WordVomit:: The WHERE: Britania Islands

If you plan to go to Surigao Del Sur then definitely you may have heard of or are already on your way to visit the famous Britania group of islands. Located off shore near the town of San Agustin. It is something you shouldn't miss. The islands are usually the last stop on a three part tour conducted by locals which usually start with The enchanted river, followed by the Tinuy-an Falls then lastly, the Britania Islands.

We are all in our own way limitless.

It was the 4rth day and the we're off to our final adventure before ending our trip on the beautiful Surigao Del Sur and sure enough we wanted one that ended with a bang.

It was already decided beforehand that we were to go island hopping on our last day. Finishing up on our second destination, we left early for the third. The plan was to move to our next home for a day which was closer to Britania. We chose to move from staying at Marky's Hostel where we stayed at for our Enchanted river and Tinuy-an Falls adventure to La Enterada.

Upon getting a goodnight's sleep, we woke up at about 4:30am. We had to be with our boatman as early as 5:30am so that we could get a headstart on our adventure. It was a sunday then and apparently it's considered a busy day since it's a weekend ofcourse. Riding another habalhabal to get to the shoreline was an easy trip. Although I'd like to point out that there were toll fees being paid when we entered the area from before and I was hoping to atleast see some major improvements or atleast a clear gravel route/road but apparently despite the ridiculous fee, it was substandard. Considering the fact that these are tourist destinations, I am hoping we can improve on this in the future. So that the place would easier to get to and be more accessible for future tourists and investors. Now enough about that.

Upon reaching the shore we had to walk along this crazy long dock made out of woodplanks. Suffice to say i was crossing my fingers the whole time from fear of falling and thank God i didn't as I eventually made it to our boat.

Reminded me of the Chocolate Hills :)

There are about 7 or 8 islands in total but we were only destined to visit 4 which we got for the fair price of php2000 only. The boatman and his little son like half my age were the only people with us. I liked the fact that we went out early. Not only were we able to see the sunrise but we also had a good time not having to worry about the heat. I barely applied sunblock. The waters of Surigao are so beautiful. Crystal clear ranging from a aquamarine to a deep blue as we hopped from one island to the next. The sands so fine like powder. We even took some home as soveigneers. The beaches are well maintained, the places although traversed by many on a daily basis are as clean as can be.

Our little boatman :p

There was one instance though that we encountered trouble as we were moving to our last island. The boat wouldn't start. It took as about 30min before we got it fix. It was during those minutes that i got up close and personal with them. Apparently as we heard from the boatman himself, these boats are owned by the government and they only serve as drivers per se. The ratio for pay was 80/20 with 80% to the government and the remaining 20% to them. It felt unfair really that the situation was like that I feel that its like they do most of the labor from touring us and all then most payment goes to others just cause they own the boat. I mean really?! Ending our trip, our boatman was kind enough to invite us to eat at his place. We had this sword-like fish which was grilled on coal. It was delicious and memorable considering it was a first for me.


The Island with the Shrine

The sky was just majestic

Visiting Surigao Del Sur was an eye opening experience for me. I mean not only did I learn about other people's culture and saw many wondrous places but it was more of a humbling experience. People there are really kind. I wasn't expecting that. I thought they'd take advantage of us not being familiar with the place pero they didn't. A lot of instances theyre willing to help out and talk to you, i really appreciate that. Also you see how people live their lives there. How simple things make them very happy already. Makes you appreciate what you have. Made me realize that I already have a lot to be thankful for and here I was still hungry and greedy for more. I also saw my sister in a new light. She's such a generous person. If she owns a company one day I bet people would love her as their boss. She gets along well with people, isn't put off by how different they are from us, she makes them feel valued and treats them as equals giving them more than what is necessary. Like she often gives tips, especially to those hardworking fellas who helped us on our adventure like the boatman, the habalhabal drivers etc. and you could see in their eyes the joy for those things. One instance, Ate even told me "hindi naman malaking bagay yun, ano ba naman yung isang daan eh maganda naman yung serbisyo nila satin. Mababawi ko naman yun sa sweldo." Pero you could already see na sobrang saya na nung mga tao sa ganung mga bagay. Its such an honest and genuine gesture. I hope to develop that value in the future. Really. This vacation was magical. Surigao being the first of hopefully many more travels in the country.