From 16
people on our Tour A the day before we were down to 8…make that four pairs. We
had a smaller boat this time but we still had the same crazy tour guide
Brandon.
1st
stop: Helicopter Island
Called as
such because of its shape we made our first stop here and did snorkeling around
the boat. With all the snorkeling we did before I should be brave enough to do
the activity alone but the thought that I might make a mistake and step on a
coral scares me quite a bit, so when J decided that we join Brandon and our 2
other tour mates, I followed suit and held on to the rope of the lifebuoy.
I can’t
explain enough how much I have enjoyed all the snorkeling activities we did in
El Nido. It is a wonder to see the life under water, the colorful fishes and
the magnificent corals. But aside from that the fact that even if you look like
a set of goofs hanging on to a lifebuoy being dragged by someone, you don’t get
to take all the beauty of it all on your own, you have people beside you that
share with you the feeling of being awed by what you see and of course,
laughing along to Brandon’s never ending hard to believe trivia at most times.
2nd
Stop: Hidden Beach
We did not
exactly dock by the hidden beach but on the one beside it which is as beautiful
as the hidden beach. We had the whole beach to ourselves and the view was
breathtaking. The shallow waters allowed us to walk without worries in the
water running into fishes on our way here and there.
3rd
Stop: Talisay Beach
My favorite
part of these island tours is lunch time. Not because I eat too much, but
because the food served is exceptional. From fruits to the grilled squid and
the big fishes…it is simply one of the things someone should look forward to in
an El Nido island tour.
Brandon and
his team had to cook the food first as we arrived in Talisay, giving the 8 of
us enough time to explore the beach.
Talisay isn’t
really a beach that you can swim all you want across the waters..it is more of
a snorkeling spot. Since Brandon was busy prepping the food no one can take the
lifebuoy and drag us all the way to the middle to snorkel on the deeper parts
of the water.
While
snorkeling on the shallow parts we found a group of fish (yes group since they
were not of the same kind) feeding on something. At first I thought it was
another fish, (damn my very clear eyes) until J told me it was the fish gill
that the boatmen threw in the water. It was fun to watch. It was my first time
to see fish this close feeding on their own. (J and I did the helmet diving in
Boracay and fed the fish ourselves but it does not come close to the experience
of seeing different kinds of fish going back and forth to that gill and taking
turns in taking bites of it)
We stayed there
until one of our more excellent swimmer tour buddies offered to take us one by
one on a tour by the reef. J was the first to go with me telling her she took
swimming lessons for this trip so she had to put it to use.
J came back
raving about what she saw, saying there was a pit of some sort where the water
was blue and that it kind of gave her a little scare. I also took my turn with
out travel buddy after J initially took me to the edge of the pit. It looks
scary from the edge but when I went with our tour buddy and we swam a little
above the pit…man…I tell you. It was the most marvelous thing I have seen so
far. The blue of the water was magnificent, making me think we were deep into
the water. And the fishes. Different kinds swimming below is, my favorite and I
guess everyone else’s was the tiny blue fishes swimming around. I envy out tour
buddy for being able to swim that far but very thankful because I have seen
such a magnificent marine life.
4th
Stop: Matinloc Shrine
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| Brandon's so-called aerial view of Matinloc Shrine |
We passed
this on our way to Talisay. I felt like we actually went around Matinloc Island
to get to Talisay that we had to go around again to get to the Shrine. Who
would’ve thought that you would find something like this among these gigantic
limestone karsts and islets?
I agree with
some people that have described it as something that has a Greece-like feel to
it. From afar that is what you see, with its wide dock by the beach to the huge
old house and the dome of the shrine.
 |
| The Shrine |
According to
Brandon (the Great), the owners of the house was a Filipina and her foreigner
husband, with reasons unknown they have separated thus leaving the property
abandoned. He said that the wife still goes back to Matinloc from time to time
specially during the fiesta. Also according to Brandon the place is now owned
by the government, just like any other property on the islands of El Nido, when
you want to buy a piece of land or an island among the 45 islands, all the government
gives you are ‘rights’ to the property and there are certain clauses and only a
number of years that you can actually use and own it.
I did not
feel like going inside the abandoned house. It was huge and it towered over us
and from the outside it looked dark. Matinloc Shrine is a very quiet place and
places like that just automatically gives you the feeling that you should talk
in hushed tones.
Since there
were still people taking pictures on the top most part of the island, we opted
to go the shrine itself. But
some of us inlcluding J had to go all the way to the back of the shrine where a small beach like area can be found.
some of us inlcluding J had to go all the way to the back of the shrine where a small beach like area can be found.
The shrine
for Our Lady of Matinloc is beautiful.
The pillar and the floors are all made of marble including the altar
where the statue was perched.
There is a
heart shaped rock at the bottom of the altar, it symbolizes Matinloc which I
have come to know is how the island actually looks like from an aerial view.
Brandon’s
Fun fact: (again)
The altar
rotates every 4 hours when there were still people living in the area. (Whether
that fact is true or not, it’s for you to find out. J )
 |
| The abandoned house |
 |
| I can sit here all day. |
 |
| Bird's eye view courtesy of Brandon the Great |
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| It has it's own dock |
5th
Stop: The Secret Beach
This was one
of my main reasons for coming to El Nido and learning to swim before getting
there. Matinloc Island’s Secret Beach is said to be the inspiration for Alex
Garland’s novel, The Beach. Yes, that Leo DiCaprio flick that you loved that
was actually shot in Koh Phi Phi, Thailand).
As we neared
the entrance to the Secret Beach the waves got harder. Now remember we just
came from lunch and since our boat was smaller than what we were on yesterday I
was already feeling myself get sea sick. Our boat did not dock near the
entrance since there were other boats there as well, so we had to dock a bit
farther and we needed to swim our way to the entrance. To ease my dizziness I jumped into the water
and held on the buoy held by Brandon. With my snorkeling gear on I dipped myself
in the water and waited for Brandon to pull us towards the entrance. Imagine my
surprise when I figured that the strong waves were only on the surface of the
water that all my seas sickness disappeared as soon as I was swimming with
them.
I was awed
when I saw the entrance before me. I knew from research that it was small but I
was not expecting it to be that small. Brandon had to take our two companions
one at a time and in a lying position to get through. I almost laughed when he
literally dragged them in lying down. When he came back to get J and I, I
thought he was going to drag us in as well, but no, he and Kapitan just held on
to the same buoy we were holding and told us to snorkel our way in.
Imagine my
surprise when I saw what the entrance really looked like. The small entrance
visible to the eye was only the topmost part of a deep crevice in the entrance.
It was so deep and we were rushing in that I did not have enough time to look
at how deep it goes. Once we were past that I nearly lost my breath as I saw a
big rock almost right in front of me. Water was suddenly shallow and soft
corals were beneath our feet. Brandon kept telling us to swim in but the rocks
and corals seemed so near to my swimming body that I found it hard to move
forward. As soon as it was shallow enough I gave up and just waded my way to
the middle of the water.
I was awed…again.
(How many times do I have to use the word ‘awe’ when describing El Nido?)
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| A secret no more! :) |
The water
was shallow at that time, but it was crystal clear. Towering limestone formations have shielded us from
what was outside. It was truly magnificent. We only stayed there for a few
minutes since more tourists were coming in, but I will never forget the feeling
that it gave me and the same feeling it gave me when we made our way out and
passed through that beautiful crevice again.
It’s a good
thing that the government did not allow The Beach to film there, from what I
have heard the shooting of the movie in Koh Phi Phi has caused too much damage
to the ecosystem because they actually had to reshape the natural beach.
The Secret Beach
is for me the best part of Tour C, it is as what we had called it a ‘buwis-
buhay’ trip because of the strong waves and the small entrance, but it was all worth
it.
6th
Stop: Cadlao Lagoon.
Another snorkeling
spot. The water is calm and there are a lot of huge and beautiful corals to see
and colorful and beautiful fishes that pass you by. Brandon told us that they
do not allow to feed the fish simply because it disrupts the eco system. And if
I had paid enough attention to him to remember all he was saying about the
fishes and the corals instead of keeping my head underwater I would have
written all he said down here.
But that’s
just the thing with being surrounded by all these wonderful creatures of the
sea and the amazing corals, it catches your attention and mesmerizes you to no
end.
It was also
our last day in El Nido. J decided we spend the last day in Palawan over at
Puerto Princes and do a city tour instead of going to Nacpan and enjoy the
beach.
We capped
off our last night in El Nido by going all the way to the Cadlao Resort and
Restaurant, where we had dinner and some drinks. Unfortunately, because you we
went out a little late and you had to take a long walk to get to Cadlao (not to
mention passing by the town cemetery on the way there which kinda gave me
creeps and made me walk a little faster causing me to step on J’s slippers) we
missed the sunset. Oh well, there’s still a next time and we’ll surely catch it
by then.
