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Published: October 17th 2006
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Port of Dapa
We checked out of Gateway Hotel in Surigao City before 9:00am to take the most comfortable ferry that would take us to the port of Dapa in Siargao Island. Thank Heavens for Ate Eunor! She managed to book us at Montenegro Lines despite the peak season of Siargao -- We were in time for the 12th International Surfing Competition.
The ferry ride was okay. Oh, that was an understatement -- it was sweeeet! It was as comfortable as a bus ride! It had cushioned chairs with matching draperies, air conditioning and “So Close” playing on DVD! Sweet ei! At 11:30am we arrived at Dapa, and a van was already waiting for us.
Villa Ernesto at Bongayon, General Luna
In less than 30 minutes travel by van, we checked in at the Villa Ernesto Resort just in time for lunch! We had a delicious and very filling seafood buffet all to ourselves. Apparently, we were the only guests in the resort that day.
We all spent a few hours relaxing and finding our own quiet place within the resort. I enjoyed my time just lulling myself to a nap at a good old-fashioned rattan
hammock. Ahhh... This is just the place I want to be in right now -- lazily lying down between two coconut trees just by the beach, with a good view of Guyam Island. It was breezy and quiet. I was somehow expecting a crowded atmosphere because I knew we arrived in time for the 12th Siargao International Surfing Competition. They explained that the crowded resorts were the ones near Cloud 9 (10 minutes away from our place). No wonder this was the only resort that entertained us while I was looking for one, months ago in Manila. All the rest were already fully booked 2 months ahead! (Traveler’s Tip: Book 6 months ahead. No kidding. You can find a list of Siargao resorts at
SiargaoIslands.com.)
Naked Island
From the resort, we got onboard a pump boat that took us to Naked Island. It is an approximately 40-foot long white sand bar that had nothing on it but the remains of an old nipa hut roof. The small islet was lined with lots of birds that flew in unison as we docked into it. My favorite part of the islet was one of its curved tailing ends, where two
waves coming from opposite directions clash onto each other. I sat there and felt how it is to be squeezed and torn between two sparring waves.
I love the color of the water around Naked, which is a beautiful cyan or turquoise color. The water was so clear I could see the white sand below, molded into uniform heaps resembling the waves of the sea.
Dako Island
This islet is called Dako because it’s “dako”, which is Visayan for large. It’s the largest of all three immediate islands on the west side of Siargao Island namely, Guyam, Dako and Naked Islands. There are inhabitants in this island and there is only one big cottage for (probably) public use. The sun was about to set when we got there and we had to hurry out. We waved goodbye to the kids who were playing at their vast beach playground.
Inggit ako! Right here in the middle of two islands? Seriously?!
Our surfing tutors, Jerome and Jing, were onboard. Two huge and long amateur surfboards were onboard as well. Suddenly, the boat stopped between Dako and Guyam Islands. We were seeing surf breaks and we wondered, why
Surfers watch the birds flee from the island
This is my favorite end of Naked Island. Photo taken by Cary [http://shutteraddict.multiply.com] are we stopping here? Is this where we’re surfing at? Right here in the middle of two islands? Isn’t this place too deep and dangerous? This is yet our first surfing lesson!
Waaaaaaah!
My heart was already beating faster. But June and I volunteered to try surfing first. We each had our own tutors and surfboards. I had Jing to teach me ride my first wave. I was getting nervous but I was not afraid. I was curious than ever. Weeeeehuuuu! Here goes nothing…
Lying on my chest, afloat my huge surfboard, I paddled alongside Jing just like Ann Marie in the movie “Blue Crush”. Haha!
Feeling! And I was just paddling! Hehe!
(Tukayo pa kami ng idol ko sa movie! Ayos! San ka pa!) Jing told me to hold the surf board with both hands and kneel as soon as I find my balance as the wave pushes me from behind the board. He said I’m about to have a good feeling riding this approaching wave.
Surfing Between Dako and Guyam Islands
Dang, he was right!!! He said I’m about to have a good feeling riding this approaching wave… good feeling I had! It
Almost dusk at Dako Island
"Dako" means "large" in Surigaonon was a hazy rush!
Ang sarap! Also, as the wave diminishes (this is the time I topple into the water), I realize I was standing on shallow water. There were rocks/hard coral below me. I learned that surf breaks bring you to shallow waters. So at this point, drowning shouldn’t be an issue. Waves from the deep water clash into the shallow reef and that’s what makes a surf break! Tada! (Correct me if I’m wrong. I know the least about the sport of surfing.)
Direk, isa pa! (One more time!)
I paddle again… Jing pulls me towards the surf break… He poses me (and my surfboard, ofcourse) towards the direction of the wave… Then he shouts “Hang On!” in slang English! Yeah! They speak English in a cute accent! I failed to stand on my surfboard several times. I’ve been having bruises already for falling and climbing back onto my giant surfboard. Jing told me not to think too much. Just stand! Again, he was right! I was able to stand on the surfboard! Not bad for a first timer, eh! Note to self: Don’t think, just stand.
I learned that there are only two things you can do upon approaching a breaking wave: Ride it or deal with it.
When Jing was pulling me
Riding my first wave
With tutors Jerome and Jing towards the break, waves kept on coming and coming. They were unstoppable. There were good waves I had to catch and ride. But there were also bad waves I can't ride. I had no choice but to simply clutch on my board and endure them crashing into me. This made me think about
life. (Here I go again, interpreting the ways of Nature and its relevance to human life.)
In life, we paddle through an ocean of uncertainty. We seek goals from surf breaks we see and hear at a distance. We struggle. We paddle. We encounter waves of difficulties on the way. It is at these moments we decide on what to do with these waves of trials, but there are only two things we can do with it. We either ride along with it or work around it. There’s nothing we can do to stop these waves. It’s up to us how to keep ourselves happy. We may need to dive below the wave, but most of the time we will have to face it head on. On better times, we may have to ride it and look cool. All that matters is we stay afloat. Breathing. Alive.
Picture, please!
It was already getting dark so we had to go back to the resort. Pictorial time! Hahaha! We felt like celebrities getting blinded by flashing cameras left and right. It’s okay! It’s what we went here for, anyway. So we posed like pros with our surfboards and (now blind) tutors. Tee hee!
We had dinner and we washed up so we could drive to the Boulevard. We spent the rest of the night watching the Hip-Hop Dance Competition on a makeshift stage built near the shores of General Luna. We walked thru the end of the Boulevard till we crossed a small, colorfully-lit wooden bridge. We enjoyed the breeze while sitting on a cottage by the beach. Eloi, Ayeen, and I behaved like little girls
as we played
piko (with matching sunog-bahay) on the sand.
It was almost midnight so we decided to hit the sack. Tomorrow’s going to be another exciting day. We’re going to Sohoton!
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imorena
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siargao
Interesting blog. I have heard so much about Siargao and am just about to get my arse in there this May. Any suggestion which place is the best to surf? and stay? I like the beach of Bitaug..