This is my third visit to ride the rapids at Pagsanjan Falls, and Alasdair’s fourth. Pagsanjan River is normally good for visitors, as it’s just an hour away from Manila and it can be quite fun. This time, admittedly, we ha
d no visitors but we thought it might be enjoyable for the children – and also, we needed another river for Euan’s school project.
We arrived at Pagsanjan around 10am, having been harassed along the way by keen boatmen, eager to take us along the river. At one point, we were actually chased by two men in a motorbike, and all the while they were shouting, “Boat! Boat!” (This is what happens when you have a white man in a car with you.) Luckily, we had done our research so we went straight for the Department of Tourism accredited b
oat rides – which looked quite forlorn and very shut. There were, of course, eager boatmen to take us on the ride on the rapids so we were then divided into two groups: Alasdair, Euan and Nikki on one boat, with myself and Callum on the other.
The ride was pleasant
enough. We saw a monkey along the way and some beautiful dragonflies. The rapids are fun and the children really enjoyed themselves. However, halfway along the rapids our boatmen suddenly stopped the boat and made this spiel about how none of the money we paid for each boat actually goes to the boatmen, and could we please give them a very generous tip. We were going to tip the boatmen anyway, but feeling like we were being held ransom got me very cross. I lied and told him that I had left the money in the car, as I did not want the rest of the trip unpleasant because we had not tipped enough.
Got to the end of the rapids for the impressive waterfalls. Alasdair and the children road on a bamboo raft to go underneath the waterfalls, while I amused myself by taking photographs of Korean tourists dressed in suits and the most ridiculous outfits. Thank goodness they were there to amuse me – it got rid of my bad mood from the 'heist'.
d no visitors but we thought it might be enjoyable for the children – and also, we needed another river for Euan’s school project.We arrived at Pagsanjan around 10am, having been harassed along the way by keen boatmen, eager to take us along the river. At one point, we were actually chased by two men in a motorbike, and all the while they were shouting, “Boat! Boat!” (This is what happens when you have a white man in a car with you.) Luckily, we had done our research so we went straight for the Department of Tourism accredited b
oat rides – which looked quite forlorn and very shut. There were, of course, eager boatmen to take us on the ride on the rapids so we were then divided into two groups: Alasdair, Euan and Nikki on one boat, with myself and Callum on the other.The ride was pleasant
enough. We saw a monkey along the way and some beautiful dragonflies. The rapids are fun and the children really enjoyed themselves. However, halfway along the rapids our boatmen suddenly stopped the boat and made this spiel about how none of the money we paid for each boat actually goes to the boatmen, and could we please give them a very generous tip. We were going to tip the boatmen anyway, but feeling like we were being held ransom got me very cross. I lied and told him that I had left the money in the car, as I did not want the rest of the trip unpleasant because we had not tipped enough.
Got to the end of the rapids for the impressive waterfalls. Alasdair and the children road on a bamboo raft to go underneath the waterfalls, while I amused myself by taking photographs of Korean tourists dressed in suits and the most ridiculous outfits. Thank goodness they were there to amuse me – it got rid of my bad mood from the 'heist'.
Pagsanjan Falls could be so much better. I wish the government would organise themselves (?) and actually do something about it. But the fact that it isn’t regulated – apart from the cost of the boat – means that there are all these touters out to make a quick buck. It can truly ruin a trip. Thank goodness for the Koreans.
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