Bantayan Island


i've come full circle. bantayan in cebu is the only "must-visit" place that haven't checked in the four years i've been living in this island paradise. from north to south, east and west, i've practically toured the island. but i never got the chance to visit this "famous" place. the closest i did was on a company outing to San Remigio but i wasn't particularly impressed with the beaches then.

fortunately, i got invited to join a trip to bantayan and although it wasn't really a photographer's trip, i was able to get some interesting pics of the tourist spots in the island. (click on read.more)

if you're planning a trip to bantayan you must catch the 2:30 AM bus trip from the North Bus Terminal to Bogo and San Remigio (Php 70). The bus drops you off at the Hagnaya port by around 6:00 AM, enough time to grab some breakfast and board the ferry that leaves at 6:30 AM (Php 150 aircon section). by 7:30 AM you dock on the port of Sta. Fe in Bantayan Island and you can arrange to get to your resort via any of the tricycle-vans (Php 20 / person).

By 8:00 AM you should be by the beach.

Everyone made for the beach and i decided to plop myself on a long bench to grab some snooze under a cottage in Sugar Beach. By 11 AM everyone boarded a boat that you can rent for Php 2,500 that will take you to the pristine Virgin Island just a little way off from the main island itself.

In case you recently won the lottery or knocked out a british boxer, you can afford to buy the island that's owned by this 70 year old virgin. I really don't know if that rumor is true but the island is a perfect setting for a wedding pictorial.

if you are planning to take the boat back to the main island by 1:30 PM the following day, i suggest you wake up pretty early and take a trike to Ogtong Beach Resort so you can check out the fresh water pool in Ogtong Caves. If it wasn't for the horde of tourists jumping into the water, it would have been a bit freaky dipping into the eerily still pool. The owners of the lot "conveniently" installed lights inside for those that are claustrophobic.

in any case, there's a lot of promise in the island but i would say that camotes island is lovelier. i am planning to do another visit though, this time to really get proper snaps of the place.

tip - bring lots of sunblock. as my other friends painfully realize, eeeeet hurts under the baking sun that is reflected on white sand.

Comments

Erich Jao said…
It's really purty there.
12:48 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

the sign

"Lord, give me a sign..." no, i haven't fallen victim to overly melodramatic movie lines. on the other hand, i actually did use these words while attending mass last sunday (Redemptorist, Cebu City). you see, i have been increasingly dissatisfied with matters regarding the church but not necessarily my faith. to a point that i am debating whether i should even attend mass. i was asking myself if i wanted to attend mass given the fact that the church is getting more political. sure, i understand liberation theology and standing up for what is morally right. but that is exactly the same thing that has been bothering me, the moral thingy. the local church is proclaiming that the current administration has no moral leadership. i am not refuting that claim, on the other hand, the church could have said the same thing about itself. except that they rather not comment on anything when it comes to issues facing the institutional church. and there are tons of dirt, make that hun...
Read more

a most unusual saint

Image
the title Black Magic Mary is enough to conjur images of a witch draped in black robes similar to that of the Virgin Mary albeit with a more sinister aura. in Sta. Maria Church in Siquijor, a saint wearing a black habit holds a skull in one hand and an "inverted cross" in another is fast gaining a reputation that is probably influenced by the mystic history of the island itself. locals have speculated that the skull is actually her husband's and that she murdered her husband for reasons that seems to have been lost in history. a bit of research show that the locals refer to the saint as Santa Rita de Siquijor, probably a Filipino convention where we name the Virgin Mary with annexes related to places (e.g. Our Lady of Guadalupe). my own research led me to discover this particular "myth" in an effort to know more about Santa Rita de Cascia who is the patron saint of a church and town named after her in Pampanga. The first thing that caught my attenti...
Read more

Cambugahay, Lazi, Siquijor

Image
CAMBUGAHAY FALLS three layered cambugahay falls, the water invites you to take a dip in its cool embrace Cambugayay falls  is accessible from the main highway of Lazi, Siquijor. a marker with Kris Aquino's face promoting Casino rubbing alcohol marks  the top of the 135 steps that leads to the landing area of the three tiered waterfalls that beckon visitors to take a dip in its gorgeously blue green water. side note, manong nonoy totally avoided the trek down to the pool in the pretext of watching over our car. moderate fitness is required for this one. looks inviting for a jump? some of the locals enjoying a splash in the pool. met a family having an excursion, this is the required "wacky" pose. interestingly, when i got the chance to chat up the family, they told me that while i was doing my "acrobatics" trying to frame my pictures, a monitor lizard casually walked behind me, paused for a bit while looking at me before sauntering of...
Read more