Janhoo's Blog

This morning we had a guide and driver pick us up at 9 AM. We were hoping to see most of the sights on Bohol Island (exploring the ones in the ocean around), and at the moment there are not a lot of attractions to be found. However, the island seems to be making a push to promote itself as an eco-tourism destination, so I am sure there will be many more offerings for tourists in the near future.

Our first stop was at the Blood Compact Site, which is an historic attraction due a blood compact forged by Spain and a native Chieftain in 1565. The natives on Bohol were apparently friendly compared with natives on other islands, which Ferdinand Magellan discovered when he was killed during the Battle of Mactan. A blood compact involves blood being spilled into a cup of wine, which is later drunk by the participants of the compact.

After visiting the Blood Compact Site, we went on to see the Chocolate Hills. Our guide told us the Chocolate Hills were given their names after an American commented that they look like a type of chocolate made by Hershey's, and that is a story so stupid it must be true. The Chocolate Hills surely must have had a name before the Americans showed up, but the Chocolate Hills do turn brown during summer, and then they actually may look like chocolate (with a bit of heavy drugs or imagination).

The Philippines have proposed the Chocolate Mountains for inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List, the goal obviously being to make more money from tourism. If I had some similar looking hills in my backyard, probably I would do the same.

The Chocolate Hills are composed of approximately 1,268 perfectly cone-shaped hills of about the same size. Not surprisingly, geologists are not certain about how the Chocolate Hills were created, though everyone agrees that they were not created yesterday. Due to mining and other threats, however, there is more doubt about whether the hills will survive until tomorrow.

After having enjoyed nice views of The Chocolate Hills, we joined a lunch cruise on the Loboc River. The cruise was similar to others I have enjoyed on various rivers around Asia, but the views of the jungle were fantastic. There was also some entertainment along the way, in particular a big choir from a local church impressed us all.

Following lunch, we ventured on to see a couple of churches, which I might comment on later.