Philippine Travel Notes

Yes this was Sunday but we were not yet really homeward bound. This day was scheduled for us to roam the town of Sablayan and its environs for we leave this place early tomorrow morning. On arrival of our boat at the narrow docks near the Sablayan market, Manang Bidang and another daughter (sister of Mameng, mother of Arvee) was on port with the spanking clean new REVO! There was a brief discussion on which places we wanted to see versus how much time we had left since it was already mid-morning! I did not take part in that discussion obviously because I did not know much about this place and it seemed to me that anywhere we went was a totally welcome experience to me! And off we went! First stop was such a welcome side-trip I actually caused a delay in our itinerary. It was a TUNA STATION! A tuna what? Well, it is just the backyard of one businessman (family friend of Manang Bidang’s) whose business actually is to collect, haul and deliver big tuna fish to Manila, Calapan, Batangas an

As if on queue, as we were converging at the bar with all our belongings, we could see and hear our boat from a distance already approaching the island. So after everyone breathed a sigh of “bitin”, we all accepted that we were about to go away from this island. The going away is not that easy if, like me, you have a “weak heart”! Yes, as is common in many a resort in the Philippines, the boat crew will (with all their might) attempt to haul all your things from the resort down to the boat. But not in so many resorts all over the world will you see almost the entire crew dropping whatever it is they do then rush to the frontage of their resort just to bid adieu to as few as four unwilling souls. And all were in their uniforms when they come to hug us goodbye. Probably it was because we were the four out of five guests in the resort that they all had time to come bid us a final farewell! But it doesn’t take the melo-drama away from my heart. For me, it meant we were special. It meant th

At 830AM, Sunday, after more than 3 hours of uninterrupted sleep, I woke up via “natural causes”! That means no one was banging the bed and no alarm clocks roused me to be with the world again! I was still not opening my eyes but I could already hear different kinds of bird songs all around the cottage (including the talkative parrot in the distance) plus some chickens, turkeys and at least two or three geckos occasionally clacking – all probably already up and have started their day! There was also a faint swishing sound of one of the crews sweeping fallen leaves and other weeds off the yards of the cottages with a broom. Sensing that there was no evident movement or sound from any of my companions, I mustered that they must have already been up and out roaming the beach. So I excitedly got up thinking I must not miss shooting with my own camera the early morning sights in and about the island especially the sunrise. But I was surprised and murmured a soft protest to see that the thre

After that sumptuous dinner, we ambled our way to the bar. I never imagined there would be anything much to do in this place during the night so I thought the bar area was a nice place to stay as we let or stomachs settle! The bar was the only place in this resort with ample lighting. Everything here is solar powered, thus everyone is requested to conserve energy! Cottages have very minute bulbs for illumination which makes them even all the more romantic. But the bar was bit brighter and had a stereo playing dance tunes on CD courtesy of Mang Jimmy. When we all felt we could already drag ourselves to stroll (after that heavy dinner!), we decided to walk the twenty or so steps to the water’s edge. It was a moonless evening but the wash of the light from the bar could still reach us so we could still see each other! Mang Jimmy told us we could drag the plastic (monobloc) recliners to the water’s edge if we wanted to stay there – and we did just that. Nature must have been too busy showi

I was last at the shower and as I emerged from the cottage, we all heard Mameng shouting “dinneeeeer” on top of her voice. So we heeded that most welcome call and trooped from wherever we were to the bar area. We all thought dinner was to be had at that place since a portion of it looked like a restaurant or snack bar. Wrong assumption! From the bar area, we were led by a waitress through the surrounding garden to another building about ten or twenty meters away. And this was a finer structure! A rectangular building with thatched roof probably eight or ten or even twelve meters tall. Floor is concrete and slightly elevated from ground level. Three sides are open with just wooden balusters while the fourth side is enclosed – housing the kitchen and washroom areas. A big dining place for such small resort. I mustered this place could comfortably seat 50 diners. Perhaps even 70 or more! When we arrived at the dining area, we immediately recognized our table. I thought our table must have

By advise of Mang Jimmy, and by instinct, soonest after we dumped our belongings in the cottage, we started out to stroll the perimeter of the island! Oh great nature! We emerged from the bar and reception area to the beach (which is nothing more than seven or 8 steps away) and decided we should go walking to the left (eastwards) where the fine white sand lured us to. Going rightwards might have been equally fantastic but we saw that at the end of the sand were some boulders and cliffs that might have been a challenge to go through for a leisurely midday beach bumming. So walk we did! This was it! Walking, running, pausing, posing, laughing, splashing in the shallow waters, drawing things on the sand, chasing a sand-crab or two, marvelling at the sights, resting below some trees, ogling at an empty sea shell, throwing stones and sticks to the calm clear turquoise waters, singing, giggling, shouting and whatever else… there were only three human beings we could see around. And that was

Soon as the engine was shut at a few meters from shore, silence fell upon where we were. All we could hear was the mellow sound of lapping little waves on the sand, the gentle wind on the palms, a parrot (or is that parakeet?) that we could hear to be somewhere inside the reception area, and our voices sporadically disturbing the lazy mid-day silence. No, we did not jump into the waters yet. We were able to control ourselves, really! As we all got off the boat, two ladies and a guy clad in flowery tropical uniforms were by the water’s edge to greet and help us off the boat’s wooden plank and haul our “luggage”. As if we had too many of them luggage anyway! And as we entered the reception area cum bar cum play area of the resort, we were punctually offered welcome drinks – a delectable “iced-tea”! This was such a big receiving area (bar, restaurant, club-house, whatever) for the few of us visitors who just arrived. And at midday, a very “rural quiet” was the predominant ambiance. I say

From the Sablayan public market, the way to Pandan Island is a walk away. You stroll along a narrow street that fronts an equally narrow waterway that is some kind of a stream or river that leads out to sea. Before hopping unto the banca, we had to check-in with a little office of the tourism department right on this narrow street. We were asked to write our names on some kind of a registry and pay a few pesos (was that 15 or 20?) each – some kind of a toll or tax – probably for setting afoot on this newly-paved narrow riverbank. Once all aboard, our banca operator and his companion started the engine then off to paradise we were. The way out of this shallow river-mouth was already interesting. We passed by some little shacks erected on both sides of the waterway where women were washing their dishes, menfolk tending to their fishnets and/or the hulls/engines of their bancas, while children were having fun in the shallows. We were told the bigger bancas with “living quarters” were the

After another dusty ride on a seemingly endless gravel road from Mamburao, we finally set foot again on concrete road and I gathered we were finally in the town of Sablayan – our destination as far as the bus ride was concerned. Finally! I literally jumped out of the bus when my companion asked the driver to stop and let us off! Okay, for ease of prose, let us try to name names here. Let us call my companion who had relatives in Sablayan as Sheila. Our other companion, a common friend is the ever jolly and lively Barry. Okay?! Well, Sheila had txtd and called her cousin (actually Aunt) to inform her that we were already in the town of Sablayan. We were much at ease calling her a cousin of Sheila’s than an aunt since she is just about our age. Let’s call her Mameng. She is the daughter of Manang Bidang who is a sister of one of Sheila’s grandparents. So Mameng is actually the first cousin of one of Sheila’s parents. Okay? Enough! Mameng came rushing on a spanking new REVO to fetch us by

My first and only Mangyan Encounter, so far! Somewhere along the way, a group of native Mangyans (yes, Mangyan aborigines) joined the trip. There were seven of them. Two adult females, two adult males, two girls probably 3 and 12 years old and a boy about 7 to 9 years old. The two men loaded their produce, some live animals and themselves to the top of the bus (where some menfolk were already seated during the ride) while the women and children hopped into the inside of the bus. My heart sank at the next occurrence... The bus conductor was harshly commanding them on where to sit as if they were dogs being asked to follow a trick. I saw the three children sit on a vacant seat near me but the conductor directed them to take the rear seats as if they were dreaded lepers or diseased persons who were not qualified to sit in the bus other than the last rows. The kids obliged, am sure not because of what was being said but because they understood the conductor’s waving hand and the tone of hi

Culture-education and the ultimate test of my patience! Yep, this was the bus ride! In my mind I was cursing why we were seated on this bus. A mini-bus actually. I was seated on the right side of the bus, window side of course. I couldn’t let this trip pass without seeing the countryside as we rode along! My seat was a two-seater but on departure, no one sat beside me. My companions were on the left side just across me. They were on a three-seater but it looked to me that the seat was just enough to fit the two of them. No one also sat beside them when the bus departed from the pier. The distance between my back-rest to that one in front of me was less than two feet. How did I know this? I have already measured long ago that when seated, the length from my lower-back to my knees is exactly 22.5 inches. But on this seat, I could not sit erect facing front! Without a choice, my legs had to be at an angle from my body – which is probably the reason why no one opted to sit beside me! This

The skies were just showing hints of light. The moon was still up. We could already see the horizon. The hills and the trees were still generally shadows. But we could already make out of what they were. This was very early morning at the Abra De Ilog Pier. The breeze was cozy and we could smell a new kind of freshness in the wafts. It was quite a sensation actually. We excitedly watched our boat try to position itself correctly on its docking assignment. A crew member (probably the captain of the ship) was moving around and barking at a handheld radio for instructions. One time he even stood right beside me, watching the movements of the RORO and very seriously giving out instructions through his radio. Finally the plank was lowered to the pier’s pavement. Oh this was the rear of our boat! And chaos descended upon earth again! With the plank not even fully laid on the pavement, a group of fifty men or so jumped into the boat running as fast as they could towards its inner parts. As we

Boarding time Boarding call came at exactly 2:42AM! Upon the boarding announcement via a low-grade P.A. System – which was even hard to understand, people in various levels of sleepiness rushed to the gate like bees to a hive – or even like dogs in a mad scramble for a piece of meat! We wondered why, but just as well, we joined in that mad scramble, shoving and pushing our way to be able to present our tickets to the gate steward like everyone else! Here was an orderly boarding sequence where there were probably nine lines that approached the gate-keeper! Oh gracious! Emerging from the gate – which actually means being out of the building and on to the pier’s pavement, we excitedly took pictures here and there, took video shoots in the dark and just enjoyed the leisurely walk towards the boat. It was about a hundred meter or so walk. Probably even more! As we approached the boat (and another steward of Montenegro Shipping Lines who checked our tickets) an old lady came up to me to ask