Philippines – Kayaking the clouds in Dumaguete and family time in Cavite

14 Mar 2019

Dumaguete

We opted in for a quick stay in Dumaguete located on Negros island before making our way back to Manila. Just a quick 1 hour-ish ferry ride from Siquijor it was too close to miss it completely.

*Kayaking in the clouds at the twin lakes*

Dumaguete city is certainly very busy even though not as busy as Cebu city or Manila. It has a nice beach promenade with stalls, bars and restaurants called Rizal Boulevard which makes for a nice stroll early evening followed by a few cold ones.

From Dumaguete city you can visit the Manjuyod Sandbar often referred to as “the Maldives of the Philippines” by scooter, bus or tuk tuk – it is a beautiful stretch of white beach in the middle of the ocean that only appears early morning and sometimes in the afternoon (depending on season). The locals have built authentic wooden huts selling fresh seafood and drinks. We hear it’s worth a visit if you can get up there early enough to be sure not to miss the right tide, unfortunately we missed it due some heavy rains on the day – better luck next time they say.

Luckily we did get to see the Twin Lakes, Lake Balinsasayao and Lake Danao. We rented a scooter in Dumaguete city and (avoiding rush hour) it’s only around 20min on the main road until you take the picturesque path up the mountain to the lake – take your time to enjoy the views, don’t rush in the tight turns and you can appreciate the stunning nature of the Cuernos de Negros mountain range on your way up.

When you arrive you can either get ferried across to the second lake or rent a kayak – since we had plenty of time and really wanted to explore we rented the kayak and enjoyed circling around the first lake in our own time and then headed to the viewing platform between the two lakes. The lakes are super clear and the rich forest surroundings add to the otherworldly atmosphere so high up the mountain. We enjoyed seeing the clouds come in when kayaking back, it felt as if we were in a different universe surrounded by water, forest and clouds – certainly couldn’t have felt further away from grey London weather and busy trains.

Cavite

After flying from (tiny) Dumaguete airport to Manila (with Philippine airlines, comfy flight and free luggage allowance!) we stayed in the city for a few nights and then finally got to meet Sam’s little half brothers and sister in Cavite!

Cavite is a fast growing province south of Metro Manila, we were heading to General Trias and although it is only around 35km away from central Manila this translates to an unbelievable two to three hours’ drive in crazy Philippine traffic. Like many places near cities in the Philippines it boasts with multiple malls with all the western and non-western shops you can imagine and also has quite a few local supermarkets as well as the (much cheaper) public market.

We stayed with Magda (Sam’s fathers wife) and Sam’s half-siblings in their lovely home. Magda was so very hospitable and welcoming giving us the five star guest treatment with yummy home cooked meals, introductions to all extended family, friends and neighbours and just made us feel very welcome – home away from home really!

We had a great time exploring Cavite away from the tourist tracks and enjoyed swimming in the local natural pools and waterfalls, going to the cinema with the siblings and had a great time fishing as well as BBQing and eating the catch there and then – who knew tilapia was so delicious?!?

We had a great time and will definitely be back to visit again in future!

A few hours bus ride and a quick four hour flight gets us to our next adventure – Hong Kong for Chinese New Year!!

Philippines – Siquijor – Witches, Shamans and Ghosts

15 Feb 2019

The Spanish colonials often referred to Siquijor as Isla del Fuego, the island of fire – this was apparently due to the magic red glow the coast line would have during dusk which was actually due to a mass of fireflies roaming the beaches at certain times of the year. Siquijor is an island surrounded by myths, it is said to have witches, voodoo and magic! Sounds intriguing? We thought so too and had to investigate ourselves!
Siquijor is a tiny island in between Cebu, Negros, Bohol and Mindanao (and note that it is realistically the farthest south you should safely travel in the Philippines as a tourist with Mindanao not advisable to visit). During our visit in January 2019 Siquijor still had a very unique charm to it, not many tourists roam the streets, you’ll find a handful of restaurants and accommodation around the San Juan area which are very budget friendly compared to the more touristy spots on Bohol, Cebu or Palawan. For now there is a certain “still a secret” vibe to it and the mythical stories you hear from the locals certainly add to the authentic atmosphere of the island – however we saw many building sites and new developments in the making during our stay and we hope against hope that Siquijor doesn’t lose its special charm to overdevelopment like Alona Beach on Bohol has.

As there are limited facilities on the island especially in terms of healthcare (i.e. there is no hospital) many locals rely on their traditional healers such as herbalists witches, mananambal, albularyo and shamans, most of which practice curing of ailments with a mix of herbal potions and faith healing such as chakra cleansing. Siquijor according to the witches is the best place to gather all the special medicinal herbs needed to practise effective healing magic. While I don’t doubt that herbal remedies can be very effective I’d personally draw the line when it comes to buying love potions (but hey, each to their own).

We got here with a quick 1 hour 40 min ferry ride from Bohol which was a little bumpy at times but nobody got sea sick. Siquijor’s biggest (albeit not very big) city is also called Siquijor with multiple ferries coming and going on a daily basis. We found that the region (you can’t really call it a city) of San Juan is the most charming, with a handful of restaurants, bars and shops.

We stayed in a budget double room at John and Lheas’s beach cottages which has direct access to the ocean and nice snorkelling. Owner and staff were very friendly, we could use the well equipped kitchen and rent a scooter from them for a good price. We actually ended up staying longer than expected because we liked it so much and got an even better rate after a bit of haggling (just over 8 Euros per night for private room with private bathroom, a bargain!)
If you’re looking to party the night away your options are very limited here although there is one great open air style party every Friday at Czars place to which the locals and travellers across the whole island flock alike (just be careful with pickpockets! Sam nearly had his wallet stolen but luckily his cat like reflexes prevented the culprit to get away with it!).

Best way to explore the island is by scooter, rates are cheap for a day and even cheaper if you want a scooter for longer and the roads are not busy at all. It’s a certain feeling exploring the island in your own way and taking your time with beautiful spots and hidden treasures you stumble across. The island really only has one main road circling the island so you can’t really get lost and you can easily cover half of the island in an unrushed 1.5 hours driving time.

As long as there is enough rainfall the waterfalls are great to explore (in dry season some of them are out of water). When at Cambugahay falls take a dip to cool down and pay a few pesos to use the rope swings into the falls, all surrounded by natural beauty – it’s really something you shouldn’t miss!

When you circle the island further you get to Salagdoong beach which isn’t just impressing with its nice stretch of beach and crystal clear waters but also has some fun cliff diving if you’re not feint hearted. Check with the locals on the tides and depth of water before committing yourself to literally jump of a cliff! We estimated the highest jump to be around 15 meters – and fortunately or unfortunately (depending which way you see it) the water wasn’t deep enough at our tim
e of visit so we had to skip this one – we had great fun jumping off the lower cliffs though at around 5-7 meters!

I still hear my mums words: “If your friend would jump off a cliff…” – mum, I am that friend!

We enjoyed a lovely evening with our friends having a traditional Filipino style meal with many different dishes to try – one of our friends that we met on Bohol is an amazing cook and spoiled us with squash, aubergine and papaya salads, freshly BBQ’ed tuna and (not to be missed at any Filipino meal) mountains of rice – yummy!!

During our visit a new myth was the talk of the town and all over the local news – apparently a ghost ship was spotted by the coast guard vanishing into the thick fog, it can be seen some nights between midnight and 1am but once you get a glimpse of it, it disappears!
We unfortunately weren’t lucky enough to spot it. There are three explanations to this in my opinion:

1. Some locals invented the ghost ship and with Siquijor’s mythical vibe it got blown out of proportion

2. The coast guard did see a ship and started pursuing it but lost track of it in the fog and as not to be in trouble with their superiors they said it was a ghost ship and it vanished
Or 3. There really was a ghost ship and we just didn’t have the luck to catch a glimpse of it – needless to say I prefer option number three and feel that if there is a place where this could happen it would be the Isla del Fuego – magical Siquijor!

Check back here for our adventure to the twin lakes on Dumaguete!

Philippines – Bohol – Reefs and Turtles

2 Feb 2019

Our adventure continues in beautiful Bohol, an island just a quick 90 min speed ferry ride away from Oslob, Cebu. Bohol has many beautiful sights to offer, next to the stunning chocolate hills (a rock formation on the inland) and a tarsier sanctuary (both best reached by renting a scooter) it also boasts with picture perfect beaches and a colourful diverse marine life.

We took said speed ferry from Oslob and arrived on Momo beach which was a short tuk tuk ride away from our first accommodation Isla Divina Inn. We opted in to stay here for Christmas and New Years since travel between the years can be hard as many locals are off enjoying time with their families and the public transport is somehow more minimalized. Isla Divina Inn comprises of multiple double bedrooms with private bathrooms and a shared kitchen located around 2 km from the famous Alona Beach (that makes it either a 30 min walk or a 100 peso quick tuk tuk ride away). Even though our room was lovely the accommodation itself was a little disappointing in some aspects, for example the water in the shower was actually salt water (as the pluming has not been done correctly and they ran out of fresh water), the pool had no filtration and was just to the brim full of chlorine and the shared kitchen could have really done with a thorough clean. We stayed at Isla Divina for a while and then opted in for a much cheaper accommodation near the beach which was an open air hostel called Alona Hammocks. This very simplified and yes, open air, accommodation has bunks and beds in a (for the lack of better words) tree house – even though we were a little skeptical at first, the owners, staff and other guests were so welcoming and friendly that we felt at home straight away. They offer free (hot and cold) drinking water, (cold but fresh water) showers and a nice breakfast included in the price! We haggled them down from their normal 300 pesos per person per night to 250 pesos (4,20 Euro) and (even though there is not much privacy to speak of) we really enjoyed our stay and can’t recommend the place enough (especially if you’re on a budget)!

Alona Beach itself is really beautiful with palm trees lining a nice stretch of white sand and all the restaurants, bars and shops your heart desires. You need to note though that just like El Nido on Palawan these days, its beauty made it so popular that it really is very busy. Granted we were there during holiday season so it might be less crowded during off season but you can tell just by the average prices of food and drink that it is very much a full on tourist destination. On the plus side this meant that we could enjoy all the food we desired during Christmas and treat ourselves to some home comforts. Plus you certainly don’t have to tuck in at 10 pm since the party scene is vibrant with bars for every taste, from the chilled Reggae bar, the live music beach bar, the dance club open at all hours to the fancy cocktail bars in the posh resorts.

So we certainly did not go hungry or bored over Christmas and New Year’s.
Our highlight in Bohol was our snorkelling trip to Balicasag Island, which is a tiny, basically uninhabited island in the midst of a marine conservation area. You can book tours from any of the guys on the beach (you will get asked approximately a million times during your stay) and after a bit of haggling we agreed on just under 12 Euros per person for the half day trip.

A spot of attempted dolphin watching on the way (we caught a glimpse of one!) makes the short boat ride even more entertaining. When you arrive at Balicasag island you will get a snorkel guide assigned that takes you to the different snorkelling sights in his little boat, once you’re there you can roam free (just keep an eye on the boat) and if you’re not a confident swimmer you can just stay holding on to the boat and let yourself be guided.
You will not regret going on the trip, Balicasag’s marine life is really breath-taking, from a beautiful reef boasting colonies of different types of corals to all the colourful and diverse fish you will not want to leave. The highlight of our trip was seeing three turtles in the wild, of which one even made a little show for us coming up for air (watch our video here: Turtle in Bohol!) and two of which we saw cuddle each other!

If you want some creature comforts and don’t mind a busy beach, Alona Beach is the location for you. We enjoyed our stay and all the great people (and turtles) we’ve met but decided after the “touristy” overload we need something more relaxing and off the beaten track – meet us next time on the tiny island of Siquijor, the “Island of fire”!

Philippines – Cebu – Whale sharks and Waterfalls

30 Dec 2018

Just like Thailand advertises with it being “the land of smiles”, the Philippines has their own tourism slogan: “It’s always more fun in the Philippines” – and let me tell you, they are absolutely right!

We fell in love with this beautiful island nation three years ago when we were on holiday with my brother and sister and we’ve wanted to come back ever since! The second we stepped foot into the country we couldn’t have felt more welcome – the Filipinos are really one of a kind and we fell in love with the country and its people all over again.

Manila

We booked a flight with (you guessed it) Air Asia from Langkawi over Kuala Lumpur to Manila which all went smoothly (only 3.5 hours from KL to Manila) and arrived in the middle of the night. Manila is one of those cities that never sleeps however and we had no issues at all getting a Grab taxi (we use the app which works great in cities) from the airport to our accommodation in Makati (the business district of Manila) for a reasonable price.

We stayed in a lovely new hotel called Zen Rooms Marvelle Studios which was super clean, comfy and had great staff.

We only had a few nights in Manila since we’ve already done the “touristy” bits a few years ago and came to Manila mainly to extend our tourist visa. On entry you’ll receive a 30 day visa for free (for sure German and British nationals do) and you can then extend your visa in any bureau of immigration. We extended for an additional 29 days and opted in for the express visa (meaning you’ll get it on the same day) which costs around 60 US $ per person. It took around three hours from start to finish and was pretty hassle free (but be aware that they only take cash so come with the right funds).

New visa in hand we enjoyed a crazy night out on Burgos street with its many karaoke bars and more surreal entertainment such as the Ringside bar which presents foxy boxing and midget boxing – but be aware that this is also partly a red light district and (especially when travelling in an all-male group) you’ll get hassled quite a bit.

From Manila we took a short flight into Cebu city!

Cebu

Whale Sharks

Cebu city is the most developed city in the Philippines after Manila and just like Manila the traffic is horrendous! We booked a place in a little town called Santander down the coast and even though it is only 150 km away from the airport it took us a good five hours to get there even though we opted in for a private driver (for around 48 Euro), it took a good three hours just getting out of the city!

Our accommodation was a charmingly rustic little place called MDF Beach Resort, owners and staff were very welcoming, helpful and friendly and with a very open and chilled atmosphere we quickly got to know the other guests and fellow travellers and made some great friends. There is also a great government protected marine sanctuary a short walk down the road with great snorkelling at high tide (for free!).

Here we also had our first experience of renting out a scooter, which was absolutely terrifying at first but after a while actually quite nice – Cebu is pretty easy to get around since there is just one very long main road circling the island along the coast, so all you need to know is if to turn left or right and you’ll get to your destination eventually. Be careful with the overtaking buses and lorries (some absolutely crazy driving!), take your time and go a speed you’re comfortable with and you’ll be fine.

If you go to Cebu the one thing you cannot miss are the whale sharks! The place to go for this is Oslob (which was around a 25min drive on a scooter from Santander). Best time to go is from 6am to 11am, apparently the earlier you go the more whale sharks you see but you’ll also have more crowds, we went around 8.30am and met three of these gentle giants with not too much of a crowd. Go straight to the actual place to get tickets (called Briefing) and don’t get hassled by the guys trying to pull you in and make you pay more, it is 1000 pesos per person (just under 17 Euro) and 10 pesos if you want to park your scooter (you shouldn’t be paying more than that).

Now at this point I have to say that even though these whale sharks are wild they are in Oslob all year around because the locals are feeding them. There is controversy around this mainly because some of the whale sharks have stopped migrating which they should do naturally and because the locals only feed them krill (so just one type of food) rather than the varied diet they’re supposed to have. The whale sharks are there by choice but researchers are worried that they are getting too comfortable having this food readily available. However the Philippines are investing a lot of funds (especially from the income of the whale shark tourists) into marine research and protecting their marine life so we hope that if it concludes that this type of tourism is actually harmful, they will decide to stop it – just like they’re one of the very few Asian countries that has very heavy sentences for dynamite fishing and is actively working on marine conservation.

That being said, you will be on one boat of many forming a half circle around the whale sharks, you’ll have to stay in the water at your boat and wait for them to come to you. There are strict rules on the required distance to keep and absolutely no touching which you’ll get briefed on before you set out.
But oh my! Meeting them was soooo amazing! It’s been our dream for such a long time and every previous snorkelling trip trying to spot them in the wild ended in failure, so we felt so very privileged to finally meet them!

At first they seem a little imposing, I think not many of us have experiences being in the water so close to such a large fish but once they come close you can just feel their gentle nature and you get comfortable watching them. They are making their rounds in their own time and you get to be in the water with them for around 30 min. It was such a great experience we didn’t want to get out of the water when the time was up and we were still excited about it days after. We fell in love with these gentle giants and will never forget this part of our adventure!

Waterfalls

Cebu island also boasts an abundance of waterfalls which impress travellers with their natural beauty time and time again.
The most famous one is Kawasan Falls which offers canyoneering trips or you can just go to the actual end of the waterfall for a swim, we heard the canyoneering is definitely a great experience and worthwhile doing.

However being a little short on time and the weather not always playing ball we personally opted in for the small version and went to see Aguinid Falls (which we could reach from our accommodation by foot in around one hour). You’ll have to pay 60 Pesos (1 Euro) entrance fee and will be given two guides that help you navigate through the different levels of the waterfall, in the end you should tip the guides as they are not being paid from the entrance fee (it goes to the conservation of the place), we gave them 100 Pesos each and they seemed very happy with that.

Aguinid Falls has stunning blue water, a cool spot for cliff diving and impresses with its natural beauty all around. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit and would recommend it if you’re short on time and/or short on budget.

For Christmas and New Year’s we’re staying on the beautiful island of Bohol, watch this space for our next adventure! Spoiler alert! There will be turtles!!!