Note: Pictures are mine, unless stated otherwise.
Hello Hivers! As I’ve stated before, I never really get many chances on going on trips. Between work and my lazy nature (financial matters too), it just seemed a little jarring to go. However, when there’s a will, there’s a way!
Just recently, I headed to Bohol with three of my cousins. Of course, the original intention was to attend another cousin’s debut party but being brought to a tourist destination is always a plus.
My cousins and I left Cebu’s Pier 1 at 6 o’clock in the morning. It was a bit of a chore to wake teenagers at the crack of dawn but that's something a good pinch in the ear can solve. We boarded an Ocean Jet ship and the trip took about two hours (I was too out of it though because I have motion sickness). In the middle of it, the passengers enjoyed watching Doctor Strange 2: Multiverse of Madness. We arrived at Tagbilaran Port at 8 o’clock in the morning and was greeted by countless tourist services. The rest of the day was spent on meeting the other participants of the debut party (roses and candles) as we practiced for the cotillion dance.
The venue was an inn called D’Abejarons Inn located at Purok 5, Barangay Songculan at the municipality of Dauis, Bohol. It’s just a short distance from Panglao Island. The inn has a big function hall that can accommodate more than fifty people. It’s fully airconditioned complete with food and a bar. There are also fully airconditioned rooms for as low as one thousand four hundred and ninety-nine pesos a night for a three-person room (the room I stayed at) with a TV (that has internet connection), free Wi-Fi connection, shower, toilet and free breakfast. There are four rooms having balconies directly facing the swimming pool (can accommodate both kids and adults). I really liked the place to be honest. The staff there were really nice and accommodating.
The party started at 6 in the evening, with my cousin’s relatives coming over from all over Bohol. The theme was red, so I sported a dark red outfit (seriously, red is not my color). My cousin, Joanna, looked really beautiful with her red gown and the party went quite well. I was with the eighteen candles so I had to give my message (it was rather quick though). After the party, my younger cousins spent the rest of the evening in the swimming pool.
The next day, the day we were scheduled to return home, my cousins and I decided to have a dip at the famous Hinagdanan Cave (free admission if you know someone from the local staff). It had been quite some time when I visited the place (it did not have proper lighting yet when I was last there). The water is a little cold and a little brackish since the pool stemmed from both spring and sea waters. It’s deep (the deepest if 15 feet during high tides and 13 feet on low tides according to the local guide) but has a smooth and even rocks at the edges of the cave pool so those who could not swim can stay there. There are also free life jackets so there’s really no problem in swimming at the deep parts.
While having fun at the Hinagdanan Cave (I spent most of time with half of my body submerged in the water at some dark area, watching everyone on the other side of the cave), I observed many foreign tourists enjoying the cave pool (I mostly saw Koreans) as well as a few locals. It was so fun just swimming around (I can actually swim but I can't trust myself at deep waters) until the cold gets too much and I become a stuttering mess (AHAHAHA! I’m weak to the cold).
We left the cave sometime around lunchtime to get food and get ready to head to another place.
My older brother suggested we visit Sikatuna’s Mirror of the World and Botanical Garden and so we went. This spot, that has become famous these past few months, is definitely a place worth visiting. Granted, only a few of the famous world tourist spots are available (Phase 1 Project), completion of the other spots is being looked forward to in the future (they have until Phase 7). Some of the spots already available was London’s Big Ben, Greece’s Acropolis, Italy’s Leaning Tower of Pisa, Singapore’s Mer-lion, Brazil’s Christ the Redeemer, New York’s Statue of Liberty, Paris’ Eiffel Tower, and a few more! (I couldn’t recognize some of them unfortunately).
Sikatuna’s Mirror of the World and Botanical Garden has an entrance fee of one hundred and fifty pesos plus twenty pesos for environmental fee. It would’ve become a more fun visit if only it hadn’t been raining and we didn’t have to worry about the boat’s departure time.
Of course, trips in Bohol wouldn’t be complete without buying their famous Calamay! I was a little baffled at the different prices in different places, but the stuff is sweet and delicious I have no problems with it.
But all trips must come to an end, we have to return to Cebu (me for work and my cousins for their schooling). My cousins and I boarded the boat by four-thirty in the afternoon and departed from the Port of Tagbilaran at five o’clock in the afternoon, both at the same day. I really enjoyed the short and spontaneous trip, and I can only wish to return and have a go at it again.
