Summoning every ounce of inner peace, I courageously stood at the edge of a sturdy wooden plank preparing to jump off an 8 meter cliff. The view from where I stood was gorgeous. To my left was the lush foliage of the islands of Antique, and below me, the vast, dark blue waters of Sulu sea beckoned.
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| My gutsy friend preparing for her jump. |
The beautiful views however, couldn't stop the nerves that viciously jolted my system. I glanced below, a guide just gave me the go signal to jump with his thumbs up. Logic fought with against my fun and foolish side. What am I doing?
Known as Ariel's Point, the popular cliff diving spot can be reached by a 30-45 minute boat ride from station 1 in Boracay island. My friend and I booked a cliff diving package at the Boracay Beach Club office the day we arrived and paid 1,600 Pesos each. The fee for the half day adventure covered entrance fees, unlimited drinks, snacks, barbecue buffet, life vest, guides and the round trip boat ride to Buruanga.
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| Visitors can ejoy a relaxing afternoon under the shade of cute umbrellas. |
I saw my friend poising to jump on the 5 meter platform. After she received an ok sign from the guides below, I saw her drew in a quick breath and jumped before I found the courage to go off the cliff. She emerged from underwater a few seconds later. She's alive!
While I was still trying to talk myself into just jumping in, more and more people went ahead of me. Some, even performed stunts from the highest diving board, a 15 meter drop. Each one got back up in one piece though some of them did complain feeling some pains on their lower extremities upon hitting the water, but they were smiling nevertheless.
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Near the diving platforms are verandas where you can watch
courageous people jumping off cliffs., definitely not something you see everyday in the city :P |
The serious, boring side of me prevailed. I don't have to do this. I can't just jump from a cliff for fun. I have survived far more challenging things than this. I retreated. My friend suggested that I jump at a lower point as there were diving boards 3 and 5 meters high but I was too stubborn since I had jumped at a higher cliff in Quezon before. It was 8 meters or nothing. While it's s not exactly the type of travel experience I can be proud of, I was happy to have made a firm decision that I don't regret because I made the most of my time anyway .
Apart from cliff diving, there are other things to do at Ariel's Point. A marine sanctuary is accessible from the boat's docking area and when the waves are kind, one can also do some kayaking. Snorkeling gears and kayaks are also provided at no extra cost.
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| Filling barbeque lunch buffet. There's plenty for everyone! :) |
When my head stopped throbbing from overthinking, I retreated back to our table, shaded by an enormous umbrella to enjoy some snacks prepared by the crew. For the next two hours, I remained glued to that chair, enjoying the breeze, the hip music that blared from the speakers and the relaxing vibe that encircled the place, watching people laugh and dance until it was time to head back to another part of paradise.
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The enjoyable boat ride back to Boracay. You can sit at the roof of the boat for a way more
awesome view! :) |
For more information on cliff diving at Ariel's Point, check out their website. It's got all the information you'll need. :)
