Of Absences and Beaches

I have been absent in posting these past few days because of numerous (albeit some of them geeky) reasons. For the most part, I have been entertaining my relatives who are visiting us from the U.S. That's one. The other is that as part of this entertaining role, I went on a family trip to Cebu and Bohol (which by the way are really AWESOME places to spend your vacation). Since I had an awesome time there, might as well tell the little details of my family trip.

First off, CEBU. I spent a total of TWO (2) days there and I liked what I experienced. It felt a little like Manila at times (uhhhh..Hi SM and AYALA) but overall, I like what Cebu offered me during my stay. My family and I stayed at Tambuli Resort East Wing. (http://www.tambuli.com/accomoeast.htm) The Resort was nice enough: they offered decent rooms, WIFI!!!, free breakfast, a pool, and a beach front. For a family on a budget, it's a great resort ALTHOUGH, transportation between resorts can be EXPENSIVE! Just a fair warning.

                               This was exactly the room I stayed in                                        Poolside

Then there was the second resort we went to:
Shangri-la Mactan (http://www.shangri-la.com/en/property/cebu/mactanresort). Ang MAMAW nung place! Really awesome resort design, awesome staff and amenities (the service is so good, there is someone literally greeting you a good day EVERY 5 yards or so...I counted :p). Although the pools and beach fronts are supposedly exclusive for hotel guests, as my friend would say, "just pretend that you belong."

                                                                 LANDSCAPING WIN!

Next Stop: BOHOL!

Bohol (Panglao to be exact), is what Boracay was 10 years ago (relatively). The white sand was there, the island-ish and isolated vibe was there too. I liked it actually. Felt homey unlike Boracay now which for me feels like one big Embassy. Most of the people there are either Koreans or Americans, which I got to talk to during my stay (wassup STEVE! :p). 

We stayed at Lost Horizon Resort (http://www.losthorizonresort.net/) while my balikbayan relatives stayed at Amarella Resort (http://www.amarelaresort.com/). Lost Horizon was a really nice place considering it was only 1.7k a night. It had WIFI, an LCD television, Aircon, Pool, and was located near the beach. Not bad for a burgeoning island paradise. The beach located near it is not much but the thing about Bohol is that you need to ride a boat to get to the pristine turquoise colored water beaches the province offers. The boat ride, amidst haggling like mad, comes down to 1.5k but you can bring around 10 people so it's not that expensive. Once we got a boat a lot of things became available: Dolphin Watching, Fish Sanctuary Snorkeling, Sand Bar Swimming, etc. It's a days worth of stuff to do! I recommend it actually. If you have at least 3 days in Bohol, I'd suggest devoting one day in beach tours, then a day land tours (chocolate hills and tarsiers, which are really small by the way) so you can get the most out of your stay.

But like the movie The Beach, even paradises like these are discovered eventually. Our resort was dubbed, "Mini Boracay" for its nightlife. Small eateries and bars open at night and some even have dinner entertainment like jazz singers and bands. It was still nice to walk around, but it was getting eerily close to the boracay set up. Add to this the news that Bohol is building an international airport in Panglao, then I guess the it'll catch up to the Bora style of things in the coming years.

Either way, I really had a blast. It was four days of relaxation and fun. I needed it actually, I'm glad I was able to go. So that's why I haven't been able to post here. Don't you worry, I picking up the slack as they say. I'll be posting more stuff soon! Can't wait to go back with my friends! Yes, it's a lot of fun with family, but it'll be awesome with friends.

And who was the one taking the pictures?

Until the next time!