"You'll forget that you're sick of the big waves when you're having a lot of fun until you're not sick anymore."
-Alvi Jane M. Hatamosa
May 20, 2015, I had my first 2015 summer getaway with my family. We started our journey from Marigondon, Lapu-Lapu. There is a small port, there, were small and big pump boats anchored. We rented a big pump boat which can carry like 20 people but we were only 10. The rent costs P8,000 for a whole day usage. Basically, this trip was my dad's business trip together with his business partner, which was to visit the seaweed farm of the islands near Bohol but I was glad that dad wanted us to come with him so that we could enjoy our summer vacation. Dad's business partner brought his family with him as well, so there were two families on one boat. We also brought foods and snacks for our trip. There are no floating restaurants on the middle of the sea, you know. To have less expenses, we prepared the foods ourselves at home instead of buying foods outside.
We left the port around 9:00 a.m. and head to the Sanctuary Sea, where aquamarine life are protected by law and fishing there was prohibited. It was a place for fishes to breed and live naturally without human disturbances. It was so beautiful and it looked so magical to see the waters for it glows like aqua blue gems and the seabed was visible but that does not mean it is shallow. Near the Sanctuary Sea, there were huts standing on the middle of the sea and under those huts and around them beneath the sea was where the seaweed farm was located so we stopped by there while dad did his work. Unfortunately we were not allowed to swim due to the strong current. The wind was strong and the waves were big enough to make you sick, not for me though. So I was really disappointed but it was better to stay safe than to be sorry. After quiet some time, we had to leave and head to another seaweed farm but unfortunately our engine failed so it had to be fixed by the operator of the boat. We were lucky that the men from the huts nearby were the friends of my dad's business partner. They let us borrow their pump boat's batteries for our engine. It took hours for them to fix the engine therefore our trip was delayed. We arrived there 12:00nn and took off around 3:30 p.m already. Within that duration, I only took some pictures, ate snacks, admire the scenery for awhile and took a nap.
We left the port around 9:00 a.m. and head to the Sanctuary Sea, where aquamarine life are protected by law and fishing there was prohibited. It was a place for fishes to breed and live naturally without human disturbances. It was so beautiful and it looked so magical to see the waters for it glows like aqua blue gems and the seabed was visible but that does not mean it is shallow. Near the Sanctuary Sea, there were huts standing on the middle of the sea and under those huts and around them beneath the sea was where the seaweed farm was located so we stopped by there while dad did his work. Unfortunately we were not allowed to swim due to the strong current. The wind was strong and the waves were big enough to make you sick, not for me though. So I was really disappointed but it was better to stay safe than to be sorry. After quiet some time, we had to leave and head to another seaweed farm but unfortunately our engine failed so it had to be fixed by the operator of the boat. We were lucky that the men from the huts nearby were the friends of my dad's business partner. They let us borrow their pump boat's batteries for our engine. It took hours for them to fix the engine therefore our trip was delayed. We arrived there 12:00nn and took off around 3:30 p.m already. Within that duration, I only took some pictures, ate snacks, admire the scenery for awhile and took a nap.
3:30 p.m. we took off and arrived at Bilangbilangan Island at 4:00 p.m. It was not that far. Our boat stopped like 1 kilometer away from the land due to the shallow waters. From our boat, dad and his partner had to go with another small paddling boat to get to the land while our boat anchored far away from the land. The small paddling boat was used by my dad and his partner to transfer from the boat to the land back and forth. Me and my cousin and the kids had the time of our lives there. The boat that we were on already had numbers of life jackets kept. They used them while I was snorkeling under the sea. Yes, it was a little bit fun even though there were lots of sea grasses nearby and some floating dead grasses around us but staying too long in the waters wasn't good. The salinity there was high that it kinda stings and it was quiet painful as if I already had sunburns even though I didn't one. Because of the high salinity, I was always craving for cold water to pour all over my face and drink to keep my eyes and lips hydrated. Opening your eyes under the water was almost impossible and my lips dried up so quick. No wonder most of the seaweeds failed to grow there but as for the starfish? Nope, they were plenty of them there. You can see them almost everywhere.
We left Bilangbilangan Island almost 5:00 p.m. We were suppose to go back home on the same day but due to the time, it was almost getting dark and heading back to Cebu was too risky. Luckily, we were near Bohol so we dropped by at Talibon Port of Bohol and we spent the whole night at the Talibon Pension house which is located further from the the Talibon Port. We spent P1,500 for an air conditioned room which had 4 beds, good for one family. We were disappointed because we didn't get a good night sleep. The air-con wasn't functioning well and it was really hot. The CR maintenance was low. It was clean but the water coming out from the faucet was dirty at first. My family were more concerned with the air-condition. My cousin had to stay awake at 3:00 a.m just to stand in front of the fridge to keep her cool while we were sweating like hell. We had dinner at Talibon Public Market. There were few stalls there of different variety of foods and barbecues. I enjoyed my dinner there. It was so delicious! We spent 500 pesos for dinner which was already good for 10 persons. My stomach was totally stuffed already. My advice though is to buy bottled water from sari-sari stores. The 1 liter bottled water from sari-sari stores costs 18-20 pesos but buying the same bottled water from the stalls costs 30 pesos.
The next day, as early as 7:00 a.m, we checked out from the pension house and head to the Public Market to buy some puso-hanging rice(a popular Visayan Rice), bread, fruits, calamay-a sweet sticky delicacy, a popular dessert of Bohol(You can buy 3 bowls of it worth 100 pesos) and fresh pork meat and fish. We grilled fish and pork on the same boat we rented and ate brunch while we took off from Talibon port.
The next day, as early as 7:00 a.m, we checked out from the pension house and head to the Public Market to buy some puso-hanging rice(a popular Visayan Rice), bread, fruits, calamay-a sweet sticky delicacy, a popular dessert of Bohol(You can buy 3 bowls of it worth 100 pesos) and fresh pork meat and fish. We grilled fish and pork on the same boat we rented and ate brunch while we took off from Talibon port.
We were suppose to head back to Marigondon but the operator of the boat was very kind to us that he stopped the boat near the Olango Island where the waters were so clear and blue. My dad was surprised. The operators did not charge us for stopping by at Talibon and in Olango Island for it was something to pay us back for delaying our trip from Day 1 at the Sanctuary Sea. I was so happy and excited to dip myself on to the cold waters of Olango Island. It was far better than the Bilangbilangan Island. It is definitely a good place for snorkel since you can see different type of fishes swimming around, star fishes and seashells. As we stayed longer there, small paddling boats would come to us and present their good catches like lobsters, seashells, sea urchins and fishes for a good price. We bought some from them too. I really had fun and I enjoyed Day 2 better than Day 1. We decided to grill the fishes and the seashells we bought for lunch on the boat rather than going to the restaurant in Olango Island. It was truly an amazing experience. It is like we had our own floating restaurant there.
After staying there long, we then decided to head back to Marigondon Port. It was time to head back home with a very dark skin. A remarkable proof of how I enjoyed my 2015 summer getaway!