Sparks flew and dark smoke came out of the jeep’s dashboard. Toxic fumes were spewing out a few inches short of our knees. We didn’t need to be told; we hurriedly scrambled out and hailed another jeepney that would take us to Iloilo’s massive stone churches.

The morning started at Boracay’s beach. The sun seemed healthier, now that we were leaving the island. Early birds were already at the beach, enjoying the warmth of a newborn sun and the calmer waters of the beach.

We should have stayed one more night, but Dipolog City cannot wait.

A miscommunication with a tricycle driver brought us to a different port that would be taking us out of the island. We were about to burst into a staccato of protests but soon found that it was much cheaper than our ingress to Boracay. A ticket aboard the 25-seater outrigger boats costs Php25.00 with zero terminal fee.

Fifteen minutes across blue-green waters later and we were crossing a series of jiggly floating platforms that led to the port of Tabon. We hailed a tricycle to Caticlan, waited for other passengers to fill the rest of the seats and proceeded to our fifty-peso breakfast at Yoohoo.

A curious machine stood near the Iloilo-bound bus terminal. I plunked a peso and ice-cold water spewed forth. My water bottle was filled with three more chinks just as our bus honked and hollered. Everyone aboard.

It was a five-hour bedsore-inducing trip from Caticlan to Iloilo City. My eyes wanted to drop and sleep but I fought it, I haven’t been to this part of the Philippines and I wanted to see everything our freezing bus passes.

The rain poured, the sun shined, the clouds grayed and the sun shined again. I can hardly walk when we alighted at a bus terminal somewhere in Iloilo.

We tried to communicate with a jeepney barker for instructions to Miag-Ao Church. We got barked upon before being hurriedly ushered in inside one of the ultra-long jeepneys parked along the road. We tried to confirm with the mad barker and got more unintelligible barks for answer. I can tell right then, Iloilo is gonna be interesting.

Transfer Routes, Fares & Timetables:
10 minutes - Boracay Station 3 to Boracay-Tabon Port
                   via tricycle: Php20.00 / 2
15 minutes - Boracay to Tabon via outrigger
                   boat: Php25.00
10 minutes - Tabon to Caticlan via tricycle: Php15.00
5 hours - Aklan to Iloilo Bus Terminal via Ceres
                   Bus: Php346.00