Avresa med Dotche - nu börjar båtluffen på Filippinerna

Writer: Helena Bergström

Now it is finally time for departure with the boat Dotche, which means that we start our great adventure with a boat trip in the Philippines. We leave today, and if everything goes as planned, we will travel around the islands of the Philippines for a month and a half.

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Time for departure and boat trip with Dotche

So it's finally time for departure with the Philippine boat Dotche. There will be a total of seven people on board: us (Peter and Helena from FREEDOMtravel), our friends Micke and Julia, Captain Hildo, his son Hildem and his son-in-law Aldrin.

Here's how we plan to go

We have made a rough plan of how we will travel, as you can see in the picture below. Will it be exactly like this? We don't know. We start travelling east from Malapascua (which is north of the island of Cebu, at the top of the red sketch) and then travel south.

The plan right now is to round up Bohol on the outside, but it is also possible that we choose to travel between Bohol and Cebu. We will see how it turns out simply!

Preparing for departure

We have been preparing for this trip for a very long time. Already when we were in Stockholm, we planned and bought various things, such as power batteries and headlamps. Then we went shopping for fishing equipment in the city centre. Cebu City as well as sleeping mats and kitchen equipment in Bogo City.

Here on the island, the family in particular, but also we, have been working on various preparations. This included fixing the roof, toilet, kitchen and solar panels. Then the engine needed to be replaced and a generator purchased, and the oil filter started leaking ...

There has been a lot of work, and it has taken a little longer, but finally everything started to get ready. A few days ago we packed on board a lot of the things we shopped in Bogo.

Peter and Julia load things onto Micke and Julia's self-built boat Filippa, for transport to Dotche.

Another transport to Dotche - Micke and Julia arrive with a filled LPG tube

Dotche is ready

Now Dotche is finally ready for departure. There is certainly a lot that will need to be fixed during the journey, but we are at least ready enough to get going. In the pictures below you can see the solar panel, electrical plugs for charging (we need such things to be able to update here at FREEDOMtravel!) and our purchased sleeping mats.

The solar panel has been mounted on a stand

From the battery, which is connected to the solar panel, connectors have been made so that we can recharge

Sleeping pads and a few other odds and ends

A final day in Malapascua with a farewell party

Yesterday was our last day in Malapascua before departure, and it was a day full of planning and goodbyes. We were invited to the Filipino family for a meeting about practical things before departure.

Meeting with the Filipino family in Malapascua

After the meeting we were treated to banana pancake and the Filipino noodle dish pancit. We also said goodbye to all the family members who will not be travelling with us.

When we then came back to the hotel, Hiltey's Hideout, the hotel's German owner wanted to offer eggnog and a beer before departure. Very nice! Here we have also enjoyed ourselves very much, so we will gladly come back here.

Follow our adventure!

Hope you want to follow our adventure! We will update here on FREEDOMtravel, and you can follow us via these channels:

Instagram: @freedomtravel.se
Facebook: @freedomtravel.se
Youtube: @freedomtravel_se
Freedomtravel.se: Our newsletter

Our ambition is to publish every morning at 06:00, as usual, and we will do our best to organise this. Please note that it can we may one day find ourselves in total internet shadow, unable to update.

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6 Comments

Add yours →

Anna i Portugal says:

You have an exciting adventure ahead of you! Enjoy!

05 March 2023 - 7:47

Ditte says:

Good luck! What an experience! I'm jealous!

05 March 2023 - 11:29

BP says:

At last! It will be very exciting to follow you during the island trip. So nice to finally get away. Hope you get really nice weather, if only to keep the solar cells alive; -) good luck!

05 March 2023 - 16:21

Anette says:

Lovely, enjoy your adventure.
I follow from a distance.

05 March 2023 - 16:44

Lena - gott för själen says:

How wonderful! It will be exciting to follow along! Have a nice trip!

Hug Lena

05 March 2023 - 17:11

JoY says:

What a cool picture of Dotche Wish you an exciting boat journey.

05 March 2023 - 20:40

Departure with Dotche - now the boat trip in the Philippines begins

Writer: Helena Bergström

Time for departure and boat trip with Dotche

Here's how we plan to go

Preparing for departure

Dotche is ready

A final day in Malapascua with a farewell party

Follow our adventure!

Video 3 of 7

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6 Comments

Anna i Portugal says:

Ditte says:

BP says:

Anette says:

Lena - gott för själen says:

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