4D3N Trip to Coron Palawan

They say pictures speak a thousand words, be that as it may i can come up with only (for now at least) four words to describe the place:
fantastic
magical
grandiose
M-A-J-E-S-T-I-C!

It's 'freak' of nature at it's finest!


First Day High, Literally!
Our first day - right after we landed - we climbed Mt. Tapias. Tapias, in the local dialect, means to cut the upper most part, the mountain which was originally cone shaped was chopped off and on top of it was a cross - a violation of the antiestablishment clause if you ask me - and right below is a spectacular view of the calamianes islands. Nevermind that we just landed, didn't have a proper lunch, and I just jogged about 6kms in the morning, every ache and pain brought by the steep 750 steps was well worth the sight! It was a bonus too that by the time we got there it was already late afternoon and the suns wonderful glow made our skin look fabulous! After the hiking, we did the Maquinit, hot in the Tagbanua dialect, hot springs and off went the tired muscles. Only to haunt us the next day...

the 750 steps that felt like 2000

the panorama that greets you upon reaching the top

Day 2: Island Hopping
Day 2 was the Calamianes island tour. EVERY THING was white sand! And everything - i know redundancy is a crime but pardon me please - was just MAJESTIC. The kayangan lake which is just mythical, and the oh-so-spectacular view from the top. Nevermind again that we had to hike (up, down,up,down) like 100 steps -- the view and the swimming in the freshwater lake was sooo worth it! Oh yeah, and this is the day too where for a few minutes I forgot my tired legs as I was almost dragged below the boat by the strong current at siete pecados. 

everything is white sand, clear and pristine

and more white sand and limestones

Sites for day 2 were Siete Pecados, Kayangan Lake, Banul Beach, Skeleton wreck, and Twin Lagoon.  Kayangan Lake is a freshwater lake surrounded by limestones and was declared a cultural heritage of the Tagbanua people of Palawan.  Guests are advised to minimize the use of chemicals like sunblock, shampoo, etc.  We were told that the water is so fresh you can drink it! I didn't try to, though.

the view from the hill on the way to Kayangan Lake

The Twin Lagoon is surrounded by Massive Limestone Formations

Day 3: Reefs and Wreck

By this time we're already feeling a bit like wrecks after the rigorous activity of the past two days, but I suppose when everything around you is just sooo beautiful you just have to muster the energy to do EVERYTHING that you can possibly do to maximize the experience. Our guide for the day is Ferdinand (nickname Ferdz), who also doubled as the cook in-boat, and our lifesaver for getting one of the guides to tie a rope in one of the wreck to keep us from joining one of sunken ships' japanese crew from WWII!

swimming with a lot of fish!

the deck of one of the shallow wrecks.

Day 4: Departure
Finally got to sleep past 7am! Time to pack...and swear to come back and do it AGAIN. 


We booked our Tour through Calamianes Island Tours. You may contact Cathy at this number 09175844477 to book one. They have different packages, depending on how much time you have and how tired you want to be. :)

Oh, and by all means please avoid eating at La Sirenetta -- expensive, menu is limited and they have a penchant of putting butter in everything! 

So you're probably wondering what the hell was I doing in Palawan at this time, well this is a hyperly delayed post. I went to Palawan last summer.