The day started early but we’re getting used to it. Today is a first for this trip. The first time that we have an all day arranged tour. After breakfast we left…. And it took over an hour to pick up the other guests… Our tourguide Lina was very entertaining and nice. Then it was time to begin our 2 hour drive to the beach from where the boats would leave.

The drive was interesting, we hadn’t traveled I a minivan before… The driver was actually quite good and didn’t speed as much as the others as we we’re overtaken a lot. It still felt like he was rushing and the road was good, but going through the mountains we got shaken upto the point of puking. Somehow all the locals managed to sleep, I’m so curious how they manage to do this… and they even look comfortable. The island is one of the most beautiful I have ever seen, it’s not so densly populated and the lush green of forest that surrounded us was overwhelming.

After 2 hours we arrive on site where our our guide runs to the office to do the paperwork. Apparently even though this is the biggest tourist attraction in the area there is a ton of paperwork an legitimization to be worked out. After the paperwork is done we get a boat assigned and sail to the beach from which we walk to the river that runs out of the cave. To reserve the wildlife we all get an audio tour (well arranged) and are asked not to speak in the cave. The cave isn’t lighted, only the headlight of our guide will offer direction in the darkness.

We receive a helmet to match our lifesvest and get into a small boat. The audio tour is really good and the cave is amazing! There are hundreds of bats living in the cave. Our guide made the joke that many people have religious experiences in the  cave.. and the bat droppings are very valuable to the eco system in the cage. They also call it ‘ holy shit’ . We’re strongly adviced to keep our mouths shut sinds the holy shit isn’t necessarily healthy.

The cave was so beautiful. I’ve seen some caves in my life but I was impressed, maybe because there was no lighting and you could only see a piece. The audiotour was perfect and we returned into the light after 45 minutes feeling like we submerged from a different world.

We head back to the motorboat and back ashore enjoy a great Filipino lunch. All included ofcourse, so there were hundreds of people eating there, but it was good and tasty food. Gen and me walked pass some tourist shops and it was time to jump back in the van. We started dropping people off and then they asked us if we can make a quick stop at a tourist market.

As some of you might know I have a lot of trouble with finding souvenirs… I don’t want to get something cheap and easy… but then, it does need to fit in my backpack and budget. The market was very touristy and the only thing I loved was a wooden  handcarved table.. but as you can imagine that would never be able to fit.

When we finally got dropped off at our hotel we we’re lethargic (and a little grumpy). We decided that that was it for the day. Then…. We got the news that Trump won the election, which was not adding to our mood. As a way of tricking my head into action I decided to go look for hotels in el Nido…and we ended up planning the nights for the rest of our trip. Therefore we also have a clue as to how our budget is going to be… and this is good news because I’m pretty sure I can do some more diving.

After this good news and the feeling that we have everything arranged that we need to, we decided to still take a short walk. The ladies from the hotel have been trying to get us out since there is a streetdancefesival going on. We walked down the street and joined the crowd. It’s so convenient that we’re about the same height as an average Filipino… we could actually see something. After 1 show we walked to the baywalk and enjoyed the festival that was going on, especially the little food stalls that we’re ridiculously cheap and good.

After walking around for an hour we headed back, right in time to see another group perform, it was so adorable to see the youngsters in their costumes, the huge props they have and the energy that comes from their dancing. Back in the hotel we’re just sitting down. A minute ago we heard that tomorrow we will be picked up at 6.45 again… I guess it’s time for an early night.