Boracay, a Holiday at the Perfect Time

August 22nd

This was my first full day in Boracay. Khay was set to fly in to join me here for a couple days, her plane arriving at night, but I don’t mind having all day to myself. I began the day with a morning walk along the beach. I had the idea that I would wake up early enough for sunrise, maybe swim... that plan fell through when the bed was too comfortable and I was still recovery from the lack of sleep but good fun in Siargao. I was just happy that I finally listened to my body because I really don’t want to stay tired. The last thing I need is to run my body to the ground because I want to finish off my Philippines tour on a high note. Its wild that I barely did any sightseeing in Siargao but that was probably my favorite stop. After hearing that everyone loved it so much, I had high expectations, but then to have the time I did, it met to them and more. I wonder if I didn’t meet my friends would I feel the same way about Siargao, I wonder, but I know for sure that I was beyond lucky for the people that were placed in my life for those 10 magical days on the island. But, how lucky AGAIN am I to now find myself in the most beautiful place on earth.

I really wanted to get some writing done so I went to breakfast at the Sunnyside Cafe, getting a bowl of oatmeal and coffee, and I wrote for three hours outside. It was so sunny and warm that I was sweating through my clothes and onto the seat, I was under shade but it didn’t help as much. This day was the most clear I had during my stay, I wish now that I would have done more during the very limited sunny hours I would have, but I did look up from my laptop a fair share and I had a view of the ocean so that was helpful to make me feel less guilty. It felt nice to finally have the time to put my memories to paper, while it is still fresh in my mind.

After, I wanted to have a proper beach day because once Khay came we would likely not have the same type of downtime knowing she would be high energy and wanting to do stuff all day. So, conveniently when I walked back towards my hotel, there were chairs open at the restaurant I had dinner at, so I asked what I had to do in order to get one, and they simply said order some food. Easy enough. It was lunch time anyways so I got the same dish I had for dinner and then I also treated myself to a mango shake, thinking I would be able to sip it by the chair, but apparently you had to eat at the table and then after you could use the chair. Lol, I inhaled them so that I could return to the chair. I spent my afternoon finishing my book, I was determined to read the 4 hours that I had left in it, and I had a system that after one hour of reading, slowly chipping away, I would give myself some phone time to sort through photos or contact and reach out to friends (current read: My Brilliant Friend). 

I did this routine for a while, chipping away at the book until there was only one hour left, and I crafted up all of my Siargao photos so that I could close the book and conclude that. Getting closer and closer to finally store away the Siargao memories and not have to keep them at the forefront of my mind. It was painful to keep it so close to my mind, as the majority of the memories involved my sweet friend group that I don't know will ever be reunited again.

I stayed there all afternoon that the sun was starting to set and I really wanted to get in the water. It was sunny all day, no one was on the beach because the sun was the strong and warm, but people were coming back out, me included. Thankfully the chair was under the shade so the skin stayed protected to the best of my ability. The ocean was calling me for a swim, nothing sounded better than a sunset swim. The sky looked beautiful for night two, it was so gorgeous that as I was swimming, looking to my left at the crystal blue water, the palm trees, and tall lush green hills in the background paint the most perfect spot on earth, I shed a tear. I cried tears of joy wondering how I was lucky enough to witness this beautiful, to be exactly where I am, as the person I am and the memories I hold deeply inside me. I feel like sometimes my life is too good, I’m too lucky, and I don’t deserve the things I’ve done and seen. It was one of those moments that I was reminded I was part of a small population of people fortunate enough to experience something such as this, and I cried from my absolute gratitude. The waves washed away tears, and thankfully I was in a less busy area of the beach so no one saw me and was worried. Because they should not be worried about me, but instead happy for me that my life has been such a dream, realizing it to the point I am brought to tears. 

The sunset was incredible, I stayed in the water as long as I could, until the sun went down and all that was left was a dark sky with a few remaining streaks of a deep orange, signifying that the sun was just one wave away from a goodbye for the night. I went back to my hotel, showered up, and got ready to greet Khay. She was set to arrive at 7pm, I was ready to go and waited for her at the beach entrance of my hotel so that I could make sure she found the right one and I could help her bring her stuff to my room. She was planning on staying just one night in my place, and then she got her own room, likely wanting her own space, but taking advantage of at least one free night of stay. 

She came in around 7:30pm, and then we headed straight to dinner. I was so happy to see her again. It was the perfect amount of time to be alone, a little under two days, having the time to refresh and do my introverted hobbies, but not long enough that I was getting lonely and antsy. 

We probably stayed at dinner for over two hours because we had so much to catch each other up on. My heart felt so full to be back with a friend, and crazy to think how close we got in such a short period of time. So grateful that Khay joined me for Boracay to share and relish in beauty this island radiates.

August 23rd

I woke up around 7am, she was up before me but waited in bed until I was awake. We got ready and wanted to go to breakfast to get our day sorted and figure out what we would do. She was thinking about free diving or scuba diving, I didn’t want to do either so I had to think of how to kindly turn it down. It worked out perfectly though because turns out that my scheduled book club meeting with my friend was at 10am, meaning that while I was doing that, she could do her diving trip. Before though, we went to Maruka cafe, I recommended it because I went to Sunnyside the day before, and this was the other one that was close but different place to try something new. We both ordered smoothie bowls, mine wasn’t nearly as good as it should be, I feel like I’ve had so many smoothie bowls here that I know what a good one tastes like and what a bad one does, getting that way with coffee as well. Mine was really icey and watered down with limited toppings, so that’s 0/2. She liked her and when she let me finish it, it was much better than mine. 

I took my book club call once she left, and it was great to be able to call and talk to Cole again. I love that we have a reason to call, I treasure that friendship more than I think I realize at time. We are similar in many ways and having a person to share those commonalities with is so nice. We spent more than half the time catching on up our lives, mainly because we both had big life changing things going on in our lives right now. Him telling me about the beginnings of his job and me him about my travels. 

We did get around to talking about the book, and our call was touching three hours and we had only gotten through the first 4 chapters. We always have stories with each highlighted quote and that adds up our airtime. We decided, as it was getting late for him that we would finish our book discussion another day. Likely when I get home from my trip as I want to make sure I am really taking in all I can while I am here. I also felt bad for staying at this restaurant for the entirety of my morning, at least we got the best table with an amazing view. During our call I found myself just staring at the view. I showed him where I was so I think he could understand my lack of eye contact as he would probably be the same. He even did some laundry during our call, you just gotta do what you have to, so we both didn’t take the others' distractions personally, but likely respected them for it. Hashtag multitasking. 

I left Maruka to walk just a few steps so that I could get some lunch before I began my beach day, leaving me no reason to have to get up from my spot and disrupt precious laying out time. I sat at the same spot, got the same waiter who thought I would want the oatmeal again, but I switched it up on him and ordered the Chorizo Burger. I only stayed so I could eat, and after wiping of my fingers, I got up to pay so that I wouldn’t waste and more moments at restaurants when I should be oceaning. 

I was thinking of getting a lawn chair again, but I found a cozy spot in the shade, laid out my towel, and grabbed my kindle with complete determination that I would finish this book. That I did, and then I also did some serious instagram work. I swam as well, would go to shore to dry off and then go and do it again. The water was warm and beautiful that I knew I would be so mad at myself if I looked back at this trip to realize that I almost never swam. In the late afternoon, Khay met me at the beach spot, we sat there for a moment, but then eventually got up so that we would have time to get ready and take photos before sunset. We both showered and slapped on some makeup, I grabbed my camera and we put her to use. 

We had the most fun photoshoot ever, hyping each other up and capturing the best shots. It also happened to occur at the same time the sky turned pink and the water still a light blue. When I say this place is perfect, I speak no lies.

Once we got all our photos in, we went back to our breakfast place for dinner. I got the falafel bowl, it was really fresh and very good, but it left me a bit hungry and I needed a dessert to cap off the meal. We went back to the thai place for some mango sticky rice. We decided to call it an early night so that we could get some rest. She did stop at my place to pick up her backpack and bring that to her place, leaving her big suitcase at my place to save herself from a long haul through the sand, understandable. 

August 24

Khay and I had plans to take photos in the morning. It was fun to do another shoot with her. After we went to Sunnyside Cafe to try the champorado. I went from morning skinnies to being too full. Not only did I share half the champorado, I also had my own meal of the mango chia pudding. The chia pudding had mint in the dish, I don’t know if I am getting a cold or if it was the fresh mint, but the rest of the day my throat was sore and my tongue was slightly swollen. Because I knew I couldn't have European gum, I didn’t think I would actually react to real mint too, but I did from this dish. Likely because there was a lot in there. I think I can have small amounts, but there was a decent amount in there that confirmed the fact that I am definitely allergic. 

Khay booked herself a jetski excursion, I didn’t really want to pay that much for something I could do at home, so while she was there, I was reading more. I finished My Brilliant Friend yesterday, and today I would start the third book of a Court of Wings and Ruin. This was a big book so to chip away at any part of it was great. 

It was rainy in the late morning, so we ate breakfast late, and then hung out at the pool at my place until she had to go jetski. When the rain lightened up, I left the pool and put my phone in the water protector and then sat in the ocean and read. There were a few others in the water with me, mainly kids. But a body of water and a book can never lead me astray. As the afternoon passed with my nose in a book, I met Khay at Nonie’s for a quick meal before the boat. I got vegan sisig and it was absolutely amazing. I also tried her mango kombucha and was in heaven, noted. 

We then walked around, in the direction of the port, and we had our eyes out for some shorts because she went to lunch straight from the jetskiing and didn’t have clothes with her. I also shopped around with her when she had her eyes set on a specific pair of pants she passed earlier. We had to hustle to the party boat, cutting it a bit close but after the three island tour in Siargao, arriving on time for a tour instead of early was no sweat to me. I was actually glad that we weren’t any earlier because we ended up waiting anyways around 30 minutes before the boat actually left its parked spot to set off at sea. 

When we got on the boat it was so dead. It was filled with families and not the vibe I was thinking it would be. Khay and I moved over and sat in the nets when the boat got moving, to change it up as she legit fell asleep waiting on the benches that we sat down at when we first got there. 

It was a nice boat ride, great views, but I was getting tired from the allergic reaction and the beautiful views were putting me into a trance in which I entered my deepest introspective thoughts. When we stopped cruising for swimming, I slapped my face a couple times and mustered every ounce of energy to hop in the water. I am really glad I did because the ocean brought me back to my state of happiness. 

The boat crew LOVED Khay and I. They auxed all my songs requests, they encouraged us to jump off the top of the boat, and they even gave us the paddle board to use for free. Jumping off the top of the boat was literally so much fun. I did one jump and then two dives. The last dive I did with Khay and it was fun to do together. We hopped on the paddleboard and there was only one paddle so I passenger princessed it as Khay navigated us. 

We returned to the boat for snacks and our cruise to the next stop, where we would watch the sunset. The sunset wasn’t anything crazy, it was a soft beauty and was very peaceful. We stayed there for a while, but then when we turned around was when the party started. The brightness from the sky fell and some color lights turned on in the boat and the staff starting boogying, pulling us in and just like that we got the boat dancing and grooving. It was actually so much fun dancing with everyone, there were some other fun boat members, a couple from Korea that knew how to get down, Khay and I obviously gave it our all, and the rest of the younger crowd joined in with the boat crew. One thing Filipinos know how to do well is party, but when they party, they sang and dance to their greatest ability. It was most fun with the crew and I’m super happy they joined in with us. They also had some spiked juice and were feeding it to people on the dance floor, they were opening it up for people to come in the middle and dance. This was the moment I realized I don’t have a signature move for moments like this, and I would pick one up for here on out. 

We got dropped off around 7pm and had a spa appointment at 8pm, so we just chilled at my hotel, a nice regroup having to go from drinking and partying on a boat to a calming massage. I ordered up a swedish massage, hearing mixed reviews about it from friends but hoping that it would still be relaxing. They didn’t have many massage type options, I kinda wish I was back in Bali and could get a balinese massage, but the swedish massage ended up being very similar to it, just a bit more pressure. 

It was a proper spa day, we got our feet washed before entering, to pick our massage oil of choice, Khay and I both going with the soothing lavender, and then having a nice private room for our massages. The hour always fly by, but I tried to relish it as much as I could, one of my last ones very likely. 

It was Khay's last night so we went back to her favorite place for dinner, Maruka, and we both got the vegan burger. I wasn’t too hungry but we got this massive burger. I don’t know why, but I finished it, regretting the last few bites that were kinda soggy from sitting in my hands for so long and being coated in the ketchup I doused on top. But, delicious it was and it made my night that Khay wanted to eat vegan with me. That means a lot when people make an effort around it, even when they are understanding about it is already more than I could ask, so this was so sweet of her. I am really going to miss her, to be real, all of the Siargao crew has a hold on my heart and I am so bummed we came together and just like that we were apart again. But at least I had them then, and I can have hopes for a reunion one day!

After dinner, she came back to my place to grab her suitcase, we exchanged photos and chatted, and then I had another hard goodbye, giving her like three hugs and thanking her for joining me and letting her know how much her friendship meant to me. We did make some plans to meet again in Manila when I am there the night before my flight, so I have that to look forward to which made the goodbye a lot easier. 

August 25 

I was alone again, and that meant that my introverted hobbies were going to come out strong. I woke up early, around 6am thinking I would go for a sunrise swim. I did just that and it was so refreshing. I spent the morning in and near the water. Because I was so full from the vegan burger last night, I delayed my breakfast for a while. I was convinced I wouldn’t even eat until dinner, but the thought of breakfast at Sunnyside was too tempting, so I found myself there around 10:30am ordering the horchata and champorado. It was sweet and filling, but I picked at it as I journaled. I sat outside for a while meaning that I could enjoy the view while writing, but then the weather starting to take a turn south, so they moved me inside, and it no longer being the vibe I was going for, I knew it was time to head back outside and enjoy my last few hours in on a beautiful Boracay beach.

Before laying out for the day, I grabbed my camera and walked up and down the beach a few times getting all the shots. I had some nice iPhone photos, but this place was too beautiful to pass up capturing it with my camera. After all my photos were taken, I went back to the nearby restaurant with the chairs, got a coffee as it was the cheapest thing on the menu, and then plopped down on the chair for the afternoon. I was thinking I would read, but what would I do instead? Write. I had all of Siargao to talk about, and so with my laptop on my legs, for the next four hours I journaled. In total during my time in Boracay, I wrote almost 50 pages. I was so happy to be able to do that while enjoying being outside. It’s funny because this is the exact image I have in mind when I say that I want to move to the beach and work from home. Literal laptop on legs, in a swimsuit, outside enjoying the view. Hopefully this is me manifesting that reality for my future. 

I kept daydreaming all day, about who I wish was there with me and how I hope my future will look like this in some way. A chill beach, living so close to the water, and water so clear, blue, and beautiful. Sunsets painting the sky, a relaxing atmosphere, and beauty surrounded. I have this place bookmarked as the vibe I am going for. As much as I could just move here, I don’t think Boracay is logistically the smartest move for me, but having this feeling in mind when I am on the hunt is huge, looking for something with the same appearance and pace as this island. My travels turned into research, the Philippines have done me well in this way. 

I journaled until the sun was starting to set, so I packed up and found a nice spot in the ocean to take a dip, wanted to do so once more before the night comes. Because I was so full from brunch, I didn’t have any lunch, making me ready for a proper dinner. I stayed in Boracay for about 5 days, and I think I only went to 4 different restaurants. When you find something good its hard to pass up. So, I would return to Nonie’s, I was thinking I would try a new dish, but I wanted something light, and what I had yesterday was so good and the perfect level of filling. So, I went there, got my vegan sisig with rice, and I treated myself to mango kombucha. It was the best kombucha I’ve ever had, and well worth the order. Plus, I didn’t forget about my promise to myself that I could treat myself my last night in a city. 

While I was at the cafe I called my sister and it was so lovely talking to her again. I love that our relationship has developed into a friendship, one that has understanding and love. I feel like when we were younger, as every sibling relationship goes, was less about those things. But, I think now we both appreciate the others' open ear and opinion. I really appreciate having my sister to go to for anything, and I hope that she feels as I can be the same for her. 

I walked around the shops after dinner, seeing if there were any souvenirs I should pick up before leaving, but when I popped in the headphones and selected my singing playlist, I was vibing more to the music, singing along under my breath, that no part of me wanted to interrupt that state. I enjoyed my walk home, in my own world with my favorite tunes bumping in my ears. I returned back to my hotel, threw on my favorite episodes of friends, and relaxed for the last time in the most comfortable bed ever discovered.