Around 2000 people and (judging by the sound) at least as many roosters – that’s the inhabitants of Pamilacan Island. Oh, and the obligatory amount of piggies, goats and cows. The island is about a kilometre in diameter, but still seems mostly empty. The scarcely shattered huts blend in nicely, and the fact that the goats provide a golfcourse-like grass helps the image, too.
Downtown.
There’s no power (except a generator a few hours in the evening) and no running water. But that makes the place only so much more enjoyable. It’s so beautiful it seems taken straight out of one of the travel company brochures.
Postcard-image.
There’s no public transport to the place, either, so you depend on one of the guys picking you up. Junior did that for us – him and his wife Misyoung run a few huts for guests. He rocks the boat, she rocks the kitchen. Between the two of them, they provide a quite unforgettable experience: Great times on the water…
…and very many dolphins.
…interrupted only by regular intervals of really taste food. Food is produced – among others – every Sunday at 3 PM, when the entire island gathers for cock fights.
Ready, set, fight!
We ended up staying a lot longer on Pamilacan than planned. It’s hard to describe that place using word, so we made a little clip for your viewing pleasure. Make sure you switch on HD:
Maybe this stunning beauty was the reason why it took us so long to write this blog post: We were hesitant to write it at all, and not tell anybody about this place. It’s an unforgettable little authentic sanctuary now – but how long will it stay that way? The more people know about it, the faster resorts will pop up. There will be a ferry there, and power, and running water, and and and… We’d hate to see mass tourism take over yet another paradise, and turn it into the same thing as every other fancy resort around the world.
If we could, we would stop time on that island. As it is, Pamilacan is definitely a keeper.
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