The travel from Valencia, Bukidnon to Butuan City was quite long. A road construction along the Malaybalay area further delayed the travel by at least an hour. Save for the good roads from Cagayan de Oro to Butuan City. It has been past lunchtime and the bayside eateries along the beaches of Talisayan, Misamis Oriental was just perfect to replenish our growling tummies!

On the way, we dropped by Nita’s Restaurant that had“floating” dining areas. Not only was the fresh seafood great but the place had more than the usual ambiance. Why not? It offers a good view of the Bohol Sea and Gingoog Bay.



The food was simple but tasty. I just love the freshly made fish kinilaw. I forgot to ask what the name of the fish was, and it was too late when I remembered taking a photo again! You see, feasting on the food comes in first for me before taking photos, ergo the badly composed and arranged subject. It may look plain and drab in photos, but they do really taste good not just in photos! Well, it’s better to taste it first then brag it, than brag a well-composed photo then be disappointed about the taste.





What struck me about the place is you get to be intimate with nature—the sun, sea, verdant hills and mountains and refreshing air —perfectly assembled right before your eyes to feast on. It is not just the food, but the natural beauty that is more than enough for a travel and photo junkie like me.





However, the downside of it—they are keeping a sea turtle in captivity. I have blogged about the pawikan of Bataan and from that brief encounter with the Pawikan Center, I learned it is against the law to put sea turtles in captivity.  Sure it is an added attraction that would entice and entertain customers, but not for someone like me who knows it is wrong.

The whole dining experience would have been awesome, had it not for the pawikan in captivity I saw.  I am giving them the benefit of the doubt.  For all we know, they might be holding a special permit to do it.  However, I am not taking any chances.  I have to do what I ought to do.



I took photos not for posterity but for documentation. I do not want to be a kill-joy, but I am a development worker before I am a travel blogger. This blogger has already notified the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) about this concern and here is hoping they can free this turtle.

Update: I have also written to Month of the Ocean, and assured me they will bring this up with PAWB, which is actually the one in charge of protected wildlife, and not BFAR. To this day, no response yet from them. Then I wrote to Marine Wildlife Watch of the Philippines

If you care about sea turtles and free those held in captivity, Please feel free to share this blog article. Thanks!



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