Wednesday, February 18, 2009

A place where heaven lands to Earth Boracay

By Jackie Silver

Boracay Island is located off the northwest corner of the island of Panay, and belongs to the Western Visayas island-group, or Region VI, of the Philippines. The island is approximately seven kilometers long, dog-bone shaped with the narrowest spot being less than one kilometer wide, and has a total land area of 10.32 square kilometers.

Boracay is a lush tropical tourist resort island about 200 miles south of Philippine's capital Manila and is about slightly more than a mile off the northwest of Panay in the West Visayas province. Because of its acclaimed publicity of being home to some of the best beaches in the world, Boracay island resort is naturally one of the Philippine's most popular tourist attraction.

The island is made up by the barangays of Manoc-Manoc, Balabag, and Yapak and is under the administration of the Philippine Tourism Authority. A barangay is also known by its former name, the barrio and is the smallest local government unit in Philippines. The word is a Tagalog term for a village or constituency.

Boracay island was originally the home of the Ati tribe before it became a major tourist attraction. Not surprisingly, the word Boracay is derived from words Bora which means 'bubble' and Bukay means 'white sand'. However, the sand on the main island is not as white as I have expected due to too many tourists and pollutions. Then again, if you visit some of the nearby islands and you will be fascinated by how white the sands on the beaches can be.

Boracay is part of Aklan Province and it was only in the 1970s that tourism industry started to develop. The main tourism beaches on the island are the White Beach and the Bulabog Beach both of which are located on diametrically opposite sides of the island's central area with the White Beach facing towards the west and Bulabog Beach facing east. Of course, Boracay also have several other beaches as well.

Transfer of ownership has to be processed with various government offices in the Municipalities of Malay and Kalibo. Real estate, has expert staffs with vast knowledge in dealing with all government agencies involved in the transfer of your ownership over your property.

At the extreme northern end of White Beach, a footpath runs around the headland there and connects White Beach with Diniwid Beach. Partly because of its wind and weather patterns, tourism in Boracay is at its peak during the Amihan season.

Bulabog Beach, across the island from White Beach is a secondary tourism beach. This beach is a favorite location for windsurfing and kiteboarding because of its seasonal strong winds for these activities.

When is the best time to visit Boracay? Well, you can visit Boracay anytime, however some visitors may wish to visit the island resort for different purposes.

Catch the spectacular world-famous Kalibo Ati-Atihan Festival in January. This festival is Philippine's version of the Mardi Gras which is celebrated on the third week of every January. - 15246

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