the bohol experience

sorry for my delayed recounting of stories about my vacation. i finished carlos ruiz zafon's shadow of the wind. it was a nice suspense novel. it really got me hooked. however, i felt cheated upon reading it. it's a story about a boy trying to find the whereabouts of a dead author. it was so exciting on the first half of the book as he interviews people connected to the author. he finds out that not every interviewee had been so honest as he wished. there were plenty of twists as every mystery unfolds. however, later in the story, an old woman (one of the people who lied to the protagonist) dies but since she knows somebody is out to kill her, she composed a super long mail confessing it all - everything that the boy wanted to know. it's a fairly thick novel, and i really felt i wasted time reading it when i could just jump to the woman's mail.

when i returned the book, the librarian informed me that the twilight that i reserved had arrived - therefore delaying my story telling even more. i lost interest in the book a couple of weeks back, but im reading it now -- just in case some teenager asks me about it in the future.

back to bohol, i would have to say that this is the most fruitful vacation ever! this is the only long vacation that i'll have for 2009 so might as well maximize all resources available. i brought my entire family and my bff. we felt like millionaires spending as if we've got a fountain of money.

good thing about bohol is that there are plenty of things to do. money speaks but as long as you starve yourself for a couple of months, you should expect one of the best getaways you'll ever have.

i've been reading forums because i really want this vacation to be as close to perfect. it's no joke spending for five adults at the same time so there's really no room for travel woes.

summer came in early! woohoo!



we rented a big van on our first day for sightseeing. it was quite costly, but with our tired bodies from the early flight, it was worth it. it also helps that the driver is really knowledgeable about the sites in bohol.

first stop: sandugo site. it's really nothing, and i was a bit worried that the sites wouldn't live up to my standards.

next stop: baclayon church. one of the oldest churches in the phils. it even got a small museum. i saw a super old camera worth drooling over. the church is a beauty.

side view



inside the church


front of the church. it cannot get more pinoy, can it? the religiosity. the overloaded jeep. the festive banderitas.


with our grumbling stomach, all we could ever think of was food. so our driver took us to the loboc river for a lunch cruise. i watched panaghoy sa suba and i wanted to see the river eversince. it's not as fascinating as i expected but it's admittedly more than your ordinary river. good thing about this is that they take you to a small tribe with local performances - such as tree swinging, tribal musical instruments, etc. they try to be primitive and it has gotten so unconvincing that you just laugh at their attempt to relive the way of life back then.



what's bohol without the tarsier?


and chocolate hills? i have to say it's quite a disappointment. it's not as overwhelming as i imagined it to be during my school days.


we also passed by the 'man-made forest'. man-made in a sense that it's a school project of the boy and girl scouts some thirty or forty odd years ago.

last would have to be the butterfly garden. we all know the life cycle of a butterfly by heart, but the tour was really informative. one of the things that i love bohol is their good local guides. they're really articulate and they have that certain charismatic tone that will make you feel like you're on a school field trip. though you don't have to worry about doing a reaction paper afterwards. :p

then that's it for us for the day. we were thinking of having dinner at the restaurant with deaf and mute people as servers. however, we were dead tired that we woke up at 9pm, settling for the bulaluhan nearby.

next day, we were off to 'bohol bee farm'. another informative tour. we really got close to the tour guide and we really learned a lot about the behaviour of bees and worms.
bees are like human in a few ways that:
1. there can only be one queen in every colony - that's why wives and mothers in-law never get along
2. the workers are all female bees - need i say more?
3. the male bees go on whole day and slack around, only purpose to fornicate - again, need i say more? haha!

last trivia: worms are hermaphrodites and they really use them for burger patties. eewwww!!!

we were thinking of going back there after our tour for the day but when we inquired about their buffet dinner, it costs 500 pesos! not much, but if you're spending for 5 people, whom you know will not appreciate bougainvillea salad, might as well look for alternatives.






a school of fish


it rained heavily after that. we went to the shell museum. it was the site that i liked the least. shells are so much better when you pick them up from the shore.

next stop: panglao island nature resort! woohoo! the real start of the beach getaway. we went there for lunch with the glorious coconut juice. and the INFINITY POOL! it was uber uber nice!

last stop would have to be the hinagdanan cave. it's a small underground cave. but good for photo taking nonetheless. when i went to sagada a few years ago, i got so frustrated with the absence of souvenir photos. but with my dslr now... here are the photos...




we walked in one resort and we availed of a very cheap room. dirt cheap. problem is we all have to squeeze in one tiny room -- all five of us. emmy and i spent the night doing a mini photo shoot. and bonding.

we needed to wake up early because our call time with our boat guy is at 5am. this is how panglao looks like at dawn. no photoshop. it's really blue!!!




why the early call time? because we need to watch the dolphins at 7am! it's really a fun experience seeing the dolphins in their natural habitat, without doing any stunt. there were about twenty boats around the area and where ever the dolphins appear, all boats run to that area! it's like a race! woohoo!



and my most favourite part of bohol: balicasag island! snorkel galore! the reefs aren't as beautiful as palawan, but you'll be amazed at the variety of fish that you'll see. i've never seen so many colours in my life!



last boat stop: virgin island. it isn't 'virgin' for nothing. one of my visions of heaven






lover starfish


i thought it was a mistake to stay in panglao for our last day. we could have saved a lot of money had we stayed in tagbilaran. but with sunrise shots from alona beach such as these, how can you regret it?





i love bohol! and it was a good time to spend with my family! it's heartwarming to see my father clutching the seat on his first plane ride. or my mom's excitement when she sees the dolphins. or my sister's adventurous attitude. or emmy's patience whenever we shoot.. haaayy... best vacation evaaahhhhhh!!!