Capones Island, Zambales

WE ALL FEEL THE HEAT WAVE EVERYDAY. AND IT IS GETTING QUITE UNCOMFORTABLE, ACTUALLY. GLOBAL WARMING OR NOT, SUMMER IS DEFINITELY HERE TO STAY. WHAT BETTER WAY TO COOL OFF THAN TO SPEND IT OUT OF TOWN, PREFERABLY BY THE BEACH AND JUST SUNBATHE AND FROLICK THE SUMMER DAYS AWAY…

Just don't forget your hat, shades and SPF70 lotion and you're ready to conquer this scorching heat. Consider some of my suggestions for places to spend your summer vacation…

 ~~~oOo~~~

 

We miss surfing so much! But because it's been hectic at work, we couldn't find the time to visit La Union. Then I thought, how about Zambales? So I texted my friends and luckily, 2 joined us --- Ella and Odhe and my brother Mac as well. We met up at 7-11 (our usual meeting place for our trips) near Quezon Ave. MRT. By 4:30am, we were off to Pundaquit. It was almost twilight when we hit the North Expressway. So the fog at that time wasn't that unusual. However, around 6 am, as we were approaching Subic, we noticed that the thick fog was still surrounding not only the farm lands but the main road too! We even turned our fog lights on just to be on the safe side. It was pretty peculiar and creepy at the same time. More like a venture into the Lord-of-the-Rings scene if I may say so.

Capones Adventure in Zambales

Despite the hurricane warning of CNN and PAGASA, we still pushed through with our plan. Like I said, "Let God's will be done!" Hehehe. For some reason, all of us were feeling very brave that dawn, without a care in the world. But of course, I still checked out the weather forecast on the internet when we got home. And it says that it's signal # 2 in Iba while it's signal # 1 for the rest of Zambales. We won't be reaching Iba. Our destination is only up to Pundaquit, San Antonio. So meaning, we'll only encounter signal # 1 of the storm. Very easy. Hahahaha!

 Peter is bald again and trying out the waters of Pundaquit.

So we all met up at 7-11 near Quezon Ave. MRT station. While waiting for Dino, us girls did some food shopping for our trip.When he got there, we also tried withdrawing some cash at a nearby ATM to no avail. Oh well!

 
Watching Dino surf for the first time...

By 5am, we were already on the road to pick up Ode at Meycauayan, Bulacan. Then off we headed to San Antonio, Zambales.

   
Night of drinking, dancing and singing... 

The Human Walrus and Sexy Nomad doing a 70's dance step...

   
more of our drunken state as Dino sings MY WAY...

We reached Megan's Resort at around 8am. Just as we predicted, there was no wind at all. The sky was overcast and to our disappointment, no waves for surfing too. On the other hand, it will be very easy to cross the sea and go to Capones and Camara Islands.  Boat rental is only P600 good for 5 persons and it will only take around 25 minutes to cross the sea. BUT, Ate Rose texted Peter urging us all NOT to venture seaward. She's very concerned that the typhoon might hit our area any time and we might be left stranded on an island. Point taken.

The other boat on the way to Capones  

After checking-in, we rested a bit. We got this room that already has 2 king-sized beds and hot & cold shower. It's priced at P2800 less 20%. The seven of us divided the cost and voila! It came out very cheap. Not bad! Not bad at all!

  

So near...yet so far...

On our first day, we explored the beach, tried the water, went to the estuary and in the afternoon, I was able to rent a surfboard from a local for P800 for 24-30 hours. Cool! The boys surfed until their bodies ached while us girls just watched by the beach.

Reaching Capones Island at last!!!

Zambapalooza with Brownman Revival

How was your long weekend? Were you able to do the things you've been wanting to do but just didn't have the time? I hope so.

As for me, the break wasn't as relaxing as I imagined it would be. I even ended up having a terrible body ache after 3 days and 2 nights of extreme adventure which I haven't experienced in a loooong while. But I'm not complaining... 

After 3 and a half hours of travel from Manila via the North Expressway, we finally arrived at Pundaquit, San Antonio, Zambales a little before 9 am. We rented an aircon room at Megan's Resort (P1440/night for 3 pax) and didn't waste time exploring the beach, checking out the gorgeous surfers and signing up for a free surfing clinic. 
 

After the competition, Zambales and Manila Surfers had a tug-of-war competition. Too bad for us Manileños, Zambales surfers won. I also noticed that there were several soldiers in the area, probably to ward off local NPAs. I took that chance to have my picture taken with them. Hehehe. Afterwards, I did some skim boarding by the beach. It was perfect! Way off better for this kind of sport than that of La Union. And I really had so much fun!                                                                          

On our first night, after having dinner and playing some videoke, despite the drizzle, we went to a nearby resort where three bands were going to play including Brownman Revival (BMR). There were also some fire stunts performed by fellow surfers. Unfortunately, after the 2nd band, the drizzle turned into full blown rain and due to previous electrocution (don't worry, he's fine now) of the first band's vocalist, the organizers cancelled the last band and decided for BMR to play the following night instead. Thus, we stayed another night. Besides, there were news of flood in Pampanga which made it difficult for us to travel back home. Therefore, to the delight of most of my friends, we stayed. Yipee!