2 November 2023
What better way to celebrate a birthday than to be able to admire some more of the 7’641 islands that officially comprise the Philippines. And how would Palawan stack up against them – Bohol, Siquijor, Apo Island, Negros Oriental and Cebu? We headed off to find out.
Day 1 – Bohol
We flew into Tagbilaran via Manila and stayed at the Blue Planet hotel close to the airport. It was quiet and relaxing there, far from the madding crowd at nearby Alona Beach which was noisy, crowded and dirty. How can holidaymakers lie on such a beach, have they never heard of Palawan?
Day 2 – Bohol
Our driver hired for the day took us to the Chocolate Hills (1,776 cone-shaped mounds, awesome), a small nature park featuring tarsiers (lovely, cuddly but shy little things), a man-made mahogany forest, a hanging bamboo bridge, the Loboc River Cruise (short but sweet with wonderful local singers and dancers to serenade us as we sailed past), the Baclayon Church (founded by Jesuit priests in 1596), and finally, the Blood Compact memorial (scene of the first West/East peace agreement dating from 1565) - a very full but satisfying day. We were impressed with Bohol – clean, forward-looking but with lots of history, great fauna and flora, superb roads.
Day 3 – Siquijor
A 2 hour ferry ride from Tagbilaran brought us to Lorena port in Siquijor. We spent the rest of the day chilling at the Coco Grove Resort (similar to the Astoria here in Palawan but with a less attractive beach) on the other side of this small but cute island with very friendly people.
Day 4 – Apo Island
We joined the hotel tour to this minute island famous for its turtles, multi-coloured corals and exotic tropical fish. Mylene proved very adept at snorkelling, following numerous giant sea-turtles across the ocean floor whereas I had a little more difficulty in trying to keep up with her. Nevertheless, it was amazing to experience such marvels up close. These are truly the Philippines’ greatest natural assets.
Day 5 – Dumaguete (Negros Oriental)
Dumaguete was reached by a one-hour ferry ride from Siquijor. We stayed at the Henry Hotel, an oasis of calm in a rather chaotic and dull city which failed to meet our (obviously too high) expectations. Arriving in All Saints holiday week, we found most of the museums, including the esteemed Anthropology Museum at Silliman University, to be closed unfortunately. Apart from Robinson’s Mall and a long walk along the local Baywalk, we were at a loss as to what to do with our time (now that doesn’t happen too often ..)
Day 6 – Dumaguete/Cebu
Perhaps Dumaguete was best explored outside the city, we thought. Our driver brought us to Pulangbato Waterfall (impressive), Red Rock Hot Springs (very relaxing and highly recommended), the Lighthouse and a WW2 museum featuring an impressive collection of Japanese and American paraphernalia. Still, it ended up being a rather quick tour and we were happy to hop on the short flight to Cebu that evening.
Day 7 – Cebu/PPC
Our second trio to Cebu City led us this time to Fort Pedro, the Church of Santo Nino, the Casa Gorordo and the Chinese Temple, all well worth the visit. That evening, we had perhaps our best meal of the whole trip, a Japanese BBQ at the Ayala Mall. Then it was back to Puerto.
All in all, it was a very intensive and interesting week in which we explored many of the delights that this country has to offer. Having said that, we have yet to visit an island that can match Palawan for its outstanding natural beauty. But then again, we still have 7’635 islands to go 😊.
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