Rugged Coastline of Shek O

I guess it would seem a little strange to see a beach right beside a lot of rough terrian, but this is indeed the case. Shek O Beach is bounded by large rock formations that have been carved out from millions of years of pounding. I found it a little strange since beach isn’t that big to begin with, as if it was specifically cut out from the rugged landscape of Shek O. Most of the coastline of Shek O is made out of reddish stone and it almost glows in the sunlight.

Can You See a Wedding Photoshoot?

There is a way from the beach to the jagged rocks but to get here we needed to go through the town and down a stairway to the rocks. It was exhilarating to sit on the rocks whilc the powerful waves crash on them. Sometimes the waves seem too strong that I had to make a retreat for fear of getting wet. It would also be a bit dangerous if the waves slam you on to these rocks.

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Tai Tau Chau 大头洲

Shek O Beach

Summit of Tai Tau Chau 大头洲

Walking Along Shek O Beach

Probably one of the main reasons why Shek O is such a pleasant place to visit is the presence of Shek O Beach. It is a generous strip of beach off to the side of Shek O town. Shek O beach is not surprisingly a great place to just kick back and relax. I wasn’t really expecting to see a beach here in Shek O town, so I was pleasantly surprised by it. The waves here at Shek O beach are relatively rough and they pound the shore constantly. Not surprisingly, there are a lot of interesting rock formations along the sides of the beach as a result of years of erosion.

Beach Scene at Shek O

Surprisingly though, at the time of my visit, there weren’t a lot of visitors are Shek O Beach, there was a family or two but it is nothing compared to a Phuket or a Boracay. But to the few who dared come here this time of the year will be rewarded by the beach since it is almost deserted. As a rseult of the powerful waves crashing onto the shore, surfing is a popular activity here. I would never do that since I was not a good swimmer to begin with.

Beach Goers at Shek O Beach

Another interesting thing I found out about Shek O Beach is that it makes a great pre-nuptial photoshoot location. True enough, there were at least six different couples having their photoshoot during my visit. What are the odds of that? Either I was extremely lucky to see 6 of them all in one go, or Shek O Beach is really that popular for this kind of thing. I would see their point since there were hardly any other people along the beach and it would be easy to get a decent photo here. Probably the only other people you can see in your photoshoot would be other couples doing their photoshoot.

Alas, it probably wasn’t the beach season anyway, since there weren’t any shops open at that time. While the sun was setting down behind the mountains of Shek O Country Park, we decided to hurry up and make use of the remaining light.

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Rugged Coastline of Shek O

End of the Day at Shek O

Arriving in Shek O Town

Surprisingly Blue Waters of Labrador Park

Long time ago during the British era, the shore around Labrador park used to be a beach. This used to be known as Pasir Panjang Beach. Locals would come here and enjoy themselves here, and the place was really popular. Such was the popularity of this place that the rich would come and buy property here. Alas the drums of war reached this peaceful place and it became apparent to the British that Pasir Panjang Beach would be the perfect place to start a sea based invasion of Singapore during World War II.

A Machine Gun Post at Labrador Park

As a result of this realization, barbed wires, mines and gun posts were set up along the beach primarily to defend again any Japanese invasion. On top of the hill behind the beach, large gun batteries were set up. This marked the end of what used to be the playground of the people. Alas, all these preparations went for naught as the expected southern invasion of the Japanese never happened. The Japanese crossed Malaya and made landfall in northern Singapore. This is where the Japanese assault began. Such was the failure of planning that the British were caught off guard and were unable to properly defend the island until the best way to protect the people was surrender.

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Tunnels of Fort Pasir Panjang

Going to Labrador Park

Big Guns of Labrador Park

Nicely Built Shore Along Labrador Park

So far Labrador Park has not been a particularly interesting place. It is an okay park, it has a lot of green but it hasn’t been a really interesting place to visit. Proceeding from the site of Batu Berlayar, you get up close with the shore. This is not a beach though, the shore is nicely cemented with large rocks to prevent erosion. Just beyond the shore on a sunny day you can actually see blue water here in Singapore, giving you an idea how deep it actually is. There is no fence here so it can only be too easy to slip into the water if you really wanted to.

Exclusive Bungalow Across the Strait

The shore is lined with locals trying their hand at fishing, despite signs advising them not to. I’m not sure why it is not allowed to fish here as I do not see how much trouble they can cause just by doing that. There are a lot of benches along the shore keeping with the park theme. I can see how this place can be a great place to have a picnic, too bad the waters are not really that great for swimming.

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Going to Labrador Park

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Beach with Huge Boulders in Pulau Ubin

From the town center we rode past the vistor center following another trail through the forest. We were just making full use of the bicycles we rented for the day and it was still early in the afternoon. We then came across this rocky beach where the waters from the interior of Pulau Ubin empty into. The beach itself is rather depressing, the sand was dark and rocks abound. This was not a tropical paradise but it was still a side of the island we haven’t seen yet.

One of the Inlets in Pulau Ubin

The beach probably doesn’t see too many visitors except for the occasional biker and photographer. Otherwise there is no compelling reason to be coming here. There were also some rubbish that were either washed ashore from the mainland or just dumped here by visitors. However, upon closer inspection here at this desolate beach, there is life here. just staring at the sand would reveal creatures crawling from underneath the sand. These creatures would burst out from the sand and dig their way back into another part of the beach. I didn’t really venture near the water since it doesn’t look very inviting in the first place.

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Sandy Beach in Pulau Ubin

Biking in Pulau Ubin

Going to Pulau Ubin

Beach Facing Pulau Ketam in Pulau Ubin

As we continue on the dirt road of Pulau Ubin heading west, the trail undulates across the hilly and rocky terrain. It was sometimes difficult to bike through all that, so I will be sometimes forced to get off my bike and just push the bike through the rough patch. This is most especially true when the trail is up a small elevation. My legs have already turned into jelly and I was not able to bike up the slope. I would find myself not alone in this position, some of my more fit friends would push their bikes up, so I thought I was still doing okay.

Dark Sand Beach in Pulau Ubin

Going down from that rise was much easier through and this path brought us to a small beach. This beach faces mainland Singapore but not much can be seen though. The small island of Pulau Ketam is in the way. The island itself is uninhabited but it is full of vegetation. The beach itself has nothing to write home about this was just a grey sand beach which is not really that inviting for swimming. I guess it would be a good place for camping and bonfires since there were some folks cooking something when we were there.

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Rocky Beach at Pulau Ubin

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Pulau Ubin Fishing Village

Boats at the Changi Ferry Terminal

It is not easy to find something old in ultra-modern Singapore, however there is such a place. What may be surprising is that they have a whole island kept more or less the way it was for years. Pulau Ubin is an island on the northeastern part of Singapore. A decision was made to maintain the island the way it is as a reminder of how things were 30 or 40 years back. On Pulau Ubin, you will get to see how people lived back then. Most of the houses are still preserved and still in use and it is a great getaway from busy Singapore.

Inside the Boat to Pulau Ubin

Boat trips to Pulau Ubin start from the Changi Ferry Terminal, there are regular trip to the island from here and also other destinations. On holidays, you might see the queue at the terminal grow quite long so it is advisable to visit on weekdays. The boats have a fixed number of people to carry so the staff at the terminal call out how many more people they need on the boat. This is probably the only transport in Singapore where the rule “will leave when full” applies.

Beach Just Across Changi Ferry Terminal

The boat is a noisy boat that stinks of fuel. This is again another throwback to the days where the transport system wasn’t that good yet. There is no contactless card here as the boat’s captain goes around and asks for your fare. The boat then leaves for Pulau Ubin, passing by a little beach with a lot of tents. I always found it strange to see tents here in Singapore especially when it is so near “civilization”, if there is a place to set up camp, it is on Pulau Ubin.

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Arrival at Pulau Ubin

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Adoration Convent of Divine Mercy Chapel

I gathered the courage to ask my driver Leo Merkx if he can possibly drop my off at a certain convent which was near the pick up point for his two customers. He agreed though he had a vague idea where it is. At the rotunda, he got off his vehicle and left me in it. Imagine leaving your vehicle with a total stranger! Anyway, it was quick and he found the two guests near the Jollibee. After one wrong turn, we finally found the convent I wanted to go to. However, I was surprised to find out that there was Holy Mass going on and the vehicle is unable to go through.

A Statue of the Crucified Jesus

I told Leo that I will just get off and walk the rest of the way, which was not really very far anyway, since I think I still remember where it is. I thanked him profusely for going out of his way to send me there. So don’t forget, if you plan to visit Talisay, there is a place called San Roque Beach Resort owned by Leo Merkx, I’m sure you’ll have a great time there. To my surprise, it was mentioned in Lonely Planet so I guess it is a good place.

Chapel From Another Angle

The convent I had in mind is the Adoration Convent of Divine Mercy operated by the SVD. I have visited this chapel numerous times and I always found it a very solemn place to be in. Imagine my surprise to see a large crowd of people at the chapel waiting for Holy Mass. There were so many people they would not fit inside the tiny chapel and had to be seated outside the chapel. I was also surprised to see cars inside the compound, I don’t remember cars being allowed inside. So much for solemnity.

Close Up of the Crucifix

The Adoration Convent of Divine Mercy houses Catholic nuns who are dressed in pink and take turns adoring the Blessed Sacrament and praying for mercy for all of mankind. For this reason, they are also known as the Pink Sisters. Once the sister enters the convent, they should have no contact with the outside world. In fact, the chapel itself is divided into two with the front of the chapel occupied by the sisters and the rest by the congregation. They are separated by bars not unlike found in prisons.

The Holy Mass was celebrated by a priest from Venezuela, it seems there was a conference here not too long ago and he stuck around after that. The church itself has a modern design which is highlighted by a cross with bells. I was fortunate enough to witness the bells in action. It seems that they are activated on certain times. It was my first time to hear them ring after all these years of visiting the place.

My visit to the chapel was not as solemn as I would have liked it to be but I still managed to get photos of the place and attend Holy Mass at the same time. I really like this place, though I would probably visit this place on a weekday instead.

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Nearby Mountains of Batangas

I am now at the junction back to Tagaytay City, I remember seeing this place on the way to Talisay, since there was some sort of terminal where jeepneys heading back to Tagaytay City wait for passengers. Unfortunately, the last one just left so it would have to wait for that next one which will take a while judging from the time it took me to get to Talisay from Tagaytay City. There was a man who asked whether I wanted to go to Tagaytay, he told me that I might have a difficult time to go back to Tagaytay City since there were very few passengers and it would take time for the jeepney to fill up.

Down the Volcano We Go

He told me that I could pay him and he woul be able to arrange for my transport to Tagaytay City. Why not? I told him, whichever vehicle leaves first. As with most Filipinos, he was the talkative type and he was talking about how a son of his got killed at that very junction when a vehicle going down the hill lost its brakes and hit his son. Soon afterwards a utility vehicle passed by and the man signaled to it. It seems that he knows the man behind the wheel and was apparently negotiated my trip back to Tagaytay.

See the People Walking Back to the Pier

I handed the man my fare and got on board, I was a little uneasy to ride on a private vehicle of someone I don’t know, I guess he would feel the same way too, taking a passenger he doesn’t know. I was surprised to see that the man behind the wheel was a foreigner. He introduced himself as Leo Merkx, he emphasized the pronunciation several times, “leh-oh meh-rix”. I had a good time talking to him, he is a Dutch national with a Filipino wife, he settled down in Talisay because it was nice and warm here. He owns a resort along the shores of Taal Lake called San Roque Beach Resort. I’m not sure about the beach since this is a volcanic lake.

Horses at the Top of Taal Volcano

Anyway, he is fetching a group of tourists in Tagaytay City to go to his resort. It seems he knows the place a lot. He even told me about the time where he needed to send a group of tourists back to Manila at the height of Typhoon Ketsana which brought widespread flooding and devastation to the capital city unseen in decades. At least this was not going to be a boring ride.

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Heading Back to Talisay

San Guillermo Church in Talisay

Going Up Taal Volcano on Horseback

Another Beautiful Island

Our last stop in our island hopping tour was the tiny island of Khai. This island was quite a distance from the Ko Phi Phi Don so it took us around 45 minutes to get there. The island, as mentioned, was indeed tiny you could probably walk around the entire island in less than thirty minutes. Despite its small size. This seems to be one of the major stops in the island hopping tour here.

Row of Chairs Neatly Arranged in Khai Island

As expected Khai Island also has that powder white sand, it also has the beautiful iridescent sea. We were dropped off at one side of the island to and we had to walk past a row of chairs and umbrellas to get tho the beach. Because of these chairs it didn’t seemed very attractive anymore. Anyway, at least the chairs were all arrange at some distance from the beach itself. Our tour guide gave away drinking water for everybody too.

Fish Gathering Near the Surface

We spent and hour and a half swimming in the crystal clear waters of the sea. It was shallow enough that kids can just be let be swimming in the beach. Since this was a popular stop for the tour groups, there were also a number tour groups winding up their tours here. So it was a bit crowded but not as bad as Maya Beach. After all the swimming, it was finally time to head back to Phuket island, which was only twenty minutes away from Khai Island.

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