Learning the tips of traveling, and even traveling at times as an Air Courier.  Six years ago I traveled to South America as an Air Courier and paid only $500 round trip airfare.  My last trip to the Philippines, I purchased for just $800 R/T, from one of the many air consolidators.

Bantayan Island is situated about 11 kilometers off the northwestern tip of the long slender island of Cebu, in the Eastern Visayas.  Cebu Province is home to the Philippines second largest metropolis, Cebu City, and dubbed the queen city of the south.  With an international airport, it is easy to fly into from all points in Southeast Asia, or from the US.

For a retired person on a limited income like myself, the high cost of living in the United States was forcing me to live below the poverty level.  Ten years ago I decided to do something about my lifestyle.  I started traveling to different countries in search of cheaper and more comfortable accommodation.  In search of a place where I could live like a king, and be able to enjoy my retirement without having to use my entire monthly income to live under the poverty level.

Also high on my list was climate, warm weather all year long.  In the Philippines and especially on Bantayan Island, “I live Like a King”!   In fact I will go as far to say a single person can live on Bantayan Island for as little as $500 a month.  I rented a cottage directly on the white sandy beach for $100 a month; it was the same cottage I first checked into upon my arrival.

For long-term stay of 5 months I just negotiated the price downward.

On Bantayan Island in the municipality of Santa Fe, I found about a dozen moderately priced beach resorts to choose from.  There are ample houses and apartments for rent, however there is also real estate for sale or lease, should you want to build your own cottage.  Skilled construction labor is so reasonable, I inquired about having a small bamboo cottage constructed, and the builder told me it could be built for just under $2000.  A foreigner cannot own property outright in the Philippines, however the alternatives are; a long-term lease (length is negotiable), some foreigners I talked with has lease agreements for 25- 50 years.  Or you could establish a Philippine corporation whereby the corporation owns the land.  Another way is to marry one of the many beautiful quality Island Girls and let her own the property.

Bantayan Island is an exotic destination in the truest sense of the word, a paradise for adventurers, retirees, and lovers of sand…sea…and nature.  Diving and snorkeling in the crystal clear waters, along with beachcombing or just lazing in a hammock on one of the abundant white beaches.  Although the Island is home to 50 or so foreign retirees, a few who came here on an adventure, “discovered” Bantayan Island, fell in love with the place, married a quality island girl and never returned to their country.  There are those, including myself that have discovered Bantayan Island for the first time, will say; Bantayan remains yet today a “secret” tourist and retirement destination to only an elite few that has been privileged to visit.

The Island willingly accepts her guests, but she tends not to let them leave that easy.

More than just the spectacular scenery, the warm climate, the lush verdant vegetation along with the never ending supply of fresh sea food daily…it is the People of the Philippines that left a lasting impression on me.  In most of the Philippines, English is taught in the school system from the start of primary trough secondary classes, facilitating conversational ease.  All young people in the islands love to make small talk with a foreigner, many of them initiating dialogue.  On the laid back island of Bantayan, the talk usually starts with, “Hey Joe, What is your name”?  The ease, with which even most adult Filipinos make foreigners feel, is attributable to their warm hospitable smile.  When meeting a Filipino for the first time, and you want to make a good impression, maintain a low profile, be friendly without being “artificial” and show a genuine interest in the culture.

The only thing I wanted to have to worry about happening would be a coconut falling on my head. The two and a half hour air conditioned bus ride from Cebu City to the port town of Hagnaya, 125 km north, in addition to the one hour smooth ferry boat ride across the Visayan Sea to the lush Island of Bantayan was my salvation.  Although I did not know at the time I first arrived, that this coconut-laden island would become my home and the start of a new adventurous life, I too would soon be a resident.

When I first checked into the beachside bamboo cottage (complete with verandah) with a canopy of towering coconut palms fronting the deep blue sea, I agreed to pay just a little less than $4 a night.  I thought I had expired and found the Garden of Eden.  That first night found me consuming a scrumptious Filipino dinner of Lapu-Lapu (fresh fish) with seasoned rice and vegetables, in the open-air thatch roofed resort restaurant just steps from my cottage.  Afterwards with a cold San Miguel beer in hand, I headed for the white sandy beach just meters from my cottage in the opposite direction.

There, on the soft carpet of sugar white sand, I found what would be my hammock for the next six months.  Nestled in the swaying hammock, listening to the sound of the surf lapping at the beach, I gazed my eyes upward to see a full moon peeking through the tall swaying coconut palms.  I felt as if I was thirty years old again.  What a feeling of serenity.

Bantayan Island is an uprising of coral that over time gave birth to (in my eyes), the perfect island.   The island has a land mass area of 116 square kilometers with a population of about 120,000 by the 2000 census.

Communications connectivity has been enhanced to a degree that just about all islanders have cell phones now.  There is a small airstrip on the island just outside of Santa Fe that could accommodate small charter and commuter flights.  There is talk that in the near future of one of the national carriers may consider service to the island.  I have to wonder just how; by adding air travel to the island, it would possibly affect the tranquility of this quiet haven.   I personally would not desire to see air travel to the island begin.  The islanders could not afford it, and I enjoy riding on the ferryboat along with them.  However, it will happen someday and I suppose having a means to exit the island quickly in a medical emergency would be beneficial.

Eleven km west of Santa Fe, on the leeward side of the island is Bantayan Town, the largest of the three towns, its roots as a Hispanic settlement are unmistakably stamped in its layout, with the old church and its plaza located in the center and the houses and other establishments built around it.  The town plaza and the well-preserved antebellum houses recall a bygone era.  It serves as the commercial hub for the island, with a population of around 62,000.

Sixteen km north of Bantayan Town and 26 km from Santa Fe, at the northernmost tip of the island is Madridejos, home to the fishing industry.  Unlike the resort town of Santa Fe, and the commercial center of Bantayan town, the countryside of Madridejos is characterized by hectare upon hectare of corn plantations and poultry farms, which are the major products of the island.  The fishing industry of the island yields a total annual production of 945 metric tons, including mackerel, herring, snapper, barracuda and blue marlin.  The whole island is called the “Egg Basket of the Visayas” having more than 50 poultry farms that produce around 1.5 million eggs per day.  These eggs are shipped all over the Philippines.  With all these industries plus the thriving potentials of tourism, Bantayan Island affords its own mark on the tourist map.  Connecting all three towns on the island is an excellent 2-lane concrete road that makes motor scooter riding an enjoyable pastime, the lack of four wheeled vehicles adds to the pleasure.

It was on this road tooling around the island on my rental Honda 125 just one week after I arrived, I met Marissa, a beautiful smiling island girl working at a local restaurant in Bantayan Town.  When she asked, “What is your order Sir”?  I responded jokingly with, “What would you suggest”? Her smile broadened. I was smitten.

Filipinos usually do not mind being asked their age, so it is not unusual for them to ask yours.  Age difference does not seem to be an issue for most Filipinos, as far as relationships go, many older foreign nationals visiting the Philippines meet, marry and live very happy lives.  Filipinos for the most part are very social minded and extremely family oriented; trust, honesty and commitment to family members are very important ideals and are the very fabric that holds the Filipino family together.

In the Philippines, religion plays a major role in the family structure; it is a Christian Country; in that respect, makes it very unique in Southeast Asia.

While the rest of the archipelago is obligated to abstain from meat on the most solemn of days, Good Friday, the local islanders of Bantayan feast on pork, beef and other carnivores’ delights.  However, they are not shunning this Catholic tradition.  A papal decree issued decades ago, actually “exempts” them from this religious obligation, being a fishing island that subsists on bounties of the sea for the whole year.  So annually, during Holy Week, the local folk of Bantayan Island are sanctioned by the Church to consume meat in recognition of the “penance” of fishermen who completely cease fishing in order to take part in religious rites.

I traveled back to the US in March of 2006, knowing “I would return” by the first of September.  Each day I found myself singing…”Back to the Island…I’m going to Bantayan”.

I returned to Bantayan Island the 1st of September 2006, married my beautiful Marissa, and we are expecting a new baby boy in July 2007.

Marissa and I live in Santa Fe town, in a three bedroom two bath western style house that we rent for about $200 USD per month.  Our monthly electric bill never exceeds $25.

This Island, with its white sandy beaches and docile towns present a welcome respite from city life.  Whether you come to this jewel of an island to discover yourself, or to find your own affordable paradise, or just for a refreshing holiday, you will certainly find yourself doing just as I did after I arrived; walking the shoreline searching for a bottle with a note in it, or possibly searching for a mermaid sunning on the white sandy beaches.  It is where I found my quiet waters…my affordable paradise and contentment…and quite possibly where you can find yours.