On
the third day, we woke up early and by 6am we were already at the terminal. We will be going to Eric’s place and I will
be staying there for the rest of my weeklong vacation. Our destination is the Paly Island at Taytay.
I
got amused at the mini bus which was our ride because the oversized jeepney is
similar to its size. The mini bus is
such an old school and one can right away tell that it has been servicing that
route for such a long time already and the proprietor barely pays attention to
some of its dysfunctional parts. Since
it was the only ride towards the town of Taytay, we need to be at the
station at the earliest possible time in order for us to secure a seat. When the seats run out, people had no
recourse but to stand and hold firmly to any strong metal railing inside the
bus for the whole duration of the trip.
That
particular time, the road to San Vicente, Taytay, and El Nido was under
construction. The locals were hoping
that the whole stretch of the road would be concreted since it is always their
headache because of the landslide and deep mud which makes the highway impassable.
Anyway,
since the travel time is long, there is a need for a stopover for people to
stretch and eat. We got anxious
afterwards when it was already time for the second stretch of our ride. The engine of the mini bus would not
start. The only remedy that time was the
collective effort and force of passengers where they pushed the bus to make it
start.
All
in all, we spent 8 hours of a long ride towards a barangay of Taytay. We got off the bus at a local pier at around
2pm and we waited for the family of Eric to be able to buy all their goods at
the nearby flea market before we rode a banca towards the island. And under a fair weather, we arrived safely
at the island in less than an hour.
I
met the family of Eric for the first time and the rest of their house help. The family that accommodated me for several
days owned several fish cages which house lapu-lapu and lobster. After several months of feeding the fishes
and the lobster and the moment they earned the desirable size and weight, they
would sell the live fishes and lobsters to a local trader which in turn will be
exported to the neighboring Asian countries.
The family likewise owned a sari-sari store and a hardware store because
the island seemed too small and the commodities are scarce.
After
settling down, we spent the rest of the afternoon and early evening staying at
the makeshift docking bridge of the family.
The environment is a refreshing one and there is no pollution to
complain about. Even without exploring
the island, I could sense that the way of life is simple and the daily
activities of the people evolve around sea.
I also happened to see a pair of hawks circling around the open channel
and they were able to bring home an early evening catch to their nest which is
located at a tree in the forested part of the island. Likewise, it was also full moon and the moon
was so huge when it appeared at the top of the mountain.
We
retired early and it was like I was transported back to the old ages where there’s
no electricity. The locals have
generators but they only operate that one when it is already dark and up to a
limited time only. The generated
electricity is used mainly for lighting and to charge cell phones and
flashlights. Since it is a small community,
the locals are mostly comfortable in sleeping even with their windows open for
the air to freely ventilate their homes.
Going to Paly Island
Paly Island
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