At 1:30pm we started our city tour. About 15-20 minutes travel and endless stairs down we found ourselves at the foot of Mt. Timpoong to see the enticing Katibawasan Falls, it measures about 250ft that showers to a rock pool surrounded by trees, orchids and wild fern-like plants which added beauty to the place. The water is soooo cold. I cannot explain how cold it was but I really I wonder how the people swimming in there could take the coldness. lol.
I wanted to take a quick plunge but I felt like as soon as I get in, I'm going to be a hypothermia waiting to happen. lol.
My friend Jaydee told me to just wait till we get to the Ardent hot spring because the water there is relaxing as it's going to be the last stop of the tour. Besides, I don't wanna be wet all through out our tour. Valerie and I took a lot of pictures at Katibawasan Falls. You will actually see a lot of amateur and professional photographers in the place, looking for a great angles to capture the whole falls for their portfolio, I guess.
Reminder: Php20.00 Entrance Fee for Katibawasan Falls
We went back on top to have a little soda at the nearby store and headed to the waiting multi-cab and ready to go to the "Walkway". About 15-20 minutes drive we had to somehow pullover because the driver said we may want to take pictures with the view.
It's pretty scary because we were like on the edge of the road and we see boulder rocks. My friends were too curious to see beyond the edge and I was telling them to be cautious coz I felt like it's gonna erode or something. lol. But the driver was right it really is a spectacular view. You can see the blue ocean kissing the edge of the green mountain. you can feel the cool wind in your hair and the sky is so white full of cottony clouds.
I do not have pictures on the edge as I was too chicken to do so, lol. So I just let myself to be the cameraman this time and just let them do their thing on the edge. lol, Falling on the rocks is NOT the way I picture myself dying. Thankyouverymuch. lol.
Just 10minutes drive and we saw an endless Walkway going to Mt. Vulcan. Along the Walkway you will see stations of the cross which are carvings or statues representing concecutive incidents during Jesus' course from Pilate's house to his crucifixion at Calvary.
The driver said it's gonna take like an hour to hike the mountain to the top, or depends on how fast you take the flight of each stair. lol. He also said that most of the people who take the Walkway are for penitence. It make sense because an hour climbing or let's say walking up to the mountain is really a sacrifice. We realized it's gonna be difficult for us. lol. So we opted to stay on the foot of the mountain and just take pictures and do shopping at the souvenir shop! lol.
Reminder: Php5.00 Environmental Fee at the Camiguin Walkway
We jumped back to our ride and headed to the Sunken Cemetery, which is a popular spot in Camiguin. This white cross on the sea marks an old cemetery which buried in waters after weeks of earthquake in 1871. Under the island of Camiguin are four young "Stratovolcanoes" and among of these volcanoes which are still considered active are Mt. Vulcan and Mt. Hibok-hibok having last erupted in 1953.
The Mt. Vulcan's eruption is said to be the reason of burying almost all the areas of Catarman, Camiguin including the former capitol's cemetery. Gravestones of the cemetery were still seen during low tide until the fourth eruption in 1948 that buried the area deeper by 20 feet which made it now the Sunken Cemetery. Today, all that remains of old Catarman are the ruins of an ancient Spanish San Roque church, a convent and a bell tower.
At the start of the tour I was praying that it will not be high tide as I want to see the cross point-blank range. lol. I have heard a lot of stories of friends and acquiantances of not being able to get "up-close and personal" with the white cross because of it. And you can just imagine how happy I was seeing the floor area of the cross, which means we can take pictures extremely near it.
As the site of the cross is a few meters away the coast, if you are somewhat bold and have your swimming gear with you, you can swim through the water up to the site or you can rent a boat. Valerie, treated us with the boat ride. Yay! lol.
When we got into the site you can see from afar the blustering mountains (Mt. Hibok-hibok and Mt. Vulcan), although hiding behind the clouds you cannot hide the fact that the two mountains are really colossal.
Reminder: Boat Rental Php100 - Roundtrip (max of 5 pax)
I forgot the name of our "bangkero" (boatman), but he's definitely nice and really knows a lot about the history of the place which in my opinion is really important. Also, he knows a lot about camera tricks! He's really awesome! He took several shots of Mark with the Mountain and with us. Although, the tricks are not new to me but his outputs are just admirable. The guy is really fun to talk to and really entertaining.
Check out some of his shots below!
Our boatman was just plain crazy taking pictures that it almost drained the battery of my digital camera. lol. After a while we decided to go back to the main road and head to the next destination, just 5 minutes drive or less from the Sunken Cemetery you will see on the right side, overlooking the sea.
The Old Church Ruins - Made of coral stones, after the 1871 eruption, a convent and a bell tower of San Roque church are all that remains in the Catarman area. Inside the ruins you will see an unfinished church where mass is held every week.
Reminder: No Entrance Fee. Only Donations.
The place is being maintained by the local government. I only wish they have like someone assigned to tour the visitors and let them know more about the fate of the place. The place may be small but I think the story behind it is unmeasurable.. Sinking almost the whole province because of a catastrophe is really something! I don't know.. maybe its just me being a history freak! lol.
Oh well, we stayed for 10-15 minutes and then went back to the road again and found ourselves changing our outfit to take some plunge at the Ardent Hot Spring. Expect the water to be lukewarm to 40°C warm, depending on tiers or layers, as the water is heated by the volcanic activity of Mt. Hibok-hibok. I counted and there are like 6 pools in the hot spring. The grounds are clean and well maintained. The facilities are orderly. The place has huts too that you can rent for picnics.
Reminder: Entrance Fee: Adult - Php30 ; Kids: 15
Okay, so my friends are a bit Germaphobic, we had to stay at the top tier hot spring because it's where all the water of the spring starts. They were joking that they don't wanna stay in the middle and most definitely not on the last tier 'coz all the inevitable "germs" (urine, spit) of the people are stuck on that part. lol, I never really thought of that! hahaha. Such crazy friends I got, huh?! lol.
Anyway, we enjoyed the place as the temperature of the water relaxes you. I like sitting/stepping on the boulders in the middle of it 'coz I can relax my feet after the whole day of walking. FYI, we have been awake since 2am. lol.
People have started to flock in our tier, and we started making fun of it that maybe they realized too the logic of the "germ-flow" lol. Hey, I am not saying that the pool is not good. It's just a joke that my friends have thought. Also, most of the time Ardent Hot Spring is the last stop of tourist doing city tour as one can relax after a long day of stroll, so expect several people on late afternoon to dusk. Oh and by the way in my opinion the place is a lot nicer in the evening especially when the pools are lit up.
Reminder: Bring towels to warm/cover you up after you ascend from the water as it can get really cold
The sun was about to set when we arrived back to the resort. The view was spectacular! The sky was burning red orange as the sun sets. Despite feeling cold as I haven't changed yet, I had to stay outside our room and take a picture of the view. Seeing it makes you appreciate The Creator more.
It's almost dinner time and my friend ordered over the phone and requested to have it served again at the Gazebo. We ordered, Sizzling Sisig (Parts of pig’s head and liver, seasoned with calamansi and chill peppers served in hot plate), Pakbet (Vegetable dish with fermented fish) and Crispy Pata (Deep fried pig knuckles). I know... It was a sinful night. lol. It's like we are a walking heart-attack waiting to happen that night. lol.
So after dinner we changed to our Pyjamas - Jaydee and Val were too tired they retired early. While I spent my time at the gazebo, painted my nails orange and had a Margarita and beer with Mark.
It was a satisfying day. We accomplished a lot of things on our Day 1 of vacation which is what we have planned as we do not want to waste our vacation leave. lol. Wait till you see our Day 2. Beach! Beach! Beach! And I mean powdery white sand beach! I'm excited!
