A treat retreat: Leave excess baggage behind in Caramoan

I have encountered several trips in my lifetime in that I needed a vacation coming from a vacation. If you are a “get away from it all” guy like me, traveling and getting tricked into a tourist trap is not an ideal place for R&R. This is because tourist traps are havens for manufactured fun with its tacky “I survived” souvenir T-shirts, crowded walkways that are filled with Manila people that you were trying to disappear from, and safety blanket fast food chains like McDonald’s and Starbucks.

A vacation isn’t a vacation if you are going to a place exactly like where you came from. I prefer to get lost in the wonder of a place, with its people and language radically removed from what I am comfortable with. It is a humble reminder that the world is a lot of bigger and bolder than what you know on a day-to-day basis. Of course, a never-ending sunrise or a vast starry night coupled with a round or two of icy beer sweetens the treat retreat as well, exhausting the demons of a concrete urban environment.

And with the worldwide web entangling far-flung places and barrios, it is becoming a rare sight to see a place untouched by western urbanity. That is, until I recently visited Camaroan island, which is a two-hour boat ride from Naga City in Southern Luzon. That’s because the island restricts you from carrying anything more than your sense of adventure and asks that you bring back only the experience.

Getting Lost In Paradise

Camaroan is a certified no-frills island. The cottage hotel resort Gota Village where I stayed was comfortable enough to sleep and shower in. Outside the resort there is only the local community, white sand, and the sound of the waves. There are no tourist trap amenities like clubs playing reggae; no tattoo shop artists, masahitas by the beach or necklace vendors. The locals, aside from touring you around nearby islands, run small eateries that serve eaten-by-hand heavenly fresh crab, shrimps, and other seafood delights. They are even willing to share and not sell a bottle of their famous Bicolano chili if you ask nicely. And with Internet not available and mobile phone signal scarce, Camaroan forces you to commune with nature. Thus, it is no wonder the Survivor editions of France, Israel and Bulgaria who stayed in nearby islands of Tayak and Mingao this year come back to shoot regularly.

Maybe an hour or two after discovering that you cannot buy pasulubong or answer your boss’s messages here, you realize that Camaroan’s “bare necessity” ways force you to take pleasure in a a true vacation without the usual manmade disturbances. It pushes you to pack up, go kayaking or even swimming (that I insanely enough did) in the nearby islands that are 10 to 15 minutes away.

With so much natural habitat around you, the first thing that you dream of is to get lost in it. The last thing, though, you would want to imagine getting lost is your luggage and your bare essentials that are your sunblock, goggles, camera and clothes for the weekend. This is why that baggage you need must be ready and Camaroan-proof. Aside from being water resistant, it must be tough enough to be manhandled by porters who will egg-toss your things from shore to ship and back to shore again. Also, a proper backpack must protect your stuff from the heat and rocky crevices inside nearby caves if you plan to journey there.

Caramoan-Proof!

I’m glad that my Eagle Creek backpack and my main luggage ORV Trunk 22 was Camaroan-proof. The backpack was lightweight and carried my bus essentials — such as a good book to read and snacks on the bus as it traveled towards Naga city by night. It complemented my wakeboard stop in Camsur Water Complex the next day. I was able to keep my items secure while I attempted to wakeboard or kneeboard as my backpack fit the lockers perfectly. It also protected my camera in the small bangka as the waves splashed from side to side going to Gota village and I visited the other islands.

The ORV Trunk 22, on the other hand, worked ingeniously as it had ready-to-grab handles on all sides of the bag, thus allowing the porters to easily transport it from boat to boat without letting it fall into the sea. Aside from that, there were ready compartments for wet clothes and your shoes so you’re on the go without worrying about what to wear.

Yet, the true Camaroan lifesaver from Eagle Creek is their one-of-a-kind handy Cube system. These cube bags organize your things according to your travel whims, such as day-to-day clothing or per item. Aside from dividing your things neatly, it was a major asset in keeping my bag from being overstuffed and left enough room for pasulubong in case I found isle trinkets around Camaroan to share with my friends back home.

Travel Light

Looking back at anti-tourist traps like Camsur. I realized that trips should always promote a sense of discovery. They should provoke the traveler to explore new sights and sounds. It’s about discovering how big and different the world really is. Thus, a trip impacts our sense to self-discovery as we fearlessly get lost in the moment of wonder, the fresh and the novel.

Yet this should always be done with safety and security. Hence, the right luggage like Eagle Creek can preserve memories of your trip and keep you free of excess baggage. Getting lost doesn’t have to mean losing what is important. In this case, what is important is to preserve mementos and most of all bring back the new you after your trip.

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Eagle Creek bags are available at Recreational Outdoor Exchange (R.O.X.) in Bonifacio High Street

View Eagle Creek Bags at http://www.eaglecreek.com

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E-mail me at readnow@supreme.ph.