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Banwa Arthouse Puerto Princesa Philippines

Philippines: Day 11 – Arriving in Puerto Princesa, Palawan

By Mithun Divakaran
/
Nov 10, 2011
/
Philippines, Travel

Date: April 27th 2011

Today, I didn’t have to wake up that early. My Cebu Pacific flight to Palawan was at 11am, so I took it fairly easy after yesterday’s tiring tour of Bohol. Once I got ready, I checked out of Sugbutel and the staff hailed a taxi for me to go to Cebu airport (cost ₱183).

Though there was a bit of traffic (being office hours), I got to the airport by 9am and checked in. My flight was on time and I got a window seat again.

Cebu to Palawan flight aerial view — Goodbye Cebu

Palawan island aerial view Philippines — Hello largest island in the Philippines

Puerto Princesa airport Palawan Philippines — The flight landed past noon

Puerto Princesa airport Cebu Pacific flight Palawan — Palawan looked beautiful already

Even though I didn’t have a reservation anywhere, I did make a list of a few good hostels or budget accommodation, referred to as ‘pension inns’ here in the Philippines. I hired a tricycle taxi and asked him to take me to Duchess Pension first – one of the most recommended budget hotels in Puerto Princesa.

When I got to Duchess Pension, it was full. So yeah, it’s popularity is true. I then asked the driver to take me to my second choice, Banwa Arthouse, which wasn’t too far from Duchess. When I got to Banwa, fortunately, a bunk bed was available.

I paid the trike driver ₱50 (because that’s how much he charged) and I checked in.

Banwa Arthouse dorm bunk bed Puerto Princesa Palawan — A bed in the mixed dorm cost me ₱350 ($8/€5) per night

Banwa Arthouse dorm toilet Puerto Princesa Palawan — The toilet is attached to the dorm and was clean

Banwa Arthouse interiors Puerto Princesa Palawan — The one reason why I shortlisted Banwa Arthouse was because of how it looks

Banwa Arthouse restaurant cafe Puerto Princesa Palawan — This is the cafe and where you can access the wi-fi

Banwa Arthouse lobby Puerto Princesa Palawan — The basement has more shower rooms, but otherwise it's where the staff and family stay

Banwa Arthouse garden entrance Puerto Princesa Palawan — The sit-out area

Puerto Princesa town houses Philippines — I decided to go for a stroll

Puerto Princesa children Palawan Philippines — If you are wondering if I was staying in some village, no, I wasn't.

Felix Pension Inn Puerto Princesa Palawan Philippines — There are other 'pension' inns around

Balayong Pension Puerto Princesa Palawan — This place looked new

Iglesia ni Christo Puerto Princesa Philippines — No, I wasn't going to spend time seeing another church

Way to Baybay Puerto Princesa Philippines — I headed towards the sea

Baybay Puerto Princesa Philippines — Though I was aware there was no beach in Puerto Princesa (seriously) I hoped to at least touch the water. But Baybay is a corniche, so you can only sit by the ledge and stare at the sea.

Tonight at the Baybay, there was going to be an event with stage performances, food stalls and such. I guess I knew where to come for dinner.

Jollibee sign Puerto Princesa Palawan Philippines — I decided to get lunch for now (not Jollibee of course)

Unitop shopping mall Puerto Princesa Palawan — But given how hot it was, I stepped in here to cool off a bit and to get some water

Puerto Princesa capital Palawan Philippines — I walked all the way to the city centre where I hoped to find a good seafood restaurant

Bench Bruno's deli restaurant Puerto Princesa Palawan — I crossed the road

Road Puerto Princesa Palawan — There were more budget accommodation available here

Circon business inn Divine sweets Puerto Princesa Palawan — But aside from a bakery, there were no seafood restaurants

Puerto Princesa city hall Palawan — I moved on

Skylight Hotel lobby Puerto Princesa Palawan — I stepped into this hotel presuming since hotel looked nice, the restaurant maybe good too

Skylight hotel restaurant policy Puerto Princesa Philippines — Errr...

I glanced at the menu and despite the restaurant’s appearance, there was nothing out of the ordinary available. Even the seafood options were limited. It was nearing 3pm, I didn’t feel like walking anymore. So I ordered just a seafood pasta and a beer.

Terrible seafood pasta Skylight Hotel Palawan — How was the pasta?

Bad! In fact, it was the worst I’ve ever eaten! Not to a point where it was sickening, but just plain bad for the ₱130 they charged for this. The sauce was straight out of a can, the bread didn’t have a hint of garlic or wasn’t even toasted – it was just plain sliced bread! The prawns were surely packaged, frozen ones and I could barely identify the other seafood used in the dish. Ugh, I still ate it as I was hungry and I didn’t want to pay double for this rubbish!

If this is the quality of food served at this restaurant, then it’s no wonder patrons leave leftovers on their plate! Avoid, avoid, avoid!

Jollibee Dunkin Donuts Puerto Princesa Palawan — Sigh, I should have just gone to a Jollibee!

Balinsasayaw chicken grill restaurant Puerto Princesa Palawan — Walked towards the airport because I did remember seeing more restaurants there

Tiki restobar Puerto Princesa Palawan Philippines — Manny Pacquiao's next match was being hyped well in advance by just about everybody

Airport wharf Puerto Princesa sign Palawan — I walked towards the airport road

Palawan provincial capital building Puerto Princesa — I was bored, so I sat near these fountains for a while

Airport road Puerto Princesa Palawan Philippines — This road leads to the airport

Banana tree Puerto Princesa Philippines — Banana?

Puerto Princesa airport road Palawan Philippines — I walked a bit up the road and just felt so uninspired to walk any further. So I hailed a trike and decided to go back.

It looked like Puerto Princesa had very little to offer within its city limits. I asked the driver if there was anything remotely interesting and he said “church”. Sigh.

Immaculate Conception Cathedral church Puerto Princesa Philippines — Immaculate Conception Cathedral

Philippines Port Authority Puerto Princesa Philippines — I left the church and walked a bit further down. It was the port, I couldn't enter. I walked back.

That was it. I was officially bored.

I walked back to Banwa Arthouse, and went to the cafe to do some research. It was so hot even though there was a fan on. Well, on and off. Electricity kept going and coming, along with the internet.

My original plan was never to stay in Puerto Princesa. My hope was to land in Puerto Princesa and head straight to El Nido, which is at the northern end of Palawan. Unfortunately I had just missed the last private van going to El Nido as its a 5-6 hour journey by road. Another place on the agenda was the region of Sambang, famous for its Underground River.

As I sat at my table, a Polish guy came over and we began talking. Turned out, he too was planning to head to El Nido but had to be back in Puerto Princesa the day after to catch his flight in the evening. We decided we’d go to El Nido together and share expenses for accommodation.

“Great!” I thought, but two Swedish girls across from us joined in on our conversations and told us they had just gotten back from spending a few days in El Nido. They showed us their photos, we shared our plans and my intention of going to Sambang, and after hearing our experiences, the Polish guy and I decided it was best we go our separate ways. I decided to go to Sambang first thing in the morning and after doing the underground river tour, spend the night on the beach. Wake up the next day and then head to El Nido from Sambang, since Sambang is before El Nido.

But when I went to inform the staff that I would be checking out tomorrow morning because of my intention to head to Sambang, he told me my plan may not go as smoothly as I hope. He told me it’s because there’s a crucial junction along the way from where one has to take a left to go to Sambang. From that junction, Sambang beach is still a fair distance. Problem is, if I need to get to El Nido, I have to head back to very that junction to catch a bus going to El Nido. He also warned me saying that the buses are not that frequent given the distance. (Palawan is big island, but it’s sparsely populated)

All of this was confusing and at the same time, I didn’t want to risk – or waste time – in case I didn’t get the bus from that junction. The staff advised it’s easier to just do the Underground River tour from Puerto Princesa itself. He may have pushed for it so that I stay another night and book a tour through him, but alas, I couldn’t afford to take any chances.

So book a Sambang tour for tomorrow I did.

By the time I decided what to do, the Swedes, the Polish guy and a Palawan native who was staying at the Banwa Arthouse asked if I wanted to join them for dinner. The local said he knew of a good restaurant and assured me their seafood was good. So in two tricycle taxis, off we went to a place called Kalui.

Kalui restaurant dinner Puerto Princesa Philippines — The place looked quite nice and was moderately priced

Vegetarian food Kalui Puerto Princesa Philippines — The Swede beside me ordered vegetarian and her dish looked, interesting

Seafood sisig Palawan Philippines — I on the other hand ordered a seafood sisig (cost ₱250/$5/€4). It was alright, but I would have preferred it without the mayo.

Dinner was pleasant, and we each spoke about where all we had traveled and our stories. It’s moments like this why I especially love backpacking — meeting other travellers and sharing our experiences!

Kalui restaurant Puerto Princesa Palawan — Nice place for a gathering

Once back in the hostel, it was another early good night from me and another early wake up tomorrow!

Previous posts in this series:

Philippines 2011: Day 10 – Bohol tour: Chocolate Hills, Loboc river cruise, Tarsiers, churches

Philippines 2011: Day 9 – Cebu: Fort San Pedro, Basilica of Santo Niño, Taoist Temple

Philippines 2011: Day 8 – Manila tour: Rizal Park, Intramuros, Manila Cathedral, China Town

Philippines 2011: Day 7 – Leaving Angeles City for Manila, Mall of Asia

Philippines 2011: Day 6 – Good Friday in San Fernando, San Pedro Cutud Lenten Rites

Philippines 2011: Leaving Sagada for Baguio, and arriving in Angeles city (Days 4 & 5)

Philippines 2011: Day 3 – Sagada’s Lumiang burial cave, Sumaguing cave, Hanging Coffins of Echo valley

Philippines 2011: Day 3 – Banaue town; heading to Sagada via Bontoc

Philippines 2011: Day 2 – Banaue rice terraces; trekking to Batad village

Philippines 2011: Day 1 — Manila American Cemetery and Memorial, Fort Bonifacio

Philippines 2011: Flying over South China Sea for the first time

Other posts in this series:

Philippines 2011: Day 12 – Puerto Princesa Underground River tour, Palawan

Philippines 2011: Day 13 – Puerto Princesa to El Nido by bus

Philippines 2011: Day 14 – El Nido island hopping tour A and sunset at Las Cabanas beach, Palawan

Philippines 2011: Back to Manila, shopping, and my final thoughts about the country (Last post)

Chocolate Hills round Bohol closeup panorama

Philippines: Day 10 – Bohol tour: Chocolate Hills, Loboc river cruise, Tarsiers, churches

By Mithun Divakaran
/
Nov 05, 2011
/
Philippines, Travel

Date: April 26th 2011

Woke up early today (expect the next few days to all begin with that line). I left Sugbutel at around 5am as I planned to catch the very first ferry going to Bohol. I took a taxi to Pier 1 where Oceanjet‘s terminal was. I bought a return ticket to Tagbilaran (Bohol’s capital city) which cost ₱825 ($19/€13).

Oceanjet ferry air condition seat inside Cebu Philippines — These were air-conditioned seating

Cebu pier early morning ferry to Bohol — The ferry left the pier just past 6am

Cebu morning ferry to Bohol Philippines — I stepped out to get a better view of the waters

I went back to my seat and tried to catch up on lost sleep, all the while trying to ignore Step Up 3D that was playing as part of our ‘pirated in-ferry entertainment’.

The journey to Tagbilaran takes nearly 2 and 1/2 hours, which is exactly why I made it a point to catch the first ferry — I wanted an early start to my day.

Port of Tagbilaran Bohol Philippines — Arrived at 8:30am

As soon as I disembarked, there were several agents offering tours of all the sights on Bohol island. They cost more or less the same as they did back in Cebu, so I walked on. Just outside the Dao ferry terminal, were tricycle taxis who approached me as well. They had laminated sheets showing me the same sights and told me they would take me to each attraction and then drop me back to the terminal by evening. They quoted ₱1200 at first but I bargained, and eventually agreed for ₱1000 ($23/€16) — which I felt was a bit more reasonable.

I was more keen to take a tricycle taxi than a minivan full of tourists for my own selfish reasons. One, open window means I can take photographs a lot clearer than behind the usual tinted windows of a tourist van. Two, being the only customer, I could ask the driver to stop wherever I wanted.

Bohol tricycle taxi tour Tagbilaran Philippines — We set off

Bohol tour Tagbilaran church — First the driver took me to a church

San Jose cathedral Tagbilaran Bohol Philippines — Took one photo and told the driver to move on. I've seen enough churches on this trip.

Tagbilaran bay Bohol island Philippines — I was happy to see the sea

Bohol island small house local Philippines — Bohol island is the 10th largest island in the Philippines

I tried my best to get the shots without too many obstructions or blurry plants that usually appear in photographs while travelling.

Bohol tour tricycle taxi driver Philippines — My Danny Trejo look-alike tricycle driver

Loay interior road Bohol Philippines — You get off the main highway and take a left at this junction

Loboc tarsier sign Bohol Philippines — Besides the Chocolate Hills, high up on my list of things to see were the tarsiers

Loboc town Bohol Philippines — Loboc town

Bohol tour to chocolate hills Philippines — We were about to enter the 'man-made forest'

Highway to man made forest trees Bohol Philippines — It suddenly got dark and chilly

The ‘man-made’ forest is called so because decades ago, Bohol residents meticulously planted mahogany trees along a two-kilometre stretch.

Man made forest Bohol Philippines — Which grew into this

Manmade forest trees Bohol Philippines — As the tour vans sped past, I asked my driver to stop on the side so I could take a proper photo

Turning carmen road to chocolate hills Bohol — We were 'out of the woods'

Bohol village Pulis station Philippines — Passed through many small villages

Carmen road to Chocolate hills Bohol — We had been driving for nearly an hour

Chocolate hills single rice field Bohol Philippines — But finally...

Chocolate hills view from road Bohol — ... the hills were in sight!

Road to Carmen chocolate hills Bohol Philippines — I wondered how much further we had to go

Welcome to carmen bohol Philippines — Carmen is the town where the Chocolate Hills are located

Chocolate hills observation viewpoint Bohol Philippines — The viewpoint is atop of the hill on the left

Driving up to Chocolate hill viewpoint Bohol — Up the hill we went

I paid the entrance fee of ₱50 ($1.15/€0.83) to go up to the observation point on the top of the hill.

Chocolate hills steps viewpoint Bohol Philippines — My nightmares from last week return: stairs!

Chocolate hills view from steps Bohol — Even halfway up the stairs, I couldn't help but take a look at what I came all this way for

Chocolate hills view from observation deck Bohol — And there are over 1700 of these hills all around!

Chocolate hills observation hill Bohol Philippines — Once you get to the top...

Chocolate hills view from observation point Bohol — ... voila!

Chocolate hills Bohol tourists panorama — How many of you even knew such a place existed? I didn't know about it until I began researching for this trip.

Chocolate hills view from top Bohol Philippines — Undoubtedly one of the most amusing natural wonders I have ever seen!

Chocolate Hills were just nicknamed such because of their resemblance to bon-bon chocolates. Other names include “God’s tears” or “God’s droppings”.

Chocolate hills Filipino tourists broomstick pose Bohol — Man, they really love doing corny poses out here! 🙂

Chocolate hills Bohol Philippines — Back to the hills

Chocolate hills Bohol wide panorama Philippines — Panorama comprised of 12 shots

Chocolate Hills Bohol other side — I took shots of all the hills around me

Chocolate hills Bohol Philippines wide panorama — Panorama comprised of 10 shots

Chocolate Hills Bohol field Philippines panorama — Panorama comprised of 8 shots

Chocolate Hills Bohol tower Philippines panorama — Panorama comprised of 11 shots

Chocolate hills coming down Bohol — Decided to swap lenses and take the final few shots

Chocolate Hills dry grass Bohol Philippines — Being summer in Philippines, the hills weren't as green

Chocolate Hills cross grave Bohol Philippines — Wow, someone is buried here

Chocolate Hills big Bohol Philippines — You could really see clouds move over these hills

I felt I had taken enough photos, so I went back down.

Chocolate Hills trees Bohol Philippines panorama — Panorama comprised of 11 shots

Chocolate Hills hotel restaurant Bohol Philippines — This is the only hotel and restaurant on this hill, in case you fancy staying right here

I had an overpriced boku juice (coconut water) and then went back to my tricycle driver.

Chocolate Hills leaving Bohol — We left the Chocolate Hills

Welcome to Chocolate Hills Bohol Philippines — Goodbye

Waking up really early just to catch a ferry, coming all this way — it was well worth it. The Chocolate Hills are undoubtedly a ‘must-see’ in Philippines.

Chocolate Hills Bohol rice field — Though, it only occurred to me on the way back that I should have taken a video from the top. Sucks.

Entering manmade forest Bohol Philippines — Entered the man-made forest again

Manmade forest sunlight Bohol Philippines — Stopped to get some clear shots again

Manmade forest trees blocking sunlight Bohol Philippines — Nature's way of keeping sunlight out, making it very cool inside

The next sight on the tour was a hanging bridge in a locality called Sevilla.

Hanging bridge entry Loboc river Bohol — Entry was ₱10

Hanging bridge bamboo Sevilla Bohol Philippines — It's as the name suggests

Hanging bridge bamboo Bohol Philippines — But it's made of bamboo

Hanging Bridge view of Loboc river Bohol — Loboc river

Hanging bridge stores Bohol Philippines — There are some souvenir stalls set up by locals at this end

Hanging bridge exit Bohol — I made a quick return

Hanging bridge tourist slowly crossing Bohol — If you don't like wobbly bridges, you might want to wait until an elderly person finishes crossing

Sevilla village children Bohol Philippines — I walked back to my tricycle driver and we left the hanging bridge

Carmen junction Bohol highway Philippines — We got back to the main highway

Way to Loboc river cruise Bohol Philippines — Next up, lunch cruise on the Loboc river

Loboc river lunch cruise offices Bohol Philippines — There are many companies offering the lunch cruise, I just picked one after seeing their buffet menu for today. Cost ₱400 ($9/€6)

Long river cruise Loboc Bohol Philippines — Lunch time!

Loboc river lunch cruise tourists Bohol — The boat

Loboc river cruise lunch buffet Bohol Philippines — The food

Loboc river cruise lunch plate Bohol Filipino food — Even though I wasn't fond of Filipino cuisine, I had to eat something

Loboc river lunch cruise Bohol Philippines — We set off

Loboc river cruise boat driver Bohol — The boats are actually maneuvered by this little guy who just pushes it along the river

Loboc river cruise village dance platform — The cruise includes stopping by these platforms

Loboc river cruise musical performance platform — These platforms hold young locals who entertain tourists with musical performances

After ‘docking’ the boat alongside the platform, the locals began.

Loboc river village children ukele Bohol Philippines — They were really good with their singing and playing!

Loboc river children dancing villagers Bohol — They danced for us too

Loboc river cruise children dancing Bohol Philippines — I really liked this performance and I felt like recording video, but decided against it

Loboc river children singing Bohol — Putting up a video of their performance here would kind of take away their livelihood

Loboc river cruise playing games Bohol — It may be as touristy as it gets, but I still liked it. I left a ₱100 note in the tip box on the platform.

Loboc river cruise entertainment Bohol — We applauded and left

Loboc river lifeguard Bohol Philippines — There's a lifeguard for Loboc river too... though I don't know how effective one man can be, seated here

Loboc river trees Bohol Philippines — I sat and enjoyed the rest of the river cruise

Loboc cruise lunch dessert Filipino food — While having dessert of course

Loboc river cruise afternoon Bohol Philippines — Reminded me of Kerala's backwaters

Loboc river cruise children playing water Bohol Philippines — Village boys playing in the river

Loboc river cruise station Bohol Philippines — After one and half hours of cruising, we were back

Loboc river cruise station elderly singers Bohol — I headed back to my trike

Bohol rice paddy fields clouds — We moved on to our final attraction of the tour and one I was very keen on seeing in person -- the tarsier

Tarsier house kanipaan kingdom Bohol Philippines — I was expecting to go Bohol's largest tarsier conservatory but instead, the driver took me here

When researching, I read that there were many unauthorized or illegal venues where one can see tarsiers, many who just capture tarsiers from the wild and profit from it. So I told the driver to take me to the Philippine Tarsier and Wildlife Sanctuary in Corella, but he told me that I might not have the time for that as it is very far and beyond Tagbilaran City.

Oh well, one sign this place was legit was that there were no entrance fees.

Sloth hanging Bohol Philippines — These guys hanging around are sloths

Tarsier clenched on branch Bohol Philippines — These are the tarsiers

Tarsier sleeping Bohol Philippines — Since it was the afternoon, they were in the middle of taking a nap. But seeing them with the eyes fully open is what sets this primate apart from the rest.

Tarsier fingers feet claws Bohol Philippines — They're about the size of your hand

Tarsiers afternoon Bohol Philippines — This centre had around ten of these interesting animals

Tarsier big eyes open Bohol Philippines — Few of them finally woke up. Now I know where the idea for Dobby from the Harry Potter movies drew inspiration from.

Tarsier feed worms grains — What tarsiers are fed

Bohol highway tarsier center Philippines — 15 minutes among tarsiers, and we were done

Tagbilaran city Jagna road sign Bohol — We rode back to Tagbilaran city

Couple by seaside Bohol Philippines — But I asked the driver to stop when we passed by the sea again

Bohol mangrove beach shore panorama — Panorama comprised of 10 shots

Bohol stony beach boats Philippines — Not all of Bohol's shorelines look like this. The island does have stretches of white sandy beaches, but just not on this side.

Bohol house tricycle tour driver Philippines — My driver

Baclayon roman catholic church school Bohol — Baclayon Roman Catholic church

The driver dropped me back to Tagbilaran City, near the church, where I paid him the agreed upon ₱1000 for the tour (plus a ₱50 tip). I still had nearly 2 hours before I had to catch my ferry back to Cebu.

Church of Tagbilaran Bohol Philippines — I was near the Church of Tagbilaran, so...

Church of Tagbilaran history Bohol Philippines — I decided to check it out

I left the church and walked towards a Wild West-themed cafe and bakery right beside the church. They had a banner outside advertising their ‘famous’ mango pies. Looked and sounded delicious, so being the foodie I am, I ventured in.

Garden Cafe Wild West themed Bohol Philippines — Garden Cafe

The cafe mostly serves locals its fix of Americana, with the menu mostly comprising burgers, steaks and other Tex-Mex fare. Prices are reasonable and they were still serving customers main course meals despite being 3:30pm. What I found most interesting was — some of the waitresses were deaf. There were books on display on how to communicate in sign language, but for me, my order was simple. I pointed to the mango pie sign on my table and simply indicated ‘one,’ with a smile.

Mango pie Garden Cafe Bohol Philippines — Costing just ₱35, it was alright. The mango filling wasn't as sweet as I thought it would be. I don't know if the type of mangoes commonly found in these parts are of a tangier variety, considering us Indians are used to much sweeter ones back home.

I sat for a while to cool off, drank ice cold water and then when I felt like walking, left the cafe.

Tagbilaran city square Bohol Philippines — I decided to check out the mall scene

Bohol Quality Mall inside Philippines — This is Bohol Quality Mall

Hmm, that’s it really. Tagbilaran is no Cebu. The SMs and Ayalas are yet to set foot on Bohol.

Tagbilaran city traffic Bohol Philippines — Don't expect anything fancy in Bohol. It's the simple life here.

Bombay bazaar Tagbilaran city Bohol Philippines — Guess there are a few Indians in Philippines

Tagbilaran city road to ferry terminal — I decided to walk back to the ferry terminal

United Church Touch-a-child Bohol Philippines — The priest jokes practically write themselves

Tagbilaran tricycle taxis Bohol Philippines — Clean roads

I got my ticket checked and waited in the departures hall for my 6pm ferry. When you buy a return ticket from Cebu itself, it entitles you a spot in a ferry returning at any time. I was done with Bohol as far as I was concerned, so I decided to catch the early ferry.

Bohol sunset Philippines — The sunset at 6:15pm

Oceanjet ferry upper seating open air Bohol — Just noticed there was an open-air compartment above mine which cost much lesser. Should have just take this one as I really didn't need air-conditioning when there's sea breeze.

I went back to my seat and instantly dozed off, despite how freezing it was inside my cabin. I guess I was really tired and the early wake up was getting to me. Still, I felt satisfied knowing that I saw everything I wanted to see in Bohol. Even though my tricycle tour (eventually) was not that much cheaper than a van tour, I’m still happy I opted for it because I had the freedom to stop the driver whenever I felt like taking photographs.

I was back in Cebu past 8pm and I headed back to Sugbutel first, so I could dump my bag. Then I went to SM City for dinner.

SM City Cebu mall closing Philippines — By 9pm, everybody was shutting shop

Fortunately, a McDonalds was still open (though they were cleaning up) and I managed to get the last remaining burgers on order.

I headed back to my room, took a nice shower, backed-up my photos — nearly 600 of them (out of which I only used 188 in this post). Bohol was well worth the trouble and I can highly recommend a day spent on the island for anyone visiting Philippines.

Previous posts in this series:

Philippines 2011: Day 9 – Cebu: Fort San Pedro, Basilica of Santo Niño, Taoist Temple

Philippines 2011: Day 8 – Manila tour: Rizal Park, Intramuros, Manila Cathedral, China Town

Philippines 2011: Day 7 – Leaving Angeles City for Manila, Mall of Asia

Philippines 2011: Day 6 – Good Friday in San Fernando, San Pedro Cutud Lenten Rites

Philippines 2011: Leaving Sagada for Baguio, and arriving in Angeles city (Days 4 & 5)

Philippines 2011: Day 3 – Sagada’s Lumiang burial cave, Sumaguing cave, Hanging Coffins of Echo valley

Philippines 2011: Day 3 – Banaue town; heading to Sagada via Bontoc

Philippines 2011: Day 2 – Banaue rice terraces; trekking to Batad village

Philippines 2011: Day 1 — Manila American Cemetery and Memorial, Fort Bonifacio

Philippines 2011: Flying over South China Sea for the first time

Other posts in this series:

Philippines 2011: Day 11 – Arriving in Puerto Princesa, Palawan

Philippines 2011: Day 12 – Puerto Princesa Underground River tour, Palawan

Philippines 2011: Day 13 – Puerto Princesa to El Nido by bus

Philippines 2011: Day 14 – El Nido island hopping tour A and sunset at Las Cabanas beach, Palawan

Philippines 2011: Back to Manila, shopping, and my final thoughts about the country (Last post)

Kerala 2009: Vembanad Lake, Kumarakom

By Mithun Divakaran
/
Apr 05, 2010
/
India, Kerala, Travel

Date: 28th August 2009

Though the main purpose of this trip was to attend a friend’s wedding, as always, being an out-of-town wedding, I’d use the opportunity to travel around. This time, it was a chance to explore a bit of south Kerala. Being from north Kerala and having only visited Trivandrum years back, I’ve longed to visit the parts of Kerala that are now most synonymous with tourism in Kerala.

We (me and a friend) left Bangalore city from K.R. Puram station in the evening and headed for Ernakulam, an overnight train ride that took nearly 12 hours. Upon arriving (really) early in the morning, we got off the train only to board the one next to it. An hour-long journey took us to our friend’s hometown in Kottayam. Given that we had a day before his wedding — and the fact that his place had little to offer in terms of “tourist sights,” we decided to head for the tourist village of Kumarakom.

When we heard Kumarakom wasn’t very far from Kottayam city, we thought of saving some time by taking an auto. Then the auto driver said it would come to around Rs. 160 (€2.50/$3). So instead, we just waited for the KSRTC bus — which cost us Rs. 6 (too low to convert!) per person. Clearly the better option.

30 minutes later, we were at the “jetty” stop, pretty much the starting point for the boat rides to the lake. There are other roads on either side of the stream that will lead you to the many resorts that surround Vembanad Lake, the biggest lake in Kerala.

We opted for the 1-hour boat ride from the KTDC which cost Rs. 350 (€5/$7). (We didn’t try bargaining because these rides were conducted by the tourism department and it was written on a board there. But you could try.)

Kumarakom lake houseboats backwaters — These houseboats can cost anywhere from Rs. 3,000 to Rs. 16,000 per day

Kumarakom lake houseboats kerala — The prices vary based on the amenities available on each boat

The backwaters leading up to the lake were lined up with houseboats and smaller boats parked on either side. It was an odd mix of luxury resorts among houses belonging to villagers, both living off a tourism economy.

The backwaters eventually lead out to Vembanad Lake.

And even though the pictures may not give you the scale, trust me, it’s big!

Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary is located on the east coast of the lake, which explained all the birds flying around and getting a better view of the lake.

The boat ride is very relaxing and I would definitely recommend taking it at around sunset.

Mithun kumarakom lake boat ride — Me, about to fall asleep from the lazy ride

Kumarakom has dozens of resorts by the lake. From high-end properties from the Taj Group and the famous Kumarakom Lake resort to mid-range offerings farther away. If you can afford it, it really is a great option for a romantic sojourn.

Back on land, we paid up and took a bus back to Kottayam. The next morning was our friend’s wedding, the venue being the local church.