Early bird catches their flight
We had an early flight to Cebu to catch, and so we were awake at half 4 in the morning. After gathering our things, we checked out and got picked up by the shuttle bus at 5:30am. It was a short but bumpy ride on questionable roads, but we got to the airport for 6am. As expected, it was a very small airport, and it only took 10 minutes to check-in and get through security. We spent most of our time waiting at the gate and talking to a chap from Wolverhampton, quite close to my home, Nottingham.
Here’s another early flight we took from China to Vietnam.
The flight to Cebu only took 1 hour and 20 minutes, so I didn’t really get a chance to sleep. As soon as you’re at seatbelt-removing altitude, you soon start descending for landing. When we arrived in Cebu, we took a taxi from the airport to the southern bus terminal. Here we planned to get a bus to Moalboal, on the west coast of Cebu, and coast us between 170 and 200PHP. The bus only took 3 hours or so, packed with fellow tourists, and I watched a movie on a proper old TV hanging from the ceiling. I successfully managed to get some kip in too.
Scouting the area
Once we were dumped off the bus, we had to make our way to our hostel. Instead of taking a taxi or tricycle, we walked for 30 minutes, and were welcomed by some very eccentric lady boys. Despite not being subtle about their gender change, I will say that most lady boys are a lot of fun to be around, and very kind. Mat and I dropped our bags off and then went for a wander around the village, visiting the beach front. The waters were crazily clear, something we’ll have to return to tomorrow and perhaps snorkel. We looked into scuba diving prices, many were pretty expensive, so I investigated further over dinner.
We stayed in Le Village Hostel, but now know it’s shut since the covid-19 lockdowns. It was on the main road leading to the coast, which is where most backpackers are situated.
The cheapest place was near the centre and owned by a fellow who used to live in Leicester and Nottingham. He was a decent bloke and we booked some scuba diving for the day after tomorrow. Not only that, but he said we could use mask and snorkels for free on the beach front, what a winner. We made friends with a couple of German roommates, they’re very young, even amongst backpackers, but they’re very sound. After speaking in the common area for a bit, we said goodnight and turn in.
