Island hopping, diving, sightseeing and chilling.
A trip to the Philippines, that should have been taking in tiny monkeys to great whale sharks, food, culture, diving, snorkelling and chilling. More of that later.
We opted for a flight to Dubai then on to Manila as it split the journey and gave us a good rest on each flight. This may not have been the best decision as we ended up with serious jet lag, perhaps one long flight may have been better.
Manila
Once we arrived we were taken to Raffles, very nice, which is a short drive from the airport and in a brilliant position for shops, malls and food courts. We were fortunate to get a roof top suite and there was even a choice of seven different pillows, unfortunately not one that deals with jet lag.
Raffles, The Long Bar and history of The Singapore Sling
The Long Bar’s iconic Signature Sling was first created in 1915 at Raffles Singapore by Hainanese bartender Ngiam Tong Boon.
Back then, while it was not unusual for women to go to bars, etiquette dictated that they could not consume alcohol in public. They instead made do with teas and fruit juices.
Seizing an opportunity, Ngiam Tong Boon created a gin-based cocktail, adding grenadine and cherry liqueur to give it a rosy pink hue, so that it just looked like fruit punch. With that, the Singapore Sling was born.
Old Manila City Tour
After breakfast, we met our guide Joe in the hotel lobby and set out on a tour of Manila. We began with a visit to Rizal Park, named in honor of Dr. Jose Rizal, the Philippines’ national hero, where we made a quick photo stop. From there, we proceeded to Intramuros, the Walled City, and explored Fort Santiago, an ancient fortress guarding the mouth of the Pasig River then on to San Agustin Church and Casa Manila.
Crossing the Pasig River, we drove through Quiapo district, the old downtown area, and visited Santo Tomas University, founded in 1611 by Dominican friars. We also stopped at the Chinese Cemetery, where some mausoleums were larger than average-sized houses. On our way back to the hotel via Roxas Boulevard, we enjoyed views of the city’s sea front.
Greenhills Market
The afternoon was free for us to explore by ourselves so we called by Greenhills Market, famous for its “replicas”. This is a large complex that has cinema, church, shopping mall, food courts but also an indoor air conditioned market. There are a lot of stalls selling jewelry and pearls for which the Philippines are famous but also everything you can think of is here in replica form. The US is currently trying to shut this market down as it’s infringing so many patents. When you are walking around don’t be surprised to hear some that appears to be selling only gaudy t shits offer you hand bags, once you show an interest all shirts will be moved to one side to display shelves holding every handbag known to man, or should I say woman. Talking about that a lot of stallholders are ladyboys and tbh quite butch but pleasant enough with no hassle unlike other Asian markets. So after viewing every brand of watch, shoes, trainers, shirts, perfume we came away with a beach bag and three shirts, just to justify the taxi fare back to the hotel. Tbh the fakes shirts were cheaper than getting laundry done.
Street Food tour in Manila
We joined a culinary food walk through Binondo Chinatown, sampling Tsinoy delicacies like lumpia, empanadas, pancit, dumplings, pancakes, and hopia. The 3-hour tour, led by a local foodie, took us through Plaza Calderon dela Barca, Basilica de San Lorenzo Ruiz, Ongpin Street, and Carvajal Alley Market.
Quick morning transfer to Airport then after a couple of hour flight we arrived in El Nido, a short hop to the harbour then a boat over to Pangalusian Island and CHILL.
Pangulasian Island, El Nido.
In Manila we were often asked where we were off to next and when we told them Pangulasian Island they were always complimentary so we had high hopes. Their website says “It’s a luxurious resort in Bacuit Bay with 42 villas and a stunning 750-meter private beach, infinity pool, spa, watersports, walking trails, lagoons and natural pools’.
The truth was somewhat different. The beach is not the “stunning beach” but has a lot of rubbish and glass that wasn’t even cleared 3 days after they were informed of it. Food was repetitive and service often poor. If you are used to and expect 5 star service and food this is not the resort for you.
On the first full day when Lynn was returning from the spa wearing a highly visible white bathrobe she was hit by one of the hotel buggies that was “travelling too fast in narrow bit and swerved to miss two people and hit her”. This is the description that the hotel doctor gave us of the incident. She suffered abrasions to one leg and bruising to hip, shoulder and arm on the other side when she hit the ground. This resulted in extremely painful “muscle damage and inflammation” for which she was given pain relief medication. The amount of medication she was on meant that she couldn’t even have a glass of wine. She received excellent treatment and care by the on site doctor but her mobility was severely impaired.
A measure of the culpability and acceptance of responsibility by the hotel is that they did not charge us for our food or beverages and also refunded the total cost of our stay. This does not disguise the fact that ongoing it as ruined our holiday as we were travelling on to other places in the Philippines. To make matters worse as we were leaving, we were asked to sign several waiver forms. This was never mentioned when we were offered the full refund and by this time the director who offered it had left. I explained to the manager that we were signing this under duress because she said that if we did not sign it, we did not get the refund. She agreed that it was under duress so on that basis we signed it. A good job that iPhone has a voice record facility and I left it on her desk and recorded the full conversation. Anything that we signed there is voidable and should Lynn have any issues in the future then we would look for redress.
The reason we came to El Nido was for the diving, snorkelling, swimming, spa treatments and sightseeing but apart from Paul managing a dive before the incident all of the other activities had to be cancelled because of it. Under normal circumstances Lynn would never be out of the sea; at this resort she was never in it.
Going to Pangulasian Island was a big mistake and a total waste of time and money. Whilst we were at the airport we met guests from Miniloc Island, a sister resort and their experience re service and food was similar.
What we should have been doing in El Nido as per our itinerary- Island-hopping in El Nido, exploring cliff-backed islands, emerald lagoons, snorkel off white sand beaches in crystal-clear waters. Encounter vibrant marine life, including hawksbill turtles and manta rays, and freshly barbecued lunch on a beach. Due to the incident we were unable to do any of these activities.
Amorita Resort, Pangalau Island, Bohol.
After a couple of hours flight it was only a 10 min transfer to Amorita Resort, perched on a cliff overlooking the Bohol Sea and Alona Beach. The resort features “modern suites”, think polished concrete, garden villas, a couple of infinity pools and 3 restaurants but no private beach however the pool area is relaxed.
What the hotel forgot to mention to our agent was that there was a wedding going on right outside of our room and they refused to move us.
Alona Beach has a backpackers vibe with a lot of young people, bars restaurants and masseurs along the beach front.
Bohol Tour
The Island tour was due to include the following: the Blood Compact Site, marking the historic agreement on March 16, 1565, between Sikatuna, a native chieftain, and Miguel Lopez de Legaspi, the Spanish explorer. The Baclayon Church, one of the island’s ancient Spanish churches, which was badly damaged during the 2013 earthquake. The Tarsier Sanctuary in Corella, home to one of the world’s smallest primates, no larger than a man’s hand. Then a river boat for a leisurely lunchtime cruise up the Loboc River. A drive through Bohol’s scenic countryside of palm trees, coconut plantations, and mahogany forests to the incredible Chocolate Hills.
Unfortunately due to the accident once we got to the Tarsiers we had to cancel the trip and get alternative transport to take us back to the hotel.
Pamilacan Island
Due to Lynn’s injury we had to cancel this but we should have been: dolphin watching in a beachcomber’s haven, spotting migrating whales with a stop on an island to visit one of the villages with lunch and finally snorkelling in the crystal-clear waters.
Again we are on the road, but this time it’s to a ferry across to Negros. The ferry was a couple of hours before we arrived at our final destination.
Atmosphere Resort and Spa, Negros.
After a trip which has been nothing short of a disaster so far we are off to Atmosphere Resort, set in lush gardens on a former coconut plantation. Apparently the resort offers boutique luxury, a tranquil spa, yoga classes, and diving excursions.
We seriously hope this is a decent resort so we can salvage something from our trip to the Philippines.
Apo Island
After breakfast at the resort, we set off for a day trip to Apo Island. We started at the village of Malatapay, the access point for the island, where we boarded an outrigger boat for the 45-minute ride to Apo Island. The volcanic island, just 3 km in length and 120 m at its highest point, is surrounded by a protected marine reserve.
During our time on Apo Island, we snorkeled in its wide reef flats and coral mounds teeming with an extensive variety of fish. For a bit of adventure, we trekked along the Habagat Trail for 30 minutes and were rewarded with a panoramic view of the island and its stunning marine sanctuary.