Boracay is a bustling island. A very bustling and busy island. We had a great time, but I could understand why it may or may not be the spot for everyone's beach holiday. As our main goal was to unwind and relax, we went the low-key route and didn't get up to too much besides finding a pool or beach-side chair and reading a book. And how hard is it to fulfill those requirements anywhere while on vacation? Boracay's major leg up is that everywhere you look there is an unreal coastline staring back. So with little care to adventure too far, we basically rotated between three locations;
White Beach: As it turns out Koreans and Chinese tourists love the place! The main part of the island, White beach was seriously bumping when we headed down for sunset. Honestly, I was far more impressed by the sheer amount of people walking up and down the beach, than by anything else the beach had to offer. Besides Heaundae Beach in Busan, S. Korea at the height of summer, I've never seen so many people on a waterfront. It was amazing (in a contrary sort of way). White Beach wouldn't be the place you would go to find serenity. It is four kilometres of restaurants, bars and vendors catering to holiday-seekers. Lots of options for food--From local food, tiki bars, huge seafood buffets, Starbucks, Johnny Rockets and TGIFridays-- You can literally find everything there. As it's a pretty busy beach with lots of boat traffic, the water isn't great, however I was really impressed with how well the actual beach was kept! No garbage, no cars, strictly enforced smoking regulations...the quality of the sandy beach was great! We mostly moseyed down this way for an evening sunset cocktail and some dinner, but beyond that we were a bit skiddish of the crowds....
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| The sunset draws the crowds! |
Puka Beach: A bit quieter, but still hustling and bustling, Puka Beach was where we set up shop for a few full days of sun, swim and sand. Puka Beach had stunning water and very little boat traffic, which again, for the amount of people there, has been impressively preserved and maintained. It was an ideal spot to grab a coconut and people watch. Conclusions drawn from a couple days of casually peering over the top of my book and catching a glimpse; 1. Everyone is happy at the beach. Once you've arrived at the beach, there's nothing else to do but splash about in the crystal clear water, push around some sand and lounge. Who wouldn't be happy? 2. A successful star jump group photo is tough, not for the faint-hearted, or those on a time constraint. 3. Western people like to bake in the sun (present company excluded) wearing as little as possible, while the majority of Asians do not. 4. It is extremely difficult to walk backwards on a crowded beach in the sand with a selfie-stick and not stumble---As proven by the lady who, as forecasted by Tyler, literally walked over me and ended up face-down, rolling in the sand (....she should've gotten her head out of the sand ! Har har har ). Initially I reacted with a blasé attitude, but once the lady had resumed her minute-by-minute vacation video, Tyler and I couldn't help but roll around laughing.
Our Hotel: We stayed at a hotel that was away from the heart of the tourist centre of the island (but to be honest there were tourists everywhere). We stayed at a big hotel that had a great pool, private little beach and was located on top of a hill, so beside working those calf muscles all week, we caught both the sunrise and sunset each day! With our duty-free bottle of rum and a bunch of great ham, cheese and rolls we bought at a deli in town, we were happy to post-up by the pool.
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| As you can see we did little else but hang by the pool, and wait for the never disappointing sunset. |
Like I said, this was a week of lounging and relaxing, and when we do that we read...a lot! I'd like to recommend a few books for those looking for a decent narrative (nothing too mind-bending, just good stories that popped up at the airport bookstore). Summer is coming..Anyone have a good recommendation?
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