Seeing a couple of blog posts about beautiful Batanes in the past couple of days has reawakened my desire to see it to a once-again burning flame. For now, a number of factors are still making it elusive. Still, I aim to be able to step foot on it, somehow, some way, some time in the future. When I do, I will be able to cross out another one from my growing mental list of places to see before I die. Panglao Island, though… I must admit it was never on that list.
Oh, I’ve heard of Panglao Island before, mostly from beach bums. Which I’m not. Which partially explains why it didn’t make it to that list.
Still, when my colleagues-friends and I went on a “business” trip in Cebu several months ago, and we had the chance to go on a side trip in Bohol, we decided to spend some time at Panglao Island.
Panglao Island is part of the province of Bohol, and is where two municipalities (Panglao and Dauis) are located. It is most famous for Alona Beach, which is basically a long strip dotted with resorts, beachfront hotels, and dives.
It was past dinner time when we arrived at the beach house we rented, which is located further down the end of Alona Beach. We grabbed some dinner at a nearby eatery, then hit the sack, because we have an early day of island-hopping the next day.
We woke up early the next day, grabbed a quick breakfast, and went to the beach to get on the boats that will be our mode of transport throughout the day.
The sun still wasn’t up when we boarded our boats.
So why were we so early, you ask? You see, we were hoping to be able to get a glimpse of dolphins.
Unfortunately, according to the boatmen, since it rained the day before, the dolphins aren’t going to come out. Two or three, however, came out and teased us. A couple even swept by beside our boat. It was also difficult to capture them on camera, so you just have to take my word for it.
And in these poorly taken shots.
We hung out for around 30 minutes more, waiting if they’ll tease us even more. When they didn’t, we decided to just proceed with the rest of the activities for the day. Our next stop was the Balicasag Island Marine Sanctuary.
Balicasag Marine Sanctuary
Located in the small island of Balicasag, the Marine Sanctuary is a popular tourist destination, and a staple in various island-hopping tours in the area.
When we got there, several boats with their passengers were already hanging around. There are stores and a restaurant where you could buy seafood and have it cooked. At a fee, of course.
We decided to do exactly that and, while waiting for the meal to be cooked, we were brought to the snorkeling area of the sanctuary.
Now, we love snorkeling, and we’re glad to have experienced it in places such as Coron, El Nido, Apulit Island, and Boracay. The place also had lots of corals, although they pale in comparison to what we saw in Coron.
Perhaps part of the reason we weren’t able to fully explore and appreciate the corals is because the snorkeling area became too crowded at some point. Boats are bumping against each other, and too much human traffic were driving all the fish away. *sigh*
Here are some underwater shots, though.
You must have heard of Balicasag Marine Sanctuary being a “tourist trap”.
There’s a bit of truth to it.
For starters, we thought the prices of the seafood being sold were too expensive. But what can we do, we weren’t able to prepare our own food. It is advised that you come with prepared food, although I think there is also a corkage fee applicable.
Oh, and for those who do not have waterproof cameras, but would like to have your photos taken underwater or even in the water, they have these waterproof cases or plastic packs where your non-waterproof camera could be placed so it can still be used without it getting wet.
The rub? Rental is Php300.00.
Yep.
We had lunch afterwards, then sailed off to our next destination, Virgin Island.
The Virgin Island
Panglao has its own “Virgin Island”, which is the more popular name for Pontod, or Pungtud, Island. The highlight, however, is not the island itself, but the white, powdery sandbar that appears at low tide. In fact, there are times when it is fully exposed, and you can walk on it to get to the main island. Cool, eh?
The succeeding photos show our approach toward the sandbar.
I was so fascinated with how it curved. 🙂
There are no sheds or cottages, though. So it was all exposed. We were there past noon already, so the sun was quite high. But that didn’t stop us.
Now, this is where we had fun… doing absolutely nothing. Well, if you can call just lazing around in the shallows, and playing catch. Haha!
It is the snatches of togetherness times like these that make me appreciate the people I work with. They say there should be a clear line separating one’s professional and personal life. I believe that, too. Staunchly. But if you get the chance to have some parts of that line blend seamlessly, there is nothing wrong with that, too. I suppose I am just blessed that, when I do decide to make that line blur, the ones on the other side are kindred spirits.
Too bad we didn’t have more time to spend to explore all the other places in Panglao. I would’ve liked to check them out further, but we were pressed for time. I certainly wouldn’t say no to coming back here.
But if the stars align for me and let me go to Batanes first…. well, you’ll know what I’d pick.