Tuesday, May 03, 2011

Visiting Southwestern Mindanao (Basilan)

my 6th solo backpacking
november 28-30, 2011 friday to sunday

objective: to visit the best tourist spots that fits my taste and budget accordingly.
additional tasks: to explore basilan's nature wonder though reluctant due to its peace and order situation.

visiting southwestern mindanao (zamboanga city)

continued...

important note (basilan);
The Province of Basilan is an island province of the Philippines within the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). Basilan is the largest and northernmost of the major islands of the Sulu Archipelago and is located just off the southern coast of Zamboanga Peninsula. Its capital, Isabela City, is administered as part of the Zamboanga Peninsula Region. Basilan is home to three main ethnic groups, the indigenous Yakans, and the later-arriving Tausugs and Chavacanos. The Yakans and Tausugs are predominantly Muslim, while the Chavacanos are mainly Christian.
source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilan
 
DAY TWO:
BASILAN

at 9am, im already in downtown area. since the city port is just meters away, i'm thinking to do the special itinerary i have made, which is to visit one of the most heavily guarded provinces in the philippines due to its questionable peace and order, the island of basilan. i know, its a little bit scary but there are also hidden nature wonders within. adventure at its next level, i'm about to find-out... dan dan dandan...... dan dan dandan.....

ferry to basilan island

ferry to basilan island

ferry to basilan island

945am, the ferry was moving. i don't feel any pressure on security threat but still i have to awaken my guard at all times. i observed to the passengers within my sight and none of them puts me to doubt. as the ferry moves away to zamboanga city, my regrets were fading due to the scenic view infront of me. the houses on the sea, the islets and the mangroves. indeed, another philippines' best. around 1130am, we were in isabela city port, the capital of basilan.

strolling around, visited the isabela cathedral but under construction. lot of military soldiers in their uniform attire with armalite, from port, plaza, mini-stores up to church and almost every 100 meters block. its like a martial law but its part of adventure. i went to isabela bus terminal bound to lamitan city. around 1pm, accidentally, i have almost left my mobile phone to the van i had rode. i immediately run after while shouting to please stop. finally, they heard me and took a break and hand-over my phone, which was beside the driver. ahh, what a relief. after having my relax deep breath, i continued my journey via 14km habal-habal ride to calugusan beach from the main road.

calugusan beach

calugusan beach


calugusan beach

i was right, basilan has serene nature wonders to offer, calagusan beach was on top of them. i love the sands, the horizon, the shore and the cottages, typical idea of laid-back vacation. by the way, as far as i know, cottages rental fee costs only around less than php20. one of the best beach i have ever visited at a very low cost. one of my top 5 best beaches in in our country. few minutes of photo-ops then went to my next destination, the bulingan falls. another basilan's finest. though very rough road, still worth it to visit. also, part of my top 5 best waterfalls in the philippines. with unique stones beneath the falls, and some cottages to stay for a while. around 4pm i left the basilan province happily, contented and 100% with no regrets.

back again to zamboanga city downtown for some nightlife in paseo del mar and by tomorrow, back to manila, back to my ordinary days. i could say mindanao can bring philippine tourism as one of the targets in asia if we let just fellow filipino's help and contribute to showcase it.

road to bulingan falls


bulingan falls

bulingan falls

bulingan falls

infront of bulingan falls




15 comments:

  1. nice blog. salamat sa info sana mapuntahan rin namin ito ng kaibigan ko sa zamboang trip namin.

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  2. ey man, do you need to have at least a contact person in basilan before going there. or is it safe enough to just crash in the place?

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    Replies
    1. @ayan; wala pre, pumunta lang ako dun ng trip-trip lang, as in no connections or no contact person ... since madami naman sundalo, basta piliin nyo lang yung ok na habal-habal.. sayang di ko nakuha cp# nung habal ko, mabait pa naman yun... dun ko lng din sya na-meet nung papunta ako sa calagusan beach..

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  3. aha!!! nice kaya d2 sa amin.. (basilan).
    hihihi.. ang road lng hndi maganda.. (haha)..

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  4. hi. we're planning a zamboanga trip this August. I think the link you posted for the pdf itinerary is for Palawan and not for Zamboanga. :) hoping I could see the detailed Zambo-Basilan itinerary. Salamat! more power and the best of luck on your future travels! :)
    -ella
    http://throwcautiontothewind.wordpress.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. @unsuspectingstranger; ma'am, i changed already the link, thanks for the reminder.. kaya pala nagtataka ko bakit 0 donwload pa din ang count, yun pala !!

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  5. @andoyzki

    hi. unsuspectingstranger here. Thank you for the pdf! :) (at baket may ma'am?haha)

    My travel buddy to zamboanga is really hesitant to go when I mentioned basilan in the itinerary. haha. How'd you do it? help me convince him.

    throwcautiontothewind.wordpress.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. @throwcautiontothewind

      help 'HIM' ?? at ikaw pa itong babae ang eager, hehehe !!

      ok,here is my basilan persuasion share:
      1. kindly ask him to read my blog entry
      2. basilan is more than meets the eye
      3. basilan has a great nature wonder than any province can offer
      4. basilan is safe especially on local tourist like us
      5. i'm a solo backpacker who went there then read again my blog
      6. in fairness to zamboanga city, basilan is indeed one of philippines' best kept tourist interest
      7. if i'm lying, ignore my blog

      just keep this in mind " huwag maging dayuhan sa sarili nating bayan" ^_^

      btw, i saw your blog... awesome profile pic, unqiue ang work mo ah, hehehe !!

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  6. omg, gud thing meron nito dito.. will be in zambo mid of june for 3d/2n stay.. ur it is really helpful.. still a bit scared but thats wer the adventure gets in.. haha! can't wait! i just hope may contact person..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. @emher
      sayang sir di ko nakuha yung habal-habal ko sa basilan, bait pa naman nun, mura pa ...
      good luck emher and thanks for visiting ^_^

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  7. nice post :) next time i'll plan my trip to zamboanga and sidetrip ko ang basilan. nice post :)

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  8. andoy, how much iyong rent mo sa habal-habal habal sa lamitan? hopefully maconvince kong mga kasama ko na pumunta dito.

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    Replies
    1. @shegothim; jen, negotiated around php250 (kasama na bulingan falls then drop to terminal back to isabela port) starting dun sa road crossing the calagusan beach (between lamitan at isabela)

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  9. Hi Andie.

    If I would follow your itinerary, can I still squeeze in Malamawi beach and Lamitan and then be back in Zamboanga in time for the last ferry out of Isabela?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. @baktin; yup, you can... provided you can move in haste same as mine and just monitor your time carefully.... isabela last trip is 4pm daily while for lamitan i think its 230pm...

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