This post has been on my friendster account for years... let me just transfer it here to start of..
I just came back from BOHOL. I never imagined that one small island in the Philippines can have so much history! I have travelled abroad and have joined city tours of these countries.. sometimes i wonder what would it have been like to tour your own country. Finally, i got the chance to do that… i went to Bohol to do an ocular inspection and see what is there to find… basically, in my type of job, you just go from one resort to the other… get the details, which i tell you can be searched through the net, then say thanks then leave… make a report about the amenities of the resort and do a presentation in front of the company.. that was that… i never really have time to write about stuff (not since my younger days when i used to keep a journal) but now, amazingly, i am writing…again…
My flight to Tagbilaran was at 6:20am via Cebu Pacific… Normally, i would prefer PAL but Cebu Pacific was not bad… in fact it was great.. the planes were all new, the staff were all friendly, they even have games inside the aircraft to keep you from being bored. the best of all is that it is NOT LATE! we even arrived at Tagbilaran 15 minutes ahead of time. The plane landed abruptly since the runway was short so the plane had to cut its cruising time hit the brakes…
The weather in Tagbilaran when we arrived was a bit cloudy. We were checked in at Bohol Beach Club at Panglao Island, which has the longest beachfront in all of Tagbilaran which is 1.5 kilometers..whew! We arrived in the morning and decided to go through the whole job of doing the ocular inspection… we finished about lunch time and we were so hungry… since we didn’t have enough money to but food inside the hotel, we then decided to go out of the resort and look for food… unfortunately, there was none in the area… so we decided to go to the city. Public transport is a bit hard as buses pass by the area every hour so you’ve got to wait until one passes… though there are a lot of tricycles in the area and also the local mode of transportation which is habal habal (a hitch in a motorcycle) but they would cost about P200-P400. And the buses!! wow.. they are literally cramped inside… a 30-seater bus accommodates about 50-60 passengers there are people on the roof and hanging about by the sides of the bus… it was really an experience.
I have noticed that Bohol is the city of the old… old churches, old schools, old trees, antiques and even old people.. maybe its the way they live there… i’m surprised that people probably the age of 80 are still commuting. and there was this one old man from a prominent family in Bohol which was a warrior in his time, at the age of 96, still can beat the hell out of you… amazing isn’t it?
Bohol is an enchanting place… simple and serene… i fell in love with it… I like the old churches especially.. The beach with fine white sand, the waters crystal clear.. i often go there in the evenings for walks and just watch the waves and feel the wind…
This would seem like work to me, here is a summary of what i thought about the resorts in Bohol.. these are my top resorts…
Panglao Island Nature Resort: it’s more like a small village… very high end if you ask me… nice thing about it is that the rooms and even bathrooms have full length windows! As in when you take a bath people can see you from the outside… literally… that’s what i like about that…though the bathrooms are situated in closed areas but still you can see the outside world from it… very nice…
Ananyana Resort: We weren’t able to see the rooms of this resort but from what i have seen, this resort is more like a spa resort. the aroma of oils are around the place… very relaxing… I have nothing else to say… it is definitely a spa resort.
Flushing Meadows: I’m pretty sure you have been to a sports club, right? well, this one looks like a sports club. With villas inside… they’ve got a playground for kids, videoke, darts, name it they have it… i like their tennis court especially… it’s very beautiful.
Amarela: This one is dear to my heart. It’s a fusion of old and new…i love the antiques in this place, you’ll be amazed at how they made everything fit in… not that i’m a connoisseur of antiques… i just like to know the story behind each thing and in the process making up some stories about it… ok, back to the resort, once you go inside, you feel as though you are coming home… it doesn’t feel like a resort at all… and the furnitures! it’s breathtaking… how one can have both the luxury of modern technology and simplicity of old times….
The stretch of Alona Beach, it’s name came from the movie star Alona Alegre who shot a movie there wearing a bikini(and in those times it was a taboo to wear bikinis) with Fernando Poe Jr., is where the life of Panglao is… for us Filipinos who are not used to quiet time alone on a beach.. the Alona Beach is for us… here there are barbeques on the beach, freelance ‘masahista’ and foot spas, more like Boracay. The nice thing about the Alona Beach is that outside the resorts there are ‘carinderias’ where you can buy food… especially when resort food is very expensive…
You know the song, i left my heart in San Francisco? well, i think that if Frank Sinatra saw Bohol, he might’ve sang a different tune…
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