Philippine Travel Notes

When anyone talks about Siargao Island, this town’s name always comes up. And for many travelers, the two names have even become synonyms! But General Luna is just one of 8 towns that comprise the whole island of Siargao. And general Luna is not even the commercial hub. But yes, it is the surfer’s paradise – meaning it is where most accommodations for surfers are located. Thus, it has become a resort town. While there, I thought of roaming around this quiet little town just to see for myself what else is there aside from the surf. I had my fill of unusual things to awe me by. Really! Here we go… Ramble-rumble. One of the very first things a first-time visitor to Siargao should notice is that unending thunderous sound from a distance. At first, it got me a bit alarmed, but since no one seemed to mind, I told myself to calm down and let that tidal-wavic sound be. THAT is the constant sound of the waves from out in the pacific rushing towards the surf area. Oh my! White line. Looking at t...

Everywhere in this archipelago, an arriving boat attracts hoards of folks eager to take you on as passenger in their jeep, van, bus or habal-habal. Thats almost the same case at Dapa Pier on Siargao Island, BUT it is way far from the chaotic Batangas Port. Drivers, dispatchers, barkers all wait outside of the arrival gate. Then they approach passengers not shouting nor shoving and pushing their way as in the ugly Batangas Port. At Dapa, if you ignored them, they get to the next prospect and leave you alone. So they left me alone and I watched them for a while. Most were habal-habal and tricycle drivers so I asked one of them where the jeeps were. The reply was “walang jeep dito”. I knew that was generally a lie or a purposely-misleading reply so I would ride his tricycle. If one would be technical about it though, his reply was a fact. Translated, that meant “there are no jeeps here”. True, because a guard told me that the jeeps are parked and waiting for passengers at the other side (...

By outrigger boat… and that was a practical choice since I was already at Surigao City. I asked around the previous day and concluded that the best way was to hop on a boat called Bretphil at 6AM. I saw that boat … a big outrigger where there are two levels or decks. The early departure from Surigao meant an early arrival on Siargao that would afford me more time to explore the place. Nice plan but it did not happen hehe! Why? Well, when I woke up 5AM on my intended day of departure, the skies were very dark and there was a heavy downpour. Everywhere looked like it was still midnight. Gosh! Either I still wanted to sleep or was afraid to sail at such a weather condition… but that was it… no-go! Over breakfast though (still at Tavern Hotel), I did get some encouragement from the crews and the sun that played hide and seek with the clouds. The hesitation was still there since light drizzles were not totally off! There was a 1030AM schedule via a boat called Argie 2, and I could see it fr...