The "Man-Made" Forest of Bohol...
...an amazing "collaboration" between man and nature.
I joined our graduating students' fieldtrip during the last five days in Cebu and Bohol. While I've visited Cebu three times during the last 15 years, it was my first time to visit one of the most beautiful places in the Philippines that is known to lure many tourists - Bohol. I know, I know, that sounds too pathetic that I'm almost ashamed to admit it! But hey, I worked on it... and, oh, boy, I'm so glad I did!
I got myself sufficiently ready to be awed by the beauty of the Chocolate Hills, enjoy the fun-filled Loboc River cruise
Green ceiling and walls....con terrific Boholano lunch and entertainment, be amazed by that nocturnal little primate - the Philippine Tarsier, and be fascinated by those architectural treasures that abound in the little island paradise in the Central Visayas region. Needless to say, they didn't disappoint. What I didn't expect was to be awed to speechlessness by the man-made forest between the towns of Bilar and Loboc via a 2-km winding road en route to Carmen from Tagbilaran to view the Chocolate Hills. As our bus negotiated the road lined by a dense wall of an almost perfectly uniform-in-height mahogany trees to serve as an inviting allure to go deeper into the mountains on one side and hide the intimidating ravine on the other, I looked up and was greeted by a canopy of green leaves gently swinging with the wind in a playful block-and-unblock game with the sunrays. I was so helplessly awed that a "sweet profanity" slipped out of my lips before I could catch myself... and then the forest completely knocked the breath out of me as we moved deeper into the 2-km "green tunnel" - too beautiful!
I fell in love... with Bohol! Oy!
***
