Pump Boat

I've been spotted!

Convertible Kayak

So the things to do around El Nido is practically hop on a boat and cruise around the Bacuit Archipelago. Wasn’t too keen on joining a tourist guide with one of the organized trips just yet so I took an alternative and rented out a kayak for the day (P800). Now I haven’t used a kayak in years so I didn’t really know how well Id go out there, but fuck it. Just wing it; I know how to swim if the kayak somehow blew up?

Looking at the map Id be clocking up some miles with the places I intended to check out, id see how id go through the day I guess. I was cruising smoothly along my paddle, it was a bit overcast but the water was still clear and not that bumpy. Being out on your own, without the noise of an engine boat or having a companion with you in this environment is just awesome. Those photos above don’t do justice to the scale and beauty of this place. I was in constant awe every turn I took.

Through the journey I found some deserted beach spots where id walk around checking out the eco-system and trying to find young coconuts to drink and eat. After a good three hours of paddling around I would find another beach spot have my “packed lunch” (packet of chips and a bottle of water) and then enjoy a peaceful snooze under a coconut tree. Anyways for the rest of the day id paddle around islands and even checked out this amazing lagoon tucked away in this little bypass of an island. With the towering limestone cliffs and the aqua coloured water, it was seriously a sight to see!

Now the trip back home was a bitch of a ride. I would have probably clocked up a good 14kms and still had to head back home, which was about 7 or 8kms away. My arms were starting to ache, I was running out of water and it wasn’t helping having to deal with the bumpy seas and the stupid current constantly changing my direction. Oh and I had fucked up my Blackberry as I was using it for tunes. Bit of water kinda got on it and it shat itself. Anyways with only a few hundred meters to go I was nearly there! I remember yelling out to the ocean to “Go fuck yourself”, that I had won! Floating there I took in the scenery for one last time, then I heard this splashing sound, I looked around and from the distance I saw some sort of flying fish coming straight at me and it didn’t look like it was ready to stop. Squealing like a bitch I grabbed my paddle and did a Sir Donald Bradman and blocked that sucker from sinking my battle ship. I guess this was the oceans reply from my “Go fuck yourself” comment. I later did some research on what type of fish it was and seems to be some sort of barracuda?

Fresh Sardines

Click on image for higher-res

Tuesday morning, I organised my trip to El Nido, a five or so hour drive north. Compared to all the other trips I’ve had to deal with during my adventure here, this would probably be up there as the worst I’ve had to endure…so far. Yeh five hours isn’t that long, but when you're jam packed in a Toyota Hi-ace like a sardine, sitting next to a grown man who acts like a restless child, while also driving through some bumpy terrain, it really gets frustrating. I’m just lucky I had my blackberry to use for tunes after my iPod shat itself back at Siargao.

Besides my comfort status, the scenic point of the trip was nice. Tall tropical mountains on one side, and then gaze over to the other side, clear blue coastal oceans. I couldn’t really take that many photos because of how crammed I was between a glass window and a pommy dude leaning into me when he tried to sleep. Skip four hours later, and we started to see the towering mountains of the Bacuit Archipelago from a distance, and I knew my shitty road trip was nearly over!

Once we arrived to El Nido, I got my gear off the roof, got onto a tricycle, and headed down the road (there’s one main road about 300 meters long where all the hotels are situated in front of the beach) to a café called “Art Café”. From the research I did previously, I knew the “Art Café” was practically the town's information center. From here they had a list of all the accommodation places in town and their prices. I ended up picking a place called “OG’s”. It’s cheap (P600) and positioned right in front of the beach with one heck of a view.

You know what she said...

caribou-found out by Ctrl_f

I fucking hate you, Jollibee.

I am now in Puerto Princesa, Palawan. For the last three days, I have had to say my goodbyes to the beautiful, friendly people of Siargao Island. A shout out to Dom, the locals, the friendly dudes in the surf, and the welcoming hospitality at Ocean 101, thanks for the good times! Since my departure, I caught a plane to Cebu for the night and stayed with two Aussie lads who I met only two nights prior to my departure at the resort I was staying. I had no clue where I was going to stay in Cebu, so when the guys offered me the chance to stay with them, I took it.

The plane trip to Cebu was a scenic one. Flying over all the tropical islands was stunning. I was a bit pissed off when I pulled out my SLR to take some pics of the islands and my battery went dead. I had to make do with my trusty blackberry phone. When we arrived at the airport, we caught a taxi to the hotel, which was suggested by one of the locals back at the resort. I can’t remember the name of the hotel, but it was situated near the somewhat center of the city. It was a nice, clean hotel, but we learnt a lesson that night: don’t ask for a room with a window if you know the hotel is situated in busy streets or else you're going to get some douchebag yelling repetitive calls just outside your window. Anywho, my time in Cebu was very short and I didn’t really get up to much. The guys wanted to get some shopping done, so we headed to SM which is the Philippines' main large shopping mall. Once we got the shopping done and dusted, we bought a bottle of Tanduay Rhum, had a few drinks at the apartment, and eased off to bed. I had to leave at eight the next morning. Again, I said my farewells and safe travels to the lads and headed to the airport for Palawan.

I arrived in Puerto Princesa at about 11:00am; I’ve been here before, so I was a bit familiar with the roads and where things were, which felt good for once. Got a tricycle to a little hotel called Lola Intang, which is just situated off the main road, so it was close to the shops and just far enough from the noise. Now, being in a new place, I knew I'd have to make new friends like I did back at Siargao, so that night I walked down the main street and stopped over at this little cool reggae-influenced bar (it had a tricky name, I cant remember it). After having a beer or two, I started talking to this chick, Kat. She was from Canada and was on her last leg of her journey from travelling around the globe. She and her friends invited me to join them to some bar, “Katabom,” just down the road for some live music. I thought "why not?", and glad I didn’t say no. Had a blast of the time. The live music at the bar was radtacular. Kat and I tried to figure out what style of music it was and just named it “Local Reggae”. Anyway, got drunk and the way home went to Jollibee, which is like McDonalds in the western world, and I shouted everyone a burger meal 'cause it costs peanuts here.

By the power of Greyskull, did I feel like shit the next day! It wasn’t really the hangover that got me, but I think the food from Jollibee was a bit dodgy. My body was broken, so I spent most of the whole day in bed trying my best to recover. I’ve written this the day after my little road trip to hell and back and I’m feeling a lot better! I’ve booked my transportation for El Nido the next day, a six to eight hour trip, so between then and now, I’m just going to take it easy and make sure I feel at least 80% for tomorrow’s adventures.

Cloud 9

During my time at Siargao, the surf had been poor with weak one to two-foot waves. The promise of catching a head high barrel at Cloud 9 looked dismal, but on my last two days on the island something came. This is Cloud 9.