Hello again Oslob

At last we arrived in the town of Oslob, Cebu after driving about 2 hours .  Google map suggested that the drive is less than an hour but we practically moved like a snail so we can enjoy the view, but we ensured we get to Oslob before sunset.

This is the town famous for the whalesharks sightings in the Southern Cebu.  It made headlines a couple of years ago when this sleepy town were flocked with tourists to see the whalesharks in Barangay Tanawan, Oslob.

Oslob used to be a fishing village, the town is abundant of small sardine fishes during a particular season each year however, whale sharks would take a portion of it and leave the fishermen with less catch.  So the fishermen started to assign a couple of them to feed the whalesharks with krill while the rest would catch some sardines and they would divide their catch at the end of the day.  This tactic had been effective for them until one day a juvenile whale shark had followed one of the fisherman wooden boat to shore, probably thinking that the boat was the source of food.

The residents saw this gigantic fish on shallow water, it became a sensation, the media came and so as the tourist.  From then the locals in the town begun feeding the creatures with krill and the whale sharks have been in the area every morning to feast on the easy food. Sometimes as many as 20 can be seen in the area in a day and everyday there is always a sighting of this gigantic fish. 

Although it is against our principle to feed the whale sharks since we believe that they should be left on their own to hunt for their food in their natural habitat but it is always amazing to see these giants and even more amazing swimming with them. So even if we been here before, it never grows old. 

Sima Cold Spring Badian Cebu

Just a couple of meters away from the town market of Badian is a cold spring the locals hang out or swim.  One should follow a foot path, so people wouldn't notice it and there are no signs whatsoever that tells you there is something there. It is natural fresh spring under several huge acacia trees that looks like centuries old. However no one that we asked know exactly how old those trees were.  The spring is adjacent to the lagoon that leads to the sea. It is called Sima. No one knows how it was called by that. 

The locals from long time ago constructed huge stones around the spring to make it look like a huge swimming pool, I think it’s brilliant.  There is actually two of it, one is deep around 10 – 15 meters and the other is shallow, we didn’t try the shallow one as there were ladies washing clothes inside it.  I guess it’s free water.  There were some school kids swimming, we figured they were practicing with their coach for a swimming competition. We were told those kids always top the regionals, I guess because they have this great resources to practice from.

The spring is fresh water not salty water, no one can tell us where the water comes from but they said it’s been there since they were born so no one knows.  It was really cool but the water is very cold, the locals said that they only swim there during noon time when it is hot so they don’t feel the chill of having to swim in cold water.

After swimming we ate our roasted chicken and bread, it tasted as good if not better than the one we had in Moalboal.  We were happy campers.

And we are in Badian, Cebu

When we arrived the town of Badian we headed to the town market, we know that we can perhaps interact with more locals and get information where to go and what to do.  The market was bigger than most markets we saw in the previous towns and it is a bit modernized compared to the others.  It indicates that the town is more developed.

We bought some fruits and explored the market a bit.  The vegetables and meat looks really fresh. We saw an area with some roasted chicken for sale and we chose the one with many people lining up to buy.  For sure the locals prefer it than others so we thought perhaps it’s the best one in town.

 We got some bread too and we were hoping it is as good as the one we had in Moalboal – fingers crossed.  Then we asked around some of the “trisikad“ drivers that we saw. Trisikad is a 3-wheel bicycle that locals use as public transport within a short distance.

So the trisikad drivers gave us some recommendations where to go.  We love to go where locals go, instead of where tourists go.  It is more fun to mingle with locals and get to know the place better.

When visiting a place, do you go where the locals go or you go where the tourists go? 

On the road to the South

Today we decided that we dive very early and hope we encounter a hammerhead shark if they still exists in the area, and then after the dive we would get back on the road and explore more places further South of Cebu.  The sky was a little gloomy today, so visibility underwater is not as clear as yesterday, and it rained when we head back to shore and we DIDN’T SEE HAMMERHEADS!!!

The next town to us was Alcantara but there was nothing special about the place to visit, well if they do then it is not advertised, or we just haven't heard about it yet. The town after that is Badian - this is a famous town for its waterfalls, a golf course and a nice resort island 20 mins away from the main land. The waterfalls is one of the best in the country.  I actually visit this place whenever I am in town. 

It would be another hour or less on the road from Moalboal until we reach Badian.  The mobile signal was on and off as we drove.  The good thing was that we had two different telecom network that we subscribed to, and when one is down the other is the strongest.  I guess this is to avoid competition.  

I can’t complain much.   The only issue I have is the internet signal that I have in this part of Cebu, it goes on and off along with the network that I subscribed with.  But when this happens I go back to playing something on my phone and no it is not flappy bird and it’s not plants vs zombies either.