Camiguin, Cagayan de Oro & Bukidnon, Philippines

Finally found the time to do the blog for this trip! This was the first packaged / guided trip I’ve gone to - it was a Camiguin - Cagayan de Oro combi. As it was an arranged trip, I don’t know much about the logistics but can pretty much remember the places we’ve gone to.

Going to Camiguin, we took the PAL flight to Cagayan de Oro. After a quick breakfast at the city, a private van took us to the Misamis Oriental sea port (travel time: 1.5-2 hours) where we caught the barge to Camiguin (travel time: 1.5 hours).

In Camiguin, we were picked up by another private van and proceeded to Bahay-Bakasyunan resort. It was a pretty neat place and the food was great :)

Camiguin, the island of the seven volcanoes, has only one highway, aptly called the Circumferential Road because it goes round the island. First stop on our road trip was the Stations of the Cross where the annual trek is held during Holy Week. Yes, that’s a trek - because the stations are on a mountainside. Needless to say, I didn’t venture past the first station nyahaha…

Next stop is the Old Church with the giant balete tree where I was nearly stung by a bee. And then the sunken cemetery marked by a giant white cross in the middle of the ocean. They say you can actually dive there but geez, who would want to get freaked out like that? :) The cemetery used to be at the foothills until a volcano eruption swept the entire town to sea.

The next day, we went to this beautiful sandbar called White Beach which is practically the only “beach” in Camiguin. Odd how when you go around the island, all you see is the ocean, but they really have no beaches. The drop-offs are sheer and sudden so it’s pretty scary to venture into the waters, even at the coast in our resort.

White Beach is actually just two sandbars (it’s in the middle of the sea and it disappears during high tide) with warm, very clear, shallow water around and in between. It’s breathtaking with its fine white sand and the volcano ranges and coconut trees on one side and the endless sea on the other. It feels like you’re stranded in an island! :) Amazing place! Just bring plenty of sunblock because there is no shed or any protection from the elements in the sandbar. It’s just you and well, the sandbar.

After the cold of White Beach, we went to Ardent Hot Springs the waters of which comes from a volcano. There are three pools, the highest one having the hottest water. It’s also pretty deep. We also went to Katibawasan Falls which was awesome. It’s about 50 feet high, with a pool of very cold, clear water at the bottom.

We then went around to see Lanzones trees and bought Vjandep pastel at their bakery near the public market.

On our third day, we traveled back to Cagayan de Oro where we stayed for a night. We visited the Dole plantation (or was that Del Monte? I forgot) in Bukidnon but oddly enough, didn’t see any pineapples except the humongous one at the community entrance because they just finished harvesting. We visited the Malagos Eco-village but there was nothing noteworthy there. On the day of our travel back to Manila, we went around Limketkai Mall to buy pasalubong.

That’s it. Mindanao is a beautiful place, with its attractions still exuding the charm of the untouched. Cagayan de Oro and Bukidnon’s laid-back atmosphere and cool weather beckons you to slow down and enjoy life. As for Camiguin, sure the lack of modern facilities in their tourist attractions was a bummer but its raw beauty is so powerful, you’ll just as soon forget about them and just thank God for giving you the chance to be in the midst of such beauty :)

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