Philippine Travel Notes

If you are coming from Tacloban, this resort is still about 16 kilometers before the town center of Marabut. So don’t tell your driver you’re getting off at Marabut. Just say Caluwayan. In my case however, I was almost 2kms south of Marabut as said above is about 16kms south of Caluwayan, thus, I needed to backtrack that distance – very far for a trike and no habal-habal available. So I waited for a van or bus. And a bus came. I hopped in! Whoa the bus would have been brand new if today was 1969 hehe! But I needed a ride fast! (picture of bus seats in previous post) Caluwayan Palm Island Resort and Restaurant… that is the official name of the resort and it sits in a scenic cove on Barangay Kaluwayan. Now THIS, is the resort! This one is more on the upmarket category. No wonder even the Jasmin cashier intimated to me that although Caluwayan is more expensive than theirs, it is definitely more beautiful. The big lawn is well maintained. There are circular decorative concrete seemingly fl...

After breakfast at Jasmin, I asked one of the crews how I could get to Caluwayan Resort quickly. This means I would be backtracking towards Tacloban instead of going onwards to Guiuan. The reply was I should just wait for passing vans or buses going Tacloban and I observed earlier that the place is actually a bit far back. I asked if there was any boat I could commission to bring me out to Caluwayan (the waters here btw are very calm). “There is” but still being used. I asked if there was something like a habal-habal that I can take. The response was “ha?!”. By the way, in Marabut (as elsewhere on Samar and Leyte) the habal-habal is not a common way of transporting passengers unlike in the rest of the Visayas and Mindanao. There are motorbikes everywhere but generally for personal or official use. The commercial habal-habal rides are for trips to the mountains and remote villages (not in the towns much less the Maharlika Highway hehe). So I decided to go by bus or van. Before I could g...

Now now… if I thought Marabut was such a small laidback town, this is where it comes big… the resorts. It has a handful of resorts that offer accommodations for those who want to stay in this idyllic little paradise of a town. Either they’re before or after the town center. Handful as they are, I think if you combine the total land area occupied by these resorts, it’d be enormously wider than the poblacion itself hehe! My purpose in visiting this town was these resorts – just to see if any would be worthwhile bringing my friends and family to. Here we go… Where to and how?! After roaming the small township, I asked around on how I could go to Jasmin Beach Resort. One man I asked offered me a very comprehensive reply on how to do it hehe! He told me that I could actually walk going south of town and the resort would be about 1.5 kilometers or so. Or I could hitch a ride with any of the passing “single” motorbikes. Or I can wait for a tricycle as they come by from time to time. Otherwise...

I finally went there! What a 'small, laid back' place... and I think I like it! Going there I was on my way to Guiuan (Eastern Samar) to see Calicoan Island when I suddenly remembered that the vans pass by the town of Marabut in the province of Western Samar (more formally called just Samar). So, at the Duptours terminal in Tacloban, I asked if I could ride their vans going to either Guiuan or Borongan but only up to Marabut. The reply was “of course, sir” – and that was said in English ha?! So, on a bright sunny morning, I was on my P100 front seat ride to Marabut, Samar! What is there anyway? Well, you can browse the world wide web to know. As for me, I always say… I am not a caveman nor a highlander, I am just a “townsfolk” and a true blue “son of a beach”! Along the way Going out of Tacloban, I did a quick surf about Marabut. Thanks to my Omnia. I find nothing interesting on that ‘always under heavy traffic road’ exiting Tacloban towards the north. And mind you, the...

They’re everywhere! From Legaspi to Naga or even Manila. From Cubao to Sorsogon, Iloilo to Kalibo and onwards to Caticlan, Davao to GenSan, SM Cebu to Cordova, Tacloban to anywhere in Samar or Leyte etc etc! These vans as a mode of transport in trhis country must be taking a toll on the business of buses and jeeps. Well, they better hehe! The FX and Adventure era is slowly dissipating especially in the provinces. Different places call these different names like V-Hire, Shuttle, L3 (even if not) or just plainly van! Why are many commuters patronizing these vans – even preferring them to other modes of land transport? I have lately been observing these during my travels and my take is… - On some routes, vans run non-stop without picking passengers along the way - If they do, just a few stops as the capacity is less than a bus or jeep - They're faster than jeeps and can compete with a bus that stops everywhere - Many are (still) air-conditioned unlike the jeeps or multicabs ...

There are various modes in crossing the sea from Cebu City to Ormoc. You have a choice of various crafts from the big ships for passengers and cargo to even bigger RORO barges. But the most popular are the fast crafts namely WG&A’s Supercat and the Weesam Express. Who traverses the Cebu – Ormoc sea and vice versa? Well, mostly people from Biliran, Leyte and Samar. But in my crossings, I have encountered folks bound to or returning from Camotes Islands in Cebu province – even folks from/to the east-central parts of Mindanao. Exciting! Let me tell you all about them. To/From Leyte. Well, if you are coming from Cebu and the other visayan islands, the best way to approach Biliran, Leyte and Samar is via Ormoc City. Especially for those who live in or visit the north and northwestern parts like Biliran, Ormoc is a very crucial transit point. While there are also sea craft from Cebu to Baybay, Hilongos and Bato (all in the province of Leyte), many folks still find Ormoc more convenient. ...

Yes you can say that again hehe. They just sound "similiar" (that's my combination of 'similar' and 'familiar'). The amrican actor's name is Brad Pitt. The local comedian is named Brod Pete. This grill/bar in Tacloban City is a 'greenhouse kitchen' - what ever that means hehe! Yes, the 'creative' signs of out times...

I was roaming the city of Tacloban earlier today when nearing the pier I heard loud music and cheering. I thought there was another convoy of political candidates campaigning for the elections. It was not! It was the anniversary of McDonald’s existence in Tacloban. To celebrate, they had activities for their customers, there was loud music outside the store and the mascots were outside dancing. Some kids who are recipients of McDo’s social responsibility efforts were present. So why was there cheering from the sidewalks – especially from some people diagonally across the McDo store? Not wanting to be outshone even for just the day, the Jollibee store nearby let their mascot out to dance in the streets too. Even went too forward by walking near the McDo mascots, waving at people and vehicles passing the streets, he even waved at the children who were part of McDo’s celebrations. Naughty… naughty indeed. Like everyone else, I found the situation worth a chuckle but the OD specialist in m...