Bacolod: MassKara festival

Authentic Bacolod Inasal at Chicken Haus, Lunch at Aboy's, Aboy's famous scallops, Masskara Festival Streetdance Competition, Sunset at The Ruins, Desserts overload at Calea, Lunch at Mambukal Resort, Testing my fivefingers at 7falls

This is the youngest we'll ever be..

This is the youngest I'll ever be..

Sounds cliche..but, yes, life IS short..

Take control of your life

Because, at the end, you've no one to blame

but yourself..

So, get off your ass and stop whining

And start acting!

Please..
seriously..

10. Dive

Anilao

Having a hard time writing posts..

These are those moments I have to squeeze my head for something..

Rereading my recent posts, I found them thoughtless

It was like written out of a need, not well thought of..

White bull staring back at me..

Apo Reef Itinerary and Expenses

Php 6000 : Tourist boat good for 10-12 persons Php857
Php 750 : mandatory tour guide Php 107 
Php 600 : (2) tents = Php 300 each Php120
Php 1,125 : Environmental fees  = Php 225 each
Php 8,475 : Php 1,695 each (5 persons)

Php 140 : Bus from San Jose to Sablayan (Php 280,2way)
Php 205 : Pandan Island entrance (each)
Php 400 : Aroma room for 2-3 persons Php 133.33
Php 30 : terminal fee

Php 200: kalan
Php 100 : kaldero, kawali
Php 75 : water
Php 75 each

GRAND TOTAL : PHP 3,727.33

For food, we shelled out Php200 each. It depends on what you guys will consume. 

They also offer other activities:
Apo Reef Natural Park : diving, snorkeling, bird watching
Pandan Island : diving, snorkeling, bird watching
Mt. Siburan and Libuao Lake : Bird watching, trekking, canoeing, picnic
Mt. Iglit - Baco Natural Park : Trekking, tamaraw count/viewing

Contact numbers:
Sablayan Tourism Office
Ate Norie : 09284659585
Ate Bing : 09159953895/09391515737

Ate Bing of the tourism office was so accommodating, she answered almost every bit of my questions and concerns.

Apo Reef Experience

 

 

25 April 2013 Thursday morning

writing from Apo lighthouse

breaky with Marga, Mark

My 27th...

almost

I spent my birthday sunrise with Mark and Marga. No use of checking my mobile, no signals out here.
We went back camp to see the two already prepared breakfast, cheese omelet and hotdogs. We have to start early for our snorkeling before the waves get ruly.

And we were in for a treat!

We were hauled by the boat's katig. We saw APO reef at its finest! I wonder what else we could've seen if we went deeper or diving!

We saw sharks, yes, two juveniles! turtles and a good variety of underwater creatures! dolphins na nga lang un kulang.

After that, the boat took us to another spot for snorkelling.

And the last stop was Pandan Island, where we saw the resident sea turtles few meters from the shore! 

I was really in awe with this whole Apo experience. It's a bit of a travel to go to this place, but it's all worth it. I will attest to that. And just spending for less than 3k (lesser if you're travelling with a large group), you get to experience all of these. Spell awesome!

"When you talked earlier about after a few years how a couple would begin to hate each other by anticipating their reactions or getting tired of their mannerisms-I think it would be the opposite for me. I think I can really fall in love when I know everything about someone-the way he's going to part his hair, which shirt he's going to wear that day, knowing the exact story he'd tell in a given situation. I'm sure that's when I know I'm really in love."

 ~Before Sunrise 

There are so many things I want to do, but I end up doing not much.

~Before Sunset

Apo Reef: 26th

Apo Reef. Not the Apo Island in Dumaguete. This one is in Mindoro.

I've been reading blog posts about this place and twice, we attempted to reach this place..but failed. Mainly because we booked our two trips on rainy days. Now summer's here, we tried again and boy, was the place sooo worth the wait!

We took the early morning flight to San Jose, Mindoro via Cebu Pacific, which flies once a day only. So missing a flight is not an option.

Tip: Do not take the airport tricycles, which charges a minimum of Php 50. Instead, flag a tricycle at the main road which is just a three-minute walk. Pay the basic rate of Php 8! Yes, I know..

We bought our food and groceries at the San Jose market. And took the two hour bus to Sablayan.

haggling for a kilo of liempo

Arriving at Sablayan, we took a trike, also costs Php8, to Sablayan Tourism Office. Here, we paid all the necessary fees to Apo Reef. See, it's a National Park, thus regulated by the government. So all tours and transactions are settled here.

We head to Apo reef. The almost three hours boat ride gave us a scenic view of the reef with waters changing hues.

And finally, we arrived.

The island was undeniably breathtaking! We were lucky we came in at the right time because yesterday, a group of 30 local tourists were present. The whole island is deserted, only for us. Happy birthday to me!

We went to the light house to wait for the sun to set.

 

There are no phone signals, no electricity. The rangers rely on batteries generated by solar panels. They man the island for eleven days. They get food and water rations. After eleven days, another set of rangers will do the manning. When the weather's not good or there's a typhoon, the 11 days becomes longer. FYI: From Apo Reef, it's a two to three hours boat ride to Coron. Yes, Palawan.

That night, we feasted on grilled liempo, sinigang na talakitok and green mangoes. Yum! And my friends prepared a surprise for me! Wow. Thank you guys!

 

 

That night, I spent my last day as 26 in a paradise.. surrounded with my friends. God gifted me a wonderful evening. Thank You!