Once upon a time, we visited Kalanggaman Island back in 2010 without any tourists. Yes, we were so lucky it felt like we own the island. We don't see any authorities there.
Kalanggaman Island is part of Palompon, Leyte. But we hired a private boat from Malapascua Island. Also that time, there were only a few tourists on the island of Malapascua. It felt so virgin for both Kalanggaman and Malapascua islands.
Kalanggaman comes from the root word "LANGGAM." Langgam is the Cebuano word for a bird. It is called Kalanggaman island because the island looks like a flying bird as seen from above.
We have to wake up early in the morning as going to the island from Malapascua Island takes 3-4 hours. Yes, that was a long ride.
My mom and I were very used to the waves. My one relative took a rosary to pray as she was very scared. With every bump, she needed to pray. She asked us why my mom and I were so cool. It was because we had been to Bantayan Island and we got used to the bumpy waves.
The boatmen also cooked our lunch in the boat. They caught fresh fish while the boat was anchored on the shore. While I was doing my snorkeling, I saw a lot of fish. Unfortunately, I don't have an underwater camera at that time because it was expensive. I was using my old digital camera to capture photos of Kalanggaman island.
We enjoyed the island without the noise as we were the only people. I felt so lucky to enjoy Kalanggaman island without any tourists unlike after many years. Later in the afternoon, we saw a fishing boat in which a fisherman just took a rest under a coconut tree. It is believed that he was a fisherman from Bogo, Cebu.
Kalanggaman island in 2010 had no structures and no hotels so staying overnight wasn't allowed. In the later years, overnight camping is allowed on the island.
You can see how secluded it was. None of us our swimmers so we were just swimming in the shallow area. I didn't know that if you want to swim further, you can see many different things underwater.
On the later years, there is actually a good diving spot.
In this rocky area, when you swim further, it's a good diving spot.
I don't know what kind of fruit is this but looks like pineapples hanging in the tree.
We were just walking around but it was really hot as you can see covering ourselves with towels.
We looked like the participants of Survivors. Possible, it could be a good place to have Survivors for one of their episodes.
Kalanggaman Island got so popular in the next few years. Several boats dock on the shore. Tourists are coming like crazy. And it became so noisy.
When I returned to this island sometime in 2015 and 2016, I was lucky to see some dolphins. In 2010, I didn't see any dolphins.
You can see clear water!
Ending this photo with a nice sunset.
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Welcome to iTravelRox! Roxanne Tamayo is a Cebuana who is a traveler. Now a mom of 2 kids and a wife. She is a travel blogger and a digital nomad. As a Virtual Assistant, she does a lot of things like content writing, WordPress web design, WP updates and maintenance, graphic design, and photo editing. She is into wedding photography, as well.
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