Planning for this voyage started a year ago and after looking through almost 300 potential ship excursions in South Africa, India, Japan and 12 other countries, Bonnie immediately zeroed in on Puerta Princesa as her can’t-wait-to-see port of call.

She was right again, folks!

Thirty vans carrying six cruisers and a guide each made a two-hour curvy, hilly dangerous ride from the southeast part of a long, skinny Philippines island to a small port in the northwest. The groups maneuvered into small motorized catamarans for a 15-minute exhilarating ride to a beach. After a short walk, we donned life jackets and plastic construction hat and slipped into a kayak piloted by a local who paddled us into the Underground River, one of the New 7 Wonders of the World.

Light disappears 30 seconds after entering an enormous limestone cave. The river continues for 15 miles but tourists only see about three. The river itself is a phenomenon since it flows directly into the sea beckoned there by the pull of the tide.

We can only see ahead when the pilot turns on the boat’s spotlight. Then we see the how tall this cave is. Large stalactites and stalagmites like you've never seen before are everywhere. The rock formations reveal dozens of colorful statue-like images of Louvre quality. It only takes a little imagination for our minds to match each image to the title the pilot softly announces he paddles by…… The Golden Monkey … The Dinosaur ... The Last Supper …. and so on.

The silence of the tourists adds to the spiritual atmosphere. The cruisers, who bellow at each other during every meal, are mute. The peaceful stillness allows us to notice the pings of water drops as they hit the river. The cave walls continuously widen and narrow. Formations from the above or each side occasionally swoop down making the tallest of us duck. Our eyes and souls have been transfixed by what nature created over 25 millions years.

Around us are creatures we cannot see except to barely make out thousands of bats sleeping while clinging to the top of the cave. Below us is deep, deep brackish water that looks more ominous because it’s so stagnant and silent.

My words, my photos, my videos cannot capture the wonder of this place. You have to experience it for yourself.