Bye Bye Busuanga, Hello Maynilad

Day 20: Coron (Busuanga) - Manila

It was already time to leave Coron. Vacation was almost over at least for my travel companion. I had another 4 weeks in the islands to see my family by myself. But first I had to bring my friend back to Manila to catch his flight back to Europe the next day.

Breakfast at the hotel was not inclusive, so we had to pay it extra. I had a Pinoy breakfast of danggit, fried rice and coffee while my friend got pancakes, a piece of toast with bacon and egg. We booked a van for 10:30 a.m., but the driver came much earlier and told us that we could go at 8:00 (“you go at eight”) because it would fit him better with his other tours. (Hello, can’t we decide when we wanted to go? Besides, it was already agreed.) That was much time in between, and we already had enough buffer time including the 45 minute-drive to the airport. We eventually decided to go at 9:00 after him being a little bit rough. There was nothing really much to do at the small airfield but wait, so we checked the small souvenir shop next door. We bought some shirts, delicacies and snacks. There was no water in the toilet for washing hands, so we had to buy bottled water from outside. And as expected, our flight was delayed for over 30 minutes.

arrival

departure

In Manila, we took a taxi from the airport to the Microtel Mall of Asia and the driver charged us 450 Pesos. With about 70€ (ca. 4000) pesos a room/night, Microtel belongs to the upper category. The hotel building has 13 floors (I think), and there is a pool on the rooftop. Unfortunately, it was not operational during the time we were there. It is very clean, and the room with its two queen-sized beds is really spacious. It is located right by the Manila Bay and outside of the chaos of Manila. We got a sea-view room on the seventh floor (715), a place that could accommodate up to 4 guests, with a very quiet air conditioning unit, a flat-screen TV, a refrigerator, a clean toilet and shower.

*A little tip for the visitors, when in Manila don't ever tell any taxi drivers your name or your hotel room number. Some ask for such details knowing they have malicious intent. I was asked which I found it odd and was wondering about such questions since it was irrelevant. All I want was just to be dropped off at my hotel. Just for your own security.

We had the view of the harbour promenade which has a lot of restaurants and cafes as well as nightly live bands performance. The hotel has an hourly free shuttle service to the Mall of Asia which is actually just about 10 minutes away on foot.

MOA is a huge mall with many restaurants, skating rink, cinemas and all kinds of shops. It is (large shopping malls) something that they didn’t use to have in Europe. We bought some provisions and of course shopped for “pasalubong” like exotic foodstuffs and all that. We dined at the hotel’s own restaurant and turned in early since my friend had an early flight the next day.

Coron: La Sirenetta By The Sea

Day 19: Coron (Busuanga)

We went to La Sirenetta upon returning to Coron Town. It lies just about 10 minutes on foot from the pier. The location of the restaurant on the water was fantastic where you have the view of the sea and the island in front. The food was promptly served, and I had my mango-banana (milk) shake, an appetiser of seaweed (lato) salad and delicious gingered chicken. Then I had my second glass of ice cold shake. La Sirenetta was probably our favourite restaurant in Coron.

We were still tired, so we went back to our hotel and rested a bit and took a plunge at the pool. It was very refreshing. At around 16:00 (4:00 PM) when we decided to climb Mt. Tapyas. Our hotel is primarily located at the foot of the hill and just about 10 minutes to the ascent. The ascent was taxing because of the searing heat of the afternoon sun. I was utterly drenched in sweat. I had to take off my shirt as I didn’t want to climb back down totally wet. Fortunately, there was a kid selling bottled water at the top of the hill as my throat was parched. Mt. Tapyas offers a 360° panorama of the town and the underlying islands. We didn’t stay until sundown, but I would bet, the sunset would be a great view from there.

It was kind of late when I got my cousin Ate Kit’s phone number. It was our last day on the island, so I called her up to meet. She was surprised as she didn’t know that I was on the island. The last time we saw each other was probably over 20 years ago. We just got back in contact through facebook a couple of years back. I arranged for her and her husband to fetch me at the hotel. My friend who was still tired from the whole island-hopping decided to stay back at the hotel.

Ate Kit and her husband, Pastor Garcia took me to Sea Dive restaurant which is another favourite backpackers place. The restaurant was also on the water. The service was a bit inadequate. It took years for the food to be served and my cousin didn’t get what she ordered. At first, we thought we had to wait for it, but then the waitress completely forgot it. Later when we asked for the bill, she announced how much we had to pay for the whole world to hear. Who does that eh? But altogether, the place was okay, and I had a pleasant evening reuniting with family.

Busuanga: Calauit Wildlife Sanctuary

Day 19: Coron (Busuanga)

We woke up at 3:00 a.m., fixed ourselves and we were then picked up at 4:00 by our guide at the hotel in Coron and took a short ride to the pier where our boat was waiting. I decided to pick up some bread and drank a cup of coffee at an eatery nearby. It took a few minutes and companion was already annoyed. Well, I needed something warm in my stomach, or else hell will break loose in there, and I won’t be enjoying the trip to Calauit. At first, the boatman wanted 7,000 pesos for the round-trip, but after some haggling, he agreed for 6,000 pesos since we were the only two passengers.  We tried to hire the boat for ourselves, so we’re free to decide on how long to stay. Otherwise, it’s always going to have a lot of waiting and a lot of drama just like our experience at Honda Bay in Puerto Princesa.

I was still feeling sluggish and decided to snooze in the boat. The ride takes about 3 hours. The landscape was still dark and exudes the aura of a mystic. It was a dreamscape, and it was one of the times I really felt at peace. Maybe because of the silence and the only sound you hear was coming from the motor of the boat. Then slowly the sun slowly came up. The low-lying mist blankets the landscape. It was splendid.

We arrived at around half past seven and immediately went to the reception, paid another 1,600 pesos for two people (300 pesos entrance fee and 1000 for the truck). The toilet has no flush, only buckets of water which is a dread for many guests. Nevertheless, it was serviceable.

You can also rent a van to Salvacion then a shorter boat ride to Calauit Island. The van cost around 7,000-8000 pesos. Initially, we wanted to go on a group tour which cost 2600 per person, and that includes the van ride and island transfer. With that enormous amount of fee, it would have been great if it included a meal or at least a coffee.

We were brought to the station, and with a small introduction from Rolly about the Calauit Wildlife Sanctuary we drove off through the park. The whole track was not much. We first went to feed the Giraffes. It was early enough, so most of the animals are still in the shade feeding. We were the only visitors on the island at the time. If we came a bit later, we probably haven’t been able to get close to the animals as they will be everywhere in the savannah. Some groups perhaps came then.

There were zebras and Calamian deer feeding nearby, but I was missing the topis, impalas and Elend antelopes that were originally there. I was told they have died and some are killed by the Balik-Calauit movement, a group of original settlers in the island who were resettled during the Marcos era to give way to this setting of the sanctuary. After a few photos, we drove on to a small enclosure to see the porcupines, a land turtle, monkeys, a wildcat, and a warthog.

The guide told us that they put those animals in the enclosure for a maximum of three months and then released them in the wilds again then take in other animals. That is to not disrupt them much from their natural habitats and also to guarantee the tourists to see the animals at just one place. Next, we went to the crocodile enclosure which is somewhat disappointing since it is small and cramped. On our way back we’ve seen a bayawak, a monitor lizard roaming around freely. The whole island tour took us approximately 1.5 hours and another 3 hours with the boat back to Coron town. (The group tours always go from 8:00-17:00).

My recollection of Calauit was during my college days with my classmates on our trip to the north of Palawan.