Rediscovering Bohol’s treasures

I once wrote that there are times when a journey to the future begins with a visit to the past.

My family and I will always have our favorite destinations — one of them is Ananyana Resort in Panglao, Bohol. No matter how often we have visited this soulful sanctuary, it will always feel like the first time for us.  Adding excitement to our recent visit to Bohol is our discovery of the restaurant called Persona Mesa, just outside the Tagbilaran airport.

Manila was drenched in rain when we left for Bohol via AirAsia. An hour was all it took for my family, friends and I to find ourselves in a very stormy Bohol but Ananyana was worth braving the weather for.

From the airport, before reaching Ananyana, we had a marvelous lunch at Persona Mesa on J.A. Clarin street in Tagbilaran. Persona Mesa, owned by Elaine Gomez and her partner Ma. Josephine “Marjoe” Yamada, is a fantastic restaurant that serves Filipino-Asian fusion food. Elaine is the sister of Emma Gomez who owns Ananyana resort.

At Persona Mesa, we had the most delicious sisig triangles with spicy vinegar and atchara; sweet, sticky and lip-smacking, fall-off-the-bone braised pork ribs that were grilled with special seasoning sauce; pork binagoongan with fried eggplant; delicious and creamy chicken curry; fresh lumpia with peanut sauce; and turon with a twist for dessert. The fresh lemongrass iced drink was also heavenly.

Elaine shared, “It was my love for food and Marjoe’s love for design that inspired us to venture into this direction. Marjoe’s creativity infuses the coziness of each and every nook of this culinary haven. She handpicked the furniture and memorabilia for this place. It is a balance of each of our personalities that created Persona Mesa. We named it as such because our goal is to produce simple food and ambiance with a personal touch that would manifest our very personas.”

Marjoe, on the other hand, said, “We connect with our valued customers by giving them ‘a personal table’ as our name implies. It took eight to nine months to create the concepts and the restaurant. We are thankful for the years of experience we had inour past business. From it we took those hardships as learning experiences and those criticisms as stepping stones to do better.” 

Elaine and Marjoe added that they are very thankful to those who continue to support their restaurant and those who gave them the inspiration to open Persona Mesa.

At the Ananyana resort, gracious Emma Gomez and her son Leon warmly welcomed us. In this picturesque mise-en-scène in Panglao island, we were charmed anew by Ananyana with 13 beautifully appointed rooms and two spacious family suites. With its lavish facilities and three kilometers of private beachfront, Ananyana resort certainly takes boutique hospitality to soaring heights. Winsome Emma says most of her clients are foreigners from all over the world and a lot of her friends as well. Emma proudly quipped that she joins several travel marts like the ones in Dusseldorf in Germany, USA and Paris. Surely, Emma personalizes Ananyana’s spirit by being soulful, kind, dedicated and mindful of all details for her discriminating guests to have an unforgettable time.

Emma said, “The architecture of the resort’s suites is a fusion of Balinese and traditional Filipino styles. Each suite is replete with super-king-size beds with immaculate white linens, natural stonewall-mounted showers, split-type air-conditioning and a well-equipped mini bar.”

We occupied most of the rooms including the family suites that can accommodate as many as eight persons with a living area with two divan beds, mezzanine type bedrooms and a capiz-shelled sliding door that leads to the balcony.

We all chose our own rooms and settled down as the breeze and stormy weather encouraged us to have some cocktails or two at the lounge of Ananyana as we admired the lovely furniture by Kenneth Cobonpue. What else could one do when the weather was so rainy and actually cool? We indulged in the sumptuous menu of Ananyana. It was as delicious as it ever. We savored our favorite dishes as well as a sumptuous New Year’s dinner buffet that consisted of succulent rib eye drenched in gravy, truffle pasta with porcini mushroom, crispy lechon, seafood paella with potato croquettes. The flamed bread pudding served with liquor and slathered with custard and caramel sauce was simply a temptation you couldn’t resist.

The assorted pizzas like margherita and seasoned marinara proved to be divine. The farmers breakfast, a hefty and heavenly serving of fried potatoes, scrambled eggs, bacon, onions, paprika and secret spices, was a must.

Ananyana is perched along the three-kilometer Doljo beach. The resort is a visual feast designed to caress the mind, body and soul. Not to forget, its amazing spa where the masseuse massages your tired and weary bodies with lavender and verbena scents. The resort’s spa services are also a must. This outdoor sanctuary is home to herbal aromatic spa treatments.

You enter Ananyana and you enter nirvana. The lobby is festooned with frescoes, wooden carvings, silk embroidered pillows, bronze artifacts. Tribal music and mellow jazz complement the sensual atmosphere as bamboo and wood furniture with comfortable sofas entice you to lie down and be embraced by the warmth of this Balinese-typed setting.

My brother-in-law Benny Soliven and his son Vincent even got Scuba certified by Kwatc Gomez on this trip. Paddle boarding was an activity that everyone enjoyed as well as football in the lawn of Ananyana. Snorkeling right in front of the resort was a treat as well. No wonder my youngest sister Yvonne and her husband Pael Romualdez and their diving buddies often book this lovely resort for an entire week of luxurious leisure and quality-time retreat.

During this trip, Emma arranged several activities such as a “stand up” cruise along the Loboc river, a visit to the Honeybee Farm, tarsier sanctuary, swimming with the whale sharks of Oslob, playing with the pawikans of Balikasag and just chilling in Ananyana’s wooden bar in the middle of the sea where cocktails are served. From Ananyana’s enclave, guests can traipse to the province’s green-mantled hills and meandering rivers. Emma also shared that thanks to the efforts and support of Bohol (third district) Rep. Arthur Yap, the province is among the country’s top tourism destinations for it is an ode to the beauty and glory of its heritage and culture as well as a magnet to progressive infrastructure, amenities and very soon a new and posh airport.

We don’t really need to look far because the greatest gifts are simply lying in our own backyard. All we need is to visit them again and again.

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For more information on Persona Mesa, call Elaine and Marjoe at (038) 411 1113. For bookings in Ananyana resort, please call (038) 5028101 or +639125947486.

E-mail the author at miladay.star@gmail.com.