The germ of the idea of spending a few days vacation during the Holy Week happened on a Thursday evening while having dinner at the Casino Espanol.
My friend mentioned that he was spending the long weekend at a resort in Bohol, and almost without a blink of an eye, I asked him if he could still make a reservation for me. He said he will try although he knew that the resort was already fully booked for the Holy Week.
A few days later, my friend gladly informed me that he was able to squeeze one more reservation. I almost leapt with joy because I have never been lucky in getting the vacation spot I wanted, and almost always ended up staying at home.
This time, I told myself, am really gonna soak myself in the sun, the sea and fresh air, to my hearts content. An array of sea foods, for which the area is touted, would not be that bad either.
I first heard about the resort from from a duet who guested at a beer garden and mentioned that they regularly performed at the said resort. If the resort was as good as the quality of their performance, then the resort must be something.
However , there are very few perfect things in this world. The first disappointment came right at the Pier.
With all the modern gadgets available-computers, internet, GPS, etc—the shipping lines still insist in the old ways of selling tickets.
About a week before departure, I ask somebody to reserve and buy tickets. He was told that passengers cannot buy tickets in advance, but will have to buy them on the day of the departure.
Anticipating a huge mass of humanity, I went to the Pier early, and met a howling, growling humanity who had been in the line for hours, without seeing any improvement in their chances of getting a ticket. Pretty soon, it became every man for himself, jostling the person in-front, on the sides and at the back. It came to a point just short of a riot.
Fortunately, a certain SPO Tiu decided to take over the situation and put everything back to order. He was one heck of a policeman. With the proper bearing, intelligence and authoritativeness, he was able to calm the nerves of more than a thousand. SPO Tiu, may your tribe increase and may your actions become a standard example among other policemen.
So I finally got tickets, three hours before the scheduled departure time. I inquired from the ticket clerk when we were supposed to board, and she advised that we just proceed to the passenger terminal and wait for the boarding announcement, as the vessel will sail even ahead of time, if it is already full.
The problem was that the terminal was packed with people, and one could not breathe without tickling the nape of the person in front of you. So we heeded the advise of the seemingly harassed but still smiling lady, who was an employee of the Port Authority, to just wait outside, where the air was still fresh and blowing.
There were no available seats outside though, except a vacant space where the Red Cross volunteers where stationed. The Red Cross people were very considerate and kind and allowed me to take the vacant seat. They probably believed me when I told them that it would be easier for them to take care of me while I was still ambulant, rather than wait for my legs to melt.
Finally the boarding of our vessel was announced. First time I have taken any trip with any vessel of this shipping company. I was not expecting anything because when I told the port authority employee who was in-charge of passenger assistance that we were booked on this vessel, she made a very distinct smirk and made the posthumous advice that I should have taken the fast craft instead.
It did not turn out that bad after all. In fact the interior looked much better than how the vessel appeared outside. The air conditioner was okay when the seats were still only 50% filled.
And with the fine Maundy Thursday weather, I told myself that we had a good chance making the one hour trip to Bohol. One of my most successful predictions, because a couple of minutes after an hour, the vessel landed in Tubigon, Bohol.
Unsolicited advice:
The shipping lines who are residents of Pier 3 serving Leyte and Bohol should develop an advance booking system so that the riding public would be spared of the hassle of lining up for hours without any assurance that you can take a particular trip.
A good scene in a tv comedy sitcom would be Mr. Bean lining up as passenger no. 101, and when he reached the ticket booth, he was informed that only 100 tickets were being issued.
Funny on screen, but not in real life. (To be continued)