Monday, October 6, 2008

Coron, Palawan, Philippines




3-5 October 2008

43 comments:

  1. everyday i seem to get this fear of flying. too much watching air crash investigations i guess

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  2. really really neat! i love the pics!

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  3. Thanks, had an awesome time there.

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  4. And ganda Ry! Wow! Eto ang next destination ko on the island. Hopefully. Heheh.

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  5. They paved the runway already, I see. They used to land those Czech-made LET planes of SEAir on a dirt runway!

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  6. The place is indeed extremely amazing. You should defo come to Coron!

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  7. Yeah! That's the private beach actually. :) There were only two of us there!

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  8. Really??? I have never been in an airport with a dirt runway before...

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  9. the PAL aircraft looks to me like a DeHavillandCanada DHC-8
    one of the more handsome turboprops in the market today
    its a good thing that PAL replaced the earlier
    flimsy Norman-Britten Islander commuter aircraft .

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  10. magnificent !
    you could still further improve this photo's quality in Photoshop
    by adjusting EXPOSURE , SMART SHARPEN , AND SHARPEN
    in order to cut through the haze and the aircraft window panel glare

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  11. oooh... well, I am no expert in planes but according to their website:

    PAL Express will operate an initial fleet of nine turbo-propeller aircraft – three Bombardier Q300s and six Bombardier Q400s – manufactured by Bombardier Aerospace of Canada. Eight of the nine aircraft are already in service with the last scheduled for delivery in a few weeks.

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  12. Thanks for the tips, I dont really know how to manipulate photos though, so the photos you see here in my pages are exactly what I took from a regular digital cam. :) Although, I will start tinkering with this on photoshop and see what I can bring it to.... I always had a problem shooting photos from the plane because of the panels...

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  13. This was like at the isolated beach we stayed for acouple of hours on the Coron Island.... sigh sooo beautiful....

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  14. I soooo love Coron.... I sooo love this country....

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  15. Do you think this is good development? I dont really like the idea of turning Coron into another Phuket!

    Coron islet to be next Asian tourism jewel

    By Niña Catherine Calleja
    Philippine Daily Inquirer
    First Posted 02:35:00 03/26/2009

    CORON, PALAWAN—Stand aside, Phuket. Here comes Diwaran.

    By 2012, the 55-hectare Diwaran Island, part of Coron Reefs in northern Palawan, will be transformed into the “single largest integrated island resort in all Asia.”

    This is the hope of Ho Kwon Ping, the Singaporean executive chair of Banyan Tree Holdings, a big developer of resorts, hotels, spas and residential homes in the Asia Pacific.

    He spoke at the groundbreaking ceremony of the planned resort on the largely uninhabited island Wednesday attended by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

    Dressed in casual attire, Ms Arroyo came with Tourism Secretary Ace Durano and Trade Secretary Peter Favila.

    Challenge to Phuket

    Ms Arroyo said that the project, which is estimated to cost $240 million, would be the next Phuket, the popular resort in Thailand. Ho’s company pioneered the development in that area.

    “What he had been able to do there, he can certainly do here,” she said.

    Ho showed the master plan of the Isla Diwaran project to Ms Arroyo under the shade of tents.

    The island’s map shows that the beach with only fine white sand and few indigenous trees will have three hotels with villas, a marina with facilities for arrival by boat or by seaplane, and a town center where there will be recreational facilities and retail outlets.

    “All together, if fully developed, these (hotels) will have 600 rooms … At its full occupancy, we will have more than 1,500 tourists on this island alone,” Ho said.

    About 20 minutes by speedboat from Coron, the island will be a sure attraction for tourists. On the way, overhanging limestone cliffs are seen. Coron Reefs, a favorite site for divers, is also known for its diverse marine life.

    12,000 jobs

    As soon as the resort is completed, 3,000 people will be hired to work on the island, Ho said.

    “We are expecting at least 12,000 people to acquire jobs directly and indirectly from this project,” he said.

    Ms Arroyo told a fisherman in the crowd, Joel Saclet, that on nearby Amanpulo, residents no longer fished but worked in the high-end resort.

    “Is that what you are also expecting?” she asked.

    Saclet replied “yes, ma’am.”

    “It’s not only in the operation but as well as in the construction and a lot of the people around … are expecting that as this island resort is being built, roads will be constructed from the airport to the Marcella port,” Ms Arroyo said.

    2012 opening

    Ho said the resort would open probably by 2012.

    Based on Banyan’s statistics, Palawan will benefit from the total tourists’ spending of $200 million per year.

    “This is generally a big help for Coron,” he said.

    The company already has hotels in some of the world’s most exclusive and popular holiday spots such as the Seychelles and Maldives.

    It will develop the project, its first in the Philippines, together with Filipino businessman Salvador Zamora of Tranzen Group.

    Banyan Tree was founded by Ho, a former journalist, and his wife in 1994 and was one of the first resort chains to offer guests the seclusion of their own villa equipped with a private pool and a tropical spa. With a report from Agence France-Presse

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  16. that goes for me , too , riain
    i prefer its pristine condition the way it is presently
    otherwise , magiging cheap whorespot na naman ito parang Boracay/PuertoGalera
    not to mention the environmental pollution that would ensue
    PALAWAN IS THE LAST FRONTIER
    there should be a legislation enacted to protect it and make it as a nature reserve
    to be enjoyed exclusively by Pilipinos .

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  17. Phuket is an example of overdevelopment (Boracay is nowhere close to Phuket when it comes to overcommercialization) and environmental degradation... tsk tsk... I hope they wont do that to Palawan!

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  18. parang ayaw ko syang "mainvade" ng ganun.

    nwei, how much did u spend when u wnet to coron? im planninga trip there kasi. honeymoon. :)

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  19. True that... We had a 3D2N package for around 7,000PhP plus airfare... :) :) :) incredibly cheap...

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  20. I'll go look for my emails again... :) :) :) Nakuha namin sya when we went to the Tourism Expo sa Megamall.. :)

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  21. Yes ^^.. Arvs, remind me again about that tour agency. I am going to be pretty busy these next few days..

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  22. I am reminding you now! :) hahaha Please!! Either Coron or El Nido for our honeymoon. And El Nido will blow our pockets! :) BTW, ilan kayo nagpunta sa Coron?

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  23. Dalawa lang po kami -

    Here it is-

    DIVE LINK & CORAL BAY VILLAS RESORTS, PALAWAN
    The Penthouse, Atherton Place
    Tomas Morato Ave cor. Roces Ave, Quezon City
    Tel: +632 387-2019; 376-2048
    Telefax: +632 371-9928, 412-0644
    Mobile: +639189072577
    Website: www.divelink.com.ph, www.coralbay.com.ph
    Email: info@divelink.com.ph, bookings@coralbay.com.ph
    YM: divecoron_link@yahoo.com

    dont forget to say that Ryan Buaron from Tourism Philippines recommended them. :)

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  24. sorry naman i missed your reply. salamat ha! thanks also for pointing me to your travel website. :)

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