Holy Week in Bora.

I thought I'd never get to see Boracay until May. Thanks to Rodney, my officemate and we (Ate Lani, Mike, Marvin & myself) were able to go last Thursday with an itsy-bitsy budget... but then, we were able to survive.. haha! I was truly feeling half-hearted though because we had to leave mom and pop alone to tend on the whole annual "Pabasa" thing which they had been doing for as long as I can remember. It was a tradition passed on by my granny to my mom. Anyway, I was actually glad mom and pop didn't disapprove of our plan, especially it was [scheduled] on the Holy Week pa.

Day 1 (Maundy Thursday)
As usual, I had a hard time deciding on what and what not to bring. I think I packed an entire luggage that could last me a week. I almost killed Rodney when I learned that we’ll be staying there two days only (two days!!!). Funny, I didn't even check my ticket for the departure date.
Anyway, we boarded M/S San Paolo, NN's funship that would take us to Boracay around 3pm and it left about an hour later. It was amusing to see the mix of people aboard the ship - there were "cono kids" (a lot of them actually) and the usual haggard-looking people… in a more blatant term, mga jologs. I even saw a bunch of European backpackers at the “Tatami area” a.k.a glorified economy class. Then there were these cute Chinese guys that were walking tirelessly, touring the entire ship, obviously first-timers. Our group actually was room-less for an hour before Angie (Rodney’s gf who works for NN) actually scored us a “Business Class” room which actually fits four people only. So the six of us stayed together in one room; it wasn’t really bad… it was actually comfortable enough. Except for the fact that we had to use the common bath room so I had to get out of our room in the middle of the night to pee. Whew.
Contrary to what I was claiming that it wasn’t boring to take a ship for a 12-hour ride to Boracay, I was actually bored to my wits. There wasn’t much to do in this funship but stay in the sun deck with your iPod on while gazing on the boundless view of the sea and the angry waves that seem to want to topple the ship over, stay in your room and watch whatever movie is being aired on the tube, or read a book, or EAT. And so I ate… ate a lot, forgetting about a week of dieting to fit into my swimsuit. I munched away my boredom. By 11pm, my cabin-mates were already fast asleep. I was still wide awake because I could feel the strong waves wanting to swallow the whole ship.

Day 2 (Good Friday)
It wasn’t good at all. We arrived in Caticlan around 6am. There was a lot of waiting. Waiting for the others to disembark, waiting for my sis’ friggin’ ex-officemate and her friends, waiting in line to buy the tickets, environmental fee, terminal fee, etc., waiting for the multi-cab that would take us from Cagban port to Station 2 (they have this new rule that all tourists going to Boracay should disembark in Cagban port only and not directly in whatever stations they’re going to stay in) and most of all, waiting to get a room / a space where we can stay. God bless Rodney and Angie, they didn’t reserve a room knowing how difficult it is to get one on a peak season like this. Grrr… Anyway, we did get a room in Station 3. I didn’t even know what the place was called. It was good though. Fits all of us six, perfectly. I was just sooo frustrated knowing that I only got two days to enjoy my vacation and a quarter of it was already wasted just waiting. I was tired but I’d say staying in Boracay was all worth it. And this was already my 4th time. I’d probably never get tired of coming back. The rest of the activities were usual – bumming around the beach, checking out cute guys (who unfortunately were either taken or gay), sunbathing, pigging out, swimming, etc.
Then…
I had my period. Nice.
Sucks, I know. But instead of moping, I tried to enjoy my stay. Pics here.

Day 3 (Black Saturday)
Jesus Christ was dead. We woke up on a rainy Saturday morning. Wow, it was raining in Boracay. For me, it seemed surreal. We had breakfast – noodles and coffee and chips. The rain stopped abruptly. The sun, as though having its sweet revenge, shone like it was the last. It was really hot. So, with my period and all, I put on my swimsuit and had a nice (though tiring) walk on the beach with my kuya. We went to the far end of Station 3 where there’s a magnificent view of caves and rocks and trees. Then, walk all the way back to Station 2 where we’re planning to have our lunch as usual. My legs were hurting but it really didn’t matter. I also had a nice whole body massage by the beach (as I promised myself). I was planning to go on a banana boat ride but decided against it.
We spent the rest of the day eating, shopping for goodies, some pasalubong and just bumming (again) by the beach. I so love it, I could bum around the whole day – with a good music on, a good read and some chips to munch on. After all, I am not a beach bummer for nothing, ‘ayt?
By 4pm, we were already on our way back to Cagban port. Goodbye Boracay. Our stay was really that short and somehow, I still didn’t want to go. But I had no choice. We waited until 7pm for M/S San Paolo – the same ship took us back to Manila. As we boarded the ship, I had nothing else in mind but sleep and rest. Not to mention, I had sun burn all over and it hurts. Did I mention, I fell asleep while having my massage that half my face (atleast the part that’s not covered by my sunglass) is sun-kissed. I look like a raccoon. Stupid is stupid does. More pics here.

Day 4 (Easter Sunday)
Happy Easter and we’re back in Manila!