8 days in Siargao Island

[-A-]

Starting a new thread since I didn't want to sidetrack another one

Last year on a 4 week holiday in PI I spent 8 days on Siargao and not only is it one of my favourite places in PI it's one of my favourite places in the world. Very clean with hardly any rubbish or plastic on the streets, beaches or in the sea. Anyway below is a 4 minute video I made which shows a lot of the island and surrounds including Magpapunka rock pools, Sugba lagoon and Sohoton Cove.

I wanted to share some of these experiences which help to explain why I love the Philippines and Filipino people especially when you get away from the cities and tourist areas.

The children on the beach

I rode my scooter down to a place called Secret Beach to the south of General Luna with the intention of going for a swim. But it was low tide so I would have had to wade out several hundred metres whilst trying not to tread on any rocks so I just sat down on the beach to relax and soak it in. Soon after these local kids came over wanting to chat, maybe I was a novelty since I suspect they don't get too many foreigners there. Anyway they were lovely kids, all smiles and after a while one of their brothers who would have been about 12 came over. They told him I wanted to go swimming so he offered to take me out in his canoe. So I helped him drag it down to the water and we jumped in and paddled out far enough that I could slip over the side and go swimming. Then when we got back in and before I left I took them all across the road to a little shop and bought them a treat each.

The dancing men

One day I rode around the island and got a bit lost so pulled over to check my map. As luck would have it there were a group of 7 or 8 men having a party in their front yard and they saw me and motioned for me to come in. I ended up staying for a few hours  It was a Sunday afternoon and they had music playing and I was offered beer, a few actually, and some freshly caught crab. And then a few started doing that dance you see and they wanted me to join them. Which I did and I did my best to copy that style of dancing I think it even has a name? Anyway they thought it was the best/funniest thing they'd ever seen  Eventually I had to leave but it was a lot of fun, no scamming or ulterior motive just a bunch of men having a good time and sharing it with a stranger. 

I've had a lot of these types of experiences on my trips and I look forward to more in the future.

[Freebie]

Good report.. ive been travelling to many islands in past few years... Puerto Galera, Guimaras, Batanas, Siquijor a few times , Limasawa, Biliran and just back from 3rd trip to Bantayan. Sadly, relevant to your post about kids on the beach, on a nice beach in Bantayan the kids I encountered all came up to me with a sunny smile then said " Give me money". Sad, as someone taught them how to do that.

Next one is Camotes or Camuigan..

[Marvin Boggs]

Lovely, thanks for posting that up.  The man dance or whatever is really funny I agree.  I see this in parties at the barangay, and even little boys have learned how to do it.  Asawa can't really explain what its about or where it came from, just people being goofy. 

[Arizona Kid]

10 hours ago, -A- said:

Starting a new thread since I didn't want to sidetrack another one

Last year on a 4 week holiday in PI I spent 8 days on Siargao and not only is it one of my favourite places in PI it's one of my favourite places in the world. Very clean with hardly any rubbish or plastic on the streets, beaches or in the sea. Anyway below is a 4 minute video I made which shows a lot of the island and surrounds including Magpapunka rock pools, Sugba lagoon and Sohoton Cove.

I wanted to share some of these experiences which help to explain why I love the Philippines and Filipino people especially when you get away from the cities and tourist areas.

The children on the beach

I rode my scooter down to a place called Secret Beach to the south of General Luna with the intention of going for a swim. But it was low tide so I would have had to wade out several hundred metres whilst trying not to tread on any rocks so I just sat down on the beach to relax and soak it in. Soon after these local kids came over wanting to chat, maybe I was a novelty since I suspect they don't get too many foreigners there. Anyway they were lovely kids, all smiles and after a while one of their brothers who would have been about 12 came over. They told him I wanted to go swimming so he offered to take me out in his canoe. So I helped him drag it down to the water and we jumped in and paddled out far enough that I could slip over the side and go swimming. Then when we got back in and before I left I took them all across the road to a little shop and bought them a treat each.

The dancing men

One day I rode around the island and got a bit lost so pulled over to check my map. As luck would have it there were a group of 7 or 8 men having a party in their front yard and they saw me and motioned for me to come in. I ended up staying for a few hours  It was a Sunday afternoon and they had music playing and I was offered beer, a few actually, and some freshly caught crab. And then a few started doing that dance you see and they wanted me to join them. Which I did and I did my best to copy that style of dancing I think it even has a name? Anyway they thought it was the best/funniest thing they'd ever seen  Eventually I had to leave but it was a lot of fun, no scamming or ulterior motive just a bunch of men having a good time and sharing it with a stranger. 

I've had a lot of these types of experiences on my trips and I look forward to more in the future.

Looks like the locals took good care of you. That's what they are paid to do. Open your eyes if you can and see that what you experienced is not reality. You were being entertained..that's all. You had a good time. It's not reality though. If you think for a moment that it's normal..better think again.   

[Balisidar]

4 hours ago, Arizona Kid said:

Looks like the locals took good care of you. That's what they are paid to do. Open your eyes if you can and see that what you experienced is not reality. You were being entertained..that's all. You had a good time. It's not reality though. If you think for a moment that it's normal..better think again.   

Wow.  Did you read his post?  Got to totally disagree with you on this one my friend.

How are they being paid?  He bought the kids some treats after they took him swimming.  And the guys?  Seems like they just wanted some interaction with a foreigner.

I'm fact it seems he entertained them while he was being entertained himself, life in the provinces can be a little humdrum at times.  Me, I find it a little refreshing that some honestly good people are still out there.  Especially the kids, when they haven't been corrupted by the adults.

I'm pretty cynical myself especially in the touristy type areas or cities etc. But there are times, depending on the situation, when I'm certain that I'm not being scammed or generally taken advantage of.  Then I can relax my guard, if only a little.  Heck, I wouldn't have married my wife if I had listened to the advice my Air Force friends were giving me back in '86.  She was just a mis-placed country girl though, kind hearted and honest as the day is long. She still is but caught some healthy cynicism from me.😁😉

-A-,  I enjoyed the video. Siargau is definitely one of the places my wife and I have on our Philippines bucket list after we retire.

[Snowy79]

Great write up and quite catchy music also.  

[Arizona Kid]

18 hours ago, Balisidar said:

Wow.  Did you read his post?  Got to totally disagree with you on this one my friend.

How are they being paid?  He bought the kids some treats after they took him swimming.  And the guys?  Seems like they just wanted some interaction with a foreigner.

I'm fact it seems he entertained them while he was being entertained himself, life in the provinces can be a little humdrum at times.  Me, I find it a little refreshing that some honestly good people are still out there.  Especially the kids, when they haven't been corrupted by the adults.

I'm pretty cynical myself especially in the touristy type areas or cities etc. But there are times, depending on the situation, when I'm certain that I'm not being scammed or generally taken advantage of.  Then I can relax my guard, if only a little.  Heck, I wouldn't have married my wife if I had listened to the advice my Air Force friends were giving me back in '86.  She was just a mis-placed country girl though, kind hearted and honest as the day is long. She still is but caught some healthy cynicism from me.😁😉

-A-,  I enjoyed the video. Siargau is definitely one of the places my wife and I have on our Philippines bucket list after we retire.

My pessimism may have taken over my optimism. Find a beach in the Philippines with zero garbage on it. If you can, that only means that the beach resort owners hired some locals to go collect it at 4 in the morning so the tourists won't see it when they wake up and decide to go for a swim. Reality sucks. But it's here.

[Tommy T.]

10 hours ago, Arizona Kid said:

My pessimism may have taken over my optimism. Find a beach in the Philippines with zero garbage on it. If you can, that only means that the beach resort owners hired some locals to go collect it at 4 in the morning so the tourists won't see it when they wake up and decide to go for a swim. Reality sucks. But it's here.

Sadly, AK, and others, the rubbish found on the beaches is not just from Philippines. In fact, lots of it washes up from Indonesia and Malaysia. I have looked at plastic bottles and so many come from other places. Sure, Philippines is a major violator - how many times do I observe people , especially kids just drop bottles or empty junk food plastics wherever they go - but they are not the only ones. You would not believe the amount of plastic and other rubbish I have found on some of the most remote beaches in the world - toothbrushes, plastic and glass bottles, never matching flip flops... It's truly disgusting.

[Guy F.]

Arizona Kid strikes again. What a killjoy. Always with the negative waves.

[GeoffH]

14 minutes ago, Guy F. said:

Arizona Kid strikes again. What a killjoy. Always with the negative waves.

Wouldn't that sort of comment better be done by PM?

It is rather 'Negative wave' after all...