Day 1: My Happy Ending

I really wanted to take some pics of the views from the plane, but un-luckily, I got the aisle seat gggrrr. Anyway, by the time we heard the announcement that we're approaching the Tagbilaran airport (Bohol Province's capital), I could barely hold my excitement. In a few minutes, we'd be in freakin Bohol! Yes, get used to lots of exclamation points on this blog, people!

Finally, our plane landed. By the way, we met a good lady in the plane named Grace, and she offered to take us to a taxi company's office where we might get a better deal for our trip from mainland Bohol to Panglao Island, the place where all the great beaches are. True enough, we were 'harrased' by tons of taxi drivers offering to take us to Panglao for P350 and up. Our main goal is to save as much as we can, since we don't have much money between the two of us. So we decided to go with Grace.

At the taxi office, we met Mang Tony, a former Manileno (orginally from Malabon City) who married a local and has been living in Bohol for more than 10 years. He offered to take us to our resort in Panglao for P280. Not bad, we thought. So we agreed. We bade farewell to Grace and got her contact number in case she wanted to meet up later. She was very kind (she even paid for the tricycle that took us from the airport to the taxi depot).

The drive to Panglao took almost an hour, but we didn't mind since Mang Tony was very nice and talkative, and the scenery along the way was very good and fascinating (especially for Manilenos like us hehehe). When we crossed the causeway that connects Bohol Island to Panglao Island, we saw how clear the blue-green sea was from the car, and it got us even more excited! Mang Tony then offered to take us around Bohol to see the sights after our stay in Panglao. We asked him how much it would cost us, and he mentioned P1,800. While still in Manila, I actually got a contact number of another Boholeno driver from a friend and I got a deal for P2,000. Mang Tony's offer sounded more reasonable, so we agreed for him to pick us up at the resort on Thursday afternoon (2 days later).

The drive within Panglao was also scenic. You'd see fields and wooded areas flanking both sides of the road, and you'd also glimpse some mountains from afar. According to Mang Tony, the government would soon start building a new international airport in Panglao Island itself, since the one in Tagbilaran was already old (sounds like the one in Manila hehehe). As we got closer to our destination, we started to get a glimpse of the beaches and the several resorts scattered all over the island (this is sooo exciting!!!). By the way, as far as resorts are concerned, we actually came semi-unprepared. I only started calling resorts and booking for rooms the previous night, so we're still undecided as to which resort to stay in. We were choosing between Bohol Beach Club which has it's own private beach but is somewhat expensive, Alona Kew White Beach Resort which is less expensive, and Lost Horizon Resort which is the cheapest of the three. The latter two shares the same beach (Alona Beach). Mang Tony took us to Alona Beach first so that we could look at all the resorts there and the beach itself and see if we're okay with it. So we changed to our beach sandals, walked a few meters from the car to the beach, and took in the sights.

First thing that registered was, of course, how gorgeous the beach was! The sand was whitish and very fine, the waters clear and blue-green in color, and the best part was, not too crowded! It was perfect! We also noticed that the whites outnumbered the Asians (specifically local Filipinos), and that most of them, judging from their languages, were Europeans and not North Americans. Interesting. There were also numerous boats dotting the sea, all of them being used for island-hopping and dolphin-watching. Dolphins! That's all I could do not to scream and jump from all the excitement that I've been trying to contain since the week started. Bohol, je t'aime beaucoup!!!

So, after a bit of sightseeing, it was time to decide what to do. Since we're tight on budget, we decided to just stay in Lost Horizon for one night and then go to Bohol Beach Club for the next night (we wanted to experience it too hehehe). We checked in, went to our room to put our luggages down, then went back downstairs to pay Mang Tony and finalize our tour plans with him. Since he was so kind and patient with us, and answered all our questions about where to go and what to do, we decided to pay him P400 instead of P280 (he deserved it). With that, we said our goodbyes.

After un-packing for a bit, we wanted to take a dip already. So we changed to our swimwear and went barefoot to the beach, which is just a few steps away from our building. We walked towards a rocky area west of the resort and took pics (and people-watched too hahaha). Geez, some of the tourists are mouth-watering! Uhm, I mean, pleasing to the eye =D After we got our fill of beautiful beaches and beautiful people, I decided not to swim anymore (as if I can swim) because it's almost dusk already and I wanted to watch the sunset (my fave time of the day). So we just walked back towards the east and got to the part where the beach area was broader and the shallow part of the water was at its widest. Then, after several minutes of quiet contemplation, sunset galore!!!

Mon Dieu, the sunset was just... AMAZING! I couldn't stop taking pics of it! I watched as sun went down and its light reflected on the gentle waves of the sea. It then disappeared behind some clouds, but only made a more dramatic and glorious view because of its rays shining down from the clouds whence it's hidden. The colors exploding in the sky was just too much for me that I was just smiling from ear to ear. It was a very happy ending to our hectic day!

We stayed at the beach until the start were already out. We also had a glimpse of the nightlife in Alona Beach, which was not too much, just some fellow tourists chitchatting at tables in beach-front restos while music played in the background. If you're looking for some hip-grinding music, this is not the place for you. Alona Beach is a perfect place for relaxation and de-stressing, so you wouldn't find any bars/clubs where you can let loose and party hard. In short, go to Boracay instead hehehe.

Anyway, last thing we did before going back to our room was eat dinner at the resort resto. Food was kinda expensive there (comparable to restos in Manila). We're supposed to hang out at one of the resto-bars where live music was playing, but I haven't had sleep for more than 24 hours already and I was rather tired. So instead, we went back to our room, watched TV for a bit, then went to sleep at around 1AM. Before I succumbed to sweet dreams of laying on a hammock while listening to the waves lapping at the shores, it finally, truly sanked in: I was in Bohol, and everything was perfect and surreal! Then the sandman took over...