Bedazzling Bohol

"The deserts have become pasture land, the hills are clothed with gladness, the meadows covered with flocks, the valleys decked with grain - they shout and sing for joy."

Psalm 65:13-14

Before I visit one place, I research on it, ask around and then finally draft my itinerary. I'm not the kind of person who would rely on tour guides, I prefer to walk around with the locals.

Bohol is one of the places that our Creator worked overtime, giving it  perfection in every way.

Loboc River Cruise.
Loboc river is 30 minutes away from Tagbilaran. It is usually visited by tourists because of its famed floating restaurants. It will cost you about Php 300.00 for the boat ride with the buffet lunch. On the other hand, Loboc is also home to Loboc Children's Choir - the three time National Champion of the National Music Competitions for the Young Artists. If you are lucky, you will hear the children practice at the Loboc church near the river.

Chocolate Hills.
No, they are not hills made of chocolates (this is not Willy Wonka's hills), these are just hills. During summer time or dry season, the hills would change its color from green to perfect chocolate color brown like the famous chocolate that everybody knows. It is such a joy to look at thousands of chocolate hills especially if you are very fond of chocolates - like me.

Man Made Forest.
 The best example of Boholanos' love to their God-given treasure is this forest. Once upon a time, logging was Bohol's main industry. But when this part of Bohol was already barren, the local government required each Boholanos to plant trees of Mahogany. Lo and behold, the fruit of their labor is now income generating.

Butterfly Farm.
I'm not a fan of such exhibits but this particular butterfly farm caught my attention. I may be well educated and all, but I never knew that butterflies' life span is too short. They are the perfectly living by the latin phrase "Carpe Diem". 

Hanging Bridge.
This is seldom part of a tour but I would suggest this everyone. There is nothing much to see but an old and mighty 20 meters hanging bridge above Loboc river. Bohol can be the perfect picture of the past and the present. The picture above is an old hanging bridge and the other is a state of the art water vendo. Insert a Php 1 coin, grab a cup and voila! A cold refreshing water will be available.

Tarsier.
The most interesting part of my Bohol visit second to the Chocolate Hills. Tarsiers measure between 8 to 16 cm only. Despite their size, these cute nocturnal animals can spin their head 180 degrees and can jump to as high as 16 ft. Small but terrible huh!

Monkeys and Lemurs.
Aside from the tarsiers, the monkeys and the lemurs are also Bohol's resident animals. The tarsiers, monkeys and lemurs used to freely stroll around Bohol's forests. But over time, they have become a rarity.

Baclayon Church.
This is the second oldest church in the Philippines. This church has its own museum which contains religious artifacts and relics from the spanish era. You can see several statues of Christ, Virgin Mary and the saints. There are also original music sheets made from sheep skin and the songs are in Latin.

Baclayon church is a manifestation of the Spanish past of our country. The church took 10 years to be completed out of corals and egg whites. The exterior of the church looks plain but the interior showcases the extravagance style of Friars.

Just one of my obsessions. The church's window and candle stand.

Blood Compact Site.
The spot where Datu Sikatuna and Miguel Lopez de Legazpi entered a pact of friendship.

Our Lady of the Assumption - Dauis.
The center of Bohol's  Marian pilgrimage. The main attention in this church is Mama Mary's well which is believed to have a healing power. The church is located a few meters away from Panglao but the water in the well is absolutely fresh.

Suislide.
The zip line at EAT Danao (hyperlink) is literally suicidal. As you slide along the cable from one mountain to the other, you will be greeted by the river below which will emphasize the how far you are from the ground and how close you are to heavens.

Francisco Dagohoy.
One of the monuments by the great Boholano hero.

A local favorite in Bohol. The cheap satisfying chicken inasal will make you want to be in Bohol everyday. Even after I went home, I would imagine the aroma while entering the restaurant and the taste of the inasal that haunts me until now.

Bohol Bee Farm.
One of Bohol's livelihood farms. They serve they best organic food around town. You know what else they serve best? Malunggay ice cream. When I first heard of it I imagined a cold sweet leafy taste. But I was wrong. To prove that it was the opposite of what i imagined, I had three rounds of malunggay ice cream.

Amarela Resort.
The yellow boutique resort along Panglao.

We were treated grandiosely in this homey resort.

This resort shows off Bohol's local art and culture. The owners choose to showcase their own collection from Bohol of course. Even the food they serve manifests their loyalty to Bohol.

The designer and owner of this resort has really took into consideration the resort's location and maximized its resources. Altough I am in Panglao, I didn't feel like I was. It felt like I was in another side of the world staying in of of the most expensive hotels of the world.

Panglao.
There are two side of panglao in this picture. Left side a shot from the beach and the right side is a shot from the water. Whatever side it is, Panglao is one of the beaches that Philippines can boast about.

Bohol has a lot to offer thier visitors. May it be man-made or  natural, Boholanos has made it clear that they are proud of what they have. They will continue to nurture and protect their hometown just like what their ancestors Datu Sikatuna and Francisco Dagohoy.