Dumaguete - Apo Island for 2 Days and 1 Night (Part 2)

APO ISLAND

How long have I wanted to swim with the sea turtles! Finally, I was able to experience it!

Chasin' turtles be like

Apo Island is located south eastern tip of Negros Island and 30 kilometers south of the Negros Oriental capital of Dumaguete in the Philippines. I wouldn't want to miss my chance. The best thing about group travel is to share cost of the pump boat that can take you to island which is PHP2,500 good for four and of course it is not pratical if you go on solo for that amount. Good thing that the place I stayed at has a joiner offer of PHP1,000 per individual. It is kind of pricey than group sharing but that amount already covers the transportation to and from Dauin, breakfast, lunch, boat, snorkel gear and the guide. You need to be at the hostel at 6:45AM and because I stayed there, it was convenient for me. You will be asked to sign a waiver and also just next to the hostel is the dive shop where the equipments are handed out.

Swimming away

It was past 7AM when we headed off to Dauin. Most of the people I went the trip with were Chinese and Koreans, there were Filipinos and I wanted to talk to them but I just didn't have the voice - I actually don't know what to talk about after the initial greetings. It was a good thing there was also another person in solo travel and I took the chance to talk to him and become his companion that day. That made me very happy! I got to meet someone new and I was able to meet two more when we were grouped together for the dive.

One side of the Island

The package includes three dive spots because we have divers with us. One thing to note though is that you will not be taken TO the island but the boat will just be navigating around it as there is an additional fee. If you want to have your feet touch the sand and be on the island as well as check out the lighthouse, this package is not for you. Also, most of the sea turtles are feeding in the shallow waters near the beach so the dives/snorkels  you will be having with the package does not assure a turtle encounter but it has 80% chance you will have one as what I have experienced. None the less, you will have a great time! It was on the third dive that we encountered turtles and our group was lucky to be the only ones there. We had the turtle all for ourselves! Even if the first two dives were turtle-less (is that even a word?), the island is a marine sanctuary and the corals and sea is full of life! The water is also clear, even if it is deep, you can see the sea bed. You are scheduled 1 hour snorkel for each dive spot, two are done before lunch and last one after as you need to be back on shore by 3PM as the waves gets high that time.  The overall experience was fun and I highly recommend joining the tour!

Here is the breakdown of my expenses:

Note: It could have been lesser if I have booked in advanced as well as I am a foodie so I do spend on food. (peace)

What I want you to know:

1. If you only have the weekends to visit Dumaguete and go to Apo Island, I would recommend you catching the 1AM schedule to Lilo-an Port from Cebu's South Bus Terminal. You will arrive at 4 or 4:30AM which is the first scheduled trip for the ferry. It only takes 30-45 minutes to Sibulan. You have time to catch up with the Apo Island tour (provided that they are not fully booked which is less likely).
2. The lunch including in the package is kinda like a "snack". We were just only served pancit though I was expecting a full meal. You may need to bring your own lunch if it is not enough. There is unlimited coffee/milk, bread and bananas though (at least that's what I have observed).
3. I really do advice to have Apo Island be your first day activity because it will be a three hour swimming under the blazing sun and it will exhaust you. Of course, it will be entirely up to you.
4. As you need to get wet in boarding the boat, be in clothes that you don't mind getting wet in.

That about sums it up with my first solo travel adventure! I can't wait to explore again! Hit me up if you plan to visit my place. I would love to suggest places and things to do for you :)

Dumaguete - Apo Island for 2 Days and 1 Night (Part 1)

DUMAGUETE

I had long been wanting to visit Dumaguete, it's just a bus (and ferry) away from Cebu. One thing that kept me from going is I have no one to go with there. I haven't been there and there is also the introvert part of me of facing foreigners and also that having the look of being lost. I was happy when my housemates wanted to come so I applied for leave right away. But as you know, never plan your vacation way early as they ought to go as planned. We had talks about our trip a month before. Eight planned the trip and then by the time the day came, I was the only one left still wanting the plan to push through.

Rizal Boulevard

No worries though, I think this is the sign that I go solo. Yes, this is my first solo travel and guess what.. No Regrets! I had an awesome time and I got to meet new friends! I thought that I will be alone the entire time I will be there. I was able to muster the courage to take my first steps to travel solo!

How I got there:

There are several ways to get to Dumaguete. By air, by sea or by land (via RoRo) or a combination. There is the option to fly or voyage directly to Dumaguete,  I selected the cheapest way which is by land-sea-land though it is not the fastest route. I wasn't in a hurry so I didn't mind. I took a bus from the South Bus Terminal to Lilo-an. The bus signboard had Bato via Lilo-an on it. If not sure just ask which bus goes to the port for Sibulan. It takes about 3-3.5 hours to arrive there and the fare is PHP185 (as of this writing). The bus will stop just outside (bus conductors will shout "Lilo-an!") and you know you have arrived. You need to take a number as there are limited seats on the ferry or else you will have to wait for the next trip. The fare is around PHP65 pesos and takes around 30-40 minutes to get to Sibulan which is a town 20 minutes away from Dumaguete.  It was early in the morning (nearly 5AM) that I arrived in Sibulan. There will be a lot of tricycles waiting and a few jeepneys. The drivers will charge you PHP170 to take you to your hotel (you will split the cost if there are two or 3 people) but because I was alone I opt for the jeepney where I just spent PHP20.

Cathedral of St. Catherine of Alexandria

Where I stayed:

I have not booked in advance for the reason that I didn't think there were be a lot of people in Dumaguete for the weekend because there is no festival or any celebration the city is having. How wrong I was! I first arrived at Harold's Mansion which is a popular backpacker's hostel. I wanted to stay at their air-conditioned dorms for a night but their dorms are fully booked and only available rooms are the double fan rooms.  I decided to try another place which is the Vintage Inn however before even asking for a room, I knew it was fully booked because of the sign they have on their frontdesk. I asked the tricycle driver where he can recommend and he informed of the Gateway Hotel and they were fully booked too. I decided to go back to Harold's Mansion and paid for the fan room good for two which is PHP500.

The things I did and the places I went to:

Sans Rival Bistro

I wandered around Dumaguete on the second day because I went to Apo Island on the first day which you will know more about in my next entry.  But I had dinner at Jo's Chicken Inato that night and got my dessert at Sans Rival Bistro. The bistro is facing Rizal Boulevard so I was able to do a quick stroll together with my new found friends (Yep! I was lucky!). They have some street foods there but I was too full to even try some.

Tempura stands in Rizal Boulevard at night

Real life rooster at Jo's

 After chasing turtles on my first day, I was exhausted and my skin was hurting so my plan to go to Manjuyod Sandbar got cancelled and because I had a back up plan I didn't fret much. My back up plan is the city tour and was pretty interested in going to the museums of Siliman University, however, it was on a Sunday and I had asked multiple trike drivers if they are still open only to be answered no.  The museums are not option so I decided to go to Sans Rival Bakery which is just next to their bistro. I had a quick stomach filler there which is their lasagna and got one box  of their famous Silvanas. I was able to stop by the Sisters of St Paul of Chartres Monument which is just across the bistro and took a quick photo or two. After that I went to the Campanario De Dumaguete (Dumaguete belfry) which is the oldest in the Visayas and it is just next to Cathedral of St. Catherine of Alexandria which I just admired from the outside as there was an on-going mass because it was Sunday. 

Dumaguete belfry

Rizal Park just happens to be across the church too. It was noon so the heat was scorching and what better way to cool down than by sitting under a shade of the tree. The breeze was so nice so I stayed at the park for around a quarter of an hour. I then decided to just walk to the Public Market after taking a rest at the park. I had a handy maps app on my phone to let me know where I was so I was able to make out that it is just two blocks from the park. I may have regretted it slightly as it was 11AM and the sun was really scorching hot not counting that I still was sunburned. My purpose there was to buy pasalubong and the public market had the budbod kabog which is made from bird seeds.

Rizal Park

After my purchase, I wanted to have a keychain as I make it a point to get one when I travel as souvenir for the  places I went to but none can be found there. I have to go to Robinson's Mall to buy one thanks to the locals I asked about where to get those. It was nearly 12NN and I have to get back to the hostel to check out and started my journey back to Cebu. There is still the option to do the bus from Cebu-Dumaguete but still went to the land-sea-land option.

Check my next entry for my Apo Island Adventure!

Summoning the Reserved Nomad

Being an introvert makes travelling quite a challenge especially when travelling alone. I would like to meet new friends and meet people of different cultures but being an introvert, this is a difficult task. I can say that I am both an extrovert and an introvert but more of the latter; say 40% outie and 60% innie. It can be hard at times to start up a conversation or keep it engaging and not boring if you have started one. I don't really like doing small talks and not really into crowded places which is why meeting new people could be equivalent to being lucky for me.

I've been wanting to see the world for a long time but I have a few things to consider before going on a trip. First thing is work as I need to apply for vacation leaves;  second is budget because I do live by meager wages and third is if it is doable. Maybe add travel buddies (one that I am close to and comfortable being around) in there too as I usually am the one who gets assigned to plan.

Traveling solo is a new thing for me, for a fact that I am not comfortable with people I do not know however it changed my perspective when I had the chance to experience it. I was able to make new friends and I had the guts to be with a crowd.

I thought traveling can only be a dream for me. I am salaried worker that earns just about enough to meet monthly bills and food budget. I'm thankful that I'm working in a company that's compensating me to pay for monthly basic necessities with a little extra. Just a little extra. Traveling  is great as the memories will last a life time and the experience that you get is priceless.

Some people say that unplanned trips are more fun but I can only recommend that if you are adventurous and if it is of your convenience. You need to plan your trip ahead of time if you wanted to know your budget, itineraries and and backup plans you may have. For me, I prefer having an alternate route rather that not knowing where to go and what to do. It could be a time-waster.

My first ever trip out-of-town (as well as my first airplane experience)  was a trip to Baguio City. I didn't have trouble or had a hard time as it was my companion who planned it all. The second and third trips taught me that you should have an itinerary. They weren't an out of the country trip (we just went to Manila and Boracay) and they weren't disastrous but they could have been better.  Through these experiences, I learned lessons. And this is just the beginning. I can't wait to explore my country more and visit other countries as well.