Upon our arrival in Masbate, we were immediately flooded with excitement. We only had a couple of days to spend in this particular trip, so every move was a calculated one. Sure, this cradled spot on the Philippine map is famous for their aptly named Rodeo Masbateno annual event, but we didn’t stop searching there.
We knew that it offered so much more, especially those underrated locations such as Buntod reef marine sanctuary, Tinigban beach and Gato island in Aroroy, the baby sharks of Halea resort in Monreal, Sombrero island in Claveria, Bituon beach in Mobo, Catandayagan falls in Ticao island and the like.
Since we didn’t have the luxury of time, we narrowed down our itinerary to only a couple of doable items namely Masbate city proper and Buntod reef marine sanctuary. They were not far apart from each other. So, we ditched the other prospects and settled with our two final choices.
We had fun with our so-called walkathon around the city. We bought some Nomer’s beef tapa, fresh milk and even the expensive abalone (straight from the distributor). We prayed and lit some candles in the Masbate Cathedral (Parish of St. Anthony of Padua). Photo ops in front of the cowboy and horse statue, roamed around within the Masbate Social Center and sipped fresh buko outside the park. Since we were already exhausted from too much walking, we decided to hail a tricycle – usually colored yellow – and told the driver to go to the public market. We bought shrimps for only P150 / kilo. One of the main reasons why we love Masbate so much, it’s because seafood is cheap!
We headed back to Sampaguita inn and rested for a bit in our P450 a/c room. We had our shrimps, beef tapa and abalone cooked by one of the personnel. We paid around P50 for the service fee. While waiting for our dinner to be cooked, we contacted Mr. Cokie Medina of Rendezvous hotel and requested for a round trip boat transfer to Buntod reef marine sanctuary the following morning .
The next day, we woke up early and prepared for our trip to Buntod reef marine sanctuary and Catandayagan falls. We then rode a tricycle going to Rendezvous hotel. About the time when it was just a stone’s throw away, we spotted a mini fish market. We asked our driver to stop for a moment, so we can buy something. We ended up buying two kilos worth of fish meat, a glassful of sea urchin gonads and some other ingredients.
As soon as we entered the premises of the Rendezvous hotel, we were greeted by a tall figure – Mr. Cokie Medina. He then called up our boatmen to fetch us; it is very important to make reservations in advance because that is their S.O.P. The minimum fare of our pump boat ride is P500. We paused for a bit and queried them as to how much we would spend if we include Catandayagan falls.They said an additional of “P1,500″ would do. We hinted at them that we’re interested.
Buntod reef marine sanctuary was both fun and educational. As avid snorkelers, we couldn’t wait to dive into its crystal clear waters. With the help of a tour guide, we were able to observe their 350 hectare reef along with a thriving population of giant clams, helmet shells locally known as “Budyong” and other exotic marine species.
Wooden Hut on Stilts
The Sandbar
The Mangrove Trees
Our Lunch
Giant Clams
