Advertisement
Published: February 29th 2008
Classic boat on beach photo!
One of the quiet beaches on BoracayArriving at Manila airport, a quick intro from the hotel and then a short transfer through the city. So nice to have everything arranged (thanks Marrem!), just sit back and watch the madness! The others were due to arrive from the UK that evening so we just enjoyed the cloudy but hot weather for the afternoon.
The following evening we were all invited to the Claveria welcome party all treated like local celebrities. Given the free barrel of San Miguel beer on offer, the night went pretty much downhill from there. Balut delicacy followed for those with tough stomachs (much to the family entertainment) and then to a club where the band played all the english tunes they knew. Found a new beer, Red Horse, really nice and light only to find out a couple of days later its 8%!a(MISSING)lcohol content!
Combination of a hangover and the enevitable stomach upsets due to the change in food/climate etc, the visit to the largest mall in Asia was more like a tour of the aptly named 'Comfort rooms'😱
Its pretty crazy how such a deprived city with all the square miles of of shanty towns can be backed by skyscrapers
and such huge malls, where most Manila residents could never afford the visit.
With the weather in Manila not being to the expectation of the group, we all looked forward to hitting the beaches of Boracay, however it seems the weather decided to follow us.😞 One reflection this was probably a blessing given the collective amout of burning in the two hours of sun we did get on the second day!
The island is quite windy, making a great place for kitesurfers and windsurfers. Bulabog beach is on the opposite side to where we were staying, but is a much quieter beach, really just set up for doing these watersports. I managed to complete a kitesurfing course in 1.5 days. Wish I could have got more practice in, but some days it was too windy, and the last couple of days we were there the wind really dropped off.
Speaking to a few kitesurfers, its seems a lot of people come here for a couple of months this time of year due to the consistency of the wind. I could see myself coming back for just that reason.
Whilst we were in Manila a few locals commented
Bulabog Beach
On the east side, picked up all the available wind with 300-400m of shallow water. Perfect for learning to kitesurf. on how touristy and slightly tacky Boracay is, but for a location that has everything you could want I can understand why people stay for longer than the five days we were there for.
Next step, to Northern Palawan. Expectations are really high as this place we are heading to is described as a deserted paradise, no touts, no shops, no roads.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.176s; Tpl: 0.012s; cc: 7; qc: 45; dbt: 0.1179s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Ian +Maxine
non-member comment
Gregg's Beer Pouring
You will never get a job in a pub Gregg! Just look at the head on that beer you have poured lol