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Archive for February, 2012
Wednesday, February 29th, 2012
 Sights along Loboc River For those who sometimes prefer the peaceful scenic surroundings of the river rather than the majestic allure of the sea, Loboc River is an amazing alternative. The town of Loboc was established on 1602 before the arrival of the Spaniards on the area, where the early inhabitants made homes along the river. It was in early 1980’s that the idea to promote the Loboc River as a tourist destination came about. The water of the river is green during the hot season and turns brown during the rainy season. The floating restaurants that are most famous cruise along the river and were envisioned to provide tourists first class dining experience while -on board. These floating vessels are made up of a covered platform on top of two large outrigger boats that are joined together and can hold a maximum of 50 people. The starting points are Loay Bridge, or at the Poblacion; about 20 Km and 25 Km from Tagbilaran City respectively. Filipino cuisine buffet and local delicacies are served here. Boholano songs are played by in-boat bands during the cruise, but classic and popular jazz music can also be requested and being played at the other boats. The trip winds up the river and ends at the Busay Falls, about less than 2 Meters high. Here at Busay Falls, the boat stops and the guests are treated to a rondalla (ensemble of stringed instruments played with the plectrum or pick) music. Local folks usually dip in the waters and enjoy bathing under the falls. Guests who have brought their swimwear could also have the same refreshing experience. Along Loboc River there is a spectacle of daring children diving into the river near the boats from large leaning coconut trees overhanging about 10 Feet high. The trip back from Busay Falls is downstream so the cruise is shorter to the starting point.
 Floating Restaurants The Loboc River cruise is about 45 minutes one way to Busay Falls and less than that time on the way back to starting point. Food is served as soon as the boat leaves in the beginning. The cruise along the river is exhilarating as the lush tropical forests and landscapes welcomes passengers along the way. One of the highlights to see on Loboc is the San Pedro church, which is built in 1608, rebuilt in 1670 after being destroyed by fire and survivor of many floods because it is situated near the riverbank; this church has a convent that has beautiful murals from centuries old. Expect an exhilarating chance to hear voices of the Children’s choir while the boat passes by the church. The Loboc children’s choir in 2003 had represented the country in an international folksongs festival in Barcelona and promptly bagged the gold medal in the Children/Youth category, and was awarded the Festival Cup for garnering the highest point average.
Book now in one of the hotels in Tagbilaran and experience this one of a kind cruise in Loboc River.
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Tags: Bohol, Bohol Activities, Loboc River, Tagbilaran
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Sunday, February 19th, 2012
 The Baclayon Church The Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception in Baclayon is one of the oldest stone churches in the Philippines and is located in Bohol. This is a nice stop to check out if you are visiting Bohol, especially for the history buffs who want to see how old Spanish Philippines used to be. The first Spanish missionaries, Fr. Juan de Torres and Fr. Gabriel Sanchez, first settled in Baclayon in 1595. Shortly after their arrival, a visita (church) was erected on the spot. Although Baclayon was the first seat of the Spanish Jesuit missionaries, fear of Moro mauraders soon forced them to move their headquarters more inland, to Loboc. Only in 1717, Baclayon became a parish, and construction of a new church commenced. Some 200 native forced laborers constructed the church from coral stones, which they took from the sea, cut into square blocks, and piled on to each other. They used bamboo to move and lift the stones in position, and used the white of a million eggs as to cement them together. The current building was completed in 1727. The church obtained a large bell in 1835. In the Baclayon church is a dungeon, which was used to punish natives who violated the rules of the Roman Catholic Church.
 Baclayon Church Interior Despite claims that the present stone church in Baclayon is the oldest in the Philippines, evidence places the construction of the church to 1727. The belief that the church was built in 1595 may have come because of a 19th century report by the Recollects that the mission was founded in 1595; but the same report lists two other dates 1593 and 1594. The date 1595 inscribed on the church façade is a later addition. The green and gilded altars are the focal point of the interior. They are exuberant versions of Baroque popular during the 18th century. Although the main retablo (laminated stone) displays saints of Recollect devotion, the retablo itself traces to the Jesuits whose emblem and motto “Ad majorem Dei gloriam” surmounts the main altar. In the nave are found two benches carved in low relief. One features genre scenes: a goat tied to a tree, a coconut, nipa grove, and a man in stocks. A painting of the Ascension, Church Fathers and San Vicente Ferrer are found in the nave. These date back to the 19th century. Baclayon started the trend in Bohol of establishing parish museums. The amount of liturgical material preserved in Baclayon is impressive. The church inventory books have helped in dating some pieces. In Baclayon cantorals (large handwritten music books) was found the Misa Baclayana, a musical setting for the Mass which has been revived and is part of the repertoire of the Loboc Children’s choir. Permission from the parish is needed to see the museum, which is generally locked for security reasons.
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Tags: Bohol, Bohol Activities, Tagbilaran
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Tuesday, February 14th, 2012
 Balicasag Bankas For simplicity, privacy and a good value for your money, you must visit Balicasag Island. It is an island about 45 minutes by boat from Panglao Island. Balicasag Island is a diving paradise and is very popular with international diving enthusiasts. It is a 1.5 acre island most famous for its marine sanctuary perfect for snorkeling and diving and for its pristine white beaches. During February to April, one can also enjoy dolphin watching in the waters near Pamilacan Island, a nearby island. Balicasag Island is so small and can be explored within 45 minutes. It has a very welcoming small community who lives mainly by fishing. The shallow part of the shores of Balicasag Island has a numerous display of colorful fishes and beautiful corals, but about 100 meters from the shoreline begins the perfect depth for scuba diving.
 Balicasag Diving What to expect in your scuba diving adventure in Balicasag Island: The steep coral covered slopes and walls of its protected waters contain schools of Barracudas and Jacks, Banner and Butterfly Fishes, Batfish and the Smaller Nudibranchs and Flatworms and numerous varieties of Anemones with their resident Clownfishes. Two other popular sites are Cervera Shoals and Pamilacan Island. The former is also locally known as Snake Island because of the numerous large banded Seasnakes that inhabit the reef bottom. Sweeping the currents in the area, also bring in the larger fishes like; the Barracudas and the Jacks. Although at the bottom itself, the whole is pretty much bare.
The chance to see Turtles, Bumphead Parrotfish and Humphead Wrasses are what divers go to Pamilacan for. Its healthy reefs are a photographers’ delight with both soft and hard corals providing shelter to a profusion of reef fishes.
Come and book now with our Bohol hotels and discover for yourself this quiet island paradise off the coast of Bohol.
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Tags: Balicasag Island, Bohol, Bohol diving
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Friday, February 3rd, 2012
 Kayaking in Bohol There is a sense of freedom renting your own kayak and explore the neighboring sites around Bohol. It is an eye-opening experience to explore the warm, open waters and discover surreal caves and pristine sandy beaches, without the time constraint of being under a boat-tour schedule. The Department of Tourism is boosting this sport and had set their goal to make Kayaking as a premier activity on the island and all over the country, and mainly to become the top Kayaking capital of Southeast Asia. The Philippines being an archipelago of 7,107 islands the possibilities of kayaking adventures are endless. Kayaking is an eco-sport and is perfect for our natural assets being surrounded by oceans, seas, rivers, marshes, mangroves and 30,000 wonderful coastlines. That being said, Bohol has hosted a Tour Event, the Cebu-Bohol Island Crossing. It is held during December. One does  not need to be in tour participant to witness this magical adventure of this raw sport and be bombarded by a unique sensual experience welcoming the secrets of nature that can only be enjoyed as one cruise along leisurely on the shorelines, and while watching the changing seascapes as it slowly uncovers the different personalities of the islands.
Here are some of the adventures they have tackled in the tour but can be enjoyed on day trips, too. First choice for your Kayaking trip could be kayaking along the Olango’s Shoreline, watching all the dotting migratory birds and cruise down to Banacon’s lush mangrove forest. This tour ends at the two-faced Pandanon Island, which shows both the tranquility of a secluded haven and excitement of an overpopulated community. Your second trip of choice could be kayaking under the moonlit sky and with the moon’s reflection smoothly spread on the calm surface, marvel at the living lights that jump from tree to tree, invoking the warmth of the season. Even on a moonless sky, you can kayak around the island of Jau, Talibon and be guided by the natural glow made by the disturbed planktons, a light source that local fishermen have been using ever since. Or lastly, just cruise along the magnificent coastline of Panglao Island.
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Tags: Bohol, Bohol Activities, Kayaking
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Thursday, February 2nd, 2012
 Hinagdanan Cave The island province of Bohol may aptly be called “Cave Country.” Some 1,400 caves have been counted, and probably many more have escaped notice. Some claim that Bohol even got its name from the word “buho”, meaning “hole”, although that term is actually applied to a hole from which spring water leaves the ground — something you can find quite often in the coastal towns of the island. Bohol, like the surrounding islands, emerged from the sea during the mid Tertiary, some 20-30 million years ago. The island is made of extensive karst (limestone) formations, such as sinkholes, ravines, the curious Chocolate Hills, and a large number of caves, many of them still unexplored. You may also come across streams that pop up from the ground at one place, to disappear again into a cave a few kilometers further on, and reappear again after running some distance underground. If you enter this underground world, you will encounter the many unusual and even bizarre invertebrates, such as albino crabs, that have evolved here and are especially adapted to this life in darkness. All these caves of course are an ideal hideout, and have played an important role in Bohol’s history.
One of the famous caves is the Hinagdanan Cave. It is located 2.5 Kilometers from center of Dauis of Panglao Island, specifically in the town of Bingag. And it is about 15 Kilometers from west of Tagbilaran City. The cave is sunlit through the holes of its limestone ceilings and has the eerie feel of nature. This cave was discovered by the land owner in the 16th century while clearing some decaying branches on the property and accidentally coming across two adjacent holes on the ground. Apparently, the owner threw a stone and was surprised to hear a splash. From then on a ladder was built to get into the cave for further exploration and thus, the name Hinagdanan Cave meaning “laddered.” The cave is about 100 meters long of beautiful rock formations. The stalactites and stalagmites stick out from the ceiling and floor of the cave as though trying to meet each other. The entrance of the cave is a narrow and steep way and only one person at a time can enter, but over the years it had developed and the once wooden rickety handle of the stairs have been replaced with rounded steel bars and now have a bit wider stairs. Inside at the bottom, a lagoon with a greenish surface produced by the green limestone used to be a swimming area for the locals, but has now been known to have karst pollutants and having a dip on this cool water is not permitted.
This would be an exciting addition to your adventure in Bohol. There are friendly guides that will accompany you and a lot of amazing photo ops to look forward to.
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Tags: Bohol, Bohol Tours, Hinagdanan Cave
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