ROADTRIP – Balamban, Asturias, Tuburan and Tabuelan

You know that feeling when you’re stuck in the city on a weekend with nothing to do? You know the laundry’s waiting, dust is on your window sills and a thousand other chores compete for your attention but you just couldn’t get yourself up to do them because you’re thinking the sun is setting elsewhere and the beach is being it’s immaculate self and you are rolling in your bed being tortured by the thought that you are missing all the action?

I feel that all the time. All weekends in fact which explains the mounting pressure to do the laundry. When I couldn’t take that uncomfortable feeling, I pack a bag and just go.

Last weekend, was one of those days when I knew I had to drive away from the city if only to be sane. So I did. Destinations: Asturias, Tuburan and Tabuelan.

BALAMBAN and ASTURIAS

Traversing the beautiful sceneries of the Cebu Transcentral Highway was enough to make the roadtrip worth it. Roughly an hour of driving and a couple of stops to appreciate the landscape, I had reached Balamban.

A little less than an hour since I hit ignition, I found myself in Asturias, a coastal town in the Northwestern part of Cebu island. I had not taken alot of pictures, but I stopped multiple times on the way to take in the nostalgic sea view.

I would have wanted to dive in but I was saving time to reach Molobolo Spring in Tuburan. A cool dip in a spring sounded nice and a beach to cap off the day in Tabuelan sounded even nicer.

MOLOBOLO SPRING, TUBURAN

Tuburan, similar with Asturias, is a sleepy town you’d wish you could go to when you pine for a much needed rest. I almost got lost going to Molobolo, having failed to find the sign board at a crossroads leading to the spring. I got to ask directions from a local folk and was given directions with a smile. A few minutes later, I was amongst people swimming in the pool with water that came out from ground (you couldn’t even see it). It was a Sunday, a family day for most, so there were quite many of us in the pool which I didn’t really mind.

Molobolo Spring (entrance fee: 20 pesos) sits beside the sea which is quite amazing and honestly a first that I’ve seen. I was told that old locals went to the spring to take a bath or do their laundry centuries ago (hiking for recreation is an old hobby, it’s not something invented in the 20th century). A big tree sits beside the spring and casts a shade all day long. The beach, though not the best beach in Cebu, actually has some nice spots (I say not the best because there are just too many beautiful beaches on this island. Nevertheless the beach is probably better than many you have been too near the city). One could stroll farther from where the spring is and find a spot to spend the day basking in the white sand. Which I did!

There’s food sold at the spring (halo-halo, tempura, hotdogs, green mango and sari-sari stores where you can find the basics). I didn’t bring any food so I helped myself with a banan-q. I think I spent almost an hour at Molobolo. The water was just what I needed to cool off after a long drive. And then off to Tabuelan.

DURHAN BEACH, TABUELAN

Tuburan is another quaint old town. Not much going on really in the town center but locals doing their daily routine. Quite nostalgic to be honest. On the way from Tuburan, I had passed by several bridges, many of them picturesque enough for a whole week of instagram posts. But I was looking for that white sand beach I read somwehere – Durhan Beach Resort. Again, with no directions, I got lost. I drove around 3 kilometers past the crossing leading to the resort. With help from kids on the side of the road, I made it!

Durhan Beach Resort is private. They offer overnight stay (they have rooms at 1500 per night good for two). I was there for day-use and only had to pay 50 pesos (not bad at all considering I needed to take a bath after and a place to change). There were a few groups staying at the resort but not crowded at all. In fact I shared the beach with only a few souls the moment I decided to take a plunge.

Though the resort is private, the beach is public. In fact, there are other small roads (pathways might be the better word) leading to the beach without passing through Durhan’s which means nobody really needed to pay an entrance to the beach. I assume one could setup a tent at the area not fronting Durhan’s for free. It has a long shoreline too – around 500 meters ( please don’t trust me on this, I’m bad at estimating distances).

It was such a surprise to find the fine white sand at the beach because there isn’t really much that’s been written about Tabuelan and people tend to flock the usual Badian and Moalboal beaches if not Bantayan and Camotes. The sun was up and it was 2 PM, just the perfect time to reassess my life while I bury myself in the water. I highly suggest the beach as a go-to-beach for outings if one wants to avoid a lot of people.

I strolled the whole stretch of the beach and found beyond the rocks at the end of the shoreline that there are other pretty small coves that one can actually go to if you needed a little more time alone. Or privacy.

Durhan’s is one of those beaches that I would definitely want to visit again. It’s a bit off the beaten tracks but it’s worth it. You don’t go there for the people. You go there when you are feeling lonely and you want to find answers from the sea alone. Other beaches can do that too but there’s always this place when the rest gets a little noisy.

It was almost 5PM. And I was ready to go back to the city. The road going to Sogod from Tuburan is a bit eerie. I was alone and couldn’t find any other vehicle passing by. Well maybe, a few cargo trucks and two buses ( yes, I counted the buses). But it’s another roadtrip to remember. The trip made me closer to my project to visit all Cebu towns in a year. I started the project summer of last year. I have two more towns in Cebu island to go – Borbon and Tabogon – and the Camotes Islands. I can do this!

8PM. I was snoring in bed, happy that boredom didn’t kill me.

P.S. More photos coming in the next few days. I work.