Sometimes, a trip begins with a simple plan but ends up becoming something far more meaningful. That was exactly what happened when our planned getaway to Tacloban and Basey turned into an unexpected Volunteer Vacation after Typhoon Yolanda devastated Eastern Visayas.
It was March when a fellow volunteer from Hands On Manila sent me a message about an upcoming trip to Tacloban, Leyte. An airline seat sale had made the January trip possible, so a group of us quickly grabbed the opportunity.
At first, we simply wanted to explore Leyte and Samar. We planned to visit major attractions such as the MacArthur Landing Memorial and San Juanico Bridge, the iconic bridge connecting Leyte and Samar.
We even considered taking a ferry to Cebu so we could catch the Sinulog festivities. As volunteers who often traveled together, we saw the trip as another opportunity to explore, have fun, and spend time with friends.
Then, everything changed.
When a Vacation Became a Mission
Typhoon Yolanda, internationally known as Haiyan, struck the Eastern Visayas region in November. The powerful storm left Tacloban and surrounding communities devastated, with thousands of homes destroyed and countless families struggling to rebuild their lives.
Suddenly, our upcoming vacation did not feel like an ordinary holiday anymore.
Our volunteer spirit brought us together and pushed us to rethink the trip. Instead of simply sightseeing, we decided to turn our Volunteer Vacation in Tacloban into a mission trip.
More Hands On Manila volunteer sherpas, as we called our volunteer leaders and guides, joined the plan. Eventually, our group grew to 17, although a few companions had to cancel at the last minute.
With almost a year to prepare for the original vacation, we now had a different kind of preparation to do.
Some volunteers contacted friends from nonprofit organizations working in Tacloban. Others reached out to friends and business contacts for donations, while several took charge of transportation, accommodations, and other logistics.
Little by little, the donations came in.
By the time we were ready to leave, we had gathered enough supplies to reach three communities across Leyte and Samar.
Arriving in a Devastated Tacloban
Finally, the day came.
Some of us arrived at the airport shortly after midnight because we wanted to make sure everything was ready. I was particularly excited because this would be my first trip to Leyte and Samar.
We arrived at the airport more than two hours before our flight. After all, we had 27 boxes of donated goods, along with several bags, that needed to be checked in together.
When we landed in Tacloban, rain greeted us.
The sun was nowhere in sight, and the gray skies seemed to match the scene around us. Although nearly two months had passed since Yolanda struck, parts of Tacloban looked as though the typhoon had swept through only days earlier.
Water and electricity had returned to major areas, while cleanup operations were already underway. However, many barangays still looked like enormous dumping grounds, with pieces of destroyed houses piled along roadsides.
The devastation was impossible to ignore.
Preparing Our First Relief Packs
We checked into Welcome Home Pensione, dropped our belongings, and immediately shifted into volunteer mode.
After breakfast at Potluck Canteen across the street, we began preparing loot bags for children. Thanks to our generous donors, each bag contained crayons, pencils, combs, storybooks, coloring books, food items, and either a raincoat or a bag.
Ayala Malls also provided the bags we used for the children’s packs.
There was little time to rest. Our first volunteer activity was already waiting.
Volunteer Vacation 1: Bringing Smiles to Barangay 52
We met our partners from M.Y. Rights, or Mind Your Rights, led by Emanuel Bagual, at the Tacloban Department of Education office.
The building itself showed signs of the disaster. From there, our partners rode their bicycles while we followed behind. A television network also trailed our group as we made our way to Barangay 52.
Hundreds of children waited beneath a makeshift tent.
The rain continued to fall, but it did not stop us from starting with a simple game about vegetables and healthy food. Soon, laughter filled the tent as the children joined in.
Because of the weather, we eventually distributed the loot bags instead of holding a longer activity.
More than 200 children received their packs. Some immediately put on their raincoats, while others hugged their stuffed toys and eagerly flipped through their books.
Their excitement was contagious.
Yet, when I looked beyond the children, another reality emerged.
Several houses still had no walls or roofs. Along the road, a makeshift stall displayed a few fish and vegetables, offering a glimpse of how residents were trying to rebuild their livelihoods one day at a time.
Volunteer Vacation 2: Helping Families in Anibong
After returning to our pension house, we went straight back to work.
This time, we prepared another batch of relief packs for families in Barangay 67 in Anibong. We filled them with umbrellas, cooking utensils, seeds, calendars, and other donated items.
Anibong, a coastal community near the port, had suffered tremendous damage from Yolanda.
Ships and containers had been swept ashore, destroying houses along the coast. One large ship even ended up beside the highway, becoming an unusual landmark in the middle of the devastated community.
The disaster had forced residents to be creative.
Some people turned shipping containers into small shops. Others used them as temporary homes.
Meanwhile, volunteers continued clearing debris from the area. Even after weeks of cleanup, it was obvious that the road to recovery would be long.
Volunteer Vacation 3: Crossing San Juanico Bridge to Basey
The following day, our Volunteer Vacation took us beyond Leyte.
We crossed the famous San Juanico Bridge and headed toward Basey in Samar, where another community was waiting for us.
One of our companions had relatives in Barangay Amandayehan, and they warmly welcomed our group. After spending days surrounded by destruction and cleanup efforts, the warmth of the community made the visit especially memorable.
Once again, the children became the center of our activities.
We played games with them, laughed together, and distributed the goods we had brought. Meanwhile, their parents watched with equal excitement and appreciation.
Our hosts also prepared a wonderful meal for us.
They served tamalos, a local delicacy, along with other dishes, including crabs and shrimps. They had even gone out of their way to buy some of the food from a distant place for our group.
Their generosity reminded me that volunteering is never simply about what we bring.
Sometimes, the people we hope to help give us something in return.
Seeing Eastern Visayas Rebuild
For most of that weekend, we remained on the road.
As we traveled through Tacloban and Basey, we saw different signs of communities slowly returning to everyday life. A job fair was taking place in a school, a small roadside stall was selling cigarettes, and a church was filled with people on a Sunday afternoon.
These ordinary scenes felt significant.
They showed that life was moving forward despite everything that had happened.
We also saw Filipino and foreign volunteers working with various foundations, nonprofit organizations, and other groups. Their presence showed how people from different places had come together to help Eastern Visayas recover.
Still, the work was far from finished.
More Than a Trip: It was a Volunteer Vacation
Our original itinerary had been about sightseeing, food, and discovering new places. Instead, our Volunteer Vacation in Tacloban and Basey became a journey into communities rebuilding after one of the strongest storms to hit the Philippines.
We did not get to visit every tourist attraction we had originally planned.
However, we gained something far more valuable.
We witnessed people’s resilience, shared whatever resources we could gather, and spent time with communities determined to stand again. Most importantly, we discovered that a vacation can take on a completely different meaning when you use part of your journey to help others.
Huge infrastructure projects still needed to be completed at the time, and many families continued to face the difficult task of rebuilding their homes and livelihoods.
Yet, hope was already visible in the streets.
People were working. Children were playing. Businesses were reopening. Communities were slowly finding their rhythm again.
And that was perhaps the most unforgettable part of our trip.
We went to Leyte and Samar expecting a vacation. Instead, we came home with a story about resilience, generosity, and the joy of helping.
Sometimes, the most meaningful journeys are the ones we never planned.
Our Volunteer Vacation Story Gets Shared
Our experience eventually became part of a story published by GMA News Online. We met journalist Howie Severino during our stay at the pension house, where he was also billeted.
It was an unexpected way for our little volunteer mission to reach an even wider audience.
More importantly, it reminded us that even a small act of kindness can become part of a much bigger story of recovery and hope.
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