Taxi – Airplane – Van – Boat – Trike

I woke up around 2am and just decided to roll with it.  I mean I basically slept all afternoon/evening.  My flight is at 6:30am so I need to leave the hotel by around 4am anyway.

Gah… I guess I didn’t need to leave that early.  While I was checking in, they told me that there was a three hour delay on the flight.  I am not that worried about it.  If they had said it was canceled, then I would worry.  They didn’t charge me for the extra bag… I had already paid for extra and I don’t think I maxed it out.  

I did have to ditch my diet coke on the way in.  Oh well.  In Indonesia they let you fly domestically with liquids but not in the Philippines.  I finished my first book of the trip, Game On: Tempting Twenty-Eight by Janet Evanovich and started my next one: The Bee Sting by Paul Murray.  

I finally figured out where the departure board was and bought myself a coffee to drink while I waited and read some more.  It is surprisingly chilly in the departure lounge so I am glad I kept my fleece.

We took off just before 11am.  Nobody gave me a hard time about my carryon roller bag.  In fact one of the airline guys helped me bring it up and down the stairs.  I forgot after landing in Romblon how far I still had to go!  

A van picked me up at the airport.  Then we drove a little less than an hour and I got dropped off at this little pebble beach of nothing and was put on a putt putt boat with two crew who took me across the bay for 45 minutes or so.  It was just me on the boat… and my four bags.  It was beautiful weather and I just sat back and took it all in.  I felt so special that it was just me.

Then, I got off the little boat at some random steps and got on something they call a trike.  It’s basically a tuk tuk.  Where there is a motor bike with a seat and spots for luggage.

OMG, by the time I arrived it was 3pm and I still hadn’t eaten anything but a piece of fried chicken.  I decided there was no way I was diving that day and just ate some lunch and got all my gear and camera ready.  The meal was huge with cucumber salad, curry and tuna on rice and some lumpia (fried egg rolls).   

So let’s review my travel day: Taxi – Airplane – Van – Boat – Trike 

Gah!  So crazy.  I really am in the middle of nowhere.

I went back to look at my dive logs and blog from the last time I was here.  I was only here one other time in March of 2018.  My divemaster was named Tops and I did five days and 19 dives.  This time I’m staying about 8 days and could do over 30 dives.

I slept in the afternoon, there was no way I was going to dive.  I woke up in time for dinner.  There is one couple here, another older woman diving alone – maybe German?  And a huge group of Japanese divers.  

Dinner was beautiful and mostly tasted good.  There was some “steak” served which was so tough it was inedible.  But they also served chicken and that was delicious.