7.17.2011

EL NIDO | The Enchanting Lagoons

This is the second installment of my blog about El Nido. Being surrounded by magnificent islands, the best way to spend your day in El Nido is to go Island hopping. On our second day, we chose the Lagoon Tour that brought us to the unbelievable crystal clear lagoons of Palawan.

 
It was my first morning in El Nido and the sun was shining perfectly to start off the day. I had a good early walk by the beach and got a picturesque view of the Bacuit Bay while I enjoyed my hefty breakfast.

Omelet + Strawberry and Mango Jam!

The 'Lagoon Tour' is destined to visit the Big and Small Lagoon, Simizu, and Intalula Islands. We started our Island Hopping around 9 in the morning and the sea was pretty calm then.On the way to the Small lagoon, there are different islands you would see that have very unique shapes. I was able to spot one - the Helicopter Island (shaped like Helicopter). Our boatmen told me that it was the camp site of the recently held Survivor Israel. 

Helicopter Island
Going back to the itinerary, the first destination of the Island Tour was Small Lagoon. As we go near the entry point, I was EXTREMELY mesmerized how clear the water was. It was glowing! You could really see the corals and the rocks underneath. I was stoked to try the water so I suited myself with the life vest then jumped in to the water. Be sure to only bring a waterproof camera because I tried bringing a waterproof bag hoping that I could use my SLR in the lagoon but unfortunately the rock edges are sharp and no platform to get out of the water. Thus, you have to swim your way inside the lagoon with a very narrow opening.

 

Our guide was a very strong swimmer and showed us lobsters hiding inside the holes of the big rocks. At one end of the Small Lagoon, the water is warm and the corals are very alive. We stayed there for a while and I must say it feels like an enchanted place.

That's our guide James looking for Lobsters
Inside the Small Lagoon

I had a memorable experience I could share though. Swimming back to the lagoon's entrance I was snorkelling at fast phase with my arms stretched forward but then I realized there was something soft touching my fingers and when I looked ahead it was a WHITE JELLYFISH! Yeah, it's my first encounter with this sea creature! HAHA! We all know what jellyfish can do to our skin right? It can cause rash or sometimes burn our skin! But the funny thing here is that the Jellyfish  is one of those harmless ones plus it's already dead and has been partly eaten by the sea turtles. In short, False Alarm! ;)

That's the jellyfish and James wasn't even scared of it. >:(
After the jellyfish encounter, we swam back to the boat and headed to the Big Lagoon. The Big Lagoon was indeed larger than the Small Lagoon because our boat can already maneuver it's way inside. The entry point to this lagoon is extremely beautiful. The survivor tribal council was also held in the Big Lagoon as per our boatmen.


We were suppose to go to another lagoon - 'Secret Lagoon' however, the waves are pretty big and our boat won't be able to reach the shore.We turned back and carried on to Simizu Island but before we got there we passed by at one of the luxurious resorts in El Nido - Miniloc Island Resort. The resort do not allow outsiders so we cannot check out it's facilities but I was happy to see the signature water cottages they have.

Miniloc
We stopped at Simizu Island to take our picnic lunch then went snorkeling. This is where most of the tourists are taken because of the many coral reefs and fishes on site. I also had my second encounter with a jellyfish but this time it is very much alive and tailgating me as I swam towards our boat!

The Jellyfish from hell

The last stop of our island hopping was Intalula Island. One thing that is very noticeable in this island is the big mushroom-shape rock formation. The shore has the finest white sand with crystal clear water that is very much irresistible for an afternoon dip. We also bummed in this island until late afternoon and then back to Dolarog.

Another Jellyfish!
This ends my second day in El Nido, please come back again to check out my next blog about the Day 3- Snake Island Tour.

Until the next destination,
Teng

Previous Post: Day 1: El Nido Arrival

23 comments:

  1. It is indeed extremely beautiful...panalo ang 1st 3rd and 4th photos...ayos teng.:-).

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  2. Wow! I love the photos! I must visit El nido soon! Katakot ang jellyfish! :D

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  3. Just one word. WOW!

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  4. @Bonzenti - Thank you sir!!! :)
    @tina - hey thanks! yup! natatakot tlga ko jellyfish! the more you move, the more na lalapit cla syo. =S buti n lng tpos na ang jellyfish season when we went to El Nido.
    @Guest - BIG thanks! :)

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  5. Love your underwater shots!

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  6. Nong nandyan kami sa big Lagoon feeling ko nasa isang scene kami ng Lord of the Rings.:p Sa small lagoon naman madaming monkeys:) Kaw ba ung naka-Melo na jersey? Akin na lang.haha :p

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  7. sayang wala ako nkita monkeys sa small lagoon! ako nmn feeling ko nsa isang scene ako ng The Beach. hehe! yes sir ako yng naka-melo. bigay lang dn sken ng frend ko yan. :) fave mo dn pla sya. hehe! =D

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  8. Wow, these are stunning photos! Love ur blog. Will check out your other blogs. :)

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  9. wow! i LOVE your photos! sayang di niyo napuntahan ang Secret Lagoon! tama, kapag mataas ang alon/tide, hindi kayo makakapasok dun.
    how about secret beach - nakapunta kayo? :)

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  10. Nice photos Teng! They tell the stories :)

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  11. @lifeisacelebration - thanks a bunch and welcome to my travel blogs. :) hope to see you more here. :)
    @Brenna - hello! yup sayang nga ndi nmen sya napunthan maganda pa nmn yung secret lagoon. I've seen the secret beach on TV and it's paradise! next time i go to el nido i'll make sure i won't miss it. thanks for visiting this blog. :)
    @Tripadora - i'm really grateful that you see my photos that way. I really appreciate it!

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  12. I really really hate jellyfish! Ewww! Wonderful photos Teng. When we went there in 2009, we just took Tour A, which included the Secret Lagoon. I don't have pics because my cam was not waterproof. :(

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  13. Hi Aleah, thanks! awwww, balik ka na lang. :) there's more to discover aside from the tour A. :) ok din yung snake island sarap pagmasdan. :)

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  14. Hi Teng! Nice blog as always. Where is your snake island tour? Do you happen to visit secret beach? That is a popular one, I want to see your interpretation of that place.

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  15. Wow thank you! It feels extremely great to know that I got you interested with the way I project places. I appreciate it! I'll try to post my blog about the snake island this week. :) We were not able to visit the secret beach though because it's a separate trip and a bit far compared to the ordinary tours. It also has extra fuel charge to get there. I'll try visit that if have a chance to go back. I know its the perfect definition of paradise and really worth checking out. :) Anyway, thanks for checking my blogs coz it really motivates me to write and shoot more... Have a great day!

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  16. Sir Teng, may I humbly seek your permission to use two of your shots for my calendar to be distributed in El Nido? Proper acknowledgement will be accorded to your nice works.

    http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-l6eBvy6bmBA/TiJgSaa1FmI/AAAAAAAAAd8/GjCv2XSe7SA/s1600/KIM_4091+%252B2__+-2_tonemapped.jpg

    http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wflMBGH7B5M/TZBVu4zDe0I/AAAAAAAACUE/s_zVcGsQHZI/s1600/IMG_8556.JPG

    Thank you so much!


    Lyle B. Coruna
    lylepuerto@gmail.com

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  17. Hello Lyle,
    Yes sure. If that will help promote El Nido I have no problems with that. I dropped you an email as well.

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  18. Hello Teng,

    The print shop needs a higher resolution file. I hope you can help me with that. Thank you!

    Lyle B. Coruna
    lylepuerto@gmail.com

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  19. Replied to you via email. Please check. Thanks!

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  20. hi! ask ko lang po.. mga magkano po kaya magagastos sa mga tripping/island hopping/rooms food etc sa el nido? or ung nagastos nyo bukod sa plane? thanks in advance

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