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The heart-shaped island of Marinduque , 170km southeast of Manila, is a quiet backwater, chiefly known for its Moriones Festival , a unique and animated Easter tradition featuring masked men dressed like Roman soldiers. This week-long celebration starts on Holy Monday and culminates on Easter Sunday, when the story of the centurion Longinus and his links to Christ are re-enacted in pantomime. Celebrated in the capital Boac , on the island's west coast, and also in the nearby villages of Mogpog and Gasan, the festival starts with masked men roaming the streets playing pranks on the residents (and tourists), serenading ladies, frightening children and engaging in mock swordfights. The island's people have a unique style of welcoming and honouring friends and visitors, showering them with flowers and coins. Apart from the Moriones Festival, you can explore the immense Bathala Caves in barangay Ipil, on the north coast, twenty minutes from Boac by jeepney. One of the caves is said to be guarded by a python. Another cave has an underground river and one contains human bones which local people believe to be the remains of World War II soldiers. Tres Reyes Islands , off the coast of the town of Gasan in the southwest, have some marvellous beaches and coral reefs. To get to Tres Reyes either take a banca from Boac pier or a jeepney to Gasan, where you can hire a boat. Off the small town of Santa Cruz on the northeast coast, 35 minutes from Boac pier by boat, are the islets of Polo , Mompong and Maniwaya , with powdery sand beaches that rival Boracay. There is no accommodation on these tiny islands, so you should take drinking water and tents if you plan to stay. The waters around Marinduque offer excellent diving, with 83 chartered dive sites.
placesmarissa dela torre says "please provide all the places where we can visit in marinduque." TREK AROUND THE ISLANDRAMON M. GALLINERA says "THE ISLAND IS AN IDEAL PLACE FOR PEOPLE WHO ENJOYS APPRECIATING THE BEAUTY OF NATURE. WALKING AROUND THE ISLAND IS A GOOD FOR THE BODY AND SPIRIT. I HAVE WALKED THE ENTIRE ISLAND IN (9) NINE DAYS. AS THE FIRST MAN TO WALK THE ENTIRE ISLAND YOU CAN START THE WALK FROM BALANACAN PORT TO MOGPOG, THEN MOGPOG TO BOAC and GASAN. On the 3rd Day the walk from Gasan to Buenavista is very calming. A night of stay at one of the hot springs is very good for the body. The walk from Buenavista to Malibago and then to Torrijos in 2 Days is being close to the nature and the people. Torrijos to the boundary of Sta. Cruz and then on the next day to the town of Sta. Cruz. Sta. Cruz to mogpog can be done in one day or 2 days depending on your stamina. For more details on how to walk around the island you can email me at : global consultancy_gallinera @yahoo.com "
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