Heading to Real, Quezon with Barefoot Travels... Who wants to join?

*Due to typhoon Glenda and Henry recently, this trip was re-scheduled to Aug. 2 and September 6.

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Just a quick post... I'll be going with Barefoot Travels this Saturday, July 19, 2014. There are still a few slots left. Who wants to join? Please read the details below:

Surf and Trek Adventure

Real, Quezon

Real is a small first class municipality in Quezon province, approximately 145 kilometers from Manila. Conveniently located only 2.5-3 hours away from the Metro passing by the picturesque Laguna Lake and the scenic Sierra Madre Mountain Ranges, this town is slowly becoming a beach destination for quick and easy weekend getaways. With its coastline facing the Pacific Ocean, this has also become a surfers’ haven due to its great waves and much less crowded surf spots.

Another Windsurfing Trip to Caliraya

Usually, when we go windsurfing at Caliraya Lake, we'd find a bunch of windsurfers and kiteboarders / kitesurfers milling about and camping in Surf Kamp with their trailer campers and cars. Most of them are the same people I've worked with during the 2008 FunBoard Cup in Boracay although I rarely interact with them when I go there. I'm the loner type if you must know and I rarely interact with people unless they talk to me first. 

We had the lake all to ourselves! 

So anyway, this particular weekend that we went to Surf Kamp, my husband and I were surprised to see that no one was around. The caretaker of the property actually told us that  the windsurfers are now camping somewhere else. This new campsite doesn't have a name, but it's just right across Surf Camp's Lakeside. Going by car, we'd have to exit Surf Camp and turn left. We followed the road until we saw another narrow road on our left where there is a big house with red roof. There's a small parking area there but we'd still have to ride a barge to cross the lake until we reach this new campsite allegedly owned by Michael Palacios according to the person we came across with while parking in the second location. The wind and kitesurfers now go here since they're like an exclusive club and they like to come together every weekend.

Palay-Isdaan Mini Zoo Visit and Carlos Beach Sightseeing

Earlier on this Black Saturday, we left Dampalitan Island at around lunch time. On the way back home, I hoped to pass by another beach I wanted to check out --- Carlos Beach. I came across Carlos Beach while doing my research online. It's at the end of the road that also leads to Pueblo Por Playa, a member's only beach club in Barangay Bantigue, occupying most of its coastline. We got lost a couple of times because we couldn't find Carlos Beach even after we passed by Pueblo Por Playa. So we started asking around. Apparently, the end of the road which we thought was the ultimate end of the road in Barangay Bantigue was not. We had to go a little further into that narrow road leading to Carlos Beach. Finally, when we got there, it was unfortunate that Carlos Beach was not as impressive as I thought it would be. Entrance fee is only Php 20.00 and and use of table is for Php 50.oo each. It is a small picnic ad beach resort with a fish pond at the back. Since it was Black Saturday, it was full of people mostly kids and oldies. After taking a few photos, we left and just decided to go straight home.

Islands of Dampalitan, Malaking Talabaan and Maliit na Talabaan in Padre Burgos, Quezon

This post is about the places my husband Peter, and I, explored last Black Saturday… If you want to start this Padre Burgos beach travelogue from the beginning, please click the following link:

Padre Burgos Beaches

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I woke up the following morning, which was a Black Saturday, at around 4:00 am. The beach was dark except for the moonlit and starlit sky. I can still see the outline of the gorgeous mountain ranges from afar. I stayed inside the tent hoping that Peter will wake up as well... to no avail. So I tried going back to sleep. At 5:00 a.m., I really wasn't feeling sleepy anymore so I nudged Peter beside me to wake him up. I needed to pee. I didn't want to go all the way to the public restroom area and pass by the tents of all the other sleeping campers, so I asked Peter to accompany me to a nearby bush instead where I can do number 1. Teehee. By the time we went back to our tent, I saw some fishermen docking their boats and going to our area. Apparently, they were trying to sell us some newly caught Tilapya fish and crabs. I wasn't really in the mood to buy coz one, we didn't bring any grill where we can cook it; two, we didn't know how to make fire; and three, I don't wanna be too full that it will make me do number 2. I try to avoid doing that whenever we camp. I'd rather stay on a strict diet so my tummy can wait all the way back home or somewhere more civilized where I can relieve myself. But anyway, the fishermen were really very insistent. They even volunteered to borrow the grill of our neighbor campers (who were still sleeping) without their knowledge and also made fire for us with the use of coconut husks. I felt pity for them so we ended up buying Php 120.00 worth of fresh Tilapya. Not bad. It did taste so yummy and I finished one huge piece.

The rest of our early morning was spent walking by the beach, still dressed in my makeshift PJs, waiting for the sun to shine.The tide was low and the beach seemed wider that early morning.

Dampalitan Island in Padre Burgos Quezon

This post is still about the places my husband Peter, and I, explored last Good Friday… If you want to start this Padre Burgos beach travelogue from the beginning, please click the following link:

Padre Burgos Beaches

~~~oOo~~~

After our island hopping experience, we headed to Dampalitan Beach just before lunch time. This was where we camped the rest of the day until the next morning. On our way there, we passed by 3 nice private beaches called Bacongan which is also the name of the town where these beaches are located...

Padre Burgos Beaches in Quezon - Puting Buhangin,Mag-asawang Bato,Kwebang Lampas

This post is still about the places my husband Peter, and I, explored last Good Friday… If you want to start this Padre Burgos beach travelogue from the beginning, please click the following link:

Padre Burgos Beaches

~~~oOo~~~

After our short stay at Borawan Island, our next stop was at Puting Buhangin Beach. On our way there, the boatman showed us Mag-asawang Bato, a stretch of rocky island that was divided in two, perhaps, by the tide and passing of time. The water surrounding it was full of corals so we didn't stop over anymore. We just admired this magnificent formation of islets from a distance.

Borawan Island in Padre Burgos Quezon - How To Get There

This post is still about the places my husband Peter, and I, explored last Good Friday... If you want to start this Padre Burgos beach travelogue from the beginning, please click the following link:

Padre Burgos Beaches

~~~oOo~~~

After waiting for about a hour, the boatmen finally arrived. I told them about the arrangement I made with Kuya Vic. We wanted to visit all possible islands in the area for the price of Php1,500 (Borawan, Puting Buhangin, Maliit at Malaking Talabaan, Kwebang Lampas, Mag-asawang Bato and Dampalitan Beach where we will camp for the night). They obliged and a few minutes past 7 in the morning, we were on our way to our first destination which was BORAWAN island.

Padre Burgos Beaches in Quezon - How To Get There

This post is about the places my husband Peter, and I, explored last Good Friday… If you want to start this Padre Burgos beach travelogue from the beginning, please click the following link:

Padre Burgos Beaches

~~~oOo~~~

Last Holy Thursday, Peter and I spent the day cleaning up the house after the carpenters left, arranging the extra white rocks at the balcony, having the cars cleaned, doing some last minute grocery shopping for our camping trip, and sleeping from 6pm to 12 midnight. And by 1:30 am on a Good Friday, we were already on the road to Padre Burgos in Quezon, where a lot of white beaches abound.

HOW DOES ONE GET FROM MANILA TO PADRE BURGOS, QUEZON?

The Island Life at Cagbalete

This is a continuation of my previous Cagbalete Island blog posts. Please refer to the links below for prior details about this trip:

Cagbalete

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Like I’ve mentioned before, we arrived at Cagbalete island in the afternoon. After enjoying our lunch, all that was left for us to do was to start enjoying the beach. That’s what we came here for after all.  

Aahhhh… c’est la vie avec mon amour!

Us girls immediately got busy taking tons of photos… camwhoring galore!  

How to Go to Cagbalete Island

The other day, I gave you a sneak peek into this wonderful paradise we’ve visited over the weekend — Cagbalete Island in Mauban, Quezon. On this post, I am going to share with you how we were able to go there on a tight budget but with memories and experiences full of sunkissed glorious moments. It all began about a month or two ago when my girlfriends and I planned for an island getaway. Koryn was the one who recommended the place since she has already been there with her family over the summer. She was telling us how nice, serene and “virgin” the place was. It’s not intended for vain travelers as we would need to just simply commune with nature and let go of all the luxuries we’re used to in all the other beach resorts we’ve visited before (like nice toilets and shower rooms). We all said “game!’ and the planning began. There were supposed to be around 7 of us. But as the intended date of departure from the city (Nov. 14-15, 2009) was nearing, attendance boiled down to four (Peter, Koryn, Danes and moi). Since we originally budgeted P2000 per person, we presumed that our budget would go up to P2500 or even P3000 per head. Well, we couldn’t back out anymore. We’ve waited for this moment and we were raring to go! We coordinated via email and the final budget and  itinerary was as follows (emailed by Koryn, intended for five people):

Hi guys! Eto na!  Eto na! 

Here’s our budget breakdown for the trip: 

ITEM	AMOUNT	AMOUNT / HEAD
Gas	4,000	800
Ferry (to island)		40
Rented boat (from island to town)	1,500	300
Hut (with no bathroom)	1,500	300
Set meal (breakfast, lunch, dinner, 2 snacks	0	700
Drinks, alcohol, etc.	500	100
		2240

How to Get to Cagbalete Island

The other day, I gave you a sneak peek into this wonderful paradise we’ve visited over the weekend — Cagbalete Island in Mauban, Quezon. On this post, I am going to share with you how we were able to go there on a tight budget but with memories and experiences full of sunkissed glorious moments. It all began about a month or two ago when my girlfriends and I planned for an island getaway. Koryn was the one who recommended the place since she has already been there with her family over the summer. She was telling us how nice, serene and “virgin” the place was. It’s not intended for vain travelers as we would need to just simply commune with nature and let go of all the luxuries we’re used to in all the other beach resorts we’ve visited before (like nice toilets and shower rooms). We all said “game!’ and the planning began. There were supposed to be around 7 of us. But as the intended date of departure from the city (Nov. 14-15, 2009) was nearing, attendance boiled down to four (Peter, Koryn, Danes and moi). Since we originally budgeted P2000 per person, we presumed that our budget would go up to P2500 or even P3000 per head. Well, we couldn’t back out anymore. We’ve waited for this moment and we were raring to go! We coordinated via email and the final budget and  itinerary was as follows (emailed by Koryn, intended for five people):

Hi guys! Eto na!  Eto na! 

Here’s our budget breakdown for the trip: 

ITEM	AMOUNT	AMOUNT / HEAD
Gas	4,000	800
Ferry (to island)		40
Rented boat (from island to town)	1,500	300
Hut (with no bathroom)	1,500	300
Set meal (breakfast, lunch, dinner, 2 snacks	0	700
Drinks, alcohol, etc.	500	100
		2240

Kamayan sa Palaisdaan, Kamay ni Hesus, Silangang Nayon in Tayabas, Quezon and GSIS Lucen Branch

Hi folks! Before I got obsessed with buying a new car, I've been busy with field work as part of our MDP Immersion Program and I haven't had the time to post anything new. Last August 28-30 (Tuesday to Thursday), our group in MDP was assigned in GSIS Lucena branch to observe and immerse ourselves in their operations.

Our first photo op inside of our sunny room...

The girls visiting the boys' room...

Upon our arrival, I couldn't help but notice how cozy that office made me feel. All the departments are on the first and second floor while the third floor serves as the Manager's quarters. When I say quarters, I don't mean your usual one-room type of accommodation. Here, it's more like the miniature Malacanang of the North type, hehehe. It has a huge living room, a spacious dining area with kitchen, bathroom, the Manager's bedroom and three other guest rooms plus a huge gym with exercise equipment. I was really awed! How I wish I can live like a manager there one day!