The trip to Coron was one of the things I needed to do for myself - I wanted time to think and unwind, all the drama in my life is finally taking its toll on me.
It was one of those bahala-na-trips that makes it kinda adventurous. I wanted to go as far away as possible from all the pressure I feel whenever I am in the office.
I booked cebu pacific tickets to Busuanga and back to Manila, I set it for September 25 to 27 -bahala na kung tumuloy or hindi! I really did not plan anything - parang things just started to fall into place. (^^,)
Soon my trip became controversial because of some unfortunate events that happened - yes, I blame it on miscommunication. I really had to get away from all the chismis, the hurtful words and the pressure to do the so-called right thing.
So come September 24 - I packed my bags and lay awake all night anticipating the trip. 5am I started doing my morning rituals while eating breakfast - I was'nt comfortable to fly with a bad weather but thanks to texts of encouragement from Archie, I finally mustered the courage to leave the house and go to NAIA for my 9:45 flight.
Its raining! - waaah and my 9:45 trip was cancelled! what to do? Is this a sign that I should not continue with this trip? Stubborn me, I lined up at the Cebu pacific desk and rebooked my flight for later that afternoon. Boo-yah! a slot was available for the 1:45 trip! This was sooo meant to be!
I made friends while I was waiting for my flight - there were a lot of people going to Busuanga, some for vacation and others just for business purposes. A lot of people were frustrated of the weather but still all of us were looking forward to finally be in Busuanga.
1:45pm - All the passengers for flight 5J531 were finally in the plane, ready for take off. Our plane was a small one, it was a propeller-type plane that I estimated to be 80-seater. I expected the flight to be uncomfortable, considering the weather and that it is a samll aircraft. After 40 minutes in the sky we finally saw land. Wow! The pictures found in the internet did not do justice to the place. It was beautiful! beathtaking! Even my camera did not do justice to the islands of Palawan. The place was perfect despite the rain.
Busuanga airport is relatively small as compared to other domestic airports - upon exiting the arrival area you will find lots of van drivers with sign boards willing to take anybody to Coron town proper for 150 pesos. Good thing my van fare was covered by the tour package I availed. Then I met Tawini the driver who took us to town - he is one animated character. You can contact him through 09208130967, if ever you come visit Coron and need his assistance.
One thing I like about Coron is that since it is a small town, everybody knows everyone and nobody can ever get lost! People are so friendly and hospitable.
The first day we just ate our hearts out, since it was raining I decided against climbing Mt. Tapyas which I heard was 700+ steps up! We decided to dine at a place called Kawayanan grill where we ate Nilasing na hipon, seafood kebab with seaweed ensalada and kangkong enselada. It was'nt the best meal of my stay there but it was really cheap, for a price of 400 for the complete meal - I think it is worth recommending.That night we went to Maquinit Hot Springs via tricycle from Darayonan Lodge, at first I hesitated to dip into the steaming water - might be a bit to hot for me but since all the people seemed to enjoy the water I tried it ---- ooooohhhh refreshing, the heat relaxes the body.. According to the people there, the spring becomes part of the sea during high tide. Nice place to go back to.
By 11pm I was sleeping - was sooo tired! And I'm soo looking forward to out island hopping adventure the next day...
It was raining the second day - I was a bit hesitant to go on with the the island hopping good thing I got reassurance from the the people we were with. After breakfast we went to the port and found the boat we will use for our Island Adventure, by 9am we were out to sea with a few waves tossing our boat back and forth. Our first stop was at Siete Pecados, it was a snorkeling site near the Coron Islands - I was'nt expecting much since it was raining and all but lo and behold - the seabed was embedded with an intricate web of corals and the fishes were amazingly close to us while dipping in the water! It was a spectacular site! Words can't do justice to the underwater treasure there is in Coron.
Next stop would be Kayangan Lake - this is an enclosed body of water in between the mountains of Coron Island, we went there by boat but since it is a lake not connected to the sea - we had to go through a 15 minute hike up and down the mountain to appreciate the beauty of Kayangan, we had a Tagbanua guide with us, he allowed us to ride his balsa and tour the lake, it was so serene, the body of water was undisturbed by the rain, we were the only people there, Nica stayed with our bags while we toured the lake.. When you are at the middle of the lake, try to shout, it will echo along the muntains of Coron.
Next stop was supposed to be Banol Beach, but the waves were too rough along the beach and there's no way for us to manouver the boat to get to Banol, so we settled for a different beach but along the same coastline, once we docked on the beach (forgive me for forgetting the name :p), we decided to take our lunch there, we had crabs with pork binagoongan and ensaladang gulay sa suka. The food was provided by Darayonan, aaaaaaaah sarap! :) One thing I noticed about the beaches in Coron is that it is not commercialized and Tagbanua people take care of the surroundings. There were no shops or stores anywehere we went it was pure nature beybeh!
We rested for a while along the beach , took some shots and enjoyed the slight drizzle. The sand was beautiful and the water was clear..
Off we went to Skeleton Wreck to do some snorkeling - Coron is known for its diving spots where Japanese battle ships sunk during world war 2. The fishes were more visbile in this snorkeling site, there was also the ship which turned into a coral garden. It was an amazing spectacle, but I was a bit uncomfortable snorkeling here beacause it is a lot deeper than Siete Pecados. Chicco enjoyed it more he swam around with no life vest! Such a swimmer. :) He swimmed while me and Nica and Ryan were left on the boat. kid at heart hehe
Since I am such a kill joy, i begged off going to our final destination - Twin Lagoon because the waves were suddenly getting bigger. I was scared that the boat might tip over. As we were heading back home, I regretted my decision since a lot of tourists were still out in the sea, I might have a bit over reacted but since we were off course already there's no way for us to go back to twin lagoon :(
As we neared the port, the clouds started to part and Mr. Sun showed himself.. tsk tsk duwag kasi ako hehe
Upon arriving we were too tired to do anything else but eat.. then off to dreamland we went.
The next day, I was so anxious to go back to home since I heard from the news that Metro Manila was submerged in water - but that's a different story. Since there was a storm affecting the Manila area, and no flights back were available, we had no choice but to stay in Coron for another night. We took the oppurtunity to explore the town proper, we tried their version of street food and when we were finally exhausted to the bones we retired to our room in Sea Dive. We chose Sea Dive since it was one of the cheapest places there but when I tried to sleep in our room the roof suddenly flapped and soon there was intense rainfall. I was scared since Sea Dive is a structure on top of the water, so we decided to transfer to Darayonan again - good thing a room is available.
The next day Kuya Tawini arrived in his usual jolly manner and we were off to the airport hoping to finally fly bak to Manila that day. PAL Express was the first to land, then came Cbu Pacific and then Zestair and finally around 12pm our Cebu Pacific flight was ready for boarding... aaaaah saya!Coron is one of the best places to visit - its for those individuals who want to experience a piece of paradise in the Philippines. One of the unexplored wonders of our Country, See you this summer Coron! babalik kmi :)
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