Sagada Love!

For an overdue "away-from-city-life" escape, I went to Sagada with some friends a few weeks ago.  It's not my first time in this shangri-la but in a lot of moment, I'm still left in awe.

Getting There:

• Cable Tour Bus (MLA-Bontoc) - 12 hours, P650/pax, you can find them along E. Rodriguez Ave, QC.  It's quite tricky finding their terminal, it's inside a compound between St. Luke's Hospital and Trinity College.  Ask around, if I didn't I would be able to find it AT ALL.  I love it that the bus is air-conditioned yet I can open the windows so I can take pictures. Buses leave at 830PM daily. Contact them: 09185216790 / 09282305330.

• Jeep (Bontoc - Sagada) - 45mins, P50/pax, ask around where you can find these jeeps as they don't really have a terminal. We wanted to ride topload but the jeep loaded sacks of cement & rice so we decided to stay put in our seats.

Stay:

• George Guesthouse - P200/pax per night - private toilet/shower, hot water, free wifi, tv. Cheap! :) We made reservations prior to our arrival which I highly recommend that you especially if you are going in a big group or during peak season. Contact #: Teodora +639185480405 or Irenius +639206070994. 

Eat: 

• Bana's Cafe - all breakfasts were taken here.  Food is great and we adored their homemade bacon! Average cost per meal - P80-P150.

• The Yoghurt House - I love this restaurant when I first visisted Sagada back in 2004. I wasn't that impressed this time - service was really slow and food was just so-so.  I still love their yoghurt though.  I had the one with banana & muesli, K had strawberries... we mixed them together. I'm a big yoghurt fan, so I'm happy.

• Vincent's Cafe - first thing you'll notice here are the paintings on the door and a mural on the wall.  Those were done by Russel who we were able to share a couple of beers with. Had a very relaxed, fun, and cozy feel.  We met new friends here since the place is very conducive for conversations. We were the only Pinoys when we went there. Very global, we made friends with Russel (Canadian), a British guy and two Aussie girls. Order the fish & chips!

• Lemon Pie House -  hands-down, my favorite! It's very homey, coffee (P30/cup) is good and pies (P25)are cheap yet very yummy.  Free wi-fi and stories from Ate Loida. This place is really love.

  Coming Back:

• Lizardo Bus Line (Sagada-Baguio)  - P220/pax, approx 6-7 hours, last trip leaves Sagada at 1PM.  This part is a blur to me (and to my friends) - reckless driver, highest highway in the Philippines (Halsema Highway), and super thick fog. Such a shame because the view in Halsema was really great but we weren't able to enjoy it since we were busy holding on to our seats. Driver drives really fast, takes the counterflow lane even on blind curves, and ignored our not-so-silent gasps. Hmp. Will not recommend this bus line - at all!  Just take the Sagada-Bontoc-Banaue-MLA route.
• Victory Liner (Baguio-MLA) - P460, 7 hours. Leg room, comfortable seats, deep sleep. 'Nuff sleep. :)

These are just the basics.  Will blog about our activities next time. Sagada is really LOVE. :)

***click on pictures to enlarge

Pahiyas Festival 2011

Pahiyas Festival is held in Lucban, Quezon every 15th of May in celebration of the Feast of San Isidro Labrador, the patron saint of farmers.  You can read more about Pahiyas here.

This year was my first time to be in Pahiyas.  Went there with my FPPF batchmates...  so technically it was my first photowalk with them outside the realms of Intramuros. :)

I anticipated a very long trip but it only took us around 4 hours to get there. At around 7am and after a breakfast of pansit habhab (P10/serving) we all decided to walk around and went trigger-happy with our cameras.

Colorful.

Yummy.

Whimsical.

and HAPPY.

There were just so many people so it was difficult to navigate through the streets and a lot of photo enthusiasts to elbow with for good shots... nevertheless, it was really fun. I'd like to go back next year.  :) 

Anawangin Cove, San Antonio, Zambales

Karen and I went on an-all-girls get-away last January.  Actually, it was just the two of us and we braved to go camping in Anawangin, Zambales. It was a low-cost yet super fun trip.

 

We didn't get to pitch our own tent since aside from having no confidence in doing so, our boatman, Kuya Arnold and his buddies volunteered to do it for us (yeah, what could two tiny girls do).  Kuya Arnold was also protective enough, knowing that it's only gonna be Karen & me, to get us a spot near the sari-sari store so the Manang can keep an eye on us in case the other campers get too 'rowdy'.

After settling out stuff in the tent and arranging a pick-up time with Kuya Arnold the following day, Karen & I went roaming around the forest at the back of the camp site. I was honestly disappointed that the river was dry when we were there. It would have been nice to wade through the cool river water. Before the mosquitoes could get to us, we took pictures with our twin Kiss X3.  Toyed with exposures, apertures and shutter speeds and pretended that we know much about photography. :)

What's for dinner? A loaf of bread, cheese spread, pork & beans and my left over chow fan. We didn't get stuff that needed cooking since we were... no excuse, we didn't want to bother with cooking at all.  We planned to sleep early so we can roam around the cove early the following morning and take more pictures.  

We eventually got invited to join a group of campers - we saw them doing some fire dance so we went to check them out so we can take pictures. They were too kind to invite us over when they knew that it was only Karen & I.  They taught us some photography tricks and had us join their bartending 101. Thanks to Chef Janjie, Nano and the girls. :)

Anyway, this is how the logistics of the trip looks like: 

What	Details	Cost	Duration	Remarks
Pasay-Olongapo	Victory Liner	P220/each (P440/roundtrip)	4 Hours	You can opt to take a bus bound for Iba and get off at San Antonio;   You can go to Victory Liner station in Cuba/Caloocan.
Olongapo-San Antonio	Victory Liner (non aircon)	P41/each (P82/roundtrip)	1 Hour	Skip this if you are taking a direct trip to Iba.
San Antonio-Brgy Pundaquit	Tricycle	P30/each (P60/roundtrip)	15mins	Feel free to haggle with the tricycle driver.
Pundaquit-Anawangin (and vice-versa)	Boat	P1000/boat (roundtrip)	30mins	Good for 2-3 pax; Highly recommended - Kuya Arnold (09208289226 - tell him you got his # from Jimi); Be prepared to get wet since waves can get wild - waterproof all valuables and gadgets;  if you are staying overnight, make sure to arrange time of pick-up with your boatman. No network signal in Anawangin.
Overnight Fee	Caretaker	P100/pax		This is to cover for keeping the cove clean but doesn't mean that you can leave your trash around.
Tent	c/o Boatman	P300/tent		Good for 2-4 pax; You can opt to bring your own tent.
Gasera	c/o Caretaker	P50/lamp		You can opt to bring your own rechargeable lamp - safer and  caretaker only have a limited # of lamps to rent out.

The following day, although we didn't get to wake up as early as planned, we were still able to climb the nearby rocky hill to the view deck where we got to see how wonderful the cove was.  We almost got lost because the cogon grass and the baby bamboo plants along the trail are almost as tall as us. We still had so much fun though - gasgas and all. :)  When we got back to the campsite, Check Janjie had some breakfast for us. Spoiled! :)

Staying in Anawangin by ourselves did not prove to be scary since there were a lot of other campers and I think most people were there with a mind set to be in a harmonious union with nature.  I think, even going there alone is not a bad idea at all.   

Some random tips: 

• If you are going in a group, you can split up the cost for the rentals of the boat, tricycle and tent. 
• Send an SMS to Kuya Arnold ahead of time to make sure that he is available (especially on peak months) 
• Wear life vest at all times during the boat ride; the ride can get very rough (not exaggerated at all, ask Karen) 
• Always waterproof gadgets/valuables 
• Don’t bring too much food.  Bring only what you can consume since this will add up the weight of your baggage; There’s a grocery store right inside the Victory Liner terminal in Olongapo, you can get your supplies there. 
• There’s a small sari-sari store in Anawangin, but prices are steep 
• It can get really chilly at night, bring thick night clothes or better yet, bring a human blanket.
• There are two water pumps, but water is not potable; Bring your own drinking water. 
• There are three comfort rooms and 2 dressing rooms; if you are going to do your thing, wake up early to avoid the long queues. 
• You can arrange a side trip to Capones  Island (see the Spanish-era lighthouse) or to Camara Island (will incur additional charge and depending on how big the waves are). 
• When you are in Anawangin aside from enjoying the swim, you can also explore the river at the back of the campsite or climb the view deck at the far left side of the cove. 
• Make friends and meet new people. :)