After  a lovely sleep I wake up feeling refreshed… I think me and my jetlag have parted! After packing my bags and a lovely breakfast (fresh fruit pancakes) I  pack my snorkel and mask and head to the dive shop. Today we’re going to see the sardines!

The boat boy carries everything aboard and after 3 minutes we tie the boat to a buoy and jump into the water. It’s been a year since I have last dove. With my head in the water I can already see the millions of sardines who for and unknown reason hover there. We go down and it’s so much fun playing with them!

After a little swim the local DM alerts me to a huge turtle. I love it! We encounter the turtle a couple of times during the dive. The reef isn’t very inhabited or colorful, but I enjoy being weightless and I love the sardines and turtle. Great first dive here!

We head back to the boat and before 11 o clock I’m back at the hotel. I already checked out so take a refreshing shower at the pool, change into dry clothes and head for the road. Today it’s only a short drive to Alegria. I booked a room there for 2 nights. The road is smooth but after a couple kilometers I notice that the asphalt is wet. It has been raining here and the clouds look like there’s more to come. After an hour I check in, because I’m early the girl still needs to clean my room. A tiny room, with only fan and no hot water. I love it, it’s a family house and there are no other hotels nearby… except for huge resorts starting and 100 euro’s.

I arrive just before lunch and I know it’s a holiday today, but the whole family has come together and first they pray…. As I sneak up the stairs with my bag I see that the lady is wearing a wite robe and they are praying to a shrine with Jesus on it. The phillipines are a very religious country, and over 80 percent is Catholic.

I am hungry! But the family tells me the food isn’t ready so I drive into town to get some food. It’s actually quite expensive for local food, just under 3 euro’s. But it’s really good to. I walk around and look at some of the local touristy stuff. The remains of a tower build in the 18 hundreds when the Spanish ruled the Phillipines.

When I return to the Inn it’s just after 1pm. I wonder if  this afternoon I could do the canyoning which is planned for tomorrow. Unfortunately that’s not possible but I book the canyoning. The online sites only offered combination packages with whaleshark swimming in Oslob… But I’m not sure if I really want to do that… since they’re feeding the fish and therefore they don’t migrate. So this option is better, and less than half the price I saw online but… they have no room/time this afternoon so tomorrow morning I will be picked up at 6:30 AM (OMG… I can do this). Therefore I’m considering riding back to cebu tomorrow…

All these thoughts run through my head… but the situatin is that I’m in a room full of people. The whole family is sitting done for lunch and I’m offered a plate. I feel bad that I just ate… but it looks really good and the family is kind. I think there were like 25 people sitting down… so aunts and kids and husbans as well.

The grandmother asks me what my plans are… I don’t really have any and she advices me to go to the hotsprings about 15 minutes driving from the inn. That sounds like a great plan! I run upstairs to pack my water clothes (since the sunburn I have to be covered up in the sun, so I’m happy with my licra shirt and shorts). Within 5 minutes I’m back on the road. Everything here is in English so I have no problem finding the place. It’s busy… a guy tells me it’s 20 pesos (35 cts) to park… up the road it was 10… So I smile and tell him that for 20 pesos he also needs to watch my helmet.

Me being a sily foreigner I quickly discover that I don’t poses the deer like movement the locals have… my flipflops (bad bad choice!) get stuck in the mud, my feet can’t get any grip and I’m basically holding on to my surroundings…while everyone giggles and passes me.

When I make it up I see htat the made some different pools with different temperatures.. and there is a path which runs up… I slide up the path which keeps going through small caves (5 m) and arrive at the top where there are a lot of people enjoying natural pools. I quickly change into my wet clothes and join them. As the only foreigner they immediately make contact. Little boys doing swimming contests… and jumping off of big rocks. I’m no heroe So I only jump the small rock… tomorrow I will probably have to jump a lot more and higher!

I enjoy the refreshing water. When I walk back down I have made at least 5  new friends. I decide to relax in the hot spring pool… I never thought I would go to a outdoor wellness thing. It is lovely. My muscles relax and it’s so nice to see how normal live goes on here.

When I return to my motorbike the guy is waiting with my helmet. He took good care of it! We talk and his friends quickly join. His family invites me for food, but I’m ready to head back. When I et back I take another shower, and relax on the bed. I probably won’t get dinner… but now I’m sitting in the local kitchen and feeling very welcome and treasured. These people are very welcoming and that makes up for the fact that there’s no toilet paper (I’ve got tissues!)

So an early morning tomorrow. And.. the Wifi is not very stable, so I might not be able to upload pictures… they will be posted tomorrow!

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