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Oh Yeah!!!! 4 Day weekend at the end of October, time to get out of Manila. Destination, Caramoan.
We'd been planning this trip for about a month now. Brenden came across it whilst looking at a Wakeboarding park near Naga. It looked pretty good from the photos and it looked like it was off the tourist trail. Just what we needed. Jodi did all the organising, she found a place to stay for Saturday and Sunday nights and then Monday night at the wakeboarding place Brenden had found. It also coincided with Jodi's Birthday so that was nice.
Beep! Beep! Beep! 3.30am the alarm went off! 6.00am flight out of Manila to Naga. Need to leave the apartment by about 4.00am to leave enough time to get through the airport as it will be busy due to the long weekend. Why do we do this to ourselves? The guard down at reception kindly organised a taxi for us so we didn't have to flag one down.
Get to the airport in record time. There was no traffic on the road at all, was almost like driving through Bauple. Once we get to the airport the line to get into the airport terminal was about 30-40 people long. You have to get your bags scanned as you enter the terminal before you even get to check-in. They move the people through pretty quickly, they're only really looking for expolosives so it only took about 10mins. The terminal we were at is 1 of 2 international terminals but we were only flying domestic. So we found our Airline and checked with the guard to make sure we were in the right line. Yes we are - sweet, no problem, we line up. After standing in line for about 1/2 hour and listening to a dog yap it's fkn head off for 10 mins, we checked with another guard about the line we were in. "No sir, you're not in the right line -you're not even at the right airline counter." Turns out our flight, although we booked it through Philippine Airlines is actually operated by PhilAirExpres, their sister company. And the only way you know this by reading the small print on your itinerary. So we find the right line, check-in in about 5 minutes, smash through security, find our gate and wait for our flight. Flight was only delayed by about 15 minutes and in the Philippines that's considered 'on-time'.
So we land in Naga at about 7.10am. The flight itself was only about 45mins so it's pretty quick. The airport is only about the size of Maryborough Airport so it's pretty small. So we get our bags and head for the exit. The package we booked included transfers to and from the airport. The driver messaged us the night before and said he'd be there at 7.30am. No problem, we'll just let the other 1000 taxi drivers waiting at the airport we already have our transport sorted. 7.30 comes and goes and we start wondering if the driver has left without us. Meanwhile the other taxi drivers are circling like vulchers, edging ever closer with every passing minute. We contact the hotel via SMS and they inform us that the driver has broken down and we need to get our own taxi. It's at this point we discovered that we didn't print out any of the Hotel information and Jodi has forgotten the name of the hotel. Hmmm......... So we message the hotel back and get further directions. Turns out we get need to get a taxi from the Airport to Sabang Port, about an hour away, so then we start to look for the friendliest taxi driver out of the bunch.
After chatting with the driver for the entire trip and then paying $1300 pesos (about $27AU) to drive us about 30k's, we arrive at Sabang port and was greeted by a mob of porters all wanting to carry our bags to the boat. So we get our bags on the boat, tip the porters, then tip the other porters who set up the ramp from the beach to the boat and then find our seats. These boats are just wide enough to fit 3 people sitting side-by-side and they're about 12m long so they fit about 50 people on them. Brenden found he couldn't straighten his legs either. "How long is this boat ride Jodi?" "About 2 hours" Hmmmm........... The whole trip Brenden kept moving around trying to find a comfortable position. He ended up sticking his feet out the side of the 'cabin area'. He did actually sleep for a little bit until he got uncomfortable again. The boat trip was actually pretty good, we travelled right up the side of the island and saw some pretty amazing scenery. The weather was pretty s*** though, Brenden had to keep pulling his legs inside when it rained. Oh well, it's all part of the experience.
We arrive at Caramoan port to be greeted by our Pedicab driver with a sign saying "Welcome Jodi." Sweet, at least we don't have to go through the whole 'finding-a-cab' business again. Load our stuff on and head towards the hotel, which is about 5k's away. It's pretty hilly and the roads aren't the best, mainly just concrete that hasn't been maintained so it's pretty bumpy. Brenden kept smacking his head on the top of the pedicab too. It's probably one of the only places in the world where he can say he's too tall.
So we turn down some side street and then down another alley and arrive at out hotel. This wasn't really the place that Brenden had in mind. He thought we were staying in a place on the beach, possibly with a pool but as Jodi informs him this is the best of the best around here. Turns out the hotel was actually built for the film crew of France Survivor that they filmed on one of the islands close by. From the outside it doesn't look like much, just a concrete wall but on the inside it's actually quite nice. There is a bar built over water and quite a few covered areas all built using bamboo and leafed rooves. The rooms themselves are quite small and the bathroom is probably about the size of most pantries. But it was cosy none the less. So we check-in at about 12 - that's 8 hours in transit - Hmmmm.......... We also make sure they take Credit Card, have lunch and chill out for about an hour before taking a ride on a banca (pump boat) to one of the islands.
To get to the boat it's another 5km Pedicab ride. We went through these small little communities and saw some people working in rice fields. It was actually quite beautiful and eye opening at the same time. We arrived at this small little fishing village with a few little shops and probably 15 boats. The village wasn't much to look at but it's something you would have never seen before. We jumped in one of the boats that the hotel had arranged for us and headed out. No body told us to pack ear plugs cause these boats are fkn loud! They're just a pump boat with the motor sitting about 2/3 along the boat with no muffler. We were both deaf by the time we got to the first island. The weather was pretty crap, as you can see from the photos but it was still nice. We did a bit of snorkelling here but the reef had been dynamited in the past so it wasn't very good. The beach was lovely though, would have been better if it was a better day. Due to the weather and time we couldn't visit any more islands so we headed back to port and then went back to the hotel to recover from the deafening sound of the boat. Hopefully the weather will be better tomorrow..................
- comments
Carol Picton You will have so many memories. You could become and author cause I smile and laugh at your dialog all the way through.. Luv and miss you both xoxox Mum
Rhena Thanks guys for keeping us up to date and for all of the photos. Happy Birthday Jodi!! I picked up my new passport form last week to get sorted, a visit is certainly on the cards :) Keep well, chat soon xo
Jenny Pepper Thx for the update. Your travel adventures gives me a real laugh...it can only happen to you guys!!!! haha but i'm glad coz u tell a really funny story & will always be something for you to treasure....take care...looking fwd to your next adventure xox BJ & Jenny