The Northern Mindanao Adventure, Day 3

Marc, Sinjin, and I woke up early in the morning for a breakfast. Our agenda for the day is the Cotta Fort in Ozamis then head to the town of Sinacaban, Misamis Occidental for a whole day adventure at the Misamis Occidental Aquamarine Park (MOAP).

After our heavy meal, we walked towards the Ozamis Port area to check out the Cotta Fort. Apparently, the Fort is against the sunlight in the morning, so we just take a few photos and headed towards the Lotradisco jeepney Terminal beside Gaisano. This is where we will ride going to Sinacaban. Since it’s out first time in Misamis Occidental, I told the driver that we’ll be going to MOAP.

After the driver dropped us, we took a short walk leading to the Park. MOAP is a Provincial Government Project. A minimal entrance fee is required. Inside the park, one can easily notice the ongoing renovation and improvement projects. There are several ponds where shrimps and other marine animals are being cultured.

A restaurant is currently being renovated. there’s also a wooden footbridge that would lead you to th reception area if you wish to go to the dolphin island. A trip to the dolphin island is the highlight of any trip to MOAP. Entrance to the island (inclusive of round trip Boat fare to the island) is PHP250. A separate fee is charged is you wish to swim with the dolphins.

Photo by Marc

A swim with the dolphins I did. It was an exhilarating experience. It was something that I have never done before. dolphins are really cute and cuddly, being seeing their teeth while feeding then is hmmmm. I was scared a bit. LOL Check out my MOAP blog post soon!

Photo by Marc

From MOAP, we walked a few meters towards the highway for a late lunch at Palayan Restaurant. It was almost 1:30PM when we ordered our food. We had Bangus SuTuKil (Sugba, Tula Kilaw), and native chicken adobo. Ang daming pagkain! But what’s surprising is that everything is priced reasonably.

While having lunch, we realized that it’s too early to go back to Ozamis and do nothing. So we decided to travel a bit further north to the nearby town of Jimenez. Our target is the San Juan Bautista Church where it has been declared as a National Cultural Treasure. The painting on the church ceiling is just so breathtaking. The church in Jimenez is just one of the very few churches of outstanding value in Mindanao.

After shooting photos, we took a short walk and take pictures of the old houses. After that, we all went back to the Agora Terminal, took a jeepney ride that would bring us to Ozamis City. The ride is 30 minutes long. We disembarked in Gaisano and took a short walk back to the Cotta Fort. It was almost sunset when we returned to the Fort. We had better lighting at that time to shoot the Fort, so off we went, picture picture! We went back inside the Fort again and waited for the sun to finally set and take some more photos.

It was really a tiring day, with all the swimming and walking, and pa-picture, I decided to get a whole body massage at a spa located beside our hotel.

It was a fun-filled trip. An adventure of a lifetime. The three of us will once again meet in Bacolod for the Masskara Festival, together with other blogger friends. Marc and I still has a scheduled flight on the First week of October somewhere in the North. While Sinjin and I will have another trip this
coming December, down south.

Watch out for the details of my trip SOON!