For the longest time I haven’t been able to travel alone so when I arrived in Puerto Princesa, the feeling of being in a strange town overwhelmed me. The unfamiliar faces and places, the different scent of air and the pleasure of strangeness made me feel alive again. I was sleepless and restless when I arrived, coming from months of slaving myself to work, it felt so good once again to be back on the road. With a smile and a sigh of relief, Puerto Princesa was welcoming me with open arms. I planned this solitary trip months ago, well not really prearranged like with booked hotels and all. I just felt that it’s about time to reunite with nature and make peace with the past, traveling is my only medicine.
As I've walked from the airport, there is something about the city that amazes me. It’s true as I've heard that this might be the only city that is strict with littering that it’s a criminal offense if someone’s caught throwing trashes anywhere. Such an ideal town, roads are clean and things are organized enough, well in my standard and as someone coming from a big city. There are still the multicabs and tricycles as public transportation, but of course the place is not as polluted as it is in Manila. And probably the people are more disciplined here.
You won’t get easily lost here because the streets are pretty easy to navigate. I don’t really believe when someone tells me that a place I want to go to is far, more often than not it’s not really that far. Wherever you go, people hate the idea of walking, except the village people from the mountains. The only thing that was annoying was that when I decided to take a tricycle, the drivers were somewhat hesitant to give me a ride. Particularly when I told them my intended destination, they would just drive away without saying anything, or was it just their own way of saying “No, the place is too far”, or “No, that’s not our route”. Those were the only reasons I knew of because I’m pretty sure I didn't look like a tramp. Since it was my first day, I’m all fresh and neat.
I found my place - Banwa Art House is a cozy and artsy place with a nice lounge. I chose the dorm for P350 a night, and to my amazement, I was the only one inside. I decided to take a power nap to refuel myself, and after an hour, I was awaken by the sound of “Freak on a Leash” blasting from the neighbor’s stereo. Okay, it was time for me to go out.
There were some other places I could have visited, like the Vietnamese village or the Honda bay, but unfortunately I didn't have the luxury of time to explore the whole Puerto Princesa. And for the love of animals, there were only two places I wanted to see for the day, the crocodile conservation farm and the butterfly garden.
The weather was fine when I got in Puerto Princesa until it rained in the afternoon. And for me it was alright, because the rain didn't last that long, and oh, no floods to worry about. I found myself soaking wet along with the crocodiles. I was listening attentively to the woman explaining the preserved skin of a huge crocodile who died from stress, when from the nth time around I dropped my cellphone to its death. It almost ruined my whole crocodile experience when thoughts of worries bombarded my mind. Forget about phone calls and texts, I was only worrying about losing access to good music. This means I’m going to have to endure the endless love songs being played inside the buses. I explored the farm anyway and tried so hard to be detached from this piece of technology once and for all.
I’m glad to have learned so much about the farm from the guy who took my pictures with the bearcat. He said that the place is not a zoo, the animals are released to the wild when it’s time, which I really hope so. The place is not only about crocodiles, there are some other interesting creatures around. The nice bearcat guy (forgive me for not being able to remember his name) showed me around, with no money in exchange for that, well he just asked for my number.
Despite the rain, I felt like I have to visit the butterfly garden no matter what. The place is just a small sanctuary for butterflies, scorpions and some other insects. I was the only one inside. Just when I thought I wouldn't find any butterflies due to rain, I found lots of them camouflaging with the background, a good chance for good photos.
I went back to my previous dilemma, the cellphone issue. So I looked for a repair shop in the main town, which actually was just a failed attempt to resolve the problem. I was so pissed of that this thing was injecting some stress in me, and I didn't really want to spoil my trip with some trivial matters. That’s it I gave up. I gave up using the cellphone. It’s costing me much money for repairs and all, and I really should have known from the start that this is not really for me. Music or no music, the trip will still go on anyway.
After months of seafood and vegetable diet, it becomes an instant joy when I find a restaurant that favors my eating habits. And I’m delighted to have found Ima’s vegetarian in the heart of Puerto. The staffs were really accommodating and were ready to introduce to you to their vegetable dishes. After all the first day’s stress, I ate a delicious veggie meal to my heart’s content.
I was wondering what’s going to happen in the days to come. The unknown excites me as always. I've got 9 precious days to go, and I knew I have to spend it well.
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