Since a little over a year ago, I have been making fortnightly trips to Cagayan de Oro City. I usually take the overnight boat trip (to and from CdO) on one of the passenger vessels of either one of three major compannies (Cebu Ferries, Sulpicio, and Trans-Asia). The boat ride is usually uneventful, but sometimes, the trip can be memorable.
I've met old friends and acquiantances on board, happy to have talked to them again after a long time. I've befriended some on board too -- there are passengers who are regular travelers on these boats, so they are like old friends too. There are movies on board, and movies are good. One company has Dream Satellite tv and that makes for good entertainment. One company shows DVD movies, although probably bootleg. The other one shows only free tv shows -- although I heard that passengers with suite accommodations never had it so good with DVD movies. These are the good memories.
Then there are the not so pleasant memories. Among people-memories come the sound sleepers. With them around, they are the only ones who can sleep soundly for their nocturnal sounds prevent the others from having their own restful slumber -- and they are fast sleepers too, they beat us to the draw. Good thing is that these boats sell beer, so for the really hard-to-sleep people, alcohol can help hasten drowsiness.
Sometimes, reservations are all messed up, and you end up with a group of women in a cabin. They are as scared and uncomfortable as you are. Usually, housekeeping can sort out the mess.
Then again, there are also the sloppy ones. While eating in the cabins is not tolerated, a little snack and drink is fine. But eating a full dinner in the cabin is not exactly courteous -- but some get to sneek some puso (rice) and barbecue that leaves the cabin a little unpleasant.
For the cabin traveler -- do not put your stuff in plastic bags. They really make noise. Since these trips are at night, passengers want to sleep (a normal desire really) -- volume of tv, radio, conversations should be at minimum.
Then there are the boat-matters. On some occasions, the trip is delayed (at times even cancelled and we are left to fend for ourselves on the next trip)and either we get off or stay on until the boat leaves. I had my best sleep on the boat when our departure was moved to 5am the following day -- I don't really get to sleep on moving transportation. There is of course the fear that if the delay is due to engine problems, and the voyage continues, the ship's engine could stop in the high seas -- I only experienced this once: 15 minutes adrift near Panglao in Bohol (the curious dolphins playing around to "touch the butt (boat)" took away some of the worries. At times, the boat could come back to port for various "emergencies".
Once the boat did not have airconditioning and being in a cabin was a guarantee for a sleepless night. The one time it happened to me (yet?), I took a bunk at the economy section of the boat, amidst the loud conversations and snoring, the sounds of a girl-child-in-her-mom's-heeled shoes-stomping-up-and-down-the-metal-staircase, the noise from the rock band (the bar had both doors opened because airconditioning was not available), and the heat.
Accommodations can be memorable too. The thin bed mattress, the oh-so-called airconditioning and the flimsy linen for a blanket (some have woolen ones also), the cramped cabins (in some), the ticket inspection that comes just when one is about to go to REM, the very-loud-but-which-you-cannot-change volume of the PA system in the cabin.
I usually take the cabin because my trips would always be with one or two other persons. I would not know much about the experiences of those who take other accommodations on the over-night trip to CdO.
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