happy steps

One of the things I miss these days is going to the beach. A weekend at one of the beaches here in Negros would do, such as Lakawon, Jomabo or Punta Bulata, but these days, most of my time is spent catching up with work. I need to work harder since the holidays are coming up soon.

Anyway, I hope to do more than just being soaked in the sea next time, maybe do some boating and going to the nearby marine sanctuary at Punta Bulata and see the colorful corals. The last time we’ve been to Punta Bulata, I was hesitant about riding a boat that would take us to the corals.

Would you ride in a boat such as this to go to a nearby island?

If only the boat wasn’t that small, I wouldn’t worry about being on it considering that the island destination is a bit farther though it can be seen from the shore. Hopefully, next time, I would be braver though.

Recently, big sis and I have been chatting about the coming holidays and their family’s trip itinerary in the Philippines. They’ll be spending few days at Boracay, a tropical paradise situated at the tip of the Panay Island and world-famous for its white sand and clear blue waters.

They already reserved a room at the Boracay Beach Club located beside the White Beach at Station 1. Browsing through their website, I am sure it will be a nice hotel for them.

Photo credits: Boracay Beach Club

Being a native of Negros and having studied in Cebu with my siblings, we regularly traveled with Bacolod-Cebu buses via the San Carlos-Toledo route which goes like this:

1. Get onboard bus at the Ceres terminal in Bacolod (make sure it has the Bacolod-Cebu trip pasted on its front windows, LOL)

2. Bus departs as scheduled (passing through towns and cities such as Talisay, Silay, Victorias, etc.) until it arrives at the San Carlos port in the eastern part of the Negros Island facing Cebu. Estimated travel time: 3 hours

3. The bus is then loaded in an inter-island vessel or barge. Estimated travel time: 1 hour and 45 minutes to 2 hours

4. Bus arrives at the Toledo port (in the western part of Cebu) and is unloaded from the barge and resumes its trip (passing by towns such as Naga, Minglanilla, Pardo, etc.). Estimated travel time: 1 hour

5. Bus arrives at the Cebu City south terminal.

Alternate routes for Bacolod-Cebu:

1. Via Escalante (Negros Occidental) to Tabuelan (northwestern part of Cebu)

2. Via Don Salvador Benedicto to San Carlos which is the fastest route since this is a cross-country trip from Bacolod to San Carlos passing through the mountains of Mt. Kanlandog. Estimated travel time from Bacolod to San Carlos: 1 hour