Country > Philippines > Bohol > Panglao
Date > 2025 > January
Activity > Chilling Out

January 17, 2025

Ondoy's 52nd Birthday

Beachfront Birthday Party
Ondoy's evening birthday party in Panglao was done on a beachfront property attended to by the Old Airport Walkers, friends and family - food was lavish, open bar with Johnny Walker Double Black and live music.

gender-reveal with fireworks

Old Airport Walkers
I haven't been in touch with the Old Airport Walkers since I moved my yoga practice to CPG Park. So it's always a treat for me to be receiving invites to their events. Ondoy, the most colorful of them all, invited me his 52nd birthday party held at his friend's beachfront house in Panglao. Food was catered, open bar and there was live music. It was great to be seeing the Walkers again. Friends and family were there. Together with his birthday was a 'gender reveal' by his pregnant daughter, Jeorge (I particularly love a man's name on a woman. It gives an elegant cosmopolitan flair).

xxx and Mark
Early on, I was introduced to Ondoy's 23 year old daughter and her 26 year old boyfriend from Manila, Mark. Interestingly, when I asked him where from Manila, I somehow expected something like "Quezon City" or "Makati", but he said, "Corinthian" - at least he gave me his sense of bearing. We had a conversation, a little different from the grown-up conversation I was having with the Walkers. He is soft spoken, left school to start his own business, invested in equities, and he exhibited an upward mobility. I guess I did most of the talking despite an intentional resolve to just shut up in social situations and just listen.

Dominic Butalid, SEMEN
He recognized me from our UP SEMEN days, although I have no recollection of him. He knows everyone I knew. I was only 1 year ahead of him in the batch. It's good to have someone I can hang out with. Being a 'Pards' means instant connection.

Yoga Talk
When nearly everyone left and it was just one table of the Walkers + friends, talk gravitated to yoga with me doing the storytelling. I guess they were all inspired to hear what yoga can do for them - be strong, resilient from disease and keep their dicks erect!

Ending Thoughts
There are consecutive days when I don't get to talk to anyone - I have no community here. So, it was a treat for me to be socializing again. To top it up, Vic invited me to his Jan 25th event at his restaurant. I think it's his birthday too.

--- Gigit (TheLoneRider)
YOGA by Gigit | Learn English | Travel like a Nomad | Donation Bank

Victor's 60th Birthday

(January 25, 2025) Events by Vic is a promise of good food - he's in the resto business. That's what I came away with after his mother's birthday. I made sure to make the most of it by coming hungry....more »»

Bohol, Philippines

tourist attractions

Danao Adventure Park - zip lining, cable car ride, caving, river rides/trekking, off-road buggy ride, root climbing, rappelling and ultra-glide rides
Alona Beach - hub for tourists with hotels, resorts, restos, bars and dive shops
Chocolate Hills - hills side-by-side shaped like giant Kisses chocolate
Tarsier - pocket-sized marsupia looking like a monkey
Balicasag Island - one of the best dive spots in the Philippines
Loboc River - river cruise on a boat
Anda Beach - fine white sand beach with resorts, restos and cottages, 3 hours by bus from Tagbilaran
Cabagnow Cave Pool - brackish water pool about 5ft deep inside a limestone opening on the ground, 8 feet deep, P50
Lamanok Island - walk on a 100m bamboo bridge on stilts to a resto area to take a boat tour to caves and nearly attractions, P300
Combento Cave Pool - cave pool with underwater cave system, P20
Can-umantad Falls - long narrow drop until it hits a bulbous mound spreading it into a a curtain-like water canopy and down into a splash pool
Canawa Cold Spring - deep refreshing cold spring with developed pool area
Firefly Tour - evening boat ride into the river to watch fireflies

hotel

Fox & The Firefly Cottages - SUP paddle boarding, luxury riverside native cottages, mountain bike tours, SUP yoga
Baranggay Valladolid, Loboc, Bohol
Bohol Tropics Resort - seafront location, manicured surroundings, swimming pool, resto/bar
0133 Graham Avenue, Brgy. Cogon, Tagbilaran, Bohol 6300
Oasis Resort - Alona Beach location, dive center, resto / bar
Alona Beach, Panglao, Bohol

yoga

Jing Yoga - health & well being through yoga
The Courtyard - Airport Road fronting the church
Bohol Meditation and Yoga Center - 2nd Floor Lim Magtajas Bldg. CPG Avenue

Bohol Travel Info/Tips

Bohol FYI / Tips

the tourist area where most of the hotels, restaurants, ticket offices, tour operators are, is located within the Alona Beach area
the tourist attractions in Bohol are far apart and spread-out. It would be difficult to visit them all using public mass transit. Better hire a van (P3500/day) if in a big group, or rent a motorcycle (P400/day + gas)
Bohol relies on its tourism for revenue. As expected, everything they can capitalize on from tourism is extensively used and developed

Tagbilaran Port to Panglao

You can charter any tricycle from the port all the way to Panglao (~P300), but if you want to do it on the cheap,

don't take the tricycles lined-up inside the port. Walk past the port gate and immediately outside, you'll see many tricycles. Take one to the bus terminal in Dao (~P15)
in Dao, take the jeep that plies the Panglao route (~P20)

Tagbilaran (Bohol) to Cebu City by boat

** schedules and rates keep changing, call for latest schedule

Weesam Express - departs 6:15 AM, 11:30 AM, 4:00 PM
one way: Economy (aircon) P500.00, Economy (non-aircon) P400.00, First Class P600.00
round trip promo (at least 2 days advance booking): Economy (aircon) P600, Economy(non-aircon) P500, First Class P1200
round trip promo (1 day or on the day booking): Economy (aircon) P800, Economy (non-aircon) P700, First Class P1200
Ocean Jet - departs 6-7:05-8:20-9:20-10:40-11:40AM, 1-2-3:30-4:20-5:30-6:30PM, 2 hours, arrives Pier 1 in Cebu
Open Air / Tourist Class P800, Business Class P1000
+63(32)255 7560 / +63 (32) 255 0115 / 0917 638 0000
SuperCat (2GO) - departs 5:50-11AM, 3:45-5:25-8:15PM, arrives Pier 1 in Cebu
P 500.00
+63 32 233 7000

Things to do, Places to go in Bohol

Chocolate Hills - this is a clustering of more than 1200 hills within a 50km² area. They range in height from 30-50 meters. What's unusual is their near-perfect conical shape resembling an individual chocolate chip. No one knows how they were formed. Entrance is P50/pax.
Tarsier Conservation Area - located Upper Bonbon, Loboc. The tarsiers are no longer being played at by tourists as circus props, but instead, visitors now view them in cordoned-off areas in their natural 6ha habitat. As they are territorial and nocturnal, they are predictable on where they can be viewed. P50/pax.
Alona Beach (Panglao) - Alona Beach is the tourist hub of Bohol. It has 1.5 kms of white sand beach lined-up by bars, hotels and restos. Alona is also the jump-off point for Balicasag Island, a world class dive destination.
Danao Adventure Park - located in Barangay Magtangtang, 72 kms (2 hours ride) from Tagbilaran. Adventure activities include river trekking, tyrolean traverse, rappelling, bouldering, rock climbing and ziplining.

Blogs

Bohol

Anda

ANDA

Exploring Combento Cave Pool Jun 29, 2017

Visiting Cabagnow Cave Pool Of Anda Jun 28, 2017

Exploring Anda, Bohol Jun 25-30, 2017

Candijay

CANDIJAY

Roadtrip from Candijay to Ubay Jul 1, 2017

Firefly Tour In Candijay, Bohol Jun 30, 2017

Freediving Canawa Cold Spring Of Candijay, Bohol Jun 30, 2017