September 26, 2008- Day Three: Adieu, Boracay!

September 26, 2008- Day Three: Adieu, Boracay!

With sad hearts, our last day came. We quickly packed our things and proceeded to the restaurant for breakfast. After breakfast, we took pictures again. We went to the beach for a last dip on our feet. We said goodbyes and thanked our friends there for making this trip an unforgettable trip.

We left Casa Pilar after breakfast. The tricycles took us to the port, where we rode the ferry. The trip was shorter, only ten minutes. One of us became dizzy, because the ferry ran too fast. After the very fast (and short) trip, we disembarked the ferry. We rode again to the van for the very long trip back to Kalibo. Most of us slept, because many of us were tired the night before. We awoke exactly as our vans entered Kalibo town proper. Upon arriving, we ate a quick lunch, and proceeded to the airport for the check-in of luggages. Thirty minutes later, we left the province of Aklan.

We arrived in Manila after an hour. The airport routine was short, unlike that of the departure. The school vehicles were there to fetch us. We finally got back to Las Piñas after three days of “vacation”.

And so,‘tis the end of the story.

THE END

Day Two- September 25, 2008: Enjoying Boracay

September 25, 2008- Day Two: Enjoying Boracay

It was finally morning. Many of us woke up early, some, as early as 5:30 in the morning. Most of us either went to the beach to enjoy the waves, or walked to different places we haven’t been the night before. At 8 am, breakfast was served. Plans were being discussed as we were eating breakfast. Some of us planned of course planned to swim, others intend to go and ride a banana boat. When we finished our breakfast, most of us went swimming in the “big, blue sea” as some call it. The waves were large, but they were safe to swim on. We started a trend called “wave jumping”, where in you will jump when a wave comes. After so much wave jumping, a little of us walked to go shopping for souvenirs and other stuff. We greatly appreciate the way the natives treat us there. They were very warm, friendly and cordial. We quickly befriended them, that at times we were given discounts by them. This memory will remain with us, for we owe gratitude to them.

Only one thing spoiled the day. At lunchtime, while we were eating, a strong gust of wind came, and it rained very hard. Thankfully, the rain lasted for twenty minutes only, with some mild rain showers. But, unfortunately, we didn’t see the famous sunset of Boracay due to the aforementioned rain. As we surrendered ourselves to the merciless weather, we just contented ourselves by playing games, swimming, shopping, and watching the Ateneo vs. La Salle championship game of the UAAP which was live on television.

As night came, we enjoyed the night scene of the island. You can see the lights going on one by one. We ate dinner, and off we go again, this time, just to walk. We really enjoyed that night. Some played (again), others went for a last-minute shopping, and others just had coffee. We hesitated to sleep, because we know this would be our last full day in Boracay.

Day One: Hello, Boracay!

September 24, 2008- Day One: Hello, Boracay!

It was a dark and rainy day here in Las Piñas. It was raining the day before, September 23, and winds were quite strong. We were afraid that our flight will be cancelled due to the winds. Thankfully, it wasn’t. Our call time was scheduled at 7 am, and some of us came as early as 6:15 in the morning. We were so excited that day. We left the school at 9:45 am, and we arrived at NAIA Terminal 3 at 10:30 in the morning. The flight was scheduled at 11:30 am. After the usual inspection and routine in the airport, we boarded the Cebu Pacific plane. The flight was not that long; it took us only an hour to reach Kalibo, Aklan.

As soon as we arrived there, we took our bags and jumped to the van to go to the picturesque town of New Washington. For those who do not know, New Washington is the birthplace of the late Jaime Cardinal Sin, Archbishop of Manila. Msgr. Albert Venus is also a native of New Washington; in fact, the Venus and Sin family are neighbors. We ate our lunch, courtesy of the Venus family. After eating, we changed our clothes and we sang one song in their living room. We then got back to our van and went to the Pink Sisters’ Convent, also in the same town. These contemplative sisters, also known as the Sister-Servants of the Holy Spirit of Perpetual Adoration, spend their time in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament to pray for the missions and the people’s intentions. They are called “Pink Sisters” because of the color of their habit. We went to their gift shop and cloister grille to ask permission to celebrate the Holy Mass. Thankfully, the sister agreed, and we went to Mass with the whole community of sisters. In the Mass, we sang the Musica Sacra competition pieces. The Mass was celebrated with great dignity and solemnity, adding to the beauty and sacredness of their convent chapel. After the Mass, we sang some songs for the sisters, and they applauded us. We went back to the gift shop and cloister grille. We were greeted by the sisters, and thanked us for coming. They gave us envelopes with a prayer book and a rosary as a thank-you gift. We then went to our vans and proceeded to the town proper again, where we took pictures before the bronze monument of Cardinal Sin, in front of the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary. After taking pictures, we left New Washington and went directly to the port in Caticlan, where in there are direct ferries to Boracay Island.

The trip lasted two hours, because Caticlan was 66 miles away from Kalibo. The view from our windows was fantastic. We passed through mountains, rivers, and even a forest in the heart of the mountains. After the long trip, we finally arrived in Caticlan. Surprisingly, the ferry trip was only fifteen minutes! We were very enthusiastic to arrive in that paradise island. Some tricycles were waiting for us. We rode on them, and thus, we began another long trip to our lodging. It was dinnertime when we arrived in Casa Pilar. We checked-in our rooms, and then proceeded to the restaurant for dinner. Our sumptuous dinner filled us until were full. After eating, we went to our own places, and went around. Some just walked around near the beach, others went shopping, and others went to have some henna tattoo. Some of us event got to bed at almost 3 am! We were so excited for the next day, which will be our free day. And yes, we all finally went to sleep.

Trip to Boracay Island (September 24-26, 2008)

The following posts are our experiences in our trip to Boracay. Enjoy!