The Spectacular Manjuyod Sandbar.

There is a place in the Philippines that rivals that of Maldives in the Indian Ocean - not by the unbelievable man-made structures stretch on the sands, but by the mass volume of sunken white sands and crystal clear water that is so massive and surprising.

A sunken sandbar stretching 7 kilometers white sand from end-to-end with turquoise waters when submerged, is even massive than any sandbar in Maldives. You will not believe how marvelous it is when you see and step on it. I tell you guys, you will surely love the experience in Manjuyod sandbar. (ctto: www.gurushots.com)

Located in Manjuyod on the south-eastern side of Negro Occidental, the gateway to Manjuyod sandbar is through Dumaguete City, and in to Bais City where the sandbar is just in the upper eastern part. (ctto: www.google.com/maps)

Manjuyod sandbar is a sunken sandbar unlike no other in the Philippines.

The Life at Bais City.

Travelling to Manjuyod sandbar for our 2019 year-end getaways (covering Cebu, Sumilon island, Manjuyod sandbar, Dumaguete, and Siquijor island), we were curious about the culture of the people thriving near the Manjuyod sandbar - and since we are staying at Bais City, we were able to mingle with the locals there - and the locals are "game" on it.

We stayed in Casa Sandoval Pension House a day before our planned visit to Manjuyod sandbar. That's the best place to stay in Bais City, as per the local tourism office in the area.

The tricycle in Bais City are like jeepneys - it allows passengers to board and embark as it travels the main highway in the city. If you request to take a different route, it is already a special trip that will make you pay the entire capacity.

Mercado de Bais is the center of the city. A mall rather than a market, it has stores, pharmacy, fast food, and small shops all within this area.

PT Villanueva Street located just in front of the mall is the street food haven of the locals in Bais. Starting at around 5pm, the road is closed to vehicles so that vendors can set-up tables full of "lutong bahay" dishes.

The people started to gather when dark is approaching. Almost every Pilipino dish is available there - from Ilokano to Visayan dishes are here to feast on.

From bananas and other fruits,

fruit juices that taste's more like fruit salad already,

pritong manok and the orange one is a deep-fried chicken skin roll,

all the kinds of BBQ's are available too,

this is "Binalot" which is rice wrapped in coconut leaves (same in Panglao, Bohol),

and all the "lutong bahay" dishes that you can imagine is available there.

The most surprising though is that, the thigh/leg part comes with the feet..! It's the first time that I have seen that, in all the places that we visited. It's quiet weird for me to see or imagining my self eating. When I ask the vendor, he told me that it is their practice of preparing BBQ's in their city.

The Arrangements.

We coordinated our visit in Manjuyod with the local Tourism office which will arrange your trip with the boat, suggest a place to stay, and log you officially as visitors. You cannot go there without pre-arrangements, else you will wait for another day prior to your visit to the sandbar, or delayed your trip and arrive in the sandbar when its already submerged under water. There is a window of opportunity for you to see the sandbar in low tide, and spend a few hours to witness the submerging.

Before we went to the port, our assigned guide and boatman suggested that we buy seafoods of our choice in the market, and (to my surprise) they will grill it on the boat once we arrive there in the sandbar.

We bought pork liempo, large sugpo, fish, fruits, and rice - to go with us in the boat - as brunch.

The Gateway to the Sandbar.

Canibol Wharf is just 3.3km away from Casa Sandoval. It's a short strip port made of concrete to dock the boats, and the office of the local tourism is also there. The weather is excellent, and the sun just starting to rise high when we arrive there.

It's low tide - exactly the tide we want to arrive in the sandbar and see it's spectacular beauty.

The port has full of rocks when the water is low - so we walk carefully to the boat to board it.

In the boat, we were so excited because dolphin watching is also present there.

The Manjuyod Sandbar.

You will see the elevated houses built on the sand of Manjuyod sandbar from afar. There is no other man-made structures on the sandbar. It is a sunken sandbar, so they built the houses tall enough to not submerge during high tides.

The sand is so white - it beckons us to arrive.

The entire sandbar is really spectacular. I have not seen any sandbar like it. The closest by far is the Turtle Rock Beach in Jomalig - both sunken but Manjuyod is a sandbar.

I dream of this moment to step on that sandbar. It was so beautiful and the feeling is fulfilling. The heat of the sun won't even bother you because of joy.

After a few minutes of walking in the sand like little kids, we were exhausted and dehydration started to sink in. We went back to the boat to rest and wait for the water to submerge the sandbar - and there's a surprise awaiting us...!

Our boatmen and guide were very kind - they already started the grilling.

I was very excited because "Sugpo" (tiger prawns) is my favorite.

And they know how to grill it - never overcooked prawns to keep the tenderness and the juice inside.

Before we eat, we took a ride. This is being pulled by a small boat as fast as the speedboat, and it was really fun. For a 3 minutes ride at 300 pesos, operators here earn as high as 20 thousand pesos per week. That's the livelihood of most of the fishermen here during summer.

The fun ride was so amazing, it will make you smile and full of joy.

After the ride, our brunch was ready for us. Since I don't eat rice, we consumed the seafoods with beers - the rice goes to the locals.

My wife's no doubt enjoying the moment. This is my gift to her that on the last days of the year, we are on our year-end getaways every year.

As always, we were inviting the locals to eat the same food with us - a show of equal respect to the kind people that's very hospitable and honest.

Just after we finish our brunch, the water already submerge the beautiful sandbar.

You can step on it while still rising. The water level will rise up to the middle length of the pillars. And to stay there overnight is unbelievable.

The Beautiful City of Dumaguete.

In this trip, we pass by Dumaguete City, before going to Bais City. As always, visiting the churches is part of our getaways - to thank God for all the good things that He allows us to do - without His blessings, everything is not possible.

The Cathedral of Saint Catherine of Alexandria is the oldest stone church in Negros that was completed on 1776, is the center of the City.

It has marble floors and the seal in the entrance.

It is warm and beautiful inside - a testament to the deep religious belief of Visayan people.

The Campanario de Dumagute is just beside the Cathedral. Again, same as the churches in Ilocos and in Iloilo, it is not attached to the church.

The statue of Sisters of Saint Paul of Charters reminds the people of the knowledge and education that nuns from France brought in the island in 1905.

Having visited Manjuyod sandbar is truly a blessing to us. We've been to a lot of sandbars and islands but this one's really great. The amazing feeling rivals like that of Kalanggaman island in western Leyte, Islas de Gigantes in Iloilo, Tinalisayen Gamay island in Masbate, and Turtle Rock beach in Jomalig.

You have to see it, step on it, and experience the spectacular Manjuyod Sandbar.

Byahe lang.. cheers!

2019 December 26~27, Manjuyod Sandbar, Negros Oriental

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