Bohol: Short Scenic Sidetrip

While in Cebu, we decided to go to a day-tour to Bohol since it’s just an hour ferry ride from Cebu.

The morning we arrived in Cebu, we contacted the Bohol countryside tour guide numbers I saw from other travel blogs.  I had gathered 4 numbers which are the most common numbers listed by travel bloggers:

Rod Balaba- 09185914969 - charges PhP 2,000 for the car & around PhP2,500 for the van, has buses too
Dario-09203200155 –uses a multicab and charges around PhP 1,250

Rey- 09067329566 –uses a van and charges around PhP 3,000

Lyndon- 09212904491 –also uses a van

According to the bloggers the drivers also stands as the tour guides and they are all very friendly. So we then tried contacting Rod's services and asked if they could accommodate us tomorrow. They replied fast with my text message and gave us PhP 2,000 as their price so I asked my friend and she agreed.
 

The cheapest ferry to Bohol is by Ocean Jet, fee is around PhP 520. You actually have a choice on the seats, tourist class or regular, and they usually have similar prices. There’s also business class which is worth around PhP 1000 The Terminal fee is already included in our ticket, though it’s PhP 10. Here’s the usual schedule of ferry trips by Ocean Jet. You can also now book at Ocean Jet's website.

We got the 0600H (CEB-TAG) and the 1800H (TAG-CEB) trips! :)

So the next day we woke up around 0500H then dressed up and flagged down a taxi to the pier. The gates opened at 0600H and we went to the ferry, and sat. We waited until around 0700H before we departed. The air conditioning of the ferry was really cold probably because the ferry was half filled. Even the Australian couple we befriended got cold with it they transferred to the regular seat. It also has a video on board so if you’re not into sleeping better watch the movie.

We arrived in Tagbilaran Port around 0830H and as soon as we get there, we looked for our tour guide. We easily spotted him with a piece of paper with our names on it. He then introduced himself as our driver and brought us to an old BMW car. I just said (in my head of course) Wow first ferry ride a while ago and now first BMW ride, COOL!

Our tour guide/driver/photographer/baggage counter (All-In-One) was Kuya Chris. He actually explained to us that Kuya Rod is the owner of the vehicles, he decided to do tours since there are pricey tour services around and he wanted to help people enjoy Bohol in an affordable way. He has 8 drivers and has cars, vans and even buses. The one setting the appointments is his secretary, which is the one we texted. During our tour August 4, 2013 they had 5 tours booked ours is the 6^th. Kuya Chris is a great tour guide driver, he is very courteous and loves telling stories and jokes. He speaks Bisaya & Tagalog, though sometimes he has foreign tourists he said tries his best to speak English. He learned Tagalog because he stayed in Manila for 3 years 2001-2003, he stayed also in Palawan & Cebu but he is born and raised in Bohol. So if you’re from these places better get him as your tour guide! He told us that he usually drives the bus and yet he admits he is a very small person to drive the bus.

A short history of Bohol...

 Bohol is apopular tourist destination with its beaches and resorts located in the Central Visayas region, consisting of Bohol Island and 75 minor surrounding islands Its capital is Tagbilaran City. A narrow strait separates the island of Cebu and Bohol and both share a common language, but the Boholanos retain a conscious distinction from the Cebuanos. Bohol's climate is generally dry, with maximum rainfall between the months of June and October. The interior is cooler than the coast.

The first stop of the tour is the Blood Compact Shrine. It was raining when we went there but it did not stop us from taking good photos. Kuya Chris gave us a short history lesson. It's other name is Sandugo. a Visayan word which means "one blood". A blood compact between the Spanish explorer Miguel López de Legazpi and Datu Sikatuna the chieftain of Bohol on March 16, 1565 was done to seal their friendship as part of the tribal tradition. This is considered as the first treaty of friendship between the Spaniards and Filipinos.

Next was Prony the largest Python in captivity. It was on October 21, 1996 when Sofronio Salibay was found  this Python which measured 5 feet and 5 kilograms in his backyard. In 2012, Prony weighed 280 kilos and measured 27 feet long. Her waist line was 34 inches. According to the tour guide, Prony eats every month and is actually due a week from our visit. She is a very choosy snake according to the towns people and even her care takers said. She eats 1 whole pig or 2 whole goats and does not eat a pig who is pregnant or is dark in color, and they must be live during feeding time. They fed her live chickens before but due to her large consumption and the cost of chickens, they fed her with virgin dogs. However, the animal rights activities protested the feeding of dogs.  

UPDATE: It's actually sad that 10 days after we visited Prony, she died. I just heard about it in the news and flet a bit sad about it. But looking at the bright side, at least she did not suffer due to the recent earthquake in Bohol.

Next stop was the Butterfly Conservation Center, there are actually 2, Kuya Chris told us he’ll just bring us to the indoor one so that we won’t get wet. We enjoyed looking at the pupa & the caterpillars. The tour guide also tried her best to bring us to the garden but then the rain went crazy so she just got us a butterfly and took some pictures in the bridge.

She also made some photo-illusions and turned us into butterflies…
WARNING you might see Heimlich (fat caterpillar turned butterfly in bug’s life)

Heimlich (ME)

Heimlich

A fairy... My friend Pia

The next stop was the Man-made forest aka Billar Forest. It was a forest built by (name) to control floodings in Bohol. The forest is a2-kilometer expanse of verdant vegetation mostly of Mahogany trees, added with ferns, some wild bushes and flowers. The Mahogany Forest was part of the nationwide reforestation program that was launched in the 1960s during the reign of Diosdado Macapagal. The 857.4 hectares of bare land was gradually planted with young Mahogany trees by volunteers, and after a few decades, the growth of these trees turned out to be wondrous and remarkable, it is the epitome of ZEN!

Kuya Chris asked us if where we wanted to have lunch. Their actually 2 river cruises. One the famous Loboc River Cruise and the another in Loay. Though they pass by the same river, Loboc River, the one in Loay is has a much longer cruise than the one in Loboc. The food offered also has a difference, Loay usually serves fresh seafood and is cooked just before the cruise and Loboc serves a variety usually with meat and is usually just refilled. So we decided to pick the one in Loay.

And at last the next stop is the ever famous CHOCOATE HILLS, we went to Carmen viewing deck which has the greatest view among the other viewing decks (according to Kuya Chris’)

The trip was a bit long and you might get a bit dizzy because of the zigzag roads. Kuya Chris also told us that he once had a small accident because of the sharp curves and there’s this small dent with the railing as evidence (he showed it to us). He said he was driving the bus with students on it who had the tour scheduled for 0800H-1200H and yes they have the same itinerary as we did so they were really speeding but thank God they were safe. But you know he really is a good driver and he does not speed too much, he only speeds up to 80kph when we were trying to catch our Loboc River Cruise trip.

The Chocolate Hills is not just a couple of hills but they’re actually estimated 1,268 perpetual cone-shaped hills. They are even semi-chocolate hills not because they are small but because they are not made up of pure limestone. Yes, its made of grass-covered limestone that are scattered throughout three interior towns of Bohol namely Carmen, Sagbayan, and Batuan.

During summer, the hills are colored brown and until now there's no concrete reason why this phenomena happens. But the common theory states that it is due to weathering of marine lime stones. While others say that the hills were created due to the uplift of coral deposits during a massive geologic shift, and such factors like rainwater and erosion helped in the formation in a span of a thousand years.It changes it’s color to brownish when it’s summer and brown when raining. Of course not only scientific reasons are the known causes of this majestic formations.



Legends of the Chocolate Hills
Two Giants in a Fight
The most frequent story often told is that there were once two giants who were caught up in a fight. They threw rocks and sand at each other which lasted for days, and in the end, both of them got exhausted. In the long run, they forgot about the root of their quarrel and became friends again and left behind all the mess they made.

Love Affair
Another famous legend was about a giant named Arogo who fell in love with a simple mortal named Aloya. When Aloya died, the giant grieved and shed tears for days. His tears eventually dried up and became the hills that are of today.

We reached the viewing deck it was still foggy but luckily it was not raining anymore. We tried taking pictures despite the foggy environment but we’re really lucky, the skies shined again.

We went down and bought some souvenirs, though Kuya Chris told us he would bring us to the souvenir shop. And if I were you buy some souvenirs in the stops, the Aproniana Gift Shop is kinda pricey when it comes to key chains & sweets, but if you ran out of cash just buy your stuffs there, they accept CC but then the discount lessens. We also tried buying food but unfortunately they serve rice meals so we just got back to the car. Kuya Chris informed us that due to heavy rains the river cruise (both Loboc & Loay) might be cancelled, though they are pleading the Tourism officers that most of the tourists booked their tours with river cruise. He asked us if we would like to still try going to Loay and wait or just drop by a restaurant and eat there.
  

Next stop is the Tarsier Conservation Area. The tarsier is the most unique animal that could only be found in Bohol. Though there was a news of spotting seen in Forbes (curse them for capturing the poor creature, probably it got stressed with the hustle and bustle of Makati!) The tour guides told us that we should be as quiet as possible because they are nocturnal (sleeps in the day) and they really could hear things more louder than we do. They were really small and kinda get stressed out when humans approach them, so we were also told not to go too close. I suggest buy some snacks here and also buy that PhP 150 pack of peanut kisses. It really is cheap there!

The poor wet tarsier we saw due to the heavy rains

It was pass 0100H and Kuya Chris informed us that the River Cruise in Loboc is now open and again cruising, though it’s half the usual route since the dam might get over filled. So we agreed to just go to Loboc than Loay which the tourism officers still did not allowed sailing but would be allowed to have tourists in the boat but still anchored in the dock. When we reached the dock we were the last tourists to board and they waited for us.

The cruise was fun and the food is served in buffet style and since we were the last ones to board we kinda had trouble getting some food because most of the people already got theirs. 

They have an in house singer who sang good songs, and compared with my Indonesia experience, Kuya singer has a better diction when singing "YOU ARE MY SUNSHINE" Hahaha... (The Indonesian singer sang it, "You are my sanzine, my on-li sanzine..." that made it memorable, whenever I hear the song that comes up in my head) 

We also stopped by a little kubo, which served as a stage for the local kids' presentation.

After the cruise we were informed that there would be no other trips after ours, so yeah we’re really lucky! We also got a glimpse of the famous Loboc Church. Along the way to Baclayon Church we also passed by the Ship-House, which is a house shaped like a ship, also the real site of the blood compact, plantation of cacao and a glimpse of Panglao Island. Kuya Chris told us that if we add PhP 500 to our payment he can bring us to Panglao Island but then we just did not bring all our money and left some in the hotel, just to be sure we’ll still have some for the next day.
 

So our last stop is the oldest church, Baclayon Church. The 2^nd oldest church in Philippine History, the Baclayon Church or locally known as the Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, stands proudly at the heart of the town of Baclayon, a mere 6 km from Tagbilaran City. The ancient structure has withstood the elements of time and weather for centuries, making it one of the most visited places in Bohol. The moment you’d step into the church, you’d instantly feel a pang of nostalgia, as if it feels like you are walking through time back to the Spanish era.

Our tour guide, parked in front of a mossy looking wall. He then told us that if we look closely to the wall we would see the face of Padre Pio. Regarded as holy by some devotees and as a prime example of pareidolia (a neurological/psychological phenomenon by which the brain interprets vague images as specific ones.) by skeptics, the image was spotted by a Japanese pilgrim in 2007, and has since inspired visitors to flock to the church to venerate the memory of the departed Italian saint. The bell tower served a double purpose in Spanish colonial times; it served as a watch tower and alarm in the event of a raid by Moro (Muslim) invaders from the south.

 

There is also a museum and if you have time to spare, go and see it, but if none it’s okay it’s somewhat just showing the old garments, relics, documents used in the church and yeah they don’t allow cameras inside the museum. We then went inside the church. It was huge and very much solemn. They also did not allow improper dress clothing  and gave out “tapis” or cloth that you could wrap around you.

UPDATE: The church has been destroyed due to a magnitude 7.5 earthquake last October 15, 2013

Then our last stop, the Aproniana Gift Shop. The shirts are a bit cheap and they have good quality. They also give discounts, and it actually depends on the tour service’s agreement with the gift shop. But then again, the little key chains, sweets and treats are a bit pricey compared to the ones you might encounter in  the  stores near the tourists spots.

It was a bit early when we reached the pier. It was still 1600H and we have to wait for 0600H before our trip. Kuya Chris told us we could have our tickets exchanged to the 1700H trip if we pay an additional amount around PhP 50. So we rushed to the counter and fall in line. Unfortunately when we reached the line, the trip was already full. If only we came ahead from the foreign couple we should have been back in Cebu at around 1930H and could have dinner in Crown Regency Hotel and a try at the skywalk would be great, but then we have to wait for our trip. It took 2000H before we rode our boat and reached Cebu by around 2130H.

It was tiring but very much convenient since we did not have any problems at all, we have our own tour guide and a private vehicle. No hassle in asking for directions, walking and having communication problems. I would highly recommend Kuya Rod’s service and of course Kuya Chris as the driver/tour guide, and if ever we would go back to Bohol, I would again contact them for the tour and this time I also would remind myself to bring extra for the Panglao Island tour. To top it off, it was a great experience!