Siquijor Demystified

The month of February has been a busy travel month for me. The first stop for the month was the mystical island of Siquijor.

To get to Siquijor, you have to pass by Dumaguete, where you could take the ferry from there which would run for about an hour. 

We were able to book flights from Cebu to Dumaguete thus saving ourselves from the long and agonizing land travel. My cousin on the other hand, wasn't lucky enough to get that privilege as he came with us on a last minute decision. We waited for him at the Boulevard while he took the 3-hour bus ride from Cebu - Santander, then the 20-minute ferry ride to Dumaguete.

Upon our arrival, we were greeted by this scenery, and thus the promising adventure begins.

We hired a multi-cab to tour us around the island for PhP 1,500. Siquijor is a small island, only 72 kms. in circumference so you can actually go around it within the day.  Our driver took us to the usual tourist spots which inlcude the Lazi Convent, and right across it is the Lazi Church. He took us to the Capilay Spring Park and to the 400-year old Balete Tree.

Lazi Convent - oldest convent in Asia

400-year old Balete Tree

the mystical road of Siquijor

 

Capilay Spring Park - no entrance fee needed although i would find it weird to swim along with the fresh water fishes!

Lazi Church

sorry not big enough to be readable :)

inside Lazi Church

inside Lazi Convent

hallway of Lazi Church

outside Lazi Church

this is still inside the Lazi Convent

Because one of our companion had a knee injury, we skipped the Cambugahay Falls and the Cantabon Cave, intending to do it on the following day.

Part of the trip was to check out the Salagdoong Beach Resort, a government-run resort. We had a tentative booking at Casa de la Playa, however, when we got there, we were disappointed with the beach line, plus the way to the rooms from the beach was a steep stairway, which would not be friendly for our injured companion. It took all of my charm and convincing powers to ask the driver to take us back to Salagdoong Beach Resort, which luckily, he did.

So we ended up staying in Salagdoong Beach Resort. Fortunately, their duplex cottage is available. It was originally PhP1,600 good for 3 and you have to pay an extra PhP300 for the extra person. Since there were four us, I again turned on my haggling prowess and managed to get the room for PhP1,500 only, without the extra charge.

view of the beach from the slide

the beach line

that's the slide behind me

the duplex cottage

Despite the fact that there was more brownout than needed, we enjoyed our stay there. Their food has huge servings and reasonably priced. The staff was friendly, too. Of course, we were extra friendly and extra considerate (afraid of the rumors about the island) so we always don on our best smile every time we ask for something. But you can never go wrong on a weekend by the beach with good food, good music and great company.