Last weekend I had the wonderful opportunity to visit Southern Leyte on work-related travel. My friend Sarah's site, Hinundayan, is roughly the same size, population, and income level as Lila, but it really couldn't be more different. Though Bohol and Leyte are neighboring islands it actually takes some serious travel time to get there. From Lila, I caught a 5am bus to Ubay on the northeast coast of Bohol, 2.5 hours away. Then a 2.5 hour boat ride on the "Mother Mary" to Bato, Leyte. Then an hour jeepney ride to Sogod (on Sogod Bay, of whale shark and diving fame), and a final 2.5 hour ride to Hinundayan, where around 3pm I spilled off the bus into the arms of two lovely, well-tanned girls - my barkada, reunited at last!
The view out the window of the bus from Sogod
A barkada breakfast: Egg sandwiches and Starbucks VIA
It is easy to find things to be impressed by in Hinundayan. The laid-back, friendly atmosphere, charming plaza, and crash of Pacific waves are among them, but more impressive still is this small town's enthusiasm for CRM. Two fish sanctuaries of staggering size are points of pride, and have management programs to match. Sarah, whose adorable, mosaic-floored nipa hut on the sea added much to my adoration of the place, is clearly in heaven. Her office has welcomed her expertise and boundless energy with open arms, and she has made herself a valuable member of the team.
After a couple CRM-related meetings, which I found remarkably inspiring, we spent a day celebrating Sarah's birthday at a tiny hidden beach reachable only by boat. Tropical paradise, really. We sat there, dripping with salt water, listening to the Pacific crash over tumbling coral stones, drinking fresh coconuts and having a picnic lunch spread out on banana leaves. Typing this out now it seems almost funny - but here these things have become pleasantly commonplace. Almost. After lunch we scrambled a good distance over sharp, jutting igneous rocks (not a single one of us making it there unscathed) to a tall jumping rock, and spent the afternoon flinging ourselves into the perfectly cliched turquoise sea below. A very pleasant day.
Birthday beach
Banana leaf lunch
Happy hikers, if a bit bruised and scraped.
Thaaaar she goes!
Something about the whole nature of Southern Leyte attracted me. It is remote, to be sure, but the terrain is inviting. Everything felt somehow drier there, more spacious and energetic. Where Bohol is home to thick, dripping jungle, Leyte's native vegetation felt to me more like forest. Oddly, mention the word "Leyte" or better yet, "Southern Leyte" to a Filipino on Bohol or Negros, and you're likely to be met by a scowl or expression of concern. Here, Leyte's remoteness is seen as unappealingly rough. When Sarah first heard she was being sent to Leyte, our host families reacted with pity. This wasn't particularly comforting, but now it's just plain confusing. Leyte is lovely. My suspicion is that many Filipinos don't see it that way though because to them, remote and underdeveloped are negative things. The general opinion seems to be Sure, forests and hidden beaches are nice, but they're nicer if they're withing an hour from a Dunkin' Donuts... A perplexing place, this.
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