Western Luzon Road Trip (Cavite-Pangasinan-Zambales-Bataan-Pampanga-Cavite Series) [Part 1 of 3]

Exactly a year after our amazing North Luzon road trip in 2010, we had our latest road trip -- this time in the Western part of Luzon! Not as far as the first one, but I would say, this was more exciting and adventurous than our last. To all who wanted to try this itinerary, please feel free to duplicate and adjust for whatever will suit your own trip! Enjoy! 

The map will tell you which places we have been. Guided only by Samsung Galaxy Tab GPS, we worked our way to our destinations with no hassle, shorter time and never ever got lost! Weeepeee!

Marc, Joseph and Khen picked me up at our house in Cavite at around 2:30AM. Just in time with our plan to arrive at our first destination at 8:00AM.

 Here's our map!

Pangasinan Sun Rise

Khen brought her SIL’s lasagna for breakfast. Actually, it was supposed to be for all of us but I almost ate them all. Hahaha! Aside from the slight traffic along Guadalupe EDSA traffic and car accident along Balintawak Highway, everything went well with our travel until we reach Pangasinan.

Luckily, the weather did not go against us. The sun just happily kicked off its lovely stages as early as 6:00AM. We all agreed to pull over along Romulo Highway in Pangasinan especially my sunrise-addict travel mates to capture the perfect sunrise.

 We had our first stopover at Romulo Highway. Do you see the nice curves behind us? On our second day, we were on the other side of it heading to Zambales.

We love the clear skies that morning. We waited at the side of the highway until this amber sun came up.

Nice view at the other side of the road...

We had our road trips with White and Cruzee, so this time we chose Blue.

Pangasinan Hundred Islands

Believe it or not, our Hundred Island tour was the only one included in our “sure” list -- the rest were all such an adventure and so spontaneous! We reached Lucap Wharf, the dock area of the Hundred Islands in Alaminos, around 9:00AM. We parked our car at an open area beside the pickup point. We paid P200.00 each for the entrance and P1200.00 pesos for the unlimited boat ride for the four of us plus tip. It would be a good thing if all Filipino would be able to visit this wonderful place, curved by nature, and be able to witness such beautiful view.

As of 2011, here's the list of fees in Hundred islands

The boat ride was not that scary compared to some of our Galera trips. The sea was blue and calm.

This was taken at the Children's Island. Madami ngang bata hehehe. Probably because the shore area is kids-friendly.

Welcome to Old Scout Island. It is a small island na may kaunting swimming area.

Look at me at the back... super excited na akong lumangoy! Sobra! Hahaha!

Trust me when I say every island looks like a turtle or an alligator! Hahaha! Or optical illusion ko lang. Hehehe.

Quezon Island

Picture taking

Cuenca Island, parang cave na tagus tagusan.

I found these corals and i was able to spell out my name!

Now in Governor's Island, my favorite among the islands we visited

It has an amazing view from the top of the island. Nakakapagod yung papaakyat kasi ang laki ng steps, pero don't worry, may nagtitinda ng ice cream sa itaas. Hehehe.

With Khen, Joseph, Marc -- the fearless road trippers! Harharhar!

I only used to see this in postcards but now, I already experienced being there! Awesome!

Shot from Joseph's cam

Eto yung nakakatawa sa lahat ng binisita namin! Marc and I went to watch the corals and giant clams. Joseph and Khen stayed at the boat. I think  mga 500 meters yung lubid na hahawakan mo para makarating ka sa isa pang end point. Parang hindi pa ako nangangalahati... inaatake na ako ng takot! I felt may hihila sa akin pababa! Marc felt I was so scared Hahaha. We ended up going back to our boat sooner than we planned LOL 

Kulitan mode. Hehehe. "Why the hell are you using your camera phone?" Hahaha! Ganda pa man din ng pose ko dito...LOL

At first, we were given option whether to visit 3 islands of our choice for P800.00 pesos (most likely where the bankero would suggest where to take you especially if it is your first time) or unlimited island tour for P1100.00; we chose P1100.00. We all wanted to reach as much islands we could, what else we have to aspire with island hopping anyway! It was not bad at all; it satisfied our passion for astonishing landscapes in the form of a hundred century old islands!

The only disappointment we had was our lunch. There was this small canteen beside the wharf. They were selling overpriced flat-tasted meals. ;’(  So watch out… you might want to try dining at the nearby resort restaurants.

Our Hundred Island tour ended around 1:00PM and headed straight to Zzzzambales! “Here we coooome!”

Western Luzon Road Trip (Cavite-Pangasinan-Zambales-Bataan-Pampanga-Cavite Series) [Part 2 of 3]

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Antipolo Team Outing

Last April 30, we had our team’s summer outing for this year at Antipolo, Rizal. It was just an overnight party overlooking Metro Manila! The view was awesome. Kahit na umulan ng kaunti at nagkandaligaw ligaw kami sa bayan, hahaha! …we still made to the top of Cattleya Resort by 8PM.
Ricky, Maqui and Red took care of the foodies, while I got in-charge of the awards ^_^v

Here are the winners of the cool awards:

Diligence Award – Meeyeow
Look-A-Like Award – Ed(Ely Buendia/Dennis Trillo/Ramon Zamora) & Rudy(Rudy Fernandez)
Smiley Face Award – Julius
Mister DotNet Award – Ed
Miss DotNet Award – Shiela
MR/MS Congeniality – John/Meeyeow/Gems
The Rookie – Rjay/Teng
The Veteran – Migs
DotNet Got Talent Award – Julius
Momerable Ticket Handled - Julius

Clearly, Julius bagged the most awards! Next year daw wakeboarding naman :-))

First Of May

 

Why does it feel like I did enjoy the morning shift schedule??? It’s Labor Day but I had to go to the office and instead of my usual mid shift, I requested for an earlier schedule. Even though I only spent 3 hours of sleep last night, I really thought the time was running faster than on a mid shift. How was that so? I don’t know. Or maybe it was the snack break, the lunch and another snack break.

 

Speaking of lunch, we took our lunch at (Joel Torre’s) JT’s Manukan. You should try there sometimes and your taste buds will thank you.

 

I am very excited to know that my girls have learned how to swim. According to them, they already can! Earlier today was their 5th session and they’re very excited about the next half. Actually, I am starting to feel insecure as they said “Diving” will be part of the next sessions. Hmmmm, I think I should be spying on them sometimes because diving is not part of my resume. I can feel JellyPotPot’s tiredness. Just few minutes she was talking to me, and now she’s already sleeping. She even put Salonpas (gel patches) on both of her legs. But most of all, they are definitely enjoying their swimming lessons.

 

 

It's Nanay's birthday today!

Best wishes to Melay!

Finally, happy weekend to everyone!

 

Waw! Bicol

The Plan

Gems and Ariel invited me to join this trip. For several times, I told her “I’ll think about it” before I said “Yes”. I heard from Zeny that one of the islands was the location of the French Survivor Season 7. I think they’ll shoot three more Survivor seasons there. Googling Caramoan made me more excited about the trip!

 

From Manila to Sabang

I had to request for a change of my shift schedule from 2:00pm-11:00pm to 9:00am-6:00pm. We left Manila at around 10:00pm. Instead of taking the bus going to Bicol, the group decided to bring their own cars so we do not have to spend too much money for the bus fare. We were with Ron’s. Thanks to…

 

            … Kaye for the pastillas and sharing your snacks to us,

            … Jeng for buying the batteries I need for my camera (saying kasi ayaw pa din mag On ng camera ko)

            … Warren for the comedy, action, suspense and a little drama on our whole trip

            … Papa Jack of Love Radio for keeping us awake and laughing from 11:00pm – 1:00am

            … Ron for the safe trip and smooth driving

            … Gems for inviting me to join this trip and making us laugh all most of the time

            … and most of all, another thanks to Ron for putting extra effort in not letting Warren took over the wheels.

 

It was a very long trip: 12-hour drive and five stopovers.

 

Breakfast at Bigg's Dinner

We had our breakfast at Bigg's Dinner in Naga. Ayos no?

 

 

The Adventures Starts Now

After the cars were safely parked at a pay garage in the port of Sabang in Camarines Sur, we went straight to the beach at around 9:00am where the boat is waiting for us. The boat at a distant was almost full when we arrived. Boats there are little bigger than in Puerto Galera. Well, the adventure really started when we had to be carried by the locals to take us to the boat. Hanggang dibdib yung tubig ng dagat kung saan nag aantay yung banka. Before I knew it, nasa balikat na ako nung mama at dinadala na nya ako sa banka. I had to leave my bag at the sand area. Ang pagkakahulog sa tubig ang pinaka ayaw kong mangyari. For fifteen seconds, I was like a statue. Hahaha! And it was really a funny experience.

 

This boat ride, which took us to Guijalo Port in Caramoan, was almost two hours.

Guijalo Port

This was our final stop. Kinabahan ako kasi akala ko kailangan na naman kaming buhatin pababa ng banka hehehe, buti na lang at hindi na. We took a 15-minute jeepney ride for 20 pesos each which took us to the inn.

 

 

Spread the Bad News

As promised, I will warn all travelers wishing to visit Caramoan and looking for a place to stay in because we had a very bad experience with Villa Juliana. Please remember the name so you won’t end up staying in this place. The people there will really make you say: What the #^@_*^#&*$!

 

            Us: (Arrived at the inn -– tired, exhausted, and hungry but excited!)

            Us: “Kami po yung nagpareserve.”

         

  

According to them, there were only 3 rooms available: 1 aircon and 2 fan rooms. Yet we reserved for aircon rooms. Nakakabiwsit talaga. Then an old lady went in…

 

Mommy: “Good morning. What’s the problem, what’s the problem? I am the owner of the house. You know this is just for fun. My husband is already 64 years old. Pinaayos ko sa ito para sa kanya. My daughter is in United Stets. You know the divers of Survivor are staying here. So the rooms are occupied. You should confirm you reservation 3 days before, not one week. Kasi mga taga bundok kami, baka hindi kayo dumating.”

 

Don’t ever make transactions with these people! Nakakaloka. At kasaba pala naming sya sa boat pauwi, sana naitulak naming sa banka. We end up staying at a house nearby. Mas accommodating pa si Lola. We paid 260 each per night, not bad.

 

The Beaches

As soon as we had our boat for the island hopping, we went first to Matukad Island and the sand is great. Some say PALAWAN + BORACAY = MATUKAD. I even took some sand with me and put it in my empty water bottle. Hehehe. Of course, hindi makakaligtaan ang photoshoot ng mga photographers. Gems and I decided to swim some more while others climbed the hill to see a lagoon. We stayed there for almost an hour before we hopped in Gota (ass) – I mean behind Gota Beach hehehe. Gota is not open for public since Survivor Isreal is currently being held in that island. We enjoyed swimming and taking pictures. Then we went back to our place.

 

Side Trips

We visited other great places in Bicol as planned. Too bad we only had a day to do this. So if you are planning to go there, a minimum of 5 days would be enough. We went to Albay to witness the perfect cone of Mayon Volcano, to Cagsawa Ruins and an old Hotel on top of the mountain. More picture takings here.

 

Gems Bloopers

I really have to put all of these on record. Para sa future maaalala ko pa. Hehehe. She broke the improvised pull string toilet flush at one of our stopovers. (Hala ka!). She accidentally put cold water in her cup noodles. (Hindi kasi nakikinig sa instruction ng tindera. Hehehe) Ang pinaka the best para sa akin, dalawang mama ang nagbuhat sa kanya papunta sa banka at habang buhat-buhat sya nito, sinabihan sya na ilipat ang pagkakakapit nya sa dahil sa kikili nito sya nakakapit. Hay, adik ka talaga Gems.

 

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That’s it! That was our Bicol adventure.

 

Thanks to Ariel for inviting me and to King for being our tour guide/ photographer/ translator/ organizer of this trip. Sa uulitin!

 

Thanks to Ate Alma for taking care of organizing our expenses.

 

Thanks to Daddy Tienzo and Tito Boy’s wits and jokes. Cool guys. Nakikita ko na si Ariel 20-30 years from now. Hehe.

 

Nice meeting you, Ariel’s cousin and Lanie!

 

 

Napuntahan namin dito yung No 2 and 8

http://www.flickr.com/photos/absolutecousins/3021167222/sizes/o

(pictures taken by Ariel, Warren,Ron, Keih, Gems)

http://astienzo.multiply.com

http:/warrenzorilla.multiply.com

http://ronliwanag.multiply.com

http://keihliwanag.multiply.com

http://gemsramos.multiply.com

New Year @ Galera

 

Sharks could never ruin our vacation.

Akalain Mo!?

I am still paying for abusing my muscles and remaining strength since last Friday. Hindi pa nawawala ang sakit ng katawan ko. This badminton tournament at Blue Racket in Makati City was a very memorable experience for me because I got four bruises on my right arm, muscle pain on my shoulder and armpit, aching butt, bukol on my forehead and a bruise on my right knee. ^_^

 

Pero naman…… makarating ba sa semi-finals??? hahaha! Here’s the preview of the game. Game 7 with Daisy and Chris was our last game. Sayang, isa na lang pang Championship na :D

 

Here are some of the photos:

 

Of course, meeting new friends was one of my goals. Some were those I only see their faces at the corridor or inside the elvator. But after the tournament, nagkakatawanan na.

 

Right after Game 7, we went straight to Zen’s apartment because I don’t think I could go back to Cavite to get my things for the Laguna overnight outing of our team. Zen has a nice place in Pasig ^_^. At 4pm, meeting place was at the Glorietta, with limited clothes, I just bought swim suit, shorts, top and a capri. At 7pm, we were at Laguna!

Ang s-a-y-a. Videoke, swimming, billiards, kain, inom ^_^v, kwentuhan, tsismisan, tulog. Yun na!

I was with the first group to go back to Makati City. At 7:15am, Zen and I bought breakfast at McDonalds. Buti na lang bukas yung McDo sa Ayala. At 9:00am, I was already at home, I dressed up and gone for the 9:30am worship service at the church.

 

After church, I went straight to bed and woke up at 2:30pm. Ooopps, may isa pa palang pending task, grocery! I went to SM supermarket with my sis’s family. Super speedy shopping kami para maabutan namin ang The Singing Bee ^_^.

 

That’s my weekend. Next week, Divisoria adventure ulit with Raed…

 

Pictures are courtesy of Brando, Leila and Jenny's hubby.