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| The boardwalk at General Luna. This is not the one in Cloud 9. |
We were starving when we went back to Isla Cabana Tropical Island Resort from our island hopping activities. So after washing up and changing clothes, we went out to look for something to eat and explore the town at the same time.
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| The sleepy street at GL |
We opted not to hire a habal-habal, instead we walked through the streets of General Luna for us to be able to appreciate the town more. We walked quite longer than what we imagined, but it was all worth it. Along the way we saw this church where kids were freely playing in front. We would’ve wanted to enter the church and say a little prayer but it was closed.
One interesting thing that we saw was this one — freshly baked bread by the streetside. The lady said they call this “pan de surf” because of its shape that resembles a surf board.
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| Hot-off-the-oven bread by the streetside |
The buttery smell of pan de surf beckoned us to try it. There were two options: plain and with coconut. We chose the latter.
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| More bread at Php 5 bucks! |
It was good actually! The bread was dense and the sweetened coconut made it more luscious. It’s like pan de coco but with chunkier strips of coconut. Yum!
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| Pan de surf up close |
There were numerous signages leading to Cloud 9. At first, we said we’ll check it out after eating our late lunch. But then again, after eating, we felt exhausted already and decided to forego of this plan.
We continued to walk until we saw this eatery. We saw no other eatery along the street so we decided to have lunch here. Food in Siargao is generally more affordable than Boracay or El Nido. At this eatery, we were able to eat one viand, one huge cup of rice and a soda for around Php 60. And mind you, my viand was a huge serving of lokus (squid).
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| Affordable eatery in General Luna |
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| Yummy squid! |
What a late lunch! The food is scrumptious and very affordable! The staff are even gracious. So after having late lunch, we continued exploring the town and noticed that the motorcycles here are kinda unique — most of them have roofs made of wood, plastic or steel. Cute!
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| No need from wide-brimmed hut |
There was also this unassuming Italian eatery near the market. We didn’t eat here but it looks promising.
Since Siargao is surrounded by the Pacific Ocean, signboards like this for tsunami warning are all over the place.
We also went to the market to check out what seafood we can buy but since it was late afternoon already, there were only a few options left. What I like about General Luna’s market is that there is a standard price for all.
We also saw the municipal hall and a tree house beside it on our way back.
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| The municipal hall |
We walked through the public school and ended up on this baywalk where a bunch of eateries and hole-in-the-wall bars are located. From here, the boardwalk is only a few meters away.
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| Baywalk in GL |
We went to the boardwalk and saw a lot of kids and teenagers enjoying the waters. My gawd!!! They just jump into the water as if their jumping onto a trampoline! And they were just kids!!! I was actually awestruck.
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| The beach by the boardwalk has fine sand actually, but needs coastal cleanup |
From the boardwalk, we could already see some jelly fish swimming with the kids. They must be stingless then, just like in Bucas Grande. Otherwise, good luck to the kids!
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| Playful jellies |
The boardwalk is actually a nice place to take sunset photos and selfies for that matter, hehe. My friend took a nice photo of me in the middle of the wooden bridge.
We were hoping to catch the sunset but we figured out it might be hard to go back to Isla Cabana Tropical Island Resort if we did, so we started the long walk while the sun is still up.
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| Sunset at the boardwalk |
On our way back, we saw someone grilling deliciously-looking barbeque at Ronaldo’s Inn and Restaurant so for dinner time, we walked back to Ronaldo’s and have some bite. The food here is also affordable — imagine a stick of isaw costs Php 5, while barbeque and chorizo cost Php 20 per stick. I actually like the sauce — sweet and spicy. And I like how tender the barbeque was. The chorizo is divine nonetheless. You can also have a few drinks here, plus wifi is free!
Ronaldo’s also offers rooms at Php 900 per night.
There’s actually too many spots to explore in Siargao but we just had too little time. On our next visit, we’ll definitely go to Mapupungko tidal pool and explore the virgin beaches of La Janoza and Mam-on. Mang Lito said boat to La Janoza and Mam-on Islands costs Php 2,500. Not bad. ‘Til next time Siargao!
Up next, our Bucas Grande Adventure.
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Isla Cabana Tropical Island Resort
General Luna, Siargao Island
8416 General Luna, Surigao Del Norte, Philippines
Mr. Dupz Escatron-Ravelo
09285595244 / 09175230300 / 09209099777
islacabanaresort@gmail.com / info@islacabanaresort.com
Instagram: #islacabana
Twitter: @islacabana
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Travelogues by Matet Garcia-Reyes 