Getting Around Cebu for the First Time

Cebu is one of the famous metropolitans in the countries. It is so known and respected for everything that it can offer – from attractions to educational institutions – that even the then president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo chose to be sworn at Sugbu Park, the serene park just outside the capitol, the Magellan’s Cross Shrine and the Basilica Minor del Santo Niño de Cebu. There were even talks before to make the dialect of the city the national language and/or to trade Cebu City to be the capital of the country. All of these things have fired up my interest to eventually come up close and personal with this place one day.

 

That “one day” came on the 14^th to 17^th of January 2010. My closest colleagues and I agreed to plan our first out of town travel together and we have chosen to fly to Cebu and Tagbilaran to see the Magellan’s Cross Shrine and the Chocolate Hills. The plans kicked off well ahead of our travel dates, about six months before, so we had so much time researching about the attractions, tours, accommodations, and utilities, and transportations in the city. We had a long list of choices then narrowed them down according to reviews and blogs of those who have been in the area. We printed a map of the island and mainland and then their road maps. This way, we were able to make a good plan of the daily itinerary. Then we contacted the people we would want to hire, from the driver down to the guides. We settled to the highly recommended of those time, Kuya Jhun and Kuya Noel.

 

Day 1

The day came and I and my officemate convene with our other travel buddies who came all the way from Legazpi City at the Ninoy Aquino Airport. We checked in, board and arrive on time at the Mactan Cebu International Airport. From there, Kuya Jhun – our hired transpo and guide – meet us and take us to our first stop of the tour, the Magellan’s Shrine. It was right there in Mactan, along the way to Lapu-Lapu City so our guide wanted to maximize our travel and time so he didn’t waste any time and distance. The place was nice and barren although it was poetic. After taking photos and bumming around, he took us to nearby SuTuKil (Sugba-Tula-Kilaw) stalls, their famous local cuisine. The food was great and the prices were just right.

Then we had the great road trip to the capital city. I would’ve loved to stop right at the entrance or exit of the metal suspension bridge but Kuya Jhun told that it was illegal so we just drove passed it. After more than an hour road trip, we already saw the malls and we knew that we are near our hotel. Our accommodation was at the oldest street in the city, Colon Street. The entrance to the hotel was small that our driver had a hard time looking for it. What’s good about our hotel was that it was nice and inexpensive plus it was right in the middle of the CBD. The food strip of the city was right next to us and most of the huge malls were all sitting next to us. Little did we know that the street itself was an attraction and historical destination of the South.

Our first day was fully loaded. After dropping by our hotel to check in and leave our bags, we immediately hopped back in our vehicle and drove off to our next destination – the Fort San Pedro aka Plaza Independencia. It was near the pier so we also dropped by to buy our tickets to Tagbilaran the next day. Within walking distance was the Magellan’s Cross Shrine, which is right next to the Basilica Minore and the university. A little walk took us to the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral, the Pari-an or Heritage of Cebu Monument. The Carbon Street was near but we didn’t dropped by yet and instead looked for Rico’s Lechon, a name highly recommended by Team Pacquiao’s Buboy Fernandez and wife Mariclaire. Kuya Jhun can’t find the place so we went to CnT Lechon instead, an establishment just in front of SM Cebu.

After that, Kuya Jhun took us to a cruise along Fuente Osmena where we saw the famous Crown Regency Hotel’s Skywalk tower, capitol and a lot more. Then we cruised the Ayala and Imus Avenues to get a good look of the city. A little over 4 o’clock, we head for the Tops where we can get a good look of the skyline and 360 degrees of the city. As promised, the place was a vantage point of the city. It was really good up there and there was a huge bell at the top. The area was a park-like destination to tourists. It was just sad that we don’t have a good camera back then so I wasn’t able to get a 360 degrees photo of the city. We watched the sun set up there and head down for the Larsian but it was full. Kuya Jhun recommended AAA and we had a good SuTuKil dinner in the place.

 

With our eyes, mind, heart, and stomach full, we head back to our hotel. We gave Kuya Jhun his take and provided instruction for the next morning. Since we were happy of how smoothly things were, we also gave Kuya Jhun a little bonus.   

Day 2

Bohol Trip

After a day in Cebu City, we hopped the Supercat to Tagbilaran aka Bohol. The weather was good and the ocean was so blue that we didn’t realize the long cruise to the land of Tarsiers and Chocolate Hills was fast appearing right before our eyes. Once we reached the destination, the tour guide that we hired immediately flashed the name card that showed the name of one of our travel buddies. We approached him and he gave us a good orientation on the tour ahead of us. As soon as we are settled in the van, he gave us a nice historical story of Bohol – how it became famous and why it is important to visit the province.  

Our first stop was the Blood Compact site or Sandugo Shrine in Barangay Bool, Tagbilaran City, Bohol. This is a masterpiece of the great National Artist Napoleon Isabelo Veloso Abueva, a local of the province. It portrays the blood compact between the Spaniard who conquered the Philippines, Miguel Lopez de Legazpi and Bohol Chieftain Datu Sikatuna on the 16^th of March 1565 – a date that is celebrated by Boolanos and the entire province in a festival.

Then, we drove off to the old Baclayon Church where short shorts are a no-no. One of my travel buds were told to wear a long skirt from the church so she can enter the home of God. At the back was a nice “gamut” house, meaning roots house and true to the name, there was a house there that is built in roots. Out in the garden are different flowering plants and shrubs as well as domesticated pets. Next stop was the Laoay Church and then went for Tarsier stalls somewhere in between Loboc and Bilar. While the wooded area in Bilar could have been near for us drop by and continue to Carmen for the Choco Hills, our guide recommended to go back for the Loboc Cruise and lunch.

And so we continue to a place where a huge snake has become an attraction, which is along our way to the Cruise. It was not among my favorites though, especially when Prony, the snake, got to enjoy an entire pig for his lunch. I had to stay behind and wait for my travel buds to get back to the van so we can continue the tour. Next, we stopped by Loboc Cruise for lunch. It was a nice buffet styled lunch in cruise, passing by singing groups in different locations along the Loboc River. After a good 30 minutes cruise-cum-lunch, we alighted the boat and once again go on a road trip, this time to the hanging bridges of Batuan. It is in this area that souvenirs are really cheap. Then it is time to see the Chocolate Hills in Carmen. Along the road to Carmen, we passed by Bilar’s woods and then the Butterfly Sanctuary.

Finally, we reached Carmen and turned to the alley that leads to the Chocolate Hills observation hill. There stood a stairwell that leads to the top of the hill where a bell and wishing well are perched. At the back side of the top was an open land of grass where one can have a nice photo opp with the choco hills as backdrop. It was really a beauty to behold although the colors of the hills would have been like chocos if it were summer. Still, the great hills were really an excellent sight. At the other side of the observation hill is the choco hills hotel. I wonder how it feels to stay in the hotel but staying in a resort in the nearvy Panglao Island is much more desirable to me. Once we descended, we agreed to go directly to the hotel we have reserved in Panglao Island. Our guide recommended another resort hotel though and while we were adamant, when we get there, we were in awe.

Our guide took us to Bagobo Beach Resort. The place was nice and the rooms that were given to us are at the beachfront. The beach was superb. The sand was as white as white can get and the ambiance was peaceful and quiet. The only let down in the resort was the unfriendly staff who were curt and insensitive to the needs of their guests. I gave our guide his take plus a little bonus and instructed him to fetch us the following afternoon for our cruise back to Cebu. We checked in the two beachfront cottages, and while waiting for dinner strolled along the white shore and bummed off to Cebu Beach Club and Resort. We passed by a few hotel and peddlers of earrings and necklaces along the way. Then we head back to the hotel to watch the sunrise and dip in the beach before we hit the dining table.

Once again, the servers were curt and feel like they don’t want to do us favors. If not for the nice ambiance and place, we would’ve packed our bags and look for another hotel. Since we are just staying overnight and the call time for our island hop is very early, we just let their disrespecting ways to go. We lounged some more after the dinner and stayed out in the shore where some beach umbrellas and beach beds were set up. A little over midnight, we hit the sack.

Day 3

Just before the sun rises, we were up and waiting for another guide who will take us to the nearby islands of Panglao – Balicasag and somewhere near the Pamilacan island for dolphin watching. They said that the dolphins will be out before 7 am so armed with our hot coffees to-go, we cruised the clean blue seas that will take us near the Pamilacan island before we set sail for Balicasag Island where our lunch will be waiting. We were not as lucky though so after a few more tries in different locations, we gave up and head for Balicasag Island. For a meager P150 per head, we enjoyed unlimited rice, cooked fish of different kinds and sizes, lobsters, crabs, shrimps, lots of buttered chicken, and mixed veggies. We were so full that we were no longer able to swim in the clear blue waters of the island.

A couple of hours more, we left for the resort. We reached way before sunset so we still had time to frolic on the shore and the beach. We swam and bummed around to our content then ordered dinner from the curt staff of the resort and requested for our food to be served out on the beach. At least they did that and we had a great last night stay with them. Beaten from the day’s activities, we hit the sack earlier.

Day 4

Once up, I tagged my roommate to get a sight of the sunrise on the beach. It was heartwarming with the early summer weather. We swam and a few more moments, our other travel buddies are up and joined us. Breakfast were ordered and consumed fast, and not wanting to be left off by Supercat, we head back to our rooms to pack. At the shore, we bought a few more take homes then head back to the resort to check out. Our guide is back to fetch us and take us to the pier.

Before lunch, we were already at the pier. We said our final goodbyes and gave our guide his final pay and bonus. Then, we head to the canteen for our lunch. Before one, we are in the boat and waiting for it to leave. Once again, the beautiful sceneries let us forget the time we were in the boat and we were in Cebu terminal in no time. From there, our city guide took fetch us and drive us down our hotel. The staff and servers of the hotel were happy to see us back, then recommended that we start our way to Carbon market soon to enjoy buying our take homes. We did and it was really fun to buy things at this market, everything was cheap and everyone is nice.

We went back to basilica and cathedral as well as the cross shrine before heading back to the hotel. For our last dinner in Cebu, we ditched the local mid-range restos for the smokey food strip next our hotel. We had what the common working Cebuanos would have for dinner – sinugba or skewed foods, fish, meat or seafood. We also tried their puso or the rice cooked in coconut cream. After dinner, we walked down the street of colon and the nearby avenue to get rid of our fullness and smokey scent but more importantly to see Cebu one last time. We head back to our rooms and had a great night.

Day 5

While everyone was preparing and packing their things back to their bags, I was out to carbon market for another round of dangit or dried fish. Then I head back to the church to say a prayer and walked back to our hotel. We then called on our guide during our first day to take us to airport where we had our lunch. We boarded and were back in Manila where three of our buds will have to wait for their flight back to Legazpi city. Overall, we had the best travel yet to a place we do not know of.

Cost

Each of has had shelled out 5,000 each for the 5 days we were in vacation, excluding airfare which we got at sale price. We, the ones from Manila, spent a few more for our transpo from our place to the airport. The ones from Bicol or Legazpi City had probably spent P2,500 to P3,000 more for their transpo back home. Overall, I could say that it was money spent wisely.

Panglao Beach, A Less Crowded but as White and Clean as Any Other Beach in Bohol

This is how beautiful the sunrise is in Panglao Beach as we watch from our cozy resort, the Bagobo Beach Resort. We watched the sun rises while we wait for our motorized boat to fetch us for our early morning tour to the Virgin islands and sand bars in Bohol. Not to worry about our stomachs, we brought some hot coffee and breads to the waiting area.

We had this photo taken while waiting for our boat. It is not a perfect shot but I just love how everything worked so well in the composition - except for someone's head replaced with the sun :)

This is how clear the water is in front of Bagobo Beach Resort. It was really a beauty.

We cruised while the sun is still rising. We hoped to see dolphins along the way but we were not as lucky as the others.

That's our boatman trying to look for the best spot to find dolphins but to no avail.

Finally, kuya - our boatman - gave up and instead led us to the Balikasag Island where we will have our lunch.

Getting Around Bohol and All Its Tourist Attractions

My first time in Bohol was in 2010. Some former officemates and I planned for a Cebu and Bohol getaway for 5 days. I had so much expectation and Tagbilaran is one not to disappoint. People are nice and helpful, the province was clean, and the food was great.

To reach Bohol from Cebu, we took a very early vessel to the province of Chocolate Hills. The cruise took 4 precious hours but with the nice scenery, nobody complained.

First off, we stop at the Blood Compact site then head to where the Tarsiers were. There were plenty of places to find these cute creatures and our helpful driver took us to one of the finest as seen below.

There were also Flying Trapeze and Snakes, and Monkeys that we stopped at along the way before we head off to the Lunch Cruise. Our driver was such a timid guy, and he did not join us in the cruise. It was fun and eyes and belly filling lunch as we navigate the great river of Tagbilaran.

This is a stop over for the Cruise where local singers perform to the delight of the tourists.

After the cruise, we head off to Bilar where the nice, tall woods are clustered. Here is a sample of what to see in the woods.

This is a photo of the beach near the Blood Compact site.  

Photos inside Baclayon Church

 

The Gamut House outside the Baclayon Church

 After the long day, our driver took us to a different hotel, which he believed was a better place than the one we booked. I'll post more information on that on another post.

Sinagtala, A Travel Guide to Camarines Norte's Infinite Natural Swimming Pool

 

Camarines Norte was once among the richest provinces in the region, if not the country, due to its abundant mining industry. It is also the nearest province of the region to the capital city of the Philippines, which gives it a lot of opportunity in economy and tourism. Once the Quirino Highway was completed though, all buses and transportations plying from and to manila have changed their routes to Camarines Sur. Everything shifted to Camarines Sur then and the province was left to sustain itself.   

 

Very many establishments in Camarines Norte closed due to lack of potential market. The province didn't die though because tourism was boosted. From natural to man-made adventures and attractions, Camarines Norte always has something to offer. A good example to this is Sinagtala, a river that was developed into a natural swimming attraction.

Sinagtala is a refreshing place to celebrate good times with good friends. There are a lot of cottages on either sides of the cool-water river, which all have convenient cooking and skewing areas.

Above is the river turned swimming pool and left is where we cooked our meals and ate them. Below is the cool river with its width and lounging areas visible.

 

At the time of our visit, the place is too crowded so there was no cottage available for us. We just paid 10 pesos for entrance and that's it. What a wonderful place to spend a laid back Sunday in Camarines Norte.

Daet Clubhouse, A Travel Guide in Camarines Norte's Finest in 2005

In 2005, I worked for one of the country's major manufacturing and distributing company, the Procter & Gamble Philippines. I was employed under the distributor in Bicol and was assigned as branch supervisor with the work that coincides that of the general manager - overseeing the entire operation of the branch. There, I had to work with mostly men of age higher than mine. They were all great people. Some days, we would go on an adventure to just reinforce our team and some days, we just go on a ride to places we wanted to see and venture.

 One of the places we ventured and see first - before others had the chance to discover it - was Daet Clubhouse, at least that was what it was dubbed in those days. It was in its finishing phase when we came to the place. We just frolic in the place and had talked about ourselves and not our work. 

There was a lounge, a big mezzanine or function hall and a nice pool. We didn't swim on the pool, and I still can't understand why.

Overall, it was a great cost-effective adventure for us. We grew closer and we loved our team a little bit more than we already did.

Black Nazarene or Santo Intiero of Capalonga, Camarines Norte

The Philippines is one of the most religious countries in the world. It has embraced Christianity since the invasion of the Spaniards, whom taught the locals to follow the teachings of the Holy Bible. This explains the similarities of the belief of Spaniards and Filipinos. One of the most criticized practices of Catholic believers is their loyalty to wooden idols. To us, these are symbols of our belief and we are paying respect not to the idols but to what they symbolize. This practice is even observed in provinces, like ours.

 In my younger years, I had the fortune to work for Procter &  Gamble's Bicol distributor, Accelerated Distribution Inc. (ADI). This job allowed me to travel the entire administrative area of Bicol region. One of the destinations I loved so much to visit was Camarines Norte. It is the last province of Region V bordering Region IV's Quezon province. The province was known for its gold and silver mines, beautiful white and black beaches, and alluring islands. Aside those natural resources, the province is also known to have a miraculous replica of the Santo Intiero or the Black Nazarene.  

 Curiosity got the best of me so I braved the verdant and still uber underdeveloped town of Capalonga, one of Camarines Norte's farthest towns. many believed that this town is infested with rebels but young that I was, the intrigue got the better of me. I do not know if it was loyalty to my job or curiosity or just for the fun of another adventure that I jumped in one of our company's branch vans to work with the team that visits the town once a month.

Above is a picture of our team lighting candles, asking for miracles and praying for safety. At the right is a picture of the cross with Jesus Christ already pinned on it. Below is a picture of me and the nearby beach that is more used as a port to fishermen than swimming or frolicking the beach.