Culion

Once a remote island used primarily as a leper colony, Culion is a place with a historical background. We were lucky to have met someone in Coron who knew a local, who offered to guide us around town for a day. So we decided to take a day trip to visit present Culion and learn a little about it's facsinating past. We took a banca boat approx. 2500-3000Php from Coron to Culion.

We first walked about 10 minutes from the port to the main church. Our first impressions were that Spanish influences are still very much present in the architecture of the old town today.

Afterwards, our guide also took us up to one of the hotels located on a cliff with a truly spectacular view for lunch. Though the ocean views are comparable to a gorgeous Mediterranean seascape, Culion is still only slowly opening up to tourism, and currently has only two hotels on the island. This makes accomodation and food choices very limited, so don't expect any sidewalk reaturants or burger joints. We recommend going to the hotel we visited on the cliff (which used to be an orphanage years ago) the other is by the port. We then walked around downtown and climbed the 330 steps to see the island's Eagle Crest and take in more beautiful ocean views. We highly recommend this steep trek as it gives you an amazing panorama of the surrounding islands.

We also visited the Leperosy Musem (Culion Sanitarium) and learned about all the medical advances that helped cure the disease and how life was inside the colony. The museum contains rare artifacts from the early 1900's that were used with patients. We also watched a short film about the history of the island. We found out that there are still people living next door in the hospital that were once leper patients, but have since been cured of the disease. Museum cost is 250Php for foreigners, 50Php for locals.

We realized that depiste some limited tourist resources, Culion is a very special place with a lot of growth potential, simply a gem waiting to be discovered.

Coron, Busuanga Island

After a few days of exploring the caves and white sand beaches of El Nido, it was time to head north and seek out our next adventure. We bought a ferry ticket on The Princess Welia for 2,200 pesos (Approx. $48 USD) and took the 7 hour ride to the town of Coron on Busuanga Island. Coron is a quaint costal town with remnants of Spanish-European influence in the layout and architecture. To divers, it's known for the twelve WWII Japanese ship wrecks that sunk around the islands near Busuanga. When we arrived, the Princess Welia pulled right up to the front steps of Seadive Resort, where we easily booked a room for the next few days. (A cool tip: One of the staff moved us to room #209 upstairs where we had an outdoor patio that overlooked the port. It was one of the most comfortable places we stayed in on our trip. The staff member also mentioned to us that it was her favorite room.)

Day One: We took our cameras and hiked up to Mt. Tapyas, where the most prominent landmark The Cross, is displayed in Coron. However, we soon realized that climbing the 717 cement steps to the top is no easy feat! So we recommend bringing plenty of water and allowing a good 30 to 45 minutes before sunset to reaching the top. Once you're there, you'll realize your sore leg muscles are a small price to pay for the spectacular sunset view. Remember to stretch and rest well for the next day's journey ahead! 

Day Two: We decided to book a diving day with Coron Divers to explore the famous diving in the area. The first dive of the day started in Barracuda Lake, a hot thermal lake actually located inside a Volcano crater. The lake is a mix of freshwater/saltwater with a thermocline, and tempertures can soar between 30-38 degrees Celsius. No dive suit needed! To get to the lake, we needed to climb some wooden steps (with all our dive gear) between the limestone formations. Though the visibility underwater was somewhat darker than expected (as opposed to the surface), you can see saltwater creatures that somehow survive the water's high temperatures. Legend has it that the lake is named after a particularly large barracuda living in the vicinity. Despite not seeing any barracudas along the way, it was definitely one of the most fascinating dives we have ever encountered.

The next two dives we did were Japanese wrecks: the Tangat & Olympia Maru. We did not bring our underwater camera gear with us (as it requires extensive lighting & equipment) but to get an idea of wreck diving, you can view some images on this informative dive site link: http://www.divesitedirectory.co.uk/dive_site_philippines_palawan_coron_wreck_... We can definitely support the fact that Coron has some spectacular wreck diving. For those not interested in wreck diving because they think may be dismal compared to colorful marine life, the wreck sites in Coron will prove critics wrong. There is such an abundance of coral and marine life growing on and around the ships. From the thousands of fish we encountered, the smallest seaworm, nudebranch, clownfish, to the large tropical lionfish, these dives were nothing short of amazing. The silhouettes of the wrecks also added a certain mystique to the dive, as light filtered through the cargo rooms and crevices to the outer surface of the ship. Every passage we went through had it's own mystery and wonder. We do advise that you are an experienced diver before attempting a wreck dive, as it requires steady buoyancy to pass through narrow entrances. However, if you make it here, you may agree that it tops our list as the best aquatic adventure in Palawan! 

At the end of the day, we had an engine failure on our banca boat from Coron Divers and our divemaster Dino had to call another boat to get us. Here is our rescue boat arriving. We were not particularly worried, but after several boats passed us within an hour, we were very happy to finally see our rescue boat arrive! Hooray, just in the nick of time before sunset!

We had also heard about the Makinit Hot Springs, located just a 20 minute tricyicle ride from town. So after dinner, we headed to the Hot Springs to take a theraputic dip in the water. It was the perfect way to soothe and rejuvinate our tired muscles after a long day of diving. We highly recommend this diving + spa itinerery!

Next stop...Culion! Stay tuned for more...

Cudugnon Cave, El Nido

Is a most mysterious and intriguing place...Accesible only through a small opening, we had to awkwardly maneuver ourselves and our cameras to get to the other side. Feeling a little like Alice going through the rabbit hole, suddenly we felt overwhelmingly small next to the elevated ceilings and chiseled interiors. Shafts of light filtered down and illuminated the amorphous walls. Organic and sculptural, it is a work of art from all angles. We were inspired by the creative possibilities at this location and could have spent hours experimenting with our cameras. Here are a couple examples:

Naturally formed from millions of years of erosion, there is still uncertainty as to what the caves were used for. Archeological evidence suggests that it could have been a Neolithical burial place, because bones were found at the site. Located on the mainland of Palawan, the cave is definitely one of the highlights of "Tour B" in El Nido. 

 

 

The Twins of El Nido

We took a 10 minute tricycle ride around the corner of El Nido town to Corong-Corong, known for it's impressive sunset views. Unfortunately, as we arrived the clouds had quickly rolled in, making the sky overcast and dull. Instead, we met Voy and his twin sons just as they were coming in from their afternoon of fishing. After asking the name of the two photogenic boys, Voy jokingly replied, "Uno and Dos." Later he explained that their real names were Allan and Allen. Yes....you read that correctly, same name, spelled differently. 

The boys definitely made an impression on us and we couldn't help featuring them on our blog. We enjoy meeting local personalities along the way and will feature more "local life stories" in posts to come!