Friday, December 27, 2013 :: My Boracay Travelogue
This year had been a realllly great year because of all the things that I have accomplished and the opportunities that I have been blessed with :) More on this in my LAST blog post of the year so stay tuned to that!
Just before the year wraps up, I was given an opportunity to fly in to Boracay with the Gushcloud family and enjoy a luxurious and relaxing stay at one of the best hotels in Boracay, courtesy of Tiger Air and District Boracay Hotel.
I also heard that Tiger Air now flies to Yangon (Myanmar)! Hope to visit there some day (if not with the GC family again next year teehee)! For more info, please check out bit.ly/1milliondraw!
On this trip, I also had the opportunity to finally flip the first page of my book which I had bought months ago but had no opportunity to read. Am glad to say that I managed to get through 3/4 of it on the plane towards Philippines.
Landed in Kalibo airport after an approximate 3 hours flight from Singapore.
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GETTING TO BORACAY
No photos documenting the journey from Kalibo to Boracay but I will explain it in detail here as I am already getting enquiries from my circle of friends about the transfers to reach Boracay.
1st Land transfer – The first land transfer is done from Kalibo airport. We travelled in a small 10-seater coach bus and this journey took close to 2.5 hours. Be sure to pop a motion sickness pill because the roads are uneven and the journey there made me pretty sick in my stomach.
Sea transfer – The 2.5 hours bus journey brought us to a pier where we board a ferry to Boracay. This sea transfer took approx 30 minutes and majority of us felt this sea transfer was much more bearable than the land transfer (mentioned above)
2nd Land transfer – Upon reaching Boracay via the ferry, your hotel’s service bus will pick you up from the pier and drive you to your hotel. This journey took 30 minutes (highly dependable on where your hotel is location – Station 1, 2 or 3).
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It was a warm welcome at the District Boracay hotel when we reached at night!
District Boracay is one of the best hotels in Boracay and I say they definitely live up to the reputation with impeccable service and of course, in a really good location!
Dinner was settled at a nearby restaurant which was superb IMO! Details of restaurant below!
MESA FILIPINO MODERNE
(Located along station 2)
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DAY 2
I woke up to the most beautiful skies, clear waters, fine and smooth sand :*)
The second day was spent out in the seas island hopping, snorkelling and lunching at nearby islands. I woke up with so much exhilaration that for once, I do not need John to wake me up haha.
My floppy hat was balanced atop of my high bun and it made me look like a funny witch hehe
In Boracay, you can swim all the way out to the sea, stand up and the water will still be below your knees (well if it is below my knees, it will be somewhere near your ankles ya -.-)The clear sparkling water which reflects the whiteness of the sand closer to the shore.
We travelled in 2 boats and our first destination is the crocodile island.Some of my boating kakis! ;)
There were many firsts during this trip like snorkelling. Before heading down to the sea, I was both excited and scared because the thought of touching fishes or having fishes brushing past my skin send shivers down my spine haha. I was on high alert to see who was holding on to the bread and made a mental note to avoid them :p If you do not know, holding on to a piece of bread will bring a school of fishes to you.
Snorkelling was such an incredible (minus the saltiness of the sea water) experience! I would loveeee to do it again! Wandered off on my own a few times to look at fishies and corals haha and the feeling is so liberating!
After snorkelling, it was lunch at Puka Island where many phototaking activities took place :pFor 1500pesos, which is approx $30-40sgd, we get to do snorkelling activities and island hopped to Puka Island for lunch (lunch is inclusive).
Made Serene hold a dozen items and had stuff hung all over her while she took photos for me in e sea haha. It was such a funny sight :p On another note, the sand was so soft I kept sinking in and it was so hard to keep my balance in the sea!
Many times, I lose my image when I am having too much fun haha. And Serene often say I am a really bad influence because she cannot stop swearing around me lol.
(Really? :p But I made you laugh right? Just like the photo below?)
Back in Boracay and the blue sails were out to play! Those sails added perspective to our photos!
Headed back to hotel to soak in the pool before freshening up for dinner ;)
Dinner was at Talipapa which was recommended by Brad’s (also known as Ladyironchef) readers. It was just a five minutes ride from our hotel.
This is a convenient seafood market where you buy your own seafood then bring it to the nearby restaurants and get them to cook it for you in any style you want! If you are up for some bargaining, this can be quite the experience!
Haggling for this lobster failed because the price is exorbitant at $90 per kg aww :(
Possibly one of the freshest seafood I have ever tasted here and we get it cooked anyway we want it at a fraction of a cost charged at a normal seafood restaurant!
My favourite crab eating place in Singapore is Melben Seafood at AMK where John and I often frequent. However, the freshness and taste of this small and unimpressive looking curry crab can easily win Melben’s huge crabs anytime.
Overall, Talipapa is a MUST visit place for the bargaining experience and of course, the fresh seafood which is served immediately from the market to your dinner table. IMO, this was the best dinner we had in Boracay! :D
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DAY 3
Woke up early with Serene and decided to go hunt for the famous Jonah’s milk shake. Not sure if it was a good or bad decision because we had to walk under the scorching hot sun for 45 minutes (although getting a sip of the milk shake eventually was pretty worth it). And it was THIS walk which gave me a dark tan.
Both Serene and I were complaining non stop because walking from Station 2 to Station 1 under the sun was really not a small feat haha. Come to think of it, the experience is really funny considering how we could have very easily head down to the main road and flag down a tuktuk to bring us to Station 1 haha. Yup, you can just take a tuktuk down to Jonah if you are not staying in Station 1 -.-
Did a little Bay Watch there.
The walk was arduously long with no shade.
Found Jonah’s after 30 minutes and my skin was scorching hot by then.
The signature flavour like the Avocado shake was sold out by the time we reached there. I settled for mango melon shake instead and it was not bad. Haha not sure if the conditions and circumstances then made the drink taste really good or it was that good. We were in terrible thirst when we reached Jonah’s lol.
Day 3’s activities started with ATV somewhere near our hotel. It took us 8 minutes to reach here by bus from District Boracay.
The 15 minutes ATV ride up the mountainous route brought us to the peak which overlook the whole of Boracay.
Skipped lunch and went straight for helmet diving with a few others after ATV!This helmet weighs 40kg or more I suspect. It was so heavy my shoulders were bruised the next day. It was pretty boring after awhile in the waters because we were just hanging around the same spot watching the divers perform tricks on the seabed. But for the experience, which was my first, I give it a 4 out of 5!
From left to right: Jeneen, Jolene, myself, Lucinda and Kaykay
I couldn’t get over how cool (and heavy) the helmet is haha! It is a highly pressurized helmet which flushes the water out the moment you are in the waters. It kept my hair dry, can you believe it?
They say sometimes you make a wrong decision in life and beat yourself up for it. Well, it happened to Serene and I during this trip. It was about 4 plus 5 when we headed back to Boracay. As the sun sets really early there, Serene and I wanted to catch the beautiful sunset so…we rushed back to the hotel to bathe (just like many others) and forgo parasailing.
This is Roseanna and Audrey parasailing into the sunset. Ever since we returned back to Singapore and get questions like “what do you enjoy doing most in Boracay?”, I will reply “I enjoyed parasailing in my mind alot”. Because the testimonials of those we went said it was the most beautiful thing ever, and that the trip on the boat out into the horizon is already worth the monies. It made me beat myself up for not going so badly :(
This was us at the beach in our dinner wear catching the sunset, clueless of how we have missed the activity of the lifetime until we saw the photos at dinner time -.-
I really liked the sails against the skyline :*)
A statuesque District Boracay just behind our backs. So thankful to be put up at such a convenient location!
The Gushcloud family dinner took place at a Greek restaurant at CYMA GREEK TAVERNA. It was my first time having Greek food and I would say it was awesome! This restaurant is just a convenient walk of 3 minutes away from our hotel.
The seafood bisque was reallllyyyy savoury!
Really soft and succulent beef steak with blue cheese, prawns and potatoes. Love this dish! Please do order this dish if you have the chance to visit this restaurant!
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DAY 4 and GOODBYE BORACAY!
Snapped some peektures with the other GC bloggers whom I made friends with during this trip. They are really quite the funny bunch haha.This is Hellven Jeremy who sustained a scar to his forehead (and became known as Helly Potter afterwards) during cliff jumping.
One of my pretty capable managers – Audrey. Her eyes are really greenish in color! I just cannot stop staring blankly into her eyes while talking to her haha. Now, that was really rude :/
One of the pool facing rooms we stayed in.
I think an important aspect of the holiday is staying in a comfortable hotel with a convenient and safe location which you and look forward to heading back to every night. District Boracay definitely live up to its reputation and I have been recommending it to all my friends who are heading there next year :) I am sure very soon, there will be good reviews sprawling all over the web about this hotel!
GC founders – Althea and Jeremy, whom I have newfound respect for after sitting in on the GC informal meeting held in the lounge area in District Boracay hotel. The founders talk about GC’s directions, plans and their history which was very inspirational to me who is also taking the road less travelled :)
Another 2 of GC managers – Freda and Sheena :)
With the smart and beautiful Kaykay
One with pretty Valerie and Nicole :)
One with the GC family!
THE DISTRICT BORACAY
Resort Station 2, barangay Balabag, Boracay Island, Malay, Aklan, Philippines
Tel: (63 2) 986.1075; (63 36) 288.2324 - 27; (63 36) 288.1448
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Been super busy ever since I came back and I will definitely try to rush out my last 2 blog posts of the year! I have something planned out to give away for my last blog post but regrettably have not gotten down to doing it yet because of time. Please be patient with me while I rush it out! :*)
Last of all, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all my lovely readers and may God bless every single one of you!
Labels: ATV, Boracay, Crocodile Island, District Boracay, Helmet Dive, Jonah's, Parasailing, Puka Island, Snorkeling, Talipapa, Tiger Air, vaingloriousyou
With Love,Tricia
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