I USUALLY spend my Holy Week either at my hometown in Mati or at the peak of Mt. Apo or just about anywhere interesting and new for me. But seldom do I spend it at the beach for some reason that it’s Holy Week and I should be soul-searching instead of frolicking at the shore.

But my plan to go home to the City of Mati was cancelled at the last minute, thus last Maundy Thursday, I did nothing but stare at the ceiling of my house and surf the Internet.

Arroyo Watch: Sun.Star blog on President Arroyo

Luckily (or is it unfortunately?), I received a text message from a dear friend about a landslide in Sta. Maria, Davao del Sur. That momentarily made my day interesting as I have to file the story for our website even though our local paper is on a two-day holiday.

After I filed the story, I went back sulking at my bed and doing nothing while watching my son and his friends play around the house laugh at the pivot stickman animator they are doing at his laptop. My boredom was worsened by the wet weather all day Thursday.

Come Friday, weather was good. Sun is shining bright so I decided to spend it somewhere where I could enjoy the sun and still remain cool.

Giffard had long been pleading for us to go to a swimming pool. So I told him I have a better idea, lets go to the beach instead.

So off we went to Paradise Island. I expect people to be flocking to the resort considering that it’s summer and a holiday. But it was not the beach that I actually wanted to enjoy but the aqua sports facilities available at the said resort.

Wind and Wave is a concessionaire of Paradise Island resort where equipment for various aquamarine activities is available. From wind surfing to banana boat ride to wake boarding and jet ski to island hopping and coral tour are available for those who want to try it and has the money to spend.

Stephen Amomonpon, Wind and Wave marketing manager, said they started operation in 1993 and is then focused on diving only. From diving they branched out to other aqua sports and the rest is history.

Wind and Wave is now the leading aqua sports company in the Davao Region that services popular beach resorts along the Davao Gulf like Paradise, Pearl Farm, Chemas, Costa Marina and Blue Waters.

Amomonpon said that back in 1993, aqua sports like diving and Jet Ski are likened to the sports of golf where only those who can afford could play. They say it’s the sports of the rich and famous.

But with Wind and Wave in the scene, they slowly introduced aqua sports to the Dabawenyos who are not so rich yet could afford to pay their reasonable rate.

How reasonable? Amomonpon said that if before a dive would cost around P5,000 each, now it is only at P700 each. That’s how reasonable the price is today.

He said those who wanted to enjoy aqua sports would also be getting a lower rate if they come in groups ‘organized’, was the term used by Amomonpon.

He said that an island hopping that cost P7,700 for an exclusive rate would normally be just around P399 each for a group of around 40 persons. The rate includes lunch for the group while cruising at the islands of Malipano, Talikud and Liguid.

Aside from providing aqua sports facilities to their clients, Wind and Wave is also into worthwhile activities like cleaning the gulf and protecting the marine environment.

On April 20, in time for the Earth Day celebration, Wind and Wave will be joining the Department of Tourism (DOT) on the ‘Dive the Gulf’ activity where participants will be cleaning up Davao Gulf of garbage. The participating divers will also collect crown of Thorns so as to protect the corals in the sea.

On April 23 to 24, they will also be organizing a leisure dive for their clients outside of the Davao Region, which will be conducted on daytime as well as nighttime.

Every 3rd Sunday of the month, Wind and Wave also organizes an introductory diving tutorial and island hopping for those who are interested.

If interested of their offered services, Amomonpon said they could be contacted at 305-3483 (305-DIVE) and at 09053305045.

I tried their jet ski and it was exhilarating. The speed, the wave and the wind surely made my Holy Week special. It may have not revitalized my soul but surely it did my love for the sea and my resolve to protect it at all cost.

ARTICLE PULLED OUT FROM SUNSTAR

The Island Garden City of Samal is now a part of (Metropolitan Davao) Metro Davao.

Beautiful and exotic, the Island Garden City of Samal or IGaCoS, a part of the Metropolitan Davao area, is a great destination if you are looking for tranquility, great adventures and extreme challenges with nature. It is a coastal paradise located in Davao Gulf, just a stone throw away from Davao City.

The place is blessed with beautiful coast having white sand beaches, abundant marine life, magnificent rock formations, and flourishing flora and fauna. It is home to the famous Pearl Farm Beach Resort, which was once literally a pearl farm.

A guided tour of the island will let you discover its inland treasures - the rivers, waterfalls, antique mansions and ancestral houses, and the world renowned cave that hosts the world’s biggest colony of fruit bats. Local and foreign scientists say that the cave (one of the 70 caves in the island) is home to 1.8 million Geoffrey’s Rousette Fruit Bat.

But the beauty of the island is not just with its white and unspoiled beaches or its diverse natural attractions but to its warm and lovely people as well. All these make this island a potential world-class eco tourism destination in this part of the Philippines.

How to Get There

Davao City is the jump-off point for Samal Island. Davao is accesible via air or land/water travel from major cities in the country and the South East Asia. From Davao City, boats and ferries are available at Sta. Ana Wharf and Km. 11 Wharf in Sasa.

Via Air

Philippine Airlines, Air Philippines and Cebu Pacific fly to Davao regulary. It is an hour and half flight from Manila and fifity minutes flight from Cebu, and can also be accessed by plane from Zamboanga City and Iloilo City. From Singapore, Silk Air and Cebu Pacific service the route. Davao is also linked to Indonesia and Hongkong.

Via Land/Water

(Though Lakwatsero haven’t try these means of transportation yet, one can possibly reach Davao by bus and/or ferry rides from Manila. These alternatives are relatively cheaper than air travel though quite strenous.)

• Philtranco buses offers Manila(Pasay) to Davao for an approximately 48 hours travel time

• SuperFerry, Negros Navigation and Sulpicio Lines have ferries bound to Davao City for around 40 hours travel time

Where to Stay

There are more than 30 commercial resorts scattered along Samal’s more than 116 kilometers of shorelines. The very famous for high-end tourists is the Pearl Farm Beach Resort. Paradise Island Resorts, on the other hand, is also popular for most tourists due to its cheaper rates, good amenities and accessibility to Davao City, they have P1900.00 ($46)/room/night for a Standard Room that is good for two. Paradise Island Resort is where Lakwatsero stayed in his visit to Samal. For Lakwatsero’s compilation of hotels and resorts in Samal - click here.

Activities

The island has it all, you can choose from a lot of activities that this island paradise offers.

• Aquatic Sports: Snorkeling, Scuba Diving, JetSki Ride
• Swimming and Beach Hopping
• See the Pawikan and Dugong Santuaries
• Visit Bat Cave in Babak District that is home to 1.8 million Geoffrey’s Rousette Fruit Bat
• Spelunking in Simbahan Dako Cave, Kimoko Cave, Mangongaong Cave and other caves in Talicud Island, Kaputian District and Babak District
• Discover its waterfalls (Hagimit Falls, Tambang Falls, Tagbaobo Falls)
• Island Hopping (Samal Island, Talikud Island, Malipano Island & Ligid Island)
• Hiking/Camping

Salum sa Dagat (Scuba Diving)
Plunge into the depths of several favorite dive spots and discover the mystique of our rich undersea world.For scuba diving buffs, Talikud and Liguid Islands are excellent dive spots with dazzling coral gardens. A dive into the depths will reveal colorful underwater vistas with jaw-dropping tropical marine life. Unique to the diving sites are beckoning coral reefs considered as one of the best in the world. A “must-see” for divers is the 150-hectare Coral Garden and Marine Reservation Park at Talikud Island.