First Couple Hours in Palawan

    We landed in Palawan, and exited the plane, again on stairs. We heard a marching band (but they weren't marching) playing. We had no idea why they were heralding our arrival to Palawan, but it's safe to say that it wasn't for us. 

    We entered the tiny airport and saw a person holding a sign with my name on it. This was the driver from Daluyon Resort where we were going to spend our weekend. We then stopped by the company office in Puerto Princesa, the town where the airport was, and asked the driver if we could have lunch before the 2-hour drive to the resort. He said that it would be P300 for every extra hour.

    A little while earlier, some yoga friends had recommended a place called Kalui. It's one of the oldest restaurants in Puerto Princesa, and one of the most famous. We get there and it is beautiful. It is all beautiful dark hardwood and covered with flowers and art. You have to take your shoes off when you step inside. Rebecca kept her socks while Dad and I went barefooted. The food was divine. We ordered a meal package, which pretty much meant that we didn't have to really order, they just brought food. The only thing that we did order, besides fruit shakes, was tuna sashimi. It was unlike any other tuna sashimi I had ever eaten. First off, it was soft and tender. It didn't really require much chewing. And it wasn't as strong in flavor as other tuna sashimi. I don't know if that is because it was so fresh or because of the tuna itself. 

    

    The "chips and salsa" of this restaurant is fresh seaweed. It is served with a kalamansi for brightness. This isn't sheets of seaweed that you buy at the asian markets. At first, I thought it was fish roe. There were dozens of little spheres attached to a central stalk. The spheres burst in your mouth like fish roe, but they were briny and tasted like the ocean. 

    The actual meal consisted of squid in a brown sauce. It was just the right amount of chewy (not very, but toothsome). There was also well-done tuna steak, a sauteed local fern, and large prawns. I highly recommend it, if any of my readers happen to be in Palawan.