“The sand, just wow. I’ve never seen anything like it,” she exclaimed.

We were by the garden having dinner—chicken tinola which Owen had cooked—and Ms. Grace, the owner of the house, was telling us about the first time she had seen White Beach—then unnamed and uninhabited—on this island the whole world now knows as Boracay.

“We were just passing by, and then we saw this long strip of sand that looked as white as paper. The coconut trees were all green, and the water was so clear!”

We were on our last night after a week-long stay in August, and we’ve had many of these conversations, for sure. She would tell us all about their dive trips around the island—how she saw, on her first deep dive, three thresher sharks (yes, in Boracay waters!); how they would all swim drunk from one end of the beach to the other and sleep on the sand; how they would all sit on the beach, form a long line, and pass along a joint; and how they would drink beer through their regulator(!)

Continue reading “Dakong Amihan: Finding what’s not yet lost in Boracay” →