Taking a quick break from my Japan posts to talk about this trip to beautiful Coron with my awesome girlfriends at work (hey that’s rare, working with people you actually like! Haha!) several months ago. More than several, actually, because as you will see from the photos, this trip was BEFORE Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) struck the area and wrought destruction.
Well, I will be going back there this first week of March, along with another group of awesome friends, and I cannot wait to see how it looks like in the (pre)summer. You see, the first time we went there, it was during the month of August, and… well, it kind of… rained.
So when the opportunity (meaning: SEAT SALES and PROMO FARES) presented itself, grab it we did.
Before that, however, I’d like to relive that “Coron in August” trip I had, because it is definitely one for the books (or the blogs, yougetme), rain and all.
Because us 5 girls were just taking this as a getaway from the hustle and bustle of RL, we didn’t want to take care of the nitty-gritty, so we just took up the tour package offered by the CORON VILLAGE LODGE, where we stayed at. The moment we arrived at the Busuanga Airport, we literally left ourselves in their care.
After a hearty late lunch, we were taken on an afternoon tour of key places in town, namely: LUALHATI PARK, MT. TAPYAS, and MAQUINIT HOTSPRING.
It took 5 minutes via tricycle to get from the Village to Lualhati Park, which is a short walk from Coron Pier, where the boats for island-hopping are docked, the tourist center, the market, and the pasalubong center, if I’m not mistaken.
The Park is right on the edge of the water. According to Argel, our designated guide for the entire tour, the whole stretch is a reclamation area. Which we’ll see more clearly from atop Mt. Tapyas. Other attractions we spotted there was a floating resto (which was closed at the time because of the fog) and a zipline (also closed).
By the way, Mt. Tapyas is overlooking the whole area. If you’re at the Park, just look up, and you’ll see it. I’m not sure what it’s like today, though, after Yolanda did her worst.
If you squint real hard, you’d spot the cross atop the mountain, beside the telecommunications tower.
It was another 5-minute tricycle ride to get to San Agustin Street, where you’d find the foot of the stairs leading up to Mt. Tapyas.
According to Argel, our designated guide throughout our Coron trip, the top of the mountain can be reached by climbing up a flight of concrete steps. A total of 724 steps.
The girl-from-the-boondocks in me inwardly squealed, because this is right up my alley.
Depending on your stamina – and your enthusiasm – you’re guaranteed to be winded to a certain extent as you climb up. Not to worry, though, because there are some flat areas where you could catch your breath before climbing up again. There are also shaded areas where you could take a pit stop.
Some “nice” people were “thoughtful enough to scratch out the number every hundred steps. You know, in case you didn’t bother to count.
This, however, was the “false 700 mark”, because when you go a bit further, you’d see the correct 600 mark. This is just to fool you into thinking you’ve only got 24 steps to go when, really, it’s more like 150. XDDD
Of course, what made the climb even more of an experience is the view everytime you look to the sides, or outward.
Once you reach the top, you’ll be greeted by this cross.
This cross is …
So the top is basically a wide view deck, where you can check out the concrete steps you just climbed, and the view of the town below. There was a bit of a fog, though, so it wasn’t all too clear. Still, it was a sight to behold.
There’s the whole reclamation area, and on the far right part is where Lualhati Park is located. And of course, the outlying islands, where we’ll be checking out the next day.
Argel also pointed out a mountain range (which I’m not going to post here because it has one of my friends doing something un-wholesome).
Argel pointed out the mountain range from afar.
Argel: It’s “the Sleeping Giant”.
Us: With an erection.
We also went around the summit (around to the back of the cross) and it was rolling greens everywhere! And there are some gazebos that you could check out. Apparently, you could camp overnight in these gazebos, or so we were told.
We spent probably around 30 minutes at the view deck, then went back down. Then we boarded our tricycle and it took us another 20 to 30 minutes through rough roads to get to our next stop for the late afternoon: Maquinit Hotspring.
Maquinit, in Cuyonon, (dialect in Coron) means “mainit” or “hot”
The place had lots of mangroves, and it was low tide at the time, so the roots were visible, and a bit dry.
The water temperature was quite hot to the point of scalding, so it’d be quite a shock at first. There were some spots that were cooler, though.
But it was soooooo relaxing. The water was not so deep, just the right depth to sit down and let the hot water wash over you.
I don’t think they’d advise staying in the water for long, though. So we only stayed for about 20 to 30 minutes then left for dinner and an early night, ready to take on the next day, come rain or high water.
It was a promising first day, and we couldn’t complain about the meals served by Coron Village Lodge. Servings were generous (we’re hearty eaters but even we folded at how huge the servings were!) and they were so yummy! And yes, the meals were also included in the package.
(Entrance fees were already included in the package, so I didn’t really take note at the time.)