Palawan Series: Culion

A former leper colony - this was the only thing I knew about Culion before I stepped foot in Palawan. It's not your usual tourist destination so people don't talk about it. But when I went there last March for Sidetrip Travel Magazine's coverage for its summer issue (out this May), I fell in love with the quaint coastal town.

Yes, it usually isn't on the regular tourist map but it's worth a trip. It has the requisite Palawan natural attractions like sunbleached isles, mangrove swamps, and hidden falls but what sets Culion apart is its intangible beauty. Culion and its people exude a certain kind of strength and pride owing to their history. Walking through its narrow town roads, you can feel a sense of triumph in the air and it's most evident when you talk to locals who, at one point in their lives, have experienced the stigma of being afflicted with leprosy or knowing or living with one.

But Culion has managed to overcome it all - the disease (Culion has been leprosy-free for years), the stigma, and the disregard to embrace the wonderful possibilities nature and history has laid out before her. And so, I think it's apt that I show here not the usual tourist attraction photos as well but beautiful pictures that reflect Culion's hope, spirit, and beauty.

A new dawn awaits Culion...


Photos by Joseph Manayan