Discovering Bantayan Island (Day 2)

We woke up early and very excited for today's activities. We decided to take a quick breakfast at Marlin's. Ariel ordered a burger while I opted for the bacon sandwich. A glass of pineapple juice completed our breakfast. By 8:30, we were ready to go. Mario was meeting us in front of Kota Beach. From afar, we saw a small boat. We joked that it was going to be our ride to Virgin Island. Turned out the joke's on us. That was indeed our boat. Small and bare. Not even a piece of cloth to protect us from the sun. Oh well, half the boat for half a price.

We landed at the Virgin Island around 9:30am. Took us almost an hour with our teeny outrigger. The hour-long trip was uneventful. The sea was calm, the weather perfect. Mario handed us an umbrella to protect us from the sun but I didn't care if I get a bit of a tan.

The boat that took us to Virgin Island

Virgin Island is breathtakingly beautiful. The sand is powdery white. The waters crystal clear. We had to pay P300 entrance fee. We were told it is privately owned and visitors pay for the maintenance.

Virgin Island

Ariel & I at the beach

My beau

Yours truly

Ariel exploring the marine life

Some colorful corals

Ariel walking at the beach

A good meal gets better with a bottle of ice cold Coke

Our lunch is prepared by Mario and his friends. We gave him P500 the previous night so he can buy fresh seafood and meat for our lunch. They cooked a good meal for us: adobong pusit, grilled fish, grilled pork chop, steamed crabs and a pot of steaming rice. A bottle of Coke completed our meal which we ate with our bare hands.

Yours truly, just after lunch

Ariel and I exploring the island

Resting by the hammock

Ariel at the hammock

We brought our own mask and snorkel

Leaving Virgin Island

By 1pm, we were ready to go. We went back to the resort and took a short nap. We agreed to meet Mario again at 3:30 pm. He volunteered to accompany us to Ogtong Cave. After our nap, we took a pedicab owned by Mario's friend to Sta. Fe Beach Club Ogtong Cave. We paid an entrance fee of P100 each. We paid for Mario's fee as well so he can go with us inside. It was a much nicer resort with well landscaped surroundings, a swimming pool, and beautifully designed cottages. However, the beach is not as nice as the one in front of Marlin.

Inside Ogtong Cave

Ariel inside the cave

The cave was made tourist friendly with the addition of concrete steps leading to the entrance. Inside, lighting was installed to make the place safe for visitors. Ariel and I soaked in the warm water for a few minutes.

Having a good time

Beautiful feet under the Ogtong Cave water

Floating at the pool

After a few minutes inside the cave, Ariel and I decided to take a dip at the pool. It was a small swimming pool and was heavily chlorinated. The water was very warm and didn't feel refreshing at all. We only stayed a few minutes, took some pictures and decided to head back to Marlin.

Ariel by the pool

That's me by the pool

By 7pm, we were ready to have dinner. We decided to explore the restaurants by the beach. A few meters from Marlin's beach front was White Sands Bar and Restaurant. We ordered prawns sinigang (Php 800+), grilled chicken (Php 200+), deep fried sardines with balsamic vinegar (P100+ - yummy!!!). Ariel ordered San Mig Light while I sampled the calamansi shake which I found too weird for my taste - mixed with milk so it was creamy-sour - so I later on ordered a bottle of Coke.

What was left of dinner!

We were originally seated at a table by the beach. However, the tide started to rise and our table was soon in the water. We then transfered to a table near the bar. We were so excited to eat the feast before us that I totally forgot to take a picture of our meal. I just took a picture of the leftovers. It was a good meal though the prawns are a bit too expensive.

We walked back to our resort through the main road as the beach has become too dark. We arranged for a 10pm massage and we were eagerly anticipating the relaxing night. We were sorely disappointed. For one, the massage did not feel good at all. The masseuse didn't seem to be trained well. Secondly, the massage lasted a full hour - for the two of us!!! It felt like we were ripped off. What a disappointing end to an otherwise great day! Oh well. Tomorrow's another day.