When my alarm clock went off at five-thirty in the morning, I was startled to see natural light seeping through the small opening in the window curtain. It had rained heavily the day before and all through the night. In my mind, I had already filed the prospect of a sunny island exploration around the Calamian Islands into the cold case folder. So how could I complain about the way things had unfolded up to that point? Lauren and I, on the other hand, were still subconsciously fumbling with our romantic fate at the time. A Lumineers song moment had been developing all along, and things were about to get even better on this particular day.
Chapter 2: Hula-Hoop Coron Island Hopping
A Sunny Start and Unexpected Companions
The sun suddenly shone brighter than a midsummer day as I finished my plate of danggit-silog. We followed it up with a sweet lowdown cheer and four imaginary under-the-table low-fives. The tour we took was Coron Island Tour Option Two and included Siete Pecados, Twin Peaks, Banol Beach, CYC Beach, Coral Garden Reef, Skeleton Wreck, and Twin Lagoon.
While we waited for our boat to take us around Coron Island, a middle-aged American from Colorado sat near our table, resembling the Delacroix inmate brutally executed in the film The Green Mile. He was clearly a well-traveled man, and he began the conversation by pointing to Ron's sleeveless shirt while completely ignoring his muscled biceps.
"Do you like Beer Lao?" he asked Ron, who replied favorably.
The ensuing conversation between Ron, Monette, Lauren, and the American guy, Richard, revealed that he worked in construction back home in Colorado and had a lawyer son who, he said, "is a grown man and can take care of his own," justifying how he spent his time nowadays just traveling the world.
Stories Shared Over Calm Waters
He had already been to many of the places I had put on my own list of must-visit destinations. From Southeast Asia, India, and China, to Somalia and Ethiopia—where he once spent three days holed up in the middle of nowhere, unable to leave town due to a lack of transportation. He appeared to have a plethora of extreme travel stories to share with strangers who were willing to listen.
Like-minded travelers are frequently bonded by these brief exchanges of on-the-road experiences. Even when huddled together in a teetering boat, there is an undying interest in hearing each other's stories. Although I prefer to share my travel stories in writing rather than verbally, this does not mean that I am uninterested in hearing about everyone else's.
Shipwrecks, Sea Turtles, and Island Feasts
We went crazy with the snorkeling, feasting our eyes on the vibrant corals all around us. Monette, the slowest swimmer among us, was rewarded by being the one dragged by our boatman Russell's right-hand man, Voltaire, who was using a floating device David Hasselhoff and Erika Eleniak used to carry around in Baywatch. While the rest of us saw schools of fish, brain-like corals, and other sea creatures, Monette outdid us all by spotting a large sea turtle.
We had lunch at Banol Beach. Fresh crabs and pork liempo were laid out in front of us like a buffet. Lauren, a non-vegetable eater, told us that this was her first time eating a torta-cooked eggplant, and her second time eating crabs—after sampling curacha crabs in Zamboanga a few months ago.
After lunch, we snorkeled at a site where a shipwreck from the end of World War II had sunk. The waters surrounding the Calamianes group of islands in Coron are littered with them, having been the site of a fierce naval battle in the waning days of the war. These skeleton ships now serve as our ghostly link to the past. The sky was clear, and the chance of rain quickly dropped to one percent. We were having so much fun island hopping in the sun that Lauren mentioned to Monette that she already had a "cutey tan-line."
A Drenched but Smiling Return
We saw a group of mackerel fish jumping and flying out of the water before arriving at our final destination, the Twin Lagoon, with one hungry shark hot on their tail. A lone bird in the sky was also attempting to catch one of the fishes. It was a fascinating experience to see a natural food chain unfold right in front of our eyes.
A heavy downpour began as our boat approached the port of Coron. We had to dock our boat a little further away and climb out into another docked boat before reaching the jetty ramp. Shaking in the cold and drenched in rain, one might think we were cursing the heavens for such bipolar weather showmanship. We didn't, because all we had on our faces were massive smiles.
Explore the Full Journey
Read Chapter 3: Lightness of Meeting Old Love in Coron
