Alice Jenkins was only 19 when she and a few other adventurers clambered up a truck, hid themselves under thick blankets, as the vehicle made its way to the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Each time the truck stopped for “inspection,” Jenkins would peer out and see shops selling blocks of hashish and assorted guns. Their destination was a place called Darra Adam Khel, whose bazaars offered deadly weapons instead of the usual bric-a-brac.
“We were smuggled into this… total tribal territory. The ingenious local workers there can make exact copies of a Kalashnikov, an AK-47,” she recalled.
So, what does a fair-skinned, blue-eyed, blonde teenager dressed in Indian traditional clothes do when handed a rocket launcher? She looks for an open hillside and fires.
“I also had a chance to shoot an AK,” she boasted with a grin, noting the “dramatic adrenaline rush” she felt after doing so.
There would be more such giddiness over the years, after Jenkins left the comfy confines of her family’s “beautiful thatched cottage in the English countryside.”
British family
Jenkins worked in Manila for three years until July 19 as director for sales and marketing of Sofitel Philippine Plaza. She was promoted and is now Accor Hotels regional director for marketing across Southeast Asia.
While based in Bangkok, Jenkins’ job covers Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, the Maldives, South Korea, Japan and the Philippines.
Jenkins grew up in a typical British family that went on holidays all over Europe. There would be short trips to Lake Garda in Italy, and to France, which later became trekking expeditions to Spain, particularly the Pyrenees.
“We’d visit historical towns and stay in the countryside that my parents liked to explore. Large British families like to visit their European neighbors. We saw the huge cultural differences, like with Germany,” she said.
The travel bug stayed with Jenkins. The memorable trip to Pakistan began elsewhere—through Sri Lanka, India and Nepal—that she braved solo.
Pre-journey research is essential, Jenkins said. Seeing the Taj Mahal would have been “like seeing just any other building” had it not been for the love story of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan and his empress consort Mumtaz.
“Understanding the story behind it and realizing the difference in the architecture (applied by) different Mogul emperors makes the (trip) a much more fulfilling experience,” Jenkins explained. “I read the history of the countries before going there. It gives me a higher level of satisfaction, when you get to see the reality you read about in the books.”
Unique
Experiences unique to each traveler is another reason Jenkins continues to trot the globe, despite risks. The sojourn to Sri Lanka and India, for example, was marred by an incident of harassment.
“Public transport makes it easier to go around, but is difficult with men trying to touch you,” she said, “because… you’re different. But I was also told that if anyone tried to do that, just say very loudly, ‘This person is trying to touch me inappropriately’ and you will find the local people around you. They look at you as a woman, you could be their wife or daughter and most of the local men would make sure to look after you.”
After ticking Sri Lanka, India and Nepal off her list, Jenkins joined a group aboard the aforementioned truck that trudged toward Jordan, where she camped in the middle of the desert and then on to Pakistan where she attended the “arms show.”
Jenkins admitted that solo travel to those parts would have been difficult.
“As a woman, as long as you are dressed appropriately… In Pakistan, for example, I had to wear a shalwar kameez (loose pants and long shirt) and a head scarf,” she recalled. “In Iran, expect to be further covered. However, the people were incredibly hospitable. Hospitality is part of the Muslim religion as far as looking after guests is concerned. As long as you are dressed appropriately in someone else’s country, which is only the fair thing to do, you will find people to be genuine and hospitable.”
It was not surprising that Jenkins returned to London to finish a tourism course—a way for her to see the rest of the world.
Her career in the Accor Group began in 2003 as regional sales manager in London.
Travel, Jenkins observed, “definitely” gave her the confidence needed in sales and marketing. “You put yourself in different situations. You go to countries and become more open-minded. People offer to share their food and you become part of their family. One thing about being open-minded and open-hearted, it’s the key to many fantastic experiences.”
But even while she was based in London, Southeast Asia was a region Jenkins returned to very often.
She brought her mother to Myanmar in 2011 when the country was still under the radar of most Western travel agencies.
“Before travel to Myanmar was officially recommended by the British Embassy, we wanted to see it before it filled with tourists,” she recounted. My favorite memory is a sunrise trip over Bagan. We did the balloon trip, it was beautiful seeing all the temples. The colors of the sunrise seen from the air were beautiful. If we did this now, the wait list would probably be two years instead of six months.”
‘Knowing nobody’
Jenkins was on another furlough in 2014, traveling solo for three and a half months through Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia while marveling at all the beaches and marine life, when a friend suggested that she apply for work in the Philippines.
“It was the perfect opportunity, forwarding my career and seeing a country I haven’t seen,” she said.
Jenkins arrived in Manila “knowing nobody.” Meanwhile, friends who said “hello” on social media equated the archipelago only with “Imelda Marcos and her shoe collection.”
That was until Jenkins began posting photos of her diving adventures in Tubbataha Reef, Coron island and El Nido beach in Palawan, Verde Islands in Batangas province, and the beaches in Siquijor.
Jenkins’ most magical moment was chancing upon a butanding and interacting with it for about half an hour. “That was by far the most awe-inspiring interaction with nature. Very rare, very beautiful. We just needed to maintain distance,” she said.
Aside from beaches and love monuments, Jenkins is also a fan of getting lost. Like the one time in Tokyo where she scared a few locals (“They ran away!”) simply for being “the strange lady talking in a language they do not understand” while searching for a restaurant.
Jenkins usually consults a city map and keeps everything organized when seeing a new place for the first time.
“But I also enjoy wandering around,” she pointed out. “An itinerary is good, but you see a nice road, walk around and see different shops. I like wandering and getting lost. It’s best to have a good pair of trainers and a map. But don’t spend the whole time staring at it. Look around to see buildings. Spend the whole time staring at a phone and you miss the beautiful things around you.”
Part of getting lost is meeting new people. Jenkins said local knowledge shared by the natives “is much more exciting than what you’ll find in any travel book or blog. Explore what you find interesting instead of following a set walking tour. If you’re passionate about history, see the museums, visit the temples. If you like shopping, see yourself tailor-making your tour.”
Food
And the most anticipated part of travel will always be food.
“I love street food,” she admitted. “I want to walk around the markets. London has Borough Market with a huge array of produce from all over the UK. On a trip to China with my mum, we went to X’ian that has the terra-cotta warriors. In the evening, they serve round bowls with these huge sticks. You don’t know what’s at the bottom. We managed to work out the ones with mostly mushrooms and vegetables so there wouldn’t be many surprises.”
The thing she would remember most as a traveler in the Philippines was how people point to things and directions with their lips.
“Mouths and eyebrows are a way of communications, as I found out,” she said. In India, they have something similar—a head bobble… When you begin to understand what they mean, each culture is unique. I like that about traveling.”
