Jenny's Boracay Adventure

Jenny Echaverria, adventurer

1. What brought me there?
Boracay is one of the top beach destination in the world. It has amazing water activities during the day, as well as an exciting night life. As a person who loves both, I was naturally drawn to Boracay.

2. What I expected?
White sand beaches, crystal clear waters, excellent food because of the many beach side restos and hotel, and a relaxing, adventurous, exciting vibe all in one.

3. What I saw
Better than what I expected. There were so many people from different countries -- it's exciting to see such a mix. And you can tell that everyone is having a great time.

4. Must-try meal
Anything seafood!!! fresh, affordable and you can choose how you want it cooked! Yum!

5. Most awesome thing I saw
The corals when you go helmet diving! For those who don't know how to swim or go scuba diving, helmet diving is the next best thing if you want to go underwater to see the flora and fauna 

6. You should not miss visiting or going to 
Go for both land and water activities. We enjoyed most with ATV, flying fish, helmet diving, banana boat ride and island hoping.

7. Thrilling budget find
There are sooo many great trinkets being sold for pasalubong for your friends and family! My favorite is the shell bracelets and anklets -- inexpensive, really cute and really provides you the island vibe

8. Notable tips from the locals
Don't hesitate to bargain but be reasonable :-)

AQUA SHOES: RUBBER or JELLY?

Aqua Shoes w/ rubber soles; Image from www.made-in-china.com

Aqua shoes are a must-bring to any beach adventure. I didn't know aqua shoes existed before when on  personal vacations spent in a beach. I would only bring regular flip flops then. 

I first encountered aqua shoes in one company outing in Palawan with office mates. An office mate and friend lent me her aqua shoes when we snorkeled. After that experience, I instantly knew that I needed to get myself a pair when I get back to Manila to bring with me for the many succeeding beach adventures I'll have.

Aqua shoes are comfortable and they protect the feet from any pointed or rough items one may find on the shore or in the ocean. I bought my first pair with rubber soles at an SM department store for just P150 (~$3.50). Very cheap! This pair has served me well for eight years. I not only used them in the beach, I also got to use them exploring the caves in Sagada.

Once, I was insisting my sister to buy her own pair of aqua shoes for a beach outing. The ones in fashion at the time are the pretty, colorful pairs with jelly soles. However, they had nothing in my sister's size and aqua shoes with rubber soles were also out of stock.

While in another company outing in Palawan, one of my office mates was wearing aqua shoes with jelly soles. The pair she wore was with a color that I liked and I told myself that I'm going to buy one of those to replace my very old ones. However, when we went to the bathroom to wash ourselves after snorkeling, we heard a loud thud. My office mate slipped and landed flat on her back! Her aqua shoes with jelly soles are slippery on bathroom tiles.

My aqua shoes with rubber soles were worn last summer. I need to buy a new pair. But, I definitely won't buy the ones with jelly soles even if they're available in more fun colors and prettier to look at.

Update: March 5, 2014

I bought a new pair of aqua shoes with rubber soles two weeks ago at SM Southmall. A pair now costs P250.00 or approximately USD 5.60 at the current exchange rate. Still cheap, don't you think? I hope this pair will last as long as my old ones or longer as circumstances permit. ;)

New pair of aqua shoes with rubber soles

How about you? Have you had the same experience with aqua shoes with jelly soles? Or, is the experience of my office mate an isolated one? Tell us in the comments below.