Sunkissed in Guimaras

Well actually, it's not only in Guimaras where my skin got really burnt. Praise the powerful sunrays in Bacolod and Iloilo, I almost forgot it's not summer time at all.

step into the light
no way w/out my payong ^_^

From Ortiz port in Iloilo, my friend Kat and I looked for the public ferry that will take us to Jordan, Guimaras. The ride only lasted for 15mins, and the fare is only P14 each. True enough, upon arriving in the isolated island, we saw an advisory that it's prohibited to carry a mango (or any part of it) inside Guimaras.

Next, we headed to the Tourism Center. I have nothing but the slightest idea of Guimaras. I came unprepared, without a clear itinerary. Good thing the girl in the front desk assisted us in our queries. I learned that in order to get to the beach area, guests must travel 45mins more, via a tricycle. This costs P250/way. I wanted to haggle but it seems this is the standard rate so I agreed. There are public jeepneys too, but this will surely consume our time.

journey to the beach

We we're assigned to a tricycle driver and our 45-min journey started. The whole province really smells fresh. Ang bango everywhere! It may be because of their precious fruit. and speaking of that, we requested our driver to drop us to the market so we could sample a few of their mangoes.

at P90/kilo
with all due respect, the sweetest mangoes I tasted were still those from Zambales

The market vendors explained that it's not the season to bear fruits but they assured that these mangoes are still one of the bests. We're not really convinced but what the heck, we can't leave Guimaras w/out tasting these. But after we tasted them, Zambales' mangoes were still the sweetest I tried, with all due respect.


We chose Raymen Resort over Villa Igang because according to the lady in the helpdesk, it's much nearer and the shoreline here is longer. Since we dont have plans of staying overnight, anywhere near a good shore is fine with us. After we arrived in Raymen Resort, I immediately talked to the receptionist and asked for their island hopping rates. They quoted me P400 for the 1st hour and P150 for the succeeding hour. This is the same rate that the lady in the port told us.

First glance of Guimaras beach..

alubihod beach

i wasn't really impressed with the white sand and clear waters, but Im more stunned with the rock formations

And off we go island hopping.. There isn't an island in particular which I wanted to see. I just told the boatman that I prefer to see caves, cliffs, and turtles. I would love to check out the snorkeling sites too but too bad I didn't bring my mask with me. Sayang lang. Nevertheless, our 2-hour island hopping brought us satisfaction, specially by these rock formations.

reminds me of Kapurpurawan Rock Formation in Ilocos

water is crystal clear too, very inviting for a swim..
later na, mababasa si Harvey

Pardon me but Im really having a hard time remembering the names of these islands.

i think this is the Bat Cave

stone wall

There's a cliff on the other side but it's too steep. Di ko keri!
Not far from the Bat Cave are the Ave Maria and Turtle Island. Im more excited with the last one, it's going to be my first time to carry a big turtle.

katakot buhatin kasi baka mabagsak ko sya! siguro mali yung paghawak ko kaya pumapalag sya. sorry. perstaymer kasi, na-excite maciado.. haha!

There are 7 turtles in this island which are taken care of. The best thing I learned is that turtles don't like sunlight too. Ayaw nila mainitan. Apir!

Baras Cave was our last destination. We stayed here the longest.

way to Baras Cave

exterior of this enchanting cave

I didn't expect (well I really didn't research about this Guimaras trip) to see a cave with stalagmites and stalactites in Guimaras. Im amazed.

Baras Cave

outer wall

reminds me of Sagada's cave

ceiling with bats

golden floor

The view outside and inside this cave is spectacular. The wall, ceiling, and floor details are all interesting. It's just so hard to take a photograph inside, considering there's only a little source of light. But seize the moment, effort-an na magpicture sa loob!

ISO 3200 - achieve! =)

must see in Guimaras!

There are still lots of interesting caves and cliffs to visit but we dont have enough time to do so. Next time I'll make sure to stay longer in Guimaras and give their mangoes another try.

So much of the photoshoot, it's now time to swim!

obviously, i prefer swimming in the shaded part ^_^