Skywatch#107 Boracay Island Dogs

 

 Long before Boracay Island became the famous party island and became one of the most popular destinations in the Philippines, these dogs have been partying along  its beaches ever since when it was only known secretly among the locals and a few foreigners.

 Boracay Island is quite well-known for its beautiful, seven-kilometer white sand-beach aside from its similarly awesome pocket beaches and coves scattered all over the island. Through the years, it morphed into one big party island. A bane and a boon, me thinks. Still, the dogs are frolicking.

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Skywatch#101 Magellan's Memorial

With white clouds as its background, this memorial  for the Portuguese explorer, Ferdinand Magellan,  stands 30 metres high in Punta Engaño, Mactan Island, Cebu. The spot is believed to be the area were Magellan was killed by the native datu, Datu Lapu-lapu, in the Battle of Mactan on 1521, Philippines.

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Skywatch#99 Bridge To Samar

San Juanico Bridge, Philippines

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Skywatch#97 Heaven And Sea

Photo was taken while in the plane on our way from Tacloban City to Cebu City last month. The flight was in the early morning and the overcast skies disappointed my wish for blue skies. Nevertheless, this view more than compensated for the disappointment because it looked like there was no boundary between the overcast greyish skies and still waters off the coast of Mactan Island, Cebu.

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Skywatch#96 MacArthur Landing Memorial, Leyte

The weather was cranky that day. Rain and sunshine battled with each other while we were on our way to the MacArthur Landing Memorial in Palo, Leyte. Relief washed over me when the sun won out the rain when we arrived at the memorial but the relief was only for a few minutes because rain came hard even if the sun was shining. We decided to have our lunch while waiting out for the rain to stop. Thankfully, our timing was right because the sun shone again after we finished our lunch.

wikipedia:
The MacArthur Landing Memorial in Red Beach, Palo, marks the spot where the American liberation forces landed. The Palo Cathedral was converted into an evacuation hospital for Allied forces during World War II. Hill 522 in Palo was the entrance to the first liberated town in 1944.

I decided to take a photo of the water reflections of the statues of General MacArthur with his soldiers but when I looked closer on my camera, I saw a rider on top of the hat of one of the soldiers. Can you see him?

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Skywatch#95 Rainbow Over San Juanico Strait

The day started as very sunny and hot but when we got to San Juanico Bridge, the overcast skies came in fast. Suddenly, we were drenched in rain but we kept taking photos. Our driver could not stay on the bridge for fear of getting caught by the police so he had to drive down at the end of the bridge towards Sta. Rita, Samar and came back for us. He did it thrice. The first two tries we wouldn't budge from taking photos while walking down the more than two kilometers length of San Juanico Bridge. By then, the rain and sun already battled it out several times. In between, this rainbow showed over San Juanico Strait. Glorious!

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Skywatch#90 Cebu International Airport

Blue skies over Cebu International Airport while we bought the city's popular food souvenir, pit roasted pig (lechon) in front of the airport.

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Skywatch#88 Heaven Is Beautiful

Going home from a business meeting in Cebu, these clouds made me think of heaven.

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Skywatch#86 Dark Clouds Over Willy's Rock

I would have preferred the blue skies and calm, azure waters of my previous visits in Boracay Island but Typhoon Mina (International name: Nanmadol) could not just cooperate. The sun did its best to come out but the dark clouds always hovered over Boracay during our stay there.

Photo was taken at Willy's Rock. Willy's Rock is one of the famous landmarks of the world-renowned Boracay's White beach, considered as one of the best beaches in the world.

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Skywatch#85 Kiteboarding At Boracay

While dark clouds and the sun rays battle for supremacy in that afternoon, I could only watch, took photos and be amazed at the kiteboarders' derring-do as they tackled the tailwinds of Typhoon Mina (International name: Nanmadol) passing by Boracay Island last week. 

As the typhoon battered the northern part of the Philippines, the tailwinds of Typhoon Mina made the kiteboarders' play so much fun and scary to watch in Boracay. Some moments, the wind would take them flying a few meters above the waters and in some moments, the wind would slam them back to the waters that I could barely see the top of their heads. For sure, not for the faint-hearted. I wondered if I could do it, actually.

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Boracay Resorts

I had fun with my mother on our Boracay trip. It was my mother's first trip so I made sure that the resort we would have was not noisy.  Blue Mango Inn was the right choice. I shall talk more about my Boracay trip in my next posts.

Anyway, here are the contact numbers of the Boracay resorts in case someone is planning to have a Boracay vacation:

Blue Mango Inn +63.36.2885170

         Email address: www.bluemangoinn.com

St. Vincent Cottages +63.36.2884762   

         email address: http://www.stvincentcottages.com

Boracay Amigos Resort +63.09193710970

You may also contact Josette Hilario (cellphone number:09103616196) as she coordinates for more available Boracay Resorts.

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Skywatch#72 May Peace Prevail

"May peace prevail." and I wish the same.

This was taken at the Carmen Hill, Chocolate Hills, Bohol.

It was raining when we reached Carmen Hill of Chocolate Hills, Bohol. I knew it would be  slippery going up the steep stairs but when my mother said that she wanted to go up, we slowly made our way as the wind and rain swirled around us. Slow going but we made it to the top to see the more than a thousand hills scattered around several barangays in the central part of Bohol island.

They looked like they were part of the skies as most of them were shrouded in fog and rain but the ones we can see nearby more than made up for the trip. After taking photos, we slowly made our way down the walkway instead of the stairs and we had another surprise here.

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Skywatch# 70 Bohol Dolphin Watching

My mother thought I was joking when I said we could watch dolphins in the wild while we were in Bohol. She realized I was serious when I hired a boatman to take us to where the dolphins were. The dolphins mostly swam around the waters of Pamilacan and Balicasag Islands.



The day started with drizzling rain and I prayed that the skies would clear and the waters would be relatively calm as we do our dolphin watching.  Years ago, when I first did the dolphin watching, it only took us less than an hour to get to where the dolphins converged. Plus, there were fewer boat rentals wandering around looking for the dolphins.



This time, the number of boat rentals increased by threefold. They were about thirty dolphin watching boats carrying excited dolphin watchers that day.

As the minutes ticked by without so much a ripple from any dolphins' flippers, I was getting apprehensive. I wanted my mother to see the dolphins in the wild before we leave Bohol.  Thankfully, the rain stopped, the skies cleared and the waters were calm which somehow eased her nerves being in the boat for awhile. While some watchers were excitedly waiting ready with their camera, I saw this boatman calmly waiting on his boat.



Finally, a ripple on the waters got the boats scrambling after it. I strained my eyes and just in time saw flippers gently bobbing in and out of the waters. Dolphins!! My mother saw them too and was happily amazed.



Mission accomplished even if I didn't get better photos of the Bohol dolphins.

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My World#111 My Prayers For You

There were candles for love, protection, good luck and more. They stand near the entrance of Basilica Minore del Sto. Nino and offer you this.



If you like, they can even pray for you like you never prayed fervently. A little donation is all they ask. I wonder if the heavens can hear them. Probably, because my friend asked her prayers for protection in our travel. We did fine, thank God.

They even have their uniform while the mass was being celebrated. Here they are having lunch break while on their uniform.

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My World#110 Hanging Bridge, Sevilla, Bohol

It used to be just the locals and occasional curious-seekers who dared cross the hanging bridge at Sevilla, Bohol. The first time I got there ages ago, the interwoven bamboos were really old and weathered while the steel cables holding the bridge were rusty, aged in need of replacement that I dared to cross only a few steps into the hanging bridge. The combination of feeling the fear that the hanging bridge might give out and the swaying motion while walking on it did me in.

Fast forward to present-day...I resolved to cross the hanging bridge until I reach the other side. I told my mother that we would be doing it together and she seemed excited about the prospect.

Oops..was I wrong. The moment she saw the hanging bamboo bridge which by the way has grown wider (I think) and sporting a twin bridge with newer interwoven bamboo floors with better-looking steel cables, she withdrew her consent. No can do, girl. You are on your own, she said. Since I didn't want to leave her alone while people were jostling to line up to walk the bridge, I decided to just take some photos of those who conquered the Hanging Bridge of Bohol.

P.S. Tourism also caught up with the hanging bridge. There are more people (more tourists) who dared cross it that the entrance is now P10 per person. (I should've  crossed that bridge when it was just free!) Some ambulant vendors, public toilet and a parking space were already added nearby since the last time I've been there. Ah....progress! even as quaint as crossing the hanging bridge of Bohol is now making money!

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Skywatch#67 Magellan's Cross, Cebu City

The Chapel of Magellan's Cross located at Magallanes St., Cebu City




Magellan's cross is the cross planted by Spanish and Portuguese explorers led by Ferdinand Magellan. It was a symbol of the Christianity in the Philippines and also, the city of Cebu.

The original cross is now encased inside a wooden cross housed in a chapel next to the Basilica Minore de Cebu. It is one of Cebu City's main tourist destinations.






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My World#109 (Philippine Churches Part 8): Basilica Minore del Sto. Nino, Cebu

The Minor Basilica of the Santo Niño or Basilica Minore del Santo Niño is a 16th century church in Cebu City in the Philippines. It was built purportedly on the spot where the image of the Santo Niño, a sculpture depicting the Holy Child Jesus found by Spanish explorers in 1565 preserved in a burned wooden box which was left behind during the 1521 Magellan expedition.
source: Wikipedia

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Skywatch#66 Out Into The Plaza

This is the plaza fronting the Basilica Minore del Sto. Nino. The locals call it as the plaza but it is actually the Pilgrim Centre which was completed last 1990. It was constructed to accommodate the throngs of people who come and fill-up the basilica during celebrations like Sinulog festival.



Taken inside the basilica.


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