I arrived on the tiny airport during rain. From there I decided to take a Tricycle to Alona Beach for 300,-PHP instead a bus for 600,-PHP.
On the way to Alona Beach you get a good chance to see more from Bohol island with many schools. The streets are quiet OK and it tooks ca. 45 minutes to go there. You will also cross the town Tagbileran in which were many construction’s going on.
take off to the island Bohol
Panglao island with the Aona Beach
the baggage claim in the tiny airport
The tourist area is starting ca. 250 meters before you finally reach the beach. There are side by side shops, restaurants, accommodations, supermarkets and ATM-machines (in a bank and in the supermarket “shop me”).
250 meters ahead Alona Beach
restaurant & divecenter
the entrance gate
rental motorbikes and car´s
the closest supermarket to the beach with fair prices
Along the Alona Beach, which is a nice sandy beach and only sometimes he is washed up with staff from the ocean, you find a lot of restaurants next to each other. Between them some small diving center and accommodations. Right on the beach many massage-ladies offers full-body-massages 60 minutes for only 300,-PHP (like in El Nido).
very nice massage offers directly on the beach
a good restaurant for fishdishes, such as „Jack´s“ – ask Xinxin or iris
if U are lucky, U can enjoy a bottle of Rum with melone, coconut or cappucino-flavour during a beautiful sunset on the beach
these are the pretty girls Iris and Xinxin I met there
that´s how life should be
I stayed in Peter´s house, which belongs to the Genesis Dive Center. Owner is a German names Gizo and Genna Stuhldreher, which owns also the Hayhay restaurant. Some of the dishes you order in Peter´s house coming directly served from the hayhay restaurant.
I booked my room via Internet from Germany and I recommend you doing the same, because many guests showed up by Peter´s house asking for a room during my stay there.
It´s a wooden house, built with plaited mats full of nooks and crannies, which gives a natural warm flair. The whole atmosphere is quiet familiar like a living community, probably in case of only four rooms they offer. Here is their Internet page: www.genesisdivers.com/
Check their package offer for accommodation and diving, which is very good. The whole house is very clean with a daily service. Every single staff is very friendly and helpful. The girls are a little bit shy, but if you start talking to them, you will have a lot of fun with them. They are offering the whole day for divers free tea and coffee.
directly on Alona Beach
that´s the smallest and cheapest room
the place for the „Decobeer“ and writing the logbooks
room no. 2 again
all four rooms are in the 1st floor
the stairway
the view into the small kitchen
„Tata“, the small boss
the beach infront of Peter´s house
the diving boat
it´s also a restaurant included
the beach to the left
the beach to the right
diveguide „Noel“ – what a man and „ladykiller“ 😉
the washing place
the shower
here they will build another house
busy staff
„Rusty“ – everyones darling, as long ……………..
The diving center is right in the back of the house, but no worries, I never heard any noise of filling the tanks. After you prepared your staff and tank, all will be done from the crew and you can enjoy your breakfast right on the beach in front of the house ca. 15m away from the ocean. During that you order your sandwich for your lunch break on the boat. The boat usually leaves around 09:30AM and returns by two tank dive at 02:00PM and by three tank dives around 04:00PM. By high-tide you go directly from the beach on the boat, by low-tide takes you a smaller boat out to the diving boat. There are sufficient shade places and a toilet on the boat, only a real place for the dry staff is a bit missing. The boat rides to the diving spots are between 15 and 45 minutes. The best diving spots are in front of Balicasac island: The cathedral, black forest and diver´s heaven. There you have usually a very good visibility and you can see a nice alive reef with terraces, overhangs, walls, big school of Jack´s, leaf fishes, turtles, big frog fishes, school of barracudas and if you are really lucky also a Manta Ray. If the conditions are too bad for going out, then you get the opportunity to dive on the other side of the island. The whole crew is doing a very good professional job and I really liked the diving speed from my diving guide Noel. He has really good eyes for pointing out smallest staff and giving you as much time as you need for taking your pictures.
divingcenter
rinsing bath and drying area
Compressor house
filling the tanks
Diving
on the diving boat
on the diving boat
„Nemo“
underwater impressions
nudibranch
nudibranch watching me!
a nice school of jack´s at Balicac island
… very close to the divers
these our jack´s Xinxin and Iris, here in the water and later ……….;-)
a beautiful big black frogfish
…from the side …..
and a second, some meters further on a rock
a scorpionfish
underwater impressions
like in a aquarium
underwater impressions
a underwater vulcano………….or a sponge
underwater impressions
at Balicasac island ……
… we took our lunch during the surface interval
a nudibranch
a nudibranch iss a „Nacktschneck´n“ für alle Frank´n
Iris and a Gorgonia
underwater impressions
a sponge
underwater impressions
underwater impressions
Iris and a nice big white frogfish (upside down)
sitting on a white sponge
closer and picture turned
diving impressions
here we swun trough
a nice coloured starfish
diving is fun!
a hermit crab is turning his house
a small leaffish
„GDNT“ Genesis Divers Next Topmodel at the Jeepney wreck
„GDNT“ Genesis Divers Next Topmodel at the Jeepney wreck
„GDNT“ Genesis Divers Next Topmodel at the Jeepney wreck
„GDNT“ Genesis Divers Next Topmodel at the Jeepney wreck
the Jeepney wreck
the Jeepney wreck
the Jeepney wreck
the Jeepney wreck
clownfishes on their anemone
sorry one more, but I love them
catfishes
Nemo again
a walking sea cucumber – Xinxin likes them very much
a batfish
a nudibranch again
a small leaffish on a sponge
underwater impressions
a green turtle on her way up to the surface for breathing
a school of big barracudas
two scorpionfishes – do you find them?
The whole Along Beach is very touristy and you will find easily a restaurant or place for your dinner, even with live music. It´s getting only on Saturdays at Peter´s house a bit noisy from the neighbor bar “Oops”, cause they offer a disco evening. The restaurant from Peter´s house closes at 08:00PM, which is a bitty because other guests and I would like to sit longer there together for talking or having a drink (sorry girl´s, I know U have already a long working day, but….)
Bohol-Landtour
Two girls (Iris & Xinxin) and I booked a car with driver for visiting Bohol island for 1800,-PHP. The places they usually go is to the Trasiers, the Chocolate hills, the butterfly farm, the Lumboc river boattrip, the church, the amphibian zoo, the Statuen??,the hanging bridges and the cave.
The visit to the Tarsier http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippine_tarsier and the Chocolate Hills http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chocolate_Hills I highly recommend you.
first stop by the tarsier
entrance
soooo cute (sorry not really sharp)
very lucky, because they were sitting not very high up into the trees
check the link idem for more informations
ricefields
they have many, because they eat a lot of rice …
the famous chocolates hills
here they are green, but they get burned into brown colour in summertime
for more informations check the idem link
happy Harry, will never be chocolate brown ;-(
😉
nice
Our second stop
some explanations in the beginning
the development
the larvas of diffrent species
butterfly impression
butterfly impression
butterfly impression
they don´t fly anymore
the farm
some more different species
… happy Harry
On the Loboc-River you can do a boattour incl. lunch and livemusic – sowas wie ne Donaukreuzfahrt in klein.
But there is nothing specially to see, so we didn´t do it.
one of the boats
Loboc impressions
there are more of that boats
that´s the direction you will go
tourist staff – I don´t need that
Loboc impression
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loboc
the church San Pedro Apostol
the seperat churchtower
Loboc impression
A small Amphibia Biotope along the road was also a short stopover.
just a small Python with about 6m length, which you can even pet – not me!
Iris was so brave, she did it – respect!
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baclayon
the oldest stone church from Bohol „Baclayon“
from inside
… my new yacht, just beside the church
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandugo
Sandugo – Blood Compact Monument – now even with a guy of „Franken“
Bei am Bierla verdrächt mä si halt am Besten – odder?
Botanical Garden
Only 10-15 minutes with an “Habal Habal” (motorbike taxi) for 30,-PHP, you can reach the Botanical Garden and Arts. It´s a nice trip for around 2 or 3 hours, entrance is 500,-PHP from which U can use 250,-PHP for your lunch there and another entrance in the next 7 days for you is free of church. I like most the animals, specially the talking parrots in the Garden. Beside them they have monkeys, other birds, iguanas, a wildcat and some more Others. A small museum with pictures and a winter garden. From which you can see, that the owners are addicted to Indonesia. The park ranger Neriza has many information’s for you and is quiet friendly and pretty (;-))
the road to the entrance
reception and souvenir shop
First the animals
Sea Eagle
gorilla
guide and garden – pretty!
turkeys
sheep´s and guide – pretty!
iguana
the cages
