We planned it in August, me and 2 of my closest friends in the office. But when the date of our vacation drew near, Mark had to back out because of work responsibilities. Pia and I decided to go through with the plan – a 4-day holiday in Boracay. It was my first trip to the famous beach getaway so this blog about the experience is inevitable. I am writing while sitting at our favorite spot, and elevated veranda on the beachfront. This is where we took our meals, chilled out, drank wine, and talked about everything under the sun (during inebriated and sober moments) for the past 3 days. It’s our last night in Bora and while we miss people at home, we can’t help but wish the night will be longer.
Day One
Our flight was at 6:30AM and so I had to be in the airport by 5am, but Lyndon is such a freak, he woke me up at 3:30 so we can leave our place at 4am. Since the airport is only about 20 minutes away (sans bad traffic) from our place, we were there super early and had to wait a few minutes before Pia arrived. We still had plenty of time before boarding so we decided to grab some coffee first. Good thing the airport has a Kopi Roti stall so we had a perfect cup of brew before we got ready for our flight. A quick hug from Lyndon then Pia and I proceeded to gate 131. When I saw our ride (52-seater propeller plane) I felt a tight knot in my stomach since I’ve never been on a small plane. But the flight was smooth (except for a few airpockets and 6 noisy Koreans behind our seat) and we touched down Caticlan airport after 45 minutes.
Efficient and courteous staff from our hotel readily carried our luggage and led us to the van that will bring us to the ferry boat. 10 minutes after, our boat was taxiing towards the beaches of Boracay. Another 5-minute van ride and we were at the hotel. We chose La Carmela de Boracay because the rates were affordable and it was right on the beach. But we had to wait for almost an hour before we could finally check-in since there were a number of guests who came ahead of us. We also had to request for another room because the one given to us was quite small and the terrace was right across the new building being constructed.
That afternoon, we decided to make the beach wait and walked to find a nice place to eat breakfast. We settled on Mango Ray, a beach front restaurant that served tapsilog (beef strips, fried rice and eggs). After breakfast we went back to our room for a quick shower and some sightseeing. We then returned to the hotel to grab lunch, which we hardly touched being still full from our big breakfast. This was when we found our favorite spot. After lunch, we went back to the room because Pia had to finish some work that has to be sent to the office before the week ends.
We stayed at our favorite spot for the rest of the afternoon and when the sun was out we decided to avail of the buffet dinner the hotel was offering. It was Mongolian night, and frankly, I did not enjoy it, one bit. So we just took pictures instead.
After dinner, we again went sightseeing. The different resorts were already in a festive mood and a number of tourists have already found their party place for the evening. I didn’t realize that we’ve already walked about 2 kilometers until I felt my legs getting stiff and my butt starting to ache; it was as if I was on the treadmill for an hour without taking a break. We decided to rest first before and chose Zucchero Café to grab something to eat before heading back to the hotel. I had a Banana Strawberry smoothie while Pia had Banana Split. I was the one craving for Ice Cream but I couldn’t find a single store selling our product. After our sugar dose, we walked back to the hotel. As we approached the lobby we asked if there was still massage service available and good thing there was. 10 minutes later, 2 masseuse were knocking on our door. The experience was heavenly! We both slept like babies after having the massage.
Day Two
We woke up at 8am, but was able to get out of our room past 9am. Good thing breakfast was still available. After breakfast, we went back to the room to shower and change, this time putting on swimsuits and gobs of sunblock. Since the sun was at its hottest, being almost lunchtime, we decided to check out the hotel’s internet shop first. Me to check on emails and visit facebook, Pia to email some work stuff to the office. When I opened my YM, my former boss and mentor was on-line so I typed a quick hello. We ended up chatting on YM for the rest of the morning. We had to say goodbye because it was already lunch time for me and dinner time for him (he’s now living in the US with his family).
After lunch, we headed for the beach. Despite my initial dislike for saltwater, I had a great time swimming, errrr wading in the waters. The temperature was just right and the weather as great. When we went back to our beach beds, Pia decided she wanted another massage and called on one of the old ladies offering their services to tourists along the beach. When it was time to pay for the massage, Pia realized she only had 20 bucks on her so she ran off to have her bigger bills changed. It was then that she told me about Cerealicious, a cute stall right beside our hotel. I then decided to give it a try.
While waiting for the “Jumango” (a cold cereal concoction with mangoes, milk, honey cereals and strawberry syrup) I ordered, another customer – a tall Caucasian lady – asked me if I were “Filipinnish”. I said yes and she complimented me on how my hair is so dark and shiny, and asked if my curls were natural. We chatted for a while as I tried to explain to her why her “chocnut” shake does not contain any nuts at all. She again approached me while I was happily digging into my ice cold cereal, and started chatting with Pia and me. We learned that she came from Germany and that her name was Claudia. Her husband Piant and her just came in that morning from Taal Lake and after Boracay they will be going to Negros, the third leg of their tour. She was surprised to learn that it was my first time in Bora when Manila is just an hour away. She and her husband have been coming back to Boracay for the past few years even if they have to travel thousands if miles and several hours just to get there. She was quite a chatterbox and was so inquisitive about Filipino culture. She also has an easy laughter and while we don’t understand some of the things she is saying, we can’t help but laugh with her. Before she left, we asked if we can take a picture with her as a souvenir of our pleasant conversation.
After sunset, we proceeded to our favorite spot where our dinner was served. The menu wasn’t too pleasing for Pia so she ordered a few more add-ons to our meal. Later we ordered a bottle of red wine and the night began to get better. Our conversation centered mostly on work, family and relationships; our topics varied from the most trivial to the most significant aspects of life and honestly, it was the best conversation we had. Now I realize, there’s nothing like a good bottle of wine to loosen our tongues and liven up our spirit. But that doesn’t mean I will trade our regular coffee sessions for red wine – that is another major life choice altogether. When we were ready to call it a night, we found ourselves finishing off our third bottle of wine. To this day, we both cannot remember how we got from the hotel lobby to our room. All we remember is taking a picture along the way, and then our hotel room door was right in front of us. Amazing.
Day Three
We woke up a bit late the following day and since we were both still hungover, we decided to take it slow. We had coffee in our room and spent plenty of time just lazing around. That morning, we didn’t make it to the prescribed time for breakfast at the hotel so we stepped out to look for another restaurant that would still serve us breakfast at 11am. Luckily we found Paraiso Bar, another beachfront resto that has a “make your own breakfast” menu. We had beef tapa (again), eggs and bacon with rice. Yummy! Plus they serve brewed coffee in a tall mug – a big plus factor for me.
After breakfast, we went off to buy “pasalubong” at d’mall. I was able to buy all my pasalubong in one store, since I’m not really the type who would canvass the area first before buying anything. Pia on the other hand happily trotted from one store to the next.
Since we were already tired from walking, we rode a tricycle back to the hotel. It was past 2PM already but good thing, the hotel restaurant still served us lunch, which we didn’t touch much, being too tired or too full from the cold not-as-good-as-starbucks coffee drink we grabbed along the way.
After the late lunch, we went to see the nearest tattoo artist and got ourselves henna tattoo just for kicks. Pia picked a butterfly figure which she had tattooed on her back while I found interest on a group of Chinese characters that was supposed to read “No Satisfaction.” We both thought it was perfect for us, since the phrase says a lot about our Bora experience, and even more about how we see ourselves in the present.
We had to wait a couple of hours for the tattoo to dry so it was almost sunset when we decided to take another dip at the ocean. The weather was a bit cooler, it being late in the afternoon already. It was then that we saw “them.” Much to my horror, there were little silver fishes swimming with us. Sure, it was the ocean, and as Pia said “this is their home!” but I just can’t feel comfortable knowing that there were living things moving underwater while I waded in the waters. Pia was laughing while I freaked out.
At dinner, I went back to our room to get dressed and get the half empty bottle of wine from the previous night. We again settled at our favorite spot. Since it was still too early to drink, I decided to start writing this blog as Pia went to the hotel’s internet shop. When she returned, the hotel was featuring 3 fire dancers by the beach to entertain the buffet diners. It was quite amusing but towards the end the dancers started making mistakes, one even burned his scarf while dancing. All in all, it was still amusing to watch.
After our second bottle of wine, it started drizzling so we had to find another area to occupy. Good thing our server for the night, Jay was very attentive and while we ran to the nearest shelter, he carried all our belongings and let us settle in the restaurant’s veranda where we had a roof over our head and a great view of the beach. The restaurant is supposed to be closed for the night but they allowed us to stay there for as long as we wanted. I then started playing some music with my laptop, much to Pia’s delight – I never realized she’s such a music maniac that she knows the lyrics of most songs I have in my file. However, the rain started pouring and I was afraid that my dearest treasure (my laptop) will get wet so I had to place a sarong over it. After we finished our last glass, we decided to head back to the room and settle for the night.
When we got back to the room, Pia realized that she hasn’t had her fill for the night so we tried calling room service to order 2 more glasses of wine. But much to our dismay, we couldn’t get through the phone line so I walked to the hotel lobby to place our order. Soon after, our order arrived and Pia happily plugged in her Ipod and soon we were singing along with the tunes.
I didn’t realize it was almost 2am until I started feeling lightheaded from sleepiness. I didn’t dare finish my half-filled wine glass and gave the rest to my roommate who was still up and about after our very long day. But sleep won me over so I just climbed up my bed and tucked myself under the covers. Next thing I know, the sun was up and we had to start packing our stuff for check out time.
Day Four
Pia wanted to make the most of the beach hence we stepped out of our room early so we can have breakfast and take another dip in the water before packing. I decided that I didn’t want to swim anymore and would just stay on the beach to take some pictures. We ate breakfast by the restaurant veranda and as we looked out, we saw how beautiful the scenery was. Since it was low tide, the beach was even bigger and the ocean was shallow even if you have walked quite far from the shore. The sun was also shining brightly, a stark contrast from the previous night’s rain. The view, the weather, the backdrop was just fantastic. Sadly, in a few hours it had to end.
We had to go back to our room because check-out was at 12 noon. I realized that I still had to buy a few pearl earrings before we go home but I was already low on cash so I told Pia to go ahead while I went to the nearby ATM. When I got back to the hotel, I decided to sit again at our favorite spot for one last time and ordered myself a mango shake. I sat there for about an hour…drinking in the whole experience of the past four days.
It was then that I realized, I should be giving myself more moments like these. I’ll be 35 in January and I just shudder at the thought that I’ve never allowed myself this luxury in a long, long time.
After checking out, we parked our luggage at the hotel desk and went out to get lunch. We settled at ARIA, where we had tomato and basil pizza and a marinara pasta. Pia wasn’t feeling well; she started feeling whoozy when she went back to our room after her swim, and so she didn’t enjoy lunch as much as I did. After lunch we looked for a pharmacy so she can get meds for her vertigo, a bad thing to have when we are supposed to be getting on a plane in a few hours.
We again took a walk around d’mall and looked for a few more things to take home. Pia found a nice bead necklace at Nothing but Water and a couple more items at a nearby store – the vertigo did nothing to stop this shop-a-holic from getting a good bargain. We took another tricycle ride home and stopped a while to take a picture of an amusing sign we saw earlier.
We only has to wait a few minutes before our ride to the airport came. As briskly as we were brought there, we were whisked off to the Caticlan port for the ferry ride. Reaching the Caticlan Airport, we were informed that there’s going to be a major change in our flight back home. Since the airlines was experiencing delay since morning, our flight (which was last one, out of Caticlan) will not be allowed to depart anymore since it will be too dark already by the time our plane is ready. Instead, they will shuttle us by bus to Kalibo (a good 1 ½ hour ride) where we will be allowed to board a plane back to Manila. Now, this is bad for me, I never liked long drives, especially if we will traverse unfamiliar rough roads in the dark. But then again, we had no choice. As a service recovery effort, the airline provided us with dinner, but it did nothing to appease the other passengers. Pia on the other hand was ultra cool, amusing herself with listening to the passengers screaming at the airline personnel. I don’t know if it was the anti-vertigo drugs she took, but I didn’t detect a hint of displeasure the whole time we were waiting for the bus that will take us to Kalibo.
It was almost dark when the bus arrived and as we settled in our seats, Pia put on her headphones and slept. It was then that I started feeling nauseous, being cramped in my seat and with the driver maniacally maneuvering the bus to our destination. It didn’t help that the bus was playing a gory movie where there was blood and human parts at every scene. I tried sleeping but the constant honking of the bus driver – perhaps to get people and other vehicles out of the way – didn’t help me any.
Just as we stepped out of the bus, our plane was ready for boarding. We landed in Manila a few minutes after 9PM, 3 hours delayed from our supposed arrival time. Since Pia wasn’t feeling well, I told her to go on home while I waited for Lyndon at the airport lobby. A few minutes after, Lyndon arrived and we headed home.
It was a Sunday night, and the next day I will be reporting back to the office. Back to my old life, back to my real life.
Epilogue
My tattoo has now faded. My tan beginning to disappear. But I’ve found a new favorite place on earth.
Other arms reach out to me, other eyes smile tenderly
Still in peaceful dreams I see the road leads back to you
Bora, no peace I find…
Just an old sweet song keeps Bora on my mind
