BAIS CITY: PLAYING HIDE & SEEK WITH DOLPHINS

Aside from the Dumaguete trip we planned, we decided to take a little side trip to Bais City, a good 1 hour ride from Dumaguete, famous for their dolphin & whale-watching. This was particularly something that Mel has been pretty excited about. Dolphin is her all-time favourite animal, hehe. So early morning, we head off to the bus stop that would take us to Bais City. We paid P230 each. After an hour, we met up with Rebecca, the woman Mel contacted who provided us with the boat. Usually in order to get a hold of a ferry especially during these peak season (April & May), you contact the city government for reservations. They provide the Dolphin I,& II, Vania I & II and Horizon ferry (contact: 63 (35) 402-8174, 63 (35) 402-8040 and 63 (35) 402-8180.). It’s best to book it 1 month ahead. This was something that we didn’t anticipate so there were no available ferries by the time we called. The cost of renting the boat for the whole day is P4,000 for 20 persons (Dolphin I) & P3,000 for 15 persons (Dolphin II). Luckily, Mel got a tip to contact Rebecca, who owns a boat and she would willingly provide us with a boat for the day. Initially she charged the boat rent for P4,000, quite hefty for the two of us until later it was lowered down to P3,000,hehe. Normally, 15 people or more would crowd the boat so our boat seems empty with just the two of us & the two boatmen. But even with just the two of us, we could match the noisiness, embarrassing squeals & nonstop clapping of other ferries packed with 20 people. As we got into the boat, we were like giddy school girls ready for our dolphin adventure. The boatmen brought us into an area where some of the ferries to where there on a look-out for dolphins. Then suddenly, you would hear squeal from the other ferries and a couple of flippery-flaps on the water…. Dolphins!!! We would hurry to where they these gorgeous creatures are. They were magnificent, graceful and total show-offs…. Hehe… We couldn’t stop jumping, squealing, clapping, taking pictures & videos all at the same time. We were making so many commotions; people from the other ferries could help looking the two loony girls stumbling on the boat trying to get a shot of the ‘blue’ creatures.

After 3 hours of playing hide & seek with the dolphins, we were both satisfied little girlies. We were so happy that there were two dolphins that swam alongside our boat just showing-off their swimming skills. The other ferries weren’t as fortunate as us. After getting our dolphin fix, we headed to Manjuyod Sandbar. It’s this amazing strip of white sand in the middle of the body of water. The city government provided 5 cottages so people could go there to eat, hang out or use the bathroom. We indulged ourselves by dipping in their clear blue waters that just reached my hip area and I’m barely 5 feet! But during low tide, the sand would be devoid of water and you could just walk around its naked whiteness. But unfortunately we didn’t get to see that though. We ate our packed lunch at the boat. We could also asked for home-cooked seafoods & grilled pork if we have requested in advance. Next time maybe…hehe….

We rested a bit in the boat, just chatting & enjoying the cool breeze. After we having a bit of downtime, we headed to Talabong Mangrove Park, a 400 hectare protected mangrove where visitors has to walk this long narrow bridge leading up to the park. It was kind-of creepy there though. We could hear weird sounds everywhere and a sense of mysteriousness seems to envelop the place. The sun was scorching hot so we took as much photos as we can and headed back to dry land.

I felt I just had a refreshing spiritual shower after communing with nature; the dolphins, the blue waters, the sandbar, the mangroves, the birds, the plants, the sun….. It made me more inspired to help preserve our environment because I would love for the next generation to see all that too.

We were also so grateful how patient & efficient the boatmen who was with us. They manuevered the boat with precision and had an amazing eyesight in finding dolphins. All got 20/20 vision, these boatmen, I presume…. I guess these dolphins have been their playmates for years now. Mel and I went back to Dumaguete, recharged, rejuvenated and simply had a jolly good time under the sun. We even have the sunburn to prove it, hehe….