Apparently you have to go east to Siargao otherwise you'll end up in Malapascua. As usual our plans changed and instead of heading east by boat from Cebu to Butuan or Surigao then catching another boat for the 3.5 hour journey north to Siargao we headed directly north.
It was a difficult task getting a taxi from Banilad through Cebu city center to the north bus terminal, but despite that we managed to arrive in time to get on the 12:00 bus. The journey cost 68 pesos and would take a little under four hours to Maya where we would catch a traditional Filipino boat for the 45 minute journey to Malapascua Island.
I reckon the interviews for bus drivers here in the Philippines go a bit like this... (I'll write in English because my Tagalog isn't that good and most of you wouldn't understand it if I did anyway!)
Interviewer (I); Good morning Mr Mario
Applicant (A): grunt!?!
I; I'm not going to ask you too many questions this morning, but instead I'd like to do a roll play if that's ok with you...
A; grunt, sniff...uhu
I; It's very simple I have here in this box by my feet a bucket and a very large hooter, all I need you to do is spit in the bucket whilst honking on the hooter as loud as possible...ok here we go...
A;HONK,SPIT,HONK,SPIT,HOSPINKT,HONK, HONK,HONK,HONK,SPIT,HOOOONNKKK,SPPIITT...
I; fantastic Mr Mario, you've got the job!..(as the applicant is leaving) by the way do you have a drivers licence?
A; no...[spit]
I; oh well just a thought, it shouldn't be a problem anyway. Thanks for your time, you can start on Monday...
So that was our four hour journey from Cebu to Malapascua...honk, spit, honk, spit...all the way. I forged some earplugs out of tissue to try to diminish the noise of the powerful horn, but to no avail it still shook my bones every time it was pressed.
As we arrived at the pier in Maya the tide was on it's way out and we had to take some small rowing boats from the beach to the slightly larger boat (with an engine) that was being maneuvered away from the shore to escape grounding. Once on board we sat and waited for some more people to arrive and eventually the engines started up and we were on our way to Malapascua.
We spent three nights at Malapascua Exotic Island Dive & Beach Resort with a fan room directly on the beach for P1,200 per night. As you get off the boat take a right down the beach and keep walking for about 20 mins... The accommodation was in native style huts beautifully kept and the rooms were cleaned every day. There are also air-con rooms for P2,400, but the constant breeze on the island makes these pricey rooms slightly redundant. I thought the fan rooms were a fantastic deal, the major expense of the stay was the food that was very good, but cost so much because it all had to be shipped from the mainland. As the name of the resort suggests The "Malapascua Exotic Island Dive & Beach Resort" known as "Exotic" by the locals is all about diving and with the exception of one couple that's all people were interested in doing.
We spent a day wandering around the island and happened upon a new resort in the making Villa Kaanit. It's run by an Austrian guy and his Filipino wife and whilst we were there (mainly to find a toilet) we got a guided tour of the place. It's looks absolutely beautiful and is extremely peaceful. They have a bay all to themselves so if you're looking to find some tranquility this could be the place for you. The villas are a modern take on native Filipino design. They have beautiful furniture from various different Asian countries (mainly Indonesia) but there was a unique bed in the villa we looked at and some artistic photographs taken by the owner himself. He said it will be open properly by the end of the year, but at the moment there's only one villa ready for occupancy and a lot of building work going on.
We continued over the hills and through the bays until we reached Bantigue Resort - Apart from the staff it was completely deserted. We ate lunch here although there wasn't much on the menu they actually had in stock. I tried a mango float for the first time. Frozen graham crackers, mango and cream, apparently easy to prepare and absolutely delicious. After hiding from the midday sun we rented snorkelling equipment for P300 each. This got us snorkel, mask, booties and fins. All fairly new and good equipment (you can choose to get only mask and snorkel for P150, but I wouldn't recommend it as the current can be quite strong and there's lots of jagged rocks where the good snorkelling is. We also tried sea urchin, a creature that appears in abundance in the waters that surround Malapascua. It tastes very salty and looks like a bright orange bogey (not very good if you ask me). Be careful not to step on these as you go swimming.
A stroll along a pristine white sand beach brought us to an intriguing solar powered tent (check it out in the attached pictures). Further on up the beach guided by some young kids we found the islands lighthouse. If you can find the store keeper whose other job is the lighthouse watchman (we didn't) you might be able to climb the stairs inside and get a view of the whole island. But for us the lighthouse was locked and all I got was lots of bites and scratches from pushing our way through the thick undergrowth. We made it back to "Exotic" resort as it was getting dark and watched the sunset before having dinner.
There is no nightlife on Malapascua, and no cars. The main attraction for the divers among you is the Thresher shark that can be seen at dawn (around 5am). Because of this everyone is in bed at or before 9pm thus there is no night life here. The generators that power the island run from 6pm 'til midnight, after that the generators from each resort kick in providing most places with 24 hour electricity. There were reports in the past of it being very noisy due to the use of these generators, but they have moved them away from the rooms so I slept well and couldn't hear them from where we stayed. They are also strictly enforcing a rule stating that there will be no building 30 meters from the shore. Because this guide line is only now being enforced there are several places being demolished because they didn't observe this rule. This means where nature allows it's possible to walk up and down the beach unobstructed by hotel walls etc. Something I dislike about Alona beach in Bohol where the rule isn't enforced and there are lots of concrete monstrosities plonked next to the shore line.
Malapascua is an absolutely beautiful island and well worth a visit. As with most destinations in the Philippines it gets busy around holy week (Easter) and Christmas/New Year time so it's advisable to book. I think we were lucky to get a room in "Exotic" but I'm certainly glad we did, it was a beautiful and memorable trip...
TRAVELLERS JOURNAL - BORACAY - Music to travel to...
www.cdbaby.com/cd/travellersjournal
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