The fourth week of March was spring break and we traveled to the Philippines! I was a little nervous; it was our first East Asia trip outside of Korea. I shouldn’t have worried. The Philippines was a dream and just the escape we needed. We chose there because it had the cheapest airfare and the beach.

When it came to planning, we had no idea where to start. Fortunately, some friends were traveling there too and let us crash their digs. We flew into Cebu City and spent five nights at Tipolo Resort in Moalboal. (We spent our last two nights in Panglao. More on that in another post!) Tipolo was the best. The restaurant had delicious meals, $6 hour massages, kayaks and gear to rent, and it was quiet and right on the beach… we would absolutely go there again!

We took a late flight out of Seoul and didn’t land in Cebu until 1:25 am. We booked transport across the island to Moalboal through the resort, which worked out great. It was a long drive, maybe 3 hours or so. Because we booked the room for that night, we crashed as soon as we set down our bags.

Seoul’s pollution did a number on me before break and a small cough turned into a full on infection. I lost my voice, was hacking up a lung, and I knew I needed antibiotics. In the morning, we took a motorbike taxi into town and stopped at a pharmacy. The pharmacy required a prescription, and after a couple of hours, I was able to see a doctor (pediatrician) and get the meds I needed. I was nervous that the visit was going to set us back on cash, but it cost $6 to see the doctor. SIX. DOLLARS. That’s it. And then around $25 for meds. With z-pack in tow, we took a motorbike taxi back to Tipolo to enjoy our vacation.

Motorbike taxis were a hoot:

We had a blast playing in the water, checking out White Beach, searching for colorful coral, and riding around the area. Renting a motorbike for a day cost just under $9!

I’m obsessed with the colors of our beach finds. I called this our handful of Frutti Pebble confetti:

Another dream fulfilled: fresh coconut!

Moalboal is famous for scuba diving. We didn’t, but David snorkeled and saw some amazing fish and coral:

Most of the signs we saw were hand painted. Swoon!

Where we ate:

• The Last Filling Station at Tipolo. The French breakfast was my favorite. And all of the mango and fruit juices. And the mango dream ice cream dessert. The pizzas were good too. Did I mention the mango?
• Blue Abyss Dive Resort Restaurant. Food was decent.
• Veranda on Panagsama Beach. This was our favorite meal, maybe because we were so hungry that night.
• A fish restaurant close to the Chilli Bar Restaurant. I didn’t catch the name of it. Overpriced, slow service, but the tuna was really yummy.

Where we stayed:
Tipolo was great. The meals at the restaurant and gear rentals were added to the room tab, which was convenient. The ladies who worked there were all kind and helpful. The rooms were a good size and clean. The showers had no water pressure, but the water was hot. Wifi didn’t reach to our room, but was fine in the dining area. It was not a fancy hotel resort, but was perfect for our needs. We recommend it!

I’ll share soon about our canyoneering adventure in Badian!