We just returned from a wonderful week of sun, diving, snorkeling, hiking, kayaking and fun in Palawan in the Philippines. Our son Chris and his wife Kristen from Shanghai joined Ken and I and our other son Shaun and his girlfriend Tracy on our trip.
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Me, Tracy, Shaun, Chris and Kristen at the airport--ready to embark on our tropical adventure!
We have been to a number of different locations in the Philippines to dive and enjoy the lovely beaches and tropical weather. The Philippines have over 7,000 islands, so each location is unique. Palawan was stunningly beautiful, the people were friendly and warm, the diving had lovely coral reefs with abundant sea life as well as wrecks to explore. We even glimpsed the elusive Dugongs! But more about that later--first things first. |
We had to overnight in Manila. Oddly enough, we stayed at the same hotel we had stayed at years ago on our way to Boracay--Chris remembered the surreal underwater music in the pool. The poolman confirmed that there had been underwater music back in the 90s. It poured rain while we were there, so we went to a nearby mall and watched Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole in 3D. It was pretty cool.
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| Cool 3D glasses for Legend of the Guardians |
The next morning we flew from Manila to Busuanga, the northernmost tip of Palawan. From the tiny Busuanga airport, we were driven in a van through a countryside of green grassy hills and bamboo jungle with water buffalo,cattle, goats and horses. Eventually the pavement gave way to a dirt road which wound down to a boat dock along a river.
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| Waiting for our boat at the river dock in the rain. |
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| Mangroves |
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| Fisherman cruising the river |
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Locals out paddling
After about ten minutes, the river emptied into the open sea, dotted with numerous green humps of islands. Our goal was Dimakya Island, where Club Paradise is located-the only resort on the island. |
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| Our first glimpse of the island! |
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| Getting closer! |
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| Club Paradise! |
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Our greeting committee--complete with cool drinks and singing!
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The gang at Club Paradise! I had three shots of this, and in every one Shaun has his eyes shut tight.
Oh well, the sun was very bright! |
3 comments:
That looks like an amazing place! Bet you had so much fun with your kids and the girls too!
I wish I was just born on a tropical island; didn't Heavenly Father know that is where I would belong!? Wait, I was born on a tropical island! Why am I still not on that island!?!??!
Sounds like a really fun trip, Julie!
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