Image above: Thoroughly drenched going under the thunderous Pagsangan Waterfall, the three of us in the cave behind. (L-R) Ada, Diva, and myself. [Saturday 22 May] | [View all photos]
Leaving the hustle and bustle of Manila behind to see Pagsangan Gorge and its waterfall, Ada and I made a new friend in Diva who came with us on our day tour and, together, we had such a laugh.
Starting the day by raiding the hotel breakfast buffet for a super-healthy breakfast (or not!), our day tour to Pagsangan got to a great start as we were joined by only one other (or should I say none other!) – Ms. Diva. And minutes after meeting her, we were all chatting, laughing, and gossiping along as if we had known each other for years. And so our long drive eastbound went by in a flash and the three of us were soon in our canoe sailing up Pagsangan River.
And as we sailed upstream we passed through riverside villages lined with parents washing clothes and kids swimming. A few even swam up to give the girls high-fives. Great to see such warmth from the locals.
Soon we passed from open waters to the first of many narrow and rocky sections of the river where our canoe crew jumped out and dragged the canoe (with the three of us still inside) through to get to the other side and the start of the gorge itself. And as we encountered more narrow straits we quickly found ourselves in a canoe jam which was funny since we wanted to get away from bumper-to-bumper traffic back in Manila!
As we waited under the relentless sun for the jam to clear both the tourists and the canoe crews were in good spirits. Though I think that one of the crew could’ve done with Diva’s massive and fabulously pink hat.
Before long we were on the move again and then we began to see the sheer magnitude of the gorge with its sides stretching far above us as the river narrowed even further. In some sections it was so rocky that crews had to physically lift or lower their canoe through them and in other sections it was so shallow that our crew had to drag and carry our canoe over strategically placed bars across the boulders.
A decadent way of travelling if it wasn’t for the fact that it was so hot and our poor crew had to carry the three of us as well as the canoe throughout! But thankfully, we soon reached our destination where they could take a much-needed break and got our first glimpse of the waterfall torrentially cascading down the cliff face.
But the best was yet to come. We boarded a bamboo raft which took us right under the waterfall through to the cave on the other side – camera included! We were drenched but it was an amazing experience. The girls went back into the water for a quick natural massage and once we got back to shore both Diva and I jumped in for a refreshing swim.
Then it was time to relax as the current carried us back downstream back to open waters passing by a mini-waterfall, trees and flowers under the warming glow of the afternoon sun before it was time to get stuck in another traffic jam on the road back to Manila!
It was such a contrast between the countryside and city in Philippines and we didn’t get back until three hours after our scheduled arrival time though, on the upside, it just meant that the three of us got to chat even more and arrange to meet in Hong Kong later on! When friends ask me why I travel, having the fortune to befriend someone like Diva is precisely one of the many reasons why.
Coming up next … our final day in Manila exploring the surreal Chinese Cemetery with our guide Jun before flying onto Cebu.
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