I grew up in a small town in Nueva Valencia, Guimaras and every Sunday our family would go to Alubihod beach which my grandparents own. Alubihod is just 4 kilometers from town so all five of us would take our family motorbike and spent the entire Sunday swimming or taking boats rides.

I still have old pictures of me (7 or 8 years old) running across the sandy beaches. The sand is almost as white as that of Boracay’s but less fine. The beach front was still empty with just a couple or huts or cottages we’d use to eat out during lunch. About 20 years ago, only small family houese of our relatives are standing just a few meters away from the shore. (Mostly cousins to the second degree.)

Haven’t been back there for years now though. I frequently invite my high shcool classmates to take a vacation over there. Guimaras is just a few kilometers from Iloilo City by boat. It usually costs Php5.00 but I think it could already be Php10.00 - Php15.00 per head. Once you dock at the Jordan pier, you take a Nueva Valencia jeep to town about 30 kilometers south. Another tricycle ride from Poblacion town to Alubihod would cost about Php 25 - Php 50 depending on the number of passengers.

Alubihod is now sub-divided into several resorts, the bigger one would be Raymen Beach resort which is owned by my mom’s cousins and Rico Beach Resort, owned by my uncle, the youngest of my mom’s siblings.

I will definitely take a lot of pictures once I get to visit back home.