Oslob, Cebu: Whale Shark Encounter

 The year 2011 was spent going around places, so I spent the last few days of the year in vacation, basically just sleeping, eating, and lounging around. I was scheduled to go back to work on the night of January 2, however, a travel opportunity beckoned, and my hubby's cousins prodded us to go to Oslob to swim with the whale sharks.

My hubby also had to work that Monday, but we thought, what the heck! What's another day? So off we went. It wasn't a hard feat, as my friends, Doi and Edcel who are travel bloggers, have already posted the details on how to get there.

We took a car to get there. What was originally a 3-hour drive became 2. This was made possible by the lack of  traffic at 4am, and my husband's excitement, making him press the gas pedal harder.

We got there at around 6am. You pay PhP100 as entrance fee, and there are picnic huts that you can rent for PhP400. I don't recommend renting one, if you don't really plan to stay  there for long. There's not much to do there anyway, after you've swam with the whale sharks. 

From the shoreline, you can already see the group of paddle boats who are feeding the whale sharks. The local fisher folks feed them with plankton or small shrimps. The fee for the paddle boat is PhP300 per person, and the viewing/swimming is good for 30 minutes.

The first time we went there (we went twice in one month), which was Jan. 2,  we got the motorized banca  that accommodated all 7 of us, plus 2 kids. We paid PhP450 each (kids were free) for a one-hour experience with the gentle giants.

The 2nd time was January 21, by that time, the government has stepped in, and imposed some regulations. Motorized bancas are no longer allowed since it caused a couple of accidents wounding 2 whale sharks. Because we had previous experience, we immediately went to the pick-up point and was accommodated right-away. It was only after we got off and inquired about where to pay that we were informed that payment should have been made at the orientation center (located few meters away), and that we wouldn't have been allowed to board the boat without the ticket (which should have been given upon payment, and after orientation). Good thing we were honest people, and asked where we could pay, since nobody ever approached us about payment. It was an honest mistake that saved us some hassles. =)

they're really huge!

 

and really tame!

they would even try to get near you

one of them nudged my butt! unfortunately, no one was quick enough to take a pic!

my cousins-in-law trying to get a better pose with the gentle giant

Serenity in Virgin Island

One of the must-do's when going to Bantayan is a visit to Virgin Beach. It's a little island approximately 15-20 minutes away via motorized boat coming from the mainland. To go there, you need to hire a boatman that would cost you PhP1,000 (for the entire day). For that price, you can also visit some other islands, but since we fell in-love with Virgin Island at first site, we decided to spend the entire day there.

going to Virgin Island...that strip of white you see is the white beach

We bought fruits and food from the market in Sta. Fe and brought them with us for the boat man to cook. You don't need to worry about utensils and cooking paraphernalia as they have it in the island. You can also buy rice there to cook, as well as drinks for reasonable price. Since this is a private island, you need to pay an entrance fee of PhP500, but that's for the entire group, no matter how many you are. Picnic huts are available for free, unless you choose those that are privately-owned.

The gang : hiding from the glaring sun...this picnic hut was included in our entrance fee

When you have the island to yourself, you can't help but have a photo shoot

The island is very secluded. When we went there, there were only one other group, so we had the entire island almost to ourselves.

 

The island also has a very rich marine life. So make sure you bring your snorkelin gears with you. A waterproof camera would be nice, too. The first time we went, we didn't have underwater camera. The moment we got our underwater camera, we did a break-in and went immediately to Virgin Island. 

Taken using our underwater camera. You don't need to go far, this is just very near the shoreline, where even our kids can see them.

family picture...make sure you have  your snorkeling gears

 This is one of the most beautiful islands I've seen. It's very peaceful and quiet, it's like having an entire island for yourself. The sand is soft and powdery, the waters is crystalline, and the entire atmosphere is just serene. If someone would invite me back to this island, I would definitely say YES, without batting an eyelash.

signature pose in Virgin Island

mother and daughter signature pose in Virgin Island

under the shade of the Talisay tree

photo shoot and effect : notice the white powdery sand? it's unedited

will i go back? definitely!!!

Bantayan Island : A Slice of Paradise

Bantayan January 2012

Since this is my first official entry in my own travel blog, I wanna start it off with my first weekend get-away for 2012, to nonetheless my favorite place in Cebu - Bantayan Island.

We originally planned to stay overnight, but just like what happened in our previous visit (blog to follow), we ended up staying for 2 nights. My early training as a scout proved to be handy as I packed for 2 nights, for the entire family.

We left the city at around 7am. We brought our own car, and by 9am, we were already in Hagnaya, where we processed the papers and paid the fees to board the car in the ferry with us to Sta. Fe. The fare for the sedan car is PhP1260 one way, plus PhP160 fee to Cebu Port Authority.

We stayed at Kota Beach Resort, and took advantage of the their promotion. You pay only PhP3,600 for 3 days/2nights inclusive of breakfast for two. I got this promotion from browsing through the ultimate Bantayan resource, wowbantayan.net

Kota Beachfront Cottage

What we love about Kota is that it has an open-air restaurant that serves great foods at reasonable prices. They beach line is wide, with fine white powdery sand.



It's also just a walking distance to the Santa Fe market, and to most of the bars and restos, thus offering you a variety of options for night life.

Sta. Fe street going to the market

Just make sure you don't party away too much at night so you have the chance to witness one magnificent sunrise when you wake up.


Three days and 2 nights seemed to passed by swiftly, and before we knew it, it was time to bid the island goodbye. We checked out of the resort with a heavy heart and proceeded to go to the seaport.



We had a little wait before departure, and we busied ourselves by taking pictures of the crystal clear waters, so clean you can see the fishes swimming. It was all we could do to keep us from jumping over the ferry!

Took this picture while sitting inside the ferry. Super clean waters! Their seaport is teeming with life!