Manilla to Cebu
The start our journey from Oslob to Moalboal begins at Cebu airport after a very quick flight from Manila. I judge flights by how many episodes of Designated Survivor we can watch and this flight was barely 1 episode. From Cebu airport we needed to get to Oslob which was about 4 hours south. We managed to fend off a few taxi drivers as they were expensive. We found a cab and made him take us to the bus terminal. Travelling as a couple makes Public transport a lot less intimidating .
Cebu to Oslob
One of the things I was so excited about Travelling this time round, was the fact I was with Olly. I wasn’t going to have any fear in me, in a foreign country because I feel safest when I am with him. Cringe I know. Anyways back to the story. The taxi driver told us it would take 5/6 hours for us to get to Oslob via bus. He agreed to take us the whole way for a quarter of the price he originally quoted. Us being lazy we said yes, he had air con and in this climate that is a deal breaker. That and we didnt realise we had arrived on a holy day so the traffic was horrendous.
We arrived at our accommodation in Oslob and it was a lovely room which was very clean and had good aircon. The owners grand-daughter was the only person who could speak English. She helped us with all our questions and trips we wanted to do. She organised for us to be picked up the next day at 5:30 and we were in the water with the famous Whale Sharks by 6:15!
Swimming with Whale Sharks, should you, shouldn’t you?
This is a hugely controversial subject as many people do not agree with the fishermen feeding them for tourists and think it is changing the feeding habits of these Sharks. Others believe it is keeping this once endangered species alive. Make of is what you will but I would suggest going with an open mind. Both times I have swam with these giants I arrived in Oslob not convinced if I would take part. This time around, it seemed the locals have a much better structured interaction for tourists. They seem to be handling the influx of tourists well. I did no witness any sharks being touched or bashing into the boats which I did witness in 2017.
After this amazing experience we were really pooped so we took it easy and explored the town. There is literally 4 roads and that is it. We took the drone out and took some cool pictures of a heritage site we found. This was also our first encounter with locals and the drone. We had a crowd of people around us in a matter of minutes.
We ate pretty much all local food as Oslob is not accommodating for tourists to actually stay here. Most people that pass this town are day trippers to see the whale sharks but don’t stick around. We weren’t complaining as we were able to chill and try local food and had a very cheap few days. Me and Olly also managed to go to lots of local waterfalls which weren’t too busy as again this isn’t an area people stay in.
We managed to figure out we could get a local bus from Oslo to Moalboal. This would cost us £2 each so we waited at the side of the road and got talking to a local man. He thinks the whale sharks are a good thing bringing money into the area. that being said they are worried about water shortages, due to the amount of hotels going up in the surrounding areas. The water shortage happened 2 years prior and they had to shut one of the top tourist attractions, Tumalog falls, as the government needed to put the locals first and re-directed the water to the town. They have only just re-opened this waterfall to the public.
Pronounced Mo-ahl-bo-ahl
Once we arrived in Moalboal we got to our accommodation called Divers Lodge which was amazing. This small town is a lot more touristy than any other we had been too. It had a lot more western restaurants and pumping music, which isn’t great but it is beautiful. This town is a great place to meet other backpackers as it’s always busy.
What did we do in Moalboal?
Olly managed to buy me wet shoes which are saving my life one day at a time. I hate anything touching my feet in the sea. These shoes I can wear when we are climbing waterfalls or just going for a swim. Over the next few days we chilled on Panagsana Beach and rented some snorkels and spent all day snorkelling. We saw so many turtles which was insane. We saw the famous sardine run, which Olly managed to swim into. He is really good at diving down deep and holding his breath. This place is beautiful!!
Moped time!
We rented a moped and explored as much as we could. This was the first time I had ridden on the back of a bike that Olly was driving and I was very nervous. I know he was driving slower for me but this was actually the most fun I have ever had. Being able to have some freedom again by us having our own transport felt great. Being able to see everything and not having to concentrate on driving felt better haha. We took the moped to Kawasan falls and managed to beat the crowds. This meant we could take some good photos without anyone photobombing us. We always managed to take the bike to White beach which we sat on for hours just drinking and taking photos. Clearly our love for photography and drinking comes hand in hand when travelling with one another.
Meeting locals
On white beach we were about to go back to the car park and leave when a group of locals stopped us. They made Olly drink a suspiciously yellow drink. Me being an over protective girlfriend said to him ‘Make them drink it first’ because it was the colour of piss. They downed it and poored him another one.. turns out it was beer and they invited us to sit with them and drink. We sat with a huge group of guys who were celebrating their friends 21st birthday. These Filipinos had literally 100 family members and friends down renting huts on the beach. They were so funny and they were so excited to practise their English with us.
It is really true what they say, Filipino people are the nicest in the world. They wanted us to meet their wives/girlfriends and babies. We even got an invite to stay for dinner. We added them all on facebook to make sure we keep in contact with this crazy group of lads!
Filipino Locals
White Beach
Moalboal has been our favourite place so far, just because we havent paid for any big trips and we have done everything this area has to offer on our own, using our own transport or knowledge to save money but still managing to see the amazing wildlife and beaches this place is home to.
