#matnog

Tikiling Island

After a thirty minute pumpboat ride, you will be greeted by the bluest waters your eyes will ever see. The weather was a blessing enough-there was no rain and the sun could be felt. The clouds were still a bit gray from all the crying but I ain’t complaining! It was a lot better that the weather forecasts.

We had the whole beach to ourselves- for about ten minutes. My favorite thing about this island is how peaceful it is. There were only about ten people on that island the whole time we were there.

We didn’t do much on the island. We just walked around and took some pics, and left after thirty minutes. We heard after our trip though that there are actually a lot to do and see in the island. If you have some time, you could walk around the island and enrich your eyes with magnificent views. I was kind of sad not knowing about the other side of the island. I kinda regret not exploring it myself as well.

     2. Juag Lagoon Marine Sanctuary

The view from the drop off point was just amazing!!!

At first I thought this was like the sanctuaries in usual islands where one part of the beach is secluded and people would have to pay an entrance fee to snorkel, but no, this is quite different. It was actually a lagoon (duh).

We paid for fish pellets so we could feed the fishes, and boy were there A LOT.

I’m the type of person who’s quite fond of amusement parks, aquariums and the like. I’ve been to many marine parks before but there’s nothing really compared to the feeling of seeing different species of fish in their natural habitat (although the feeling of snorkeling in the open sea is a lot better!!). We encountered different kinds of fish, of all shapes, colors and sizes, with some of them I’ve never seen before.

Tip: Don’t put on sunscreen! We would’ve wanted to swim with the fishes but the owners forbid us because we already put on sunscreen which would be harmful for the sea creatures.

     3. Subic Dako (Subic Big)

One of things I least expected in coming to Sorsogon was going to a pink beach! Turns out that Sorsogon is home to one of the four pink beaches in the Philippines. It was actually my first time going to a pink beach so I was quite excited.

The island was just so beautiful and serene. This place is so naturally saturated and I just can't get enough

We stayed here for a few hours waiting for the waters to calm so we wouldn’t have a hard time entering the cave. There is also another thing you should know before visiting the Subic islands, I would tell you all about it later.

   4. Calintaan Cave

While approaching the cave, I took my time in appreciating the rock formations that welcomed us. And before we knew it, we’re already at the cave entrance.

this is my only picture outside the cave:( 

The opening was small and barely noticeable. The tour guide said that we’d have to swim all the way inside. The waters were actually pretty deep and the waves were quite strong so we wore lifevests just to be extra safe. You don’t have to worry if you don’t know how to swim. There’s a rope that you can hold onto to on the way inside.

  5. Subic Gamay (Subic Small)

When we asked the guide if Subic Gamay was any different from Subic Dako, he said that it was the same thing and that you wouldn’t really miss much if you won’t go there, considering that we’ve already been to Subic Dako. Well, I beg to differ! Subic Gamay may also be a pink beach, similar to Subic Dako, but it’s a different beauty in itself.

It may not be obvious, but the waters in Subic Gamay possess a shade of blue different from Subic Dako. Also, if you’re up for a nice swim, Subic Gamay’s beach is actually pretty deep! My toes can’t even feel the sand anymore despite being only a few meters in.

ITINERARY

6:00 AM Ride a tricycle or jeep to Legazpi Bus Terminal

6:30 AM ETD bus to Sorsogon (ride a bus bound for Bulan, ask to be dropped off at Matnog)

9:30 AM ETA Bulan-Matnog crossing. From there, ride a tricycle to Tourism Office

10:00 AM ETA Tourism Office. Pay fees. Eat lunch at carenderias.

11:00 AM Start of Island Hopping

3:00 PM End of Island Hopping. Shower and change.

4:00 PM ETD Matnog. This time, we took a jeepney ride to Sorsogon Terminal since locals said that it was a faster and cheaper way to go home. Just ask people where you could ride a jeepney bound for the destination.

5:45 PM ETA Sorsogon Terminal

6:15 PM ETD Legazpi. The bus driver stopped us somewhere so we had to ride another jeep going to the Legazpi terminal

7:30 PM ETA Legazpi Terminal.

8:00 PM Home Sweet Home.

EXPENSES (per head, exclusive of food and donations, from and to Legazpi Bus Terminal)

7PHP- Jeepney to Bus Terminal

142PHP- Bus bound for Matnog

50PHP- Tricycle ride from crossing to Tourism Office (200php for the whole tricycle divided by 4)

470PHP- Entrance and other fees (1600 for day tour divided by 4, 70 per head registration and environmental fee)

25PHP- Fish feeds at Juag Lagoon (100 for a plate divided by 4)

90PHP- Jeepney ride to Sorsogon

74PHP- Bus ride to Legazpi

7PHP- Jeep from where the bus dropped us to Legazpi Bus Terminal

Total: 865PHP

TIPS

*Don’t apply sunblock before your trip. Apply sunblock after swimming with the fishes in Juag Lagoon

*When in a hurry, ride a van. It takes a half hour to an hour longer travelling by bus.

*BEWARE OF DONATIONS! After spending an hour in Subic Dako, the tourguide informed us about “compulsory donations.” Yes guys, you’ve read that right, donations that are compulsory because we were docking in a private island, minimum of 300 pesos (for the group). Of course we were shocked because we were in the Tourism Office and they didn’t say anything about the donations. 

Of course, we already have this big hunch that the donations aren’t really required because it’s a common scheme where guides and caretakers collaborate and ask fees from tourists and divide it between themselves. It’s also funny how the tour guide was the one who looked for the caretaker, when it should always be the other way around right? We tried ‘scaring’ them that we were gonna inform the Tourism Office about these donations but he only said that ‘Bisag musumbong pamo, muingon rajud mi nga donasyon ni siya. Pwede rman na, wa ramoy mahimo’ (Even if you’ll rat us out, we’ll just say that it was a donation and there’s nothing wrong with just giving donations)

Anyway, we ended up bargaining the donations down to 100php for Subic Dako and 50php for Subic Gamay. We didn’t bother asking the Tourism Office so it is still a big mystery whether or not we were conned by the tour guide or not. I suggest you ask ahead if you want to avoid unnecessary expenses, or just to confirm.