In January of this year, I suddenly found myself doing something that I definitely hadn’t planned on doing (more about that here)—booking a one-way ticket to the Philippines. To back up just a little bit, I was simply just going about my life as usual and enjoying Tbilisi’s not-so-cold winter while working from home, attending jiu-jitsu classes, and learning rugby (it’s always good to have a new hobby, right?). I’d even gotten some new tattoos and had been squeezing in regular ladies’ nights and generally just living life the best that I could. In the middle of all these things, I got a message from my family that said I needed to go back home to attend my sister and brother-in-law’s Despedida (that’s a gathering that happens when someone is moving), and well, you know how it goes when requests like that happen, you need to take a minute and remember that it’s always…
… family first
So that’s how I ended up heading back to my homeland with no set return date and just a basic idea of what I’d do when I got there. It had been years since I’d been back to the Philippines, so I imagined spending a month at the beach in Siargao and visiting with all of the friends that I hadn’t seen in so very long. But after arriving in my hometown of Batangas, I found myself basically just staying put there, and it was great. So for nearly two months, I lived a simple provincial life with my family, and honestly, I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. When you don’t know the next time that you’ll all be together again, you try to make the most of your time reconnecting. I also welcomed the break from the hustle and bustle of living in the city, which gave me some time to re-center. As a bonus, I was even able to get back on track with my running. Nevertheless, I can only sit still for so long, and then I get that familiar “itch” to get back out there and explore.
Responding to the itch
By then, it was officially summer in the Philippines, and the prospect of spending two weeks just living the island life proved incredibly tempting. So I began searching for the ideal place to make it happen, settling on Palawan, Cebu, and Siargao (which had been in my initial plan) as my top three choices. When I asked friends, “If you were to show someone around the Philippines, where would you take them?”, they all unanimously replied, “Palawan.” I agreed that Palawan was a beautiful island, having been to El Nido and Coron, and as one of the most popular resort destinations, it offered many things that would keep me entertained. No doubt, I would have an enjoyable time there, but something inside of me told me to try a less “touristy” area, so Romblon came to mind. Before I knew it, I had committed to the decision and had booked the tickets.
And so, the trip begins…
Before I could officially move to the island (temporarily, of course), I knew I had to spend a week in the city experiencing the hustle and bustle of city life because I was already starting to miss it. So, as you might guess, I headed to Metro Manila for a few days of fun, and fun I did have, but let’s not get into all of that because… well, just because.
Arriving at Romblon
The province of Romblon has three major islands: Romblon Island, Tablas Island, and Sibuyan Island. I chose to skip Sibuyan and spend a week each at Romblon and Tablas.
I first had to fly from Manila to Caticlan to get to the area. Once there, I spent two nights in Boracay (okay, for some reason, I’m skipping the part of the story here because y’all know what it’s like to stay in Boracay, right?) and then hopped on a Sunday morning ferry to Santa Fe port. It was a boat ride for which I wasn’t nearly prepared enough. It was not only very long, but it seemed as though the day’s conditions were just right to set off a wave of seasickness amongst the passengers. So there I was, stuck with small children vomiting all around me, and I counted down the minutes until the journey would be over (oh, and you should know that I’m already traveling with someone at this point!).
Finally arrived at Santa Fe port, I must’ve looked like a real tourist because so many people quickly approached me, asked me where I was going, and offered their transportation services. Since I’m one who prefers getting dirty and is always up for an adventure, I decided instead to take a public mini-bus to Odiongan, the town I must visit before reaching the main destination, San Andres, the location of the resort I am staying at on Tablas Island. After getting off at the wrong place (but thankfully in Odiongan), we found a tricycle for 600 PHP to take us the rest of the way to Footprints Beach Resort, my home for the 8 nights (yay!).
Footprints in the sand
The Footprints Beach Resort was one of the main reasons that I chose to head to Romblon, and I was to spend nine days there. Situated on the northern part of Tablas Island, the intimate resort is a dream with its laid-back vibe and natural surroundings. It definitely put new meaning to the word “chill.” (Oh yes!) While there, I worked remotely each day, and there was nothing more paradise-like than clocking in my hours while staring at the blue waters. I truly realized how fortunate I am to do what I do. In fact, I relished the atmosphere and vibe so much that I actually considered skipping out on Romblon Island and extending my time at Footprints for the remainder of the trip.
The other adventures on Tablas Island
Before I got to that part of the trip, I still had a few adventures to finish on Tablas Island. Although it was hard to leave the relaxation and serenity of my beach chair at the resort, my travel partner and I were also excited to explore the rest of the surrounding area. Luckily for me, one of my best friends from college’s hometown is Romblon, and he just happened to have a brother in Odiongan during the same time as us, so he let us use his scooter for free!
We took advantage of our free transportation to explore the northern part of Tablas Island, which includes San Andres, San Agustin, and Calatrava. In San Andres, we only got to see Dad’s Bukid (a bit disappointing) and Pader Falls, which was a bit of an adventure because we arrived when it was getting dark and had to walk through a rocky river, but overall, a good one for me! Actually, we might have taken a lot more trips to different bakeries (I live for pastries!), and it came as a bit of a surprise (in a good way) to me because this small town does have the soft-baked and full-of-taste ones (yum!). Driving through the northern coastline was an easy decision, so that’s just exactly what we did, and it indeed gave us the opportunity to see Calatrava and San Agustin in their most raw form. These towns are exactly what you’d expect from small provincial towns, so we just really had a great time driving around and exploring this part of the island.
We also happened to be in town during the annual Kanidugan Festival in Odiongan, so we, of course, had to check that out. If you know anything about Philippine festivals, it’s that they are huge party-like atmospheres, with many different parades, interesting selection of street food, various competitions, and colorful costumes. I always tell people to try and get to a festival whenever they visit the Philippines. This particular festival is also known as the “Coconut Festival” and honors both the foundation day of Odiongan and the patron saint of Romblon, St. Vincent Ferrer. It lasts for a whole week during the month of April, and it was just an incredible experience to be a part of.
Heading off to Romblon Island
My nine days on Tablas Island were terrific and so much fun, but the time had come to move on to my final destination. I already mentioned that I seriously considered not leaving, and trust me, it was hard to get up so early in the morning on the day of departure to catch the ferry.
Having someone else to travel with made it easier, so we took a tricycle ride over to San Agustin port, where we got on the ferry to Romblon Island. Upon arrival, I noticed that the island was a bit different than I’d expected. For one thing, there was an incoming typhoon there at the time, which proved challenging. We also could not find a good internet connection, which would make it more difficult for me to work. Despite that, it seems to have pretty much everything you need for a small island.
Once again, we chose to explore the island by scooter. This time we rented one and drove around the entire island (YES! It’s so small that you can easily do this!). Since I needed to get some work done and the Internet was iffy, I would hang out at Soi Cafe each day, which had a better (but, mind you, still not reliable) signal for a data connection, and then after work, we would head out to explore the town.
It was great just being able to eat delicious food, particularly street food, and watch the locals go about their business on a daily. Since we were there during Easter week, we also witnessed some of the local traditions. The Philippines is a predominantly Catholic country, and the Easter season is very important there and filled with religious tradition.
Bon Bon Beach — an adventurous misadventure
Although we’d gotten into a nice routine, we weren’t going to leave Romblon Island without visiting Bon Bon Beach. It’s known as the best beach in the Romblon Province (and possibly one of the bests in the Philippines). One thing that draws visitors to the beach is its beautiful sandbar that juts out into the ocean and links to Bang-Og Island. The sandbar is only visible during low tide, and people can walk right across it to the island, which we did not deny ourselves and simply did, albeit quite in a bit of a hurry because we noticed that the water was already starting to rise (talk about an adventure time!). I was definitely excited to experience this little bit of paradise as it is known for being untouched by commercial resorts and activities and looks like a vision on postcards.
I want to say that the visit was indeed everything that I imagined it would be, but when we tried to visit on April 11th and failed, we should have taken it as a warning sign.
Before I get more into that, let me tell you that when we failed to access Bon Bon Beach, we strolled on Tiamban Beach instead, and it was quite a pleasant day. There was also a small part of it where we pretty much had the whole area to ourselves, and it felt like a private getaway, which was nice. The daily highlight, however, would be being rewarded by a spectacular sunset as we drove through during golden hour (nothing beats a sunset in the Philippines, I swear!).
But now, back to the Bon Bon misadventure I started talking about.
So we decided that we would try again to access Bon Bon because, as I mentioned earlier, it’s the best beach in the area, and we did not want to miss out on seeing it. So, two days later, on April 13th, we tried again and accessed the beach by walking along the coast and through the rocks from Tiamban Beach. We were ready to enjoy another slice of paradise when the dogs, well, let’s just say, ruined it.
Running from *mad* dogs
That’s right, you heard me. Dogs. Lots of them—about 20, or so they say. By now, you’re probably already asking why dogs would even be an issue on the best beach in Romblon, and well, that’s where our “misadventure” really begins.
As soon as we started walking along the coast to Bon Bon Beach, we started seeing a lot of dogs slowly approaching us and, until a few more steps later, barking angrily and running after us. We had already passed the guesthouse and were walking right on the shore, so we knew we were at the right place. But let me tell you, the dogs just would not let up. They started running after us all at once, and before I even knew what was happening, one of them had bitten my travel partner! At this point, I was really terrified. These dogs literally looked like they were about to eat you alive, and they probably could, as you never know with animals (more specifically these dogs of Bon2Beach Guesthouse). Trying to keep the situation under control, my travel partner did his best to calm the dogs (even though they had already injured him at this point), but they just wouldn’t stop, really.
We started to slowly make our way further down the beach from the area where the dogs were attacking us, and we heard someone call out to us to stop. We turned around only to see the owner of the guesthouse, who also owned all of those frightening dogs. He tried to tell us that we weren’t supposed to go there because we were trespassing on private property (say what?). At that point, we were furious. For one thing, there were no signs there stating that we were on private property of any sort, and secondly, Bon Bon Beach is a public beach, so the man had absolutely no right to claim any of it as his own. Ironically enough, we learned that the next day, after we left, he put up signage on that part of the beach that he had no official permission to do—even more enraging!
As if things could worsen, when we showed him where his dogs had bitten my travel partner, he claimed it wasn’t even a dog bite but a scratch from walking through the rocks! It was precisely at this point that he began to speak to him angrily, but he refused to back down and continued to be plain arrogant, even telling us that his family had been there for a hundred years or so and that we had no right to speak to him in this manner. Talk about sabotaging our entire experience and desire to visit the lovely Bon Bon Beach.
Reporting and roadblocks
After we got away from the dogs and back to the BnB, we knew we needed to do something about what we’d just experienced. I mean, the area where the dogs attacked us is just meters away from the central area of Bon Bon beach, where all of the tourists and local visitors go. We decided to head to the local police station to report what happened and officially file a complaint, thinking that this action might help solve the problem and prevent another future injury. When we got there and reported it, they gave us an official complaint letter against the dogs’ owner and recommended that my travel partner visit the local hospital to receive an anti-rabies vaccine. Not exactly what we had planned.
Shockingly, the police then told us that there was nothing else they could do for us about the incident and that we should bring the letter to the Barangay Captain of Lonos (under whose jurisdiction Bon Bon Beach falls). Apparently, the local police only get involved in more severe cases like murder or something similar (as if getting attacked by a possibly rabid dog doesn’t qualify as serious?!).
So, of course, wanting to resolve our situation, we immediately drove our scooter over to Lonos to locate the Barangay Captain after our agenda with the local hospital. When we couldn’t find her, we decided to locate her house and look for her there. Yes, although it seems strange, in the local areas of the Philippines, people can just show up unannounced at the houses of local government officials because everyone knows everyone else. When we got there, she told us that since it was Good Friday (a holiday there), we should wait until the following day and come back to the Barangay Hall of Lonos to talk about the situation.
The following day, we showed up as planned, only to be told by her that she could do absolutely nothing to stop the dogs. Yes, you heard me right—nothing! You can imagine how frustrated we were at this point. After all, we were using the remainder of our trip to try and adequately deal with the issue (and prevent the same thing from happening to others), and all the authorities told us was that no one could change anything. It felt like no one took us seriously, and we just kept hitting roadblock after roadblock.
The only answer we got was to write an official statement and leave it with the captain for her to take to the mayor, which didn’t seem too promising to us either.
A faulty system that needs to change
One of the most baffling things about the whole situation was that even though the government officials acknowledged that the dogs posed a problem, nobody agreed to take any action to remedy the situation. Well, the ONLY thing we could do was issue an official statement, but that was it. There is nothing else that can be done.
It was almost unbelievable to look them in the eyes and listen to how they spoke in such a regretful tone, how they made the position they hold appear powerless and helpless in dealing with the issue, when they are not and should not be. It was almost as if this man was above them. What a pity. The captain even told us that if she asks the police to go down there to try and talk to the owner or take down his illegal signage, the dogs would only bite any police who come as well. It even more surprised me when I learned that this was not the first time they had encountered this problem, but rather one of many complaints they had received over the years. And at this point, you can’t help but be frustrated by the gravity of the situation.
The only other suggestion that the captain had during our meeting with her was to say that if we really wanted to sue the owner, we would have to stay on the island and finish the whole proceedings from there. Of course, that wasn’t possible as we weren’t locals, and I had already made plans to leave the island the next day. Neither one of us could stay just to get caught up in a lawsuit. We’d already spent the last three days of our vacation just trying to deal with lodging the complaint.
We then left the barangay hall feeling completely disappointed and ashamed of the local governing body.
My firm suggestion, really, is that the government officials seriously recognize the problem these dogs pose to the tourists on their island and come up with a plan to actively do something about the situation. I mean, this isn’t just any kind of beach. This is the first beach that comes up on Google when you search for places to visit in Romblon, and it’s only because it’s so beautiful. Months or years from now, more tourists, including children, will flock to the island, and who knows how many more will be chased and bitten by these vicious dogs. And the Romblon government, particularly the Lonos government, should understand by now how this will affect tourism if a solution is not found. I guess they can ignore this if they don’t care about the good things that come from local tourism. But, given the beauty of the beach and the island as a whole, this is a pity.
When I got back home, my travel partner left an online review about the experience, and of course, we saw another similar one posted just below his. It was also brought to my attention that there was once a person who posted that the owner of the dogs actually had an informal relationship with the police and a barangay official, and no one even took their complaint seriously. If the government officials do not start dealing with this dangerous problem and continue to let the dogs and their owners intimidate visitors, I’m afraid that Bon Bon Beach will no longer be the most beautiful beach in Romblon, and the area will lose out on a lot of tourists. Hopefully, other visitors will continue to complain as we did, and eventually, it will lead to proper action.
Final thoughts on the trip
Overall, I can’t say that my trip back to the Philippines was bad. Other than the experience with the dogs on Romblon Island, the rest of the trip was fantastic. I spent a wonderful time reconnecting with my family, got to fit in my working hours relaxing on the beautiful beach (did I mention I just really love being a digital nomad!), made some real great memories, and saw a part of my home country that I’d never experienced before. When I came back to Dubai, I truly felt renewed and enlightened. Sometimes it takes traveling and getting out of your comfort zone to realize that. We can get so caught up in our day-to-day lives that we often feel a more uncomplicated life might be better. However, once we get out there to other parts of the world, we can usually come back home realizing how privileged we are and how the old saying goes, “the grass is not always greener.” Overall, I’m genuinely thankful for my trip to the Philippines, specifically to Romblon. But, I also would not give up a life like that back home with the hustle and bustle of the city, which I have grown to appreciate.
How do you feel when you return from a journey that awakens you?
a nomad kind of 
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