I always procrastinate writing a new post for the places I've been to lately.

This trip was last June 24-26, 2016. Yep, this post is really late. Forgive me.

It was actually my first time going to Boracay; so obviously the excitement is there, I was really expectant of the beauty of the place. Boracay for all we know has been a top tourist destination for a very long time now, our foreign visitors always rave about the island's beauty.



What was my first impression of the island? Honestly speaking, I was a bit shocked - ever since, I thought that once you arrived from the port, that's it meaning all the hotels and restaurants are there and you just have to walk a few meters to get to the beach. Sadly not. Haha.

This would be a helpful blog if only I knew all the expenses of the trip but this was my Mother's company outing so I don't know how much our budget was. We stayed in Boracay Island Inn - Station 2. It's actually near 'D Mall and other restaurants. Our hotel was actually near the beachfront, just about 5 minutes walk. I hardly remember what we did there [obviously blogging months after the trip was never a good idea].

Me and my cousin planned on having a night out and to visit some of the local bars in Boracay. But, I, a self proclaimed Tita, bailed out because I was too tired and chose sleep over partying instead; and the night I decided I will join her for a night out - it rained. Hahaha!

What I love about Boracay? It really has the finest beach sand to offer; of some of the beaches I've been to I can really say that Boracay's beach sand is the finest of them all [see what I did there?]. Sunset, the beauty as the sun goes down is really something to watch out for - this feels like you're slowly and surely falling inlove. I got curious about the hype over a fruit shake so I gave in,  I did try Jonah's Fruit Shake. I ordered Banana shake, fresh and tasty but is quite expensive for it's size [a bottle costs Php 100]. Island Hopping, I just remembered Puka Beach because that's the only island we stayed longer than the others. I really love the quietness of Puka Beach plus it's less crowded than on the main beach. Some of the tourists who were with us also made a stop at the cliff-diving spot which I think is from 20ft or higher [costs Php 150/person].





What I don't like about Boracay? Basically, my general observation is that it's too crowded; there are lots of up and rising hotels, resorts and restaurants each station. Feels like the beauty of the island got spoiled. I wish the island's beauty could still be preserved.

Boracay is really beautiful in it's own. If given a chance to visit again I would, there are many things I still like to try and explore - basically Para-Sailing caught my attention but I don't have the guts [and money] for it yet. Haha!

I posted this on my Instagram account with this caption:  It's so lovely to see people of different faces and races enjoying their stay at Boracay, or any places in the Philippines. These two [foreign] ladies caught my attention because they were so busy playing with the sand – they even made a mermaid out of it and took lots of photos! And while we were swimming they asked us to take a photo of them doing some friendship goals shot! ☺ It's not that deep but I think we all should learn from this; to love and appreciate what our country can offer. Some of the best places that are popular nowadays are the places discovered by our foreign visitors, our tourists and it's really telling – that there are many wonderful unseen places here and we often overlook it, that we only appreciate it when it's gone. Seven thousand plus islands, low tide or high tide; we all should love it, appreciate it, most importantly take care of it. 🌊

We all should be proud of the island's beauty as it's still reigning as Top Beach Destination in our country which says a lot, I think. :)

It's my first time to  try out hiking, basically, this decision to hike is because part of my 2016 year goal is to travel and explore more, plus I read blogs about budget hike, so why not give it a try, right? It's my first ever hike, and I kind of forced people around me to come and join me on my impulsive desire to climb a mountain. 

I'd say this POST - really did help a lot in our exploring, we just followed their itinerary :)

We arrived at the Grand Terminal around 12nn, one jeepney driver offered us a ride going directly to the jump off in Mt. Gulugod Baboy or Philpan Dive; which cost us Php100 each, the driver is really nice and told us he could also pick us up after the hike (that also costs Php100 back to the Grand Terminal). We arrived at the jump off around 1:30pm, we had our lunch there at the nearby Carinderia, we also hired a guide(Php500) since it's our first time climbing and had no idea what's instore for us, and paid our registration fee(Php35).

We started the hike at 2pm and gladly the sun isn't as up and too hot that time in Batangas, good thing the weather cooperated with us. I'd say the road going to the summit is hard, there's no chance I'm 100% physically fit, Haha! The start of the climb was in a cemented road, and within 10 minutes into the trek we were already tired and sweating as much. They say that the road to the peak can be reached in 1 hour but the amount of rest and breathe catching we had, took us about 2 hours to reach the summit. 

Stunning, wonderful and breathtaking is probably an understatement.

We also met different hikers climbing up and going down, everyone was so friendly and supportive - some gave motivational and encouraging words, I love seeing this kind of unity with the hikers. "malapit na", "kapit lang", "kaya niyo yan", "dalawang bahay na lang", "enjoy! worth it yan". There were also climbers who chose to stay overnight in the peak. I would love to try it too, one day.

This just felt like a whole new world, a whole new feel to me, to be honest, you won't feel any tiredness once you are up in the summit and see the wonderful creation that is Gulugod Baboy, it just feels like being on top of the world, with the land, sea, air surrounding you.

When people say Cebu there are 4 things that will come to mind; Magellan, Dried Mangoes, Sinulog Festival and Old Churches. If you expect to see any of those in this post, there is none. City tour is not our priority so upon arrival at the Mactan airport we headed straight to the south bus terminal for our water activities by noon. 

Some mates I know who'd visited Cebu already that there aren't much to do than city tour, maybe they're not exploring enough - so in line with that, our super short trip (November 24-25) to Cebu came to life. Canyoneering in Badian and Whale Shark Watching in Oslob - 4 hour bus ride from the city.

 Day 1: Canyoneering (trekking, swimming, jumping, and screaming ... lots of screaming ha :p)

The package we got is 1.1k inclusive of the equipment and the meals. 

Day 2: Whale shark watching/swimming. We traveled to Oslob after our Canyoneering and stayed at Chateau de Tanaw-an for a night. Tip: go whale shark watching/swimming early because the water is clearer. Rate is P500 for 30 minutes - inclusive of goggles and snorkel set and the boat plus 2 guides. 

Then we went to Tumalog falls via Habal-habal just 10-20 minutes away from the whale shark site. Tumalog falls, is just so cold and pretty and very very enchanting! 

late post, this trip was from April 23-24, 2015 

Off the coast of Mauban Quezon, Cagbalete Island, a literal overnight sensation -- it's a secluded paradise that awaits everyone. 

It's an ultimate barkada getaway with almost 6 hours travel time away from Manila. If you're into a pampering kind of vacation this place is quite not for you - as it is being a virgin island the resort uses generators at 5pm-6am daily. 

The island has creamy white sand, warm and clear water, plus a relaxing and intoxicating ambiance - and the best part well, kind of - when it's low tide, sand ripples appear on the shoreline.

Cagbalete Island is a good place to relax and rejuvenate, with a scenic and breathtaking view of sunrise and sunset, just a quiet and peaceful time away from the hustle and bustle of the city. 

Palawan is known as the Philippine’s last ecological frontier.

Coron, Palawan is a paradise; a little heaven here on earth. I can't help but feel thankful about God's masterpiece and that we are so blessed with all these beaches and islands we have in our country.

And, the famous picturesque and postcard view of Coron, Palawan.

you just have to delete old memories to make room for the new ones.

this blog has no specific style, just a collection of some personal
memories that I would like to share to everybody.

still under repair for a better blogging journey.
xx