After visiting some of Boyet’s relatives, we went back to Hotel Fleuris for lunch. The hotel offers a city tour for PHP600 per person. It includes transportation and entrance fees. But Boyet’s cousin referred us to a tricycle driver who also happens to be a tour guide. He charged us with PHP250 per person for a four-hour city tour. It may not be as comfortable as riding a van. But we saved a lot and we were able to manage our time since there were no other tourists with us.
Our first stop was the Crocodile Farm. It was almost an hour-long tricycle ride from our hotel. I even fell asleep along the way. The place has scheduled tours every thirty minutes.
Unfortunately, I didn’t find anything exciting with this part of the tour other than the humongous crocodile skeleton at the entrance.
Our next stop was Rancho Sta. Monica. We were not able to appreciate the viewing deck and the zipline that the place offers because it started to rain. :'(
The hotel’s city tour includes a visit at the Iwahig Prison but it wasn’t a part of our itinerary. Instead, our tour guide brought us to Baker’s Hill. Even before we reached the place, we could already smell the sweet aroma of freshly-baked breads. We bought boxes of hopia as pasalubong. And they sell the yummiest ensaymada I've ever tasted!
The place has cute life-size figures which will definitely catch the attention of tourists. It was as if we were in wonderland as we play with amazement with the sculptures. It’s definitely a place for the kids and the kids at heart.
This guy forgot that he is with his wife!Baker’s Hill is also a food haven. Aside from a restaurant, they also have pizza and merienda stands. As a matter of fact, Boyet traveled all the way to Palawan to eat lugaw. :p
Our tour guide was a bit worried that we might not see butterflies in the Butterfly Garden because of the rain. It was a good thing though that the rain stopped after our tour at Baker’s Hill. Ironically, it wasn’t the butterflies that astonished us. We were like kids on a field trip staring at the gecko and the stick insect.
Try to look for the insect in camouflage :)Our tour guide brought us to the baywalk. The scorching heat of the sun after the rain hindered us from enjoying the view. We took a couple of photos and headed to our next destination.
Our tour guide brought us to our final stop – the Plaza Cuartel. It was a WWII fort which witnessed the burning of almost 150 American prisoners by the Japanese soldiers. Going there on a gloomy afternoon was really creepy so I asked Boyet if we could leave right away.
It wasn’t part of the tour but since it is just across Plaza Cuartel, we told our tour guide that we’d go inside the Immaculate Conception Cathedral.
It was indeed the best way to end our first day in Palawan. :)
