One of the main reasons for our trip to the Philippines was to attend the wedding of my cousin Earl and his fiancee Mia, especially as my mother was too ill to attend the wedding at the time. We arrived in Cebu from Palawan at lunch time on September 24, with just enough time to drop off our bags and freshen-up for the Soltera that night.
The wedding, attended by some 420+ guests a few days later on September 27, was an opulent affair designed/organised by Earl’s eldest sister Abigail (who we affectionately call BomBom).
Congratulations to the happy couple! x
Not the Soltera – out about before the big night at Pino Restaurant #EarlMia2014#EarlMia2014#EarlMia2014The very glamorous BomBom, informal wedding planner & stylist extraordinaire
Freshly baked goodies are the main attraction in Baker’s Hill. The Ube (Taro) Bread & Hopia were especially addictive & was our favourites. The owner instead of just opening a bakery though, turned the place into a small private (but free) fun park. Aside from the fun park, there’s a reptile park where patrons can pet and have photographs taken with large geckos.There’s also a restaurant, which was where we ate our last meal in Palawan and where we, with some egging on from my grandma, tried the local delicacy called Tamilok. It’s a kind of wood worm and she said it was harvested fresh by the restaurant . It’s served raw cured in vinegar and various spices. Like many exotic dishes, Tamilok is an acquired taste I think… I recommend swallow over chew…Hehe 🙂
Baker’s HillTheme Park – Shrek makes an appearanceGardenGardenGardenLOVE
A beautiful boat ride to Sabang. Feels quite isolated to get there, but is actually a reasonably popular place to visit.
On the way to Sabang Island – with our bangka boat driverOn the way to the Subterranean River – a stunning boat ride.
After being dropped off the island we had to walk through a jungle trail populated by wild monkeys & geckos. The guide told us to make sure we had no food item before going through the jungle because the monkeys are sometimes hungry. I had woken up really early that day to get started for the trip to Sabang and had wrapped my half eaten Pan De Sal (local bread roll) in toilet paper (as you do) and placed it in my bag for later. I had forgotten all about it of course by the time we got to Sabang and proceeded down the jungle trail, when within a few minutes a wild monkey had grabbed my bag, unzipped it and taken the bread roll out. I was scared from the unexpected experience of having to wrestle my bag from a monkey and Craig had tried to shoo it away. It bared it teeth at him, made an awful sound and ran away with his loot. He was harmless really and was just focused on getting my/his breakfast.
After hopping off our bangka (boat ride) to Sabang Island) w/ one of my maternal grandmothers 🙂Vanishing Biodeversity Sign at the start of the Jungle TrailHungry Monkeys
The river that is open to the public is about 1.5 kiloetres long, which we paddled through in the dark with the use of strong flashlights/floodlights. But the actual river itself goes even longer underground the mountain/cave – some 8 kiloetres long, and unsafe for people to go to. There were constant drips of water which the guide told us were bat droppings. We saw, heard and smelt the bats constantly – which wasn’t really terrible because it was more of a faint scent rather than something putrid. At the highest point the ceiling of the cave looked like looking up a cathedral ceiling. Artists in the past used to talk about the sublime, when faced by something extraordinary that leaves them in awe. We felt a bit like that.
Inside the subterranean river – using a strong torch to guide us slowly through. Felt a bit like Invaders of the Lost Ark 🙂Bye! 🙁
Tourism is carefully monitored in Palawan & eco everything is taken very seriously. The tourguides at the river itself are very well trained and are also members of the local tribe from the area. Would recommend this place to visit for Filipinos and foreigners alike.
The Underground River Palawan is a UNESCO & World Heritage Site and considered one of the new 7 wonders of the world.
We finally made it to Puerto Princesa, Palawan. One of my maternal grandmothers live there with her husband and their young children – so we were very lucky, as we had a very knowledgeable local to show us around 🙂
In front of lola’s grotto
They take eco-tourism very seriously in Palawan, so there are lots of bicycles and pedicab bikes available for hire. This is at the Baywalk. It’s a bit like an Ai Wei Wei installation… 🙂
At the Baywalk in Puerto PrincesaIsland hopping – on the way to Pambato Reef and Cowrie IslandAlmost there… 🙂Lola brought some snacks – Boiled Camote & Saba BananasRelaxing under Coconut TreesEat all you can seafood buffet for $A 5.00Young CoconutHappy Suki
So we are flying to the Philippines in several hours and staying for 3 weeks! A cousin of mine is getting married and we thought we’d throw some island hopping in, while we were at it 🙂 The Philippines is an amazing holiday destination, what with over 7000 beautiful islands to explore and go to. Some of the places we are thinking of, aside from Manila and Cebu (where the wedding will be) are Bohol and Palawan.
Palawan is getting cult status these days for being one of the most beautiful islands in the world (Conde Nast, Huffington Post etc) so we are quite excited. Packing luggage on the other hand, is another thing all together…
Looking over all the packing that still needs to be doneNope not impressed…
Hopefully it’s a good flight. See you in the Philippines! Woof! x Suki
