I opened my 2017 with an adventure through the southern part of Iloilo to Antique, particularly in Malalison Island (often called Mararison Island), a road trip that I will always remember in my lifetime.

The year 2016 was a great one for me, which I refer to as my Globe year because I won an all-expense paid trip to New Zealand through the Globe #Wonderful Blog Contest and a Huawei P8 unit during our bloggers’ Christmas dinner courtesy of this telco. On top of that, I was able to explore various parts of Negros, such as Sipalay, Dumaguete, Don Salvador Benedicto and Lakawon Island. I have also made a trip to Siquijor, Oslob, Badian, Brunei and Cebu.

Then this opportunity to hit the road suddenly came. So, on an early morning on the 2nd day of the new year, a fellow blogger and I embarked on a ferry from Bacolod to Iloilo City to join another friend there for this trip to the western side of Panay Island. Antique is the only province in Panay which I wasn’t able to pass through when I took the RORO from Manila to Bacolod (Read: Road Trip to Bacolod)

But before we turned to the highway, we first made a stopover at the La Paz Public Market for some coffee and breakfast. Then this fun trip went rolling. We stopped by old churches at the towns of Southern Iloilo that were along the way. We drove through coastal towns, crossed bridges, went uphill to the mountainous parts and through zigzag roads.

We arrived at the Iloilo City port on a morning of January 2.

Passing by the Provincial Capitol of Iloilo.

Before the long road trip, we first had a hot batchoy at Netong’s inside the La Paz Public Market.

Then we had a cup of the famous coffee at Madge Cafe, still inside the market.

Local food found at the Molo Plaza.

We passed by old churches like this one in Guimbal.

We also visited the UNESCO Heritage Site of the Miagao Church.

The road trip will not be complete for me without stopping at the Miagao Campus of UP Visayas.

Our journey took us through several bridges.

The highway led us through cemeteries, including this historical site in the San Joaquin Cemetery.

Another historical landmark commemorates the first Malay settlement.

The Antique Provincial Capitol is located in San Jose de Buenavista.

We spent the night in Tibiao, where we also had a relaxing experience at the Tibiao Fish Spa. The day after, we continued to Culasi, which is the jump off point to Malalison Island.

The green hills of Malalison Island.

It also has beautiful swimming spots.

The island was exquisitely beautiful. And our whole afternoon was filled with awesome moments. The intermittent rains did not dampen our mood as we were able to enjoy the island, along with the locals.

The day after, it was time for us to bid Malalison adieu. We retraced our route, starting from the northern part of Antique and made our way south towards Iloilo province.

Our trip back was quite interesting as we saw cows crossing the highway.

Our trip back won’t be complete without stopping by the San Jose market for some souvenir items.

We made some stops along the way to buy some sweets to bring home.

We had to stop for some coffee as well.

The journey back gave us this breathtaking view of the coast.

As we entered Iloilo City, it was already dark. We wanted to make it to the 8:00 pm trip of FastCat. We just made a brief stop at Roberto’s to buy ourselves some siopao before we made our way to the port.

There was a line at Roberto’s when we got there. The siopao was very apt for our waiting time at the port.

The FastCat is a very clean and modern RORO craft.

This is the passenger area of FastCat.

I suddenly realized how I missed the road. I was glad I agreed to join in this last minute trip. In the succeeding posts, allow me to share with you in detail our adventures:

• La Paz Public Market food trip
• Old Churches and Attractions in Southern Iloilo
• A Night Stay at Tibiao Fish Spa
• Swimming and Hiking Malalison Island

Here’s a summary of our itinerary, for your reference:4 days

Day 1

6:30 am – Weesam ferry from Bacolod to Iloilo
8:30 am – breakfast at La Paz public market: batchoy at Netong’s; coffee at Madge Café
10:00 am – Start of road trip:

• Molo Church and Molo Mansion
• Exiting Iloilo City
• Oton, Tigbauan, Guimbal, Miagao, San Joaquin
• Entering the boundaries of Antique Province
• Lunch at San Jose de Buenavista
• Belison, Patnongon, Bugasong, Barbaza
• Overnight at Tibiao

Day 2

8:30 am – breakfast at Tibiao Fish Spa
10:00 am – drop by Culasi Tourism Office
11:00 am – arrive in Malalison Island (or Mararison Island); check-in at Aloma
12:00 nn – lunch at Nanay Christy’s Carenderia
1:00 pm – hike to the hills
3:00 pm – reached the cave
4:00 pm – back to Aloma; relax at the sand bar

Day 3

8:30 am – breakfast at Aloma
9:00 am – island tour
9:30 am – back in Culasi; drop by Culasi Tourism Office
10:30 am – Start of road trip
11:45 am – lunch at Dandanzoy’s, Bugasong
2:00 pm – San Jose
5:30 pm – Asilo de Molo
6:30 pm – Roberto’s
8:00 pm  – RORO via FastCat to Bacolod