wandering Boracay, Philippines

trip report by site editor Rick McCharles

How long can a hiker lie around on a Beach before getting bored?

Not long.

Boracay is an island of the Philippines located approximately 315 km (196 mi) south of Manila …

The island is approximately seven kilometers long, dog-bone shaped with the narrowest spot being less than one kilometer wide …

Once a day I’d take off jogging wherever tourists do not go.

I checked out the dump. Excellent. And watched how trash is collected. Very efficiently.

Bottles are recycled.

Here is a tourist attraction, a Zorb run. Unfortunately the Zorb doesn’t roll unless a group arrives together, pre-booked. Otherwise I would have signed up.

On another lonely road I found two new born goats. Mama nowhere to be found. When I jogged back a half hour later, they were still there.

The highlight was navigating narrow alleys where the poorest folks eek out a living. I didn’t take any photos, but it looks something like this.

Actually, the people looked surprisingly healthy and happy. The animals sickly and pitiful. In fact, I saw an emaciated cat in it’s death throes, ignored by one and all. There was no way I could put it out of its misery.

Very best of all was arriving at a new Mosque being built by the minority Muslim population. Clearly it will be the pride and joy of the community, once finished. They asked how it compared with Mosques in Canada. Equally grand, I told them.

… It was always good to get back to my inexpensive hotel for a shower and a rest.

Before the long rest.

See more photos or check my Boracay holiday posts.