Big Red Ants and Cogongrass in the Island of Guimaras

Just spent half of the day in Guimaras Island. It was a blast! I joined Doi and Edwin for this sidetrip since the affair that we were attending (Visayas Blog Summit & Philippine Blog Awards 2010 – Visayas Leg) won’t be happening until the next day.

Guimaras Island
November 26, 2010

I didn’t know that Guimaras is big. I was thinking that this was just an islet! I guess this is the problem when you don’t research ahead of time and you just let your companions handle the tour. In another sense though, it’s actually a good thing. Your preconceived notions are thought wrong and there are no expectations set – you’d be surprised in the end. In this case, I was very happy with the outcome.

guimaras-and-a-tree

tree, grass and a dufus to ruin the scene

We headed to the province which boasts of producing the world’s sweetest mangoes. I’ve so many pictures and I don’t know where to start. Before I create a bunch of entries, let me post some snapshots when we were able to stop by a beautiful spot.

guimaras island
ready to attack

We hired a tricycle driver for our transportation and after dropping by the Trappist Monastery (more about on my next entries), we headed towards to Villa Igang Resort. While enjoying the ride, I noticed a great spot and immediately asked our tricycle driver (Kuya Jun) to stop so that we could take pictures of the scenery.

guimaras iloilo
Edwin and the tree, bow.

guimaras grass
peace out and weeds in!

Looking like a Windows XP wallpaper, it was a beautiful sight with a lone tree amidst grasses and a nice backdrop of the clouds and the sky. So we started posing in front of the camera.

guimaras-panaysea of green

These grasses, I later found out were called cogongrass which have become a problem for land owners due to their invasive nature. Though they help stabilize the soil, they’re classified as weeds (Cogongrass – Wikipedia).

guimaras islands
taken on top of the tree

The cogongrass had many sharp points which caused some irritation and scratches on our skin. It hurt a lot when we had to take a dip in saltwater but what the heck; on with our poses!

shit in guimaras
it’s all play, no shit!

Big Red Ants Bit Me!(not Charlie)

A crazy thing happened while we were climbing the tree. I got bitten by some red ants on my neck! While resting on a branch, those nasty crawlers showed their rage and attacked me.

I was silently thinking of some wacky poses before I’d do some stunts but little did I know those ants had some of their own.

cogongrass guimaras
photo by Edwin

Feeling, something crawl on my skin. I thought it was a hairy caterpillar which frightened me since I didn’t want to end up scratching myself all day. However it was too small to become a worm that I analyzed that it was an insect I could easily dust off.

army ants
red ants on a tree bark

When I tried to shake it off, that’s when I had to cringe in pain. The bite was enough to cause me discomfort. But it didn’t hinder me from going down. Instead, I hopped on to another branch and started acting like a monkey.

Besides, I couldn’t be furious at them knowing that I was the one who disturbed their habitat. Oh well, next time I’ll be more careful (I think).

army ant bite
the stinging bite

walk branch
couldn’t stop me from having fun

Well one thing’s for sure, aside from having a thick face, I’m glad I have thick skin (harhar). I proceeded to acting foolishly on the branches to make the most of the time we had left.

guimaras island tree
smiling again

guimaras-tree
I can carry myself fine.

The weather was good and we had to head back to our next destination as we only had a few hours left before going back to Iloilo.

grass in guimaras
just look for the road sign

I asked the driver for the name of the road where this was situated. He said that this was called “Ravina Road” but on the sign it said “National Road”. I got confused on what’s the real deal. Anyway, if you want to drop by this spot, this is in the town of Jordan, a few kilometers after the Trappist Monastery. You can’t miss the view!

trike all the way!

We will be going back to Guimaras on Monday for some more adventures. I still have a lot to post but this will be it for now. Kuya Jun (tricycle driver guide) Contact Number: 09291406331 and 09433327169

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Check out my other articles about my Guimaras trip here:

 

 

 

 


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soloflightEd.com is a travel blog by Edcel Suyo. He enjoys performing headstands and crazy stunts during his trips in the Philippines, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East. Now based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates and working to earn a living, he takes time to enjoy the city and travel during weekends.
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For questions, advertising, and other concerns, shoot an email to ed@soloflighted.com.


17 thoughts on “Big Red Ants and Cogongrass in the Island of Guimaras”

  1. astig naman nitong place na to. ang galing nung mga damu—parang kumpol kumpol sila. tapos yung mga langgam, sa puno talaga nakatira ha. tapos sabay me nambulabog at bibitin bitin pa. hahaha

    Reply
    • @lily: indeed it was lily! 😀
      @pusang-kalye: haha. if you’re there you’d really want to go out and strike a pose. hehe
      @josiah: thanks, frustrated stuntman kasi. hehe.

      Reply
    • @carla: thanks a lot! 😀
      @james: hehe. para may ibang pose. ganda kasi ng view! 😀
      @pinoy boy: haha onga. guimaras was really nice! we went to guisi and i was able to stand on top. really on the top of the old lighthouse. hehe

      Reply
  2. @pinoy adventurista: it was a beautiful island indeed. kulang lang kami ng oras. and i wished it was mango season para mura ang mangga. hehe

    Reply
  3. aww! super fun tlga to!  sometimes, it's better na wala kang idea sa lugar para you can just go explore it by yourself and ma-su-surprise ka tlga. nainggit tlga ako sa group nyo, super kulit, walang keme at kaartehan, parang mga bata lng, hehe i like the fact na i can be myself when i'm w/ u guys. thnx for the company, super fun! 🙂
      favorite ko tlga last pic nyo ni edwin!  hehe

    Reply
    • @thepinaysolobackpacker: yeah, buti na lang din the driver stopped. hehe. yun talaga ang hanap ko na mga kasama sa mga trips. hirap kasi kapag may maraming reservations na kasama. eh kami puro kami cowboy. hehe. thanks din gael for the company! yan ang sabi ko sa mga kasama ko na cowgirl ka rin! hehe. it would’ve been nice if you joined us on our last trip too. dami pa naming kulit shots sa guisi. but we understand your situation. hehe. thanks again gael! kitakits!

      Reply
  4. Beautiful pictures!!!
    I am born and raised in Guimaras but haven't explored the whole island up to this age.
    Thank for your blog… makes me wanna go back home again!!!
    Stay at our place next time… it's very layback.. but my HS classmates would always wanna go back there despite our crumbling house. 
    Experience the Bukid Balaan .. it's the one with the Holy Cross overlooking a beautiful Iloilo City view. 
    There's more to explore in Guimaras but for Mango season.. come april and may.
     
    🙂

    Reply

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