Bohol trip!

I've been curious about Bohol since 1992. During the summer of that year, we were in France, on my first out-of-the-country trip ever, when my aunt's German friend excitedly showed us pictures of her recent trip to the Philippines. She was talking about how beautiful the chocolate hills were and suddenly asked us whether we've been to Bohol. We told her we haven't been there yet. In her limited English, she berated us (albeit jokingly :P) that we're traveling in Europe, yet we never bothered going to Bohol. Back then, I couldn't understand why anyone would get so excited over the local tourist attractions when it always seemed more interesting to travel elsewhere.

Last week, and almost twenty years later since our European trip, I finally got to see for myself why a lot of people, particularly foreigners, fall in love with Bohol. As the masseuse by the beach explained, majority of the foreigners who settle in Bohol or go there for vacation are Germans. I saw some at the resto we ate in and a German couple was seated right next to me at the airport, looking over my shoulder as I was organizing our Bohol pics in my laptop. There were also some Americans and a whole LOT of Korean and Chinese nationals. At the hotel we stayed in, there was an entire bus of Koreans on tour. I realized that I don't really have to go far if I want to go on vacation. There's actually so much to explore here in the Philippines.

Day 1

Touchdown Tagbilaran!






We checked in at Flushing Meadows Resort and Playground. We planned to stay at Amorita Resort, but we didn't think it would be fully booked two weeks before we checked in. Flushing Meadow's isn't actually as popular, but since my sister heard good reviews about it, we decided to stay there. Good thing we paid discounted rates through PAL's Palakbayan promo. In all, it's a really nice resort. The facilities are great, the people are very hospitable and accommodating, and the rooms are clean and comfortable. One major downside is the distance. Anyhoot, I'd give a more comprehensive review on the hotel on the last day.






My parents were also supposed to come, but my mom had high blood pressure the night before the flight. (What is it with my parents and traveling? Last time, it was the Manny Pacquiao fight..)

Since we arrived in Bohol early and we wanted to maximize our stay, we decided to join the countryside tour that same morning. But first, we had breakfast at the hotel. No breakfast buffet for us yet, so I settled for small pancakes:




Sophie was happy with her mango shake (And anything that has mango in it :P)





First stopover was the blood compact site:



Just like in John Lloyd and Bea's "Close to You" the movies!


After that, we visited the Baclayon church:









Our driver, Kuya Andres, pointed out that if you look closely at the wall behind me, you'd see a man's face. Yes, that's Hagrid from Hogwarts. :P

Of course, we went to see the famous Chocolate Hills:


taking photos while waiting for the others who went to the restroom:

We had to climb these steps:

At the top:


On our way down:


We passed by the manmade forest:





Next stop, Loboc River Cruise and the Tarsier sanctuary.

*Thanks to my sister and Patrick for bringing a D60, at least I have a lot of decent photos this time. Hehe