Danjugan – an island sanctuary.

Took the plane from Cebu to Bacolod and met up with a buddy who drove me to Danjugan. Before the ride began, we stopped to get some lunch. I was pretty damn hungry. Off to the Chicken House for Bacolod's famous chicken inasal. Man was that good! Chicken on a stick with rice! You don't just put a damn chicken on a stick man, there's some kind of special sauce they put on it. Just like KFC's secret ingredients, but at least you know this is real chicken.

Then off to pick up two more guests to the island and we were off on our 3 hour tour... our 3 hour tour... what the... ahhh, it was a 3 hour drive to Danjugan. On the same road, I was told that you can drive the entire length of the island and come back to the same place you started. Small island huh? It was a bloody 3 hour drive! It's not that small!

Man, so many tricycles on this road. At least most of the road is paved! Woooow... 6 guys on a tricycle! 8 guys on a trike... you've seen over 10 guys on a tricycle? Man, with those underpowered engines, those things must ride like a slug, and when there's 10 guys, I wouldn't want it to go any faster.

Sugar cane trucks were piling on the road fully loaded with there cargo, with bits and pieces coming down the road.

Bacolod is mainly an agricultural island, sugar cane seems to be the main crop. Hey man, what's that on the right? Sugar cane dude. Ah man, what are they growing on the left. Dude, that's sugar cane too. Sweeet, so where's the rice?

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Danjugan? It's a small island off the coast of Negros Occidental - a far and distant island that can be reached from Manila or Cebu in a few minutes by plane.

Danjugan is an island with a few basic accommodations, the foundation that takes care of the island is keeping an eco-friendly attitude, so only a small part of the island is being developed....

Development in this case means, a few structures with beds wrapped surrounded by mosquito netting – I think they can accommodate up to 30 guests a day, a cooking structure, a central eating place, and a manual flush toilet for girls and guys! If you want to really be green, you can drop your shit in a special area on top of a hill and in a few months it will become compost. What do you think of that earth lovers?

After 3 hours drive - we got on a banka for a few minutes ride to Danjugan, it was getting dark as we started on our final leg to the island.

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If you need any kind of gear to scuba dive, snorkel, fish, etc.. you should be able to rent from the foundation that takes care of the island, so tell them of your needs when you make arrangements.

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Stepping off the banka – ouch! Ouch! Ouch! The hell? The beach is made up of corral! The entire beach is made up of shells and corral. Better put the sandals on. Yea!

If all you want to do is lay on a soft white sandy beach this isn't the place for you beach lovers. It's a island to explore, to listen to the hermit crabs at night shuffling about and watching the birds fly right in your face as they race each other. This is an unspoiled island. Check out the lagoons and just listen to the sound of well... nothing but nature.

Or take a night of beer drinking with friends as you watch the empty night sky devoid of any obstructions to the stars. Take some puffs and feel your skin flow into the the wind as you see transdimensional realities encroach on your stupified brain cells, you gotta bring your own puffs. I am not in any way condoning the use of illegal substances. Carrying illegal substances and if found by police is a serious crime in the Philippines.

If you want, tell the entire staff to get the hell off the island and you can strip totally naked anywhere! Do anything to yourself or to your friend! Just make sure she's hot!

You could relive the The Lord of the Flies! Oink! Oink! Oink! Or how about the Blue Lagoon! The Beach! Or bring a golden gun, and YOU can be The man with the golden gun running naked all over the island! Damn right! Not sure if there's a fee of telling the staff to get off, so you gotta ask the foundation. You also gotta make sure there's food available once they leave!

So... My buddy was snorkeling and saw a turtle in that clear sea. There's also corrals surrounding the island - the scuba gear was ready to go in case anybody needed to use it.

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There is a way out – just a few minutes from the island on the mainland is a modern resort called Punta Bulata with big air conditioned rooms, a nice sandy beach and all the amenities you'd expect from a resort. It's close to Danjugan so it's pretty out in the boonies. Good for people who need the amenities and the quiet atmosphere without the crowds on the beach muscling on your turf. Punta Bulata isn't like Patong, Kata or Karon beach in Thailand or even Boracay with the crowds stepping on each others feet. As I write this, Punta Bulata is a boonie resort that has a quiet and nice beach for people who want to get the hell out of the tourist traps.

Punta Bulata can make arrangements with the foundation that runs Danjugan for a day visit and take care of the entrance fee and any other equipment you'd need – snorkeling, scuba equipment, etc.

But you're not going to do that because you're a mans man right?! Damn straight! Let me be politically correct about this - you're going to stay over night on the bed with the mosquito netting and drink beer amid the hermit crabs on the beach because you want to get in touch with nature because you're an eco-adventurer! Darn right! Word!

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This is where you find yourself.

So wake up early – around 5AM and start exploring the island before breakfast. Bring a camera with a telephoto lens, you won't want to miss taking photos of the birds around the island. You might get a photo of the eagle nesting amid the tree atop the hill overlooking the camp. How about this flightless bird that's kind of like a turkey but without the feathers sticking from his ass? Explore the lagoons and before you see the bat cave, you'll smell a stench so vile the wicked witch will smell oh so sweet. You're on the right track! Yea, don't really know how the hell the wicked witch came into the picture. How does a witch equate the stench of bats? Damn straight!

Then in the afternoon take a splash in the water either snorkeling, kayaking, swimming or scuba diving and explore the deep water depths of that clear sea surrounding the island. Let me say this again, the water around the island is so freaking clear, and there's nobody out there making waves to screw it up.

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The food was incredible. It was home cooking that you wish your mom can cook. The chicken adobe oh shit man! It was fine. It had that taste that you wish chicken adobe can taste this good every time you order it from a Filipino restaurant or maybe... your mom?

The mangoes were sweet and juicy. The coconuts served were delicious. The fried rice turon was god watering crispy. First I thought it was banana inside the crispy shell, but after one of the other guests tried it, they were gushing about the taste, and it was rice inside! I was skeptical before I took a bite, then another, and after a few minutes of good table manners, I got another one, hahahahahaha. Damn tasty this stuff is!

The fish served was fresh and good. Normally don't eat fish, but this was really good. This was home cooking, real to goodness good Filipino food. None of that turo-turo greasy shit you find in the States.

I spent the night at the island and paid the 2,500 peso plus an additional tip, because damn the food was so bloody good! The food was included in the cost – breakfast, lunch and dinner when we arrived on the island. We left the following afternoon after lunch.

Back to Bacolod and a good nights sleep in a hotel. Ah shit. I almost forgot to mention this. The hotel had a restaurant below. My buddy suggested a steak meal. Forgot the name of it. But it was one of the most tender mouth watering pieces of meats I've ever had. It was prepared in pieces placed on the plate with the sauce surrounding each piece. So good, man it was good.

I was a voyeur. The table next to me a Filipino guy was making the moves on a Korean girl. It was like watching a movie. Making his pimp move on one of the girls. After a while, I figured the Korean girls were practicing their English skills on the guy. I ignored them in favor of my meal, but as I finished, dude was still trying to convince them that he should be her boyfriend. Salutes dude!

Then off to bed in my big air conditioned room with a television with a functional automatic bathroom with shower that gave off hot and cold water! I love modernity! I love fluffy pillows and a nice sheets over a comfy bed.

But you know. It's nice to take a break. To live on an island, just to hear yourself think, to get away from modern living - to a distant place called Danjugan.

Dude that last sentence looks like it was ripped from a travel book. One of those cheesy ones...!

Trying to be legit!

Links:

PRRCFI - The Foundation that overseas Danjugan.
Punta Bulata - The resort on the mainland, just a few minutes travel from Danjugan.