Lake Pandin

              Friends saw my Lake Mohicap pictures in Facebook and started bugging me to bring them in the same lake to swim and enjoy San Pablo, Laguna. I would love to indulge them however Lake Mohicap is not for leisure, seriously.  The water is quiet muddy and unclear and there's no refreshment nor cottages for rent in the areal.  So, i invited them instead to Lake Pandin.  Among the seven lakes in San Pablo, this one is most famous and being visited frequently.  It's walking distance from the main road.  If you wanted a tour guide, you may contact the 

Lake Mohicap

             San Pablo City, Laguna was pronounced as city way back 1941.  One of the oldest city in Laguna and in the country.  It is best known as the city of 'Seven lakes of San Pablo' because of these lakes surrounding the area: Lake Sampaloc, Lake Palikpakin, Lake Mohicap, Lake Pandin, Lake Yambo, Lake Calibato and Lake Bunot.

I first discovered these lakes when one of my friend who's taking her M.A in Biology in University of Sto.Tomas asked me to joined her get some water samples from Lake Mohicap.  Excited to learned how they normally get the samples and preserve it before bringing it to school for testing - off we went.  Since the place is quiet far and secluded, we contacted a local who owned a tricycle to bring bring us from the city to the lake.  This local happened to owned a house right next to the place and 

Kadayawan sa Dabaw

             Davao is not limited to durian, mangosteen and Mount Apo.  We also celebrate several occasions and one of the famous celebration in the city which we are also famous is Kadayawan Festival.  Just like other festival in the country, this is also a celebration of appreciation.  Appreciation for a bountiful harvest, peaceful city and harmonious living of different tribes in the city.


This is normally done during the month of August because this is when the Davao's famous fruits are bearing e.g. durian, mangosteen, marang, suha, banana (specifically Cavendish).  The celebration last for the whole month.  There are different activities such as the following:

Daring ATV ride to Mt. Mayon

              I've been to Bicol Region twice.  First visit was spent mostly by touring Legazpi City, exploring the famous world class resort known as Misibis Bay Resort and a little wander in CamSur Wakeboarding Park in Naga.  As what the locals always say: wakeboarding, old churches and world-class resort are not the only things that define Bicol, so, I planned another trip to explore this region more.

             I've been to Cagsawa Ruins and took several pictures of Mt. Mayon in different angle from Cagsawa park but I have not tried seeing Mt. Mayon with 5kilometers away from its peak and never reaching its base in a rough-rugged-fun way.  Having said that, I'm quiet curious how it felt like.  I contacted Tourific Travel and Services, one of my trusted partners-in-crime when it comes to travelling up North (they offer several tour packages in the North part of the country).  I shared my idea and they immediately offered a customized itinerary for my second trip.  We went first to some churches along old Albay area like the church right next to the city hall and Daraga church.  From there, we went straight to Cagsawa ruins and rented an ATV for the 4 for us.  Three of us opted to ride our own while one of our friends chose to ride along with our tour guide.  It was fun.  We were taught first how to navigate and run the ATV and we have a quick safety discussion about the equipment and geography of the place. 

We had so much fun.  The route to the summit is not easy.

The Road to Sorsogon

             Sorsogon may sound near but its actually far, not really as famous as other cities in Bicol Region.  Despite its not being explored by many, I still decided to chose this place as my next adventure destination.  After experiencing the ATV ride to Mount Pinatubo in Cagsawa Ruins yesterday, we decided to rent a van and travel to Gubat, Sorsogon.  We left the Time Zone Hotel at around 5am so that we can save time in travelling ( we are only planning to explore Sorsogon in one day).

Summer in Bataan

                 The only place I admit I love in Bataan prior to this blog is Corregidor Island. For those who have visited this place, I guess, there's no need to explain further but for those who are curious - you may check this blog.   That being said I was not so ecstatic when we decided to choose Bataan as our summer destination for this year.  Our reason of choosing it are only to experience a new place less crowded, less traveled and a new beach front we have never been.  I did not expect I'll save several mementos and will learn more about this famous place in Philippine history.

                Bataan is not famous for beach escapade.  Maybe because the beach is not 'white sand' as most of us, beach bummers, are looking for nowadays.  Its not as developed either and far compared to Batangas or Cavite (for some traveler).  If you have been to Zambales: Subic, SBMA, Pundaquit, San Narciso or even Candelaria - you can say Bataan is quiet near compared to those places.  Here's why, there's the SCTEX that leads you to SMBA and eventually Pulangui, Bataan in 2-3hours.  Or if you choose to take Dinalupihan road that leads to Orani, it'll take you 3-4hours, quiet faster than a 4-5hours drive to San Narciso or Botolan, Zambales, right?  Most of vacationers (if there's such a term) choose the easy way even if takes them half of the day in their car/bus.  Compared to those famous beaches in this part of Luzon, Bataan requires an ability to spot-the-sign-while-on-the-road, a clear google map or GPS otherwise you will end up travelling the whole day but still far to your desired destination.=)

We chose the easy route by following NLEX signage from Manila to the new and wide road of SCTEX that will end at gate four of Subic Bay Freeport Zone.

Invading Ilocos!

             I know I'll be exploring Ilocos Region but I never thought I will be there anytime soon. What makes Ilocos famous for me it's because of the following attractions: the mega structure of Bangui Windmills - featured in National Geographic channel; Paoay Church - one of UNESCO heritage site; Calle Crisologo - remnants of Spanish descent of Filipinos in Ilocos; and Vigan longganisa for food lovers.  These reasons may not be wrong but diffinitely not totally right.  Ilocos is not just a location of a mega-structure, a place of old churches, and a site for Spanish fossils - there's more to it than what are featured in magazines and travel channels.

              I already knew it'll take too much of our time to travel from Manila to Ilocos, so to save time and energy - we decided to travel at night.  This is also to avoid travelling at noon when it gets really hot on the road and inside a crowded bus, to get some sleep along the way and to avoid the crowded passengers during the day.  From Partas Bus terminal in Aurora, Cubao - we decided to board an aircon bus to depart at 10PM.  We have heard it'll take more or less 10hours to reach Vigan, Ilocos that's why we chose this schedule - knowing will arrive early in morning in Calle Crisologo.

Several tourist destinations

I never expect that this place will provide us so much fun!

Another must-see in this area is