Travel: Rediscovering the City of Pines; Baguio City

Baguio City, it is widely recognized as the summer capital of the Philippines. Many tourists visit the place during February because it is the month in which the famous and luring Panagbenga Festival.

It takes about six hours to travel the approximately 250 km distance between Manila and Baguio City by way of Kennon Road. It is about fifteen to thirty minutes longer through the Aspiras-Palispis Highway, and could take three more hours if going up from Manila via Naguilian Road—which is the usual route for travelers from the Northern areas of Luzon such as Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur and northern La Union province.

For those who will visit Baguio, it is not difficult to look for a transport. The most popular bus transportation to Baguio is Victory Liner. Its cost is around P455. It has terminals in Pasay, Cubao, and Sampaloc, Manila. The buses leave for every hour. 

But if you prefer the deluxe coach it will cost around P715.00, but I would prefer the night trip, so that you could still sleep in your journey, and it would take around 6-7 hours trip to reach Baguio.

　

When we arrived in Baguio, I felt the cold breeze of the place. For me it was relaxing, since we came from a 32 degrees place; Manila. I really thought that there are air conditioned in the terminal, but I was wrong. When we reached the terminal there are men in who will offer accommodation and transport group. However, we already had reserved an accommodation. We availed the transient house, since we stick to our budget.

We reach our accommodation in Scout Barrio via taxi. As you are going to observe most taxis there are SUV/AUV type, because it would be difficult for a sedan type to go to higher places in Benguet province. The flag rate of a taxi is 35 pesos. I admire the taxi drivers in Baguio, because they are honest. One contributing factor is they will give you an exact amount of your change.

Mines View Park is a  ridge located at the extreme northeast side of the city. It also offers a spectacular view of Benguet’s gold and copper mines and the Cordillera mountains. The main attraction in Mines View Park nowadays would be the commercial activities such as the souvenir shops and food  stalls by the park.

One of the charming denizens of Mines View Park is a popular and friendly Saint Bernard named “Douglas” who is available, for about Php50.00, for picture-taking with tourists. The horses of course with dyed hair on its manes and tails.

The Lourdes Grotto is a Catholic shrine and place of meditation located on Mirador Hill in the western part of Baguio. Inside the grotto is the image of Our Lady of Lourdes. As it is in many other similar shrines, the grotto was constructed to commemorate the numerous visions of the Virgin Mary by a 14-year old French girl named Bernadette Soubirous. 

Philippine Military Academy (PMA) is one of our itinerary to visit in Baguio. Located at the Fort Gregorio Del Pilar on Loakan Road. Upon entering the vicinity, I noticed that the PMAers there were saluting the vehicles that are passing by. Visitors are welcome to explore the grounds, the PMA museum and walk around its manicured grounds to see vintage tanks and other historical military weapons. I was on my excitement when having a picture taking with the PMAers. In their uniforms they look "gwapo"

Upon entering the Camp John Hay has its charm and elegance. According to Wandering Wanderer  it is also known as John Hay Air Station was established on October 25, 1903 by the United States Armed Forces just a year after the Philippine-American War. It was used as an R&R (Rest and Relaxation) for United States Department of Defense employees and their dependents.

The Mansion is one of the grandest vacation house in the Philippines and one of the popular tourist spot in Baguio city.  This is the official summer residence of Philippine presidents starting from Manuel Quezon. It used to be a summer vacation palace of U.S. Governor-Generals from 1908-1935. The public is clearly not allowed to book rooms in this palace but everyone is free to visit it. Getting a glance of its magnificent palace and wide lush green garden gives you that simple fun but sweet experience.

On the opposite side of the Mansion where Wright Park is located. It feature the so-called "Pool of Pines" which is a rectangular shape body of water that stretches from the entrance up to the park circle at the other end. There are fishes, Koi's in particular as an added attraction. After the circle, a stairs going down to were the rented horses are.You can rent them including the guide for a price ranging from Php700-1500 depending on the tour package.

Strawberry Farm located in La Trinidad, Benguet. A small stretch of land where probably the only local strawberries in the country come from. We couldn’t wait to get our hands on them so off we went to try our balancing skills on the field. We can only take pictures because taking strawberries doth come with a price tag. We were able to taste the Strawberry Taho and Strawberry ice cream. It's delicious and healthy.

Tam-awan Village, it’s a cultural hub where history and art bleed into one. It also showcases Kalinga and Cordillera huts, to their way of life. This village is the sanctuary for many local artists; their art on the walls of the small coffee shop is a testament to that. Tam-Awan Village also blends the famous Benguet coffee.

Travel: Discovering Princess of Port

It was my first time to visit Puerto Princessa, Palawan. I heard lot of beautiful stories and experiences about Palawan. So, it is time to experience it. We had an early book for a flight bound to Palawan. It was early July 2010 when we booked our flight bound to Puerto Princessa, Palawan. It was a seat sale when we bought our ticket.

After we booked and paid our air fare ticket, I looked for an accommodation in Palawan. To be honest, I do not have any idea when we are going to stay there. So, I asked my officemate, where did they stay in Palawan? She recommended to me Ysabelle Mansion.

According to the receptionist, it was a big house. And the owner, decided to convert into an inn. The said inn has a different tour packages. We choose a 4 days and 3 night’s tour package. However, we re-booked our flight and do some necessary amendments in our tour package. Instead a 4d and 3n tour, we re-booked it to 3d and 2n, definitely we did not experienced an island hopping in Honda bay and Snake Island. It is supposed to be my first time to experience island hopping. But I’m hoping that I will return to Palawan.

It was a sunny morning when we departed NAIA terminal 3 bound to Puerto Princessa, Palawan via Airphil Express. We were 8 in the group. Some of our companions were there first time to ride in plane. It was also my first time to travel in plane by day. Most of my flights were night. Though I appreciate the day flight, but it causes me a headache.

Our flight was not delayed; we arrived in PPR at approximate 01:30pm. Our van was waiting outside the airport.

We did not  take our lunch, so we were starving, but then, we have to push through our city tour as according to Schedule.

Using a Toyota Grandia our group started the city tour. A short visit to the Puerto Princesa City Baywalk is part of our city tour itinerary. The development of the area may be still incomplete but it is a lovely place to stroll around. Our guide told us that the peacock is the symbol of Puerto Princesa City which is a part of the city’s official seal. The symbol was probably chosen because of the Palawan Peacock Pheasant which is an endangered specimen and is endemic to Palawan.

 Our next stop is Plaza Cuartel. It was once a fortress used in World War II. In this place around 150 American were burned alive by the Japanese. Some were escaped by jumping to the sea, and some were died. Today, the plaza was turned as one of the tourist spot in PPR. A memorial marker in the middle that bore the names of its survivors who swam to Iwahig. The other side of the plaza, is the Immaculate Church, we had a short reflection inside it.

We had short souvenir shopping in PPR, it was the free time for us to buy some stuff there, and the price is very affordable.

Next stop, we headed for the Iwahig Prison and Penal Farm which is about 30 minutes drive from the city center. Iwahig is a very unique maximum security prison. Our guide told us that the prisoners there are color coded as orange, brown, and blue. Life in Iwahig is like any other prisons where inmates are counted every day, have no contact to their families. But the difference there, each prisoner is tasked to lean the rice fields, do handicrafts, or take care of the farms.

Not very far from Iwahig Prison is our next destination Palawan Wildlife Rescue and Conservation Center, formerly the Crocodile Farm and Nature Park. When we arrived, there were a number of tourist vans on site and with about 40 or 50 tourists a park guide led us around the vicinity. We took pictures with the crocodile, after a couple of minutes we are next to take a tour inside. The main attraction of the park is of course the crocodiles and the tour started with present the skeleton and skin of the largest salt water crocodile that was captured. We were also brought to the hatchery where hundreds of baby crocodiles of different sizes are housed in basins. Then we walked over a crocodile pen, we saw Valentino, a large crocodile that was captured in Bataraza, Palawan. He is huge, and I was able to lay myself in the pen and took a picture. We did not saw Valentina, because this girl crocodile is in stressed and she is very harmful to the tourists.

Then we drove to one of famous landmark in the city, which is Mitra’s Ranch. The Mitra Family is one of the oldest family of PPR. Mitra’s ranch is nestled at the top of the hill in which you could see the view of Honda Bay Island. We enjoyed taking our jump shots there.

And then nearby we made a stop Baker's Hill. Baker's Hill started as a shop of breads and later the owners have built a park within its premises and now it has become a local destination. Included in our city tour package is a snack. Our guide bought variance of flavors of Hopia there. And the taste is so delicious and very affordable.

We requested our driver to drop us in a restaurant so that we could have our dinner. We had our dinner in Bilao at Palayok. The place has very good ambiance and we love the food, sea foods were really fresh and tasty.

Travel:  Subterranean adventure @ Underground River

Travel: The Blue Side of Bohol

Our second day in Bohol is for the island hopping activity. Charm and I woke up early, because our boatman was about to meet us. So we had a quick breakfast. 

Panoramic view of Panglao Island in Bohol

We were hesitate which boat we were assigned. Until, kuya came to us and ask us if we were the guests of Incon Bohol Tours. 

It was my first time to had a dolphin watching. I never had any experience to go nearer to them. But it was an opportunity for us to take a closer to them.

There are lot of tourist whether local or foreign who were enjoying the dolphin watching. Most of us that our cameras were standby, so that we could take a great capture. 


It was about a 40 minutes travel before we arrived at the dolphin spots. there were other boats also waiting for the dolphins to show. it was hard to see them up close, because when boats come near them, they hide. but it was really nice to see them swim synchronously. i wonder how they do that. really cute!

It was really a fun experienced when chasing those sea creatures. I set my mind to just take at least two decent shots of the dolphins and devote the rest of the hour of the boat ride to appreciate the playfulness of these friendly creatures. Yes, the dolphin shows are also entertaining, but they are boxed there and movements were calculated. Seeing them at their natural habitat and interacting with them, without anyone commanding them where they should show up and what they should do, is far more fascinating.

Our next stop was the Balicasag Island. It was said that it is one of the best 3 dive sites in the world. Poor thing, we're not trained divers, so we just have to settle with snorkeling, which for me is the best experience of the trip.

Charm had so much fun in the snorkeling area. Good thing, that our boatman in the island is a cousin of the little girl who  was featured in the movie Muroami. 

After the very fun snorkeling trip at Balicasag Island, we immediately headed to an island famous for its sandbar, the Virgin Island, Bohol. 

This island has a beautiful and long white sandbar. A few vendors were present in the island. They sell pearls, shells and sea urchins. 

Charm and I had a chance to take our snack there. I enjoyed eating there. I was deeply in love with the islands that we visited. For me, its a natural treasure that we have to nourish.

We went back to the hotel in Panglao Island nurtured with more than enough good memories of the day’s trip. And we’ve just begun exploring. Much has been told and blogged about Bohol, but it’s really more fascinating when you get to experience it first hand. 

END

Travel: The Green side of BOHOL

Capturing the aisle of the Man made forest; Bohol's one of the finest  tourist spot

Bohol was one of the wonderful places that I visited. The place has many things to offer. When we arrived in Tagbilaran Domestic Airport, Paul Incon of Incon Bohol Tours was already waiting for us. 

Panoramic view from the Blood Compact Site

For inquiries, please visit the website of Incon Bohol Tours, http://inconboholtours.webs.com/;

Bohol is an island and it is the7th largest island in the country. Touring Bohol is really exhausting but every calorie we burned and second spent was worth it.

Blood Compact site in Tagbilaran, Bohol is a great symbol of friendship and foreign relations. The Filipino term for “Blood Compact” is “Sandugo” which is a ritual in the past for establishing friendship. What they did during the ritual is cut a small wound on their arms then pour the blood in a single cup mixed with wine. Then, they divided it into two glasses for both of them to drink. No one should leave until the glasses are empty. The literal meaning  of Sandugo which is “one blood” is clearly displayed in this ritual.

The Baclayon Church or the Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception in Baclayon, Bohol is one of the oldest churches in the Philippines. According to an inscription on its wall, it started as a wooden church in 1596 which was established by Spanish missionaries Fr. Juan de Torres and Fr. Gabriel Sanchez. This church was even referred to as the first seat of Spanish Jesuit Missionaries. Their headquarters was later moved in the inner part of Loboc, far from the shore, because of their fear of Moro marauders.

It was only in 1717 that a construction of a new church for Baclayon was made. It is said that there were 200 native forced laborers who constructed the church using coral stones cut into blocks. What I found amusing is their use of million egg whites as cementing material which is something I haven’t heard before. I’ve seen houses and buildings built where eggs were used as wel—but as food to the laborers, not as a cement.

Python, Prony the name of the python. It is said to be the largest captive python. First, I did not feel any nervousness, but when the time when my sister and I has come to enter the cage, I never experienced to get closer to any reptile. According to its caretaker, the python was about sleeping that time, because he was fed, so, there's no reason to get frighten. 

The Loboc River Cruise can’t be something optional if you don’t want to miss a superb experience in your Bohol country side tour. Imagine yourself enjoying a buffet lunch in a festival themed floating restaurant while enjoying the cool breeze blowing inside it as it traverses Loboc’s clean river which is surrounded by lush green plants. It was truly an amazing experience that I never expected. Eating lunch has never been this fun and relaxing.

The fun doesn’t stop there because they have a group of singers waiting to serenade you. You can even sing along with them! You don’t need to know their regional language because most of the songs they’re singing are popular English songs. 

Chocolate Hills; these hills turn into colossal Hershey-kisses-like chocolates during the dry season when the grass covering them turns brown. Their total number is 1,268. Before we proceed to the deck, we experienced the ATV ride besides the chocolate hills. Charm and I had a amazing experience to ride in an ATV. 

After getting a good look at the hills, we got awed by their majestic beauty. I really like their smooth curve shape which is very uncommon. There are plenty of hills here in the country but none of them are as nicely shaped and flawless like these. These hills truly deserve to be the symbol of the whole province.

Based on a scientific explanation about its origin—the Chocolate Hills are conical karst hills, called mogote, which were created by a combination of the dissolution of limestones by rainfall, surface water, and groundwater and their subaerial erosion by rivers and streams after they had been uplifted above sea level and fractured by tectonic processes.

The Philippine Tarsier is a sensational creature which is considered as one of the smallest primates in the world. Unfortunately, it already belongs to The World’s 25 Most Endangered Primates due to its vulnerability and the absence of law protecting it from hunters in the past.


Bohol province is one of the safe havens for these creatures. This island has many tarsier sanctuaries which help them repopulate. During our tour, we went to one of those sanctuaries which is the Tarsier Conservation Area in Loboc. The entrance fee is 60 pesos but if you’re a student the fee is only 50 pesos.

The moment we entered the sanctuary we were directed to the briefing area to know their site’s policies and to understand how to properly interact with the tarsiers. This is where we learned that the tarsier is a nocturnal type of creature which feeds on insects, lizards and small birds.

Because of that fact, we we’re told to strictly observe silence to avoid interrupting their sleep. The use of camera flash and touching them are strictly prohibited as well.  These creatures are so delicate to the point that it will commit suicide when it gets too much stress. 

Butterfly Garden: The Simply Butterflies Conservation Center is a nice place to drop by after visiting the Chocolate Hills. According to their website, there are about 300 species of butterflies found in Bohol and over half are found in their conservation center.

Hanging Bridge: If you want a quick and mild thrill during your Bohol tour, you can consider passing by their famous Tigabo Hanging Bridge in Loboc. Its height is about 25 meters (82 feet) above the river. With an entrance fee of P20.00 only, it’s a good place to start if you’re trying to overcome your fear of heights.

It’s not every day that you encounter a bridge that is alive, it’s so alive that it reacts wildly in each step you make when crossing it. Make sure to treat it gently if you don’t want to feel its wrath. It can get very violent when provoked. The whole bridge is actually made out of metal—they just added some bamboo flooring to give it a native look. 


We stayed in Dumaluan Beach Resort for our entire stay in Bohol. It is located in Panglao Island. What can I say the beach in Bohol is quite magnificent. The panoramic view is really relaxing.

Travel: The Blue side of Bohol