Puerto Princesa: The City in a Forest

Since this blog is relatively new, I decided to edit my Palawan post. :D One post per destination! ^_^

Yes! Finally, summer class was over. I had only one thing in my mind: PALAWAN. This is part 2 of my Palawan Huling Hirit sa Tag-init post :) Back to the City in a Forest. 

Why skip to Day 5? Check Day 1-4 El Nido Adventure. :D

Day 05: Puerto Princesa City Tour

• Baker's Hill. If you want special hopia as your pasalubong or home-made pizza or better yet some good food for lunch, this is the place to be. :) They have a mini zoo too! Free entrance and viewing.

• Butterfly Garden. They also have some scorpions, millipedes (yayks) and tarantulas! P50 entrance, P25 if you have any valid ID.

• Crocodile Farm. Meet and greet the giant crocs, live! Entrance fee was P40.

• Iwahig Penal Farm and Balsahan. This place truly amazed me. The inmates here are like free men. They have jobs to do like tend to the farm animals, plant/harvest rice, fish, and they also guide and guard the visitors in the Balsahan. Entrance to the Penal Farm is free, Balsahan is P10-15.

• Iwahig Firefly Watching. One of my favorite part of the whole trip. Seeing the small lighted creatures crowd mangroves along the Iwahig River is a magical sight. P600 per boat, good for 3 passengers.

*We took a tricycle for this tour and paid P700 (for crocodile farm, iwahig penal farm, iwahig firefly watching).

Day 06: Underground River Tour

This is the most exciting day I had in Palawan. We set off at 10am to the San Jose terminal to catch a ride going to Sabang. Instead of riding a shuttle van, we were only able to catch a public jeepney and paid P120/pax. It's not a comfy ride but hey, the experience was worth it. The trip took almost 3hours because the jeepney had to drop off passengers or packages/products in almost all municipality/barangay along the way.

• Underground River Tour. We were the last tourists to avail of the tour so we had to pay P700 for the whole boat and environmental fees of P350. The boat was supposed to carry 8-10 persons. It felt like a private tour. hehe

Had to request/plead/ask a private van to give us a ride back to Puerto Princesa since there were no public vehicles left going back to the city.

• Dinner at Balinsasayaw Restaurant. We had a serving of balinsasayaw soup/bird's nest soup which is a must-try! :)

Chao Long, aVietnamese soup popular in Palawan

Day 07: another City Tour

This time, I was given some alone-time since Yani was busy with work. I opted to go around the city on my own so as to see what more it has to offer.

• Plaza Quartel. This is where hundreds of American prisoners of war were burned alive by the Japanese. Entrance is free.
• Puerto Princesa Baywalk. Met some friends from Gensan who coincidentally were having their happy time in the city too. :)
• Booze at Tiki Bar. If you want to have some drink in PP, Tiki Bar is a must-go! They have live bands playing every day and offer some good food too!

Plaza Quartel

Day 08: Last night in PP

• Puerto Princesa Sports Complex. Since we're out of places to go to, we spent an afternoon checking out the sports complex and having a little walk.
• Visit to relatives. It was my last night in PP and I opted to pay yet another visit to my relatives. I was supposed to stay with them but since my Lolo would not allow me to go out at night, I checked in to some place else. hehe
• Baragatan Festival, Day 1. Checked out the flea market at the capitol and also saw some bars and restaurants where tourists and locals frequent.

Waiting for the banca back to Sabang

Day 09: Time to say good bye. :|

• Palawan Museum. Time to visit the roots of Palawan. Entrance Fee: P20.
• Airport. This place concluded my visit to Palawan. It was a good nine-day trip, full of new experiences, wonderful scenes, good food and drinks.

Overall cost: around P25k for 2pax (excluding airfare, accommodation in PPC was FREE! thanks to PN Seabees barracks ^_^)


Next stop: Ilocos Norte

El Nido: Ageless and Mystical

On May 26, 2011, I packed some clothes, prepared some cash, printed my eticket and finally set off to NAIA terminal 3 for my flight to Puerto Princesa, Palawan. I usually do my travels alone, but this time, I was with a company.

Most of the time, going on a travel with someone has its advantages: lesser expenses and you have someone to share your experience with. So, if someone is interested enough to tag along (even if it violates your rule of solo traveling), don't hesitate and just enjoy the experience! :)

Anyway, I was supposed to stay in Palawan for six days but I rebooked my flight and opted to stay for a couple of days more. So without further ado, here was my El Nido-Puerto Princesa, Palawan itinerary:

Day 01 (May 26, 2011): NAIA Terminal 3, Puerto Princesa bound

• Party/Dine with newly-met relatives from Puerto Princesa. It's always good to seek for some relatives in each place. You get to have free food and accommodation. :) My lolo did not allow me to go out at night, though. Con!

Day 02: El Nido Adventure starts now!

• Five-hour journey to paradise.My tita arranged a seat with a public van for us (me and Yani). We set off for El Nido at around 7am and arrived at 12:30pm. whew! It was a long ride going to El Nido but the view was just breathtaking. (minus the rough road) Fare: P500/pax
• Check in.We checked-in at Marikit Pensionne House. Fan Room costs P800 good for 2pax, with breakfast. Electricity available only 2pm-6am. It was a nice place, and they offered tours too. Breakfast was good, 2 viands, fruits, juice, unlimited coffee! :)
• Go around the town.We braved the rain and went out to check the place. El Nido is a very small town but it has a lot to offer. Although it's nothing like Bora (in terms of party places), it definitely had its own way to please the tourists. :) good food at Squidos restaurant.

Day 03: Island Hopping Tour

Since we were staying for just 2nights, we asked for the inn keeper to book us a couple of tours for 1day. And we got lucky, we were able to get a package for P1300 each. :) Though it was raining, the sea was calm and we were able to go on with the tour with 3 other guys from the inn.

• Tour A.

Small Lagoon. You have to pass through a narrow entrance to be able to get into the lagoon. Btw, it was 20-30ft deep and there were barely any fish there. But it was a really nice experience going in there and seeing the rock formations and a small cave. :)

There I go through the entrance of Small Lagoon.

Big Lagoon. We were not able to go there because of the Survivor shooting

Simesu Island. We went snorkeling here. Met Nemo. Had lunch here also. Yum yum food prepared by the bankeros.:)

Seven Commando Island. This is where you get a refreshment after a whole day tour. They didn't have fresh buko that day so we had a bottle of softdrink instead!

• Tour B.

Snake Island. I thought I saw a dog from afar walking on the water. I was amazed to learn that there was a sandbar connecting two islands and thus helping the dog pass through. :)

Cudugnon Cave. Hundreds of El Nido locals sought refuge from the Japanese and died in this cave during the war.

The Helicopter Island at the background

Long Beach Island. This island had a very nice rock formation and a long stretch of white beach! It had Helicopter Island on its background. :)

During our tour, we had some bonus attractions too. We saw a couple of giant pawikan (sea turtle) swimming its way to the Turtle Island and an eagle diving for a fish! :)

The Snake Island

Day 04: Back to the City in a Forest

• Check out. It was only during check out that we paid all our dues in the inn. We had our last minute view of the place too and bought some souvenir. :)
• Five-hour journey to yet another paradise: Puerto Princesa.The trip back to Puerto Princesa was more comfortable as we were able to reserve a nice seat in the van. Fare is P500. :)
• Church at the Immaculate Concepcion Cathedral.
• Dinner at Kinabuch Bar and Grill. This place is a must-go if you want some good food.
  
  Wonder about my Puerto Princesa escapade? Find out about my adventures here. ^_^