Hello, travel bees! It鈥檚 a Monday (and Valentine's Day, too! 鉂わ笍) and there鈥檚 no better way to kick off the week than sharing with you another favorite destination in Baler - Lukso-lukso Islets and Diguisit Beach and Rock Formation.
We're still on our first day at Baler. Yep, after all that I've shared what we鈥檙e going to visit today is still part of the first day of my solo backpacking. After sightseeing at the bridge and a little history class at Ermita Hill, we went to two of the most relaxing places I've been in Baler.
Not too far away from Ermita Hill, we reached Lukso-lukso islets. The place ain't famous for swimming. In fact, swimming might be a little difficult here. Why? The shoreline's covered with rocks and rock formations in all kinds of shapes and sizes.
Again, I was on a solo trip and the only person I was with was Kuya Jaime, my personal driver/tour guide. If you travel in Baler where most of the destinations are situated far from each other, it鈥檚 best to either rent a motorcycle or if just like me, you don鈥檛 know how to drive, just hire a personal driver/tour guide.
And because I was alone, I have all the time in the world to spend however I like. We made our way to the islet through one of the houses near the beach; we paid an entrance fee of Php 40.00 or a little less than $1.
I kept silent for the first few minutes we arrived here. I sat beneath the coconut trees lining up by the shoreline. The sun鈥檚 rays were right above us but for some unknown reason, I didn鈥檛 feel like it was too much or maybe after spending 2 days in Baguio and Batad at below freezing points, it was time for my body to crave summer-like warmth.
I continued sitting there with Kuya Jaime at my back. He refused to leave me despite telling him I鈥檓 used to being alone and being left alone. At times, he would crack random conversations but all I could tell him were words of admiration to the place he grew up. I took out my phone and played Janine Te帽oso鈥檚 version of Ulan, a Rivermaya original. If I remember it right, that year was Janine鈥檚 career breakthrough. And one of my favorites was her rendition of Ulan. I played it in the background, still sitting on one of the rocks by the shores while trying to dissect what鈥檚 real and unreal. For everything in front of me looked like a world I could only see after opening one of the doors to Narnia. Sure there are plenty of beaches in Cebu but back in the days, I鈥檝e never explored much of Cebu.
Later on, I couldn鈥檛 help but show my admiration to the place. I don't know how many times I've said it but I just kept praising the unworldly sceneries and told Kuya Jaime that he and everyone living in Baler, especially those living on the east side are blessed to be seeing what visitors like me see once or twice in our lifetime.
And for the first time, I told myself I might end up living in Baler. It was peaceful and the only thing it demanded from me that day was to stay still, to be present, to empty my cup so I could have more - more peace, more love, more joy. That same day, upon return from an entire day's trip, I told myself I'm going to extend, as to how long I still don't know. When the hostel's caretaker asked, I told her I'm extending my stay and I鈥檓 keeping the bed space I鈥檓 renting in their hostel.
Remember when I told you how I got lucky for having Kuya Jaime as my guide? He takes great photos. I mean he鈥檚 not a professional photographer but because he listened to me and followed my instructions in terms of the angles I wanted to capture, I didn鈥檛 have a hard time achieving the shots I want. Here are some of the photos:
Writing this article now makes me question why I never dared to go near the rock formations a couple of meters away from where I stayed the whole duration of this visit. If I remember it correctly, I could've done that since it was low tide. Maybe I was scared of the huge waves crashing on the rocks or maybe it was just too beautiful that even if I don't go near it, it's already enough.
It was almost lunchtime and with a few more destinations on our list that day, Kuya Jaime suggested we should be back on the road. It was with a heavy heart that I stood up, picked up my personal belongings, and walked towards the exit where our motorcycle was parked. In less than five minutes, we arrived at Diguisit Beach and Rock Formation. One wouldn't find difficulty in locating it since it's by the road. You can see it from afar.
If we want to, we can actually just park by the road and access the beach and rock formation there but we opted to access this destination in one of the beach resorts, Amco Diguisit Lodge and Resort.
I took my time before going near the rock formations. The rock formations could be interesting but so is the view from where we parked the motorcycle.
I was already starting to feel the sun's unstoppable heat that day. I love being under the sun; complaining was never part of the day. Instead, I asked Kuya Jaime to take a few photos of me while I pose with the rock formation in my background. I found another spot for pictorials! 馃榿
Then we moved closer to the rock formations. I don't have photos of the shoreline but they're covered with rocks; nonetheless, people enjoyed their beach time.
Good thing it was low tide when we arrived here. The rock formations are also nearer to the shore compared with the first one we visited. With this, it was easier to explore the rock formations. I had no plans of swimming here; I didn't bring any extra clothes with me. It was enough to see the place's beauty; one that I haven't seen anywhere else in the Philippines.
As if my amazement hasn't hit the moon, I stayed there a few minutes more and walked to the back portion of the islet where I found out I had to cross knee-deep saltwater just to cross the other end. Seeing the huge waves coming and going, I didn't push through. Instead I asked Kuya Jaime to take a few photos of me.
On the other side, everywhere you look it's just breathtakingly beautiful. Among all the captivating angles of Diguisit, my favorite is this spot below. What made it more special that day was the huge waves coming one after the other. Arriving strong and melting as they reach the shore; I couldn't be more certain of anything but I know for sure that I was blessed to have seen what I saw that day in Baler.
This place might look plain and simple on a normal day and by that I meant on a day when the waves aren't too strong to create what you'll see in the next photos I took during my visit.
At this point, I just want to take home Kuya Jaime; I want to take him on all my trips all over the country and be my personal photographer. For now, I just let him capture the amazing view with me on the photos.
We ended the tour with an ice-cold C2, a famous bottled drink; we bought it in the small store in the resort. It was refreshing; just what I needed after the long sun exposure.
We have more than 7,000 islands in the Philippines and every time I unravel one island, it makes me realize how lucky I am to be living in this country. There's always another island to spend a day or two.
And if you're asking if we're done with Baler, we're not! In my next blog, I'll bring you to one of the most shocking discoveries on this trip. We're climbing a tall structure. I hope that gives you an idea of what I'll share next time. 馃槈
Stay tuned so you wouldn't miss it! See ya!鉂わ笍
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