In June this year, my sister-in-law decided to go back to her province in South Cotabato and she brought her children with her, they decided to stay in Polomolok and we all know it will take years before they'll be able to come home to Bohol so I decided we should make their last day in Bohol memorable.
What I thought would be the best place to do this was in a farm where there are animals because Seth loves animals and sea creatures, he is a special child.
South Farms is located at Brgy. Bolod, Panglao, Bohol. This is just a few meters away from La Casa De Beatrice. It is a 9-hectare organic land property promoting a rural, handmade, handcrafted, hand-built tourist destination. They are also the local supplier for South Palms Resort and North Zen Villas, both are high-end resorts in Panglao.
We were a group of 16 with five children and one infant! It was, of course, going to be a fun day as we explored farm life and enjoy the animals we will be interacting with!
Entrance fees were priced at Php 350 for adults while kids two years old and below are free! It was scorching hot when we arrived, they have umbrellas and borrowing it is possible with a Php 100 deposit. The first part of the tour was at this clumping bamboo entrance, we have to take a group photo too!.
I was thinking that there will be someone who'd always be there to inform us about the things about the farm, like a tour guide but none, the staff said we have to follow the trail and someone will guide us, found out that those who are taking care of the certain areas and sections were the guide themselves and as soon as we leave that part of the farm, we will meet another set of workers.
Right after the bamboo path, we reached the Guinea Pigs!
I can't count how many guinea pigs were but I adore them so much! They were really cute! They were not smelly either and their houses are just adorable with those cute pastel colors!
Matti got scared at first but eventually, when we were given twigs and leaves to feed them, he began to relax. He gave them leaves to munch on and in just a few minutes, they finished it!
My nieces and nephews also had fun at this area but when they realized that there were rabbits just right across, they left immediately and headed to the rabbits!
This is much bigger and more like a playground area! I adore the many stairs and tree houses! I didn't know that rabbits love climbing too!
Just like the guinea pigs, it was alright to feed these rabbits! They even allow us to go inside the fence so we can get up close to these cute little ones!
They gave us more twigs to feed on the bunnies. When we started handing them the leaves, more bunnies came out from their tiny little houses and started crowding anyone who was holding a twig! It was funny because my niece Amari was feeding a few bunnies when suddenly there was an influx and she began to cry while pushing her cousin Pipay into the rabbits.
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Matti, on the other hand was just relaxed when feeding a few group and when the rabbits ate all of the leaves, he went away and said he was all done!
We took a lot of time here because we really like feeding them and of course we took a lot of photos too, selfies, and even group pictures! When we got over it, we were shown towards the next part which was the garden area!
One worker was tending the land, they grow their plants organically, they got a lot of soil beds with bricks as their foundation. It looked really nice plus they grow different herbs too! There were rosemary, thyme, dill, and a lot more!
The worker didn't give us a tour of the garden, unfortunately but we saw that they surely are working hard to grow them especially that they supply the produce to some resorts. South Palm and North Zen Villas are just two of those resorts which they are the main supplier of organic ingredients.
It was time to move on. We had to walk this path to reach the next section which was the pond!
As mentioned above, my nephew Seth is fond of animals, but he is more into sea creatures and when he was younger, whenever he would see any body of water, he would jump right in. As he grows older, this had changed but he is still very much into fishes, he even knows a lot of fish types and names.
So when we reached this part, he immediately scanned the location and fed the koi fishes! He didn't even want to move away from this area! The feeds were free so we took our time feeding them but it seemed like the fishes were already full! They won't eat at all!
We were told that there's a horseback riding activity included in this tour so after the koi fish pond, we walked a few minutes and then found ourselves in this huge grassy lawn where some horses were grazing!
Three workers welcomed us inside and showed us to the nipa hut where we will wait for our turn. There was a family who were enjoying their time too and we sat under the shaded hut while we wait. It looked fun and our kids were excited for their turn!
When asked who'd go first, Kuya ZM, the little boy in the left photo above volunteered! He was ecstatic to ride the horse and he felt like a real cowboy in that hat! He was enjoying it a lot!
One by one, we took our time. The horse will be led by the worker and they'll walk around the area for around three to five minutes. I was hot though but it was fun!
I had ridden a horse back then but that was years ago so I somehow had forgotten how it felt. When it was my turn, I was suppose to get my little one too but he was afraid so Kuya ZM volunteered again and rode the horse immediately when I confirmed he can join me.
After everyone had their turns, we were offered a carabao sledge ride! Now this one, although there are so many carabaos in our barangay, I had never tried riding one so we accepted the offer and the kids enjoyed the bumpy ride!
After riding the carabao sledge twice, yes we asked for one more ride after the first one, we headed towards the farm animals area. It was at this point where we were singing Old Mcdonald song!
There were wild pigs, sheep, ducks, goats, and peacocks around. Chickens were just left to wander in the farm too!
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Unlike that of the rabbit and the guinea pig section, there was no guide or worker in this area. We were just passing by each housing and observed each animal. After passing by one, we moved on until we reached the end.
A group photo again after doing all the activities here. The kids were already showing signs of tireness. Water is very necessary for this tour! We have to buy some water from the restaurant too because we ran out of them.
But wait, there's more! We headed to their fishing area! There were other guests who were fishing and the kids ran towards them and observed the waters of the lake. I took the chance to take photos of the surrounding. It was peaceful here, although there were some other people around, the stillness and quietness was echoing in this side of the farm. The shelters with cogon roofing looks nice too!
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And since there were boats, I am assuming that they allow boat riding and fishing at the same time at the distant area. The kids were already entertained at the fishing platform. It was Kuya Seth who went to get a fishing rod which is available in the platform, a worker was attending to those guests who wish to fish.
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South Farm is indeed a huge area. It was the heat of the sun that was taking all of our energy so we have to get to the restaurant to freshen up and drink more loads of water. There was still another section in the farm called the Artisan Village located at the back of the Pandayan and fishing lake but we didn't go there anymore.
We headed to the restaurant called Pandayan to freshen up. I was quite amazed with how they decorated their restaurant. The ceiling has weaved thing which I am not sure of the name but there were lots of them hanging in the ceiling. The wall also was uniquely designed with tiny tiles and crafted into an artwork! It showed a carabao tilling the land!
I checked the items they had for sale, there were many jars of different types of vinegar from the basic ones to the spicy. Then there were virgin coconut oils too, as well as native items like hats, fans, etc.
Oh they got pots too because they have this pottery and weaving area where the farm staff would also conduct seminars and worships. This month, they offered this workshop in celebration of the Bamboo month.
At the restaurant, aside from the tables and chairs, they also have a squatting banig and some thick pillows for customers who would prefer squatting on the floor. The place looked clean and well maintained.
But after looking around, what caught my attention really was this thing called "Asin Tibook" which was priced at a jaw dropping Php 1,200 or 40 Hive!
A salt from Albuquerque, Bohol, on the brink of extinction– made using a very labor-intensive, pre-Hispanic method of production that coincided with the rice harvest. Traditionally, once the salt pots were made, saltmakers would batter them for sacks of rice. - ritual.ph
It was the first time that I had seen one and it was great to know that there's such thing in the island. I researched about it and it is indeed on the brink of extinction as new methods of making salt is already available in the market. This is the rarest of The Philippine Sea Salts and called the dinosaur egg!
Here's more information coming from philippinesalts.com
The process takes months of preparation and requires meticulous care and vigilance. Coconut husks are soaked in seawater for several months absorbing sea minerals. The husks are then chopped into small pieces and sun dried. Then, the husks are slowly burnt for several days with local hard woods, creating a coconut charcoal ash combination. The activated charcoal is then used to filter seawater which is poured and roasted in clay pots slowly until salt forms into a solid dome. The fire and heat must be controlled so the clay pots do not break or get too hot. This process takes all day; both fire and salt cannot be left alone. It takes the entire evening for the salt to cool so that it can be handled.
Amazing! No wonder it is priced that way! I am beyond awe to those families who are still using this way of salt making!
It was time to go and we all enjoyed this tour, the horseback riding and carabao sledge ride were both our favorite parts of the tour. Also, there's a wooden gate that has the South Farm name where we took another group photo because it looked really nice!
J U N E B R I D E
Boholana | Cebu | Philippines | Travel | Photography Enthusiast | Calligraphy | Art
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