Author Archives: Jodi

Portuguese Caminho part 2 – Tui to Santiago de Compostela. Portugal to Spain

Portuguese Caminho Part 2. The previous post begins our Caminho from Porto to Tui.

November 6, 2017

We took a day off in Tui. After a leisurely breakfast we toured the Santa Maria Cathedral and walked the board walk. Then we crossed the bridge back to Portugal and spent some more time in Valenca. It amused us to go back an hour in time in Portugal and then ahead again when we crossed back into Spain. We still managed to walk about 13 km.

Great place to relax in the hotel in Tui

Tui Cathedral

Through the wall in Valenca

November 7 – Tui to Porrino 20 km

There were a few options for the route today and a few people warned us it could be confusing. Apparently they changed it so pilgrims wouldn’t have to walk through an industrial area but some of the locals objected since the new route bypasses some of their cafes and shops. People had blacked out some of the arrows making the route hard to find. We paid close attention to the areas we’d been warned about and managed NOT to get lost. That’s a big accomplishment for us 😉

It started out at 8 degrees at 9 am but was supposed to warm up. It didn’t. The whole morning was damp and cool so the jackets and scarves didn’t come off. The mist made for some pretty pictures of cobwebs though. We passed through mostly farmland, including a kiwi plantation which looked like grapes with weird leaves. There were no cafes though so we stopped at one point and ate our snacks which sitting on some steps. Today we met more other pilgrims than we had previously.

We arrived in O Porrino early so after a rest, went to check out the city and have some dinner. Tonight we all felt like pasta. The downtown area is nice but the main attraction, city hall was closed up as they were hanging Christmas decorations. Another early night for us!

 

Painting on a wall along the way

Another pretty bridge on the Camino de Santiago

This just struck me as funny

One of the best parts of the Camino de Santiago are the constantly changing landscapes

Misty, rainy mornings make beautiful cobwebs

Porrino to Arcade – 24 km.

We left shortly after 9 am after an amazing breakfast served us by the Hotel Azul. There’s no way we could eat all that food! She left us with 4 bags to pack a lunch as well. Awesome!

After a couple of hours of walking we stopped at a souvenir shop and then a small cafe to rest and have a coffee. We met Mark from the UK there. Later we walked with him for a while and left him in Redonella where he was stopping for the night. We continued on to Arcade. There were a few good hills and some steep down hills that are so hard on the knees and the balls of your feet. I changed to sandals at one point which may have looked ridiculous with my socks but they felt better. 24 km in 6 hours, including a lunch stop is pretty good time considering we enjoyed the day and stopped plenty to enjoy the scenery and take the odd photo.

After being warmly welcomed at the Hotel Duarte, we rested then set off to find dinner. Spaniards eat late so it’s hard to find something open at 6:30 pm. We found a nice seafood restaurant (Quedamos!) with a kind, patient waiter and enjoyed a really nice meal and GOOD wine.

Scare crow
scare crow
scare crow

Scare crows along the way

Unique marker to show us the way

Unique markers to show us the way.  Sometimes they’re not so obvious. Markers can be shells, yellow arrows on a wall, lamp post or the road. Sometimes they’re boots 😀

Old and new

 

Arcade to Pontevedra; 15 km

After another amazing breakfast, we set off to explore the pretty town of Arcade. Today’s walk was short but there were a couple of really good hills so not exactly easy. Pontevedra is much bigger than we’d anticipated and interesting to walk about in and explore. After a good rest we went to a restaurant Barb had found on trip advisor, just up the street from the Ruas hotel. There was nobody else there. Spaniards don’t come out till after dark so we always eat alone 😉 The waiter was incredibly patient and helped us order an assortment of dishes special to the region. Eating it was an adventure! Salad with frozen goat cheese ice cream, calamari, little fried fishes (you eat heads and all), octopus and pig’s cheeks we grilled ourselves were all really good. Go to La Espuela. You won’t be disappointed! Visiting the Pontevedra church is also a must see as it’s the only church in the world shaped like a scallop and totally dedicated to pilgrims.

One scary peregrino!

Bridge in Arcade

Some markers are harder to spot than others. This one is really old

Church in Pontevedra shaped like a scallop

Church in Pontevedra. Below are some of the special decorations shaped like scallops to honour pilgrims (peregrinos)

 

Pontevedra to Caldas de Reis – 24 km

The walk today was longer but no large hills so not that tough. We saw more pilgrims today as well as donkeys which was new. Grapes were in the process of being pruned and one nice man cut some leftover bunches off and gave them to us. I finally discovered the name of a plant we’ve seen in everyone’s garden. It’s called Portuguese kale or walking stick. It’s used in soup and the tough leaves are fed to the animals.

We found the hotel Balneiro Acuna Wiktoria had booked for us and right away reserved our time in the spa. An hour in a huge, warm, tub with jets to soothe all the aching muscles was just what we needed. My feet felt invigorated and ready to start the camino over again. Well. Maybe not THAT good.

Too late for a late lunch meant we had to wait for the Spanish dinner hour. We managed to find a restaurant that opened “early” at 7:30pm with the help of a nice young man who, when we looked lost, asked if he could help then said “follow me” which we did. After showing us the way to go he waved good bye, wished us a “buen camino” and continued on his way.

We were her first customers and her help wasn’t there yet. Dinner was worth waiting for! Barb had cod, Anita salmon, Sue veal and I had scallops. All were great choices! We had a little trouble finding our hotel back but hey, we needed the exercise 😉

DSCF4007_pe_pe

Walking Bridge in Pontevedra

DSCF4008_pe_pe

View of the car bridge in Pontevedra

Random mural
A nice man gave us grapes
Abandoned building

Caldas de Reis to Padron 21 km November 11

Today’s start was a bit late as we kept forgetting things (you’d think we’d have the hang of it by now) and Barb needed to stop and get a pastry as there were none with breakfast today. How weird is that?

A nice thing about the Camino de Santiago is that it takes you through the old sections of the towns and cities it passes through. We took a few detours along the way and investigated anything that looked interesting and stopped a couple of times. Once was about 3 hours into the walk when we came upon a cute rest stop with vending machines, a bathroom and tables with chairs to rest at. Next was an hour or so later when we found a cafe that served soup. Yum. Soup.

The walk was nice today with a few little hills, up and down and through a really pretty forest. Not much time spent walking along the highway which is great. The mountains we could see in the distance had obviously been affected by the recent fires as they had black patches of the charred remains of trees.

Again we walked past gardens full of a strange vegetable for which I finally received an explanation. Couve Galega Portuguese Walking Stick or Portuguese kale (col) is grown everywhere. It’s a perennial here. The tough, bottom leaves are fed to the animals and people in the tender upper leaves. It’s a staple in soup.

We didn’t arrive in Padron until 3 pm and were all pretty tired by then. When we asked if there was a place we could get dinner around 6 pm, the lady checking us in looked at us like we’re crazy. Spaniards come out at night and don’t eat dinner till after 8 pm. Oh well. We found a pulperia open all day and had our dinner at a “decent hour”. The octopus was okay but we hope to find better maybe closer to Santiago? Last time we had some amazing octopus in Sarria. Maybe it just can’t be beat.

Granary

Abandoned buildings can be so pretty

Harvesting Portuguese kale

Sunday, November 12, 2017 Padron to Teo – 14 km

Knowing we didn’t have far to go today, we did a few detours and sauntered more than usual. Today’s route had us meandering through small villages and neighbourhoods. Just a few sheep and goats and not so much farmland.

We took a bit of a circuitous route to the Casa Vella da Rivera but arrived early in the afternoon. Our hostess was ready for us and showed us around. We each got our own room! The villa is really nice with a couple of sitting rooms, one with a fire place where we enjoyed some relaxing time with a glass of wine. She didn’t even think we were crazy for wanting dinner at 6 pm, rather than after 8 when Spaniards typically eat.

Monday, Nobember 13th Teo. Rois to Santiago de Compostela

After another hearty breakfast we headed down the highway. Barb had opted to skip breakfast and leave early to enjoy her pilgrimage on her own.

The walk today wasn’t very interesting other than a couple of pretty forest trails. Upon entering Santiago there’s a choice of two routes. We chose Santa Maria as it appeared shorter and my feet hurt. Approaching the Cathedral isn’t as interesting as doing so from the Camino Francis but the way is nice anyway. It’s not marked once you get into the city either. It’s really confusing trying to find the office to receive your compostela certificate. The Cathedral was covered in even more scaffolding than it had been 2 years ago so I didn’t feel compelled to take many photos. They say it will be completed in February of 2018. Perhaps we need to come back? There are several Caminos we haven’t done.

After meeting Barb at our accommodation, Pension San Juan, we found a place that served pasta which we’d all be wanting for a few days. We wandered around the hundreds of shops for a while and called it a night.

Interesting things along the Camino de Santiago, Portuguese way

The only part of the Cathedral not covered in scaffolding

Approaching the Cathedral

The last bit of forest before entering the city of Santiago de Compostela

Check out the dog sitting on the table and shells decorating the bottom of the steps

Abandoned building

Wall made of scallop shells, the pilgrim symbol

Flowers still beautiful a week after the decorating of the graves

Church along the Santiago de Compostela

Camino Travel Tips: Experience Portugal in the Off-Season

When I started researching a camino trip in the Spring, several agencies tried to convince me that doing the Portuguese caminho in November was a bad idea as the weather is, on average, not cooperative.  Since we operate a seasonal resort in Canada, it’s the only time Anita and I can travel so we ignored their advice.  Sue would be joining us as well. I’d met Sue in Ecuador on a trip several years ago and we’ve become travel buddies ever since. This year we invited Barb from Cleveland, who we’d all met on a past trip to Morocco,  and the 4 of us planned this trip to Portugal and Spain.  Camino Travel Centre had planned our last camino in Spain and did a great job so we contacted Wiktoria again.

You can find past posts on our Spanish Camino here:  Camino posts

Here is a link to a slide show of pictures from the Way of St James Camino:  Slideshow

October 31, 2017 Porto to Arcos 28 kilometres

We started the day excited to start our camino with a ride to the outskirts of Porto. From there we walked along busy streets, through small villages, small eucalyptus groves and finally into farm country. There we viewed the rolling hills, recently harvested fields, hanging grape vines, orange trees laden with fruit and the occasional field of budding winter wheat. Lunch was a delicious sandwich and pizza at a diner in Treval. Several detours later we crossed a pretty bridge and could see the town of Arcos in the distance. By the time we arrived our garmins said we’d walked 38-39,000 steps and 28-29 km. The Quinta Sao Miguel was a welcome surprise. Wiktoria of Camino Travel outdid herself when she reserved our rooms as we were greeted with a wonderful….SOAKER tub! After an amazingly warm, jet powered bath I was invigorated and ready to enjoy dinner.

November 1 Arcos to Barcelos 23 km

Wednesday morning greeted us with more amazing weather. After enjoying breakfast with Sandra from Ireland, we headed out. Barb wanted to go to mass and enjoy some alone time so the rest of us started without her. Today’s walk was much more pleasant with far less traffic. Most of it took us along paths through fields, woods and villages and the views were amazing. There were lots of cars parked by a few cemeteries as today was a national holiday for honouring the dead. There were services in some churches as well a cemeteries. We stopped for lunch at a cafe in Santa Leocalia and kept watch for Barb. We were just about to leave when I got a message from her. She’d ended up on the coastal route and got quite lost. She enjoyed some great adventures!

To quote Barb: “ Day 2 was an unplanned adventure….after 9 am mass I was planning on catching up with my friends by noon. At 1pm I realized I was on the coastal route…about 5 miles west of where I should have been!!! Oops!! Met Silvia and Victor, two young strangers at a cafe (who learned English on the internet). They dropped me off back on the right route. They would not take any money-they said “doing good is only good for free”.

We carried on and met a family from Brazil. Barcelos is a tidy town over a river with a bustling downtown. By the time we reached our hotel we’d walked about 25 km and were pretty tired. A shower and a quick rest felt great before we headed out to find dinner. Restaurante Furna was recommended by our hostess at Resicencial Quarenta Um. Our waiter didn’t speak English and what he described in Portuguese sounded interesting so we just agreed and he brought us 2 trays of barbecued chicken with fries, olives and pickled vegetables, a tray of salad and a small carafe of wine. Good choice! It was delicious!

Thursday – Barcelos to Balugaes 20 km

You can’t have sunshine every day. After stuffing our faces full of breakfast courtesy of our host, we headed out in the rain. It took about an hour to get out of Barcelos, after which the rolling countryside became dotted with small villages, lots of fields with winter wheat, some just freshly plowed and many grape vines bearing the last of the shrivelled grapes. I treated myself to an orange from a tree hanging over the road and a lemon from a tree in a church yard. Both were delicious!

At one point we stopped to admire some cows with very dangerous looking horns and a truck driver stopped in the middle of the road to chat. His English wasn’t great and our Portuguese non existent so it was a funny conversation but typical of the friendliness we’ve experienced on our journey.. Once a man stopped to tell us we were on the wrong road for the camino. We knew that, as we’d detoured to visit a church. but it was very kind of him.

By the time we reached the Casa do Rio our feet were tired and joints sore but the castle that greeted us was a big surprise. I think we annoyed poor Philippa by ringing the bell but it was fun the way it echoed all through the grounds. She was gracious and just laughed. The castle is beautiful and they’ve even got swans wandering around.

We ordered dinner and relaxed for a couple of hours before heading back to the dining room for our meal. Duck rice, cod and shrimp rice and my walnut with aubergine salad were all wonderful. We felt VERY spoiled!

Can you do that?

Checking each other out in the rain

Friday, November 3 Balugaes to Ponte Lima 21 km

Breakfast this morning was amazing! The lady who served it was delightful and, though she spoke no English, managed to communicate just fine. Not only did we overeat but she insisted we make a lunch to take with us and even brought out more prosciutto for it in addition to the meats and cheeses already spread out.

We postponed departure as long as we could since it was pouring rain. Thankfully, it wasn’t cold and our ponchos worked great at keeping us dry. The rain stopped and started all day and there were even brief moments of sunshine. The scenery again was wonderful. In some places grape vines even stretched across the narrow roads. Fewer roads were cobblestone today. Some was dirt, some rocks and even some asphalt and the terrain a little hillier than yesterday. On one wet path the runoff appeared to be wine! Apparently Portugal has so much red wine it runs down the street! I found a tree overhanging the road and enjoyed a delicious fresh orange. Still we met few walkers and a couple cyclists. We’d walked a good 13 km before we found a cafe to stop at and had a coffee along with our lunch.

Ponte Lima is a beautiful town on the Lima River. The Camino enters it through a street lined with trees and pretty red benches. Even in the pouring rain it’s gorgeous. The walking bridge is lined with lanterns that have speakers playing nice music.

By the time we checked into the Arc’otel, it was after 3 pm and we were soaking wet. We took a couple hours to relax and dry up, then set out for dinner. Mercado’s was a great choice and the salmon delicious!  Sue and Barb ordered the local wine which turned out to be a mistake.  They asked the server if it was spoiled. Nope, it’s supposed to be kind of fizzy. So, if you like fizzy red wine, enjoy!

Churches everywhere

Portugal has so much wine they let it run down the street!

One of many Roman bridges

Approaching Ponte de Lima

Ponte de Lima. I’d have liked more time here.

171 km to go yet

Saturday, November 4. Happy birthday BARB!

Ponte de Lima to Rubiaes Pecence – 25 km with some tough hills!

After another wonderful breakfast we headed out for the most challenging day so far.  An hours walking got us out of Ponte de Lima and there was a church with an open bathroom. Another 1.5 hours and we happened upon a cafe. It was beautiful walking along the river, through woods, past farmland and a few water falls. Then came the uphill climb over rocks and through woods, still beautiful but a path that required our full attention. We met 3 other camino walkers along the way, one of whom was sitting in the woods meditating. By the time we got through Rubieas and close to our accommodation for the night, it was a struggle to keep going we were so tired. A hot shower at the Casa da Capela was a welcome treat.

After relaxing for a couple of hours, our hostess drove us out to a nearby restaurant where we enjoyed the pilgrim’s menu. Soup and wine came with it. NICE! Jessica from the restaurant drove us back again. Now THAT is service!

We saw a lot of trees with two bags like this collecting sap. Anyone know what they do with it?

Serious UPhill climbs

More climbing

Tough up hill hike today

Beautiful views

Buenos dias

Leaving Ponte de Lima. Such a pretty city!

November 5,  Pecence to Tui – 20 km.

Breakfasts on this part of our Camino have been wonderful and this morning was no exception. Armed with full stomachs and rested feet we again hit the road. Today was much easier. We passed lots of sheep, goats, more grapes and covered many rock and cobblestone paths. Cooler temperatures with the sun peeking out occasionally made for pleasant hiking. Entering Valenca was a little confusing but eventually we found the path and browsed the beautiful city. In the square we had lunch at a cafe and our last nata pastry in Portugal.

Crossing into Spain was anticlimactic. We strolled through Tui and checked out the Cathedral before finding our hotel. Torre do Xudeu exceeded our expectations again. The hotel is beautiful and our hostess very welcoming. After giving her our laundry (fee for that of course) we made a cup of tea and enjoyed the beautiful sitting room. She even brought us some cake for our tea!

November 6

We took a day off in Tui. After a leisurely breakfast we toured the Santa Maria (Tui) Cathedral and walked the board walk. Then we crossed the bridge back to Portugal and spent some more time in Valenca. It amused us to go back an hour in time in Portugal and then ahead again when we crossed back into Spain. We still managed to walk about 13 km.

Crocuses in fall?

Valenca

Bridge between Valenca, Portugal and Tui, Spain

Tui Cathedral

The wall around the city of Valenca, Portugal

View of Valenca, Portugal from Spain

On the sides of the doors of the Tui Cathedral. What are they standing on and why?

Beautiful pipe organ in the Tui Cathedral

An Ethiopian in the Tui Cathedral

View of Spain from Portugal

Valenca

The journey continues in the next post. Portuguese Caminho part 2 – Tui to Santiago de Compostela. Portugal to Spain

Exploring Porto: Train Journeys and Culinary Delights

Oct 29, 2017

Our European journey continues from Lisbon.  That post can be found here:  Lisbon, the city of 7 hills

Barb went to find a Sunday mass. A couple hours later she came back, unsuccessful as none of them seemed to have services before 11 am which seemed odd.  We took an uber to the train and headed for Porto. Purchasing tickets ahead of time saves quite a bit of money and insures you a seat.

We chose to split up and all take a window seat so we all got different seat mates. I enjoyed a really nice conversation with a young lady and her mother from Venezuela. The girl had just become a permanent resident of Canada and was trying to sponsor her mother to come. Her story was a great reminder of how blessed I am to have been born Canadian.

We arrived in Porto at the Campanha train station and were confused. Several of us had tickets for Sao Bento but this was the end of the line for this train. I found a conductor who told me we had to switch trains and to find line 2. So we made a run for it but still missed the train. Oh well. Another one arrived moments later.

After checking into our hotel, we dumped our begs and set off to find dinner. Calamari and veal at Pedro dos Frangos really hit the spot. Either it was amazing or we were just starving. Maybe a bit of both 😉

October 30, 2017  The infamous Francisinha sandwich!

We enjoyed a leisurely buffet breakfast at the Moov hotel and then joined a walking tour I’d booked the night before with Porto Walkers. The tour was excellent and we saw lots of city sights as well as getting some history lessons and pointers about what to see, do and eat in the area.

We took David’s advice and found Santiago’s for a Francisinha sandwich. We each shared one and it was plenty! Definitely go there and try one when in Porto. They sell them elsewhere but apparently Santiago’s is the best.

The second walking tour wasn’t quite as enjoyable but may have been because Pedro talked a little too much and shared a few too many political opinions. We just wanted to see the city. There’s no way we’re going to remember all that history so I just wandered away when I got bored and found things to photograph.

We hit the “Louse” cafe as it’s affectionately known in the city (take the walking tour to find out why) for soup, salad and olives and then the most beautiful McDonald’s in the world for an ice cream. We earned it after all that walking.

Sao Bento Train station

Sao Bento Train station

Port wine is carried down river in boats

Painting of a man who lived in this house

Typical street

Catholic churches cannot share a wall so there’s a VERY narrow house between them. Apparently JK Rowling’s inspiration for Sirius Black’s house.

Typical homes during the golden hour

Porto at night from the river

francesinha sandwiches being prepared

francesinha sandwich. This is just HALF of one!

Downtown

Strange trees apparently had a fungus so they grafted new trees on

On to start our Camino de Santiago!

Portuguese Camino – Porto to Tui in November?! Why not? Portugal

Sintra, Portugal in one day

Oct 27, 2017

Previous post: Lisbon, the city of 7 hills

We’d arranged to meet Miguel Carodoso of MC Photo tours and he was waiting for us before the appointed time. He drove us to Sintra where we walked through town and up to the castle Quinta da Regaleira . We messed with Miguel’s tour plan when we climbed towers and entered tunnels as we found them, but he didn’t seem to mind.  There are several castles to visit in Sintra but you’d need more than a day to see them all. We stopped in a cafe to taste some of Sintra’s local treats and across the street for a gingaha (liquer in a dark chocoate cup)

The next stop was a walk along the rugged coast line and then on to Caiscais where we watched the sun go down over the beach.  It was an  excellent day and Miguel was a fantastic guide.  He dropped us off near Alfama where we found dinner and headed home.

Caiscais

Surfer in the sunset at Caiscais

Some of the succulents were flowering at Cais Cais

Can you find the man in the picture?

Small village near Sintra

Quinta da Regaleira

Quinta da Regaleira

Typical hand painted tiles decorate many walls

Miguel had one of his guests fall in here. YUCK!

Underground tunnels lead to this well

One of many beautiful doors

One of many beautiful views in Sintra. See the castle at the top?

Child Beggars And The Travellers Dillemma.

Source: Child Beggars And The Travellers Dillemma.

Snorkeling Adventures in Puerto Morelos, Mexico

April 21-27th, 2017

Puerto Morelos

My daughter had been talking about getting away “somewhere warm” for several months and I’m always up for a trip so when I found a bargain on plane tickets to Cancun, we started planning. The Mesoamerican Reef runs along the entire coastline of the Yucatan peninsula. Since 6 days was her limit, we settled on two places to visit.  Both of which boasted good snorkelling, a priority for Stephanie.

Quick security at Cancun airport after a delayed flight was a bonus and we managed to make it in time to catch the southbound bus which is 208 pesos for the two of us (approx $15 CAN) as opposed to $70 US for a taxi. In Puerto Morelos it was easy to find a taxi to take us to the airbnb we’d reserved.  I’ve stayed in many different kinds of accommodations but this was my first experience with airbnb. It didn’t start off well, as the room hadn’t been cleaned. (YUCK!) Finally we found some clean sheets and a decent bed and enjoyed a good night’s sleep.

A redeeming factor for the airbnb was it’s close proximity to the beach so we were exploring it before 8 am. After scoping it out in both directions we made arrangement for Marcel (near the lighthouse) to take us snorkelling at the reef.  Then we searched for breakfast. El Nicho’s turned out to be a great find and we enjoyed the best eggs benedict I’ve had in a long time. We enjoyed the trip with Marcel so much, we agreed to go out with him the next morning as the earlier you go, the better your chance to see turtles. The reef is a 5 minute boat ride from the beach but it’s a national park and you have to go with a guide.

Puerto Morelos is a nice little town with a beautiful beach, nice harbour, lots of choice in restaurants and a cute down town area where you can find souvenirs and delicious gelato. There’s not a lot of traffic. People are friendly and merchants aren’t pushy.

We followed this green turtle for a bit

Pretty little sting ray

Fish and coral

Hanging out on the street in Puerto Morelos

After enjoying eggs benedict one more time, we packed up and waited on the road for a collectivo. A taxi came first and wasn’t that much more expensive so we took it to the bus stop where we bought tickets for Xpu Ha.  For future reference, let the bus driver know exactly where you’re going. He dropped us off in the middle of nowhere on the highway. Hmm.  No problem. We caught a collectivo that dropped us off at the road leading to Glamping Xpu Ha.

Looks like the place we stayed is no longer available or they’ve upgraded it a LOT.  This one seems to have replaced it and is still somewhat budget friendly:  Serenity Glamping Xpu Ha 

Best eggs benedict ever!

Company on the road to Glamping Xpu Ha

Our accommodation was a permanent tent with a huge, very comfortable bed right on the beach. The beach is beautiful and you can swim to the reef so, needless to say, we spent a LOT of time in the water snorkelling.  I slept like a baby with the sound of ocean waves to lull me to sleep.

Dove into the water and came face to face with this guy. He ignored me.

Dove into the water and came face to face with this guy. He ignored me

Iguanas in a tree

Barracuda

puffer fish

Beach in Puerto Morelos

squid

Sting rays every where if you go early in the morning

Hermit crab

One day we decided to see something besides the Carribbean and walked to the highway where we took a collectivo to the Cenote Jardin del Eden as it and the Cenote Azul are closest. We arrived just as it opened in the morning to beat the crowds as it’s a popular attraction. Sometimes “touristy” places are touristy for a reason and this was one well worth visiting.

Snorkeling in the clear, blue water was a delight

Even the iguana enjoys the view

Messing around under water

The slow moving river with cliffs on both sides

You can jump from here. We chose not to. 😀

The Yucatan peninsula boasts over 2,000 cenotes.  All of them are different. Someday we’ll go back and visit more of them but for this day, we just headed to the next one we could walk to; Agua Azul

These girls wouldn’t go in but clapped and cheered when I did.

This pool had pretty purple cat fish in it.

purple catfish

 

MEXICO!  Here’s a link to a journal entry on the G Adventures trip I took in 2012 to Mexico and Guatemala called The Mayan Adventure
http://www.mytripjournal.com/2012mexico

Your Guide to Oslob: Whale Sharks and Tumalog Falls

Previous post: Negros. Zamboanguita and White Chocolate hills

March 30 – April 2, 2017 OSLOB

The day of departure from Zamboanguita we woke up to rain so took our time, hoping it would go away. Nope. We waited on the highway for the bus and took the first one that came along. Once in Dumaguette we found the bus to Cebu full and the next one not due for 3 hours so we tried the alternate. A city bus took us to the ferry port where we boarded a barge for Liloan. There we asked a tricycle driver to take us to the highway where we could flag a bus. He offered to take us all the way to Oslob for about $200 pesos more than the bus. We thought, wait in the rain for who knows how long for about $3 each? Tricycle it is!

The MWR pension was basic but the family hosting us made it really special. Manau offered to drive us everywhere but the walk to town wasn’t that far. They’re up early in the Philippines so at 5:45 am he drove us to the place we’d see the whale sharks. It’s not the most eco friendly way to see them but it didn’t turn out to be as bad as we thought. Yes, they’re fed. Yes, it’s incredibly touristy and there are lots of people there but everyone DOES want to see these gentle giants. I saw several of the beautiful beasts and none had visible scars from propellers that I’d heard about. Local fishermen feed them for a couple of hours in the morning for the tourists and then that’s it for the day. Each person gets a half hour in the water (or boat, whatever you choose) The town has really benefited from the tourism dollars too.

Manau then drove us to the port where we caught a boat to Sumilon Island. Now that’s a tourist trap and not really worth it. It’s ridiculously expensive for the Philippines at 500 pesos. We swam out to the marine sanctuary and the guard on a boat kept yelling at us to go back, something about coral. He seemed to want us to stay where all the boats were. Bore me! So I swam back to ask at the sand bar. HE told me to just go where it’s deeper as the guard was concerned for the coral. Okay. The guy STILL hollered at me so back I went AGAIN. He said to go where the buoys are. OK. By then, snorkel boats had arrived and were moored out THERE too. The coral IS beautiful. There are lots of fish and I even saw a little black tipped reef shark. There’s no beach once the tide starts coming in though and it’s really crowded.

Back on shore, we finally got picked up by Manau, hopped on his motorcycle again and headed for the Tumalog waterfall. It was beautiful but not much water falling as it hasn’t rained a lot. Well, except today when it rained off and on all day.

The most dangerous part of our travels I think was riding on the back of that motorcycle. We’re in nothing but shorts, tee shirt, sandals and no helmets. We’d seen SO many travelers who’d rented scooters or motorcycles with injuries.

The next morning we took our time and enjoyed a breakfast prepared by our hostess in a gazebo overlooking the ocean. While dallying over coffee we were joined by some of the kids. Being Saturday they had the time to chat with us. Kendal, Mavin, Ritzy and another little girl entertained us with stories and songs and Kendal even did my hair for me. These kids already speak 3 languages fluently.

The trip to Cebu was easy. The girls helped us to the highway where we flagged down a bus and said goodbye.

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Tumilog waterfall

Cock fighting arena

Nudibranch

Snorkeling: We saw lots of these before we finally found out what they are. The Spanish Dancer nudibranch (Hexabranchus sanguineus) is one of the largest nudibranchs (sea slugs) in the world, reaching up to 46 cm in length.

Sumilon Island

The infamous whale shark

The gentle giant

Getting a ride home from school

Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Church

Ruins of Oslob Cuartel

Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Church

Riding high

Want a ride?

Goat driver

Goat driving a tricycle?

Negros. Zamboanguita and White Chocolate hills

March 27- 30, 2017 Negros Island

After some beach walking and tricycle negotiating we headed for the ferry terminal where we waited in line for an ocean jet ticket to Dumaguette. We’d just started heading to the line to pay for the terminal fee when a security guard asked Sue how old she is, took our tickets and took off. We followed him to the front of the line, finished the transaction and he took us to check in. Wow. Age has it’s benefits!

Once in Dumaguette we negotiated some more. The tricycle driver insisted we’d wait a LONG time for a bus so we paid a few extra dollars for him to take us all the way to Zamboanguita and the White Chocolate Hills resort. Another nice surprise! Our little hut was just steps off the beach, had a little porch, lots of air flow and our own bathroom. No hot water but that’s not really necessary here.

I’d asked about diving as I really wanted to see sea horses and apparently that’s not really possible from the surface. Maria took me out from shore and we didn’t have to go very deep (4-6 metres) which is perfect for me. We lucked out and spotted 3 of the, one white which is apparently rare. Later Sue and I snorkeled in the marine sanctuary just to the right of the resort.

The pool called us one day and we wandered around the pretty town of Zamboanguita where we chatted with various friendly people along the way. A couple of teenage boys seemed quite intrigued by our visit and welcomed us to the Philippines. Another man answered our questions about a gathering happening in the local hall. Children, adults…..everyone said “hello, good afternoon” and asked where we were from and where we’re going. We saw the usual goats, cows, pigs and of course roosters everywhere. People actually have lawns here but you never see a lawn mower. That’s what goats are for. Roosters are kept for cock fighting. 😦 That and karaoke seem to be the most popular thing for Filipinos to do in their spare time.

White sea horse

White sea horse

Puffer fish

Puffer fish

Shell hunting

Hunting for shells

Roosters for cock fighting

Roosters

White chocolate hills

White Chocolate Hills

Boat on a beach

She WAS waving at me!

Black sand

The Best of Bohol: Chocolate Hills and Marine Wonders

Previous post: https://whereisgrandma.com/2017/03/23/siquijor-water-falls-and-ocean-treasures/

Bohol, Philippines

March 22-27, 2017

A tricycle took us to Larena where we caught the 1 pm Ocean jet fast ferry to Tagbilaran, Bohol. There we were met with the usual bunch of various vehicles wanting to drive us somewhere. We ended up sharing a van with another couple as the tricycle / bus combination sounded too complicated.

The Lost Horizon Annex is not on the beach but only a 5 minute walk and the room was really nice, complete with a REAL shower and a mini fridge. YAY, cold drinking water! Alona Beach is much more built up and hawkers were everywhere. We listened to all their spiels and tried to figure out what to do while here.

Bohol Divers was the only one that offered to take us snorkeling with their dive boat so the next day we headed out to Balicasag Island which is a marine sanctuary. The 6 divers got in and then the 5 snorkelers. The coral was beautiful. The fish abundant and I saw several turtles, including one hawks bill. I still didn’t get a decent photo though as he was pretty deep.

The next day we took a tour of the island which ended up being a van with a driver who just dropped us off at various sights. He was nice enough but it wasn’t really a “tour”. Stops included the famous chocolate hills, the tarsier sanctuary and an assortment of typical tourist spots. Lunch was a cruise on the Lomboc River. I ended up in a seat blocked in from all directions with a plant blocking my view so it wasn’t the greatest experience. The food was decent and plentiful though.

Tarsier
Tarsier
Tarsier
Tarsier
Tarsier

Chocolate Hills, Bohol, Philippines

Chocolate hills

Bohol, man made forest

Man made forest. Mahogany trees

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Having had enough of packaged tours, we spent the morning on the beach playing in the water. With so many boats on Alona beach, the coral is badly damaged but there’s still some decent snorkelling. It was enough to keep us busy for several hours anyway.

Green turtle Bohol

Green turtle

blue fish in Bohol

One of many colourful fish

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This guy tried to sell me pearls while I was snorkelling! When I told him I don’t keep money in my swim suit, he said I could get it later. LOL

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Just love all the pretty starfish and urchins!

Nemo on Bohol

Playing with Nemo. He’s a curious fish

Is Siquijor Really Haunted? Uncover the Truth

On to Siquijor from Moalboal.  That post can be found here:  Moalboal and Panagsama beach (not actually a beach)

March 16-22, 2017

Jessely (the wonderful tricycle driver we met in Moalboal) picked us up and left us at the bus stop with instructions as to which one to take. There’s no such thing as schedules here. Buses come when they make it. We’d been waiting a while and were joined by other travellers. A van pulled up and asked “Oslob? Liloan?” Hmmm. I asked how much? “200 pesos”. Will you bring us to the ferry terminal? “Sure” Some of the others were going to Oslob. We all just looked at each other and shrugged. Why not? The bus would be cheaper by maybe 70 pesos but it wasn’t here and the van was. So we all jumped in. An hour or so later he dropped us off at the ferry terminal (saved us a tricycle ride too!) in time for the 1 pm fast ferry. There we were met by the usual horde of tricycle drivers, chose one and headed for Dumaguete.

We were told it’s a nice city. I guess it is compared to a few other Philippine cities but it’s still icky. We’re glad we chose to just stay the night after spending the rest of the afternoon walking around and checking it out. Watching some young men catch a bunch of eels and put them in a pail was interesting. None of them wanted to touch the things so I’m assuming their bite hurts.

There’s not many breakfast options in Dumaguete so we went to McDonalds. At least they’ve got good coffee! We pulled out the backpack straps and headed for the ferry terminal where we purchased tickets, paid the terminal fee and waited. Yes, the ferry was cheap (130 pesos for 1.5 hour trip) but we were packed in there like sardines. It wasn’t the most pleasant trip but seeing dolphins jumping beside the boat kind of made up for it.

Tori’s Paradise turned out to be a real surprise. We got a lovely room right on the beach with our own patio, a towel AND a bathroom! The ocean was pretty rough so clarity wasn’t great but swimming was fun. At low tide we went for a walk and happened upon a family working to get the sardines out of a net the fishermen had brought back. So we helped. One man grabbed a fish and just ATE it! Ewww! I asked one of the girls if she’d eat them and she said “Yes, FRESH fish!” They offered us some fish for our help but we thanked them and carried on.

On a whim we checked out the dive shop. I’ve wanted to go diving again but am a little nervous. After chatting with Junjun and then thinking over dinner, with Sue’s encouragement I decided to go for it. We met the owner whose name is Borja or something (he’s Slovenian) and we all headed to San Juan beach. It was way too rough and murky here. Junjun was very patient and did a quick review of the important stuff. Getting in and out was the hardest part. Once down the sights are such a great distraction, I forgot my anxiety and just enjoyed. We sat on the ocean floor and just watched a hawks bill turtle. I could have touched her, and she just glanced at us occasionally but basically ignored us while she ate. We saw some blue finned and unicorn surgeons, both quite rare fish as well as many other amazing creatures. I managed to stay down 45 minutes which isn’t bad considering my anxiety.

The next dive was even better. We saw another hawksbill, a cuttle fish, a white eyed moray eel and so many other beautiful fish. That dive lasted 55 minutes. I’m getting better!

Sue said the snorkelling was pretty good too and described a snake she saw to Junjun. Good thing she swam away. Apparently it’s a poisonous one.! He said not to worry though. If you don’t get between the snake and air, he’ll leave you alone. Good to know.

The next day we headed tot he Maite marine sanctuary. Siquijor now has 19 such sanctuaries. Again the visibility was great and we saw lots of interesting coral, species of fish, a huge purple puffer fish and lots of different kinds of shrimp. I stayed down 60 minutes and still had air left. I’m getting better!

One day we hired a tricycle to take us on a tour of the island. Turns out he spoke NO English so we didn’t learn much. He took us to places then just pointed and said “go” so we went. We tried a couple of times to let him know what we wanted to see but…..oh well. We saw some of the highlights and did get around the whole island.

Our last full day at Tori’s ended up being absolutely gorgeous. The sea was flat with not even a breeze to stir up waves. We were snorkeling by 7 am. We came back for breakfast and decided to walk the shore for a bit. We’d just turned around to come back when a young man came out to greet us and let us know we were in a marine sanctuary. When we told him we had no money on us he told us to go ahead and pointed out areas of interest in the water. Wow! We saw giant clams, parrot fish, all different kinds of coral, etc so we ended up being in the water close to 3 hours.

After lunch we headed back with money. He laughed and seemed really surprised that I actually fulfilled my promise to come back with money. It was a more difficult walk as the tide was high. I wanted to do my part to support the conservation efforts here on Siquijor. They’ve got 19 sanctuaries now and it’s working.

Again I spent about 5 hours in the water. Sure does make you sleep well at night!

Sunset at Tori’s Paradise

Sunset at Tori’s Paradise

Cambugayhay water fall

We helped these folks with their catch. Lots of laughs 😀

Good morning!

This tube has a whole ecosystem in it. Can you see the tiny crab on the top?

Fishing boat. I liked the reflection on the bottom. Shows how clear the water is!

Lots of pretty starfish

NEMO!

A school of jackfish with the odd parrot fish

Nemo hiding in a beautiful blue anenome

Foot massage. I was afraid this guy was going to take a chunk out of my foot!

Balette tree (banyan). All of them have mystical properties in the Philippines

giant clam
giant clams
Nemo likes Jun-jun
Lion fish
Puffer fish
damsel fish in coral
Beautiful soft corals everywhere

Exploring Moalboal: Turtles and Sardine Runs

Previous post is: CEBU. Capitol of the Visayas & the Philippines second city.

Moalboal

March 13-16, 2017

We took an uber to the bus station, found the right bus and headed to Moalboal. It took well over an hour to get out of the city and then the scenery became pretty. Hills, greenery, palm trees, rice fields and villages dotted the highway. Upon arrival, there were tricycles waiting and no one would budge from the price of 150 ($5) pesos which we thought steep as the bus was only 130. Later we discovered it is the going rate as it is quite a trek and the road to Moalboal Beach resort is pretty sketchy.

The next day we were up early, enjoyed breakfast and asked one of the girls to get us a tricycle. Jessely picked us up and took us to Panagsama beach and gave us a few tips on where to go. It’s no longer a “beach” as the 1984 typhoon took all the sand away but it’s known for great snorkelling. We thought we’d have to hire a boat to Pescador island to see the sardine run but 3 years ago they moved to Pasagsama. Lucky us! After renting fins from the dive shop (we’d brought our own mask and snorkel) we jumped in and were swimming with the sardines. Amazing! More than 3 hours later we’d seen 5 or 6 turtles (including one VERY large male) and more species of fish than I’d ever seen in one place.

After picking up our stuff from the dive shop we went to find some lunch. Calamari is the thing to eat on the beach. There we chatted with a nice couple who own a place on Negros. We may just end up going there as it sounds awesome.

We headed back for the water for more snorkelling. By the time were done, we were exhausted. Jessely picked us up within 10 minutes of texting him. What a GREAT day!

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Pretty little fish

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Starfish. I’d been in the water so long my entire hand was pruney

Panagsama  Beach

It was so great we did it again the next day. We walked further down the road as some said on that end of the beach you see more turtles. The dives shops wanted 3 times the price for fin rentals though so we went back and rented them from Ocean divers. We played with a couple of turtles and saw lots of fish so we were happy. I even helped some Dutch snorkelers by taking THEIR picture with the turtle. We’re even sociable in the water. Even wearing a shirt and shorts we got sunburned. The bus ride could be fun with a burnt bum.

If you’re ever in Moalboal, find a tricycle driver named Jessely. He picked us up and drove us where ever we wanted, when ever and his price was always fair.

sardine run

Lunch at Chili’s on the beach

friendly female green turtle

Weird fish that hung upside down

Finally got a decent shot of a parrot fish

One of the many pretty fish

Not sure what this strange creature is

Snap shot just above the water at Panagsama beach

Sardine run

CEBU. Capitol of the Visayas & the Philippines second city.

Cebu

March 10-13, 2017

Sitting in the airport in Kuching while waiting for our flight to Singapore, I decided to check our hostel reservation in Cebu. March 11-13. Okay. Uh oh. Today is the 10th. We arrive in Cebu on the 11th, yes but at ONE AM! There’s no wifi in the gate area in Kuching so upon arrival in Singapore, after doing the security thing collecting our bag, doing more security stuff, we sit down get some wifi and find a hotel on booking.com that’s close to our hostel. We’ve got to pay a bit more than usual but at least we had a bed.

We got an uber to pick us up at Cebu airport and the drive through town was unimpressive. We’d been warned that Cebu is not pretty but thought maybe it has some redeeming qualities. After a good (though short) night’s sleep and a nice breakfast, we walked to our hostel. So far, Cebu is just as ugly during the day. We putzed around and figured out what we’re doing after Cebu and set off to discover the city. It’s still ugly. So we decided to go for a massage. I was going to get the Thai massage but decided I didn’t feel like being tortured so opted for the Swedish massage. At 300 pesos (less than $10) for a full hour, it was well worth it!

We’d thought of spending a day snorkeling off one of the islands nearby and texted a recommended operator. He finally got back to us late at night with a price that was much higher than his website stated. So instead we decided on a DIY walking tour of historical Cebu.

It’s still ugly.

We walked to the water front thinking maybe it would be nice there but felt completely unsafe. Some areas seemed okay but others….just felt sketchy. Fort San Juan is a nice oasis in the midst of the smelly city. Magellan’s cross, the Basillica and Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral were all nice but the walk to get there has lots of unpleasant areas, disgusting odours, garbage piles, and a river with floating debris that really smells. There were still some friendly people but for the most part they were begging, trying to sell us something or just stared like they’d never seen two oldish white women before.

We’d walked for several hours and were hot and tired so opted for the cool of Robinson’s mall. That’s another oasis. It’s a huge mall with expensive stores in the middle of poverty. Since lechon (pork belly) is supposed to be good here we decided to try it. It was tasty but I don’t need to have it again. During all our walks, taxis and jeepneys were constantly honking “do you want a ride?” I guess it’s weird to walk here. I can see why now!

Magellan’s cross

Basilica del Santo Niño

Basilica del Santo Niño

Basilica del Santo Niño

Cebu is my least favourite city of anywhere in the world so far.  I’d have taken more photos but many places I just didn’t feel comfortable even taking my camera out.  It’s too bad as it could be such a nice place.