Going South

Dining
While eating home cooked food remains the best option, dining out is still the most practical alternative for a day or two trip out of town to relax and unwind. Be prepared though, especially in an unchartered territory. Surprises are good but they don’t bide well with an empty stomach. If possible, play safe in making choices, or forever hold your peace. Alex Kafe was published many times over as the place to eat when in Argao. That must be the reason why the food doesn’t come cheap. Main dishes start at Php 40.00 and its good for one person only. Most of the items on the menu are not available (like fish stew and fruit shakes) so make do with a substitute. Beware of Chicken/Beef Mami. It looks and tastes like Lucky Me instant noodles (with one whole egg added).
Never underestimate the power of suggestion. After devouring enormous information about Argao’s “torta” as a “must eat”, a stop at Chitang’s store was necessitated. As publicized, it was a cupcake version, about 6-in in diameter, topped with raisins, grated cheese and a dusting of refined sugar granules. At 30 apiece, it is a filling “merienda” (took me three sittings to finish one) .

Sleeping
Abella’s pension house is a steal at Php 1200 a night. The two-bedroom apartment is fully furnished. The bedrooms are air-conditioned and come with a king-sized bed and a closet. The living area has a television, a mini-refrigerator, a stove, dining and cooking utensils. For a big group, it is best to stake a claim early on for a comfortable space on the bed for catching zzzzs at the end of the day.

Swimming

The beach is only a ride away from the pueblo. The narrow strip has black and white pebbles of assorted sizes lining its bottom (therapeutic to the athritic feet) and the sun-warmed water is so clear that it's impossible not to be tempted to get in even for an hour or two. Regretfully, by sundown, the beach was deserted; pitch dark and nary a star lit the moonless sky. A handful of locals skim board nearby while fishermen cast their nets the last time before calling it a day.

Trekking
There is only one way to Bugasok Falls, apparently designed for “habal-habal’ to pass through. It is less challenging for an experienced hiker but it proved tough for a non-four wheel drive vehicle and its driver. The hike trail to the falls was not well trodden. It looks like only a few wanderers have visited the place. But it’s well worth the time and the exertion seeing the silent waters drop through a gap on the stone gorge which is said to serve as port to a magical golden ship that visit the place on occasions. The locals are accommodating and “taking advantage of the clueless tourists” must be unheard of in the place. Buko, freshly picked sold at Php 5.00 apiece, was a fitting thirst quencher to cap the adventure.

Visiting the Past
San Miguel Arcangel is said to be the second oldest church in Cebu. It also houses one of the 14 pipe organs in the country. A feeling of being back in time is almost real especially sitting on old carved wooden pews near the altar. You could almost imagine señoritas batting their eyelashes to the young friars beneath their fans. What they did to the altar images was an eyesore to say the least. The priest, apparently, has a completely different notion of preservation or rehabilitation. It’s a good thing the façade looked untouched.

Side Trip

Marian Monastery, Simala, Sibonga

Bas Relief on Argao Church facade

Calm before the rush, Bugasok Falls (atop the stone gorge)

Boljoon...where the mountain meets the sea
centuries old Boljoon Church

Bohol again...

from coastal moalboal to the mountain springs of kawasan

The downside of going with a big group is the seemingly endless waiting. We (Pats, Ems, Pacer and myself) were already at the Citilink bright and early but it took 2 doughnuts, a chocodrink and half a liter of water to pacify our stomachs before the rest of the gang (Tokiwa boys and girls) turned up. All fourteen of us crammed inside the van that ply the area with one pair of sweethearts sharing one seat for the roughly two-hour trip to Moalboal. Despite the inconvenience, we still paid Php 80.00 each.

When you come to think of it, it is better to be packed with somebody you know rather than sit on a bus next to some shady character.
We were met by Opao at the highway while Evs got busy with lunch which justified the relative difficulty of our trip. The meal consisted of chicharong bulaklak, tinolang manok, rice, cola and bananas as big as my arm. The Abangans were also instrumental in our availing a sizable discount at Clarita's Lodge. All fourteen of us were allowed to share the twin sharing room for the night. The inn was located at the end of a long stretch of beach resorts and can be accessed from Moalboal market via a tricycle that charged Php 6.00 per head.It has a pugon where we prepared our meals and a veranda overlooking a small patch of sand and swimming area where we enjoyed our food.
Next to it was a discohouse but that was out of our schedule which consisted mainly of swimming until we're wiped out. When we're out of the water, we walked around the area and looked into what other resorts had to offer.
There's a countless number of accommodation to choose from and most are dirt cheap given the extent of the amenities they offered.
One signage in particular caught my eye and it said "He who all here enter abandon all hope (to walk out sober)."
In the morning, when the tide is low, a completely different and astounding sight greeted the early birds; like corals of all shape and color, sea urchins and starfish.
High tide was slow to come so we said goodbye to the innkeeper and jumped into the PUJ we hired (Php 10.00 per head) that dropped us in Badian, at the jump-off point to an uphill hike to the Kawasan Falls. The trail to the three major falls were all navigable but we chose to frolic in the frigid waters of the second falls. We rented out a bamboo raft for Php 90.00 which took us to and through the cascading waters. Something drew out the kids in us that had us dare jumping off from one of the smaller cascades and into the swimming basin. But afternoon came too soon and we had to leave. We all slept on the bus ride back to Cebu.