Manuroyta!

Just got out from a ten hours graveyard shift i feel not just sleepy but so hungry.  I invited one of my office-mate to grab a cup of coffee and a sandwich maybe to a nearby coffee shop in the area.  Our office is located in Lanang, near Damosa market basket area so we chose Cafe Firenzo.

            When I was young, I used to drink coffee in Bankerohan Public Market with my mom (I just love their brewed coffee and puto and other kakanin) or the special brewed coffee served by my Popoy (This is what I used to call my grandmother.)  I thought the taste of coffee in 'Banke' and my grandmother's are the best and no one can create a better blend than these.  Well, I thought wrong.             Chicco Di Caffe proved me wrong.  One of my Psych batch mate happened to work here and I was treated with a delicious coffee one time when I surprise her at work.  It's located in Padre Faura St., Roxas Boulevard, Davao City.  A little walk from Aldevinco Shopping Center , Marco Polo Hotel -Davao and Ateneo De Davao University (some of the prominent institutions nearby).  The coffee shop started a couple of years back and as far as i know it already established several branches in ...

                 Our company's summer outing for this year was held at Splash Island in Laguna.  It was a blast!  The cool thing about it is its not limited to employees alone, we are allowed to bring our family members and the company provided transportation discount for them.  We can bring as many as we want and the entrance fee and discounted fare will be salary deducted, cool right? :)

             Summer in the Philippines is always the season for out-of-town trips.  An archipelago as it is, there's so much options to choose from - where to eat, where to go, where to stay and what to see.  We have visited Manaoag and Dagupan, Pangasinan two years ago and even spent a lot of time in Hundred islands in Alaminos but I have not seen Patar beach even if its quiet famous.  With that thought in mind, I invited my friends to backpack in Bolinao , Pangasinan . Its was Friday night when we joined the long list of chance passengers in Victory Liner, Cubao for a direct trip to Bolinao. And what a bad decision, Friday night is actually a tiring night to travel.  Its the night of the week where almost if not all employee's in Metro Manila go back to their provinces for vacation or simply going home for a rest day after a week of making a living in the city.  Fortunately, the administration decided to allowe...

             Having been to different beaches in the Philippines, I seriously thought I've seen the prettiest and most enchanting of them all.  Arriving in Tinago island and Kinastillohan Island in Calaguas makes me speechless, then realized - I thought wrong.  Seriously, this is the cleanest, awesome beach I've ever seen.             Calaguas island despite of its beauty and popularity to beach bummers and travelers still get little attention.  It's not because its expensive but its far from Metro Manila and from the most populous town of the region.  This group of islands is part of Camarines Norte, under the jurisdiction of the town of Vinzons.  Another pride of Bicolandia that let you experience the white sand beach - it will definitely rival that of Boracay. Let you get the peace of mind that rival that of Panglao and let you enjoy the freedom from high technology gadgets and connections tha...

            Been planning of going to Mount Pinatubo but nobody wants to join me. Armed with the guts to climb the mountain alone I searched the internet tips on what to bring, how to get there and what are the best way to enjoy the crater and the long walk ahead.            Two weeks before the trip, I stumbled Travel Factor organization on my Facebook news feed and found out  that they are organizing trips to Mountain Pinatubo for a day.  I visited their website and checked their rates per person as well as their inclusion.  I also noticed there are several other groups online that selling services when it comes to organizing group trips and camping in the crater.  I shared this to my friends and luckily, they agreed to join me in this long overdue dream.         We met up with Travel Factor organizer and the rest of the participants at McDonald's at El...

            Having no place to celebrate the Heart's day with a friend, I decided to bask in the sun and enjoy the serenity of the beach in Zambales.  We decided to go back to Nagsasa or Anawangin to chill but realized it's a holiday and more often than not, local tourist plunge to these two scenic places....so I suggested the place a little farther than this but also more quiet and private ---- Silanguin Cove .             It's still the same route for Nagsasa and Anawangin but a little farther which means that "bangka" fare is also expensive.  So, it is advisable to go there with two or more of your friends to divide the fare expenses.  There's not much to see in the place actually however i love it the same because there not much crowd thus it's so quiet.  To the north area of the place, you'll enjoy the fine black sand.  To the south are pebbled and rocky.

        I first heard about this beautiful place when I watched Survivor.  I have watched almost all of their episode, from Samoa, Caramoan, Palau etc.  When i was invited by a travbuddy friend to visit Caramoan - i grabbed the opportunity right away.Hahaha!         So I packed my bag for a week vacation in Bicol Region again, making Caramoan as our main destination.  Arriving early in Naga City, we checked-in first in CBD Plaza Hotel.  It is very convenient because the hotel is right in front of the Naga Bus Terminal - it is easy to find.  Fortunately for the two of us, there' s still an available standard room for two for only P500, includes a hot/cold shower room, 2 single beds with fresh blankets and pillows, TV and remote, and Filipino breakfast for both of us.        Since we still have a whole day to waste (we plan to travel to Caramoan tomorrow), we decided to hopped in a non--air-con...

              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 

             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 

             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:

              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 ...

             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).

                  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 h...

             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 ho...

               I thought I have explored Zambales to its end but I thought wrong.  When I consulted Google about the list of the islands or a must-see in Zambales - one of the names on the list happened to be unfamiliar and eye-catching - Magalawa Island .                  I have been to Zambales several times, I knew travelling at night is best - less passenger, no traffic (less travel time), you can sleep while travelling.  From Victory Liner Cubao, we took the 11:30pm schedule to Olongapo (the earliest trip from Cubao to Sta. Cruz is 6:30am).  It'll cost you P212/pax.  From Olongapo terminal, we took another bus going to Sta. cruz, only P130/pax  to Iba, Zambales Victory Liner Terminal.  Add P50/pax if you want to be drop at drop-off point - Brgy. Pangolinan, Paluig, Zambales. We chose to stay a little bit longer in Iba terminal because it was ...

                I've heard a lot about  Bicol Region , about its famous volcano with a perfect-cone and the dare-devil adventure in  Camsur Water-Sports Complex , the spectacular beauty of  Caramoan Peninsula  and the tongue-scorching cuisine.  Oh, must I mention that this is the home of our local barbie-doll Bb. Pilipinas winner and 1st runner up Ms. Universe 2010 Venus Raj ?                   The highlight of our second day trip in Bicol was in Misibis Bay Raintree Resort . I am sure, most of beach bummers and travelers like us have heard about this world class resort.  Who wouldn't when not just Kris Aquino and Manny 'Pacman' Paquiao who stayed here but Zac Efron too.  The place was huge you need an ATV, mountain bike, dune buggies, a kayak, jet-ski to explore it. the place les...

                 I've heard a lot about  Bicol Region , about its famous volcano with a perfect-cone and the dare-devil adventure in  Camsur Water-Sports Complex , the spectacular beauty of  Caramoan Peninsula  and the tongue-scorching cuisine.  Oh, must I mention that this is the home of our local barbie-doll Bb. Pilipinas winner and 1st runner up Ms. Universe 2010 Venus Raj?                 Our main destination is Legazpi City but we are sad to leave without visiting the famous Camsur Water-Sports Complex in Pili, Camarines Sur , not to add, its only a three (3) hours or less from Legazpi.  So, having realized that, we hired a van from the Legazpi to visit Naga, CWC in Pili and Iriga.  It cost us P3,500 for the whole trip (10 hours usage including fuel, driver and local tour guide).  If you don't know anyo...

                I've heard a lot about Bicol Region , about its famous volcano with a perfect-cone and the dare-devil adventure in Camsur Water-Sports Complex , the spectacular beauty of Caramoan Peninsula and the tongue-scorching cuisine.  Oh, must I mention that this is the home of our local barbie-doll Bb. Pilipinas winner and 1st runner up Ms. Universe 2010 Venus Raj?                 When my friend informed me that there's a Cebu Pacific for Legazpi City in Albay , I was ecstatic. " This is it!" - I said to myself.  I will now have a chance to see the mighty Mayon Volcano in a distance.             Transportation from the airport is the least of your worry because there are several rent-a-car services inside the airport compound.  If your baggage is not that big and heavy, you may also...