The Clouds, Sun and Sand (Camotes Island ) Part 3 Final

The rain eventually stopped and day turned to dusk. The entire day's excitement got us all hungry again and it was just in time for another early dinner. The resort's resto was open. We browsed through their menu and it was almost identical to the one from Santiago Bay Garden Resort. We found out that both establishments are actually owned by the same person.

After ordering and eating, I went back to the room to get a little rest. While I was busy laying on the bed, my roommates weren't too eager to rest yet so they went exploring the new resort, and here's what they've captured.

Sunset at Mangodlong

This is the best we can get with the camera. 

Before we proceed with the rest of the story, I suddenly remembered something that I must not miss to tell you. Let's rewind a little to the time we went to that magical pool inside the cave. As we carefully made our entrance to the dome that housed the clear pool, there was a group who was just about to leave. Anybody who had a camera who would see that scene will surely activate the reflex to press the shutter. And that's exactly what my roommates did. When the guys who were just going out of the water noticed this, they made comments in the Cebuano dialect about us. What's wrong with these pals? Are they not aware that we can understand them? They definitely mistook us as foreigners, so when my roommate made a comment in the dialect, they carefully made their exit trying to conceal the awkward looks in their faces. We thought it was all because of the limited light inside the cave but w e were wrong, because the second time someone greeted us with a loud "Anyeong!", it was done under the bright sun, while walking on the edge of a cliff. Did we really look like foreign tourists? You'll be the judge to that. But surely it was "wee" bit flattering.

So, going to the present part of our story I got really bored when they were not back after 40 minutes. I was wondering what they were up to this time and I didn't want to miss out on anything fun so I went out to join them. Indeed, they were playing with camera. Sometimes it pays to have an entry-level DSLR because you can play with a lot of features. When you set the shutter speed between 5 - 15 seconds, you can capture light at different parts of the frame. Here is what we've come up with.

Cebu lights ahead..

An attempt to make the perfect heart..

Almost perfect!

Finally, something went right!

Someone is learning to spell their name right.

A bear with a balloon.

The powerful Azi!

Ohhhh!

The sky that evening was clear and dark. It was perfect for stargazing. I should not miss to share this part that I enjoyed most while in Camotes. The dark sky makes a perfect background for the stars shining like tiny pieces of Christmas lights illuminating this giant ceiling. It was as if it was never cloudy and rainy in Camotes, ealier that day. It appeared to me as if there were more stars in Camotes than anywhere else. You can make out countless patterns and constellations and name it after yourself. We were in awe with the variety of colors we saw in the sky which would look plain and usual in the city. Could it be that all this time when we've had plain dark skies, they were all here on a vacation in Camotes? hmm, I bet stars can't get enough of the view as well.

I guess we've made the most of our night in Mangodlong that we slept very soundly, but that doesn't mean we can't make the most of the morning that followed. We had partly cloudy skies the next day, so we headed straight to the beach. The white sand in Mangodlong was finer and whiter than Santiago Bay. It was as if they got a bleach treatment for each grain to look perfectly white under the midday sun. But still, nothing beats the wide and vast shorelines of Santiago Bay.Nevertheless, we had good times in Mangodlong savoring the crystal waters and bathing under the warm sun.

Aang, is that you?

What is he trying to do?.. Call upon the gods?

Finally, we had to set out and say goodbye to this mini paradise for now. At noon we were already packed headed for Consuelo port. This time the place was peaceful and empty. It was hard for us to believe that this was the same place, filled with people welcoming us and eager to take us to our respective destinations when we first set foot in Camotes. We came here as celebrities and now we leave as civilians. Well so much for the drama, we had a good 2 hours to relax and eat something to fill our hunger. Soon enough we were aboard the ferry taking us back to mainland Cebu, showing us a view of Camotes island, slowly fading under the cloudy skies. 

THE END.

Moment of Truth!

Bus to Danao Port- P50

Barge to Camotes Island- P180 

Habal-Habal to Santiago Bay-P50

Room in Santiago Bay Garden Resort (P1200/3)- P400 

Island Tour- P500/Habal-Habal

Gasoline Charge for Habal-Habal- P250 (good for 2 motor)

Lake Entrance- P15

Cave Entrance- P15

Buho Rock Entrance- P20

Mangodlong Rock Resort Room (P2,200/3)- P730

Multicab to Consuelo Port (P200/3)- P67

Camotes to Danao- P180

Danao to Cebu City- P50

Food Allowance- P500

Total: P3,007/ per 3 persons (3Days2Nights)

We hope you enjoyed browsing! If you have the time, don't miss out on Camotes Islands as one of your must see destinations when you visit Cebu. Create your own adventure! 

Don't forget to leave comments  below. We like to know what you think. ;)