After a long week of laziness, here's finally the obligatory write-up of my latest adventure. This is just an addition to thousands of blogs created about Boracay. But this will be different. This is about an adventure of a broke birthday girl in an expensive island of Boracay.
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| Big sand castles are no longer permitted in the island. This is created by kids. You have to "donate" before taking this photo. |
To start with, I wanna thank Airphil Express for the air flight promo. Though my name was spelled incorrectly, I didn't have any problems whatsoever. That was my first flight alone and I was proud about it.
I can't think of any dramatic transition so here it is, with matching photos para hindi masyadong boring since this can be lengthy.
Going to the main island is somewhat complicated and VERY expensive if you don't know where exactly to go. I reached Iloilo at 6pm and stayed at my bestfriend's sister's boarding house which is just near the airport. At 7 in the morning, I was accompanied by her brother to the bus terminal bound for Caticlan. We rode 3 jeepneys before reaching the destination. Riding a taxi is surely a better option if you have the money and if you don't wanna get lost in the city. I was lucky because I have my galamays. I reached the jetty port in Caticlan after about 6 hours of tiresome trip from Iloilo. My bestfriend met me at the port, went to the other sub-port through a tricycle to save money for the fare. I only paid P25 for the boat fare to the island, spared from the so-called environmental fee, terminal fee and all other fees that they can think of.
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| I find this so sweet! |
After reaching the island (at 2pm), we had to take another tricycle ride to D*Mall (a famous landmark in Boracay, not a typical mall at all but an array of boutiques selling swimwears and souvenirs, restaurants, a grocery store, ATMs and banks). Afterwards, we walked the famous 4-kilometer long beach. The island was divided into three stations. And let me say that it is really breathtaking. The wide white shore, the milky sand, the hotels and the boutiques lining the island, and the tourists speaking different languages created a very splendid combination. There are actually a lot more foreigners than Pinoys there. August is an off-peak season so it wasn't that crowded when I got there. I was staying at my BFF's boarding house not far from the beach so I was able to save a lot - food (which is by the way also expensive there), hotel accommodation and a tourist guide. We went back there at night and the clubs were starting to come alive. The beach was really inviting that I felt the urge to swim. And so I did, with nothing but just my undies. It's actually okay since it was dark(haha!), no one there really cares what you do and what you wear.
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| Lovers...lovers...lovers all over! |
In the morning, I went back to the beach to take photos. There were a lot of locals selling different things, from beach hats to souvenirs, to sunglasses to beach rides. I bought a hat para feel na feel ko ang pagiging tourist, and also bought a wood carving souvenir, which I paid for P100 from it's original price of P450. Doon nasusukat ang lakas ng tawad powers (lol).
We went out again the following night to meet my ex-officemate. Thankfully my teacher also sent my salary for my sideline so can afford ako that night. We ate at I Love Backyard BBQ and ordered a paella. I've been craving for seafoods for days now but hindi kaya ng budget. I was disappointed with the food, parag kumain lang ako ng puro ketchup (haha!).
Afterwards we went to Club Paraw. Bumaha doon ang Oppa Gangnam Style people, umaapaw na Koreans na parang kapatid lahat ni Ryan Bang. When it was time to hit the dance floor, yun na yun, the horseback-riding became the national dance step of the season. Samahan pa ng DJ who played Korean music most of the time. I was amazed as to how the different skin colors mixed. A white aged American kissing an exotic Pinay beauty on a dance floor (you know what I mean of exotic), a young One-Direction-singer-look-alike lad flirting with yet another exotic Pinay beauty (exotic ha!), a couple of Indians who retreated and went out because Korea took over the territory (Mr. DJ should've played Jai Ho, right?), a few blonde European beauties with small faces and hair na parang ni-rape but still looked gorgeous, a bunch of middle-aged Irishmen, a few Tagalog pips, and a dozen 2NE1 look-alikes who also dress alike, with matching high-heeled stilletos (imagine the confidence and the guts wearing those on the beach).
The following day, we went swimming at Puka Beach. That's on the far end of the island. Only a few people hang out there because it was far and the sand wasn't as fine as those on the long beach. What made it nice is the free entrance (haha!) and the big, strong waves which are really perfect for swimming and water skiing. I also bought a few keychains and accessories, made from seashells and stones which were also from the beach. That was the best place for buying souvenirs. At night, I went out alone and went to D*Talipapa, which is similar with D*Mall, but just more affordable. It's like a small Divisoria where you can even buy two Boracay shirts for only P150.
There are a lot of other things that I haven't tried yet in Boracay. There's the usual island hopping, the zorb, go-kart rides, horseback riding, and varied watersports. If you want to try any of these, make sure that you've got a wad of cash.
Is a Boracay adventure expensive? IT IS! But it is really worth emptying your pockets. I was just able to make it there because I was rich - rich with friends. :)
