Bohol: Communing with History and Nature

I woke up early the next morning after a tiring tour of Tagbilaran on foot. I was happy to  hear the quiet hum of the air conditioning unit rather than the honks of impatient drivers in the busy streets of Makati. It was a refreshing morning. I took a shower to get ready to tour the countryside of the famed island. 

A call from the receptionist came to inform me that the driver has arrived and we'll be off for an early start. I took the stairs to the ground floor to meet my driver-Oscar and his white Hyundai Accent. He was fixing his car plate when I met him. He introduced himself and opened the door for me. 

Oscar made a brief introduction while we were heading out in the city proper. He told me that Tagbilaran is really a small city. I couldn't agree more because I was able to go around the city the day before. We passed by a sort of rotunda. It's a small circular park. It's also called Rizal Park. The traditional colonial Spanish set up, The San Jose Cathedral is facing the park. Oscar mentioned that Saint Joseph is the city's patron saint.

As we inch away from the center of civilization I noticed the beauty of the shoreline. Oscar was very proud to say that their shorelines are one of the most clean beaches around the country. The water's calm and brilliantly blue and turquoise. It was a beauty!

SANDUGO



Blood Compact Site



Sandugo is a visayan word which means "one blood". Sandugo is a blood compact between the Spanish Miguel Lopez de Legaspi and Bohol's Datu Sikatuna in 1565 signifying the bond of friendship between the two tribes. This event in history is considered as the first treaty between the Filipinos and the Spaniards. 

"In his report to Philip II, López de Legazpi wrote:

It is observed in the following manner: one from each party draws two or three drops of blood from his own arm or breast and mixes them in the same cup, with water or wine. Then the mixture must be divided equally between two cups and neither person may depart until both cups are alike drained."--Wikipedia

Exploring Tagbilaran City



Boarding Pass: Seat 28F. Window seat pa rin :)



After my first leisure travel experience in Cebu last March, I have grown the habit of visiting the local budget airline sites such as that of Airphil Express, Cebu Pacific and Zest Air. The story of how I got the trip to Bohol is here.

There was tropical depression somewhere around the western region of the country on August 20.  I could not even see the sun when I punched OUT of the office to NAIA Terminal 3. It was a gloomy Saturday morning.  I took the cab (Php 140) to T3 and it only took me about 20 minutes to reach the departure bay of the airport.  It's no longer new to me because I used the facility back in March when I went to Cebu.  More than being excited for this trip, I was early because of my desire to get a window seat.  I was looking for the check-in counter for my flight bound for Tagbilaran but could not find it.  Apparently, there were a couple more counters at the back that I missed.  Hence, I got seat 28F which was almost at the tail end of the aircraft.  As a consolation, 28F is a window seat with a clear view of the right wing. Based from my past experience with Airphil Express, boarding time is never on time.  Surprisingly, the first boarding call for my flight was a minute ahead of schedule! A sign of a good start. We landed perfectly at Tagbilaran City Airport 17 minutes ahead of schedule.  It was amazing! Manila's gloomy mood dramatically changed to a sunny Bohol!




Boarding at NAIA T3

I am a light traveler so I did not check-in my luggage.  I only carried my Serge backpack and a camera bag for my Nikkie. I was surprised with the size of the airport.  It barely resembles one except for the big sign and the control tower.  Other than that, it looks like any other buildings.

I met the driver from Taver's Pension House at the waiting area outside the airport.  I've arranged an airport transfer when I called for reservation which, by the way is free as long as it's arranged early for them to fix their driver's schedule.

The beginning of a great journey home

I just landed on my bed at Taver's Pension House after a few minutes drive from Tagbilaran Airport. Room #6...I wonder why I ended up in this room. Somehow I feel at home...

I boarded Airphil Express at exactly 9:09 AM. It was cloudy with a hint of sunshine. I felt a bit cold. I felt like this trip is going to give me the horrors of traveling by myself. I did a bit of research but I am relying on my instinct for the most part.

When I boarded an Airbus Industrie A320 I was looking forward to finding my other self. I seem to have lost it for the last two months. I celebrated my natal day last July but it didn't feel right. It felt like something was missing.

Looking back a couple of months ago when I was working on this trip, all I wanted was to continue what started as a dream realization. I longed to travel and see the sights. Along with that desire to travel was to find the free-spirited "me".

While I was on the plane I started contemplating the reasons behind the decision to pack my bag and take a journey on my own. A part of me was looking at it as a realization of my desire to get away from everything. To get rid of my responsibilities at work, my responsibilities at home and my self. For once I don't want to care at all. I want to be carefree and do whatever my heart desires. One part of me is screaming! It's reason is to build character. I somehow lost my self in the middle of building everybody's dreams...

This journey has just started. I will find my purpose, my reasons, my self...by the time this journey ends, I will find home...

The dawn of my solo backpacking...

With so much drama at work since March, my writing has been delayed.  I have a lot of things in my plate that I become too tired to strike that keyboard to tell the tales of my travels in the Queen City of the South.  Working as an analyst for a BPO company posted so much demands that I wanted to get away from it once in a while.  

One Sunday morning while attempting to cram wrapping up the month of May with tons of reviews and report backlogs, my tired fingers trailed the keys to get to airphilexpress.com.  I just found myself booking a flight bound to and from Tagbilaran City, the portal to the famous land of Chocolate Hills. Well the travel period is still far from May/June so I have time to save up for expenses and research the cheapest deals.  I found the Php 569 Sunday Sale. I wasn't that excited because I got my mom a flight to Davao for Php 464 round-trip fare.  What surprised me was the 299 fare after I played around with the dates! Plus of course those deal breaking fuel charges and other charges.  But since I was in a slump and wanted a little break I booked the flight anyway.  I ended up paying a total of Php 1,200++.  Well it's still not bad. 

Printing the e-ticket made me realize that I am traveling alone.  When I started traveling this year I was with friends.  Now I am heading to a destination on my own.  Well, my backpack, my camera my iPad and I....I am still considering my tripod.  I'm not sure how to deal with the airport authorities and regulations about bringing a tripod.  I had issues with my umbrella the last time . LOL

Anyway, I have a lot of researching to do since I will be on my own on this trip.  I am excited (that I couldn't hide) since I hit the purchase button on Airphil Express site. At the same time I am afraid.  I am on my own on a strange land.  Strange because I haven't been there...I am praying for good weather and a good trip...