The first thing that caught me by surprise is that the majority of the population speaks and understand English. I hardly heard the native language being spoken. The signs on the roads are all in English as well as menus at restaurants. The people here are also very warm and friendly. And the food is WONDERFUL.
The Philippines are made up of over 7000 islands. We were be able to visit about 2-3 islands. To get to Camiguin Island, we drove about 1.5 hours to a dock and boarded a ferry to the island. The ferry took about 1.5 hours to reach the island.
We are staying at the Camiguin Highland Resort. It is nestled in peaceful mountains and the view of the palm trees and ocean is breath taking. Our room is very nice and has a cute balcony.
After checking in, we headed out to the Ardent Hibok-Hibok Springs. At this Hot Spring, the “pools” are open 24/7 and you can even spend the night there. We got there as the sun was setting, and the crowd just kept on coming. I am sure people will spend the night there.
The resort offers horseback riding for a small fee among other leisure activities for its guests.
We had the opportunity to go to the near by White Island, where we were able to rent a wave runner for about an hour.
After leaving White Island, we went and saw the Sunken Cemetery. The Sunken Cemetery is one of the most famous cemeteries in the world as the cemetery of the town sank below sea level during the volcanic birth of Mt. Vulcan in 1871. The place is commemorated by a huge cross erected in 1982.
I truly must say that I enjoyed our trip to the Philippines. I will define it as one of Asia's best kept secrets. Planning a return trip to see more of this country.
