Luzon,Visayas, & Mindanao - these are the 3 major islands in the Philippines. Bohol, my hometown, is found in Visayas. Since my friends and I have been living in Visayas our whole life, we decided to go to the South. Mindanao is a place of utter beauty! It is where we can find the Enchanted River, Asia's Longest Zipline, and many other sights that are truly worth traveling for. Since Mindanao isn't like the Visayas wherein the islands are separated by the sea, you will spend more time on the road. I took this picture when we were on the plane going back home to Cebu.April 1, 2015
At 7 PM (19:00), our ship, Cokaliong Shipping Lines, departured from Pier 1, Cebu City. Since allthe other accommodations were full, we had to stay at the cabin. My friends and I were really impressed. Everything was clean, well-organized, the beds were very comfortable to sleep in - considering we had a long sail ahead of us, and the air-conditioning system was very efficient. As soon as we finished our dinner which consisted of noodles and some chips, we all drifted off to sleep. Here's a shot of our cabin with Joshua's back facing the camera.
April 2, 2015
In the morning, we were finally able to see a glimpse of Butuan City from the ship when we woke up. The mountains looked very glorious as dawn finally set in. A few minutes past 7 AM, we finally arrived and disembarked the ship. My friend's family picked us up and welcomed us to their home, where we stayed for a few days.
On our first day in Butuan City, RB's family took us on a trip to several places - the first being D.A.P. (Delta Adventure Park). As seen in the picture, DAP had many fun activities ready for the tourists. Their adventures included Asia's Longest Zipline which spanned 1.3 kilometers, now how long is that! Aside from the 1.3 kms zip line, you could also choose the shorter one - 400 m. If you aren't a fan of heights, then you can try the ATV Ride, and maybe even the Zorball which was so much fun for us! Here's a photo of us before riding the Zorball
It was, indeed, a terrifying yet a scream-worthy experience. I would try this again in a heartbeat! After the rest of my friends were done riding the Zorball, we drove to the other part of the park where there was a swimming pool! Because it was dark already and the swimming pool was to close at 6 PM (18:00), we decided that it wasn't very smart to still go for a swim so we headed straight home.
After eating our breakfast in RB's house, we then headed for a short roadtrip to the famous Agusan Bridge. As a Civil Engineering student, I can truly state that the bridge was well-built and held a beauty at a towering height! It was a good sight to look at. After a few shots were taken with the bridge as the background, we drove to Almont Resort where we ate our lunch and had a few deserts. Indeed, their pizza was mouthwatering. Additionally, their desert was delicious! I ordered the Almont Choco Molten Lava (warm brownie with vanilla ice cream on top & Chocolate sprinkles) and it was worth it! After eating our lunch, we headed to Amontay Beach Resort.
Right after checking in at Amontay Beach Resort, we decided to rest for a few minutes while ordering our dinner. Amontay's food was delicious, as well. We ordered sisig, fried chicken, beef soup, etc. We wanted to kayak already after eating our dinner but it was too dark outside and it wasn't allowed anymore so we settled for the swimming pool. Nevertheless, Amontay's pools were creatively built with a bar and a few fountains. After nightswimming, we then called it a day and decided to wake up early so we'd have the chance to Kayak before the sun would soar too high the next day. Here's a shot of the pool at night:
April 4, 2015
Before the sun even rose, I decided to wake up my friends so that we could Kayak at dusk. Soon enough, all of us were finally awake and headed straight to the watersports section of the resort. at around 6 AM, we were able to start kayaking. We had so much fun and it was very convenient since it wasn't that hot out. After a few more hours spent strolling at the beach, we took a few pictures since it was our last day already. Here's a shot of us kayaking:
After we checked out, we made our way to Robinson's Mall to eat our late lunch and bought pasalubongs (bring home) for our family back home. Since our supposed ship would departure from Surigao, we headed there through car. Before going to the port, Tito showed us the mined mountains and the mining business in Surigao. We took pictures and realized soon after that we lost track of time already! Tito hurried up in driving toward the port where our ship, Cokaliong (again), would depart. When we arrived at the port, it was already too late. I had a class the day after which meant that we really had to go home, so we decided to take the airplane that was bound to departure from Butuan Airport early the next morning. We headed back to Butuan and stayed the night in my friend's house.
April 5, 2015
We woke up extra early so that we wouldn't miss our flight. After eating our breakfast at the carenderia (local eatery) outside the airport, we bid our goodbyes to RB's parents, which were very hospitable during our stay. We were beyond happy that we were, in fact, early for our flight and we were quite excited to head home to Cebu City.
We had tons of fun in Mindanao and if we could, then we would visit again! Maybe in the mere future. I had a great time with my boyriend, Joshua, his sister, Sheena, and RB! It was an exciting trip!
FOOTNOTES/FAQs:
1) Where can I purchase Cokaliong tickets?
Go to their website: Cokaliong Shipping Lines. Check their ticketing outlets. Rates and accommodations can be checked in their website as well.
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