{Shifting Tides} Dos Palmas Resort, Palawan

Last month, my Dad surprised us with this trip to an Island Resort. It was just what I needed, some sunshine and white sand. I was considering whether or not I should blog about the trip because I wasn’t able to document it very well, but I felt that I should write about it anyway. Before we left, I had been going through some difficult issues related to the whole business of “growing up”. This trip felt like a sort of turning point in my life, because my experiences that led to my realizations on certain matters began while we were here. I just didn’t know it at the time.

This isn’t going to be one of those proper travel entries, but more of a quick run through. Next time I will write a better Travel entry, but I’ll let my photos do the talking for a bit here. I just wanted to share the serenity of the waters of Palawan with you all.

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Welcome to Dos Palmas Resort & Spa, located in the province of Palawan, Philippines. I think Palawan is such a gem of a province because of the numerous beautiful beaches and island resorts it has. A part of me doesn’t want Palawan to be as commercialized as Boracay has become, but another part of me wants more people to come and visit its lovely beaches.







Oh what I would give to have a backyard like this:


Being one of those people who like photographing the colours of dusk and dawn, I lied down on a hammock while waiting for the sun to set. Though I must admit I’ve seen much more enchanting sunsets than this, the lovely violet shade that day still did not disappoint.


And neither did these fire-dancers who welcomed us with a performance during our first dinner at the Resort.

When you’re on vacation in an island beach resort, it seems only logical to go Island Hopping. The first island we visited was called The Snake Island because of the resemblance of the island to a snake from a bird’s eye-view. It’s a public beach so there were more people on this island than the others we visited.

The next island is called Pandan Island, and it’s also a public beach. We ordered these ginormous coconuts that were surprisingly cheap. This island was also where we had our lunch on our second day. Here in Palawan, the food you can expect would be fresh seafood (obviously), usually grilled. We managed to squeeze in a little snorkeling session, but we were so close to the shore we didn’t really get to see anything except a whole lot of seaweed in the water.

The last island we went to is called the Puting Buhangin Island. Literally translated from Filipino to English, it means “White Sand Island”. It’s a private beach owned by Dos Palmas, and it is a gorgeous tiny piece of paradise with a path of sand that disappears into the water.

Lunch during our last day was served on the island. Dining al fresco by the sea with fresh seafood and grilled food was lovely. The fresh seaweed gave such a curious sensation in my mouth as it exploded and crunched. I wanted to keep eating them. I’m sure they pretty much just pluck these out of the water on a daily basis because there really is a lot of seaweed whenever we go down for a swim.

One of the favourite appetizers of Filipinos is a sort of salad that includes salty eggs, tomatoes and onions, usually seasoned with some soy sauce. Aside from the Grilled Chicken, the salty egg salad is one of my favourites, so I really enjoyed this meal.

And of course, I must say that the buffet dinners in the Resort itself were deee-licious! The menu is different each night. During our last night they served us with whole steamed crabs and French Onion Soup. I’m always such a loser when it comes to buffets because my stomach has a small storage capacity, but I tried very hard to leave some space for dessert while still being able to eat my favourite entrees. I don’t believe I’ve ever mentioned my affinity for crepes, which I’m sure you can now tell from the largeness and prettiness of the photograph below.

And if you ever do visit Palawan, don’t forget to see the lovely rock formations that can tickle your imagination in the Puerto Princesa Underground River. It was nominated as one of the “New Seven Wonders of Nature”. At first I didn’t expect I would enjoy seeing a bunch of rocks, but coupled with the skillful and funny way that the tour guide rows you around the cave while telling the story of the rocks, it became one of the things I remember most about this trip. Just catch one of these boats at the Sabang Dock to get to the Subterranean National Park where the Underground River is found.

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The last few months saw my troubles weigh me down to a sort of melancholy. It’s a very long and complicated story to tell, and I don’t really want to bore you with the details. But just so you know, things have been starting to calm down a bit, most especially my mind and my heart.

If there’s one thing I learned from this trip and all that happened after because of it, it’s that I have to learn to focus on what I have before me, the now– my job, this blog, my family and friends- before I can begin seeing the then. I’m very lucky to be where I am, and I hope that in time I’ll find what I’m looking for.