El Nido Island Tour Day 1

the El Nido sunrise

Our second day at El Nido marks the first day of our two island tours. The morning  was bright, sunny and filled with excitement. Countless boats lined the beach, swaying to the waves, ready to whisk away  passengers to paradise. On the shore, tourists kept busy doing what tourists do, as boatmen and guides get ready for another day at the office. I'd love to call this place my office.

Just like in Puerto Princesa, tours are already organized and you'll see similar choices in the different tour organizers. For today, we're going on what they call Tour A (they weren't very creative with the names), which includes Small Lagoon, Big Lagoon, Secret Lagoon, Simizu Island and 7 Commando. The tours usually start at 9am and ends between 4pm to 5pm. If you avail these tours, it would also include lunch. Rates range from Php700 to Php1200 per person.

Public tours are available for those traveling alone or small groups. It would be better to arrange private tours though so you can control the time spent on each place.

Journey to El Nido

I'd like to say our travel to El Nido is smooth sailing, but it's not. Our long and bumpy journey to El Nido started in Puerto Princesa, which is an hour flight away from Metro Manila. There is 237 kilometers of land separating El Nido from Puerto Princesa. From the capital of Palawan, we traversed highways, snaked through mountains, passed different bodies of water and stopped for check points so many times that I already lost count (our guide says this is normal, just a precautionary measure).

Whenever we'd see a body of water, we hoped we're already close. Sleeping in the van is difficult because most of the roads are not yet cemented(or under construction) or you're swayed (not lightly) to the zigzagging roads up or down a mountain. I haven't ever had motion sickness from any kind of transportation or theme park rides, but this trip, I almost did.

A Day in Davao City

If you have one day to spend in Davao City, here's my suggestion on what to do, places to visit and food to try:

7:30am: Breakfast at your hotel. It's the most convenient way to go. There's a ton of choices for a place to sleep in Davao City, from luxurious to the affordable. Dormitory-type hotels seems to be popular. This will fit the bill for those travelling in big groups on a tight budget. From less than Php1,000 to as much as Php6,000.

8am: Grab a taxi to Crocodile Farm. From the city center, Crocodile Farm is about 45 minutes away. Taxis are abundant in the city and drivers are honest so no need to worry about getting tricked. It will cost about Php150 from the city center to Crocodile Farm.

Turn Back Time at Claude's

When I met with my friend E on a recent visit to Davao City, she brought us to Claude's Le Cafe de Ville for dinner. Of course I've read about this restaurant, having done my usual research before travelling to a new place. E said it's the only nice restaurant in Davao City. She must know, she was born and raised in this Southern city famous for durian fruits.

Claude's is located at the city center in an ancestral house, previously owned by the first mayor of Davao. They actually recently transferred there from their original place across the street. My friend said people were wondering why Claude's would transfer to this haunted house. But after the restoration, the old house was transformed to a charming early 20th century home, as it would look like when it was first constructed.