Date Composed: August 22,2007
Day 1, Saturday (City Tour)
As we prepared for our early 8am flight via Cebu Pacific, we were dubious about our whole trip as the outgoing typhoon Egay still taking its "last minute" scathe on the whole of Metro Manila. When we left Sta Mesa onboard the taxi as early as 5am, we saw flooded streets which only added our concern. Previous to that, we called Cebu Pacific and asked for confirmation of the flight. There was no cancellation on any flight, including that of ours which was bound for Puerto Princesa. After waiting for roughly 2 hours at the boarding area, my cousin Ate Cathy, her officemates Ate Eva & May Ann, and I boarded the plane. From doubt, there was now excitement hounding us. In an hour we will be reaching Palawan. We were all new to Palawan and I was more excited because this has been one of my most sought destinations in the country. Palawan has been my number 3 destination, next to Batanes, with Camiguin as the 2nd. After my Camiguin escapade last year, I was planning for this one. And I was close to realizing it. Around 930am, we arrived at the premier city of Palawan, with so much exhilaration that we took pictures everywhere. We found Mildred (who was carrying a board with my name on it) and proceeded to Lola Itang's, a nice accomodation we got which is simple and affordable. We had our lunch at the inn, took some rest and waited for the 130pm City Tour. Along with a group of 5 adults and a couple, we (four of us) started our city tour with our guide Cora. We were directed through the major tourist destinations in the city. We started off at an old Catholic church - Immaculate Concepcion Cathedral and adjacent to it was a public square known as Plaza Cuartel, a place where about 150 Americans were burned by Japanese soldiers during World War II. Our guide Cora then oriented us of the 2 kinds of crocodile found in the country - Salt Water and Philippine Fresh Water Crocodile before going to Crocodile Farm. After a 30 minute tour around the farm, we moved on to Iwahig Penal Colony. Passing through fire trees and getting a view of Mt. Irawan, we were led to a vast plantation akin to a hacienda and stopped at a small and old souvenir store where items made by the inmates were displayed. The inmates within the penal colony dressed according to their sentence - color-coded that is, with brown, blue and orange signifying minimum, medium and maximum sentence, respectively. As we left the settlement, I pondered on some thoughts -- thoughts about how important freedom was. The whole tour also drew us to Butterfly Farm, Mitra Ranch, & Baker's Hill. Going back to the inn, we asked Cora to drop us off the market. We ended the first day with a light dinner and an early rest.
Day 2 (Underground River Tour)
When I made the initial itinerary a month before our trip, I scheduled the Honda Bay tour on Day 2. But when I had a small chat with Mildred shortly after we arrived on Day 1, she recommended the Underground river which was supposed to be on our Day 3. Though it was a long travel from the city, it was less exhausting compared to the "swim and snorkel all day" Honda Bay tour. So I decided to shift Day2 and Day3. We started off at around 8am, with the same group we had on Day 1 except for the couple who opted to go to Dos Palmas(sosyal sila --- la na kami budget dun). After taking a short break at a rest area, we took some shots on the rooftop overlooking Tres Marias while doing some little stretching. We then continued our trip with the traditional question and answer together with the same guide we had on Day 1, Cora. Our group was lively, thanks to a bouncy group of adults we had in the tour, notably a balikbayan from Los Angeles -- Mr. Edward Booth. Seemed like a foreign sounding name but this spirited man was a Filipino with Irish Scottish descent (his grandfather was). Along with his wife and inlaws, they told us they have planned this trip a long time ago, like more than a year and quite amused when we told him we only have planned this trip for around 4 months. "Iba na talga ang matatanda pag nagplano noh...", he chuckled. Along the long and winding road,we passed on byways, tall trees, little swamps, narrow paths going to caves, boulders, plantations of some fruit trees, and an awesome view of limestones cliffs. We marvelled at the mountain ranges that appear like a humanface in a resting position. I felt good seeing those mountains and limestones... not to mention dying to climb those formations. I realized I have not climbed for like 2 months now and my feeling on the mountain seem to remind me of what I have missed so badly. Yet, it made me feel better being in Palawan and getting to see the famous Puerto Princesa Subterranean River, the longest underground river in the world. Arriving at the Sabang Bay around 1030am, we prepared our stuffs going to the river and left some which will not be needed. Our group was separated from the group of 5 adults as one boat can only carry 5 - 6 persons. After a 15 minute boat ride and with our guide Cora aboard, we we're amazed by the scenery we saw when we got off the boat. With the powdery beach welcoming us to the Puerto Princesa Underground River National Park, all we can utter was a big WOW!!!! We tooka 5 minute nature trail walk towards the registration near the underground river. Walking past through jumping and walking monkeys, I was astounded by the sight that beheld us. It was a visual feast worthy of glory. I was dumbfounded. Really. I was standing for like a minute and basking from that "beauty beyond wonder" thing. I got a sense of pride as a Filipino having these natural wonders that wowed a lot of both local and foreign tourists. As we waited for our turn (which is quite a while given the number of people flocking in and out - - roughly 50 at that hour), we walked around and took some shots on the surrounding. Of course, the trip will not be complete without solo pics having the underground river as the backdrop. The river around was unbelievably pristine, with fishes swimming around on 12-inch deep water. The park was so well preserved that we can even see wildreptiles ("bayawak" in Tagalog) roaming around stream. My cousin Ate Cathy delighted when she caught a striped fish about 3 inches long and putit inside an empty bottled water. Her delight turned to dismay when ourguide Cora informed us that she might not be able to transport the fish outside Palawan due to DENR regulation, unless she had purchased the latter. After releasing the aquatic vertebrate back to where it belonged, we had to wait for the 4th banca to come out of the river before we can start navigating. Out of the 8.2 km stretch of still water, only 1.5km was navigable. As the 4th banca approached the anchor site, we donned on our floating vests and jumped in as soon as everyone got off from the boat. I switched my point-and-shoot camera to video. Damn I wish I have enough battery to cover the whole of the navigation. As we entered the cave, I got a quick video of us in the boat, and reserved the rest for the inside shots. Sitting in the front row with Mr Booth, our guide asked him to attach the clip to the battery that will supply the boat's power. Amidst the darkness, our boat passed through stalactites, stalagmites and dangling bats which appeared like black spots on the roof cave. With only the light from the boat, our guide explained the different shapes of stalactites hanging from theroof of the cave. From the vegetable and fruit "area" exposing shapes of patola, ampalaya, lettuce, tomato, onions, okras and a lot more veggies,we we're even impressed by the shapes of some animals like duck, snake and some that I can't remember. Rowing through the calm waters inside the cave, he then maneuvered towards the east side revealing a narrow path that seemed like an exciting river trail which was not part of river tour. Far right was a towering rock formation seated below few manlike and saintly forms (some with forms of the Virgin Mary). As we reached the end of the navigable portion, we felt like there were still more to this enchanting underground enclosure. Going back, there were still more forms and shapesthat kept us amazed, from the glittering white wedged-shaped drops inviting for a touch to a face resembling that of Christ. With only the lights coming from the boats entering the caves, we can see faint figures of some remarkable casts hanging above us. After 45 minutes of navigating through the underground river, we left the park and headed for the Sabang beach for ourlunch. It was around 1pm and we're all starved. After a well-deserved meal, we dabbled on the beach for a short dip and left Sabang around 230pm. Day 2 ended with a short stop at the Vietnamese Village before heading to our hotel.
Day 3 (Honda Bay)
Getting ready for a "swim and snorkel" all day escapade, we left the hotel at around 7am, ate at a nearby fastfood restaurant and left roughly 8am. After a brief 30-minute travel, we registered at the Honda Bay and departed for the first island - Pandan Island. Sailing under the beaming sun, we were granted with a momentary coral reef watching amidst the bay. Under the turquoise and crystal clear water rested reefs that were just beyond pleasing and beautiful. Luckily, I was able to get a video of the reefs. Setting ashore Pandan Islandat about 10am, we prepared our swimming gears. Donning on a pair of aqua shoes, floating vests and snorkeling gear, May Ann and I started feeding the fishes in knee-deeped waters. Fishes are finning and jumping like excited toads even in shallow waters. Fishes of all shapes and colors encircled us and feeling the tiny bites of these aquatic creatures were simply exhilarating. We were guidedby one of the boatmen on the far and more bountiful side and it was of the most thrilling experience I had. Having a visual feast of black-colored, orange, brown with green stripes, blue green and white fishes were undescribably breathtaking. We snorkeled for almost an hour and took our seafood feast lunch(which is by the way included in the Honda Bay tour - 900/person). The group of5 adults who were with us for the other tours on Days 1 and 2 bought 3 kilos ofcrabs on the island and we were engulfed with so much food -- more like a "save the best for last" lunch. After a couple of picture taking, we left Pandan Island at 12 noon and headed for the 2nd island - Snake Island. Once we set our foot on the island, we can't help but be mezmerized by it's unique shape and beauty. The S-shaped island explained why it was called the Snake Island, not because there were snakes on it. We decided to stroll along the 1km stretch (I guess more than 1 km) of powdery white sand beach but when it was half way, the other 3 gave up while I continued looking for something unusual. Indeed there was one - a small hidden tree house alongside medium-sized mangroves, where I heard voices of boatmen. When it was 10m left of what I thought was the end I decided to go back as our time was only limited to an hour. Having "ruined" my camera by my own stupidity (submerged it earlier on Pandan Island with flimsy waterproofing), I was contented with taking pictures of the island and myself with my mobile phone camera. The island was indeed breathtaking, akin to the White Island in Camiguin. I hurried back to the snorkeling area and joined May Ann who already started to swim with the fishes. My cousin Ate Cathy and her friend Ate Eva were satisfied with taking pictures around the beach front. Once May Ann and I plunged into the deep waters, we were awestruck by another exquisite visual feast of motleys of aquatic vertebrates (fishes, that is)--- from the black ones, brightest blue with yellow tails, black with orange stripes to the seemingly alarming swordfish possessing a needle shaped mouth ready to prick anybody or anything along its way. Slightly disturbed by the "scary" swordfish, I averted from its path only to be amazed again by an incomparable medium-sized fish which appeared to be avoiding the "crowd". It was a blending of 6 striking colors -- neon green, blue green, yellow green, yellow,black and sky blue. Unbelievably beautiful!!!! As if that was not enough to mezmerize me, I was greeted by a strange Tabangka, a territorial fish camouflaging in the sand, glinted and miming like it was telling me "Thank you for coming Ma'am. Please come again." Wow!!! Such experience I will never forget. But we still have one more island to explore. Leaving the captivating Snake Island roughly an hour after we set in, we moved to our final destination-- Starfish Island. We then looked for starfishes but we only saw few of them. I got to see few similar fishes from Pandan and Snake but none compared to the 6-colored one and the strange Tabangka. Setting off the Honda Bay Islands, wewere more than satisfied and thrilled with the one-of-a-kind aquatic experience.
Day 4 (Departure)
On a final note, my experience in Palawan was enough to convince me to probably consider settling in this majestic place. I would, and probably looked at such possibilities... Who knows --- I might buy one of the many islands of this province someday... I would love to --- after all, one of my numerous dreams is owning a beach resort.
