Lately, Mindanao has become so famous because of what is so-called Sub-Saharan Mindanao," which is misleading information about Mindanao that seems to underestimate the beauty and capacity of Mindanao when it comes to resources.
We explored Jelmar's Islet Resort last year at Dinagat Islands. . A close LGBT friend of mine is from Surigao Island. . I remember we were invited that time because of the house blessing. ng. She is successful in life and built two houses in Surigao, which is where she was originally born.
It was my first time to visit Surigao, as I do not have any relatives in Surigao. We didn't take a bus; instead, she rented a van that cost 10,000 pesos to get to Surigao. So all of our expenses and stay at their house are free for a couple of days.
That's what friends are for. Before, I used to treat my friends when I used to have a lot of money, but now I no longer have it, and she decides to treat us as her friends, and she has enough budget to treat three of us.
We traveled from Cagayan de Oro for one day and a half by van, going to Surigao, and we had a stopover in some different parts of Mindanao, such as Gingoog and Butuan, hanging out for a while.
I feel that it's stress-free to travel by van rather than by bus, as it needs to stop at every bus station. And because we are only 5 in the van, there are not many people, so we can lie down in the van so we can relax while traveling.
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Here are the details below on how to get to Surigao by bus and instructions on how to get to Dinagat Islands.
1.At Cagayan de Oro Bus Terminal Agora, you can take a bus going to Surigao.
2.The bus fare is estimated at 650 to 700 pesos, depending on the bus liner.
3 Going to Dinagat Island, you need to get to Surigao port. The estimated fare for a multicab or tricycle is 30 to 50 pesos. Since we have a rental car, we do not pay any tricycle or multicab fare.
4 We took a ferry going to Dinagat Island, and we paid 200 pesos per person.
After an hour and a half, we finally arrived at Dinagat Island. We took to our destination, Elmar's Islet Resort; it looks like a paradise to my eyes. I cannot express my happiness that I was there; if not for her, I wouldn't have been given a chance to get there, but now she's back abroad and will be waiting soon for her comeback for another travel.
I am so amazed by this alluring sight with my own eyes. How could someone make all his paradise a sub-Saharan place? I guess he has never been here in Mindanao, and he doesn't know that Surigao is one of the topmost visited tourist spots in the world, and mostly foreigners come to visit every day. There are a lot of foreign nationals who love to stay and spend holidays here in Surigao, especially in Dinagat, which will be our next destination.
There are a lot of activities to enjoy here in Jelmar's Resort, such as :
Island hopping
swimming
sunbathing
volleyball
-eating
-and many more that you wish to do
- You can also try visiting the other tourist spots , islands, or beaches nearby Jelmar's by riding a boat.
We do not do many activities, but swimming is enough for me to make me happy, and doing some boating around the island is an extremely remarkable experience, which I cannot do in Cagayan de Oro City.
Pictures are mine and edited by: Canva