Bohol Tour » Three Island Adventures in Panglao You Should Not Miss

This will be the last in the series of posts about our Bohol Tour (whew! finally.) I should’ve posted it on consecutive dates but my evil foe Mr. Procrastination was always winning lately – blame it on the rain and cold weather. To keep the life flowing on this blog, I deliberately posted some “inserts” in between my bohol tour series. Also, I intentionally reserved our Panglao island hopping escapade to be on the last because for me, this is the most memorable and exciting part of our tour – maybe because I’m a water-and-sunset hopeless-romantic type (weeee).

Don’t miss these three activities if you want to visit Bohol: 


1. Dolphin Watching /Chasing) – Pamilacan Island

I didn’t expect that on this year, I would wake up on a paradise, lazily prepare to go on a boat trip, to chase dolphins.

Well, that is exactly what we did to escape SSDD (Same Shit Different Day) this year – we chase dolphins in Pamilacan Island, how about that for a change? It sure was a lot of fun plus seeing the diverse natural underwater creatures was a sure treat. 

 It's hard to take picture of the dolphins, so we just took some videos

I’ve seen dolphins before in a trained dolphin show in Subic but not those swimming freely in an open sea. These Panglao dolphins are not the common trained entertainers but I’m sure you will enjoy it because I saw other foreign and local tourists, also chasing dolphins who are seemed to be transported in a chorus of jolly cheers and high spirits. Likewise, we are so thrilled everytime we saw school of dolphins jumping off the water. Not too long, the area looks like a cheering contest, with a number of boats carrying other tourists who are also in for some visual and chasing thrills.

2. Finding Nemo - Snorkeling at the Balicasag Island 

It’s now time to calm ourselves after we got our dose of morning adrenaline rush from the thrilling dolphin chase. We docked at the sandy coral line beach of the picturesque Balicasag Island and immediately prepare to look for Nemo. The locals in the island offer fresh fishes and seafood for lunch so we order fresh octopus/squid and a kilo of fish first and have it cooked, while we do our snorkeling spree.

We boarded a smaller banca to bring us to the sanctuary where we will look for Nemo.

Compared to my snorkeling experience in Boracay, the fishes here are more colorful and friendly and showy. We brought with us a pack of loaf bread for the fishes (and for our merienda of course.) I suggest you bring your own loaf of bread for the fishes because the price is tripled if you will buy it on the island. They also provide snorkeling gear and aqua shoes.

Sea urchins offered by bankeros to be eaten raw with vinegar.    

After an hour and a half of fun in finding Nemo and feeding his colorful relatives, we decided to come back to the island for lunch. We had a really delicious fresh sinigang, and adobong pusit – Hakuna  Matata!

3. The Virgin People: Island hopping at the Virgin Island

Our sumptuous lunch re-energized us so it’s now time to sink an Island! We had another few minutes of motor – banca ride from Balicasag until we saw this amazing oasis amidst the open and pristine sea – it’s the Virgin Island!

 What makes this island notable is the long and looping shallow white sand shore that looks like a slightly submerged white semi-circle bridge.

our calendar-girl travel buddies

the beach boys

A few meters on both sides of the “sand bridge” are shallow sea-grass that gives the water a dramatic turquoise touch drifting into dark blue.

Of course, we immediately ready ourselves for our favorite shot – the JUMP SHOT!

On our way back to our resort, we had a quick nap at the banca, we are all exhausted but still, we got this light feeling. Somewhere on the deep recesses of our mind are the happy memories and the bond that this trip brought us.

Our hide-out at the Alona Beach

This is the view that will greet you every morning

calm reflections

when the clock stops ticking

The struggle of the clouds vs. the rising sun

peace on a bloody sunset

Yodz's Note:

We all have busy corporate lives, but this tour and other trips like this gives us the opportunity to pause the bundy clock. To touch base again. My best memories are forged on trips, so I do whatever is necessary to save some money to make an occasional out-of-town trip. Our next stop, maybe Palawan.

Here's the summary of our 2-day Bohol Tour:

» Tagbiliran City Tour
» Visit to Chocolate Hills
» The Blood Compact Site
» Bohol’s Famous Old Churches » Baclayon, Dauis and Loboc Church, Panglao Watchtower
» Minor Stopover » Tarsier Viewing, Man-made Forest, Hanging-bridge, Python and Ostrich Viewing
» Loboc River Buffet Luch Cruise, Hinagdanan Cave, Bohol Bee Farm

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Our tour was arranged by C. Rule Tours and Transpo Services, which offers the cheapest package tour in Bohol for only 3,000 Pesos per head (all-in). I advise you avail of a promo fare from PAL or Cebu Pacific first to save on airfare.

Inclusions:
    * Aircon transfer from airport/ pier to hotel/resort and vice versa.
    * Aircon van for day 1 and day 3 tours
    * Hotel/Resort accommodation (2nights)
    * All entrance fees and permits in all tours
    * Buffet lunch at Loboc River Cruise at day 1
    * Motorized banca for BalicasagIsland(one of the best 3 dive site in the world)
    *dolphin watching and snorkling/swimming.
    * Snorkel Gear / Mask & individual lifeguard/guide.
    * Driving tour guide

Contact Details:

e-mail: c.ruletours@yahoo.com

Mobile: Kuya Cirilo 0917 6310388 or 0922 8748768

More Info Here: http://sulit.com.ph/563742


INFORMATION ON WHERE YOU CAN STAY AT ALONA BEACH
(Our hide-out at the Alona Beach - Highly recommended!)

PLAYA BLANCA de ASTERIA Heritage House
alona beach, danao, panglao, bohol 6340
cel# 09203535708-aster (owner/ general manager)
cel# 09309355875-gene
tel# 502-8307 (evening phone)
tel# 502-4117 (day phone)
email: aster_blessing@yahoo.com

-all rooms are provided with cable TV, private toilet & bath with hot & cold shower.
-wi-fi ready
-beachfront (20-25 meters away from the beach)
-room rate only. no breakfast included
-extra person (mattress only) -Php 200 per head

for convenience, we can also arrange you for:
-massage
-bohol island tours
-boat trips (Island hopping/ Dolphin watching)
-diving packages
-motorbike rentals
-car for hire with driver or self-drive
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Bohol Tour » Three Additional Exciting Things To Do In Bohol

In my previous post about our Bohol tour, I shared some details of our minor activities and stopovers. These are the common activities included in a usual Bohol Tour Package offered by resorts and travel agents. On that post, I mentioned that you have the option not to include some of those activities if you have a very limited time, but still it is up to your group.

On this post I will share to you some of the most exciting part of our Bohol Tour aside from visiting the famous Chocolate Hills, historical sites and old churches.

Here are the other three activities and sites we really enjoyed:   

1. Loboc River Buffet Lunch Cruise

Your trip at this wonderful part of the Philippines is not complete if you haven’t tried the buffet lunch while cruising the Loboc River. This is a very nice afternoon river scenery and fresh air break after being under the sun the whole morning while visiting the Chocolate hills and other sites. If you want it extra romantic, you can schedule this cruise at dinnertime. Perfect and romantic place to propose marriage. Meaning, this activity is best enjoyed with a group, your family or with your “somebody.” Don’t try this alone. 

This is about an hour-and-a-half cruise to the river while having an eat-all-you-can lunch. However, the dishes they served are not that superb. The buffet includes common Filipino dishes such as barbecue, chopsuey, pancit, some fruits and clam soup. 

To make the cruise more memorable, they added three singing guys with their guitar to serenade the tourists onboard. The boat also made a quick stop on a large bamboo raft on the riverbank with singing and dancing locals, mostly children. We really enjoyed this part because we even join the children in singing and we also tried dancing the tricky tinikling dance.        

2. Camwhoring at the Hinagdanan Cave

This stopover is included in our day-2 Panglao Tour activity. After visiting some churches we headed to the Hinagdanan Cave which is a natural underworld cave with natural inviting water pool inside. We go down through short man-made stair to go underneath. Our enthusiastic and friendly local guide told us that we can swim and take a dip of the fresh clean natural water inside the cave but it’s just too eerie – you can’t help but think there might be some underwater monsters underneath.

Hinagdanan Cave is located in Dauis, Panglao Island, around 10-20 minutes drive from Tagbilaran City.

3. Pasalubong Shopping at the Bohol Bee Farm

Yes, Bohol is also known for its bees. So we make sure we drop by at the Bohol Bee Farm, a simple vegetable farm that has grown into a resort that advocates organic farming. It is located in a secluded baranggay in Panglao and is a jewel for organic food buffs and herb enthusiasts. I bought some choco-coated polvoron, ube sticks and a box of guyabano tea.

We got there a little late so we haven’t got the chance to see the beehives. Instead we just spend our remaining minutes enjoying a cone of The Buzzz homemade ice cream. They have awesome flavor such as the malunggay, durian, buko, ube, pandan, spicy ginger, honeyed or halo-halo flavor. Perfect to end the exhausting but memorable day.

Also part of our escapade and the most exciting is our amazing Panglao Island hopping, which includes the exciting dolphin watching and snorkeling at the Balicasag Island – details and pictures on next post.  

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Bohol Tour » Chocolate Hills and the Nine Choco Wizards

I’m back! I’ve been away from the blogosphere for a few days to enjoy our weekend stress-reduction trip to the famous Philippine destination – Bohol! We availed the Philippine Airline’s promo fare a few months ago and booked a package tour to Bohol in the Central Visayas.

One of our major destinations - the Chocolate Hills, an unusual geological formation found in Bohol, in the Central Visayas region of the Philippines. These cone shaped hills are the most famous tourist attraction in Bohol and were featured in the Philippine Department of Tourism’s top list of Philippine tourist destinations. It has been declared as the country's 3rd National Geological Monument on June 18, 1988 in recognition of its scientific value and geomorphic uniqueness. Isn’t that cool?

The Chocolate Hills Viewing Deck

We immediately climbed the 214 steps – err no, we took the “for disabled” steep, flat and winding route going up the Chocolate Hills Observation Deck inside the complex where all visitors go to admire the excellent view. Although it was raining, the view was still awesome! 

Hmmm! It looks like women’s breasts 

The hills look like giant bahay ng nuno sa punso (mole hills), or for the green-minded like us, we say it look like virgin women's breasts. I observed that the Chocolate Hills are consistent in their cone shape. According to the official website of the Province of Bohol, the number of hills reaches at least 1,260 but may be as many as 1,776. The Chocolate Hills encompasses a 20 square mile (50 sq km) area creating a sea or rolling terrain of these amazing hills. The height of the hills varies from 98 to 160 feet (30 to 50 m) with the largest hill reaching a peak of 390 feet (120 m).

The unusual thing about these hills is that, it is a natural phenomena - some think it is man-made. Geologists believe that the hills were formed from marine limestone on top of a clay layer. 

The Green Chocolate 

Cloudy day at the Chocolate Hills - quick shot before the heavy rains

The Chocolate Hills are actually grass-covered limestone. Therefore, depending on the season, the Chocolate Hills changes its color, varying from green to chocolate brown. September is a rainy season, so what we saw are sea of green hills and not the choco-colored hills we are expecting.

Chocolate Hills Camwhoring

If you really want to see the choco-colred hills visit the Chocolate Hills during summer because the grass dries up, turning brown which is where the name Chocolate Hills was derived. The dried up brown hills will look like a sea of “chocolate kisses.” Great for souvenir photos.

The Two Gay Giants – The Chocolate Hills Myth (according to the choco wizards)

The official myth narrates that one day there came two contesting giants. The giants fight a mortal combat and throw mud balls at each other. The fight continued and of course, like all other Alamat (Filipino myth), you know what happened next.

Another legend says that the hills are enormous tears wept by a heartbroken giant.

But wait, here’s our version of the story:

Two gay giants, lazily eating hill-sized Hershey’s chocolate kisses saw a hunk-good-looking giant. They fight over the hunk and throw the hill-sized Hershey’s chocolate kisses at each other. Then that’s it! Over the years, the chocolate kisses became the Chocolate Hills! LOL!

Were the Chocolate Hills worth the trip?

The Nine Choco Wizards riding a broomstick
The Wizards - Yodz, Bar, Aldan, Chuck, Anjho, Sarena, Grace, Abby and Weng

When we arrived at the viewing complex, there were other tourists, mostly Koreans stepping out of buses and tourist vans. Wherever we went, there were other tourists roaming around. I tried not to think about them and just enjoy the awesome view.

Definitely yes! The Chocolate Hills are really worth the long trip. It’s different when you are there, admiring the nature’s natural wonders rather than just looking at it on postcards. However, it would be more amazing if the viewing deck is not that crowded.

Yodz Notes: More of our Bohol Tour

This is only one of the major destinations/activities on our Bohol tour. In separate posts, I’ll feature other minor Bohol destinations such as the tarsier viewing, Bayoyoy the dwarfman, old churches, man-made forest, hanging bridge, historical places (blood compact site), Hinagdanan cave, Bohol Bee farm and Python viewing.

Also part of our Bohol tour, that deserve a special blog post is the Loboc River Cruise Buffet Lunch and our awesome Panglao Tour (snorkeling, dolphin watching and island hopping.)

More of Bohol this week. Thanks for visiting my blog!

Have you been to Bohol already? Please share your travel experience  or any thoughts on the comments section.

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References (for mentioned facts and figures):[all Retrieved 22 September 2010] by yodz

» Seven Natural Wonders of Asia “Chocolate Hills”
» Wikipedia Article “Chocolate Hills”

» Chocolate Hills Natural Monument – UNESCO World Heritage Center

» Bohol - Philippine Department of Tourism Featured Destination
» Woods, Michael and Woods Mary B. 2009.  “The Chocolate Hills” Seven Natural Wonders of Asia and the Middle East. Minneapolis:  Twenty-First Century Books, p. 64
» Dominique Grele, Lily Yousry-Jouve 2004. “Bohol” 100 resorts in the Philippines:
places with a heart. Mandaluyong City: Asiatype, Inc.

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