PUERTO PRINCESA | Plaza Cuartel, Palawan Wildlife Rescue & Conservation Center, Butterfly garden

One other thing I love about Puerto Princesa, aside from the renown Underground River and the amazing islands and pristine beaches of Honda Bay, is that it offers many interesting tourist spots within the city and its surrounding vicinity. Be it historic landmarks, conservation sites, or beautiful parks and gardens, Puerto Princesa definitely has it all. And because of the proximity, most of these sites are reachable within an hour or two.

So on our first day at Puerto Princesa, after having our delicious lunch at Balinsasayaw Grille, we immediately set out for these tourist spots. We hired a van instead of taking the tour set by the local government because 1.) it would be more flexible and convenient on our part and 2.) we could choose for ourselves which places to go to. So when everything was set, we proceeded with the tour.

PLAZA CUARTEL

 

Plaza Cuartel, reminiscent to a dreadful past.

close up of the Plaza Cuartel marker

Located along Taft Street and few stones away from Immaculate Concepcion Cathedral, anyone that doesn’t know the behind-the-scene story of the place will mistook it for a common park. Cool white pavement, variations of plants & trees, several tables & benches and a great view of the sea, makes it an ideal place to relax and have a picnic. But beyond the facade of calmness and serenity that the place currently exudes, lies deeply a dark shadow, a grim history of hate which ends to death. The Palawan massacre.

During the World War II in 1944, almost 150 American prisoners of war were BURNED ALIVE by the Japanese soldiers. Only 10 were lucky to survive and lived to tell the tale.

Statue of a burning man

PALAWAN WILDLIFE RESCUE and CONSERVATION CENTER

Palawan Wildlife Rescue and Conservation Center

Entrance Fee: PHP40
Visiting Hours: Mondays to Fridays 1:30-5:00 PM ; Saturdays 9AM to 5PM
Location: Brgy. Irawan
How to get there: Along Malvar Street inside the city proper, one can take a tricycle or a jeepney bound for Irawan where the center is located.

Our 2nd stop and the most educating one. The center which was formerly known as Crocodile Farm Institute, is both a research center and a conservation site. They breed and protect some of Palawan’s endangered animals including the Philippine Freshwater Crocodile (Crocodylus mindorensis), Saltwater Crocodile / Indo Pacific Crocodile (Crocodylus porosus),Palawan Hornbill (Anthracoceros marchei), Palawan Binturong (Arctictis binturong whitei) and many more.

Remnants of the biggest philippine crocodile

1-3 years old baby crocs

The center also showcase a mini zoo where we have seen several species of birds, a wild boar, two ostrich, meerkats and other animals. They also have a souvenir shop where you can buy different merchandise such as key chains, wood carvings, refrigerator magnets, t-shirts, and even crocodile sisig (crocodile meat).

Examples of merchandise sold at the Souvenir Shop

Cuddling the little darling (from left to right) yours truly, ate bhing, my brother and mom

BUTTERFLY GARDEN

a lonely butterfly

more butterflies

Entrance Fee: PHP 50
How to get there: Along Malvar Street, one can take a tricycle bound for Sta. Monica where the Butterfly garden is located.

Of all the tourist spots we’ve been to on that City Tour, my favorite was the Butterfly Garden. I’m an avid fan of flowers and butterflies, so you can imagine my delight when we reached the garden. The place was amazing, it was teeming with life and the color green. Butterflies, which are often shy creatures, were flying everywhere, unafraid of tourists hovering around them.

And the flowers were super gorgeous.

Different flower varieties

Aside from the flowers and the butterflies, there were also several insects that were on display. Here are some of them:

a Malay Giant Scorpion

Beetles..

Can you spot the walking stick insect on this picture?

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