A week before our trip, Metro Manila was flooded because of typhoon Ondoy. Never have I seen so much water in the streets in my twenty-ish years of existence. It was really sad that a lot of people were put in danger, their houses and properties destroyed. But despite all this, I have seen a hope for our country—a people power of a different kind manifested itself.  Ordinary people suddenly became heroes, risking life and limb for complete strangers.  It’s nice to know that even if natural disasters can’t be avoided, you can always count on the spirit of bayanihan to help you get through the storm.

That week came to pass, and yet another storm was brewing… I’d fear that the country hasn’t recovered yet and here we had another typhoon coming. I was worried too that our trip to Coron would be cancelled. Darn it.  I waited a long time for this trip since we booked our flight way back March –thanks to the Cebu Pacific Promo!  I was happy to know that Ondoy is leaving the country, but alas, that happiness didn’t last long since a new typhoon was coming! Pepeng or Parma which is expected to be worse than Ondoy will be in Manila on the day of our flight. That really sucks. Luckily (not entirely) it switched into a different direction. Thus it did not hit Manila. So, we still took the flight.

I was relieved when we arrived in Busuanga, it was like summer! So sunny,  we experienced slight showers but generally the weather was perfect  for a vacation. We arranged a van to get us to Coron (Php 150.00 per pax). It took around 45 minutes to 1hour travel time from the airport to our destination.

Things to do in Coron

Actually, we haven’t set any plans on what to do when we got there. We asked our van driver on where we should go, and we just went to the places he mentioned.

Go Hiking at Mt. Tapyas

I am not sure about the history of the name of the mountain because I don’t have any reliable sources, but judging from its slight cut at the top I would assume it’s why they called it “tapyas(cut or chip)..” It’s  700 steps from the foot of the mountain up to the peak.

You would see the entirety of Coron at the top. I was slightly worried about my prior knee injury but, urgh, whatever! I’m decided to climb this hill! Haha! The effort was very well worth it!

It’s was so nice to see everything from that height. It was an astounding view of the scenery plus the scent of fresh green grass, oh it was so blissful!

Relax at Maniquit Hot Spring

After hiking, we went to the Maniquit Hot Spring (30 to 45 minutes travel time from the town proper) to relax our weary feet. Going down the steps was quite difficult for me. My knees were really shaking. Entrance fee cost us around Php 100.00. They gave discounts to students and senior citizens. It was really hot! I have been to hot springs, but with this one, you have to slowly adapt with the heat. They said that the water came from a volcano, so that may help explains the ultra hot temperature and the sulfuric smell. It was relaxing but I noticed that hot waters kind of affected our breathing. And I felt tired afterwards. After being immersed for 20 minutes, I laid my back on the edge. It felt so good!

What else?! Island Hopping!!!!

I was really really excited with this one! The guest house owner, Patrik has a boat for rent and I think he’s got the cheapest rates in town.

We went to Siete Pecados (fee: 100.00 each) for snorkeling. My bf and I tried to get near in one of the islands but when we got there, I got scared cause there might be a sea snake so we went back right away. Haha! There were lots of fish there! We took some slices of loaf bread  so that the fish will come nearer from where we were. It was really fun and I enjoyed a lot cause a lot of cute fishes came around me and just a few moments later, bigger fish (about the size of tilapia) was already swarming all over! I really got scared and went to the boat as fast as I can! Whew!

We went to the Blue Lagoon. I said to myself, “God has wonderfully created these islands!” Lime stones were beautifully hewn and the plants accessorized it plus the clear blue waters made it even more beautiful! I was stricken with awe.

Sorry for the digression. This is where you get dropped off to hike going to the Kayangan Lake ( fee: 200.00 each). There was a short briefing that explained some tribal ritual and beliefs of the Tagbanua tribe (early dwellers of Palawan). It is here that we were told of the four lakes in the Calamian group of islands. One lake was believed to have a barracuda and only professional divers were allowed there. The biggest lake  was believed to have a giant octopus living in it! And they would only allow divers to explore the lake only if they were given the blessing of the Tagbanuas.

We also went to Twin Lagoon ( fee: 100.00 each) where in you can only pass by swimming. since the tide is high, we have to swim underwater to get to the lagoon. We decided not to go because some of us can’t swim without vest.

One of the best beaches I have been to is the Banol Beach( fee: 100.00 each). The water was so clear and the sand was really fine. Plus I found the place to be quite safe cos I didn’t feel strong currents that pull you away from the shore.

Hike to Concepcion Falls

Yes, we really did a lot of island hopping and it’s really really tiring but really worth it. We were supposed to go to Banana Island but the tide is high so we decided to go somewhere else. We decided to explore around the area. the van driver Kuya Raffy, advised us to go to Concepcion falls. we hired the van for Php 2500.00. travel time is around 2 hours of rough drive.

It wasn’t a really big kind of falls and it’s not even famous among Coron travelers.  It was quaint, but I really found it really beautiful. The water was cold and clear, it relaxed our muscles. After swimming, we stopped at a view deck to have a few shots taken and, of course, soak up more the beauty of Coron. Definitely, one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been to.

Food and Pasalubong

Coron town is very friendly for tourists, especially the prices of necessities. Food is relatively cheap compared to other tourist destinations. You can have a meal for as low as  Php 50.00. Mang Joe’s Tapa is the best. It’s just at the corner of the town proper.

Palawan is known for

• Cashew Nuts
• Seafoods
• Yummy seaweeds

Must Haves

There were lots of mosquitoes, so it would be a good idea to bring lots of insect-repellant lotion. You should also bring umbrella (during this season)  As in the duration of our stay, we had at least 2 showers a day.

Where to stay

I’d  like to take this oppurtinity to  thank Timi for referring us to Patrik’s Guesthouse. Thank You Timi!

Try staying at Patrik’s guesthouse. It’s really reasonably priced but cozy and clean. it’s not air conditioned but it’s really cold during the night because the house is by the bay.  For more informantion visit http://swewa.net/

For van rental  contact Kuya Raffy(09085661749).  He’s very nice and he’s rate is a bit cheaper than the usual rates there.

Up to now, my parents always tell tales about the EDSA Revolution and how they carried me with them and rallied among other Filipinos fighting for democracy. How the late Aquinos have fought against  dictatorship and for our rights.  I was like 3months old that time. Almost every girl on their picture wears pink but me as a kid, almost all my stuff were yellow. Growing up with Aquino supporter parents, even my first birthday was yellow-themed, and I always smile with the “Laban” sign in pictures. My parents never fail to tell us about the heroism of Ninoy and Cory everytime our discussion ends up with Martial law.

It was a very shocking news when I heard that President Cory Aquino died last Saturday.  It was kind of sad because the woman that we always lookup to is gone and yet somehow peaceful in a way because everyday,  I can hear from the radio that she is having a hard time.

It‘s a good thing that Wednesday, was declared a holiday and I get the chance to at least pay respect to her by waiting for funeral cortège and at least say a little prayer.  Even just waiting at the Quirino Avenue, I saw in my own eyes that Filipinos have not forgotten what she had done for us. It felt as if I was in EDSA (though I can’t remember. I was so little that time)

Everyone was patiently waiting for her cortège and some are giving away free yellow ribbons.  Everytime a part of the cortege pass, it’s like everyone knew each other.

Exchange of smiles and signs of “Laban” is what I witnessed. I have never seen such respect given to anyone. Really, she doesn’t need a state funeral. It is very clear that her greatness is very much appreciated.

It’s just sad because there are always opportunist that make use of these moments in a bad way. AKBAYAN,  Rissa Hontivero’s Party list was so disrespectful. Her party came with a very big banner that instead of saying good stuff for the late president, there they were using the chance to protest to GMA. I don’t like GMA either but they should have chosen another time and not during a solemn funeral.  That is just unethical. She even went to the burial (I saw on TV).

In my heart, I will always remember that if it wasn’t because of President Cory Aquino,  we never had the democracy that we are enjoying right now. Let’s not forget to fight for our right just like she did.  She had lived as an example of selflessness and  courage. Thank You President Cory.

How long has it been since I last time posted? Well I am really sorry for the overlong hiatus. I was so busy at work and short weekend trips that’s why I don’t get the chance to update lakwatsera that much.

Just this last Independence day me and bf decided to go on a picnic. We found something on the net that says Buruwisan Falls is 15-20mins trek. Oh it was a serious joke. We went to Siniloan and bought our packed lunch on a picnic bag, everything was perfect. Just until we arrived and realized that we are going to climb a mountain. We were shocked but since we were already there, we decided to go.

A mountaineer couple kindly agreed to accompany us on our hike since it’s our first time and its very likely that we might get lost inside the forest. So while walking we were talking about the place and they have told us that it will likely take us 2 hours to get to the falls. And the best of it was we are actually climbing.  I am seriously in trouble! I lack exercise and just recovered from the miniscal tear. We are just starting the hike when I started to get exhausted. I felt like I was going to collapse so we took a break and since we don’t want to bother the couple we told them to go on without us and we’ll be having a rest. I was on the midst of giving up when a man with a horse (he was supposed to harvest coconuts) came and we asked if I could ride in it. So we made a deal. For 200pesos one way he accompanied us on our destination. Oh thank God! The deal was actually cheap it was a very hard course for me. Good thing my bf was a CAT officer back in highschool and he is so used to such physical challenges.

We passed through 2 mountains and four nipa hut stop overs. Even riding a horse was not really comfy it was like I am riding a mechanical bull. plus, I could actually feel the horse sweating and that made me feel sorry for the her.  Whew! Finally, kuya freddy the horse owner said that we have arrived so we got our stuff and find a place to picnic. While checking out the perimeter we found no falls it’s just a plain river. Oh dear. So we tried to find the way to get to the falls. And there it was, we found it. It was a very narrow kinda like a stairway of roots and rocks. So again another climb, but this time it was more difficult. We felt like Indiana Jones and Tomb Raider going on adventure.

Alas we found the falls. It was so beautiful, and so relaxing. The sound of the water falling down was music to my ears. We felt a bit relieved, looked for a place to put our stuff, took a rest and ate lunch (Tuna Pesto! Yum yum!).

And enjoyed the relaxing view and dipped in the ice cold water. Thing is when you actually dip in a cold water it relaxes your muscles. It was like a spa after all the hard work. Yay!

We were able to talk to the campers there and they said that there are more adjacent falls to it. Around four. (A reason to go back and this time all set for camping!)  we were so tired that we didn’t dare to go the other falls. We promised ourselves we are going back to this place.

How to go to Buruwisan Falls

There are actually two routes that I learned.

The one we took was the one that passes to  Antipolo. We rode a bus at Raymond Transit Going to Famy. The other route is you have to ride a bus going to Sta.Cruz Laguna. From Sta.Cruz, you’ll ride a jeep going to Siniloan then go to Famy.
From Famy, you will ride a tricycle and say you are going to Buruwisan Falls, they will drop you to the start of trek. Around 15-20mins walk until you arrived at the registration area and you have to pay around 20.00. Good thing about the registration is that in case you got lost or whatever, they can track you.

Tips and tricks

It’s a camping trip so you have to travel light as much as possible.

Bring Food. There is a store there but I don’t think you’ll find everything you need in there. They sell more alcohol that water.

If you are not so particular with drinking water just bring chlorine tablets. It’s a big hassle to actually bring loads of stuff. But you can always hire a horse to carry your luggage.

Lakwatsera’s Budget

Bus fare 2ways (Raymond Transit)- 400.00
Tricycle – 20.00 – 40.00
Registration fee – 20.00
Horseback ride (2ways) – 400.00

Probably one of the easily-accessible weekend getaway from Manila is Subic. With the SCTEX available, the usual 3.5-4 hours travel time is cut to just 2.5 hours. Subic is a part of Zambales and when you hear Subic you are most likely reminded of ports, duty free shops and beach. But Subic is more that that. There are really loads of activities that you can do around the area. Thing is you should have a car.

My family decided to have a weekend vacay on Subic because my cousins’ summer vacation is about to end. Since my uncle has a membership in Subic Holiday Villas, we stayed there. The hotel is nice since it has a kitchen set where at least you can cook your food. We were left by our parents to of course enjoy the weekend together and have a nice bonding experience.

What To See:

Mangrove Trail

I recommend to those who loves strolling around the park.  Mangroves are plants or trees that grows in saline coasts (in short lives in sea water or even in the river) The park is just around 20 min walk and so full of lush greens. If you love photography, it’s a nice place to hold photoshoots.

Subic Beaches

Thing is I don’t like Subic Beaches much. But it’s still a beach and it’s always nice to walk barefoot on the shore while waiting for the sunset. Yay! And there are actually sports you can do around like kayaking, aqua cycling and jet ski.

Zoobic and Ocean Adventure

Visit the Ocean adventure to watch dolphin shows
And Zoobic Safari to see wild animals live.

What to do

Directions are available on the road and that everything is just inside the Freeport Zone

Shopping

Since Subic is where imported goods are. If you like Nike, Adidas, Samuel and Kevin, Crocs, Grendha they have a factory outlet that gives big discounts. And the chocolates! Yum yum!

Challenge yourself

Go Kart – try karting at  Php400.00 -10 laps in 30mins

Tree Top Adventure

challenge your fear of heights. I’ve been here twice and I enjoyed my stay. I tried the Superman and the Tree Drop Adventure. Superman is awesome but the Tree Drop really scared the hell out of me. I am really scared of falling.

Jungle Joe’s World

The hotel we stayed said that Joe’s world is only available from Thursday-Sunday but we were there on a Sunday but it is closed. Oh well what I heard is that they offer kiddie activities and paintball shooting

Learn how to survive on the jungle

Learn it all from JEST CAMP. The place is not really much developed. The maintenance wasn’t that good but what I liked about the place is that we learned a lot. Pay 100.00Php entrance fee and a jungle expert will demonstrate little-bits of  how you’ll be able to survive the jungle.

He even lit a fire using just bamboo. Oh darn I’ve been wanting to see it in my own eyes for a very long time. Haha. We are actually planing to go camping. You just have to be a group of 10 and each will pay Php600.00 for an overnight stay in the wild.(Sounds like so much fun!) and bring tent and food.

Good News!

I just saw somewhere around royal mall that there will be shuttle bus available that will stop on each destinations inside the Subic Freeport Zone. But I’m not sure if it’s already running.  So now you don‘t have to have a ride to see this nice places.

Everybody is out for vacation this holy week. But me, I just stayed home. Well not exactly at home. Haha.  Even before, we always stay at home to observe the Holy Week, I remembered when I was a child, we always go to my grandparents to sing “Pabasa” (a traditional singing of how Jesus has been put to death) and since they are already dead, no more of those singing stuff,  it’s just me, the tv, Dvds and my bed. A weekend of   movies and pigging out (we were supposed to be fasting).

I’m glad we still have one tradition. Bisita Iglesia. It is a Filipino custom to go to at least 12 churches and pray on each stations of the cross. At least I was able to get out. Argh!

Catholicism is one of the main contributions of the Spanish Occupation here in the Philippines. Because of these, churches here in Manila can be considered places of interests because its architecture has Classic European Influence.  Many of the Church were built hundreds of years ago but still looked magnificent.

Then just this last Saturday, I was supposed to do some bicycle exercise as part of my therapy. My bf and I went to CCP Complex in Roxas Blvd to go biking. But there were no bike rentals there anymore. So we decided to just walk around the area and took some photos.

Manila is the capital of the Philippines and belonged to NCR or National Capital Region which serves as the center of industrialization of our country. There are lots of interesting places that you can actually see here.

Before we go downtown, let’s start somewhere near out place, UST. The oldest, royal and pontifical University of Santo Tomas. I studied here in highschool and I would say,  the prettiest campus in town.

The Kilometer zero. Bagumbayan, now known as Rizal Park, where our National Hero Jose Rizal was shot to death.  Rizal Park has been a place for people who likes picnic. It is the prime park here in Manila. Aside from Jose Rizal, Lapu Lapu’s statue was also placed here donated by Koreans it is also the spot where the Gomburza was punished to death.

Intramuros or the walled city and what I considered closest to the beauty Vigan because of its Hispanic feel. I just love walking around here. Around the area is Fort Santiago, and of course my Alma Mater Mapua Institute of Technology along with other colleges. You can actually go up the wall and relax, watch golf and study (yeah right) oh well just bum around.

Fort Santiago is where Jose Rizal was detained before he was shot at Bagumbayan.

CCP Complex Harbor Square is a very silent area where you can jog, play badminton, do some yoga and whatnot. I was surprised that you could actually find something not so busy here in the city. You can see here the Manila Skyline. You can also do some cruisin around Manila Bay. 250.00/pax for a cruise, add another 250.00 for dinner. What a romantic way to spend your sunset with someone. Yay.

Even Before, Manila City Baywalk is famous for it’s beatiful sunset. It was a very long time since I last saw it there. Oh gosh it still awed me.

Even though I wasn’t able to go far this holy week I could still say that I had blast.

more photos at http://carlakatipunan.multiply.com/photos/album/139