A Winter Escape to Beautiful BorocayBY CHRISTINE KOAY
Just off the northern tip of Panay Island in Visayas, surrounded by coral reefs, Boracay glamorously sparkles as one of the premier tourist destinations in the Philippines.
Well-known for its sugary beaches, crystal-blue waters and vibrant, exotic atmosphere, Boracay is a butterfly-shaped island that never fails to mesmerize thousands of people worldwide.
The beauty of Boracay has been voted as one the world’s beast beaches by the Australian Sun Herald, the Tropical Beach Handbook and the British TV Quick. With a balance between urban comforts and natural wonders, the island offers lively shops and restaurants, a wide variety of beach activities and water sports, and pristine beaches, scenic nature trails and diverse flora and fauna.
Being a water-person there is something about beaches that draws me close. Scuba-diving was definitely the priority of my to do list. Starting my day early I hired a dive guide and headed to Friday’s rock and reef. We saw some huge sea bass, emperor fish, clown fish, rock fish, scorpion fish and garden eels. Riding on the Jet Ski later in the day was a blast! I had the throttle fully open and the Jet Ski airborne several times.
Apart from the water-sports, another activity that was exciting was riding the ATV, all-terrain vehicle. This is a small quad bike that allows you to drive up the steep road leading to the top of Mt. Luho, the highest point in Boracay. Standing at a height of over 100 metres, Mount Luho offers the best panoramic view of Boracay. Standing there during sunset is spectacular, but is a lot more impressive at sunrise. At this time you can hear the birds chirp and the fresh wind blowing in your face.
A do not miss destination is the Boracay Bat Cave. A walk down a few dirt trails and through bushes leads to a less inhabited part of the Island where three bat species can be found. Though the climb down was only a few hundred feet, it was dark, hot, steep and slippery.
At the bottom of the cave, you can hear the bats squeaking. It was a mistake to shine torches up at the bats, as it made them rowdy and start flying around. Before I could make my retreat, I felt some wet drops of what was probably the guano hitting my shirt. By the time I got out of the Bat Cave, I was drenched in sweat and who knows what else.
Following another trail led to the crystal cavern. At the end of the cave was a small tunnel that I crawled through where you can exit the cave to see a commanding view of the ocean from the edge of a cliff over the water.
A local dish I tried was balut - duck eggs that have been incubated until the foetus is feathery and beaky. There is a strong smell when the shell has been cracked and with a close look, you can see the head, beak, veins and feathers of the duck. Different part of the egg gives a different taste.
Well-known for its sugary beaches, crystal-blue waters and vibrant, exotic atmosphere, Boracay is a butterfly-shaped island that never fails to mesmerize thousands of people worldwide.
The beauty of Boracay has been voted as one the world’s beast beaches by the Australian Sun Herald, the Tropical Beach Handbook and the British TV Quick. With a balance between urban comforts and natural wonders, the island offers lively shops and restaurants, a wide variety of beach activities and water sports, and pristine beaches, scenic nature trails and diverse flora and fauna.
Being a water-person there is something about beaches that draws me close. Scuba-diving was definitely the priority of my to do list. Starting my day early I hired a dive guide and headed to Friday’s rock and reef. We saw some huge sea bass, emperor fish, clown fish, rock fish, scorpion fish and garden eels. Riding on the Jet Ski later in the day was a blast! I had the throttle fully open and the Jet Ski airborne several times.
Apart from the water-sports, another activity that was exciting was riding the ATV, all-terrain vehicle. This is a small quad bike that allows you to drive up the steep road leading to the top of Mt. Luho, the highest point in Boracay. Standing at a height of over 100 metres, Mount Luho offers the best panoramic view of Boracay. Standing there during sunset is spectacular, but is a lot more impressive at sunrise. At this time you can hear the birds chirp and the fresh wind blowing in your face.
A do not miss destination is the Boracay Bat Cave. A walk down a few dirt trails and through bushes leads to a less inhabited part of the Island where three bat species can be found. Though the climb down was only a few hundred feet, it was dark, hot, steep and slippery.
At the bottom of the cave, you can hear the bats squeaking. It was a mistake to shine torches up at the bats, as it made them rowdy and start flying around. Before I could make my retreat, I felt some wet drops of what was probably the guano hitting my shirt. By the time I got out of the Bat Cave, I was drenched in sweat and who knows what else.
Following another trail led to the crystal cavern. At the end of the cave was a small tunnel that I crawled through where you can exit the cave to see a commanding view of the ocean from the edge of a cliff over the water.
A local dish I tried was balut - duck eggs that have been incubated until the foetus is feathery and beaky. There is a strong smell when the shell has been cracked and with a close look, you can see the head, beak, veins and feathers of the duck. Different part of the egg gives a different taste.
The head and the neck tasted like bone marrow while the white part tasted like a normal egg but was very hard. The descriptions I heard beforehand was that it tasted like a normal hard-boiled chicken egg and chicken meat. What I ate did not taste anything like that at all.
Boracay Island is considered a paradise island, perfect for retreating from the hectic lifestyle of work and home. Just get up, make some coffee and decide whether to go sailing, windsurfing or perhaps diving and swimming with the fishes
Boracay Island is considered a paradise island, perfect for retreating from the hectic lifestyle of work and home. Just get up, make some coffee and decide whether to go sailing, windsurfing or perhaps diving and swimming with the fishes
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