Heading to Vietnam this evening.

BBC are saying that the storm that’s just hit the Philippines could be “the most powerful storm to ever make landfall”.

It’s now making it’s way over the South China Sea.

Quick check of the map would suggest that’s not a good thing.

What tyres for a Cat 5 typhoon?

looks like one of the storms on Jupiter.

If my Dad hadn’t broken his leg a week ago my Mum would have been there today, on the coast.

big ones, preferably dingy sized

My Brother in law runs a Scuba dive school on a tiny Island off Cebu. The centre of the storm is about to pass over the top of them about now.

They posted a video late last night of the wind – looked pretty frisky – not sure some of his buildings are going to have roofs in the morning.

N

😯

Umm, stay safe. I’m not convinced you’ll actually get there to be honest.

big ones, preferably dingy sized

Fat Bikes FTW

What tyres for a Cat 5 typhoon long layover in Dubai?

There you go.

The Philippines will cope the worst of it, it should die down a little over the South China Sea and may even divert a little more towards China, they never usually go exactly to plan.
If, or when, it hits Vietnam it should be down to a mere Typhoon 😉

My Brother in law runs a Scuba dive school on a tiny Island off Cebu. The centre of the storm is about to pass over the top of them about now.

They posted a video late last night of the wind – looked pretty frisky – not sure some of his buildings are going to have roofs in the morning.

N

Link please.

Meanwhile people in the bits that it misses post pictures of their garden furniture tipped up with witty captions?

uh oh. 🙁

I lived in Manila for 6 years (left and now in Phuket) so have been in touch with lots of old friends. It seems to have not been too bad. Of course, it’s the ‘rich’ who are mildly inconvenienced (“Starbucks took an absolute age to deliver this morning”) and the poorer people who lose everything!

they’ve just started evacuating somewhere I was heading to in a few days 🙁

peterfile – where you heading? What were you planning on doing there?

HCMC (leave tonight), then flying to Hanoi on Sunday (looking doubtful) then out Halong Bay in a boat Mon/Tue (impossible!) then down to Hue/Hoi An on Tues (suicide). Then another couple of weeks heading further south until we hit Phu Quoc.

Will probably stay south and wait until it’s passed then make our way north now.

Well I hope it works out ok for you. Mekong Delta is defo worth a visit in the south, either self-guided or with one of many small operators in HCMC. Worth 2-3 days if the weather’s trapping you south. Plus HCMC itself is amazing, Cholon Market is cool. Marble Mountains aren’t a bad place to visit. Could always pop into Cambodia or Laos if necessary – both smart, but probably needs visas sorting. Good luck.

Any update from peter?

Peter? are you there Peter? come in Peter!

Have a retired colleague who moved to the Philippines not heard for him for about a week now, hoping it’s because of power or network problems. 😕

A work colleague is in the Philippines for six weeks…knowing him we will not hear anything until he (hopefully) returns to work in several weeks! His wife comes from a tiny island over there somewhere and I suspect they are over there with her family. Fingers crossed he didn’t lose his surf boards as he will be inconsolable…

Cant find video link

This is some of the aftermath on the island (mixed in with some photos of the mainland)
Can see some of BILs buildings still standing
some third hand comments that he and wife are fine but no direct contact.

link
Search divelink cebu if that link does not work
or Edmund James Y. Porter

There is one shot of a brown puddle that was a lovely pool I was swimming in with my kids a few months ago 😥
(not of cource that the pool is important it is simply one of the few reconisable landmarks remaining)

Didn’t die.

Had 18 of the best days of my life.

Vietnam has totally won me over. Amazing place. Go.

😀 *warm feelings and all that*

the Yanks are controlling its path from space 😈