This is the first entry in my Travel Photo Friday series for this year. I just came back from Iloilo City for the Dinagyang Festival and thought of featuring the church of St. Anne Parish found in Molo, Iloilo City where I was born and raised.
This is the first entry in my Travel Photo Friday series for this year. I just came back from Iloilo City for the Dinagyang Festival and thought of featuring the church of St. Anne Parish found in Molo, Iloilo City where I was born and raised.
Wow, time flies so fast! So fast that 2011 ended even before I could finish writing about all the travels I did in that year!
It had been a wonderful year for me. A year ago, I remember how I planned to travel every two months as part of my New Year's resolutions. But soon after my first travel escapade in January, I found the urge to travel more too strong to resist. I was bitten by travel bug, they say. And that travel bug brought my feet to different Philippine destinations almost every month.
It was only in September that I realized to put up my own travel blog. Yes, it took me some 9 months to realize that I should not keep the experiences only to myself. I've learned a lot and discovered so many things about traveling that sharing is the least thing I could do to inspire others to travel as well. Also, it's because of these experiences that I learned to appreciate the beauty of the Philippines. This blog is my little contribution in helping promote the local tourism industry.
I wrote a blog post last September on where I have been so far, but this year-end post completes the rest of the destinations I've been the whole year.
Hadefe Cottages became our home in El Nido for three nights. The resort is located in the far end of Calaan Beach, a 10 minutes walk from the town of El Nido, along side with other newly built resorts that offer seclusion and tranquility.
Unlike the typical hotels and resorts found in the town of El Nido, Hadefe Cottages have stand-alone bungalow huts that are well spaced out throughout the resort's property providing privacy to visitors. The seven stylish cottages are made with traditional materials giving them a less contemporary feel and rustic look. Most of the cottages have a private balcony too. And since they are off the town area, expect quietness, laid back and relaxing ambiance.
Cagbalinad Island was our second stop right after visiting Lahos Island. Travel time from Lahos to Cagbalinad took about 10 minutes. Cagbalinad is actually an islet with small beach that is swallowed by water during high tide. The sand was very fine and white and compact. In fact, we didn't see any footprints on the beach - a sign that no other visitors were here when we arrived. We had the beach to ourselves!
View of lush green mountain of Gota Island
After spending three nights in El Nido, it's quite sad to accept the fact that we were leaving this paradise very soon. The worst part of a great trip is to leave the place you fell in love with. We bade goodbye to El Nido but the good part was leaving to explore another Palawan's wonder - the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park - which is a natural world heritage site.
The entrance to the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park
Yes, this photo reminds me of the folk tale our kindergarten and elementary Filipino teachers used to read to us in school. The Tortoise and The Monkey (Ang Pagong at ang Matsing) was a creation of Dr. Jose Rizal, the national hero of the Philippines, which reflects Rizal's affection and compassion for the youth. The story was also published in a London magazine in 1889. For those who haven't heard about or forgot this story already, you can read it here. :-)
Lahos was the first island that we visited on our first day of Caramoan island hopping tour. Lahos island is part of the short trip since it's located along with other islands and islets in the southern part of Caramoan Peninsula. They are quite close from Paniman beach, which is one of the jump-off points for island hopping.
It was almost 12 noon when we left Paniman. The sun was on its highest and we couldn't wait to get in the small motorized boat. Kuya Ramil and his grandson were our tour guides slash boat men. En route to Lahos island, we enjoyed the scenic view of limestone karst and lush green mountains.
Bohol was my first major travel destination this year that triggered the travel bug in me. This was also my first time to visit Bohol. The world famous Chocolate Hills and tarsiers are among the local attractions that made me eager to visit this island in Central Visayas. I only used to see them on post cards and textbooks at school, and it's great to finally see them up close!
Back in February, planning a trip like this was quite new to me. We were supposed to leave everything to a travel agency but, in the end, decided to do the itinerary and booking by ourselves. I realized that we could save a lot! Also, going on a trip using an orbitz coupon can give us more savings.
View of Tagbilaran City from the airplane
Visitors trek to the peak of Kiltepan Mountain in Sagada to witness an amazing view of the sunrise. It was raining the night before our climb to the peak and we were told that our chance of seeing the sunrise was very slim.
Little is known about Caramoan Peninsula until the international show Survivor picked some of its islands as the location for different Survivor series. It has gained media attention and eventually more local and international tourists are drawn to this hidden paradise in Camarines Sur.
Caramoan Peninsula is composed of several islands and islets that are accessible by boat from Caramoan Island. There are two jump-off points, Paniman Beach and Bikal Port, where you can rent a motorized boat to take you to some of these islands. After our arrival and a quick lunch at the Caramoan town, we immediately headed to Paniman Beach for our island hopping adventure.
From Centro, it takes about 40 minutes to get to Paniman Beach. Kuya Ramil arranged a tricycle to take us to the site. There's no route transportation going there so you will need to rent a tricycle or habal-habal depending on the number of persons in your group. We paid PhP300 for a round trip fare.
Rough road to Paniman Beach
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)