

Tagbalaran is a large city and pubic transportation includes the "Jeepney" as a major means of public transportation. They are modified jeeps left by the Americans after WWII. They are painted and tricked out and a popular means of getting around the city.

Another popular means of transport in the Philippines is the tricycle . These are motorbikes with a sidecar attached. As I walked around the city, though, I noticed something unusual.

Right under the license plate on the tricycles there would be a scripture from the Bible painted on. I stood on the corner, reading the many scripturs as the tricycles passed by. Each scripture was different. I began to look for one without a scripture verse or religious quote on it. 

The Philippines, unlike most other Asian countries, is Christian (mostly Catholic). But, even at that, I am sure everyone that owns a tricycle is not religious. So, why do I not see some without a verse? I decided to 'google' it when I got back to where I was staying that night. Sure enough, the reason they all had a verse on them was that it was a city law!

When the trike owner goes to get the tag for their tircycle, they are given a Bible verse. Then, they take the trike to the painter (authorized by the city of Tagbalaran) and he paints the verse on the tricycle. Then, the owner returns to the city office and the license plate is issued. The city says the visibility of the scriptures has cut down on crime in the city!

I found reading the scriptures a lot of fun. And, I have to say, with the verses always around, it made you think more about scriptural things.

NEXT: I travel into the countryside to find the world's smallest primate, about the size of a fist with huge eyes!