A hundred out of the 7,107 .

My family is not the adventurous type. So when my mom said she wanted to visit the Manaoag Church up in Pangasinan, i thought, what a perfect time to visit Hundred Islands as well? I mean we'll be up north and it's so near each other.

After a lot of the dilly-dallying that old people do before they go anywhere, the trip pushed through. It was such a long drive. It took us about 4 hours from Ortigas to Manaoag. And another hour (or so) from Manaoag to Alaminos.

We arrived at the Church past 9 in the morning, we heard mass and then went around to look at the items for sale. The Church is surrounded by a lot of vendors selling miniature versions of the Lady of Manaoag, rice cakes, bagoong and other local delicacies. My mom went crazy and bought a lot of things and I'm pretty sure she did not know what half of them were. haha

We left just before lunch and drove to Alaminos expecting it was less than an hour away (apparently it's more :P ) We arrived at the wharf around 1 in the afternoon. And it started drizzling. Then it started pouring. A few minutes after, it was raining cats and dogs. We weren't sure if we could go island hopping so we decided to go to a nearby restaurant and eat lunch. The restaurant had a view of the sea and the islands but the rain was so strong, we could no longer see them from where we stood.

Miraculously, at a little past two, the rain stopped and the sun came out! Crazy weather they have up north! At 3pm, we were on a boat (we could fit in a small one but the medium-sized boat looked... safer).

With my then, very irritable mom :))

I've been hearing that the hundred islands was just okay, or not as nice as people expected. But I don't know what the heck they're talking about cos when I got there, I thought the islands were absooolutely beaaauutiiful!

Governor's Island - Viewing deck

We only visited 3 of the islands, the first one is the Governor's Island which has a viewing deck at the top and you can see all the other islands. No photo does justice to the real thing, i tell you.

The next island was Marcos Island, where there's a cave and you can jump off inside into the sea! Since my relatives do not swim, jumping was out of the question for them. And I din't wanna do it alone. BUT I SHOULD HAVE. haha oh well, maybe next time.

After, it was time for snorkeling! It was my first time to see GIANT CLAMS and they were awesome! the rest of the marine life were okay. It rained earlier too so the water was not as clear.

If my memory serves me right, the last stop was Quezon Island. There's this cave with two openings opposite each other so you could catch a glimpse of the sunset from the other side. It was beautiful, seems like there's something glowing at the end of the cave.

We had such a fun time! We finished just before 6 and we got to watch the sunset while on the boat - and that's always amazing :) 

We ate isaw and showered at the wharf. And readied ourselves for the loooong drive home! but it was such a fun day trip! 

Swimming with the Gentle Giants in Cebu!

Swimming with the whale sharks (or butandings) has been on my bucket list for a long time already. And getting to do it with my friends was really really great. We booked a 3-day trip to Cebu and planned to take a bus from the city to Oslob (and back). 

On our first day, considering we just arrived, we stayed in the city. Since it was the other girls' first time in Cebu, we visited the historical places after brunch. Our first meal was so sooo good, STK Bai! was kinda out of the way but everything we ordered tasted amazing. I loved their baked scallops and calamares.  They're not much to look at but they're delectable. 

We got the time to catch-up with each other over brunch, and it was a looong brunch :p . After which, we went to Magellan's Cross, Sto Nino Church and Fort San Pedro. The Magellan's Cross is believed to grow every year and there were these woman chanting and dancing in front of the cross trying to capitalize on it. The Church is very beautiful though. 

After our little "city tour" it was time for the beach! It was less than an hour away from the city and how fun is it that you can easily drive or even take a cab to the beach on like a regular day? It wasn't the nicest beach but it was a lovely place to spend the afternoon in. 

 We saw a purple jelly thing washed up in the shore. I didn't want to touch it until one of the lifeguards picked it up. Realizing, it didn't sting, I ran after him and borrowed it. haha. It was dead tho :S

With the girls! excuse me while I suck my stomach in. :) 

After a few bruises (very coral-y beach) and after sunset, we decided to head back to the city. We took a tricycle to the highway and took a cab back to the city. Hungry and couldn't find the restaurant we wanted to go to, we ended up in AA BBQ. It was similar to a dampa, you choose what you want to have cooked and they prepare it for you. Their baked oyster is so good, we had to get another order. We also tried these big shells that have like a squid-like consistency mollusk inside. It wasn't anything special but it's nice to have tried it.

Some of the Hungry Kids

After dinner, we took a cab home. And while discussing the next day's Oslob trip, the driver suggested that he drive us to Oslob and back for 2,400. We said yes since taking the bus would cost each of us 700. He picked us up at 4 in the morning. 

It took us about 3 hours to get to Oslob, we got off at the registration area, paid the fees, ordered breakfast (for when we get back) and rented an underwater camera. And off we went to the briefing area. Technically, you have to stay 4 meters away from the whale sharks and not touch them but those giant fishes don't really care, they'll go to the boat where the fisherman that gives them food is, regardless if you're on their way. 

clear blue water!

We had more than 300 photos in the underwater camera, and only the photos below are decent. haha! it's pretty hard to pose underwater with these giant things. Our stomachs hurt from laughing when we saw the pictures. 

The whale shark interaction only took about 40 minutes but it was so worth the travel and the fees. Seeing them and being so close to them given how HUGE they are was exhilarating!

We had breakfast after and then took a habal-habal to a waterfall on top of the mountain! 

 It was a scary ride going up the mountain. Some parts were so steep and we were on a freakin' motorcycle! haha We also had to walk up for about 30 minutes before we could reach Tumalog falls but it was a lovely stroll.

The waterfalls were so soo sooooo pretty! But the water was cold! It's clean there and the locals get their drinking water from the top waterfall. I tried drinking a little, it tasted like rust though.  

We've finished the whale shark interaction and visited the Tumalog falls by lunch and so we were back at the city around 4pm. Those 3-ish hours tho were priceless, a great way to spend the morning. We decided to rest up at the hotel and then headed to dinner in Lantaw Floating Restaurant. It's a little over an hour away from the city and we had to pay P400 for a one way taxi ride but the scenery, ambiance and sunset dinner were amazing (the food was just okay though). 

On our third day, our flight was at 3 in the afternoon so we just went to the Ayala Mall there to buy pasalubong from the grocery and eat at Casa Verde. My friend and I shared an order of their famous ribs (really was A LOT for 100 something pesos) and the shrimp tavern. I din't like their ribs so much but the shrimp has been my favorite since I first went to Cebu.

We headed to the airport right after lunch where I also bought Zubuchon (good stuff!).

We did not spend a lot for this trip but it's one of the best ones I've been to so far. The whale shark interaction was just amaziing! I'd do it again! :)  

Caves and Waterfalls

This trip was one of those random impulses that I just had to give in to, and it was such fun! :) Recently, I have been wanting to get the chance to go on adventure and explore and get lost and get the chance to admire beautiful things and be creative and... just be spontaneous. These experiences make life much more interesting. I'm just glad to be slowly going back to my normal self (I know this because I just struck off Boracay from my travel list - which I added it cos I got inggit to everyone else.). Going back to this trip, I've realized that Rizal is quite a big province and there are tons of wonderful places to discover. 

We were blessed with splendid weather and a gorgeous sky. Guided by an online post that I've read recently, my friend and I went to Tanay Rizal. We took a jeepney from Cainta and and hour later arrived in the Tanay the town proper. We then commissioned a tricycle to bring us around for P500. 

Not wanting to waste time, our first stop was Calinawan Cave, 30 meters underground. Unlike the Sagada and Palawan caves, this one is the first cave I've been to that's actually dry. It's a different experience and I felt a bit claustrophobic because of the small passageways. It's the first time I've seen live stones (literal translation) up close. Live stones glitter, and they're just so puhretty!

 It was about a 20-minute tour around the cave, we then headed to Daranak and Batlag Falls. 

live stones

inside the cave

The road less traveled. 

Before going to the falls, we stopped by a grotto. However, you'd need to climb 500 steps to reach it and Ces was not up for it so I just walked around the small river there and took photos, the water is so clear and cold, it felt good on my skin.

Daranak Falls, I must say, is SO BEAUTIFUL. There were a lot of people though (and by being present in my nature photos, people always ruin them. haha) It was lovely nonetheless. The pool at the bottom of Daranak has a very nice bluish-green color. 

A short distance away is Batlag. There are less people (probably because of the P100 entrance fee). Beautiful as well. I desperately wanted to swim! I have never swam in a pool under a waterfall before and I couldn't at that time since I did not have any extra clothes, I went as far into the water as my shorts let me though!

There is one waterfall in Batlag that I like best. The pool below it is blue green, there aren't a lot of people and the waterfall is just magical. :)

After taking photos, we headed back and came across this black dog. To our surprise, he starts jumping from rock to rock until he found a spot and lied down. That was just adorable and I wish my dogs weren't too spoiled and clumsy to do that :)

After the waterfalls, we went to another grotto (which is only 200+ steps! woot!) We went up and man, was. it. tiring. But the view from the top is well worth the leg pain and sweat. It was simply breath-taking.

Dandelion!

View from the top! Ces made it to the first landing! 

 Before heading back home, our driver brought us to the Parola. Tanay residents usually go here in the morning since this serves as their "park". It's that small town charm that makes this place interesting. Working for commercial malls (and being in different ones so often), I rarely encounter these types of things. And I find it very refreshing.

Our tour took about 3 hours and ended around lunch. I was home by 1pm and I was beat! It was such a fun trip perfect for a Sunday adventure. Next time I go there, I'll be sure to swim though! :)