On the northernmost part of Bicolandia is an unknown paradise that can rival the white sand beach of Boracay and the serenity of Pagudpud, still virgin and unexploited - the beautiful and enchanting islands of Calaguas.
Calaguas is a group of islands in the Pacific under the jurisdiction of the town of Vinzons, Province of Camarines Norte, a merely two hour boat ride from the mainland. It boasts of powdery white sand beaches, crystal-clear waters, and unspoiled natural resources, a place where you can truly relax while enjoying the beauty and serenity of the place.
The main island, named Mahabang Buhangin (Long Beach) by the locals, is a picture perfect paradise with its long stretch of white sand beach, the place is the most frequented camping and swimming site by tourists.
Discover Calaguas Islands, swim on its turquoise water, sit on its white sand, enjoy its magnificent view of sunset, explore its beauty... you'll definitely find a reason to be happy.
One of the fast rising tourist destinations in Central Luzon is the Mt. Pinatubo, the infamous volcano that had its catastrophic eruption in 1991 after centuries of dormancy. Its eruption is considered as the biggest and most destructive volcanic eruption in the recent years. It claimed hundreds of lives, displaced thousands of families, destroyed billions worth of crops and unknown to many, brought down the world temperature by a few centigrade.
Years after its tragic past, the volcano is slowly becoming a popular tourist spot, attracting many local and foreign tourists, myself included.
A day trek to Mt. Pinatubo was actually a great way to start my travel year 2009. Together with the Travel Factor guys, I braved one cold Sunday morning of January to trek the volcano. We left Manila around 3 in the morning and headed to Tourism Office in Barangay Sta. Juliana, Capaz, Tarlac, where we rode the 4x4 jeep via the skyway.
Dahil nasimulan na ni Ebet sa pagpopost ng classic TV commercial, makikigaya na din ako!
Kakaiba pa din talaga yung mga TV ads noong dekada 80. Mga nagmamarka talaga, isa na dito yung post Ebet na commercial ng Royal True Orange about kay Joey, pero kung meron mang tatlong commercial na nagmarka sa akin noong kabataan ko ito ay yung Sarsi: Angat sa Iba, Mga Batang Negros na info-ad ng ABS-CBN at ang Shining Through commerical ng Philippine Airlines.
Heto yung commercial ng Sarsi, kabisado ko pa din sya hanggang ngayon.
The Philippines sits amid the vast ocean with the highest concentration of marine life. In fact, we have here the center of the center of marine biodiversity. That is why it is a great opportunity to explore its underworld which is equally, if not more exciting than what it offers above sea.
Dahil nakapangako ako sa mga kaibigan kong humor bloggers na iboboto ko sila sa proyekto ni Badoodles, heto na ang boto ko sa para sa Project Lafftrip Laffapalooza 2008. Sana ay umabot pa ito:
Okay, nagkaroon na ako ng mga free time, and guess where I spend those... *dandandandan*- STUDYING!
Booo! Bago nyo ako sabihan na nerd, walang social life, walang magawa, eh nagkakamali kayo. Hindi ako nerd, may social life ako (marami), at marami akong magawa. I just feel like doing it to weigh things. i am currently self studyng .NET.
Well for those who do not know, I am in development. I started in mainframe, worked with Visual Basic 6, learned of PL/SQL and now coding J2EE applications. Hahaha! Weird di ba? Walang specialization, jack of all traits, master of non type. Ganun kasi ako, I enjoy learning things, then kapag alam ko na that's it, will try to learn something new.
Pero career wise, dapat talaga may specialization ka. Parang kung Java, magpakadalubhasa ka sa Java, at kung .Net , husayan mo ang .Net mo. Kaya ayun, inaaral ko ngayon ang .Net para lang maweigh kung saan talaga ang gusto ko. I've been coding VB apps for six years, and J2EE/J2SE for the last three years. Honestly mas at ease ako sa VB, so when I started studying .Net, parang ang dali dali, compare to my initial jumpstart session with Java.
So hayun na muna. Will definitely be busy these coming days. I need to catch up to a lot of things!
I realized I still need to catch up to a lot of things, I only have barely a month or two, and I am in a snail pace of accomplishing everything that needs to be accomplished. Well I blame all this to my internet addiction lately. Blogging, plurking, twitting (huh!?!), multiplying (huh again?!?), reading and responding to my emails, chatting (YM?!? okey, i am always hidden), surfing the net, reading so many forums and other online stuff. They are occupying a quite huge chunk of my daily routine pie chart and I have to control it before I see myself in another cramming situation, which I hate.
Okey, reality and time check. I am way behind my time line. So I'm dropping things one at a trime to focus on more important things. It's now or never Bleue, and like a friend said, 28 is a perfect number, so this should be a great time.
For now, bye plurk and twitter, I hope my internet life will decrease significantly. Okey, a battle to any addiction isn't easy so I am taking it one step at a time.
In behalf of www.lakwatsero.com, I would like to thank those who nominated me for Janette Toral'sTen Emerging and Influential Blogs for 2008, you know who you are guys and gals. Anyway, here is my personal list, the 8 blogs that personally influenced and inspired me.
BUY 1 AND GET ONE DOMESTIC ECONOMY TICKET ABSOLUTELY FREE. For sales/ticketing 27 JUNE 2008 until 07 JULY 2008 and for travel 15 July 2008 until 15 October 2008 .
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Recently, I just realized that if there are two things I love doing, these are: to explore places and to meet new friends. With this, I came to appreciate the life of a "solo" traveler. With all the freedom and flexibility, being a solo traveler is a real fun. Imagine, you get to do what you want, without depending to a groups plans, itinerary and moods.
I am listing now some of the routes/places I am dying to explore, I am willing to explore this place, even alone:
Culion, a fourth class municipality in Calamianes Group of Islands, located in northern Palawan is a quiet town with a history of continuous struggle. From being a former leper colony, Culion holds the promise of a brigther tomorrow with its rich past and breathtaking natural wonders.
Culion is slowly embracing Tourism. Unknown to many, aside from the remnants of its history, this town can boast of its natural attractions and great adventures - from diving and snorkeling to trekking and rock/cliff climbing. A stay in Culion, tourists will be treated to its rich history with a visit to its Museum, and a walk to the town where the evidence of it being a former leper colony still present with the old establishments and structures still in place.
Experience Culion, see its beaches, waterfalls, rice terraces, old church and fort, and explore its rich marine life. It is a town is waiting to be discovered.
How to Get There:
By Air
Culion has its own airport though commercial flights are still unavailable. Only chartered planes taxi to its runway to date. By Air, Busuanga is the most popular jump off point to Culion. PAL Express, Asian Spirit, and SEA Air has direct flights to Busuanga. Travel time is around an hour. From Busuanga, catch a jeepney for a 30 minute ride to Coron Poblacion, and then take an hour and a half banca/pumpboat ride to Culion.
By Water
SuperFerry and Negros Navigation has Coron bound ferries that leave Manila once a week (Thursday for NN and Friday for SuperFerry). It is a twelve hour ferry ride. From Coron, take an hour and a half banca/pumpboat ride to Culion. Meanwhile, for those coming from Batangas City, Viva Shipping Lines has Batangas-Coron-Culion ferry that leaves Batangas Port regularly.
Where to Stay:
Aplaya Lodging House and Resort is the only tourist lodging facility in Culion today. The place is strategically located in the seaside and offers a magnificent view of the sea and Culion’s neighboring islands. Accomodation is pretty cheap, a VIP rooms with toilet and bath is at P400.00/room while the ordinary rooms with communal toilet and bath is at P300/rooms.
Activities:
Visit the Culion Museum, Church, and Fort
Take a walk in the town and see the remnants of the old leper colony
Climb the Agila, a 300+ steep stairways to a hill
Trekking and rock/cliff climbing
Scuba diving and snorkeling
Exlore its beaches, waterfalls and rice terraces
Drop by in Pulang Lupa, a site being developed with a halfmoon view of the entire Culion
Images:
Lakwatsero Experience:
Lakwatsero visited Culion in June 2008. Read the narratives of his visit here.
Tips:
If you want to experience Coron and Culion in a budget, join a DIY tour or other group tours open for joiners, you will surely find one in the net, I only spent roughly P5000.00 for the entire tour including the round-trip ferry fare by joining Do-It-Yourself Coron-Culion tour organized by Mr. Owen Ferrer.
If you are going to Coron via ferry, reserve your tickets early. The earlier the cheaper. My round trip Mega Value ticket in SuperFerry costs only P1700.00. The price can go as high as P3000+ RT and as low as P1300.00.
The Lakwatsero in me just had his very first solo adventure in Coron and Culion, and at first, I was a bit hesitant and afraid since this would be my first time to travel alone and join a group of people I’ve only met virtually, but my excitement overpowered the hesitation and fear. In the end, no regrets, because aside from experiencing this paradise in the northern Palawan, I also met new friends. Hence, I am not so alone in Coron and Culion.
[1] Leaving Manila.
[2] Boatdeck.
[3] Some of the “so kewl” batch 9.
[4] SuperFerry sunset.
[5] SuperFerry sunrise.
[6] Calamianes view from the boat.
After more than a decade, I traveled again via ferry. Working in an airline company, I found it so unusual that I enjoy long travel via ferry or bus rather than a short plane ride. June 6, I boarded SuperFerry’s M/V Our Lady of Good Voyage from the South Harbor of Manila for a thirteen hour ferry ride to join the Do-It-Yourself Coron tour organized by Mr. Owen Ferrer. The ferry ride was fun, aside from getting-to-know-you stuff from other fellow joiners, we got to witness amazing views, from sunset to sunrise, wonderful landscape and cloud formations, all in vivid colors.
We arrived at Coron early morning of the next day. First destination was Mt. Tapyas, a 700+ steps to the summit where a huge steel cross is erected. The view from Mt. Tapyas is really amazing, overlooking the entire Coron town. After conquering Mt. Tapyas, we proceeded to Barracuda Lake. The trail to this picturesque lake was so intricate but the view is worth the risk and challenge of trekking a cliff to reach this hidden jewel. Next stop was the Kayangan Cave and Lake. The lake was actually voted as the cleanest lake in the Philippines for three consecutive years now. Siete Pecados Marine Park was the next destination where I enjoyed seeing fish and corals in different colors and sizes. Afterwards, we headed back to Kayangan Cove for a sumptuous lunch before proceeding to the Twin Lagoon for a short swim and then to Banana Island where we spent the night. The white sand of Banana Island, its sandbar, clear water, beautiful sunset, sunrise and its remoteness make this island a very charming place.
[1] Coron port.
[2] Mt. Tapyas cross.
[3] Barracuda lake.
[4] Kayangan cove.
[5] Kayangan lake.
[6] One of Siete Pecados.
[7] Twin lagoon.
[8] Coron youth club (CYC) beach.
[9] Banana island from a distance.
[10] Banana island.
[11] Banana island sunset.
[12] Banana island sunrise.
On our second day, we visited Culion, a former leper colony. It is a small town with a history of continuos struggle. We had a chance to see their museum, the church and the fort. It was a very short stay yet we were all treated to a rich history of this town. After Culion was a visit to the Lusong Coral Garden and Ship Wreck. It was my first time to see and even step to an old ship wreck submerged in the sea and the feeling is surreal. That was our last stop before going back to the Coron town where we dropped by to Maquinit Hotspring prior to boarding a ferry back to Manila.
[1] Culion town from a distance.
[2] Culion fort.
[3] Culion church.
[4] Culion church interior.
[5] Lusong coral garden site.
[6] Lusong shipwreck site.
I really enjoyed Coron, Culion, the tour, and the company of my new found friends. I prepared for this for two months, I even bought a snorkel and a mask. Sadly, I lost the mask in Barracuda Lake, our first swimming site and the snorkel in Lusong Ship Wreck, our the last snorkeling spot. I also left the pasalubongs at the Port Side. Nevertheless, I found new friends, and meeting them is priceless.
Seated(L-R): Richard, Tin, Wendell, Nikoli, Mike, Lanzh, Owen, Io, Hope, Rico, Tatz, Angel, Claudia, Jen, Mar, Mario
Tips:
If you want to experience Coron within a budget, join a DIY tour or other group tours open for joiners, you will surely find one in the net, I only spent roughly P5000.00 for the entire tour including the round-trip ferry fare
If you are going to Coron via ferry, reserve your tickets early. The earlier the cheaper. My round trip Mega Value ticket in SuperFerry costs only P1700.00. The price can go as high as P3000+ RT.
Pack light.
Bring snorkel and mask to better appreciate the underwater view of Coron, and take good care of it. They don’t float in the lakes.
Bring underwater camera and/or water proof bags or ziplocks.
If you are joining a tour, socialize and make new friends.
*This is the first part of my series of posts for Coron and Culion, watch out for more.
So this is my very first blog post in multiply. Medyo napressure ako dahil ang gaganda ng mga multiply sites ng mga fellow batch 9 members ng Coron DIY. Well, welcome sa akin and goodluck. At first, hindi ko binalak na magblog dito since I am already maintaining my own site - www.lakwatsero.com, plus my secret personal blog plus I also write (ok, sometimes) sa www.visitsagada.com.
Actually, nainspire din ako magpost dito along with my shots sa Coron and Culion because nag enjoy ako ng todo todo. That was my first time to travel alone and join a group of strangers and it was fun. Narealize ko na that was exactly what I want to do with my life. To travel, to take photos and to meet new people and friends. Ayaw ko na magcode, magsolve ng mga bugs, gumawa ng mga specs, manuals at mamakyaw ng stress and pressure sa work, mas masarap maglakwatsa pero syempre kailangan ko kumita para may pangtustos sa gusto kong gawin. Aheheh!
So I promised myself to travel more. Sana ay magawa ko. Ahihihi! XD
