It's A Soi Thing: Antique: Malalison Island

Our journey jumpstarted when we left the Esperanza Hotel in Kalibo, Aklan early in the morning.

Our destination?
Malalison (or Mararison to the locals) Island.
The island, located in the Municipality of Culasi, Antique, is now is now a favorite weekend destination in Panay Island. It is a hook-shaped island gifted with picturesque mountain ranges (like that of Batanes), abundant coral reefs, carnivorous pitcher plants and of course, a powdered-colored beach.

How did we get there

We rode a tricycle going to the Ceres Bus Terminal to bring us to San Jose/Culasi.

I read from the other blogs that from our hotel, one can walk going to the bus terminal

but because they have relocated, one needs to ride a trike to get there.

No fuss as the fare is only P10/person.

When we arrived at the terminal, there were no other passengers yet except us.

Haha! Lucky! We then have the whole bus for ourselves, huh?

But as time went by, the bus started filling up.

We settled inside as instructed and the conductor gave us bus ticket and paid P110/pax as fare.

We asked him to drop us off to Culasi as were heading to Malalison Island.

The bus left past 6 am, and the almost 2-hour journey to Culasi was smooth and dandy.

From there, we walked straight on the right side passing the plaza and municipal hall.

In the end, you'll see the port and on your left side is the tourism office.

*The GPS helped us locate the port and the office. :)

As per protocol, for every visitor, he needs to pay a visit at the tourism office to settle the necessary dues. He will pay P30/pax for the environmental, and terminal fee along with the

P750 (for five persons) for the rent of the outrigger boat which is inclusive of the island tour, ride to and from the island and snorkeling.

*You'll have to pay another P150/pax rent for the snorkeling gear.

In our case, we brought our own, so it saved us a dime. :)

After settling everything, we headed to our boat. :) Yey!!

I noticed that the weather didn't change at all. It was still gloomy and drizzling.

But I brushed it off and focused more on what I am going to see on the island.

The boat ride was roughly 15-20mins, and soon after we had a glimpse of the island from afar.

Woohoo! I am excited.

We checked-in and fixed our things at Kuya Allan Macuja's homestay as soon as we arrived.

We rested a bit and soon got on our feet as we didn't want to waste time.

kuya Allan's humble abode

We explored the "left" side of the island on foot and saw those Jackstone-like structures.

I wondered what they were at first, but then I remembered the water breakers in Batanes.

It reminded me of its purpose.

Then one local said that the water breakers would be placed in the middle of the sea sometime this month

hence, for the moment, it stays by the seashore.

No toy cars? No problem.

As we walked further, we found ourselves at the main entrance of the island; the placed where we docked. Again, the rain started streaming. :(

At the back of my mind, I imagined how beautiful the island was if the sun was up shining on it that day. The view would have been different.

I pictured how the sea and the sand glistened with the sun's rays. Hmmm.. wonderful!

Unfortunately, we didn't have Mr. Sun. Instead, we had Mr. Rain.

Moving further, we walked on the side where the Blue Lagoon and other resorts are constructed. So in no time, more people will be popping in this place for R and R which is good as this will aid the community in earning an extra dime aside from fishing.