Bantayan and my love for the beach

I am not a beach person. I do not get excited over invitations to go to the beach. What excites me though is the prospect of eating good food in the beach. From where I come from, the beach is at least 30 minutes away and people who go to the beach bring food- lots of good food. Some bring fresh fish and cook it over charcoal. My favorite is the grilled liempo. I love how the heat of the slow fire carefully seared in the flavor of a slab of pork belly.  Okay, I’ll stop here. Suffice to say, my love for the beach is actually my love for good food.

So while everyone else may go to the beach on a Sunday morning, I  was content to just have my grilled pork belly in the comforts of our home. After all, this is reason why I go to the beach.

Bantayan changed all that.

Friends of mine who have visited Bantayan several times already planned to visit again. The long weekend during the end of October this year seemed to be a perfect time to go especially for those with regular jobs. Thus, my friends chose these dates. In my case, it was the end of a long vacation for me. I just came from a vacation with relatives and I flew to Cebu the next day. Friends have called me “laagan” because of this.  (Rough translation: one who wanders around, one who is always out on the streets) Well, I call myself a risk-taker. The opportunity presented itself and I grabbed and took the risk: weather, budget, confidence to travel alone. This was my first time to travel to Cebu City alone.

From Cebu City, Bantayan is a 3 to 4-hour bus ride north and a 1-hour ferry ride. I have motion sickness and I do not adjust well to land trips. My friend and I agreed to meet at the Cebu’s North Terminal to ride the bus to Hagnaya port. Luckily, we caught the 7AM air-con Ceres bus to Hagnaya. However, we only got the rear seats. Amazingly, I did not puke nor experience the uncomfortable knot in my stomach or the unwanted smell I often encounter whenever I travel by land. Whenever I travel with friends, I always tell them that I have motion sickness, that I have my vomit bag ready, that I vomit more during land trips, etc. etc.  I am always mentally-prepared with all the puking. Almost always, it never happened. My friend and I theorized that I only vomit when I am with family because I let my guard down. I get too comfortable with family because somebody else will be responsible for me. When I am with friends, I am responsible for myself. I will test that theory the next time I travel with friends.

We reached Bantayan past lunch time so we were a bit famished. After checking in, we went to the nearby restaurant and ordered food. I had chicken with mushroom while my friend had kinilaw.

Once full, we changed clothes and headed for the beach. I was not a beach lover until Bantayan happened. Amazing.

How can I resist this?

We had a perfect weather. My friend suggest we try the Sugar Beach because the sand there is as fine as sugar.

Never mind the cheesy poetry.

I thank Bantayan for rekindling my love for the beach. I forgot that I used to enjoy the beach.

Mama, my cousin and I enjoying the beach.