A Moalboal weekend

Last weekend I went along on an overnight beach outing to Moalboal with Loren and a bunch of her call center workmates. Moalboal is something of a tourist destination for its beaches and dive spots on the western side of Cebu. I've never been there before, or to anywhere on the western side of Cebu for that matter, so here was a chance to add another bulletpoint on the places-I've-been-to-list, as well as fill up the time of what would otherwise be a very mundane and lonely weekend.

We left Cebu City on Saturday morning. Funny thing is, aside from me, all the people that went along on this trip were call center people that worked the graveyard shift the previous night. So at any given point in the trip, about a third of the group was asleep and the rest were sleepy. And then there were the weird energetic people that seemed to stay awake a full 36 hours or so.

The accommodations we stayed at were, honestly, miserable. Before we arrived, the person in charge in the group emphasized that it's not a resort, it's "simple living". It had two double beds, and our group was composed of about 15 people. The walls were made of naked hollow blocks and the floor was bare cement. It had a non-flushing toilet, and the bathroom door was a curtain. The place had the feel of an abandoned construction site. Simple living indeed. Anyway, I spent most of my time outside and very little in that room.

The beach itself was just alright, but not quite good enough to justify the time and expense of the two-hour trip to get there. Maybe it's just that my standards have been set too high by all the other nice beaches in the Philippines. The sand was fair colored, but not nearly as fine as the sand in Boracay or Bantayan. The ocean floor was kinda rocky. A few people complained of itchiness due to jellyfish in the water, though I didn't see or feel anything myself. Hmm, I'm starting to sound negative... the beach wasn't bad, it was just "alright".

That night I slept on a banig laid out on the sand under the open air. I don't think I have ever slept so "exposed" before, but I felt safe enough since I wasn't alone. It wasn't comfortable, of course, but it was worth it just for the experience of sleeping under the stars and waking up with the sunrise.