Snorkeling at Puerto

"Amazing..." This is how I will describe this trip to Puerto Galera. We had month-long planning with at least seven friends where we identified not just one but several destinations --- Boracay, Pansol, Palawan, Vigan but ended up going to Puerto Galera in one cloudy weekend, totally unplanned (ha ha).

Why Puerto Galera?

I only have three reasons why we ended up going to Puerto that fateful Saturday:

1. It is cheaper than BORA but has similar night life.


2. It has still good reefs for diving or snorkeling.


3. It is a place where all the three of us have never been to.

Plus, it is not that far from Manila (130 kilometers away or 14 nautical miles from Batangas according to the Department of Tourism brochure that we picked out at the pier).

Getting There

We took the bus at Buendia (near LRT Station) station at around 6 a.m. (antok-antok pa kami) and slept throughout the trip. We boarded off at the Batangas Pier after almost two hours and boarded the catamaran to Mindoro. From the Sabang point, we rented an outrigger banca (cheaper but scarier because you will get all wet and if windy, you will be fearing your wits out "na baka tumaob ang bangka"). When we get to Sabang, we found it a bit too crowdy with almost drunk divers for our taste (plus, the beach front is so-so) so we decided to go to a much friendlier White Beach and stayed there throughout our stay.

Gimiks at Puerto

One thing if you are travelling unplanned, do not spend all your money on pricey accommodation. We rented a not so grand apartelle few kilometers away from the pricey ones at the beach front and used our savings to buy "anik-aniks (small gift items)" for family and friends, to try the restos, to go down on fabulous Mindoro dishes, to go snorkeling (but the water is quite salty --- your skin is whitish when you get to shore and some of the fishes were territorial) or banana boating and to relax on a two-hour massage at the beach (hayyy!).

Snorkeling Dos and Don'ts

Dos
Negotiate and bargain (the prices of the boat are usually marked up for gullible and rich tourists). It helps if you are pretty, too! The boatmen are more accommodating to lower their price hehe.
Bring food for the fishes (bread will do) unless you want to be their meal.
Bring your own gear --- you are not sure how many mouths and saliva that rented mouthpiece has been to (eeeWW!)
Have fun (rain or shine) and the fishes will love you, too!

Don'ts

Do not forget your sunscreen (at least SPF 30) unless you want to be a negra bandida when you go back to Manila.
Do not be afraid to try it even if you do not know how to swim. The boatmen will guide you if your friends get too busy with feeding the fishes and totally forgot all about you. Plus, the life jacket will bouy you up no matter what.

When life takes an unexpected turn or with little surprises, seize it. That is what I have learned when I took the trip with Shiela and Jess to Puerto Galera.