BACKPOSTING: 2011 Cebu-Bohol Weekend Getaway!

As mentioned in my previous post on a DIY sidetrip to Cebu, this one’s a free trip to Panglao dahil nanalo yung kasama ko (Jack) sa pa-raffle sa office. :)

Here’s our itinerary for Day 1 in Bohol!!!

Click Itinerary_DIY Bohol-Cebu Trip 2011_ResidentSlacker for the complete itinerary. :)

As early as 5am, we went to Cebu Pier 1 to get our tix bound for Tubigon, Bohol. We purposely chose to get off at Tubigon so that we could pass by Carmen-Loboc on our way to Tagbilaran–the agreed pickup point for the free van transfer of Amorita‘s Resort.

The travel from Cebu to Tubigon Seaport was about an hour via Weesam Ferry. Upon reaching Tubigon, there were quite a number of pips who offered tour packages, but since we’re on a DIY trip, and our plan was to just commute our way to various tourist spots around Bohol, we just ignored those makukulit na nag-ooffer ng tour packages. Sorry.. :)

From the Tubigon Seaport, we embarked on a tricycle that took us to the bus station where there are trips bound for Carmen. One of the mukulit na guys from the seaport actually followed us (with his car) until we reached the bus station and got our seats in the bus, insisting his tour package! Hahaha! nakaka-ubos ng pasensya p’re! Pero poise lang, pa-simpleng reject! :) Kulit eh! ;p

Hassle-time! ehehe! We waited for quite a few minutes inside the bus, before all seats were occupied by passengers (of course) and off we travelled to Carmen! Warning: If you’re the traveler who doesn’t want to be hassled with commuting, this itinerary wouldn’t work for you :). It’s not the typical air-conditioned bus in Manila; the buses in Bohol are “mini-buses” that are not air-conditioned, so bawal maarte! ;p

It was an hour and 30 minutes ride from Tubigon to Carmen via the mini-bus. When we got off at Carmen at almost 9am, we looked for a carinderia around the place where we could have our breakfast before we take another bus going to Chocolate Hills Complex. After taking our breakfast, we waited again for a bus bound for “Tagbilaran”. There’s no exact schedule of the bus trips, so you’ll have to be prepared for your schedule to be twisted a little :).

And then finally the bus bound for Tagbilaran arrived—punuan, siksikan! But we had to bear with the crowded bus, pero nakaupo naman kame. Make sure you tell the kundoktor or the driver to drop you off at Choco Complex hi-way. It took around 30 minutes before we reached the Choco Complex, then we’re ready for the hike up to the viewdeck!!! :D

There were actually a lot of habal-habal (motocycles) waiting at the bus drop-off point offering you a ride up to the view deck; I think the fare would be around P40-50. But we insisted on hiking the 2-km distance hahaha!

While we were walking our way to the viewdeck, we could already see some of the Choco Hills alongside the road. During that time, the hills were colored green because it was not dry season. Hiking with the backpack kinda hurt! ehehe! But we had to bear with it since we didn’t want a ride! haha! reklamadora! :D And we had to be extra careful ’cause there are blind curves; might be accidentally get hit by a vehicle! hehe!

After the 30-minute hike (about 2km distance), we still had to take the stairs up to the viewdeck! daheck! :D

It was just a few steps up; and along the way, you could already see a number of those chocolate hills. But the sight from the viewdeck is superb! :D

Since there were a lot of pips that day, we waited for our turn to cam-whore! :D We stayed at the viewdeck for just a little, just long enough to have done all those jumpshots and landscape shots ehehe! And then, we decided to make a descent back to the hi-way.

On our way down to the hi-way, a good fella in a van offered to give us a ride down to the hi-way! ehehe! :D nice! When we got off in the hi-way, we waited for a bus bound for Tagbilaran so we could get down at Loboc, but couldn’t find one. So we asked around for an alternative and the pips around said that we could take a jeepney. And so we found a jeepney boud for Loboc! It was a 45-minute ride and the fare was around Php27.

And then we reached Loboc, just in time for lunch! :D By the way, when we got off at Loboc (near the Church and near the bridge), we still had to ride on a habal-habal (motorcycle) to take us to where the river cruise starts.

There are a lot of floating restaurants that you could actually choose from; the rates are all the same, which is at Php400 (in August 2011). After a few minutes of waiting, we were on board and ready for the buffet lunch while on a river cruise! :D

The cruise slash buffet lunch lasts for about an hour. And while on board, you could see the rich lush vegetation surrounding the river. There were also groups of local “performers” in their balsa, entertaining those in the cruise. They sing and dance! ehehe! Kung tinamaan lang ako ng kawalang-hiyan, nakisayaw na rin siguro ako! ehehe! :D

There was also an acoustic band on board the floating resto singing those Sunday-classic-songs! Aliw lang, pwede mong sabayan ang kanilang pag-awit! hehe!

After an hour of cruising and eating, we were back on that same riverside where we started with the cruise. Hmmm the river cruise was kind of entertaining… But.. If you ask me about the food—normal lang, i mean, there was nothing special about the taste, mas masarap pa ang luto ng nanay ko! ehehe! :D

After taking pics of the bridge and the church, we waited…again for the nth time haha! We asked around on how we could get to Tagbilaran airport.. And luckily, a jeepney was nearby and was actually waiting for passengers bound for Tagbilaran. And so the commuting continued… :D

We were already late for the agreed meeting time in Tagbilaran airport ehehe! Pasaway! Didn’t expect Bohol to be such a big place haha! Ang lalayo ng mga papasyalan! :D And so it took us about an hour before we reached the Tagbilaran airport where Amorita’s driver was already waiting for us! Hehe!

When we finally met the driver, hayun! The donya life began! ehehe! It was about a 45-minute drive from Tagbilaran Airport to Panglao, pero ayus lang, naka-aircon na kames a wakas! :D And upon reaching the resort, iniisip lang naming maligo at magpahinga! Kaya heto, wala akong matinong picture ng room naming! Hahaha! Super tired with commuting around Bohol for almost the entire day! :D

Originally, we were supposed to continue with our city tour (Baclayon, Sandugo, Bohol Bee Farm), but we were super-duper tired! :D And I was also considering Jack’s having her “first day”—dysmenorrhea!! haha hassle for travelling ang may period!

After taking the shower, Jack took a nap while I went out of our room to check out Amorita’s facilities and view of Panglao Beach. It was almost sunset and I managed to get a few shots of the view. :) And after a while, I went back to the room and invited Jack to see the place as well.

And then we noticed those mountain bikes just near the lobby and asked the receptionist if we could use them. It was free for as long as you just bike around the compound of Amorita. But if you take the bike outside, rental rate is about Php150 per hour! ehehe! :D

And after all those activities (parang ang dami eh noh! ahaha!), we decided to take our dinner outside Amorita. We strolled around the place, madilim! :) Ewan ko ba, nung time nay un, brownout sa labas ng resort. So candle-light dinner ang drama namin that night. haha! :D

And after an hour, we headed back to the resort and decided to take a swim at the resort’s infinity pool. We didn’t have pics during that time, ewan, tinamad na mag-picture picture. hehe! Anyway, you could check out their website and browse over some photos. :)

After swimming, we then hit the bed for a good night sleep! :)
Ready for the 2nd day??!? Click here for Part 2! :)

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