Three years after my first trip to Goa, here I was another visit, but this time with a different group of people. We took another route from Bangalore to Goa, different from the route I was on in 2005. This time around we went from Bangalore -> Tumkur -> Kadur -> Shimoga -> Honavar -> Kumta -> Karwar -> Goa.
This was at our breakfast stop. That’s my friend Loi, the dalmatian wasn’t part of the tour group.As was the case those days, we were in my friend Ramesh’s carWe stopped along the way whenever we saw sights we never clicked beforeSorry, but I don’t remember names of the places. It was a long time ago.I was using a Nikon D70S, borrowed from a colleague at workPhotograph by RameshIf my photos look a bit off, it’s because it was the first time using a Nikon and remember, these were days I was still learning how to use a DSLR camera (and Photoshop)The roads we were on hardly saw much trafficThis was somewhere just outside Jog Falls
I woke up at 6am today. Not that it was when I set the alarm for, but that’s when electricity goes off everyday in El Nido (until 2pm). As the fan stopped turning and the humidity crept in, I had no choice but to get up.
Went downstairs to have coffee... with a view
I had plenty of time as I only needed to be at Art Cafe by 8:45am, but instead of having breakfast at Spider Pension House, I decided to have it at Art Cafe itself.
Everybody was taking it easy
I wanted to have a light breakfast as I was going to be getting into the water for snorkeling.
I ordered pancake, assuming it would be fluffy and light (Cost ₱100)
Unfortunately, the pancake at Art Cafe was quite thick and heavy. I felt stuffed by the time I was done and had my orange juice. I mean, the pancake tasted great and all, but… my tummy was already bulging!
It was time for my tour A to begin
I didn’t want a repeat of what happened on my first island hopping tour in Thailand, where I slipped and ended up plunking my camera bag in the water, so I stepped into the water carefully and boarded the boat. I didn’t rush to get a spot in the front of the boat.
Talk about living on the edgeAs the boat reversed, these kids hung onThe water must be second nature to themThe weather today looked perfectThe seas were still calm, which meant a less bumpy ride
First stop on the tour was Miniloc island
The boat slowed down
Our boat anchored itself outside the small lagoon
Those who paid for kayaking got into their kayaks and made their way towards the small lagoon. The rest, including myself, had to swim all the way there.
It was time to jump in (Disclaimer: No work out in over three weeks + heavy breakfast = thus tummy)
As I got in the water, I was supposed to follow the guide but got caught up floating in the water and staring at the corals underneath. It was a beautiful sight… which is all I can say, because I don’t have an underwater camera. (I really wish I did)
I couldn’t float around for too long as the guide had led the group through a small opening and into the small lagoon where there is a small cave.
So I swam fast and made it past the small opening, but just then, my limited swimming experience led to my right leg developing cramps. It hurt a bit as I stressed myself to catch up with the rest of the group. The guide came back for me and when I told him my right leg felt cramped, he told me not to stress it and asked me to sit on a stone inside the small lagoon. He had to lead the rest of the group inside the cave, so he told me to swim back after my leg felt better.
As I sat there massaging my right leg, a nice old Filipino woman who sat beside me on the rock suggested that I take her kayak back to my boat as she had another kayak in her group. I smilingly said “it’s fine,” but she smilingly insisted that I ride back instead of swimming back. I thanked her, and got in the kayak. Even though the kayak belonged to another tour agency and was even manned by one of their staff to paddle, I politely asked him if I could paddle instead. For someone who has always wanted to try kayaking, it was a lot easier than I thought it would be! I rode all the way back with relative ease and thanked the staff for letting me paddle his kayak.
Once I got back on board my boat, another one of boat staff massaged my right leg and it eased my muscles up a bit. As I sat on the boat, I felt I should have gone for the kayak option for this tour. It was a lot of fun and as soon as I got back to the boat, I felt like asking for another kayak. Sadly I couldn’t, as the tour boats can only carry the number of kayaks based on the bookings.
I know you can barely see it from here......but zoomed all the way in, that small opening in the center -- that's how you enter the small lagoon
Words are petty compared to actual photographs, so to see what the views are like under water and the cave, check out this guy’s photographs.
Floating in the water face down is all I wanted to do honestlyHe was in our tour group (but will you just look at the colour of the water!)Once everyone was back on the boat, we left the small lagoon
Next up, the 'big lagoon' in Miniloc islandThose who booked the kayaks set off from here itself (But I know what you are thinking -- BEAUTIFUL isn't it?)This part is shallowSigh... again.... look at those colours!
We were supposed to anchor here and then be allowed to do whatever we opted to do, but the boat operators were informed they couldn’t anchor their boats for some reason.
I don't know if it was because this setting was used for the filming of some reality show (the guide told us, it was the Swedish version of Survivor)We had no choice but to turn back... slowly
The nice lady and her family who lent me their kayak earlierThe staff who helped me rid the cramps I had on my right legPanorama comprised of 6 shots
Panorama comprised of 9 shots
We moved on to our next spotWe were heading to Entalula island for our lunch breakThis is a private beachThis is the public beachThe off-colours make it look a bit cartoon-ish, doesn't it?We could rest here for some time before lunch, but I got in the water insteadGot back on shore after a few minutesPanorama comprised of 11 shots
And if you thought: “Man, that above panorama shot would make an awesome wallpaper!”, then here’s a 1920×1080 sized version!
Cool huh?
The staff were grilling meatGrilled fish and pork cubesI like watching food being cooked... I guess it's one of those traits of being a foodie
Postcard, isn't it?Lunch was ready
The food – grilled fish, grilled pork and sticky rice – was, well, quite dry for my liking. So I just had to gulp it all down with some beer (which the staff were selling for ₱50 a can). Post lunch, we sat on the beach while the staff cleaned up and took all the trash back to the boat.
We left the island at 1:45pm
We moved on to our next stop on the tourI don't know if this was Simizu islandThe plan was to swim out into the open sea (for something, I forgot). But because I didn't feel like swimming after lunch (& beer), so a few of us stayed on boardI stared out into the blue with my feet wading in the waterMy feet stayed in the water until I saw thisOh look, jellyfish!
One of the women on board kept screaming to her partner in the water warning him of the presence of the jellyfish, though some only swam to get closer to it for a better look.
The staff said it doesn't sting. Well he wasn't sure, it was more like "I think it doesn't sting".We waited for the rest of our group to return
When they did, some of them were panting for breath. The two Italian girls in our group said the currents were quite strong and they required help from our guide swimming back. Quite a scary experience according to them.
It was time to leave these emerald waters and head to our next stop
We were going to check out a 'secret' lagoon, which is on this island (I believe this was Miniloc again)
Our boat didn’t anchor itself close to the shore, so we had to swim all the way there. I wasn’t going to stay on the boat again, but this time I really wanted to take my camera with me. So the guide told me he would carry it in a plastic bag and ensure it didn’t get wet. He’s obviously a much better swimmer, so he raised the bag in one hand and still swam to the island.
Once we all swam to the island, we had to walk barefoot on prickly shells to enter the lagoon through a small opening.
Panorama comprised of 3 shotsIt was pool of water surrounded by rocks -- so not sure it counts as proper lagoonThis is how one enters and exits the lagoon -- through an opening in the shape of Australia We spent a few minutes on the beachIt gave these Germans a good chance to do something they can't do back in their countryThe secret lagoon beach also has this toilet, which despite the views, people still wouldn't use
The lone shack on this beach
That's not a huge banana, it's a kayak... and I asked if I could ride it back to the boat They allowed me to do soAs the boat reversed, we saw what looked a like a ladder in the middle of the rockThe guide told us the man up there was guarding a cave where they farm bird's nest. For those who don't know, bird's nest (specifically from the cave swifts) are a delicacy in China, and are among the most expensive food products in the world, a la caviar and truffles.
The ride got a bit bumpy on the way to our final stop on our tour, 7 Commandos beach. I shielded my camera bag from all the saltwater that was being splashed at us.
Called 7 Commandos beach because seven soldiers were once stranded herePanorama comprised of 12 shotsThe stop was to give this man some business and have a drink. I ordered coconut water...... like everybody else. Except this kid, I'm sure he's sick of coconut water living here -- he drank Sprite.Sparsely populated island... but they still have a hoop
I saw two or three houses on this beach, that's it
We left Seven commandos beach after spending 45 minutes here
With that, Tour A was over.
It was past 4:30pm
My day wasn't done though, I needed to get to Las Cabanas beach quick
The boat anchored itself a bit away from the shore, we then got in knee-deep water and walked back to Art Cafe
I went upstairs to pay the balance amount for the tour, which cost ₱700 ($16/€12) plus the ₱50 for the beer I had. I told them I used the kayak once, but they said that’s fine.
Even though I may not have made full use of the tour (due to my limited swimming capabilities), as you can see from the above photos, it was still pretty damn worth it! Sadly, today was my last in El Nido and I so wished I had another day to do another tour (like Tour C).
This is the map of the tours on offer (from Art Cafe)
I left Art Cafe, said my goodbyes to the rest of my tour group and walked on. I now needed to go to Las Cabanas beach which is a five minute drive away.
I approached a tricycle taxi and asked how much it was to get to Las Cabanas beach. He said: “₱200”. I asked if that was to take me there and back, and he said “no”. I said ‘no freakin’ way’ and continued walking. As expected, he followed me and we ended up bargaining it down to ₱80.
It's a pretty rough road to Las Cabanas
Found a cashew fruit on the ground
It was 5:30pmAttempted a panorama photograph from hereDecided to walk barefoot for a whileOrange Pearl Resort
Panorama comprised of 10 shots
I ended my walk hereI placed my bag down and found a spot from where to shoot my sunset timelapse
But it wasn’t a pleasant experience. There were mosquitoes and other bugs buzzing around me and I just couldn’t stand still, having to whack each one away. The tripod with the camera would often tip over in the sand as well.
None the less, I began shooting my sequence of photos
(I’ll update the page with the video once it’s ready)
I took one last panorama shot and left Las Cabanas beach at 6pm.
Didn't come out perfectly after merging it thoughI walked back to the road
Bikes often pass through this path... as experienced by this unfortunate frog
Once I got back on to the main road, the tricycle taxi driver who dropped me here was still there and I approached him to take me back to the village. He said: “₱100”. Sigh. I told him I paid ₱80 to come here, why should I pay more to go back. He just shook his head to say ‘no’. So I started walking…. and again, he followed me and asked me to get in. Ugh!
As we rode back, I had to ask the driver to stop again when he showed me an observation deck they built for a nice view of the sea. The sky looked beautiful and I just had to capture it!
Unfortunately there are trees obstructing the view, so this is all I took
Once I got back to the village, I went back to the ‘family day’ celebration which I visited yesterday to see if there was anything special going on today.
The men were drinking as usual, but yesterday's cock fighting ring had turned into a dancing ring for the village children
I leisurely walked back to Spider Pension House and told Joy that tonight I would like to try their seafood buffet for dinner. Electricity was gone again, but Joy still managed to make me a ‘boku milkshake’. I was then joined by three French youths who had just arrived today, and we began chatting.
When dinner was served, it was crab soup, fried tuna, grilled lobsters, rice and salad. Cost? ₱250 ($5/€4)
After a satisfying dinner, I settled my bill and paid for everything as I was checking out early tomorrow. I asked Joy to book me a seat in a private van back to Puerto Princesa.
Joy told me the glowing in the distance is from lights from resorts and other private islands
I couldn’t have asked for a better ending to my Philippines journey. Coming all the way to El Nido for these beautiful waters was worth it! If these 159 photos (out of the 861 photos I took) don’t tempt you to take a vacation to El Nido, well, then try this video — it’s all real!
(It’s available in 720p HD)
P.S: There is still one final post left in this series
Since this was my last day in Gokarna, and since I was all by myself, I decided to do things at my own pace.
Woke up at around 10am, did my business in the common restrooms, paid for my room/hut and then checked out. Stocked up on water and said my goodbyes to the staff at Sunset Cafe.
My second post has photos of Sunset Cafe but if you want to call for reservations, the numbers mentioned on the card they gave me are: (0) 94485 26270 & (0) 93410 79315. They have huts and rooms with prices starting from Rs. 250 onwards.
I thought I’d be of service to my readers and friends by checking out a few other hotel options that looked like decent places to stay on Kudle beach.
By far the most expensive hotel on Kudle Beach is Hotel Gokarna International.
Hotel Gokarna International, Kudle Beach
And by ‘expensive,’ I mean this is the only proper hotel on Kudle beach. Just about everything else offers simple huts and small bricked rooms. Rates here range from Rs. 1200 ($26/€19) to Rs. 1500 ($33/€24) for double rooms. Not all rooms face the sea — so you can imagine which ones cost more. Hotel Gokarna International has a bar and a restaurant serving both vegetarian and non-vegetarian food. And don’t worry, no shared bathrooms here.
Next up is a funky little place called Jazzmin Cafe & German Bakery. They were fairly accommodating and asked me to take as many photos as I wanted. So I did.
The two huts right in front have attached toilets
When I questioned them on prices, they told me it’s best I e-mail them with my “requirements” (e-mail: jazzmincafe@yahoo.com).
This is right next to Jazzmin and the first ‘hotel’ you’ll come across on Kudle
At the other extreme end of Kudle beach is Ganga Cafe, which looked like a pretty decent place too but I couldn’t have been bothered to walk all the way there with all my bags in the hot sun. Sorry.
UPDATE: A reader who visited in December 2017 was kind enough to share some numbers of places to stay on Kudle beach:
So with all my bags in tow, I made my way up the rabbit hole for the last time.
I took it slow as with a laptop on my back, a camera bag on the left shoulder and a tripod on the other — it was literally back-breaking.
I then took the same path over the hill to Om Beach, which is where I decided I’d spend the day before heading back to town. The reason I opted to stay back one more day was to take a lot of videos on my camera (Canon 7D). Of course, I did take photos in between.
A panorama comprised of 5 shots
It was already past noon by the time I reached Om Beach so I decided to have an early lunch. I walked into Namaste Cafe, by far the most popular joint on Om Beach and a preferred stay for many who tend to book rooms in advance.
Their restaurant was quite busy as well.
Seafood tandoor platter, Rs. 200. Very good!And wherever Mithun eats seafood, comes thy kitten…. and sleeping pups.
Namaste Cafe has a variety of rooms from basic huts to air-conditioned rooms and prices start from Rs. 200 upwards. For more information, call (08386) 257141/ (0) 94481 53643.
Om Beach attracted bus loads of people that day, guessing because some people got holidays for the festival of Holi.
After a long & lazy lunch, I decided to walk up Om Beach and climb up the path to Half-Moon beach. So I asked my waiter if I could leave my laptop bag at a safe location at the restaurant itself. After doing so, with my tripod and camera bag, I set off once again.
I had to wear socks this time as my feet were getting blisters and scratches from my floaters and from walking barefoot on the sand.
I stopped at the point from where if you were to take a left turn, you would be on the path to Half-Moon beach.
I decided to walk up all the way to that tree point…… and just sit there for some time
Lucky eagle
As it was nearing 5pm, I decided to head back to Om beach.
Om beach
The large one is a woman by the way
Back at Namaste Cafe, I collected my laptop bag, washed up, cooled off with a lime soda and then made my way up to the auto stand.
Got into one, and saw the beautiful coastlines of Gokarna one last time while I made my way back into town.
Since I had some time to kill before my boarding the bus, I went to the Gokarna beach area for some photographs.
“Appu Tattoo: You won’t BELIEVE where all we can give you a tattoo!”
Shree Venkataraman temple: Sending your messages to god — and parcels for your uncle too!Hotel Gokarna International in town
By this point, my camera battery was dying from all the video I recorded during the day. But I couldn’t help but click these posters.
I don’t know what the play was about but I would’ve loved to have found out. Going by their faces I’m guessing it involves killing the make-up artist.
After this, I switched off my camera and made my way to bus. The VRL buses begin at the same spot they drop you in the morning coming from Bangalore. By 6:45pm, it makes it’s way to the town office where it picks up the remaining passengers.
I took this opportunity to go out and grab some grub. I had a sudden yearning to have some ice cream but some stores ran out. Others pointed me to an old rustic coffee shop up the road.
As I patiently waited for the old man at the counter to finish tabulating his bills, I asked for “ice cream”. And then he ran down the list of flavours he had. Going by what he listed, I realized this was home-made ice cream and not the usual mass-produced artificially-flavoured stuff.
I opted for a scoop of mango and he packed one up in a generic ice cream cup with a lid and spoon. All this for how much? Rs. 6 ($0.13).
It was yum!
In many ways, Gokarna feels like it’s stuck in time. A time and a place where you can get a cup of ice cream for just Rs. 6, where ATMs aren’t available in every nook & corner and amenities are basic at best.
The very same reasons I seemed to love Gokarna. It may not remain like this forever, that’s for sure, but I’m sure about one thing — I’m definitely coming back!
