Enchanted River!!!
Next Destination: Enchanted River, Hinatuan!!!
Off we go again...Moving on to Hinatuan!
Who's who? "Alin, alin, alin ang naiba? Sabihin kung alin ang naiba? Sabihin, sabihin, sabihin kung alin. Sabihin kung alin ang naiba!" (You singing along? hehe)
Hmm... as if the difficulty in boarding the bus and encountering a flat tire is not enough, we were already very near Hinatuan proper when we encountered a broken bridge at Brgy. Bigaan. It was such a situation. It made us reconsider our decision to go all the way to Hinatuan. We were toying with the idea of going to Lingig instead. But considering we are already very near Hinatuan, we opted to proceed as planned. I'm truly glad we did. Know why? Since enchanted river was definitely worth visiting!
Settling for the night
We crossed the broken bridge on foot then hired a "habal-habal" that would take us to Hinatuan proper. In the end, we had the habal-habal take us all the way to Brgy. Talisay where the enchanted river is to be found.
We created quite a stir when we arrived at the Barangay Town Hall there. We became an instant celebrity. Kids and some people flocked to the hall just to gape at us. Really! They were probably wondering what we were all doing there. To begin with, it was already dark when we got there. And our insistence to spend the night and camp by the river had them look at us quite weirdly. At one point, they even told us they thought we were casts of "Spirits" Haha! Since some of them were in the area just the past week. Really funny. In my mind I was thinking we hardly qualify for being celebrities. "Maligno's," most probably hehe.
In the end, we opted to stay at the "Sanctuary Center" of the barangay. It was a good decision. Once settled there, we then proceeded to prepare for dinner and pitched our tents.
Cooking dinner. Preparing our dinner: Spaghetti -- Spaghetti ala Tuna Spicyca (hehe) and Spaghetti con carne =) it had to be two of a kind for the meat eaters in the group and for Bolo and me.
Nope, not a serial killer. Bambie yielding a bolo with Ani, preparing the spices for the spaghetti.
Now, the real "Bolo" hehe Blow bolo blow! Our rice expert Bolo, making use of the facility's dirty kitchen to cook our rice for dinner. And he was a true expert. Rice that night was perfect! Thank you B! =)
Dinner! Looking really tired already. Left: Joan, Bambie, Zoe and Jay; Center: Choy2x; Right: Renee and Bolo
A home inside a house. Getting ready to sleep for the night. It had been a long day
Another Day Dawns (Some Great Sunrise Shots)
The incontenence I'm suffering from proved a blessing that day. It woke me up in time for the sunrise. And it was a beautiful sunrise. What could be more perfect than beholding a sunrise out at sea?
Ah... Sunrise. The log in my camera reads, 6:15 A.M.
Casting a soft glow all around...
The sun is up
Off to work.Lone boatman in the horizon, on his way for his first catch of the day
The guardhouse of the sanctuary
Early risers. Spied this kids playing at an adjacent house.
Family Portrait. Meet the "Mimings" hehe. Cute kittens in the sanctuary.(Photo credit: Choy2x).
These kittens are so playful they woke us up quite frequently in the middle of the night by suddenly jumping at our tents or playfully scratching our tents or playing with the zippers...
The Feast
One highlight of the trip also was the "foodfest" we enjoyed in Hinatuan. Seafood was cheap. With Zoe and Jay in-charged with the marketing, they came back with quite a handful of delights -- giant squid, giant lapu-lapu's and really huge crabs. Yum! It was a feast alright!
Giant Squid!!!
Giant Lapu-lapu!
Big crabs too!
Halaans too!(Photo credit: Bolo. Nice one, B). We had this for soup during breakfast. Yum!!!
Yum!
They were all so big we had a dilemma as to where and how to cook them. They could hardly fit into any of our cookset. Luckily there were some big pans around in the sanctuary house.
Since there was hardly any time left for us to cook all of them, we decided to just cook the crabs and one of the lapu-lapu's for our packed lunch. The halaan made a tasty soup for breakfast. As for the giant squid and lapu2x, we had other designs for them come dinner time. And so, off we prepared for our breakfast and packed lunch. The tide is turning real low. Our "bangkeros" had already reminded us that accessing the river and the islands at lowtide would really be very difficult. So rush, we did!
Guys bonding. The guys with some of the locals discussing our route for that day.
Locals among themselves: Dili gyud dapat maglowtide kay lisod na kaayo.
Zoe: Bleh! Ana bitaw ko, magdali na ta!
Cooking breakfast.Everybody pitching in.
Renee to Zoe: O, ayaw na sige pa-cute dira. Wala na time, naa pa lain lutuon!
Choy2x: Relax lang dichie!
Jay: Bitaw Bossing! hehehe
Joan: Ha?!?
For lunch!
And off we go!!! Here we come!!! Bambie, Renee, Myself, Bolo (looking very much like a local fisherman. Huh! Gwapo pa sa picture na ito yung bangkero natin B! hehe), Zoe, our bangkero, Joan and Jay at the back. Choy2x took this picture standing at the "hull" of the banca.
Entering the river's mouth from the sea.
Moving in. Cute pose Bam! =)
The suspense was killing me then. As we entered the mouth of the river from the sea, I could feel myself almost trembling with anticipation hehehe. I coudn't believe we're finally just a few feet away from seeing the river upclose. This time, not just from pictures of friends or from magazines.
We're getting closer. Shown here is Benjie - our boatman - maneuvering our boat in the swallow waters of the river at lowtide
Ah... El rio encanto...Enchanted river and the cavern at its end.
A closer look at the river's "abyss" in the middle.
At another angle
Ahh...
The river was quite "enchanting" to behold upclose, no wonder its name. It was definitely awesome and beautiful. Though I don't know how to swim, there were several instances when I've braved wading in deep water with a life jacket on. But one look at the river's very blue middle and I knew, here is something that's quite hard to reckon with. In truth, it wasn't fear that I felt. It was more like a respect for the river, for something that is bigger than I am.
Docking in...
Picture, Picture!!!
After alighting from our banca, we immediately "stripped" into our swimming gears and enjoyed the water. Not before taking some good pictures though.
The lone ranger. Or is it the "River" ranger -- security guard of the place? hehehe Joke lang B!
Bolo: I came, I saw, I conquer!
Muscle man Jay
SexyRenee
Another sexy: Joan
Sexy too, Bambie
The whole gang. Notice how the shade of the water changes as it drew nearer to the middle of the river, belying its depth.
Some Photo shoots!!!
A photo shoot for a deodorant commercial. Or was it wax? hehe
Bench-babe Bambie.Watch out for this billboard. Soon to be posted in major points in the city to replace Richard Gomez' billboard =)
Enjoying the River
The brave ones. While I just content myself wading and waddling in the swallow parts of the river, the others took turn jumping into the water.
The others braving it in
Clowning around. Choy2x, Jay and Joan playfully jumping into the water.
Inside the Cavern
Spot-Spider-Woman-in-This-Photo Contest.Inside the cavern, Joan mocks, rock climbing on its walls
Still Inside the Cave
The guys.
The Ladies! WAMOC reigns!!! hehehe
WAMOC! =) Miss you Zette =(
Everyone!
At the cave's mouth. Going out of the cavern.
Water is real deep at this part. In fact, it took a lot of cajoling from me before Bolo agreed that I enter the cave too with the others. He was quite willing to pass up entering the cave just to accompany me outside of the cave where the water is swallower. But knowing that the water inside the cave is swallow, I wanted to brave it just the same. I knew I could manage it by just holding on to the cavern's walls -- ala Spiderman hehe. I was right! :) B swam alongside me though. Not quite trustful huh? =)
Lunch!
Cute Renee.While everone was through having lunch, Renee still finished off the last of the crabs "sipits" hehe
Washing up after lunch.
Don't wonder much why these are the only pictures we had of lunch. When everyone saw the crabs laid out, everyone forgot themselves momentarily and just started digging in. Forget about the picture! hehe.
After lunch, we enjoyed the place some more. I was even lucky enough to hitch a ride with our bangkeros to go the very middle of the river. Peering down below from my comfortable and quite safe place in the banca, I could feel goosebumps growing all over my body. The bottom of the river looks real mile, mile below its surface. Though I was standing up while looking down, I grew scared and insecure and sat instead at the bottom of the banca while continuing my "examination" of the river's "pit." It was scary alright but I was really glad I had the opportunity to look at it first-hand.
Island Tour
We enjoyed dipping in the water some more after lunch. Then we headed out for our next activity in our IT that day -- island tour!!!
Island 1
Island Tour!
Choy2x and Jay
The Procession. Moving from one island to the next. Water is so low at these parts that it is impossible to cross the islands using our boat. So walked we did!
The Islanders
How to drink buko, when stranded in an island without anything.
1. Hold it in your hand and look at where the hole is (See Bolo in photo); 2. Raise the buko above your head, taking care that the hole is directly where your mouth is. (See Jay in photo); 3. Raise the buko further up your head and open your mouth wider for sure hit! (See Zoe in this photo). Just follow these steps and you're sure to enjoy your buko. hehe
Dipping In
The W/AMOC signature photograph -- Backview! hehe
Home after the island tour
The girls here are shown upon our arrival back at the sanctuary house after the day's adventures. We actually had to wait a while before using the bathrooms since the boys are at it first. Huh!
Going Home!
Waiting for the jeep that would take us to Mangagoy for our bus ride home
With our host -- Manong and Manang of the Sanctuary
Richie-and-Cheez-It-eating contest while waiting for the jeep
The finalists... Renee, Joan and Jay
Lunch in Mangagoy
It was already lunchtime by the time we arrived in Mangagoy. So we had our lunch there. Afterwards, we went ukay2x but was not able to buy much. Most of us were already short of cash by then hahaha It was a nice trip all the same! Truly fun!
Off we go again...Moving on to Hinatuan!
Who's who? "Alin, alin, alin ang naiba? Sabihin kung alin ang naiba? Sabihin, sabihin, sabihin kung alin. Sabihin kung alin ang naiba!" (You singing along? hehe)
Hmm... as if the difficulty in boarding the bus and encountering a flat tire is not enough, we were already very near Hinatuan proper when we encountered a broken bridge at Brgy. Bigaan. It was such a situation. It made us reconsider our decision to go all the way to Hinatuan. We were toying with the idea of going to Lingig instead. But considering we are already very near Hinatuan, we opted to proceed as planned. I'm truly glad we did. Know why? Since enchanted river was definitely worth visiting!
Settling for the night
We crossed the broken bridge on foot then hired a "habal-habal" that would take us to Hinatuan proper. In the end, we had the habal-habal take us all the way to Brgy. Talisay where the enchanted river is to be found.
We created quite a stir when we arrived at the Barangay Town Hall there. We became an instant celebrity. Kids and some people flocked to the hall just to gape at us. Really! They were probably wondering what we were all doing there. To begin with, it was already dark when we got there. And our insistence to spend the night and camp by the river had them look at us quite weirdly. At one point, they even told us they thought we were casts of "Spirits" Haha! Since some of them were in the area just the past week. Really funny. In my mind I was thinking we hardly qualify for being celebrities. "Maligno's," most probably hehe.
In the end, we opted to stay at the "Sanctuary Center" of the barangay. It was a good decision. Once settled there, we then proceeded to prepare for dinner and pitched our tents.
Cooking dinner. Preparing our dinner: Spaghetti -- Spaghetti ala Tuna Spicyca (hehe) and Spaghetti con carne =) it had to be two of a kind for the meat eaters in the group and for Bolo and me.
Nope, not a serial killer. Bambie yielding a bolo with Ani, preparing the spices for the spaghetti.
Now, the real "Bolo" hehe Blow bolo blow! Our rice expert Bolo, making use of the facility's dirty kitchen to cook our rice for dinner. And he was a true expert. Rice that night was perfect! Thank you B! =)
Dinner! Looking really tired already. Left: Joan, Bambie, Zoe and Jay; Center: Choy2x; Right: Renee and Bolo
A home inside a house. Getting ready to sleep for the night. It had been a long day
Another Day Dawns (Some Great Sunrise Shots)
The incontenence I'm suffering from proved a blessing that day. It woke me up in time for the sunrise. And it was a beautiful sunrise. What could be more perfect than beholding a sunrise out at sea?
Ah... Sunrise. The log in my camera reads, 6:15 A.M.
Casting a soft glow all around...
The sun is up
Off to work.Lone boatman in the horizon, on his way for his first catch of the day
The guardhouse of the sanctuary
Early risers. Spied this kids playing at an adjacent house.
Family Portrait. Meet the "Mimings" hehe. Cute kittens in the sanctuary.(Photo credit: Choy2x).
These kittens are so playful they woke us up quite frequently in the middle of the night by suddenly jumping at our tents or playfully scratching our tents or playing with the zippers...
The Feast
One highlight of the trip also was the "foodfest" we enjoyed in Hinatuan. Seafood was cheap. With Zoe and Jay in-charged with the marketing, they came back with quite a handful of delights -- giant squid, giant lapu-lapu's and really huge crabs. Yum! It was a feast alright!
Giant Squid!!!
Giant Lapu-lapu!
Big crabs too!
Halaans too!(Photo credit: Bolo. Nice one, B). We had this for soup during breakfast. Yum!!!
Yum!
They were all so big we had a dilemma as to where and how to cook them. They could hardly fit into any of our cookset. Luckily there were some big pans around in the sanctuary house.
Since there was hardly any time left for us to cook all of them, we decided to just cook the crabs and one of the lapu-lapu's for our packed lunch. The halaan made a tasty soup for breakfast. As for the giant squid and lapu2x, we had other designs for them come dinner time. And so, off we prepared for our breakfast and packed lunch. The tide is turning real low. Our "bangkeros" had already reminded us that accessing the river and the islands at lowtide would really be very difficult. So rush, we did!
Guys bonding. The guys with some of the locals discussing our route for that day.
Locals among themselves: Dili gyud dapat maglowtide kay lisod na kaayo.
Zoe: Bleh! Ana bitaw ko, magdali na ta!
Cooking breakfast.Everybody pitching in.
Renee to Zoe: O, ayaw na sige pa-cute dira. Wala na time, naa pa lain lutuon!
Choy2x: Relax lang dichie!
Jay: Bitaw Bossing! hehehe
Joan: Ha?!?
For lunch!
And off we go!!! Here we come!!! Bambie, Renee, Myself, Bolo (looking very much like a local fisherman. Huh! Gwapo pa sa picture na ito yung bangkero natin B! hehe), Zoe, our bangkero, Joan and Jay at the back. Choy2x took this picture standing at the "hull" of the banca.
Entering the river's mouth from the sea.
Moving in. Cute pose Bam! =)
The suspense was killing me then. As we entered the mouth of the river from the sea, I could feel myself almost trembling with anticipation hehehe. I coudn't believe we're finally just a few feet away from seeing the river upclose. This time, not just from pictures of friends or from magazines.
We're getting closer. Shown here is Benjie - our boatman - maneuvering our boat in the swallow waters of the river at lowtide
Ah... El rio encanto...Enchanted river and the cavern at its end.
A closer look at the river's "abyss" in the middle.
At another angle
Ahh...
The river was quite "enchanting" to behold upclose, no wonder its name. It was definitely awesome and beautiful. Though I don't know how to swim, there were several instances when I've braved wading in deep water with a life jacket on. But one look at the river's very blue middle and I knew, here is something that's quite hard to reckon with. In truth, it wasn't fear that I felt. It was more like a respect for the river, for something that is bigger than I am.
Docking in...
Picture, Picture!!!
After alighting from our banca, we immediately "stripped" into our swimming gears and enjoyed the water. Not before taking some good pictures though.
The lone ranger. Or is it the "River" ranger -- security guard of the place? hehehe Joke lang B!
Bolo: I came, I saw, I conquer!
Muscle man Jay
SexyRenee
Another sexy: Joan
Sexy too, Bambie
The whole gang. Notice how the shade of the water changes as it drew nearer to the middle of the river, belying its depth.
Some Photo shoots!!!
A photo shoot for a deodorant commercial. Or was it wax? hehe
Bench-babe Bambie.Watch out for this billboard. Soon to be posted in major points in the city to replace Richard Gomez' billboard =)
Enjoying the River
The brave ones. While I just content myself wading and waddling in the swallow parts of the river, the others took turn jumping into the water.
The others braving it in
Clowning around. Choy2x, Jay and Joan playfully jumping into the water.
Inside the Cavern
Spot-Spider-Woman-in-This-Photo Contest.Inside the cavern, Joan mocks, rock climbing on its walls
Still Inside the Cave
The guys.
The Ladies! WAMOC reigns!!! hehehe
WAMOC! =) Miss you Zette =(
Everyone!
At the cave's mouth. Going out of the cavern.
Water is real deep at this part. In fact, it took a lot of cajoling from me before Bolo agreed that I enter the cave too with the others. He was quite willing to pass up entering the cave just to accompany me outside of the cave where the water is swallower. But knowing that the water inside the cave is swallow, I wanted to brave it just the same. I knew I could manage it by just holding on to the cavern's walls -- ala Spiderman hehe. I was right! :) B swam alongside me though. Not quite trustful huh? =)
Lunch!
Cute Renee.While everone was through having lunch, Renee still finished off the last of the crabs "sipits" hehe
Washing up after lunch.
Don't wonder much why these are the only pictures we had of lunch. When everyone saw the crabs laid out, everyone forgot themselves momentarily and just started digging in. Forget about the picture! hehe.
After lunch, we enjoyed the place some more. I was even lucky enough to hitch a ride with our bangkeros to go the very middle of the river. Peering down below from my comfortable and quite safe place in the banca, I could feel goosebumps growing all over my body. The bottom of the river looks real mile, mile below its surface. Though I was standing up while looking down, I grew scared and insecure and sat instead at the bottom of the banca while continuing my "examination" of the river's "pit." It was scary alright but I was really glad I had the opportunity to look at it first-hand.
Island Tour
We enjoyed dipping in the water some more after lunch. Then we headed out for our next activity in our IT that day -- island tour!!!
Island 1
Island Tour!
Choy2x and Jay
The Procession. Moving from one island to the next. Water is so low at these parts that it is impossible to cross the islands using our boat. So walked we did!
The Islanders
How to drink buko, when stranded in an island without anything.
1. Hold it in your hand and look at where the hole is (See Bolo in photo); 2. Raise the buko above your head, taking care that the hole is directly where your mouth is. (See Jay in photo); 3. Raise the buko further up your head and open your mouth wider for sure hit! (See Zoe in this photo). Just follow these steps and you're sure to enjoy your buko. hehe
Dipping In
The W/AMOC signature photograph -- Backview! hehe
Home after the island tour
The girls here are shown upon our arrival back at the sanctuary house after the day's adventures. We actually had to wait a while before using the bathrooms since the boys are at it first. Huh!
Going Home!
Waiting for the jeep that would take us to Mangagoy for our bus ride home
With our host -- Manong and Manang of the Sanctuary
Richie-and-Cheez-It-eating contest while waiting for the jeep
The finalists... Renee, Joan and Jay
Lunch in Mangagoy
It was already lunchtime by the time we arrived in Mangagoy. So we had our lunch there. Afterwards, we went ukay2x but was not able to buy much. Most of us were already short of cash by then hahaha It was a nice trip all the same! Truly fun!
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