Philippines January/February 2011

During the 2011 Chinese New Year I went to Palawan, Philippines for a 10 days trip. I went snorkelling mainly around Port Barton and El Nido. No scuba diving but lots of fun!

First stop - the subterranean river near Puerto Princesa. I could not take pictures inside because it was too dark for my camera. We went in in groups of 5-6 people on small canoes with a guide on each canoe who would paddle for us and describe the cave as we went. It takes about 40 minutes to go through the cave and come back, but it takes 3-4 hours from Puerto Princesa to reach the cave entrance, most of the time is spent waiting and queuing.

Second stop: Port Barton, a sleepy-fishing-village-turned-sleepy-touristic-spot on the north west coast of Palawan, about 3-4 hours drive from Puerto Princesa. I stayed at Summer Homes, which has the some of the friendliest and dedicated staff in the Philippines. They went out of their way to make room for me.

When there was just no space for me at Summer Homes, they managed to find me another resort nearby. I had a super huge bathroom with a bathtub made with stones that I could swim in and with walls decorated by a local artist. Quite remarkable. 

There is a mangroves area in Port Barton with a channel that can be visited on a small boat or canoe. Among the wildlife that populates these mangroves, snakes that like to dwell on low branches on top of the water.

After Port Barton I moved to El Nido, which is much busier and touristic and crowded. I almost could not find a place to stay, I ended up in a very shabby overpriced place...

...but I still managed to have a great time. From El Nido you can book daily snorkelling tours around the many nearby islands. You can also rent a canoe for the day to reach the nearest beaches. Above the water, there are some increadibly beautiful spots - caves, small lagunas, limestone rocks, secluded beaches...

What did I see under water? LOTS of amazing things.

These sea snakes are A LOT more poisonous than the most poisonus land snakes. They can kill a person almost instantly. Luckily, they are very mild and gentle and attacks are exrtemely rare.

Then of course turtles, lionfishes, clownfishes...

And then of course tons of other fishes, starfishes, corals...

And after all the hard work of floating around and taking pictures, lunch is prepared and served on the beach

I took half day off from the sea and I went to a waterfall near El Nido. It can be reached by walking through the fields and the jungle for about 1 hour.