Boracay revisited

It was unlike any other Boracay trip I've had. For one, we were nowhere "close" to white beach. Second, we didn't even touch the water. And lastly, we ate in most of the time.

Heading to and from white beach from my brother's condo unit was no easy task. Trikes have difficulty climbing the hills to his place. Arrangements have to be made with the condo driver for pickups and drop offs. Plus you need to hike a short but steep hill to get to the multicab. No big deal really, but it may be for some.

Inconveniences aside, we hardly left the condo. There was no need to. It was beautiful up there, the view stunning. We had everything we needed, food, alcohol, wireless connection, a pool and hundreds of movies to choose from. We did venture out a few times to replenish our water supply, for happy hour, and a few meals...

Trip Highlights ::

Nipa Hut. My brother took us on a 20 minute hike to his nipa hut for cocktails. We watched the sunset and were chatted up by Efren, a local landowner, who joined us in our festivities. We were there for a couple of hours, enjoying the view and the latest gossip re the Gucci Gang.


The hike up to the hut




The fantastic view from up there



Night swimming. After cocktails, I did a few easy laps in the pool. It was a good sized pool, approximately 18+/- meters long. The night was calm, the water warm and even better, it didn't sting your eyes. Except for the pool lights, it was pitch black with a few stars out, so quiet, so peaceful...



Tirta Spa. We had a most excellent experience at Tirta. Surpassing my Mandala experience and possibly equaling ShangriLa Mactan's Chi. Even before entering the grounds of Tirta, we were awed by its imposing entrance. As we passed the gates, a man struck the gong announcing our arrival.

We chatted with the lovely and charming owner, En Calvert. She explained the process that went into Tirta. So much love, thought and detail was poured into it, down to personally training her staff. I picked the Hilot massage (Filipino massage), while my sister had the scalp and the foot reflexology treatments. Mmmmm... if you're in Bora, you've got to check this place out.


The entrance to Tirta Spa



Ulysses. There was this guy in Boracay, Ulysses, who used to massage me years ago. He was so good that I'd look for him each time I'm there. But for the last three years, no one seemed to know where he disappeared to. So I was so happy to bump into him and his wife Lynette at D'Mall. We quickly made arrangements for a massage the following day. Oh man, he was good! I wanted to enjoy each stroke, but I fell asleep within the first 30 minutes. I'd say that Uly's massage was at par with my massage at Tirta, but without the ambiance. Afterwards, we were treated to a numbers reading by his wife, an albulario (medium/witch), who claims she can cure various ailments, if you believe in those things...


Uly and his wife Lynette


Low wattage ambiance but a first rate massage

Extended Happy Hour. For our last night in Bora, we headed over to Aria. We befriended Nicky, the restaurant manager, who agreed to give us happy hour prices all night long on the condition that we crawl out of the place at the end of the night. Umm no, we didn't dare. I love their margaritas, they make it strong!




My cousin wanted her face cropped out of the picture...

So, that was my last hurrah. I don't know when I'll be able to visit this place again, but I'm already looking forward to it.