LIMASAWA ISLAND

Location: Municipality of Limasawa, Southern Leyte, Philippines

The  site where the First Holy Mass was held 500 years ago as of now, March 31, 2021

Limasawa island is a host of friendly people dotted with fine white sand beaches. That is, not to mention being significantly identified as the host of the Spaniards who held its first Holy Mass in the island 500 years ago.

The rugged coast of the uninhabited part of Barangay San Agustin of Limasawa Island

Note: This is a part of my May 2 - 8, 2015 Samar-Leyte-Biliran-Mactan-Cebu Trip which includes: Capul Island, San Antonio Island, Dalutan Island, Sambawan Island, The Queen of the Most Holy Rosary Shrine, Ciriaco Hotel, Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral, Other Calbayog tours, San Juanico Bridge, MacArthur Landing Memorial National Park, Limasawa Island

Limasawa as viewed midway from Padre Burgos Port Terminal

In the tourism map of the Philippines, Limasawa is not really a well-known destination. However, if you happen to visit the place, you will be enticed by its charm dotted with pristine and white beaches. This fact, however, was not a part of my intention to visit the place but rather its historical value. Every year for the last five years, I always planned of visiting this place but it was only this May 2015 that such plan had materialized. My reason of always shelving it from my original plan is its remoteness and isolation.

Navigating off the coast of Limasawa Island

Limasawa Island is an island municipality at sixth class in Southern Leyte composed of six (6) barangays, namely: Cabulihan, Lugsongan, Magallanes, San Agustin (Tawid), San Bernardo (Tigib) and Triana. This island is also known as Sarangani Island of about 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) long from north to south.

Dakdak Beach Resort: Our accommodation

Yes! Limasawa is somewhat remote as to transport accessibility. But it is worth to visit. It is near Maasin City which is 70 minutes road travel to the Municipality of Padre Burgos where a boat transport to Limasawa is available. Maasin City has an airport for it does not service commercial flights since it has no terminal. Our 30-minute travel from Padre Burgos Port to Brgy. Lugsongan of Limasawa is very much rewarding as the clear aquamarine water can even show its seabed. Our chartered opted to navigate to Lugsongan because Dakdak Beach Resort which is our accommodation is located in this barangay.

The National Shrine for the First Holy Mass in the Philippines

It was already 3:30 P.M. when we arrived at Dakdak Beach Resort and from there, we wasted no time to visit the National Shrine for the First Holy Mass in the Philippines. First, we trek through the white sand beach coast but we find it far to walk. Thus, we hired habal-habal (single motorcycle) to drive us to the National Shrine for the First Mass. It is the only means of transportation in moving around the island.

The interior of the National Shrine for the First Holy Mass in the Philippines

This national shrine which commemorates the First Mass celebrated in the Philippines in the morning of Easter Sunday of March 31, 1521 by the group of Magellan when they landed in Limasawa as part of their voyage. Magellan sent ashore Father Pedro de Valderrama to meet the two rajahs of Limasawa in the name of Rajah Kolambu and Rajah Si-Agu, through an interpreter to ask if holy mass can be held by Father Valderrama. The two rajahs consented and even sent gifts. With this, the whole group of Magellan went ashore to Limasawa and as they set foot the island, they fired an opening salvo of six guns as a sign of peace. The two rajahs and Magellan along with his sailors embraced each other as they marched to the place of worship which is now the Shrine. During the mass, the two rajahs remained on their knees with clasped hands. At the elevation, the ships fired all their artillery in response to musket signal from the shore.

The well-kept shrine in the middle of a lush park

The shrine is erected in a spacious park manned by a caretaker who also serve as the tour guide. He can discuss all the historical details of the shrine articulately and fluently without batting his eyelashes. There is no entrance fee but the guests can give donation for the maintenance of the place.

The Shrine's Wishing Well

Visiting the shrine does not end it there as one has the option to scale through 450 steps to see where the first cross was installed by the group of Magellan after the first Mass was held in the island.

The 450 concrete stairs leading to the First Cross at the summit

For elders, scaling a 450-stair trail is an exhausting activity. Thus, it is advisable that tourists should visit the place early so that they have ample time to climb the hill. Besides, ascending the hilltop showcases a breathtaking scenery of the neighboring lowlands as well as the seascape along with the nearby islands.

The First Cross on top of the hill

I was disappointed that when I reached the top of the hill where the First Cross was installed, its horizontal part is already downed due to Typhoon Yolanda and it was left untouched since then. However, this cross is only a replica with its original one kept in the Vatican according to our guide.

Part of the scenery which can be viewed on top of the summit

Staying on the summit is quite relaxing and would even push one to travel back on time when the actual First Mass was held. Seascape is the most scenery which can be viewed from the summit.

Scaling down the picturesque hill

Trekking down the summit is absolutely and equally rewarding as aside from the unlimited postcard perfect pictures you can capture, you can see a number of species of butterflies and birds. To make it more relaxing, concrete shades equipped with concrete benches are erected. Seeing concrete benches in every station is very much inviting to signal for rest. With this elevation, visitors are advised to take with them enough water to quench their thirst.

The Municipal Hall of Limasawa

After the shrine, a visitor may opt to tour around the island. An alternative is to visit its poblacion in Barangay Magallanes where the Municipal Hall is located. It is surprising that next to the municipal hall is a huge covered basketball court. It is along a shady beach coast and inhabited by hundred of locals. It is a typical rural barangay which you can find elsewhere in the country.

The concrete coastal road leading to Barangay San Agustin

It is good to note that the municipality has almost concrete two-lane roads mostly found along the coastal areas. From Barangay Magallanes, my habal-habal driver and me had a refreshing drive cutting through the peaceful barangays of Cabulihan, Triana, San Bernardo and finally to San Agustin.

San Agustin Lighthouse

San Agustin was really my final destination as I was curious then how its lighthouse looks like. It was almost dark when we got there. The habal-habal was parked in a nearby public elementary school and we walked for more than 500 meters to reach there. On its side was a deep cliff and virgin beach. But it was too stiff for one to scale down. Besides, it was getting dark already.

The majestic sunset as viewed from San Agustin Lighthouse

It was getting dark but I can still see how the sun sets in all its glory. It was really amazing as my habal-habal driver and I witnessed how sun completely rested on its own. After this, we drove for more than an hour heading to my accommodation in Dakdak Beach Resort in Barangay Lugsongan and it was completely dark already.

The second day of island tour

Would you believe that we stayed in Limasawa Island for 3 days and 2 nights. We just love the island so much. We love the food and our accommodation in Dakdak Beach Resort was really that great since the owner personally cooked our food in every meal at a very low price of P150 per meal with five kinds of viands.

Our group of nine during our island tour during the second day in Limasawa

Since I was alone in my island tour during the first day, I joined again my group in the island tour on the second day. We followed the same routes as what I did during the first day. Each of us paid P140 for the entire island tour. Afterall, it was a long drive then.

Just one of the coastal photos I took

Limasawa island is not at all isolated when it comes to network and signal connection. Personally using a Globe mobile network connection, I can check and upload photos in my Facebook account. There is a supply of electricity from 5 P.M. to 2 A.M. and so guests can charged their mobile phones.

Just a snap shot of a sunset while on board a habal-habal

The supply of water was never a problem in the island for non-drinking purposes. In fact, I was able to wash all my clothes and dried it before we left Limasawa. To be sure, however, one can provide a distilled water which they can buy in Padre Burgos town before they board a boat going to Limasawa Island.

One of the fishing villages I saw on our way back to Dakdak Beach Resort

The following pictures are randomly taken while on board our boat going back to Padre Burgos Port as we head to Maasin City, then to Hilongos and finally to Cebu City for our flight to Manila.

The coastal barangay of Lugsongan

Just one of the coastal area random shots

A living stone according to the boatman as it keeps in growing in size and dimension

Random shots continue

Just another random shot while on board the boat

Another inviting beach to conquer

Part of the Magkaban Diving Site and a Fish sanctuary

San Agustin Lighthouse on top of the cliff

A farewell glimpse of Limasawa Island

HOW TO GET THERE:

There are four options going to this place, namely:

FROM MANILA TO PADRE BURGOS MUNICIPALITY OF SOUTHERN LEYTE

By Air from Manila to Tacloban City Airport. Then by land from Tacloban to Padre Burgos for 158 kilometers or 2 hours and 30 minutes travel. However, the above is just an approximation. Road conditions, diversions, weather conditions, traffic, etc. will affect driving distance and also the total travel time.

By Air from Manila to Ormoc City Airport. Then by land from Ormoc to Padre Burgos via Maasin, Leyte for 136 kilometers and 20 minutes. However, the above is just an approximation. Road conditions, diversions, weather conditions, traffic, etc. will affect driving distance and also the total travel time.

By Air from Manila to Cebu-Mactan Airport. Then take a ferry ship from Pier 4 of Cebu City to Hilongos Port of Southern Leyte for 6.5 hours. From Hilongos, take a service bus provided by the ferry ship for an hour to Maasin City. From Maasin City, take a jeepney to Padre Burgos Port for more than an hour. However, the above is just an approximation. Road conditions, diversions, weather conditions, traffic, etc. will affect driving distance and also the total travel time.

By Land, take a bus from Manila to Maasin, Southern Leyte for 928 kilometers which includes a ferry boat crossing from Matnog, Sorsogon of the Bicol Peninsula to Allen, Northern Samar through the sometimes rough and turbulent seas of San Bernardino Strait. The availability of the ferry may depend on the number of vehicles boarding the ferry boat. During the peak season, buses and vehicles can fall into a line as long as 1 kilometer or more delaying the buses to cross to Samar island. Then, with the same bus, it will cross the majestic San Juanico Bridge connecting the islands of Samar and Leyte. Then, from Tacloban, the travel continues to Padre Burgos municipality. With this, the road travel may reach until more than 1 and a half days.

FROM PADRE BURGOS PORT TO LIMASAWA ISLAND

Take a chartered boat from Padre Burgos Port to any part of the island for almost an hour. Non-chartered boats has corresponding barangay port in Limasawa island with more than an hour travel time.

MACARTHUR LANDING MEMORIAL NATIONAL PARK

Location: Barangay Candahug, Red Beach, Palo, Leyte, Philippines

Note: This is a part of my May 2 - 8, 2015 Samar-Leyte-Biliran-Mactan-Cebu Trip which includes: Capul Island, San Antonio Island, Dalutan Island, Sambawan Island, The Queen of the Most Holy Rosary Shrine, Ciriaco Hotel, Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral, Other Calbayog tours, San Juanico Bridge, MacArthur Landing Memorial National Park, Limasawa Island

The historical landmark of MacArthur Landing Memorial National Park

Each time I have a Leyte tour package in my capacity as a tour coordinator, I would see to it that this historical mark is a part of it. It is also known as MacArthur Park or Leyte Landing Memorial Park. This was declared a national park on July 12, 1977 through Letter of Instructions No. 572 signed by President Ferdinand Marcos. Prior to that, this was formerly Imelda Park. Imelda Marcos is the wife of former President Marcos and a native of Leyte.

The scenic beach at the back of the park

Its mere location is already scenic by itself as its along the stretch of Red Beach of the Municipality of Palo which is a part of the province of Leyte. Tourists can cool themselves from the sea breeze at the back of the park. It is also very accessible since it is only 6 kilometers away from Tacloban Airport.

The comparative size of the statues to a typical human being size

Being a Filipino, this place is significant to me as it commemorates the historic landing of the American, Australian and Filipino guerilla forces headed by General Douglas MacArthur on October 20, 1944 where it is now a protected 6.78- hectare (16.8 acres) coastal plain area. These forces recaptured and liberated the Philippines from a 4-year occupation of the Japanese forces headed then by General Tomoyuki Yamashita during World War II.

The facade of the park coming from Tacloban City proper

The park's focal point are the seven double-life-sized bronze statues on a shallow manmade pool depicting MacArthur and his entourage during the historic A-Day Landing as captured in the iconic photo by Gaetano Faillace. They were President-in-exile Sergio Osmeña, Lieutenant General Richard Sutherland, Brigadier General Carlos P. Romulo, Major General Courtney Whitney, Sergeant Francisco Salveron and CBS Radio correspondent William J. Dunn. Designed by sculptor Anastacio Caedo and inaugurated during the 37th anniversary of A-Day in 1981, the statues mark the spot where MacArthur fulfilled his promise of "I shall return" at Red Beach, so-called for the blood spilled on it during the war. In front of the statues, two historical markers in English and Filipino can be found explaining the significance of the scene being depicted. A museum stands adjacent to the site which contains historic photographs and other memorabilia of General MacArthur including a copy of his speech upon landing and a bronze cast of his footprints.

HOW TO GET THERE

From Manila, you can either take a plane with flights of few airlines flying to Tacloban City daily or an option to take a South Road or by bus along Pan Philippine Highway (AH26) via Bicol Peninsula, then to Samar and it crosses the San Juanico Bridge and to the island of Leyte for 26 hours or 854.8 kilometers but not to include the waiting time while in Matnog of the province of Sorsogon for a ferry boat ride crossing the turbulent San Bernardino Strait to Allen port of Northern Samar.

From Tacloban Airport, it would take another eight (8) minutes drive for 6 kilometers to get to the park via SSS. There are also public utility vehicles which would take the tourists to this point.

Source: Wikipedia

SAN JUANICO BRIDGE

Location: Sta. Rita Municipality (Samar) and Barangay Cabalawan, Tacloban City (Leyte), Philippines

The monumental San Juanico Bridge of Samar and Leyte Islands

Note: This is a part of my May 2 - 8, 2015 Samar-Leyte-Biliran-Mactan-Cebu Trip which includes: Capul Island, San Antonio Island, Dalutan Island, Sambawan Island, The Queen of the Most Holy Rosary Shrine, Ciriaco Hotel, Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral, Other Calbayog tours, San Juanico Bridge, MacArthur Landing Memorial National Park, Limasawa Island

San Juanico Bridge is a US$21.9 million infrastructure which was built for four years where its construction started in August 1969 and was completed in 1973 under the administration of the late President Ferdinand Edralin Marcos. This is the very reason why the bridge was formerly called as Marcos Bridge. The connecting link of the bridge is from the Municipality of Sta. Rita of the Samar side across the San Juanico Strait to Barangay Cabalawan of Tacloban City of the Leyte side which is 10 kilometers from the city proper. The bridge connecting the islands of Samar and Leyte did not only benefited the two islands but it also spurred economic development for the entire country particularly Mindanao.

My moment while I commune with San Juanico Bridge

To date, it is the longest bridge in the Philippines spanning a body of seawater, that is, the San Juanico Strait, the narrowest strait in the Philippines, with the length of 2.162 kilometers or 1.34 miles and width of 10.620 meters supported by a total of 43 spans. The shape of the bridge varies into an “S” shape on the Samar side and “L’ on the Leyte side. Its height is 41 meters from the sea level.

The surface of the water evidently shows the countless whirlpools

The best thing to be on the bridge is very early in the morning when the sun starts to rise till 8:00 A.M. and late in the afternoon till the sun sets. The hues of the sky and sea give a total contrast on the architectural lines of the bridge. These hues of colors give a useful advantage to the photographers to capture a postcard perfect picture of the bridge. I like the bridge when its color was silver then but this time it was changed to rust red. However, upon looking to my pictures recently, I realized that its present color defines it better in contrast with its sky and sea background while a silver color would only blend with the silver color clouds and structural lines do not seem to appear much.

The highest truss bridge arch has its foundation laid on an islet

Walking through the bridge might be an exciting experience for some but the contrary for those who have fear of heights. Just imagine, when a bus or truck, passes, the bridge really shakes and the sound of the vehicle’s engine is magnified like that of a thunder. And as you approach the midpoint of the bridge, the wind literally blows you strong. Down at the sea level, you can see a countless whirlpools.

Leading to the truss bridge arch in rust red color

A lot of you may know this monumental bridge merely by its name but there are some stories behind it that you may ought to know. There was one article in Manila Bulletin which I read that I kept but since it was an article cutout, it no longer bears the date of its publication.

Firstly, initially known as Marcos Bridge project, it was awarded to the Construction and Development Corporation of the Philippines (CDCP) for the contracts to design, finance and construct this enormous engineering project. CDCP's design and engineering staff, together with Japanese engineers, undertook a detailed survey, study and analysis and the construction of the bridge began and it was completed in 1973.

"Welcome to Leyte" is what it says coming from the Samar side

Secondly, the bridge has been dubbed as “The Bridge of Love” since the late President Ferdinand Marcos has dedicated it to his wife, Imelda Marcos famous as the “Rose of Tacloban” as a birthday gift to prove how he loves her so much. This has been held during the groundbreaking ceremony of Marcos bridge which he coincided it with Imelda’s birthday. Of course, we knew Imelda Marcos. She is known to everyone as a “Woman of Thousand Shoes” who lived extravagantly during the administration of his husband as the president of the Philippines. With that, her name, Imelda, has been used in some dictionary as “imeldific” which means extravagance.

The highest point of the truss arch at 41 meters above sea level

Thirdly, San Juanico Bridge is a part of the Maharlika Highway which now appears in Philippine road maps as Pan-Philippine Highway which means that it is a network of roads, bridges and nautical routes that connect the islands of Luzon, Samar, Leyte, and Mindanao. I still remember when I was a kid that this Maharlika Highway is also called South Road – a network of road which connects Manila to the southern part of the country.

Looking back to the bridge's Samar side showing the mountainous part of Sta. Rita Municipality in the background

It was on July 4, 2005 that a certain treaty took effect designating the Pan-Philippine Highway as an Asian Highway (AH-26) under the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Asian Highway Network which has for its objective of providing a framework for coordinated development of the international highways in Asia. Aha!!! Now I knew why often see the sign AH-26 along our highways recently.

Approaching the scenic part of the Leyte Island

Fourthly, the moviemaking industry history revealed that once a film was shoot in San Juancio Bridge with the action star Dante Varona jumped off the bridge in 1981 with Carlo J. Caparas as the director in a movie titled “Hari ng Stunt” to really prove that the former was really the king of stunts in the Philippines.

The rugged and panoramic view of the bridge's Leyte sie

In addition, it has been revealed in the recent news that the foundation of the bridge remains strong and operational despite being hit by a super Typhoon Haiyan in November 2013 locally named as Typhoon Yolanda. Major repairs has been made then to restore it to be fully operational.

Right after, San Juanico Bridge, you can either go first to San Rafael Farm in Babatngon if it becomes fully restored already. It was devastated by Typhoon Yolanda and is now under major renovation. This link shows when the farm was still on its full glory. Or better head to Tacloban City to check what it is in store for you now that it has gradually recovered from Typhoon Yolanda’s destruction.

HOW TO GET THERE

If you intend to experience how it feels to be at San Juanico Bridge, the link below will be great help for you, that is, your point of origin is Manila. You can have it BY AIR or BY LAND TRAVEL with a number of bus companies operating from Manila direct to Tacloban. From Tacloban, you may board a public utility jeep or take a taxi going to San Juanico Bridge for 10 kilometers from the city proper.

IN SEARCH FOR BANGON AND TARANGBAN WATER FALLS

Location: Calbayog, Samar, Philippines

The sight of a dead end search

As part of my May 2-8, 2015 Samar-Leyte-Biliran-Mactan-Cebu Trip, I made sure that Tarangban and Bangon Water Falls of Calbayog would be a part of it after my San Antonio-Capul Tour. I assumed too much that our van driver/tour guide will be able to drive us going there.

Bangon-Bugtong Falls as shown in famous blogger's post Mr. Gideon Lasco at www.pinoymountaineer.com

I read extensively this post of Sir Gideon that I was mesmerized and decided that this attraction will have a place in my forthcoming summer trip. As I was busy with my work, I did not notice that I was not able to print the details of the Bangon Falls. I was also thinking that being a Calbayognon, I knew much the place and my alternative is even to ask the locals.

Photo of Tarangban Falls courtesy of Boyet's Tour in his blog at Tourists Haven

Another water falls of Calbayog which I became interested with was the Tarangban Water Falls wherein I was fascinated with the pictures I saw from Boyet's Tour blog at Tourists Haven but just the same, I was not able to print its details.

A long drive to an unknown peripheral road from Pan Philippine Highway

In short, I was not really equipped with information on how to direct my guide in locating the destinations I wanted to visit. We resorted to asking almost everybody that we saw along our way. Surely, they were accommodating enough to answer our queries and giving us directions on how to find the location we desired to reach. But just to find out that we came to a dead end. It was a large river without a bridge and when we asked where we can find the water falls, they said, that part of the river serves as water falls when the current is strong and heavy during rainy season. We also passed through two small rivers where mothers were washing clothes and their children were playing fun with the small rapids and where they described it to us as water falls.

An unexpected superb scenery on our way back to Pan Philippine Highway

Sensing that it was futile to pursue our target destination from a dead end route, we drove back again to Pan Philippine Highway which was along coastal areas. Long and winding roads were so scenic. There were instances where roads had a deep drop and on top of these highly elevated roads unfolded to our sight the breathtaking views of the blue seas blending with the lush green mountainous terrain. We can't help then but to get off from our chartered van and have ample shots for souvenir.

Veriato Falls

As we continued driving, we reached Veriato and since its water falls is just a few meters away from the highway, we all jumped from the van to see what was in store for us in this attraction. It was almost 11:00 A.M. then and it was so hot. The water was obviously not clear as the other night there was rain which was unusual for a summer season. The falls was like a public pool and washing area of the locals and so by the time we were there, there were a lot of them cooling themselves from the hot temperature of the sun. With that sight, we just had a picture taking and we left the place.

Ton-ok Hanging Bridge

Our driver guide, really felt how disappointed we were and so he suggested that we visit their place in Ton-ok where there is a hanging bridge and water falls. His place is a part of Oquendo District of Calbayog and after the town proper of Oquendo, we still had a long drive passing through a few barangays until we reached Pan-as Hayiban Protected Landscape of Ton-ok.

Ton-ok Water Falls as part of Pan-as Hayiban Protected Landscape

From the point where our chartered van was parked, we trekked for almost 20 minutes going to the water falls. Part of the trail was the long hanging bridge. Most of the trail was open and so we felt the hot sun in our skin. We reached the water falls and only four of us out of 10 decided to have a swim since the basin was so deep though the water was so cold. It was like a fiesta in the water falls. There were a lot people there who wanted to have a cool dip.

Enjoying the hanging bridge during our return trek

Trekking back to where our chartered van was parked a little less hot as compared to the time when we were trekking to the water falls at almost 12:30 Noon. My companions and I had enjoyed our moment taking photos of the hanging bridge.

Taking a picture of the hanging bridge down from the river

I spent ample time to take photos of the hanging bridge from almost all angles. One was taking a picture down below where I need to step down to the river and took the shot from there.

Taking a picture of the hanging bridge with the locals

For the second time around, most of my companions decided to take some photos on the hanging bridge. This time, they were no longer scared compared to the first time they crossed it. Each one of them had their solo moment with the hanging bridge.

A last look of the hanging bridge

As we boarded back in our chartered van, we headed to our accommodation, that is the Guest House of the Queen of the Most Holy Rosary Shrine in Malajog, Tinambacan Distric, Calbayog, Samar. The road travel was worth one and half hours. It was there that we stayed overnight as we prepared for our Catbalogan-Tacloban-Naval-Sambawan Trip the following day.

I might have failed to locate Bangon and Tarangban Water Falls but the quest and urge of conquering it is very much alive in my midst.