Wednesday, April 22, 2015

THE KAWA HOT BATH OF TIBIAO, ANTIQUE

 
The "kawa" hot bath of Tibiao, Antique is definitely one of the stops of every tourist who has set foot on the beautiful coastal province. The kawa, used as bath tub is actually a giant vat used in muscovado mills years back. The traditional hot bath uses firewood to heat up the water in a kawa blended with different herbs truly relaxing for bathers.



In Barangay Tuno, a guide led me to a short trek to Dot's Kamalig, a hut lodge offering a Kawa Hot Bath. I arrived at the place at around 4:00 pm. My eyes got delighted at the sight of the "kawas".






I also learned that just a few meters from the lodge is a 7-tier waterfalls. A real bonus! So I decided to take a short hike to the beautiful Bugtong Bato Falls. Please click BUGTONG BATO FALLS to see the story.
   
It was past 6 pm when I finished my trek to Bugtong Bato Falls in Barangay Tuno. Just a few meters away is the Dot's Kamalig where I would rest my tired head. I was exhausted since the morning from trekking Mt. Igcoron in Valderrama so I really looked for the kawa hot bath. The caretakers in Dot's Kamalig were so accommodating that I even joined them in supper with lutong bahay menus.I was so at home since I am a pure Ilonggo. I can even fluently speak Kinaray-a.

After a satisfying meal and a little time to rest, I was a bit excited and little nervous to dip in a kawa with pre-heated water and herbs.




The water was so relaxing added its soothing aroma. The fire was rekindled when I was in place.



I asked the attendant, "T'yoy, wara ka dyan ti wasay? (T'yoy, don't you have an ax?)"
He answered, "May ara eh. Paminta dulang kag bombay kulang, bulalo ka dun. (I have, of course. Added laurel leaves and bulb onion, you're a bulalo then.)" We all burst into laughter. 

The low fire kept burning, we talked about many petty stuffs, and my eyes wanted to close on their own. And oh, I had been boiled for almost two hours!
 



I went back to my room like drunk and hypnotized. Unexplainable feeling. For sure, I had a real good sleep alone in a bamboo hut lighted with solar rechargeable garden torch. The thundering sound of Bugtong Bato Falls further deepened my sleep.



The next morning, I woke up to the voice of the birds and the relaxing sound of the falls.

I once again explored the multi-tiered falls, enjoyed the cool dip and joined the host in a breakfast I personally requested--- fried dried fish with real hot sinamak dip, boiled eggs and steamed camote tops.


I left my home for a night heavy hearted. I trekked back to the barangay proper with friendly, smiling encounters.   

A habal-habal took me to the highway. I spent the rest of the day traveling to Kalibo, then to Roxas and back to Iloilo.

12 comments:

  1. How to get to Dot's Kamalig? I'm from Caticlan travelling to Antique. any other activities you would suggest? Is Dot's near Kayak Inn? Looking forward hearing from you. Thank You.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. hi, dot's kamalig has same entry point with kayak inn. dot's is just meters away from bugtong bato falls. you can do falls hopping at its multi-tiers. at kayak inn, you can also do lots of outdoor activities...

      Delete
    2. do you have the contact details for dot's?

      Delete
    3. juanjourney, hi! sorry i have no contact of dot's kamalig because i came there unplanned. after asking some locals, they recommended me the place. i have no idea of the place prior to my arrival. anyway, the place is easy to track. in case it's fully booked, you may opt for other stays nearby at relatively same rate. kawa hot bath is also offered in other resorts.

      Delete
  2. Is there any price or rates for the Kawa Hot Bath?I keep on searching po, but I don't see any prices or rates in the travel blogs that I read..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. hi, grace. thanks for dropping by. at dot's kamalig, i paid P200 for kawa hot bath way back november 2013.

      Delete
  3. sir kaya po ba maabot ng sasakyan (car) ung place or need iwanan sa barangay proper then mag trek na papuntang dot's kamalig? malapit lng din po ba sa kayak inn?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. hi, sir! maiiwan po sa barangay ang car. trail nalang kasi ang papuntang dot's kamalig. malapit lang din yan sa kayak inn

      Delete
  4. hi sir! we would like to go to kawa hot bath and bugtong bato falls. we will be coming from caticlan. is it possible to do it all in one day or before 4pm? our flight is in kalibo in that same day. pls help. tia! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. sure, you can make it! the place is around 4 hours away from kalibo.

      Delete
  5. Hello I'm an Industrial Engineering Student from Batangas and currently taking up Feasibility Study. We had found out that Kawa hot bath is an interesting topic to deal on and as of now, our professor already approved it. Do you think it is possible for us to contact the management or do you have any contact with which they can accomodate us for this reason?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. hi, anonymous. sorry i don't have contact with the resort. but there are number of resorts of such kind in the area. better contact tourism office of tibiao, antique. or search TIBIAO, ANTIQUE on FB.

      Delete