4:00 am – Take a bus from Valenzuela to Shaw Blvd. 40.00 pesos
5.30 am – Take an FX ride from Shaw (Starmall) to Tanay. 70.00 pesos
7:00 am – From Tanay Market ride a tricycle to Brgy. Daraitan. 100 pesos each. Then you will cross a river and will pay 5.00 pesos. Ride another tricycle from the river to the Registration Hall.
9:00 am – Registration, then after that, start of the climb (yeah, late na kami, wag nyo kaming tularan, alis kayo ng mas maaga)
Registration Fee – 20.00 pesos
Tour Guide – 500.00 pesos
Budget : 700.00 – 1,000.00 (maluwag na yung 1k 👍)
#Dulaspamore
Rain was pouring heavily in Manila while we are on our way to Tanay, Rizal and I am silently praying that it will stop and the sun will shine, hahaha and in my surprise, it works! However the rain made the mountain trails muddy and harder for first timers. ( like most of the member of our group “Tropang Potchie”) Pero okay na yun kesa umuwi kaming luhaan at di nakaakyat 😛
Everyone was excited thinking it will only take us a few hours to reach the summit, (ayaw pa nga maputikan habang naglalakad sa paanan ng bundok) but since the trail is muddy and slippery, it take us 5 hours to summit.
The Summit.
I told my sister, “Ate, ang sarap ng hangin! Kung pwede lang isupot to at dalhin sa Maynila Ginawa ko na! Hahahaha”. I was really inhaling the fresh air. Tirik yung araw pero malamig yung hangin. It was so relaxing that it made me realize, yeah, the climb was worth it, and the view, super worth it.
Kung gano kahirap umakyat, sya ding hirap bumaba. Since the trail is muddy and slippery we are extra cautious in landing our steps, as we dont want to slide down and die after seeing the beauty of sierra madre (we want more! Haha) So extra ingat kami sa pagbaba.
We’ve successfully descended around 8.30pm.. And were home around 12 midnight. Yeah nakakapagod, pero iba yung feeling pag nakarating ka na sa tuktok.. Priceless..
Every Mountain Top Is Within Reach, If You Just Keep Climbing.
This is our last year’s Summer outing / Parent’s Wedding Anniversary!!!
March 2014
We’ve had our side trip at Tagaytay while waiting for my sissy. I really like the weather at Tagaytay (that’s why my dream rest house will be built somewhere in tagaytay.. hahaha :D) and i like seeing fogs.. We’ve went to mines view park to see the taal volcano and enjoy the cool breeze.
We had our Festive Lunch at Leslie’s Restaurant, Tagaytay City.
BULALO!!!
While we are waiting to be checked in at Matabungkay Beach Resort…
Naiinip na ang little boy
After dropping our bags at our room, we hurriedly went to check the beach.
the lil’ boy is scared to touch the sand
Swimming Time for Kean!!
We also played in this very huge chess board. Its fun to play tho it’s very tiring.
Kean Moments
The Beach at Matabungkay is fine, however it is low tide season so we can’t swim at the beach, good thing their pool is big enough and clean. Our room is quite small for 10 pax but it’s near the beach and has a good view. We didn’t try any of their food because we brought our own food to cook. Over all Matabungkay Beach Resort is a good place to stay.
On our Second day we went to Lago de Oro at Calatagan Batangas to try a new sport: Wake Boarding!!!. At first, it is hard to get our balance to stand on our board but in a few try’s we’ve made it and we’ve enjoyed our ride! Check our epic videos below!
Before midnight hits, the boys went to the mini bar at the shore. so…
It’s Time to Party!!
For our 3rd day!!!
Swimming Time! (Before we say goodbye to Matabungkay)
Puerto princesa is a beautiful sanctuary for both animals and human being. It is a “City in a Forest”. We’ve chosen to travel here to experience the beauty of it’s nature.
Day 1
HONDA BAY TOUR
The bay is used for both subsistence and commercial fisheries and recreation. Boats can be rented for the day and used for travel to nearby islands, many less than 45 minutes from the shore by boat. Honda Bay is ideal for snorkeling and island hoping. This is our first destination after we safely landed to the beautiful Puerto Princesa.
So Here’s our DIY Tour
Luli Islandhas a very unique name, we found out that “Luli” means “Lulubog Lilitaw”. During low tide, its sand bars are visible while on high tide it sinks underwater leaving only the houses on the area visible. It is a rocky beach so people should only swim on the designated area cause there are stone fish and jelly fish on the beach.
Crystal Clear Water at Luli Island
Starfish Islandhas the popular frame where everyone who went to Honda bay had their picture taken. Also it has a lot of starfish, be it big or small. We enjoyed our stay here because of the 30 peso coconut fruit. Though the price is same here in Manila nothing beats sipping on a coconut with a wonderful beach view. We also had it cut so we can eat, it served as our lunch on the island .
Pandan Islandhas the most expensive entrance fee but it was worth it. It has all sorts of water activities like jet ski, banana boat, kayaking, snorkeling etc. it also has pristine waters. Near the shore you could swim with the fishes and snorkel your way through the seaweeds. Anyone who knows how to swim wouldn’t need any life vest cause simple floating would allow you to explore the sea beneath. Below is a video of our interactions with the fishes. If you’re a fan of swimming, sugar fine sand and fishes, this island shouldn’t be missed.
Cowrie Islandis our last stop, It is known for its buffet lunch. For a price of 200 pesos you could fill yourself up with seafood, a little meat and some veggies. We had our lunch around 2:30 pm, we enjoyed the Pandan Island so much coz’ it feels like we’re in Boracay (the sand is so so beautiful) so we stayed there for a while
IWAHIG FIREFLY WATCHING
Firefly watching in Palawan is an environmental tour in a protected river called Iwahig. Our guide and bangkero, Kuya Paul was witty and hilarious ( I call him Paul Lee.. haha) he knows everything like he’s Ernie Baron or Kuya Kim! 😛 He said Fireflies are like Christmas lights with no electricity needed and no short circuit guarantee. It’s amazing how fireflies respond to Kuya Paul’s red light. When he light them up, they will respond and they will all glow. It’s a very beautiful sight when they glow all together. Light production in fireflies is due to a type of chemical reaction called bioluminescence. He also let us see planktons in the river, they also glow when the water gets disturbed. The water in the river is called Brackish water, a mixture of Fresh and Salt water. There are also lots of Mangroves in the River. He also told us why Maynila is called that way. He said the name Maynila came from “Nilad”, a Mangrove tree which is very abundant in the area before. The Nilad leaves are very much alike with calamansi. We also did a little star gazing before the tour ends. Over all the tour was fun and very much informative.
(Try to DIY this tour, I guess it’s more cheaper)
DAY 1 ITINERARY AND EXPENSES 🙂
Day 1 Itinerary
7:00 AM – ETD MANILA
9:00 AM – ETA PUERTO PRINCESA
9:30 AM – DROP BY TO MARIANNE HOTEL
10:30 AM – ARRIVED AT STA LOURDES WHARF
10:30 AM – 4:00 PM – HONDA BAY TOUR
5:30 PM – RETURN TO HOTEL
7:00 pm – PICK UP TIME FROM HOTEL TO IWAHIG
8:00 pm – FIREFLY WATCHING
9:30 pm – DINNER
10:00 pm – RETURN TO HOTEL
Summary of Expenses
50.00 – Tricycle (seating capacity: 5 pax) Airport to Hotel
500.00 – Hotel to Honda Bay Sta Lourdes Wharf – 500.00 Tricycle
1,300.00 – Boat for island hopping – (seating capacity: 6 pax)
90.00 – Environmental fee – 90.00 (45.00 per pax)
130.00 – Entrance Fee at Luli Island (65.00 per pax)
50.00 – Entrance Fee at Starfish Island (50.00 per pax)
200.00 – Entrance Fee at Pandan Island (100.00 per pax)
150.00 – Entrance Fee at Cowrie Island (75.00 per pax)
400.00 – Lunch at Cowrie (200.00 per pax)
2,400.00 – Firefly Watching 1,200 per pax (inclusive of transportation, tour and Dinner)
5,270.00 – TOTAL
Day 2
Ugong Rock Adventures
This is our first time to do caving stuffs so we’re excited to enter the cave!
The tour was a calorie burning experience, most of us were perspiring when we reached the top. The cave was full of different rock formations, you just need a little imagination to see the images. We also did spelunking inside the cave. It was a very beautiful sight when we reached the top. There were two options to go down; first is to climb the cave down another way is to zip lining your way down. Well, after exhausting ourselves out in climbing the cave, we took the fastest yet scary way out.
Every year when we have our summer outing we always make it near the date of our parent’s wedding anniversary. This year March 2015 is their 30th wedding anniversary (yey!) and we’ve decided that we will celebrate it in the beautiful province of Bohol, the home of the smallest living primate – Tarsier.
So here’s short video of Renzo’s teleportation!
Day 1
Here’s my sister and younger brother (First timers.. hahaha :P)
We landed at Tagbilaran Airport around 9:00 in the morning.
Shell Amazing Toilet
It’s funny when my dad entered the toilet, he didn’t knew it was already our first stop, he hesitated to enter because he taught it was a sala. Hahaha.
Bohol Museum
Cool Creepy Bones
Hinagdanan Cave
Be careful when entering the cave coz it’s so slippery. The underground lake is a popular swimming spot however the lake is made of brackish water so it’s a little bit salty.
look up
Dauis Church & Panglao Church
These churches are pretty much wrecked by the recent earthquake, good thing they are all into construction and they are already rebuilding the churches.
Shell Museum
Lots and lots of shells. We didn’t even know all of those shells exist!! (After we saw all those shells, we searched for it on the beach.. Hahahaha check out our day 3) You can also see antiques and animal skeletons on the museum.
Not only shells but also skeletons
Bohol Bee Farm
All stuffs are organic here at Bohol Bee Farm, we bought wild honey and we tried their home-made ice creams.. We ate spicy ginger, guyabano (my favorite) avocado, lemongrass and chocolate. We also tried their lemongrass juice. (Yum!)
The fun part, holding the bee cages!!
That is called: Courage (lols)
We had lunch at chicken ati-atihan. I like their grilled chicken, a MUST-TRY. Two thumbs up for me!
We drop by into a nearby market to buy some food to cook for our dinner and tomorrow’s breakfast.
We stayed at Bohol Sunside Resort. The rooms are super big and clean, the pool is good too, however their blankets are too small and thin. They also give free water gallons per room and free use of kitchen utensils. (NICE!)
ITS SWIMMING TIME!!
Kean definitely LOVES water
Day 1 Itinerary
9:00 am – Touch Down Tagbilaran Airport
9:30 am – Shell Museum
10:00 am – Bohol Museum
10:30 am- Dauis Church
11:00 am – Hinagdanan Cave
11:30 am – Panglao Church
12:00nn – Lunch Time
1:30 pm – Bohol Bee Farm
2:00 pm – check in at the hotel
5:00 pm – Swimming time
Summary of expenses
2,100.00 – Tour Rate for 9 pax
855.00 – Entrance Fee 95/ head
1,200.00 – Lunch
1,500.00 – Dinner and Breakfast
5,655.00 – Total
Day 2
Start of our City Tour!!!
First Stop
Man Made Forest
The real Edward and Bella (tuma-twilight)
Chocolate Hills
ATV Ride
All of us are first timers riding ATV and Buggy.. They are fun to ride!!! I enjoyed riding my buggy while my passenger is enjoying the view.
Bohol Habitat (Butterfly Sanctuary)
The 3D butterfly photos are cute!!! Thanks to our guide for taking photos of us..
a very huge moth
Time to fly sissy..
Tarsier Conservation Area
We saw 4 of these little creatures.
Loboc floating Resto
The food was Good and the ride was fun, there’s a performer who sings while we eat our food. Besides the singer on the boat, there are also performers in the middle of the cruise and they are fun to watch as they dance tinikling and sing their native songs.
Blood compact
Instead of taking pictures here in blood compact, I bought souvenirs, ref magnets and key chains.. hahaha
My mom got the chance to take a picture
It’s HAGGLE TIME!!
DAY 2 Itinerary
9:00 am – Call time
10:30 am – Man Made Forest
11:00 am – Chocolate Hills
12:00 am – ATV Ride
1:30 pm- Bohol Habit
2:00 nn – Tarsier Conservation Area
2:30 pm – Loboc Floating restaurant
3:30 pm – Baclayon Church
4:00 pm – Blood Compact
5:00 pm – Dropped by: market
5:30 pm – Return to Hotel
Expenses
8,480.00 – Tour Rate
1,500.00 – Food
9,980.00 – Total Expense
Day 3
This is my Favorite part!!! Take me to the Beach!
I never thought Dolphin watching will be fun.. Boats chase them but then they get disturbed. What our boatman did was stay for a little while try not to make too much noise from his motorboat until such time he see dolphins then we run after them.. Luckily we see them near.
After dolphin watching we went to balicasag island, (a little tip, its better if you bring your own aqua shoes or jelly shoes they are cheap here in manila for about 50-100 pesos only) since some of us didn’t bring aqua shoes we opted to rent some, especially for the girls. Even though some corals are already damaged because they are being stepped, there are still lots of fish and we even saw nemo and that yummy loro fish.. Hahaha.. My parents enjoyed snorkeling especially my dad 😀
We also went to virgin island, it has beautiful wide stretch of fine white sand and lots of shells too (like we saw on shell museum!)
Timmy Time moments
This will bring us fortune, like the one we saw at the shell museum, the smallest shell.. hahahaha..
When we get back to the resort, my mom and my dad went to the market to buy some food. We rented the scooter for a day so they can go to the market.
Day 3 Itinerary
Sea and island Tour
5:30 am – Call Time
6:00 am – 3:00 pm – Sea Tour (dolphin
watching, snorkeling sa balicasag island, virgin island)
Summary of Expense
1,800.00 – Tour Rate (good for 9 pax)
450.00 – Entrance Fee (50 x 9)
1,350.00 – Guide Fee (150 x 9)
225.00 – Mask (75×3)
2,500.00 – Food
300.00 – Shoes (75×4)
600.00 – Port Transfer
kimmytravels 