Valentine Weekend in El Nido, Palawan <3

“It’s gonna be MAY” as JT said, and here I am still posting backlogs from February. It’s better late than never!

Back in February, aside from Boracay island (which I’ve been to several times already), I went to a place people say the best island for lovers/honeymooners. I am not really sure why they call it that, but yeah I went there to spend the valentine weekend with the people I love. I definitely enjoyed the adventure, the challenges on reaching this place to another, the snapping of photos, the beautiful sights of sun and beach, the sumptuous food, the ice cold beer, and of course the great memories shared with friends. People, let’s go see the wonders of El Nido, Palawan!

The arrival. We can’t let go the night without a buzz of alcohol so we went around town to get one. Thanks Watering Hole for saving the night!

Gearing up for the island tours!

Hidden Beach

View from Talisay Beach where we also had our lunch.

The famous photo ops spot of El Nido. View from Matinloc Shrine’s cliff

More of Matinloc shrine’s limestone.

The Valentine’s dinner/ drinking session/ “mind games.” Lols. Yes we all wore white.

More sights of El Nido for day-two island tours! Hello Mr. Sun, finally!

View from Shimizu Island. Beach bumming and lunch!

More from Shimizu Island

The ride.

Small Lagoon’s limestone.

More boat rides, more great sights.

Somewhere near Big Lagoon. lol

Palawan experience won’t be complete without Tamiloc! Early dinner in Kinabuchs before heading back Manila. Save the best for last!

El Nido buddies! ❤

PS: I was not able to take photos on some islands and/or lagoons, because I was too scared that my camera will suddenly go swimming with me. I swear I’m kinda bad in balance. So there. 🙂

Batanes, Twice The Fun

January was a pretty busy month for me – Busy travelling lol. I went to one place though, but did it twice. The place is that beautiful which made me not think twice in spending again to visit the place the second time. I even know a lot of people who wants to visit the place because of its marvelous view and rich culture. However, going here via regular plane ticket is quite pricey so I feel very lucky to be knowing about the seat sale for this trip. I definitely enjoyed the whole experience being in this place – humble and warm people, new set of friends, magnificent view, even the flight cancellation going back Manila! It was all wild but worth it. Friends, let me show you the great sights of Batanes.

Mt. Carmel Chapel

Fundacion Pacita Nature Lodge

Valugan Boulder Beach

Vayang Rolling Hills

Basco Lighthouse in Naidi Hills

Sunset viewing in Basco Lighthouse

Faluwa boat ride to Sabtang Island. Wild.

Sabtang port

Chamantad-Tinyan Viewpoint

Brgy. Chavayan Stone Houses. With some new-found-friends in Batanes 🙂

Wearing a Vakul

Chawa View Deck

Mahatao Boat Shelter Port

San Carlos Borromeo Church – UNESCO World Heritage Site

Racuh a Payaman (Marlboro Hills)

Met a very cute and clingy cat on the vast fields of Marlboro Hills

Alapad Hills and Rock Formation

Song-Song Ruins

Biking in Basco Airport runway!

Yellow rice and Paco. My favorite Ivatan food

My Batanes Buddies – the second time around. 🙂

Let’s Go Palaui!

Earlier this month, I went to another beautiful place here in my beloved country, the Philippines. A roughly thirteen-hour drive from Manila, this paradise located in the north-eastern tip of Luzon has a lot to offer to back-packers, beach bums, and adventure seekers. Everyone, have a peek of the wonderful Palaui Island in Cagayan, Philippines.

The breathtaking view after the 7KM trek

 

View from Cape Engano.

 

Batil Patong, A local specialty.

 

Endless fields of Cagayan.

 

Crossing Palaui Island

 

Meet the cutest guide in the island, Tour Guide (Yes, that’s his name)

 

Puso making 101

 

Crossing the hanging bridge of Lagunzad Trail

Our group took the 7KM trail to conquer the beautiful views of the island. The kilometers didn’t seem that hard because of the countless things you could find during the trek – flowers, plants, trees, species, views. Epic.

The good-smelling flower

 

Delish fruit, mulberry

 

The mangroves

 

Pretty-looking tree 1

 

Pretty-looking tree 2

 

Dos Hermanos Islands

 

That tiny frog

 

Look at that gorgeous waves

 

Inception-like view lol

 

Cape Engano

 

Look outside – from the cape.

 

Conquering Palaui!

 

My Palaui buddies aka #TeamMarina 🙂

Photo 1: The Pagudpud Escapade

Last weekend was a blast!

At last, the very much awaited summer outing with my college friends finally materialized last weekend in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte. Though only five of us went there, it still turned out to be an unforgettable experience.

Here are the reasons why that trip will remain unforgettable:

1. Bought my new buddy Konichiwa specially planned for this occasion – a new Nikon D3000. At last!

2. It’s been quite a while since I last saw my college friends (and house mates). Meeting them again and sharing the best times over a beach outing is perfect.

3. It was the longest trip I have ever took riding a bus. After that trip, I swear I feel my entire back is nothing but a swollen butt.

4. The place is nothing but beauty. I just wish we had a lot of time to go around the town.

5. …And many more. Sorry, no punchline or at least a climax on this top reasons. 😀

Here, let me share with you some photos we took during our weekend vacation.

This picture reminds me a lot of stickiness going on. Hot weather, and no taking-a-bath session yet after a verrrry loooong drive.

This photo embodies a politician here in the Philppines. I remember taking a shot of this wind turbine saying “…alagang Bongbong”

This resort is the best. This place served as our home in Pagudpud.

The Lighthouse (Cape Bojeador) was the next best thing I have seen in Ilocos Norte.  Too bad, we were not able to go the topmost part because the caretaker went through some issues when we went there.

I am not sure what river is this. I just took a photo of it the last minute. This was the last shot I took on our way back in Manila.

There you go. I think this vacation allowed me to appropriately say “Short but sweet!”