Philippines - El Nido, Palawan (Jan 19 - 23)

On Jan 19 we boarded a bus for a 6 hour ride north to the town of El Nido. 

We felt like the driver was determined to better his, or any other drivers', previous time of travel by racing at speeds up to 125 kms per hour on roads not designed for speed anywhere near this fast. On every bend of the highway he leaned away from the steering wheel, as if shifting his weight was the deciding factor in preventing the bus from rolling over! The road was not paved all the way, so ruts and potholes were common on the gravel road, and by the end your head felt like it was tossed from side to side one too many times. However, the last 10 minutes of the ride gave a glimpse of what we were about to see, and by the time we arrived it became clear why this is such a huge attraction to Filipinos and foreigners alike.

Spotted beside the road - chicken 'n rice

 One way to haul bamboo poles

The hotel we stayed at in El Nido - Marina Bay Beachfront

The view from the veranda

Settling in

Secret lagoon - we had to crawl through an opening in the rock
to get to this lagoon

The next morning we boarded a boat with 12 other tourists and 3 guides for a full-day island hopping tour. The day left us in awe! The colours of the ocean, the shapes and shades of the islands, the colours of the sea life (we snorkeled at 3 out of 5 of the islands we visited), the amazing lunch the guides barbecued while we played in the ocean, the warmth of the water, and once again the interesting people we spent the day with, all left us feeling like we were the luckiest people in the world to experience this! 

Does that rock formation remind you of anyone?

BBQ lunch the guides prepared while we played in the ocean

At one point, Olive ventured off from the rest of the group while snorkeling (rebel that she is) and discovered a coral reef teeming with colourful fish, schools of them, and when she eventually returned to the boat she excitedly recounted what she had seen, leaving me with regret that I had returned to the boat so quickly after getting a few minor jellyfish stings.

We intended to go out again on another island hopping trip (there are 4 different trips offered in El Nido) specifically to do more snorkelling, however the seas were too choppy and the trip was cancelled, so we jumped the bus back for Puerto Princesa one day early and booked an island hopping tour there. This tour also was immensely enjoyable, the colours, the company, the sealife. While snorkelling, one person in our party emptied a bag of rice which attracted swarms of colorful fish. For those who have witnessed this before, you will recall how fascinating it is to be floating with colorful fish all around you.

We would so recommend a trip to El Nido. To Ana, Media and perhaps others of my co-workers who previously lived in the Philippines, thank you for recommending this trip, we are so glad we could experience it.

The next part of our journey involves going back to Thailand from Jan 26 to Feb 4. We plan to visit the resort town of Hua Hin, a place we visited with our kids 24 years ago.