This 31-year-old traveler from Manila shared her experience after she and her friends traveled to eight provinces in Mindanao in just 14 days!
Marieshiel Enriquez said that she decided to do a revenge travel after the COVID-19 restrictions was halted in the country.
“After pandemic kasi, sinunod-sunod ko ‘yung mga travel ko. Lagi talaga akong nagt-travel. Usually, solo rin ako,” Enriquez told The Philippine STAR.
In August 2022, Enriquez along with a friend, took a vacation in Batanes.
“Dahil narating namin ‘yung Batanes dalawa, puntahan din natin ‘yung dulo ng Pilipinas sa south naman. Kaya namin na-plan ‘yung ZamBaSulTa and ‘yung part ng north ng Mindanao,” she said while sharing the story behind her trip.
“‘Yung mga nakasama ko sa Mindanao, mga friends ‘yun na na-meet ko sa Coron when I solo traveled in Coron ng 2021,” she added.
After that trip, Enriquez then started to search how they could roam around Mindanao.
“Ako ‘yung gumawa ng itinerary namin from Zamboanga City, Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi. ‘Yung kaibigan ko naman na sa ‘yung paakyat. ‘Yung papunta ng mga Zamboanga del Norte, Sibugay, Zamboanga del Sur,” she recalled.
According to her, she had to watch different travel videos and read blogs about important things to learn when traveling to Mindanao.
“Ang ginawa ko lang, ‘Yung sa Basilan, nakipag-coordinate lang ako sa tourism office nila. Nag-search lang ako ng mga vlog para mahanap ‘yung tamang contact information,” she said.
“‘Yung sa Tawi-Tawi, nagbasa lang din ako kung sino ‘yung recommended na magto-tour dun. ‘Yung sa Sulu naman, nag-search lang din ako Sa Zamboanga City, safe naman diyan. Pwede ka rin naman talaga pumunta diyan kahit hindi ka makipag-coordinate sa kanila,” she added.
Enriquez admitted that she and her friends knew the “not tourist friendly” stigma of several provinces in Mindanao due to past conflicts with armed groups.
“Nung nagwo-work ako sa government, pinagbabawal talagang puntahan ‘yung Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi lalo ‘pag babae kasi nga ‘di ba noon, very dangerous talaga. Ngayon, nakakapanood ako ng mga pumupunta dun sa part na ‘yun and ‘yung Project 82, may mga nakakapunta sa dulo ng Pilipinas,” she noted.
“Nagbasa lang ako ng mga experiences nila and dun ko na-realize na safe na siya ngayon.‘Pag kinontact mo rin naman sila, hindi ka rin naman nila papupuntahin doon if it’s not safe. Maaawa ka na nagkaroon sila ng ganung history. Na kahit na safe na sila ngayon, ‘yung mga tao, ang pangit pa rin ng tingin kasi nga because of history,” she added.
Enriquez stressed that researching the places to visit took some time during the trip planning. It also helped to condition her mind to give the provinces a chance to showcase their natural beauty.
“Noong nagre-research ako, nahirapan ako. Lalo na sa part ng Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, kailangan mo talaga ng tiyaga mag-research. As I researched, nawawala, eh. Makikita mo kasi ‘yung experiences ng iba. Sabi ko, ‘Ah, okay na pala talaga.’ Hindi na ako kinabahan hanggang sa makarating na kami dun.Marami na talagang pumupunta pero mas marami pa rin talaga ‘yung nagdadalawang-isip na pumunta,” Enriquez said.
She and her friends were able to visit Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga Sibugay, Misamis Occidental and Lanao del Norte. Among those provinces, Sulu was her favorite destination.
“Sulu talaga ‘yung pinakamagandang beach na napuntahan namin sa lahat ng ‘yon. Pero Sulu din ‘yung pinakanahirapan akong puntahan. ‘Yun ‘yung pinaka challenging sa lahat kasi ‘yung ferry, nine hours. Para sa ’kin, worth it ‘yun. ‘Yung dinayo mo talaga ng pagkalayo-layo, sobrang ganda naman. Worth it talaga. Definitely mas na-enjoy ko kasi walang crowd,” she shared.
Enriquez said she spent P50,000 for the 14-day trip in eight Mindanao provinces. Their vacation was a mix of DIY and joiner’s travel.
“Kung adventurous ka, try mo ‘yung Mindanao kasi hindi na siya delikado ngayon,” she said.
“Sana mawala ‘yung ganung stigma na dangerous ‘yung mga lugar na ‘to. Do your own research din bago ka pumunta kung ‘di ka pa talaga confident. Kung gusto mo ma-discover ‘yung self mo, try mo mag-travel. Especially alone. Nakaka-boost ng confidence kasi every time na nagta-travel ka, may natututunan kang bago,” she said when asked about her message to the public.
