Trip Up North to Pacifico, Making Stops Along the Way to A Good Surf

True to my word I was down at the lobby at exactly 9am, I got ready despite being so tired and wanting an extra hour of sleep. None of the guys were responding, my guess was that they slept through their alarms, I would've too if I didn't feel bad enough for stealing a ride and being hauled around the island, so I took the time to call my grandma and it was so good to talk to her. I had a solid conversation with her before they walked out around 10am.

Louis had an issue with his laundry, needing to pick it up the morning before we left, Zane was struggling getting a bike rental for all sorts of reasons, and Edu was planning on leaving early but also opted for the extra sleep. So, the four of us left at 11am.

Thankfully Zane had to stop at Happiness Hostel to pick up a bike, which happened to be across the street from Goodies, the place I got the incredible smoothie yesterday. I convinced the guys we needed some brunch before our journey, and them obliging, we sat down for a quick meal. Obviously, I ordered the drink again, but sadly they didn’t have a lot of vegan options for breakfast so I got a side of toast with olive oil. It was the most embarrassing thing to have to eat, a bare bones meal because that's all I could have. But we joked and laughed it off, plus I'll admit it was kinda nice just having some toast, a typical breakfast of mine anyways.

Finally, we were off on our adventure. We thought it would be fun to make some stops along the way and I was so ecstatic about this because that meant that I could see more of the island. Our first stop wasn’t a very lively one, refueling on gas right outside of the city, but then we were off, in line to make our way to our first stop, Tayangban Cave.

Before getting to the cave, we pulled over on the side of the road to admire the beautiful coconut viewpoint. I saw it on my way from the airport thinking it was gorgeous, but my appreciation for it grew even more when the guys were in love with it as well. I understood why every time we passed this spot, we would pull over, as I was willing to stand there staring at it forever. I didn’t want to get back on the bike because it was that gorgeous. 

But we had to get up north sooner rather than later and off again we went. We drove about 15 minutes and rain starting coming down. Lightly at first but with building intensity. We were only two minutes from the cave so we took the rain and parked at the cave entrance to wait it out under the canopy. We waited for about 15 minutes for the rain to let up when Edu suggested that we should just do the cave now because we will be getting wet either way so we might as well. And we did just that. 

We strapped up our helmets and flashlights, and the four of us with our guide went in the cave. It was a mix of stepping between rocks and wading in the water. I was in the front and the closest one to the guide so I could see where to put my feet. The guys behind me struggled a bit more as we were all staggered in line making our way through this cave. It was kind of hard to walk through and you didn’t really want to swim it because you could hit your knee easily, so I just mimicked the footsteps of my guide and left it there.

In this cave lived thousands of bats. You could see them hanging from the ceiling and when the guide splashed water at them they would disperse and fly in all different directions. It was a long cave and we kept making our way through it until we got to the other side where it opened up into a small swimming area, and then through one more narrow pass into a watering hole with a rope swing, jump tower, and a wooden swing. Already in the cave pool was a group of rowdy filipinos and they were hyping us up as we did the rope swing over and over. I also did the high dive which was so fun. I loved this little lagoon we were in, it felt super private and fun to just play around. 

We stayed there for probably longer than most do, the guys going back to the rope swing to try cooler or harder tricks each time. I was just staring at my surroundings, in awe of the beauty and overjoyed with how my day was going so far. I am so happy I met the guys the night before, and that he agreed to take me on the back of his bike for the adventure today. When we did all we wanted to in the cave pool, all we had to do was cross the road and we were back where we started. So, the cave was literally just underneath the main road, crazy when you think about it like that.

We grabbed our stuff and hopped back on the bike for our next stop, the tide pools. The rain had thankfully stopped when we were walking through the cave. It wasn’t too far away, Edu was up in the front leading the pack and giving directions. When we got really close to the entrance, Louis was behind Edu and I even tried to help look for it, and I saw an entrance sign but wasn’t exactly sure if it was the right one so I thought we’d just follow Edu, but then he disappeared. Louis passed it thinking Edu didn’t turn in, I wasn’t sure because I didn’t perfectly see where Edu went, so we thought he went well passed it so we waited up front for him for forever.

After 10 minutes waiting for Edu, having time to try jackfruit from the locals, he texted back saying he was already inside, he snuck through the entrance, which I see how he was able to do that as there was a large bus entering at the same time he did, hiding his bike and getting home free. Sneaky Spanish man. We met Edu in the water, there were a lot of other tourists there, but when we walked away from the main area, it was a lot less crowded. The tide was still pretty high when we went, so it didn’t have the same effect as how we should have properly seen it in low tide, but it was still cool jumping in and out of the different tide pools. I really enjoyed this stop, it was gorgeous and something I hadn’t done before. We practiced our dives, having to teach Zane. We also swam a ton and we met up with Khay because she was doing her own tour of the island and stopped here to join us for a moment. But, she was headed back to General Luna that night and I was tempted to ask if I could join her for the ride back, but we hadn’t even gotten to our final destination and I did really want to surf in the north, so I thought I’d stay put with the current plan.

We concluded our last stop at the Magpopongko Tide Pools and headed for our final destination, Pacifico. We were hoping to surf tonight, but since we arrived so late, 5pm, and I was pretty tired from the packed day along with being quite hungry (having only eaten the toast and smoothie today) I decided to just hang on the beach and save the surfing for the next day. Zane is also a beginner surfer and didn’t want to go out tonight, so us two sat on the beach and chatted while Louis and Edu went into the water. They both didn’t need lessons so it was easy for them to rent a board and just go out. For Zane and I, I feel like you have to be in the right mental state to take a lesson and now wasn’t the time.

The weather was nice and the ocean was beautiful to look at, so staying on the beach was a best second option. And it was great to get to know Zane a little more, a fellow American but with such a unique trajectory of life, planning on living in Asia, traveling now to decide where exactly he wants to settle down for the rest of his life, crazy. It’s people like this that make me feel like my three month trip is pennies in comparison to some of the travel others do. Speaking of which, the day I arrived in the Philippines marked two full months traveling Asia, now being on leg 4 out of 5 of my trip, the Philippines. I have just one more leg left after this one, Hawaii with my mom. Wow has time flown by but also I feel like I have lived a whole another life in the last two months. The movement of time is a strange process.

When the guys finished up surfing, we were on the hunt to find a food place along with a homestay for the night. Us all being starved prioritized finding a restaurant, and there we would look for accommodation for the night. No part of me wanted to find a place to stay, the pressure was too high to make a mistake in doing so for the guys, so I was glad that Edu took the lead on that. 

We got dinner, it wasn’t anything special whatsoever, I ordered a curry and it came out tasting like literal gravy, it was so strange. But while at dinner, we were joined by a friendly cat that Zane cuddled, Louis did some surf balance practice, and Edu was busy on the accom hunt. I was just sitting there quietly not feeling the need to say anything as I was so exhausted I don’t think it would have come out in gibberish. Once we got the food though my energy came back more. 

Edu found us a great place to stay for the night, an affordable homestay close to the surfing beach and along the main stretch of town. We finished our meals, headed there, and thankfully having packed an overnight bag in anticipation we would likely not make it back to General Luna for the night, we bunkered down there for the night.

The next morning, I had an alarm set to go surf around 8am, hearing that was when the waves would be at its prime, and settling on that time with the guys to meet there then. But, we all slept in until 9am, and it ended up being just Louis and I that made it out to the beach to surf. The waves were looking pretty weak when we arrived so I wasn’t sure if I wanted to surf, I was so tired that part of me thought it wouldn’t be worth it. Plus I forgot my wallet and felt bad about making Louis pay for it. I stared out at the water deciding if I wanted to do it, but when Louis came back from arranging his board rental and I was about to tell him I didn't think I'd do it, he said he had just paid for it. And just like that the decision was made for me, let's surf. 

I am glad I did though because even though the waves were weak, it felt so good to be out in the water and I felt like I improved from my last lesson which was a great feeling. I really enjoyed this lesson, it was much calmer than Canggu and that made it all the worth with my energy levels. The lesson was only one hour and it was the perfect amount of time. To pass the time to wait for big enough waves to catch, I would check on Louis to see if he was catching any waves and then I was also chatting with my instructor about all sorts of things, the main topic being NBA, him knowing where Minnesota is because of Anthony Edwards, GOAT.

After the surf, Louis and I met back up with Edu and Zane for breakfast. We grabbed food at a place nearby, I got a smoothie bowl and the guys all feasted on the most random meals like fish wraps or chicken curry (let me remind you this was breakfast). Because we checked surfing off the morning agenda, we thought we would maybe lounge for a bit by an oceanside pool, ideally in the shade, or check out a new beach, but as we hopped around the different places nearby, nothing beat the Pacifico Beach we surfed at. Edu went out to surf again, Louis fell asleep, Zane wandered around the beach, and I read my book. We stayed there for a few hours, taking shelter under a palm tree, but as the protection was spotty and the sun moved to us now being fully exposed, we got burnt up quickly. We had stayed there a while just chilling, but knowing there wasn't much more to do up north, so we decided it was time to migrate back south to General Luna.

Around 3pm, we hopped back on the bikes and made our way back down to town. We loaded up on the sunscreen, but still, it was a terrible time to be on the bike in the full sun. Thankfully, my skin has gotten strong against the sun here so I ended up being fine, but it took some other victims, my fairer-skinned friends.

We made one stop at the bridge, the guys on the hunt for a red horse shirt (famous local beer) and fueling up on an avocado shake. The bridge was over a nice river that you could kayak or paddle board down. The guys had already done it and that was something I missed doing while here because I didn’t have anyone to join me and I didn’t want to make them repeat it for my sake. But that was alright with me, all summer I did sightseeing and activities, what I did in Siargao was a fresh change I needed.

By the time we returned, it was getting close to sunset. Instead of going to our hostels, we went straight to the sunset bridge to watch it there. I picked up some mango sticky rice and the guys got some other snacks from the local vendors lined up along the bridge and we enjoyed our food and the view. We got there well before the sun actually set, but I just talked to Edu the whole time, he was leaving tomorrow so it was nice to get to know him a bit better before he goes. When the sky finally got dark, we made plans to grab dinner and go out after.  

Of course we went back to Auntie Lisas, continuing my conversation with Edu as I ended up sitting next to him so we continued our conversation about business, consulting work, and psychology books. 

The bar for the night was Goodies, yes the same cafe we had breakfast at the morning before, they transformed it into a bar with a dance floor. They played EDM and it was really small space, so when I heard Joanne didn’t join us at Goodies because she went to Mama Coco for reggaeton night, I was quite compelled to go there. Khay, a huge reggaeton fan, helped me convince the guys to leave here and go to the Mama Coco for the rest of the time. 

We did make it to SBC as well that night, but before that the gang tried Balut, a filipino dish similar to a boiled egg, but worse, so sadly I had to record a video of them eating it. For your reference, this is what the google definition of Balut is: fertilized duck egg that's incubated for 17–20 days, then hard-boiled or steamed and eaten from the shell while the embryo is still partially developed. To make the matter worse for them, they all got more well developed ones, making it crunchier and no longer enjoyable, horrific almost.

They washed it down with a few more drinks at SBC, us all hanging out there before calling it a night around 2am. A fun routine we had in place, going out but in a way that was totally different from what I do in the states and some much more fun because you dance and sing and are surrounded by some great friends. Siargao grew on me, fast.