|
AS a
tourist destination, no doubt Bohol’s numbers still
compare poorly with, say, Boracay, Cebu or even Baguio.
All that was known really of Bohol for the longest time
were the Chocolate Hills, and, lately, those cute
tarsiers endemic to the island. v But there are subtle
signs that foreigners and locals alike are discovering
the pleasures that can be offered by Bohol. From only
one or two major hotels or resorts a decade ago, the
island, which is the 10th largest in the Philippines,
now plays host to more than 20 tourist establishments.
Some of these are even partly owned by foreigners who
have fallen in love not only with island beauties but
with the beauty of the island as well. The hotels are
located not only in Tagbilaran City, the capital of
Bohol, but in Panglao Island, Pamilican Island, Alona
Beach, etc.
Aside from swimming at the beach, scuba diving at
Balicasag Island and ecotourism by way of
dolphin-watching at Pamilican Island have become main
attractions of Bohol.
For
someone like me who’s traveled to most of the major
tourist spots in the country, and who once considered
Boracay a second home, Bohol is really a gem. There are
no noisy, party-hardy drunken tourists falling all over
the beach, no crowded accommodations with
poorly-prepared food, and no dirty beaches due to
careless and irresponsible tourists.
For
those in need of solitude and sanctuary, and away from
the usual maddening crowds that populate the major
tourist destinations in the country, Bohol is probably
the best place to be these days.
Healing touch
THIS
being my second time in Bohol and at the Panglao Island
Nature Resort, I was looking forward to catching up on
my reading, as well as going swimming at the beach.
The
resort itself is refreshing in its design, and its
prodigious use of indigenous Philippine materials. The
rooms are spacious and well-appointed and its staff
cordial and polite.
With tons of sunblock on my face and body, I bravely
went for an afternoon swim in Panglao’s super-salty
waters. The salt was so dense that despite my goggles, I
could hardly see anything around me while underwater.
One
of the best treats of staying in Panglao Island is a
massage from Manang Mary. I met Manang Mary, a masahista,
the first time I stayed at the resort and greatly
benefited from her healing touch. Manang Mary has been a
massage therapist for quite some time, inheriting her
skills from her mother. Her specialty, however, isn’t
Thai, Swedish nor Shiatsu, but good old-fashioned
Philippine hilot.
It
is not the kind of commercial hilot now being propagated
in spas in the Metro Manila or certain destination spas
in the country, but the real traditional hilot. Manang
Mary works steadily on your body, getting out the cold
spots from your muscles and joints using mainly her
thumbs and the tips of her fingers. It can be painful at
times especially when the cold spot on your back is
large, and I have quite a few of them, but you are left
rested and relaxed after Manang Mary has had her way
with you. It prepares you well enough for the next
day’s fun activities.
Visit churches and cruise down a river
ONE
of the must-see points whenever one is in Bohol is the
Baclayon Church, which was built in the 18th century and
features a huge fortress like bell tower to its right.
According to experts, only very few churches in the
country built in the 18th century have survived with its
façade and interiors intact.
The
exuberance of floral decorations in the retablos
(literally “behind the altar”) surrounding the altar of
the church is a very Filipino interpretation of the
baroque design, an architecture movement widespread in
Europe from 1600-1750. While there are vestiges of the
Renaissance, which show symmetry and harmony, the
baroque design of the retablos in Baclayon depict
grandeur and movement.
Baclayon Church also houses an extensive collection of
antique saint images and religious paraphernalia. One
statue, that of Saint Blas, has been repeatedly stolen
but recovered. If sold in the thriving underground
market of stolen religious artifacts, the statue would
have fetched about P300,000, according to art experts
and historians.
After marveling at the hidden treasures of the Baclayon
Church, a cruise down Loboc River is your next stop.
Immortalized in Boholano actor Cesar Montano’s Panaghoy
sa Suba (Call of the River), the river begins at the
Loay municipality and traverses about three inner
municipalities including Loboc, one of the oldest in
Bohol. A handful of residents now make a living offering
lunchtime cruises.
For
lunch, you can choose among the truly delicious Bohol
dishes like the reinvigorating ambahon soup in malunggay
leaves, which strangely tastes somewhat like halaan soup
except that coconut meat is used instead of clams.
Ginger is used as well to give the soup its pungent and
savory flavor.
There is also adobo using native chicken, which was a
bit tough but tasty; and grilled squid stuffed with
tomatoes and onions. For dessert, sometimes there is a
choice of local suman (sweet sticky rice) and
succulent-ripe mangoes.
Just
sitting quietly in a rolling barge after a heavy
delicious lunch and observing the calm surroundings is
quite a trip for Manila-weary travelers like me. You
take in the scenery of green—lush trees and nipa palms
growing by the river bank and the cool-refreshing water
of the river—and are amazed by nature’s glorious gifts
for the soul.
Toward the end of the quiet Loboc River is Busay Falls.
Measuring only 12 meters by four meters, Busay Falls
maybe small in comparison to the average waterfalls in
the country. Still, its cascading waters are just so
refreshing to look at you’d want to plunge in and take a
swim.
Those cute furry primates
AFTER the river cruise, you can visit the smallest
primate in the world, the tarsier, in several of the
minizoos located along the river. I was surprised that
the minizoo no longer allows the tarsiers to be held and
touched and it is just as well. These usually sleepy
creatures get quite excitable when hearing loud voices
and when taken out of their habitats, usually kill
themselves by holding their breath.
Already considered among the endangered species in the
world, the tarsier, which is a 45 million-year-old
primate specie, has been given a 134-hectare sanctuary
by the Philippine Tarsier Foundation located between the
municipalities of Corella and Sikatuna, about 10-15
minutes away from Tagbilaran.
After your Kodak moments with those cute furry
creatures, drop by the Loboc Church, which I thought was
even more magnificent than the Baclayon Church.
Completed in 1734, the church is unique because behind
its stone façade is another stone façade, yellowing with
age but ornately decorated with the faces of saints.
The
interior features a large bamboo organ, which looms
above the heads of parishioners sitting at the back of
the church. The ceiling inside is painted with various
images of the Virgin Mary carrying her different names.
The paintings are the work of a Cebuano painter, Canuto
Avila, who painted the ceilings of many Visayan churches
in the 1930s.
One
painting on the ceiling depicts how the Our Lady of
Guadalupe (Spain) saved the church and the people from a
flood in November 1876. Because the river is so close,
rains bring perennial floods that sometimes inundate the
church. On some posts in the church the height of the
floods are marked and the dates when they occurred.
The
Loboc Church also features an extensive collection of
religious pieces including saints, colorful and
intricately designed dresses of the Virgin Mary, chests
and missal stands. Sadly, like with the Baclayon Church,
the Loboc collection is in danger or deteriorating due
to the heat and humidity. If not properly stored and
taken care of in cooler surroundings, these items may
just be lost for good.
The
day wouldn’t be complete, however, without a visit to
the world-famous Chocolate Hills. Long a hallmark of
many Philippine postcards, these enormous “Chocolate
Kisses” are still a wondrous sight to behold. The
sweeping vista before you can be viewed from many angles
at the nearby lookout point.
While the Chocolate Hills will always be forever
identified with Bohol, there are still other high points
of interest in the province that travelers will surely
enjoy and, like me, would want to return to and behold
again. n |
