There's no one here: What I learned on a solo trip to Antique

The blogosphere is brimming with stories of sensational holidays: “I fell in love with Luang Prabang.” “I’d go back to Ubud in a heartbeat.” But what about the trips that don’t pan out? Because if you travel far enough and hard enough, you’re bound to end up in a place that you don’t fall in love with. That you won’t go back to in a heartbeat. That was Antique for me.

I came to Antique (pronounced an-TEE-keh) to see if I could add it to Simply Philippines, and I left with the conclusion that the province is not ready for tourism. So why am I writing about it? Because I want to show you what I saw in Antique, and why I’m still glad I went.

Note: This is not a guide to Antique. If you’re looking for things to do in the province, here is an excellent roundup by Nathan Allen.

Jan. 23, 2015:

There is one question I’m getting a lot, and everyone wants it answered, but not more than I do: “Why am I in Antique?” Why do we come to the places we come to?

Pandan, Antique

antique-philippines-4 — This 5-cottage resort is in a fishing community, with traps left and right at the point where the Bugang River empties into the bay.

antique-philippines-7 — The family running the kitchen (and their daughter, pictured) are wonderful people. Rosepoint a no-frills place to stay but the hospitality is warm and the hosts are helpful.

antique-philippines-27 — A typical Filipino breakfast of milkfish and rice.

antique-philippines-11 — Malumpati cold springs, the town’s biggest “attraction”, are a reservoir built by the Japanese in the hills nearby.

Jan. 20, 2015:

The views as the sun goes down are reminscent of an idyllic Philippines: fishermen casting off or mending nets, women drying crops in the sun. The reactions from locals (shouts, surprise) reveal how few foreigners come here.

The best thing anyone can do in Antique is ride the stretch from Mag-aba to Libertad at sunset.

It's not too hard to imagine what options are like for young people in this part of the world. The workers at this karaoke outpost wanted a photo. — It’s not too hard to imagine what options are like for women in this part of the world. The workers at this karaoke outpost wanted a photo.

antique philippines — Some areas of Antique probably look the same way they used to 40 or 50 years ago.

Jan. 22, 2015:

Morning in Kayak Inn. The monkey is back to swinging, the turkey to posturing, the hens to clucking. The women are doing a bit of sewing on the verandah. The men chop wood and sing along to the radio. There’s the constant sound of the river below. The light is remarkable — everyone on the dirt road wears a halo.

Tibiao, Antique

One of Antique’s main attractions is a ‘kawa’ bath in these iron tubs overlooking the Tibiao River. Light a fire. Get flames going. Add agdaw leaves (for healing.) Remove some wood when hot enough. Get in. Hack bamboo to pieces if you want a hotter bath. Soak up to one hour.

A local meal: Pumpkin in coconut milk and fried tuna.

The bare necessities. I once stepped out to brush my teeth and came back to find a chicken running around the hut. It still makes me laugh to think about it. — This hut is actually a reconstruction of the one that slid off the cliff in the last earthquake.

Mararison Island, Antique

The approach to Mararison — Mararison Island doesn’t get many visitors. There are some dive and snorkeling sites, and a white sandbar for swimming, but homestays are the only accommodation.

antique-philippines-43 — Mararison Island is only 15 minutes from Panay by boat, but the island can be isolated for weeks during storm season.

Jan. 23, 2015

Mararison Island — 700 people, 55 hectares, 15 minutes or more from Panay. Residents from all over. Elementary school but no high school. Much damaged in the (2013) typhoon.

A hardy little flower that scientists come to Mararison to study. — Scientists have come to Mararison to study this tiny, unnamed flower.

Don't look down. — Most people live in a small flat area near the beach. The rest of the island is rolling limestone hills with more goats than humans.

Jan. 25, 2015:

I’m beginning to remember what poverty means here in the Philippines. People lose husbands to storms. They go months without fishing. There is not enough. There is not much I can do about it except to write, to make it clear that things must change and be better.

I ended my tour of Antique after Mararison Island. I don’t think Antique will always be this isolated. Already there are daytrips from Boracay where you can go kayaking or do stand-up paddleboarding on the river. But the province is a long way from offering travelers the comforts they’re used to, let alone any standard of luxury.

And so I decided not to make a travelers’ guide to Antique. But this trip was a turning point for me. From here on I started to write more about sustainable travel, and less about five-star hotels. I switched from what was fashionable to what would benefit the local people the most. In many ways it was in Antique that I found my focus for SimplyPhilippines.

And for everyone in Antique who asked, I guess that’s why I came.

NOTE: Antique at the time I visited was mired in corruption. Some of the officials who were exploiting the province for millions of pesos yearly have since been brought to task.