What one does not know, one fears. What one fears, one destroys.
This holds true in a country, where poverty drives the degradation of the coastal environment through destructive fishing activities, improper waste management, coral quarrying, poaching and mishandling of the wild creatures for tourist money.
We have seen the recent photos of whale sharks in Cebu flocked by local tourists, and I had a very strong opinion against it. Little did I know that I, just like the woman riding that whale shark in that infamous Facebook photo, would be as ignorant. The difference is, I should've known better.
Yesterday, I bonded with 2 of my nieces to go see Guimaras, a 15-20 minutes pumpboat-ride away from IloIlo City in Western Visayas. I enjoyed our island hopping experience until the stop at one of the islets ay Reymen's Resort.
We noticed there were lots of local tourists flocking the islet and our boatman asked if we wanted to see turtles. We all replied yes in unison. Who wouldn't want to see turtles? At this point of the trip the stinging itch on both my legs were getting worse and were developing reddish skin rash. I reckoned it was caused by the cheap sunblock lotion I bought at a store aggravated by salt water. It couldn't have been jelly fish stings as I were the only one who suffered the rash.
Because of the rash I have decided not to get off the boat on our stops but I wasn't able to resist the stop to see the turtle. I grabbed my iPhone and excitedly took snaps forgetting the stinging sensation on my legs and went back to the boat to upload them on Instagram.
One of my niece asked me for money and as she told me what it was for, it was then that I realized it wasn't really a turtle sanctuary as I hoped it would be. The hawksbill wasn't free to roam the sandy beach. He would have to be taken out from its small enclosed tub-like structure for a compartment when there are tourists getting off the islet. 5 pesos entrance fee per person including children, and a donation at any amount. That's what it says there on the big can beside the turtle's enclosure. I reckoned that since the turtle's captivity, it has been supporting the family that lived on that islet. My heart sank. I regretted the Instagram I have uploaded telling my friends how nice it was for the turtle to welcome us at this sanctuary. I felt sorry for this hawksbill, and I was foolish enough to have acted so touristy that I forgot and I ignored.
