Cagayan de Oro - Camiguin, Philippine Tour
Day 2
After a thrilling
whitewater adventure in Day 1, we continued our Cagayan de Oro - Camiguin, Philippine Tour by embarking to
CAMIGUIN.
Camiguin is an island province in Northern Mindanao, Philippines famous for beautiful beaches, ( white island, etc) scenic mountain views (Mt. Hibok-hibok, etc), refreshing springs and waterfalls and famous tourist spots ( sunken cemetery, etc). That is why we need to see it for ourselves. And so are you! :)
We left downtown CDO early in the morning and boarded a jeepney going to Agora Market. Along the way, we saw the Lim Ket Kai Mall. The driver was kind enough to point us where the bus terminal we're looking for is.
In the terminal, a vendor showed us the Bachelor Express. Unfortunately, he insisted that we buy something from him. For him to leave us, we just bought a bottle of mineral water.
The Bachelor Express is a yellow-colored bus bound for Butuan City that will take us to Balingoan. You can choose between the ordinary (Php 89) and the aircon type (Php 110). Travel time to Balingoan took us about one and a half hour along zigzag roads. The best seats going to Balingoan is in the left side of the bus if you want a better view of the blue sea. We were apprehensive that we might pass by the port. Good thing, there is a designated bus stop in Balingoan.
From the bus terminal in Balingoan, you can walk to the Balingoan Port/pier, some 200 meters across the terminal. Or you can ride a tricycle for 10 Php per person like in our case.
At the gate, you will see the booth where ferry ticket is sold for Php 135 each. Inside the port, 5 pesos were charged for terminal fee for both us. From Balingoan Port, the ferry will take you to the port of Benoni, in the town of Mahinog, Camiguin.
The ferry that would take us to Camiguin was boarding a truck when we entered. Passengers are seated on the second deck. Seats are available on the side of the ferry if you like a closer view of the sea and enjoy the sea breeze more.
We set foot on Camiguin after an hour where we were met by Frank. He will be our guide and driver in Camiguin as prearranged the night before.
First stop was the Kan-anan sa Parola for a quick lunch. Food was great and quite affordable. Php 160 pesos for the 3 of us. Next, we checked in at Pabuas Cottages to leave our luggage and proceeded with the tour. The room was detached from the main house. It was spacious with 1 double bed and 2 single bed, aircon, cable TV and bathroom.
Frank then brought us to the Katibawasan Falls. I think the falls is more than 200 feet, cascading down to a greenish pool of water covering a rocky bottom. The falls is surrounded by boulders, shruberries and trees. Our guide shared that rapelling is also conducted here. Visitors are allowed to swim. A change room is provided near the entrance but none when you troop down to the pool of water below. 15 pesos are charged per person for maintenance of this tourist spot.
After a short swim, we went around the souvenir stores found at the entrance.
From there, we proceed to the Walkway to the old Volcano and Stations of the Cross. The Stations of the Cross were put up from the foot of the mountain up. This place is popular during the Holy Week celebration as Catholics revisit the passion and suffering of Jesus especially those who have panata (annual vows). Walking along stations to stations up to the top of the mountain is a good penance. Initially, I was confident I could finish all of the stations and take pictures of all them. But by the 3rd station, I was already tired.
After a short attack on the souvenir store near the walkway, we then went to the famous Sunken Cemetery. A remnant of the town cemetery buried by the volcanic eruption in the 1800's. It is actually allowed to cross the sea and reach the cross. But decided not to as it is high tide and sun is so high up.
Just some short distance from the Sunken Cemetery is the Old Guiob Church ruins. The walls of this old church is made up of sea corrals as pointed out by our guide. There is a small chapel inside if you want to say a prayer.
Off we went our way again. Along the road, we stopped by a Spanish-style house where natural soda is flowing out. Thinking it was like Sprite of 7-up, we tasted it. It was warm and taste different from water.
Next stop is the Ardent Hot Springs. Entrance is only 30 pesos. It features several pools of different depths and a 39° hot pool. We saw quite a number of foreign tourist enjoying the dip. Maybe its because its not yet peak season that we were not charged for the cottage.
Then Frank brought us back to our cottage in Pabuas. Guests are allowed to request cooked food but we decided to have our dinner at the restaurant of Paras beach resort. It is the nearest beach resort to White Island and is connected directly to the sea. Dinner was great but a bit pricey here. After some billiards, we decided to retire for the evening.
Our Expenses for Day 2 :
- Transportation from CDO to Camiguin - Php 523.00
- Mulitcab Rental And Tour - Php 1, 000 ( Inclusive of fetch from port, Tour & back to Pabuas Cottages. We added Php 100 peso tip.)
- Entrance Fees Total - Php 100
- Food - Php 682
- Accomodations in Pabuas Cottages - Php 700
- Miscellaneous - Php 140
- Total - Php 3255
Contacts:Kuya Frank - 0920.5405582
Pabuas Cottages
Proprietor: Emma Pabuas
Tel: (0088) 387.9033
CP: 0906.4152557
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Again, we rented a multicab to bring us again to the Port of Benoni. We were again referred by Frank to his cousin, Adon.
Our next stop was Vjandep Bakery to buy the famed Pastel of Camiguin.
Pastel is a Spanish term for cake. It was part of Camiguin's cuisine for special occasions in 17th century and commercialized only on 1990. It is a locally made bun win flavored fillings, originally yema flavored. It was a hobby turned to a profitable business venture and now a pride of Camiguin. By the way, VJANDEP stand for Virgilio Jose And Eleanor Popera, the family that reformulated the pastel to what it is now.
