Heaven on Earth

It was effectively a six-hour trip from Butuan - two hours by land, three and a half hours by slow-as-a-turtle ferry and another thirty minutes by land. We were already tired to start with from the week-long NLTC (Lingkod's National Leadership Training Conference) that just ended. Our last meal had been breakfast at 8 AM. Worse, we had to endure a Jackie Chan and a Van Damme movie throughout the ferry ride. So when Alett, Sheila, Tess and I reached the resort at 430PM, we immediately plopped down on the beds and thought if it was worth all this trouble going to Siargao. "Lord, please make this a good vacation" Since we only had whatever was left of the day and the next on the island, we psyched ourselves to stand up and check out what it had to offer. Tess stayed behind as she was still feeling queasy from the ferry.

We decided to check out what the island was famous for - surfing - and took a habal-habal, a motorcycle which can seat a maximum of 8 people (go figure) and which was their common mode of transportation, to Cloud 9, the surfing site. On the way there, we struck a conversation with our habal-habal driver, Kuya Joseph, asking him why the surfing site was called Cloud 9 (because the wave was shaped like a 9 and 9 of such waves would usually come one after the other). When Sheila asked why this was so, he answered "Kasi yan talaga ang pinagkaloob ng Diyos (Because God made it so.)" Oo nga naman. Somehow, despite being on unfamiliar territory with a complete stranger showing us around, that reply put us at ease.

At Cloud 9, we bumped into his cousin, Eloy, who incidentally was one of the Top 12 surfers in the country. Eloy was willing to give us lessons the following day for an acceptable rate and guaranteed that we would be able to successfully stand up on the surfboard; otherwise we won't have to pay him a cent. He also volunteered a friend for the banca when he learned that we also wanted to go island-hopping. We checked out the waves, which were a considerable length from the shore. To get there, one would need to traverse the wooden footbridge that had been set up for that purpose. Our timing had been perfect. The sun was already setting, casting a a reddish amber glow on the sky and waters. The giant crashing waves, the beautiful night sky and the promise of an exciting day for the morrow erased whatever tiredness and doubts we felt earlier. If we had a guitar, we would have done an impromptu worship in the middle of the sea.

Kuya Joseph then took us to the boulevard by the bay, located in Gen Luna (GL) municipality proper, for dinner. It was lined with small carinderias serving freshly grilled seafood, chicken and pork, each equipped with a videoke machine where aspiring singers belted their hearts out to "I Will Survive" or "Inspector Mills". We enjoyed our dinner al fresco, under a millions stars, for a cheap PHP150 (This was already for the three of us).

The following day, we were fortunate to wake up early enough to catch the rising sun. Kuya Joseph fetched us and brought us to Cloud 9 for our "class" with Eloy at 6:30 AM. After a brief lecture on the techniques and some sample moves on the footbridge, we were ready to hit the waves. Eloy delivered on his promise. All four of us were able to stand on the board, with Sheila and Alett standing the longest. The professional surfers watching us were quite supportive and surprisingly affirming. They would encourage us to stand, clap when we were able to do so and afterwards remarked, "Good surfing, girls".

Two sisters and a brother from Ligaya - Avic, Maila and Jojo - joined us for the island hopping tour. Kuya Joseph and Eloy - now our friends and official "tour guides" - helped us to purchase fresh fish and fruits for our lunch and offered to cook it for us on the island. Kuya Joseph even went back to his house to get plates, utensils, tupperwares and glasses for us to use. We met Bibit, the boatman, on the beach beside the boulevard. They took us first to Guyam (Ant) island,which was small enough for one to make a complete walk around. We had lunch on Daku (Big) Island. Kuya Joseph, Eloy and Bibit grilled the fish we had bought, using whatever materials they could find on the island for firewood. They even made fish sinigang, which was quite tasty despite the lack of vegetables. We were so full after lunch that we couldn't bring ourselves to stand up and swim. We just rested in the cottage, enjoying the sea air and exchanging stories. After resting, we went to Naked island, a bare, treeless strip of white sand, for photo-ops and then to another surfing site near Daku Island, upon the insistence of Eloy and Bibit, because they wanted to show us their champion surfing moves. That was how comfortable they were with us already. We stayed on the boat, cheering them on while they maneuvered the big waves on their surfboards, ending with a showbiz wave at our direction before plunging into the sea.

We headed back to GL when the sun was about to set (see picture below). We invited our three new "berks" for dinner - our way of saying thanks for a wonderful time in Siargao. We ate, we laughed, we sang (of course, for how could any Siargao experience be complete without doing our own renditions on their videoke machine).

We couldn't help but smile (and maybe skip a little) on our way back to the mainland. Whatever doubts or anxieties we had when we first arrived on the island took a complete 180 degree turn. Our blessing cup was filled to overflowing. From masterpiece after masterpiece of scenery - the sunset, the sunrise, the white sand islands, the clear blue waters, the giant waves - to the thrilling experience of surfing as taught by a real pro for a very reasonable price. Most importantly, we were very much blessed because of the people that we met - Kuya Joseph, the daddy figure in the group who made sure that all our needs were taken cared of and who was extremely conscious of our low budget vacation (in Daku Island, he initially refused to get a cottage because there was a PHP150 fee and insisted that we just eat on the ground); Eloy, our philosophical surfing teacher ("Ang surfing parang buhay yan. Hindi lang basta bastang tatayo. Kailangan may plano") who kept his word on a successful lesson; Bibit, the boatman who willingly gave us a cheap rate for the island tour; Aling Nilda, the public school teacher/ bakery owner who shared with us stories about the island and gave suggestions on what to do; Ate Gina, who was Avic/Maila and Jojo's initial tour guide (she took it upon herself to also bring them around on our first night there). Each of these people had their own sob story to tell - a broken marriage for Kuya Joseph, an early marriage for Eloy which forced him to stop his college education, a daughter who recently passed away for Aling Nilda; and a philandering husband for Ate Gina. Yet, despite this, they still went out of their way, beyond the service that was expected of them, for us seven strangers new to the island in order to ensure that we had a very enjoyable time in Siargao. Unknowingly, and probably unintentionally, these people witnessed God's love to us.