Baguio City, Philippines

Baguio City, so far,  is one of my favorite place here in the Philippines. It is a highly urbanized city in the Northern Luzon and also known as the "Summer Capital of the Philippines". I love the cold weather na parang meh Korea feels lang. :D I love roaming around the city seeing people wearing their best winter clothes (and I just love winter clothes because maybe kinain na nga ata talaga ako ng sistema ng KDrama. LOL). The view of the pine trees are just so beautiful that you will feel like you're in a different world. It is really an amazing place for me compare to the hot temperature and traffic in Manila. You could really relax and feel refreshed after your stay here. The place itself is just perfect for me.The food there is cheaper compared to other places i have visited but tastes good. Meat and vegetables are fresh and each servings can be shared by two people already. A lot of nice and cozy restaurants located inside and outside the City you can visit and enjoy.

We have visited beautiful and breathe taking places in Baguio City. I've been here twice already and looking to have more in the future. During our first trip here, we visited those known places where people would usually go if they stay there. Please follow through as I narrate what I have experienced during my trip.

First stop was in the "Burnham Park". A 32.84 hectare urban park located in the heart of Baguio City. We rented a boat to experience paddling around the pond where I enjoyed a lot. I feel like I was still in my younger years then. We ate ice cream in spite of the cold and freezing weather. You can see people rent bicycle and roaming around the park too. There were slides and swings for kids to play with. The scenery in the area was just so nice where you can see a lot of beautiful smiles in people faces. Different kind of flowers were planted to add color to the place. There were also some stalls selling bling-bling, accessories and souvenirs around the park. Food stalls and restaurants were also there for those who become hungry and tired roaming around. A cup of hot or iced coffee is just perfect. SM and other shopping Malls are around the corner too.

Second Stop was the well-known "Strawberry Farm". This is the most common place were most of the tourists go and experience picking strawberries and to have some Instagram selfies too. The farm contains not only Strawberries but different fresh Vegetable like Lettuce, Broccoli, Cauliflower and with different colorful flowers too (like Sunflower, Roses, etc.). The place was just so awesome and it was the first time I experienced eating a strawberry flavored ice cream made locally and it was delicious (they call it Dirty Ice Cream). I picked up one basket of strawberry and the price was reasonable.

We also went to the "Botanical Garden". In the entrance, there were local Igorots wearing their costumes and you can have some pictures with them for 20 Pesos only. The place is big with nature scenery and lots of pine and other big trees. There were some souvenir shops inside and food stalls. The weather there was so nice and perfect to lie down on a grassy field staring up the sky. There is also a Cave in this place that contains different caged wild animals like snakes, lizards, etc. So if you are up to wild adventures, this is the place for you.

Next stop is this amazing "Mines View Park". This is an overlook park on the northeastern outskirts of Baguio. The view is just superb. More souvenir shops here selling different goods like Baguio shirts, Strawberry and Ube jams, Malongs, etc. Going up here was not easy. The road was kinda steep and traffic during peak season. You can also do picture taking with a Pony for 20 Pesos only. Not much adventures here except for the magnificent view.

Other places we visited were Camp John Hay and the Christmas Village. Camp John Hay, or what they previously call as John Hay Air Station, is a Major Tourism and recreation attraction located in the City of Baguio. The place offers a lot of stuffs to the Tourist. Currently, a lot of hotels and restaurants were constructed and opened in the Area. There were Adventure Parks and Museums also just around the corner for the Tourist to enjoy. Christmas Village on the other hand were specifically mounted during the Christmas Season. The place is equipped with a Snow making machine and it offers Christmas presentations like dancing and singing.

Oh before I forget, we have dropped by at the "Bell Church" just after we visited the Strawberry Farm. The Bell Church is located north of the downtown area of Baguio along the road leading to the town of La Trinidad, Benguet. Within its compound are intricately designed arches and buildings adorned with flags, bells and dragons.

It has a pagoda, and beautifully landscapped gardens. There are some artifacts about Buddhism that you will find at the Bell Church as well as some literature about the history of China.

More pictures during our trip...

Strawberry Picking at the Farm is quite fun. Anyone care for a bite?

Fresh Vegetables at Strawberry Farm (Yum Yum)

Inside the Botanical Garden with all the Pine Trees at the Back

Taking a shot at the Entrance of the Botanical Garden

Ooopppsss... Something is starting to cover the whole city...

Just to add guys, be sure to check the weather forecast before going to Baguio. Weather here is unpredictable and you might experience thick fog along the way. Double check your car brakes and tires if you are driving. Be safe everyone and enjoy.

Till here for now, will have another post of my other adventures in Baguio City.

Zambales, Philippines

It was one of our dreams to visit Mt. Pinatubo and it has kept us a while in planning the trip. We were all prepared a night before and ready to invade the Volcano just to hear the bad news that the Local Government decided to close the location to the Public/Tourist for some reasons. The Tour Agency advised and provided us other options like going to Zambales with Island Hopping package or move to other dates. We were so disappointed considering that we were so excited to see the Volcano and we have not searched or checked what are we going to have in Zambales. Since we cannot move to other dates anymore, we decided to take the Zambales Cove and Island Hopping Package Tour. We left around 3 in the morning the following day and thoughts of how Zambales will look like kept playing in our minds. We passed thru Subic and have witnessed part of the sun rise. It was almost 9 in the morning when we arrived at Zambales and was so tired due to heavy traffic. Our eyes grew big when we had our glimpsed of the beach and islands ahead of us. The excitement and adrenaline started to pump up in us.

Capones Lighthouse

Snap with Family

We took a small motor Boat from the main land and first dropped by the Capones Island. It is located almost at the outer part of the main land and the highlight of the island was the lighthouse (named Capones Island Lighthouse). It is a historic lighthouse located in Capones Island off the coast of Brgy. Pundaquit, San Antonio. The view of the West Philippine Sea from the lighthouse  was extremely overwhelming. You will feel like you we're on the top of the world. The water on the sea and the blue sky makes it a perfect view. You might just want to stay there dreaming and relaxing the whole day long.

Hidden River in Anawangin Cove

Beach Front Anawangin Cove

After Capones Island, we jumped off to our Boat and went to Anawangin Cove to have lunch. This place was a popular destination for camping and beach outing. It has white sands, pine trees, hidden river, a hill and mountains to climb. Do expect though that the place has no electricity and that Mobile Phone's signal is a bit weak. Just the perfect place to relax and disconnected yourself to all those busy and stressful days in the city. After lunch we climbed the hill near us and took photos of the whole area. It was a bit tiring plus the scorching heat of the sun. Since this was an unplanned and unexpected trip, we never got the change to swim at the beach.

We left Zambales at around 4 in the afternoon having a "Bitin" feeling but then decided to have another trip back here. Of course, should be perfectly planned ahead.

Snap at the Lobby of the Lighthouse

View from the cliff (overlooking SouthWest Philippine Sea)

Some snap I took from Capones Island

Some snap I took from Capones Island

The Capones Island itself

Some snap I took from Capones Island

A snap of Anawangin Cove with Me in the picture :)

Me resting at the top of the Hill 

Some view from the Hill

Islas de Gigantes, Iloilo Philippines

Obligatory Picture from Cabugao Island

It's been two years since we left our hometown in Visayas Island and we saw how everything has changed. New buildings built, businesses opened and beautiful malls and resorts were constructed and restored. These things mean one thing, more job opportunities for my fellow Ilonggos or to what we call "Kasimanwa".

During my vacation, we went to this Paradise called The Islas de Gigantes. It is one of the popular beaches/islands discovered in my hometown. Islas de Gigantes, is located off the coast of Carles and Estancia towns in northeastern Iloilo, Philippines. It takes at least 5 hours to get there from Iloilo City. The islands are blessed with pristine white sand beaches, bountiful fresh seafood, and jagged rock formations shrouded by mystical tales of locals. The Islas are composed of 10 islands in total. The Islands were devastated during typhoon Yolanda last 2013. Looking at the news made our hearts melt in sadness. The place was so gorgeous and extremely beautiful before Yolanda hit her. Thanks to our local government that the place was restored immediately. Tourists started to come in since then and the islands became lively again.

Garlic Scallops Overload (P1.00 each)

We did our own itinerary as usual of course. We left Iloilo at 3AM and took a Van going to Carles Port. It was a 5 hours drive and we arrived at around 8AM. We have contacted a local boatman already way before we arrived at Iloilo and he met us at the Port. We started Island Hopping tour and we visited several areas. The weather was quite calm when we started the tour but waves started to hit our boat along the way. We took a lot of magnificent and amazing pictures.

We ate our lunch in one of the Islands and the food was so great, delicious and fresh too. The locals cooked our food for a very cheap price. All you have to do is choose and tell them how it will be cooked.

In front of the Resort we stayed for the night

The place was quite remote so do not expect to have free WIFI, cable tv or other techie stuffs. We only got enough signal for a Call and Text. The place was so peaceful during the night that you can only hear the sound of crickets and all other insects. It was a perfect time to be calm, meditate and feel the sound of the waves. After our dinner, we had a couple of beers and played cards a bit before we slept. We left the Island the next morning at around 8AM and started to travel back to Iloilo City. The 1 Day 1 Night trip was a bit short but it was fun and amazing.

More pictures:

Antonia Island

Ojastras Island

Cabugao Island

Rock formations at Cabugao Island with Wonder Woman Post

The "Tangke" - is a saltwater lagoon located within Gigantes Sur. It is surrounded by cliffs. One local myth surrounding Tangke states that the waters would magically rise every year on June 24 during the feast of Saint John the Baptist

With Friends at The Sand Bar "Bantigue Island"

My Travel Partner