We went to South harbor and hopped on board the MV/Doulos when we learned that this Noah’s Ark of books is back.  2007 was supposedly its last dock at our shores when they changed itinerary and came back to our country.  Lucky we, because we were given the chance to see it for ourselves–since this is first time that we’re able to catch it actually.  Was surprised to see droves of people wanting to check out what’s inside the big vessel.  Filipinos from all walks of life braved the heat of the sun and came to queue in a long serpentine line just to witness the grand book fair.  Truly an exceptional experience seeing many Filipinos, who are generally not book-lovers, troop to a book fair.  It’s the feeling to be aboard a ship that’s the experience perhaps.

We were so excited to see tons of books inside.  We came out with two books and one keychain.  But the experience fun and memorable

Catched the pulse of QC Circle’s carnival last night.  The rides that kids and adults alike have grown to love are all present–the ferris wheel , the caterpillar, the roller coaster, the horror train, even a cable car. 

The perya stalls especially the one where your one-peso coins are like water drained to the sink are also around.  In totality, the glitz and colors of it were close to magical–if only to compare the carnival with that of theme parks.  The entrance fee was 40 bucks, and rides cost either 30 or 50 bucks, way cheaper indeed, and the queueing and waiting time to get a ride shorter.  A myriad of food stands serving your usual burger-hotdog-kikiam-shawarma fare is there when your stomach creatures get hungry when they go giddy like you with excitement. 

The highlight of the carnival visit though was being one of the many spectators to the Wall of Death motorcycle-and-auto death stunts wherein daredevil wall riders rev up their machines around the wall inside, taking advantage of centrifugal force to keep them fastened to their vehicles, to keep them alive.  It made my adrenaline surge so high that I watched the show twice.  Watching them do their thing makes one feel dizzy and leaves one to say,”wow and lupit!” countless number of times.

Spent Christmas by attending a reunion in my father’s hometown in Quezon province.  Didn’t waste the opportunity to take some shots of vintage stuff.

My grandmothers and fathers on the father side.  My great grandmother is sitting at the center.  My dad is standing, on the extreme right.

Another picture of the Rico family.

We took these family pictures from a xeroxed scanned copy, enhanced and converted them to sepia.

The 425-year old San Diego de Alcala Basilica of Gumaca, Quezon.  It faces the seaside boulevard where our school then is located.  It’s windy there outside as usual.

The pink path to the famous castle by the sea.

On our way back to Manila, as we’re checking out what to buy for pasabulong, we noticed this imposing creepy house in Sariaya, Quezon.  We did a quick walk and discovered that many of the old Spanish houses still retain their grandeur despite having been converted to contemporary houses.

Finally, my Palawan travel daydream became a reality. Was off from work (without pay) Thursday and Friday and took advantage of the long weekend to accommodate this unplanned trip that came to be because of an airline promo (PAL Econolight Class, had us paying only 2192 Php back and forth per head).  Our group of 4, me and my Hon, with her sister and boyfriend, took the first flight to Puerto Princesa City last Nov. 27, a sunny day in Manila. The adventure that ensued made us love Palawan even more than the nice pictures and blog entries that we came across in the internet about this last frontier in the country.  Truly a nature lover’s destination, this big conglomeration of islands down West provided us a venue for a great and memorable yearender trip.  The following was our itinerary:

DAY 1

9:45 AM  - Arrival at Puerto Princesa Airport
10:30 AM  - Check-in at Legend Hotel
11:00 AM - Palawan Museum, Immaculate Conception Cathedral
12:30 AM - Lunch at Jo’s Chicken Inato

1:00 PM  - Back to hotel; fixed stuff
1:30 PM  - Pick-up for City Tour
1:00 – 5:00 PM  - City Tour

Baybay (baywalk) running tour
Plaza Cuartel
Immaculate Conception Cathedral
Iwahig Penal Farm
Crocodile Farm
Butterfly Farm
Mitra’s Ranch
Baker’s Hill

7:00 PM  - Dinner at relative’s place
9:45 PM  - Stroll in Kapitolyo; watched animated Christmas show

DAY 2

UNDERGROUND RIVER TOUR

7:30 AM  - Pick-up
9:30 AM  - Registration at Sabang
10:30 AM - Sabang Beach
11:30 AM - Lunch at Taraw Resort
12:00 NN - Boat ride to Underground River
12:30 PM - Underground River site
1:15 PM  - Pump boat going inside Underground River
3:00 PM  - Back to Sabang Beach
4:00 PM  - Ride van to Legend Hotel
  - Buenavista View Deck
  - Running tour of Viet Ville
5:00 PM  - Back to hotel
7:00 PM  - Dinner at Sari’s Baryo

8:30 PM – Back to hotel

The St. Paul Subterraneal River National Park is currently no. 1 in the new 7 wonders of the world search.  It is the longest underground river in the world.

Entrance to the really cavernous cave where only 1.5 km of its 8-km river stretch is navigable for tourists.  Inside, nature works in wonderful and mysterious ways really.

DAY 3

HONDA BAY TOUR

7:30 AM  - Pick-up
9:00 AM  - wharf; banca ride to islands
10:00 AM - Pandan Island; Snorkeling
12:00 NN  - Lunch at the island
1:00 PM  - Snake Island; snorkeling
2:30 PM  - Starfish Island; snorkeling
4:00 PM  - Boat ride to wharf
4:45 PM  - Wharf
5:30 PM  - Back to hotel
6:30 PM  - Merienda at Thalia’s Chaolong
7:00 PM  - Market; buy pasalubongs
7:45 PM  - Back to hotel
8:30 PM  - Dinner at Kinabuch’s
10:00 PM  - Back to hotel

Starfish Island, our last island stop for the Honda Bay Tour.  A few minutes after this photo was taken, showers fell as if to cap off our Palawan adventure.

Yummy “tamilok” in Kinabuch where we ate our last dinner there.  This is the Palawaneno’s favorite exotic delicacy.  Woodworms that feed on mangroves and are prepared kilawin-style.  The appetizer/pulutan feels like slime in the throat and tastes like oyster.  The experience was unique. Eating it was a feat!

DAY 4

BACK TO REALITY

From Nov. 27 to Nov. 30, taking advantage of the long break (Dec. 1 is a holiday) and the PAL Econolight Class promo, we will head off to Puerto Princesa City, Palawan for a nature-adventure trip.  Already booked the flights, started inquiring regarding accommodations, and prepared a list of stuffs to bring or buy.  Next step to do is make the itinerary. 

The tropical depression “Quinta” meanwhile is spotted northwest of Puerto Princesa.  Hoping that weather will turn sunny in the next few days to make the Palawan trip more worth it.

Behind us is not some marine poster, but an oceanarium with real fishes swimming!  We checked out Manila Ocean Park, the country’s first ocean park located at the back of the Quirino Grandstand.  The Php 400 fee I think is too much for viewing big aquaria inside.  The deep sea journey is arranged into stages: from Agos, Bahura, Laot, Karagatan, The Deep to simulate the different ecosystems of the marine animals.  The collection of fishes isn’t impressive and the arrangement of the aquaria doesn’t leave much to be desired for.  It lacks artistic value and looks plastic–some corals and other marine plants are artificial.  I’m wondering if Nemo feels strange inside the tank.  The large tanks with the big fishes are the main features of the ocean park.  The stingrays command special attention while the sharks look very unpredatory because of their small size.  The sight of divers fixing up tubes, feeding the fishes and even posing with guests while on the other side of the glass provides some comic relief, if only to make the price you paid for worth it.  All in all, the experience is still memorable, as this is the first time we’ve been to an ocean park, seeing these sea creatures swimming from all corners, walls of the place.  The no-flash rule of the park seems very violated as innocent guests push the shutter and the stress-inducing (to the fishes) lights come off as often as the PA system reminds everyone not to use their flash.

Some interesting creatures spotted:

The frog fish which looks like a toy

The Japanese king crab, the largest living arthropod which looks ancient because it is considered a fossil!

Baby fishes

Like a rolling stone this is not, a stone fish that is not a-movin’

Leaving…

We spent the rest of our afternoon walking down Luneta lane, in an effort to find the Orchidarium which was unfortunately closed for renovation.  We reminisced about the first time we went there as kids only to discover that there are not so many kids there strolling with their family anymore but streetchildren coexisting with lovers, photographers, tourists and suspected bad elements.  Rizal’s monument still is guarded, the giant map of the Philippines is now devoid of water, the carabao is still there, few kites are dotting the skyline now near the grandstand, the wind is not as fierce as before when there weren’t so many structures there.  Comparisons are aplenty.

We capped off our exhausting adventure by devouring mami, siopai and pancit canton at Ma Mon Luk’s, home of the original mami.  The classic taste of mami revived!  I was so full I could hardly move after.

For lack of budget (not places to go to) this Holiday Monday, we’ve checked out the Metro Ferry cruising the Pasig River.  We boarded at the Guadalupe terminal after getting off from the MRT.  We bought a 45-peso ticket to Escolta.  All in all, riding the ferry is a cool new way to travel in the metro because it’s fast and convenient.  The shutterbug in me was treated by the many things that could be captured while in the trip. The structures beside the river, notably the squatters, some old buildings, oil depots, other watercrafts plying the river, bridges (like the photo above, Quezon Bridge) and other architectural landmarks (the buildings of Makati, Malacanang palace, the post office) made the trip a feast for the senses.  By the way, the river didn’t have the stench that I expected.  The river is as vibrant as the economy that thrives in areas where it runs through.

The priceless cave experience was capped off by rainshower that drenched our aching bodies.  Our legs had still to hurdle the several steps up from the entrance of Lumiang cave to the main road; but it was nothing really.  The feeling of conquering a difficult cave is wonderful.  It was like being baptized again.  The feeling was light like walking on air when we headed back to our hotel.  After taking an icy shower (very cold water indeed), we got our reward–a tasteful dinner of Nilaga and Lechon Kawali. 

June 9 (Monday).  We woke up dawn of the following morning and trekked to Echo Valley passing through Mission Compound and the eerie cemetery.  The light kissed the mist-covered pine trees just when we reached the area near the cliff where a free spirit dove and took his own life.  Talk about communing eternally with Mother Nature…Since we were in a hurry to catch the second bus trip to Baguio, we had quick breakfast at Masferre’s and bought our souvenirs nearby–T-shirts and my cool Sagada-woven shoulder bag.  Realizing that the visit to Sagada wouldn’t be complete without trying out Yoghurt House, we dropped by the jampacked breakfast haunt and ordered their specialty. Umm, yummy!

With the remaining energy that we could muster, we packed fast and made a beeline to ride the bus.  We found ourselves as chance passengers once again–sitting in the last row of a bus reserved by a rowdy group of mountaineers (deja vous!).  After almost 2 hours, we began our travel back home, through dizzying and dusty zigzag roads.  We passed by the rest of Mt Province and Benguet, one mountain after another, and arrived in the urban jungle of Baguio around 5 pm (almost 7 hours of travel).  We spent the night in Burnham Hotel, an antique hotel that’s like the house where Katipuneros before met.  The Baguio trip need not be recounted anymore as it is easily overshadowed by our experience in the farther reaches of the Cordillera, in Banaue-to my mind still the 8th wonder of the world-and in Sagada, the Shangri-la of the Philippines. 

June 10 (Monday).  We went back to Manila the following morning with an emptied mind, full of memories of Banaue and more especially Sagada.  These magical places will surely linger in the mind.  And like in an action movie, a part 2 is just around the corner. 

June 8 (Sunday).  After waiting for almost 2 hours in Banaue terminal, we were able to board a bus bound to Bontoc (nearly made it to the center seats as the bus is almost cramped).  Again, the left side view in the bus offered the most magnificent view of the Cordillera mountain range as we slowly ascended the steep, serpentine and rugged roads to the Mountain Province.  One could see the thick vegetation of the forest, courtesy of pine trees and a myriad species of ferns.  One-and-a-half hour into the trip, when the blue-green vista changed to misty to almost white-out, we stopped over the area near Mt. Polis, where a large cell site is located. Outside, the weather is two times over cooler than that of Baguio. Some passengers checked out souvenir items; but I bought and sipped hot coffee.  The bus moved on and the sceneries became more magnificent as the sun slowly made its appearance from the thick clouds.  Images of Marlboro Country came to mind as wide expanse of land dotted with trees appeared in the horizon and rice terraces like those in Banaue bedecked the planes below.  Half an hour later, we reached the Poblacion of Bontoc only to be defeated by the anticlimactic view of it–commercialization, congestion and all like that of Baguio.  I realized why the place called Bontoc is not a traveler’s byword.  We boarded a jeep to Sagada for about an hour, through more rugged and dusty road.  We hit the sleepy and mystical Sagada at 11:30.

We immediately checked in and registered at the municipal hall.  There, we met a couple too, with whom we became instant friends because they offered us a split-cost arrangement for the caving tour guide.  Our group of 4 chose the cave connection tour.  We had a quick lunch as advised by the attendant at the municipal hall.  We ate at Masferre Restaurant, tasting one of the best sinigangs I ever had and savored the old Cordillera photographs of the master, Eduardo Masferre who satisfied my art curiosity when I read on the menu that he is the father of Filipino photography and that he has mixed Spanish and Filipino ancestry.

We trekked for about 40 minutes under the mild heat of the sun, appreciating the local sceneries and the people of Sagada, to the entrance of Sumaguing Cave.  There was a tourist stall nearby where our tour guide loaded our lamp with gas.  We viewed things to come inside the cave when we looked at the nice cave pictures posted in the wall.  In a while, we proceeded to the entrance of the cave.  Sumaguing is a big cave, with wet rocks and surfaces that are very slippery to step and walk on.  You could at the very least get wet here or suffer from a fall injury.  The awesome rock formations, the turtle, the curtain, the granary, etc. make all these worth it though obviously, taking brilliant and composed pictures here is difficult because of the wet conditions and minimal lighting.  We went up and down rocks of different surfaces, wet and dry, most of the time using rope to rapel down and climb steep inclines.  We waded in areas with freezing cold water.  The cave network leading to the other cave, Lumiang Cave is the real thrill.  We had to insert our bodies to many cracks and crevices just to pass through.  There were even two occassions wherein our lamplight went off, forcing us to stay in stark darkness in a dangerous corner for a few minutes while our guide went away to find a replacement.  Were we claustrophobic, we could have hyperventilated and died there instantly.  We were thinking why the tour guide never cautioned us that this cave connection tour is not for newbies like us, but we knew this wouldn’t help.  We strengthened our resolve to do whatever he said just to get to the other cave passage.  That we did, without breaking a sweat (of course because it’s frigging cold in there).  As we progressed, our motivation level increased until we saw the light at the end of the cave after the last series of ascents.  It was Lumiang Cave, the famed burial cave with all the wooden coffins with strange carvings and vestiges of dead people-skull, bones, strange objects and rubbish-strewn on the cave floor.  It was raining hard when we exited the cave until we trekked home.  Bodies aching but hearts pounding with exhilaration.  We knew right then that it was the climax of our whole trip.

After a dose of reality in the office days upon returning to work from our great Cordillera adventure, I am finally able to catch my breath, recapitulate and blog about the grueling, body-aching yet thrilling and memorable experience that my Mahal and I had.  The following is a chronicle of our Cordillera trip (Manila-Banaue-Bontoc-Sagada-Baguio-Manila): 

June 6 (Friday).  We left for Banaue riding rickety Autobus by 10:30 pm.  The taxi driver had difficulty finding the terminal which is located in the bowels of Sampaloc.  We got the last tickets reserved-for seats 3 & 4, the frontmost seats on the right side, just across that of the conductor’s cocoon (blanket, pillow and all).  The bus left 30 minutes late because it had to wait for two or more passengers who are part of the mountaineering group that occupied almost all of the bus.  The trip had been smooth except for the sleep interruptions brough about by the constant flicker of headlights of incoming vehicles.  The whole trip, including the stopovers, lasted around 9 hours.  We reached Banaue terminal by 7:30 am the following morning, I with no sleep at all.

June 7 (Sat).  We were fetched by Donnie, our younger-than-expected tour guide from the terminal, riding in a tricycle which he contracted for our day tour.  While having breakfast at People’s Restaurant, the melting pot of most tourists, we were given two options: one, to explore the amazing Batad and Banga-an Rice Terraces (one is home to an amphitheatre-like terraces) for one whole day, or visit more than 3 sites including one nice rice terraces in a nearby village and still make the last jeepney trip to Bontoc, the jump-off point to Sagada where we initially planned to stay overnight. Map in hand, we chose the second option.   We’ve been to Hungduan village for the Hapao Rice Terraces which Donnie said is the origin of all the terraces.  It is not as impressive as the big terraces like Batad and Banga-an (judging from the pictures) but a closer appreciation of the rice terraces reminded as of its marvel–how the natural beauty of nature was enhanced by humans by conceiving and executing a grand plan of architectural wonder.  We trekked down to the passages within the rice terraces and into the water streams that conveyed cold and musical running water.  Along the way, we had a flat tire so we waited for it to be fixed.  The wait was well worth it when an old Ifugao woman passed by.  Our tour guide asked for nganga which he munched on like a chewing gum.  I would regret to pass up the experience; so with tips from Donnie I found myself chewing betel nut to the amusement of Apong.  I wrapped it in ikmo leaf, threw in a little of the apog, chewed it, took in some menthol and tobacco and spitted the red matter out.  It left me with a heavy chest, a light head and of course, red teeth and lips.  We made a stop to Hiwang native village where beautiful native houses are installed complete with furnishings and adornments inside. Mostly antique, “bulols” of different designs take every corner of space there is with furnitures and home items carved intricately in wood.  Running late for lunch, we went back to the Poblacion to eat at Mexicali (not a branch of the famous Mexican resto ) partaking of their specialty, Mexicali rice which consists of fried chicken, assorted vegies and red rice in a spicy and flavorful entree.  After lunch, we bought Banaue T-shirt souvenirs.  Rushing to the terminal for the 4 o’clock trip, we quickly made the rounds of the different viewpoints, posing at one point with the locals in their colorful costumes.

Unfortunately, we didn’t make the 4 o’clock jeepney trip to Bontoc.  So we had no choice but to spend the night there, at People’s Lodge & Restaurant, with only natural cold air to comfort us through the night.  A little past 5 the following morning, we queued for the Cable Tours bus to Bontoc.  We luckily found seats on the left side of the bus where the beauty of the Cordillera mountain range unfolded before our very eyes. To be continued…