Old Bohol Capitol Building
Tagbilaran Cathedral
Tagbilaran harbor. June 2015
[from FB post: June 27, 2015]
Well I got stuck in the rain at a bus stop and that makes you slow down a lot. It gave me time to watch the world around me and I noticed that most of the tricycles (3 wheel taxis) have a bible verse written on them. You could make your journey daily based on your mood and whatever verse struck your fancy. That being said "It is finished" is really not a vehicle I want to get into....
My first visit to Tagbilaran was rainy. I was lucky to make it from the harbor to my hotel on the edge of downtown between showers. Most of that first visit was trying to explore between downpours. Admittedly, it was not the ideal introduction to the city, but I was in the tropics and I knew eventually my string of sunny days might run out. That happened in Tagbilaran.
Like Iloilo, Tagbilaran was colonized by the Spanish a really long time ago. The first church on the cathedral grounds was erected by the Jesuits in 1595 although the current one dates from the 1800s. Also like Iloilo, Tagbilaran was a place that that people stopped on their way elsewhere - but little Tagbilaran had two HUGE elsewheres: the gorgeous Panglao Island with its lovely beaches just across a small strait from town and the famed Chocolate Hills in the interior. Even for Filipinos, Bohol was this kind of mysterious island that was high on their domestic travel itinerary. One had to pass through Tagbilaran to go anywhere and that is what most people did. In fact, the majority of people chose to stay on the beach in Panglao and take tours from there. That might have explained why the downtown of Tagbilaran was devoid of tourists and tourist related services.
The little town plaza right near the causeway to Panglao Island held both the Old Capitol Building and the Cathedral. I never made it inside the cathedral because there was a wedding going on when I was nearby (and it wasn't raining). I had to satisfy myself with some coffee at Bo's (Filipino Starbucks) on the other side of the plaza and resign myself to the fact that there wasn't too much to see or do in this small city AND it was going to rain a lot.
I discovered a couple of nice restaurants at least - one Western and one Filipino. If I had to be indoors at least I could grab a beer and some good food. The Filipino place served its own version of "chicken inasal" (bbq chicken on a stick) which they told me was TOTALLY different from the more famous Bacolod version. It was very delicious yet I thought pretty damn close to the Bacolod version in taste. Perhaps the Filipino palate is more discerning when it comes to bbq glazes than mine. I also stumbled on a great small hotel overlooking Panglao Island and the causeway. I mentally noted, if I returned, I would stay there. In this case, I actually DID return and used that place as a base to explore Bohol on a more weather-cooperative visit. The location was much better than my original hotel and it had a fabulous view of Panglao Island and the harbor from the rooms.
My second stay in Tagbilaran was just taking trips to Panglao and the interior [see: throwback to younger days] (which I missed on that first rainy visit). Even though the weather was sunny, other than Bo's coffee, I didn't re-explore the town. At least I knew a couple of good places to eat!
Tagbilaran was the place where all the tricycles had bible verses painted on the backs of their vehicles. Thank God for the rain of that first visit, or I might not have slowed down enough even to notice. It was quite comical at times. I wondered what led some people to choose their particular verse. There were, of course, well know bible verses like John 3:16, but there were a lot of others which, out of context, just seemed strange. Piety or comic relief? Maybe both - Filipinos are devout Catholics with wicked senses of humor. I don't think you could live in the country without being able to laugh in the face of adversity!
Little Tagbilaran, I am not sure I would recommend you to anyone as a nice, small city to visit. With Dumaguete just a two-hour ferry ride away, I think better people stay beachside on Panglao Island and take tours to the Chocolate Hills. If arriving by ferry, do try to take a tricycle with a Bible verse that bodes well for your journey.
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