The Road to Sagada

Last year marked the beginning of new friendship through common friend. We've only shared our thoughts and emotions via Facebook, while we're oceans and miles away from each other. There are differences but comes also the common grounds: our love for pictures, scenic beauties and the desire to travel. So we came up with the perfect plan to pursue our desire and started it all by planning the trip to Sagada. It took us almost one year of planning, inquiring and searching to make it all happen.

Since me and my friend were the ones in the Philippines then, we took the responsibility of putting it all together, from transportation to accommodation; from the tour guide to itinerary.

Matter of fact, we were used to just paying our share of expenses and our other buddies will do all the hardwork. So this travel to Sagada is a memorable one for us, because it's our first time to do it all on our own while the rest were in Boracay.

And the long wait was over. It was a mix emotions for us considering some of my friends dreamed of stepping into the land of Sagada way back high school days. And the dream was fulfilled last week in time for thanksgiving. When the other side of the world was celebrating for their bounties, we're in Sagada, celebrating and strengthening our  lasting friendships and forming new ones.

Detailed story of our trip coming up. Just needed a few days to think how to sum it up. Cheers!

Caleruega

Had you ever been in a place that made you gasp, like the only word you managed to say was wow and after that you can't get enough of the place and you wanted to stay there forever?

That's exactly what happened to me during our trip to Caleruega in Nasugbu Batangas. Just a few laughter and chit chat away from Tagaytay. This trip was more of like a tradition between us friends to go to a place where we've never been each year to celebrate our birthday, but more than that, I am also in a journey. A journey to visit 7 churches I'd never been and so far this is my fourth. I'll blog about the others soon, but for now, let me show and share the experience on this majestic prayer and renewal place.

Close to nature, closer to God is indeed true. The moment you set your foot on it's boundaries, your burden seems to if not vanished will lighten. A perfect place for prayer and be close to God.

There's a Sunday mass at 11:00 a.m, so be sure to be there early. So serene and peaceful on the outside and so humble in the inside.

Transfiguration chapel

Lush green tress which made the place awesome and the air so pure. Gazing above would feel like you're somewhere in Forks. 

And the stairs and pathways below were breathtaking. If you knew me well you know why, but if not, be aware that I love bricks. Seriously, I can sit there.

And, do you see that white portion, in the midst of the green vegetation? Guess what is it? No clue? Okay, scroll down and you'll see. Be patient, let's hike up and down to reach that spot.

To get to that special place, you have to walk down the road, pass their cafeteria and down the steel bridge to the Koi pond.

Their Kois were so big and so healthy. Stress free fish. I'm a little envious.

After the Koin pond, you have to pass through this hanging bridge. It's a bit long, but it's not that shaky and you'll enjoy it, I swear. Even for those who have acrophobia. Not to add that it's so romantic.

And here it is. An open air chapel where you can enjoy the other side of Caleruega, where the grass is more greener, the slope is higher, there's no stairs but just a trail, the air is a wind and the journey is worth the destination.

I told one of my friends that if I'd be gone missing, she knew where to find me but instead she said that she will plan my wedding and  that will be in this place. Tsk, tsk. And speaking of wedding, (information below was copied from the leaflet  they provided us. There's an entrance fee of Php 30.00)  the place is open to activities like retreats, recollections, prayer &renewal workshops, study research, youth camps, marriage and family encounter celebrations, skills training, leadership seminars, arts, music, and liturgy workshops and environment and agricultural-related activities.

They have various facilities available for each activity. For reservation guidelines and questions, you can email them at caleruega_philippines@yahoo.com or visit their Facebook page a for more information.

Notes:

• You have to ride a tricycle to get to the place from the entrance at Evercrest (if you're commuting). Don't forget to get the number of the trike driver so you can send him a message to fetch you up, because transportation out isn't available from the inside.
• They have a small cafeteria and there is not much food variation. If you're planning to stay longer, you can bring your lunch and eat there. A nice place for picnic. 

Baguio's Mines View Park

The journey back to Baguio continue. We arrived in Baguio after long 6 hours of travel probably around 6 p.m. Sorry I wasn't able to check the exact time because I was so hooked looking at the houses covered with fogs. We can't barely see what's around us and I am also nervous at the same time. We get off the bus and our hotel is situated along the road so no sweat even though our bags were really heavy. Besides, there's no room for sweat in Baguio - hahaha!

I won't bore you with any of my words. Without further ado, savor yourself with the photos I got. Please bear with them and with me

the view on the back porch of our room

Me with an umbrella because it's raining. Wait till you see what we have down the park

Mines View Park, the place I was so afraid when I was young (afraid of heights)

Back then, I was so delighted to see the kids maneuvering on big rocks and towering heights

to catch the coins thrown by tourists never aware that that would cost their lives.

Now the said practice was prohibited by the local government to protect the lives of the kids as well. Thank God.

Mines view park covered with fog. Mountains were not visible and it's cold.

Mines View Park. Same as above minus the fog. We go back to the place the second time, because the fog and the rain didn't let us enjoy on our first time.

Travel with Comfort

When I was 5 years old, I lived in a cool high place, where the weather is nice and the wind is so cold even when the sun is so high. The summer capital of the Philippines, Baguio.  I remember how afraid I was because the houses were built on the mountain slope. 5 years old, that was the last time I set foot on that place until we're able to arrange a trip back to Baguio.

The place is far from Manila and the only means to be there is to travel by land for almost 6 hours through buses or private cars. But the road is zigzag and it's safe if well practiced drivers were the one to take you there. So with that being said, we opted to entrust our lives to Victory Liner.  We're on the bus station by 10:00 something in the morning and purchased our tickets. You can also reserved tickets 8 business days before your departure. I would suggest that you order the tickets ahead of time because their De Luxe buses travels just 4 times in a day so the chances of you ending on a regular air conditioned bus is high.

the waiting area for the passengers of Deluxe buses
it has television and it's air conditioned.

while waiting for the bus, my bags deserve a shot

going aboard the de luxe bus
a 29 seater air conditioned bus with stewardess,
portable toilet and wi-fi.
Non stop travel, hooray!

Our departure time was 12:20 p.m. And in all fairness they strictly followed the time. Some might say this was luxury but for us who came from work, graveyard shift, sleepless and tired, I think we deserved this. Just look how big the seats are, you can bent them so you can sleep well and each seat has foot rest. Because our plan was to sleep the entire 5 hours of travel. But that didn't materialized because we're busy looking out the window and savor our eyes with the view. They also serve snack in the middle of the trip. So with a little/big difference from the fare of the regular air conditioned bus, I think it's all worth it especially we traveled with heavy baggage.  

P.S. this is such a long story, I don't know where to start. More post about the places we visit on the next post.

Part 3 - An Adventure I won't forget

the continuation of the saga of my almost trip to heaven.  To refresh your memories, you can go back here .


Third Day: The Island of Borawan

The only option left for us is to take a detour to the nearby island named "Cutcutan". Upon hearing the name of the island, I stared to one of my buddies who used to live in our province. In our local dialect the meaning of the name of the island is "Libingan" or cemetery. But of course we stayed quiet. We don't wanna add reasons for our buddies to freak out, knowing that we're actually freaking out. The boatmen carefully navigated the boat onto that island where we ate our lunch but we already lost our appetite. With that situation, we're left with 3 options:

1. Trek to Borawan Island via the port for 2 hours.

2. Walk along the shore till we reached Borawan which isn't too far...that's what I thought

3. Take the chance of risking our lives again by going back aboard the boat and declare amok with the waves....which we all thought wasn't a good idea.

We all go for option 2. We took a walk until the boat fetched us on the side where it is safe to ride again. Well for me, I still have the fear factor and if anyone would accompany me, I would rather continue walking till we reach  Borawan. 

Below is the shore were we opted to take the walk. The rock formation are wonderful

And he even manage to strike a pose. Yep, we made fun of the situation. Better take the opportunity to enjoy rather than welcome wrinkles, right?

The entire day was really hectic and fearful. As we reached Borawan, we're already tired. We camped beneath the huge rock formation and in front of us is the sea shore. We fell asleep with the sound of the waves and gecko as lullabies.

our camping site and our tent. mine is the second from the left

the view of the ocean inside the tent

and woke up in the morning with this view 

a morning greetings from the sun

this scene was spectacular

me and my buddies

And the  jump shot

After long and tiring days we're happy and blessed that finally we stepped our foot onto the land again after our almost trip to Heaven.

Part 2 - An Adventure I won't Forget (Our Camping/Island Hopping)

if you missed part 1 it's here

Day 2 at Puting Buhangin Island ---supposed to be

After breakfast, we went sight seeing, took some pictures and collected shells, while the others are enjoying the cold water on the beach. I didn't tried cause there is no water available for us to rinse our body. We have to buy one container for a price of 35 pesos. But we did of course. We needed clean ourselves before heading to the next island. 

Below are some of the pictures taken before leaving Dampalitan

At around 10:00 p.m. May 29, 2011, Sunday, we loaded our things on the boat and off we go to the second Island - Puting Buhangin. It is the farthest of the 3 islands that's why we opted for it so we could settle and fix our camp there. The sea seems so calm and friendly but not until we're at the middle of our journey. 


The waves started to rise and somewhat ready to devour us in no time. My gal pals were shouting cause they're at the front row where the impact of the waves on the ship was very evident and alarming. I was relaxed until one of the big waves hit our boat sideward and that made me stand in fear. The boatmen shut off the engine so we wouldn't go any further and that's when we decided to go back. The problem was we're already at the middle and going back means risking our lives on the same big waves. I never thought that kind of fear would struck me. The boat was like a surfboard on top of the giant waves. 

to be continued again...the last part with more pictures to come.......

An Adventure I won't Forget (Our Camping/Island Hopping) Part 1

This is a post long overdue. The story about our island hopping in the province of Quezon.

Day 1 at Dampalitan Island: 

May 28, 2011, we packed our things and pushed through with our camping trip despite the pitiful weather condition.  It's not like were not minding it but the forecast seem unstable and that made our minds. This was an island hopping adventure with lots of fun as we anticipated it, but what we had was an adventure and not much of a fun. 

look at the sky that day

When we reached the seashore, the boat which will take us to the first island was not there. According to our contacts, it transported some tourist to another island but couldn't go back quickly because of the big waves. Needless to say, we have to wait for the boat to arrive and for the waves to settle.

After almost 2 hours in waiting, the boat finally did arrived. Sigh of relief for us and we immediately loaded our stuffs and off  we go to the first Island called Dampalitan at around 4:00 in the afternoon. We pinched the tent and cooked our food. Cause we came from a night shift before that, all of us were sleepless and tired so after eating my dinner I decided to take a rest before hanging out with the gang. But my anticipated few minutes of sleep lasted till midnight and I did awake with the sound of raindrops falling on my tent. The rain gets harder and harder and the water started to kill my tent, so I decided to move out and leave my camping bag in the middle to save it from getting wet. I sacrificed for the sake of my camping bag and the result for me was an aching body due to cold raindrops.

We thought it wouldn't last long but it did. Thank God one of the local folks there offered us  one of their nipa huts where we can stay for the night and wait till morning so we can fix our things and our camp. Well, that's how it goes for the first day. We're tired, wet and sleepless.

to be continued........

sorry for the picture quality, I was sooooo tired

Ready to Go

 Our bags are packed we're ready to go.
As we bid goodbye to summer's rays of sunshine, 
we welcome the rainy season by waging war against typhoon Chedeng!

I will pass this way but once if there's any good that I can do
Let me do it now for I'll never pass this way again
I will see this day but once if there's any kindness I can show
Let me show it now for I'll never see this day again
Tomorrow may be too late my friend to do all the good that you planned
So reach out to those who need you and lend them a helping hand
I will know this world but once if there's any love that I can give
Let me give it now oh Lord please show me how
For I'll never know this world I'll never see this day
I'll never pass this way again 

       -Glen Campbell

Oh Wow!!! Vacation Grande

I know I've been such an asshole for letting that damn situation take the whole of me. After 2 months of fixing everything, I hope this time, everything will fall into place. I am so thankful despite the down times, people seems to be caring and patient with me.

So where am I on those months of hiatus? I just took time to think and ponder, re-arrange life, focus my self on what's best and regain energy and self-confidence, and the biggest thing of all...one grande vacation. A combination of hiking, camping and swimming on the beach, all in one. 

We went hiking up to Capones Lighthouse in Capones Island:

Capones Island - the journey to Capones Lighthouse

I'm not excited, it doesn't show right???

The Capones Lighthouse

the captivating waves....wow!!!

After the trek to the lighthouse, we headed to Anawangin Cove, a secluded (no electricity, which good because a bonfire will add an effect to the serenity of the place) area facing China Sea, which is the prime destination of campers. We take the route via motor boat but most campers are taking the route along the mountain of Pundakit, through hiking.

the small way on the center is the gate to the cove

inside the cove

the camping site

if the sea water would go in here, this will be suitable for kayak

this is where the river and the sea meets

the gorgeous sunset