Howdy! Shall I continue retelling our Bohol escapade? Yes? Okay! After my "The Plunge" experience it was high noon and it's time for lunch. There's one restaurant near the park's entrance where we had our meal, but I won't recommend it because their food prices were a bit high. However, this adventure happened in 2013 so probably there are more eateries and restaurants there which you can choose from.
We're back on the road after a short rest. It was a long ride back to Tagbilaran, the rain started pouring this time. We blocked the sound of the rain by belting Beyonce's and Mariah's hits. Obviously, we enjoyed the ride. We passed by some of the hills belonged to the famed Chocolate Hills of Bohol. They were a combination of lush green and chocolate that time of the year. So cute and looked so yummy. Hehe. Here's a sample:
We also passed by the statue of Francisco Dagohoy, the hero of the Boholanos. He initiated the Dagohoy Rebellion that lasted for more than 80 years. It is considered as the longest revolt in the history of the Philippines during the Spanish colonial era. Poor old Francisco Dagohoy's head was cut in this picture taken by our tricycle driver. We're sorry sir Dagohoy!
At Tagbilaran we parted ways with the most accommodating tricycle driver/tourist guide. We took a van heading to Panglao to have some down time by the beach. My friend and I took this opportunity to take a nap and restore as much energy as we could. Sorry but I couldn't remember how long the ride was, we were at the site the moment I opened my eyes. We chose Alona beach resort since it's the closest from where we got off the van. Also we didn't have much idea about the beaches in Panglao so YOLO! hehe.
The beach front accommodation are naturally expensive (we are talking about thousands of pesos) even for a night's stay. So opted for a fan room with two beds, about 300 steps away from the beach. The water was a combination of royal blue (thanks to the seaweeds) and light blue (due to the white sand). It wasn't the most stunning beach I've seen but it was absolutely a calming view.
Later that evening as we were eating and talking quietly, a young girl carrying a ukulele approached us and started singing in Visayan. I was instantly entertained though she was looking everywhere but us. After a minute or two I noticed that the lyrics of the song had words that were somewhat unpleasant, disturbing even. Of course I couldn't understand the entirety of the song but I caught a line that goes.. 'sa langet walay an ber' meaning there's no beer in heaven and words such as droga, impyerno, and satanas (drugs, hell, and satan). But the best part was her poker face. :D
It was off season and we woke up pretty late from our nap so there were only few bars that're open when we started roaming the place. We were in the mood for some good booze and music so walked straight to the one that has a live band performing. Unfortunately it was there last set so we were left feeling 'bitin'. We wanted more so we came up to these guys and asked them if we could hear more of their music (Yes, we're shameless like that). Luckily they granted us with more melodies and their company. What beautiful souls!
Fast forward to the following morning, one of them extended his hospitality by taking us on a tour at the municipality of Balilihan. Balilihan is an hour of motorcycle ride from Panglao. That one-hour ride felt forever, compared to city transport which an hour includes traffic and stops, this ride was a whole hour of non-stop bumpy ride, thus our sore legs and bums. Be as it may, we were in good spirits as we appreciate the serenity and nature around us. This uber friendly guy even took us to his home and introduced us to his mom, who graciously served us lunch. She's the sweetest woman I've ever met! Balilihan is rural in every sense of the word. Houses are so far apart. Rough unpaved roads that's goes muddy even with little rain. Mountains, hills, and forests wherever you look.
We over-extended our stay in Balilihan and as a result the ferry that would transport us back to Cebu left without us. I got a little stressed but later realized that visiting Balilihan was worth the trouble.
Our Cebu-Bohol adventure ends here. Thanks for walking this adventure lane with me again. ^_^ Peace!