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

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