Good evening everybody! I tried downloading the app for blogger and I just want to try it. Sometimes I am too damn lazy to open my laptop. So why not blog on your phone! Anyways. I had a shoot earlier for Sir Jay's house blessing and his son's birthday. His newly built house is really amazing!
I really love his music room where he keeps his guitars, amps and pedals. That rack over there where he hangs his guitars is pretty amazing! Did you know that Sir Jay makes and designs guitars? Oh yes! That guitar on left, he made it! Its like a Gibson SG design on a fender strat body. Thats craftsmanship. He also makes pedal amps. Sir Jay is a member of the band Overtone and he plays the guitars. A damn good one. He is actually my boss when I was working at Ensogo and SBM.
Also, its his son's birthday. It had a Roblox theme which is pretty cool though! Look at thos cupcakes. Looks good. They also have candies! A lot of candies to choose from!
And the Food was great! I really love the pasta and the roast beef and the Crispy Pata! So good! Went 2 times actually with a full plate! Damn full! Just look for Majesto Food Catering. They are based at the south.
I really love driving at Skyway 3. Its expensive but it gets you to south really fast! Imagine my travel from Commonwealth all the way to southwoods is just an hour and 30 mins?! And im driving just under 80.
What a day. My friend saw me at SLEX and took a picture of me driving... Snob daw ako. hahaha. Anyways, i just wanna try this app and i think if its good, im blogging this way na.
Can you imagine going to a place 16 times! Yes that many. Theres something about this place that keeps me coming back. It's simply beautiful. Welcome to the island of Calaguas in Camarines Norte. Before anything else, I would like to say sorry for the people who follow this blog. I actually don't know if theres any... Hahaha but any way im sorry its been a while. Imagine my last post was 2 years ago! I had a blog post about my trip to Siargao. That was the last. Pandemic came and suddenly my world stopped. All my trips got cancelled. All those events gone. Basically im just stuck at home doing nothing. But i didnt even wrote a single blogpost. What have I been doing? Sleeping mostly. So here we are now. Blabbing again!
This is actually my 3rd Calaguas trip of the year! It wouldnt be possible without my good friend Paps Dhenver of AutoConnect Transport Services for hooking me up for this trip. Also to Josh of El Viajeros Travel and Tours who coordinates trips to Calaguas. Thank you sobra! There wer so many new things in Calaguas after the pandelmic. It recently openned its doors around feb this year. You can see a lot of changes! Camarines Norte tourism made sure that Calaguas should be rehabilitated. So they cleaned the beach bigtime. They made sure that theres order in maintaining the island and not turning it into a cesspool like kinda place like.. Boracay. So they made sure that crowd control must be enforced. You cannot cross Calaguas Island without registering your name at the Tourism office in Daet. You must first coordinate to your local trip coordinator for you to submit your valid ID and Vaccine Card. Once you're cleared, you can now sign to the manifest and go on to your trip. Now, the jump of point to Calaguas has a new port called Centennial Wharf!
Its a brand new port in Bagasbas, Daet Camarines Norte. It is way much better than the old Vinzons Port. This one is a brand spanking new. Its not fully built yet. Construction is still going on. Soon there will be restaurants there. I even saw a hotel by the side. And probably more restrooms to shower at after that long trip from the island. You can also park you car, your van here . Its much safer. Much cleaner. I just dont know if its free.
If you're planning to visit Calaguas, please do consider contacting El Viajeros Travel. Look for Josh. Good quality service. They serve great food and will take care pretty much of everything. This year, I have been to Calaguas three times already all assisted by El Viajeros. Many thanks also to Auto Connect Transport most specially to Kuya Dhenver.
This is the place where we stayed. Calaguas Paradise Resort. Unlike before, you can pitch your tent anywhere you wish. Now, there are protocols that you should pitch your tent inside the resort. Good thing this resort has a wide space to pitch your tent. They also have a decent bathroom. You can also avail their Aircon villas depending on how many are you. Fan villas and open cabanas are also available.
an areal shot of Calaguas. Again, if you want to take a photo of the beach, take it during high noon. Because thats the time the waters is at its bluest. Its really an amazing site to see. Just looking at it makes me want to look back.
nothing really special here. Just me :P So there it is. My 3rd calaguas trip this year. Its quite an experience! I really enjoyed it so much. The other guests were really friendly. They brought a lot of booze! Jack , Johnny and Jose were always present. Alfonso and Miguel were there as well. We were all hammered that night. It was fun. Always remember to book your trip 3 days 2 nights. Coz 1 night is not enough i tell you. After all that long travel, its not worth it to end it real quick! 3 days is fine.
It rained that night. Somehow disappointed because I really want to take a photo of the Milky Way. Why? Its just, shooting a galaxy in a place free from pollution is really something. So when it began raining, hassle naman. Then suddenly, it stopped! Sky was clear! I took out my small tripod and went to the darkest part of the beach. Free from light. Took my trusty camera and set it to 30 seconds long exposure at iso 1000. Set it to the widest aperture my lens can do w/c is 2.0 and there it is.... Love it.
I just want to leave you with a video that I made. enjoy!
Areal shot of cloud 9 taken at 600 feet around 6 in the morning
At first I thought it was all hype. All of them said that its one of the best place to go. You can see it on vlogs. Instagram posts. Facebook. Celebrities flock. Some even moved in for good. I thought it was all hype! And I was wrong. Siargao is truly one of the best attractions, Philippines has to offer. I was hooked by Siargao's Magic!
Never had a chance to surf. Imagine I went to Siargao and didnt surf? Stupid me.
This is the famous Cloud 9. Its the popular surf spot where surfers from beginners to pro athletes go. Young, old. As long as surfing is in your blood, this is the place. This is the sanctuary. I have my drone with me that time and I really wanted to take a photo of the place from top. I flew for about 600 feet and took a shot. It was really breath taking. I never saw Cloud 9 anything like it. You can see the waves crashing as surfers go crazy attacking it. I never had a chance to surf though due to the tight sked we had. But i did tried something better!
Im just so happy i rode a bike again. Now Im having thoughts to buy a motorcycle
I rode a motor bike! Its been a while since I rode one. The last time was when I was still in Highschool and Im just riding mountain bikes ever since. I was really anxious and I had that fear I may crash. Then that quote hit my head saying " Everything that you ever wanted is on the other side of fear ". So there. Right at that moment I was cruising!
Bike has no registration. 1st ticket in Siargao. Ride impounded
We travelled almost 50 kms all over Siargao with our bikes! One of the most unforgettable moment was we were riding early evening and its dark. You can see coconut trees on your left and coconut trees on your right. And theres this one straight road ahead and theres the moon shining at its fullest and its brightest in top of the road. Too bad i never had a chance to take a photo. Its all in my head now.
The calm after the storm. Wer just so happy our trip was smooth even after the storm.
When we arrived in Siargao, it was raining. There was actually a typhoon and our departure flight from Clark actually got cancelled. We actually lost one day of vacation. Well, theres nothing you can do for things you cant control. And its better to be safe than sorry. Good thing my brother, Kuya Bam and his wife Ate Ley opened their doors for us and let us stayed at their home for the night. Early next day, we went on our trip to Siargao.
The rocks are so sharp its hard to move around.
We went to the famous Mangpupungko Rock Pools! Its like 30Kms away from the main city of General Luna. It was a long ride. It was fun though. I havent cruised that far using a motor bike. We arrived at the place and there was time restrictions when to enter and went to get out.
This place is jampacked with people!
The pools are only swimmable during low tide. If the tides hit, its gonna be nasty. Coz the rocks, corals there are razor sharp. I swam a little. But my main concern is again to take photo of the place. Its really beautiful from the top. Im just glad i have a drone to capture this images. Im so happy. Weather was really nice as well. Bright and sunny.
This place is best probably for a pre wedding venue
We went to this place called Corregidor Island in Dapa, Surigao del Norte. Its really amazing coz you can see the rolling hills! Its a beautiful place. It has grass not that tall. You can see cows grazing. Its kinda like Batanes actually...
Thats nico and ara sweet-sweetan sa damuhan
Theres a little trek though I don't mind. Its good exercise actually. I really like the slight breeze... what I dont like is when the sun is out, there is no shade so good luck getting your skin burned. Its all worth it though.
Im not sure if this island goes underwater during lowtide. Probably. Sobrang init dito.
We also went to this place called the Naked Island. You dont have to get naked to go there unless u want to... haha. The island has no trees whatsoever so goodluck getting toasted. You can swim there. You can also snorkel around if you want to. Its one of those destinations if you pay for island hopping. This photo is actually unedited. It came straight out of the drone.
I really wanted to swim during this times kaso sobrang init! Kumain na lang ako. Haha
Then we went to Daku Island to get some lunch. The island is a long stretch of white sand beach! Its really beautiful. Theres cottages there to hang out. The locals serve lunch there. They prepare it there as well.
This is too much effort! We were staring at Kuya Tata kung kelan ba sya matatapos. Haha
I would like to take this opportunity to give thanks and promote "The Best Siargao Tour Guide " led by Kuya Tata who organised our island hopping trip and also prepared this amazing lunch for us. Search them at facebook.
A photo with Kuya Tata. He's the guy to bump into if you want to go around the island.
Just look for Kuya Tata thebestsiargaotourguide on IG. Amazing isnt it. We had fish, BBQs, shrimps, kebabs and fruits for dessert. So good! Diet ruined. Haha.
Guyam Island! An island with the best Mango Graham shakes! Tattoed in my head
This is Guyam Island! We stayed for here for a while and had snacks. Tried one of the best Mango Graham shake I ever had. Swam a little. And yes took photos of the island.
Im dreaming of this right now.
The shake is so good. Really refreshing. According to "ate", this is their best seller. So i tried it and true enough it speaks for itself. For hundred pesos (around $2) for a glass, its really good. You have to try it once you visit the island.
At first I wanted a shot with no people in it but it wouldnt be that interesting.
We also went to Maasin River! The famous river where you swing around a coconut tree like tarzan onto the river. I saw kids doing 360 dives up there! Its really amazing. You can actually ride a raft here and paddle your way and explore the river. Due to lack of time and its getting dark, we skipped that part and moved on to the next spot...
I forgot to mention that this place has a lot of beautiful ladies.
Sugba Lagoon is one of the most visited place in Siargao. There, you can jump of a 15 foot high plank, paddle the kayak, go snorkling..
I envy people who can float at their backs. Hindi ako marunong eh.
Since its a lagoon and the place is surrounded with small islands, the water is very calm. We have to cut short our time there because its getting dark and the place is about to close. We really had fun there..
I forgot the name of this island. Will edit as soon as I remember. :P
If ever im going back to siargao, im gonna buy another gwapitos shirt and go surf.
I really miss this place. If I ever I have a chance to go back, i'd definitely would. What I like about Siargao is the people. Everyone is smiling. Everyone is chill. It has a pretty laid back environment. I also love the food. Its very diverse. The place is packed with foreigners a lot of the locals serve different kinds of food. I also like Siargao being traffic free unlike here in Manila. Its really fun riding a bike there. One of those things that I really enjoy.
Here in Manila, 1 liter of Red Horse is already priced at 200 pesos. Its absurd.
Best part doing in Siargao is drinking at the beach. Listening to the sound of the waves as you finish that bottle. Staring at the sea. Burying your feet into the sand. Lying down at the sand. Looking at a gazillion stars. Watching it fall. Simple things that you dont do in the city.
Everytime I look at my own pic I laugh.
I really love travelling. If I have a ton of money in the world you wont see me in one place for a really long time. Id probably go travel around the world. See different cultures. Eat different kinds of dishes. I never wished of anything else actually. I just wanna go around. I promised to myself after the quarantine, I'd go travelling. As of now, out of the 82 provinces in the Philippines, ived been to 40 of them. Thats almost half. Im hopeful to have more projects in the future. Projects that would set my foot to different places.
Yessss the travel group. More lakwatsas to all of us after quarantine!
Shout out to my friends who were with there with me. From right thats Dan, Nico, Ara, PV , me.. then Mark and Meg. Thanks guys! Lets do this again! Where next??? We really had a blast out there in Siargao. I cant wait to go back. They say that its better to wander when you are able.
When we go old, we might lose that chance. Thank you for reading. Its quite long. hehe
Siquijor, my province, after all these years, is getting better and better. Its even better from the last time I came home. Its been 5 years from my last visit and I saw a lot of changes. One of the many things that never changed is the province's cleanliness. Photo on top is from Talingting where a lone tree stands by the white sand beach. This is just beside the road.
You can see the pier so clean. The port itself has crystal blue waters. Looking at these is pretty much amazing if you can ask me. Ived been travelling around the country and this is probably the only pier with such blue water. Usually its filthy.
This is actually my first time to ride a van, rolled on to a boat and shipped from Dumaguete to Siquijor. Usually we just ride the tricycle and go straight at my Lola's house in Larena. But this time since we brought lola from Manila, we made sure she's all comfy sitting from the van. We rented this brand new Toyota Hi Ace Grandia from Dumaguete and we rolled on rolled off to Siquijor Island.
First stop is the town of Siquijor. We had brunch their and visited one of the oldest church in town, the St. Francis of Asisi Church. They renovated the church. The roof has new paint and the landscaping is really nice. Place is really clean as well. No rubbish or leaves scattered around. Its just perfect.
This is the first Jollibee in Siquijor. Change is inevitable. If you can notice, there are a lot of tourists around. I heard that it is one of the main income of the province. Thats why big companies are starting to creep in to our humble island. I am somehow afraid and happy for this. Im scared coz it can drive the small business away. The good thing is that it can generate a lot of jobs in the island. Shortly after our visit, the 1st McDonalds openned. I saw a branch of Nuat Thai, a branch of Mang Inasal and a few more sprouting within the island.
As we were driving around, we stopped by Siquijor Island's airport which is undergoing construction. As of now, small planes can land here. By the administration's build build build project, sooner than you think we can have direct flights from Manila going to Siquijor.
We visited the famous Cambugahay Falls. Its very majestic! This place is really packed with tourists! From americans to itallians to Chinese and Koreans, you name it they are all here enjoying the fresh natural waters. I gave it a shot to swim and yes its deep alright. Around 10 feet or more i guess.
They even made rope swings around so you can Tarzan your way to the waters! That is me photographed by one of the locals. It is one of the highest rope swings there and I just gave it a shot. I did like 10 times and on that day my whole body is like aching. I even bruised my knee all the way to my hip because of bad landings and a lot of face plants!
We checked in at Coco Grove Beach Resort. This is my 2nd time there and it became bigger! I just love this place. Its vey cozy. Staff is really nice. It has big rooms. And the pool has a bar beside it. You can actually drink a margarita while in the pool. Its really nice.
One thing that this place lacks is golf carts for senior citizens to go around. And also a faster wifi. Actually internet is one of the islands problems. Not all parts of siquijor has a signal. Some places have really weak signals down to zero at all. But I heard there are plans to build more cell sites around the island.
This is the famous Salagdoong Beach. A lot of tourists flock here as well. You can enjoy its white sand beach and also they made rock slides and cliff diving spots here.
Too bad the weather is really bad and its prohibited to jump. The weather is pretty bad that time and the waves is just that strong. I managed to climb over the ledge and just took a photo whats it like.
One thing that I miss eating in the island is this. Its the meat of a Sea Urchin. This is a local delicacy here in Siquior. Its quite salty and creamy. You have to eat this real quick because it can spoil really fast. In manila, you can find this in japanese restaurants and its called U-ni.
Out on the beach, i lay down by the wooden benches and suddenly I noticed a foreign lady picking up trash swept by the waves. I was like, wow. Instead of her lounging around during her vacation she managed to pick trash during her free time.
Theres always time to get crazy. The island is known for its witches, sorcery and mystical things. A lot of people are skeptical with these kinds of things and that includes me. If ever riding a broom to work will definitely ease traffic in EDSA.
I even bought some island souveneirs. If only these things work, Joyce Pring is probably my girlfriend now. Unfortunately, you have to get girls the old fashion way. Not thru sorcery.
If you happen to visit the island, go to to Kanheron Ranch. Its like a bar but theres a museum inside it. You can see different kinds of antiques there! Theres even a 15 foot swimming pool where you can dip in in case you want to go for a swim. Its like a taste of Texas when you go there.
We visited the old Lazi Church. Its newly renovated! You can see the newly painted roof. Some new bricks installed. I believe the church was damaged from the recent earthquake and typhoons. The local government spearheaded the renovation of this century old, world renowned church.
As we go back home, im starting to miss it already. If I am given a chance to stay and live at the island, I would love to. Theres no traffic. Theres no pollution. Its peaceful. Life is very simple. Unlike here in Manila, its chaos. You try to go somewhere or simply just go to work you will face the horrible EDSA traffic. The hustle at the MRT and basically the hard life of the metro. I really miss the island life. How I wish I can go back.
I want to share this video that I made. Sorry im still new at this and still learning. I would like to thank my ate hazel and my auntie ceding for bringing us back. They basically shouldered all the expenses and we are forever grateful. Thank you so much. To the drivers and to the staffs of the hotels we'ved been to. Coco Grove thank you. Southville Guesthouse thank you! To all the people all the people who helped us and helped our lola go back and visit her home town. Maraming salamat po!
