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Published: February 26th 2010
Running around like a headless chicken, arriving in Bongao from Sibutu i tried to make the Sitangkai boat, we got to the pier where it is docked and luckily it was still there but for a reason, it has broken down! i was told normally it leaves at 10am but they are repairing it and may leave at 1pm if not the next day, patience already gone, just had it with inter island travels in the south, I quit and called it a day! Made a decision to skip Sitangkai and book my 1st flight out for Zamboanga. SEAir is the only one that does the route, I went to the office it was shut for lunch but the manager is there and told me come back later with cash to pay the fare and I have a seat guaranteed.
Went to Rachel's hotel and checked in and made a call to SEAir after a quick shower and this woman Pinky told me it was sold out, I lost it there and went on a rampage, she said she will try to talk to her boss who promised me a seat and will call back later. Still fuming I went
Sulu Archipelago
this island could actually belong to Basilan or Jolo, view from planefor lunch, when she called back I have a seat reserved for me! I came by to pay her, which took awhile as the trike driver does not know where the office is.
Ben my guide at Bud Bongao came to visit me at the hotel to say goodbye and I gave him my pair of sandals which I wanted to get rid off in the first place. had a quick dinner and off to bed. Next morning I checked out and the discount promised to me was only 10% Rachel's is expensive at 800 pesos per room/day and most of them are the same price, no backpackers hostel here so i have no choice but to pay. They gave me a ride though to the airport as their service was also dropping someone off, and it was for free.
At the check in counter they weighed my big backpack, weight limit is 10 kgs. mine weighed a whooping 18 kgs! i think the scale is wrong it could not be that heavy, get this though, if you have excess, per 1 kg is 100 pesos! I should pay 800 pesos then, almost $20! The dude in the
counter announced I have exceeded the weight limit, I just nodded and try not to have eye contact, he was waiting for me to pay but he never said please pay the extra weight, all he said was pay the terminal fee and when i did that they handed to me my ticket and I quickly walked away to the direction of the cafeteria outside to chill.
I played the ignorant part here as i don't want to pay.
Coming back to the terminal the dude was still looking at me but i pretend I was busy, well he never actually came up to asked me to pay up so i just let it go, i was nervous up to the last minute when we boarded as he was the one who collected the tickets as we board the plane, he did not say a thing, so i dodged the wicked fine. it's an 18 seater plane, we took off late but was rewarded by gorgeous views of the islands around the Sulu archipelago, Tawi Tawi is gorgeous from above, string of islands here and there most of them are tiny and have some swamp in the middle, I
clicked away, its so beautiful these islands. nearing Zamboanga we saw more colorful islands, we went past Jolo and Basilan and I bet some of the islands I took fotos of are from the areas, unfortunately these places are dodgier than Tawi Tawi so i avoided it on this trip.
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joel lim
non-member comment
Safe place
I always consider Bongao a place safer than Jolo, Zamboanga, Siasi. Although, i seldom visited (back) this place, i got some news from distance friends that Bongao became crowded nowadays. It's nice to see some pictures you posted - it brings back my childhood memories. Thanks for sharing some of these photos. Allow me to share this pictures to some friends, will you? :) More power!