It’s been two years now since I’ve traveled North. I can still remember how blue this beach was and how the air approached my face when we went here. Blue Lagoon Pagudpud is also known as the Boracay of the North, but in my own opinion, you cannot compare the two.

Apparently, Blue Lagoon has longer shoreline than Boracay and when you get to walk from the water, you’ll see cottages and not fancy hotels. I just hope that this beach remain unspoiled.

Boracay is mainly for party people while this place is mainly for people who seek peace of mind, no bars or fancy restaurants. Read more…

Part of me felt that my postponed trip to Japan was a good thing. I didn’t mind my colleague’s advice to just cancel my 2-week vacation leave and go to work instead.

The time that my trip to Japan was postponed, I told Mica about it and she didn’t hesitate to invite me on their Cebu-Bohol getaway. I was very happy when I booked my first flight of the year. The main highlight of our trip was Bohol, but since our flight was to Cebu and our friend Maire was dying to see the whale sharks (locally known as butanding), we comprised Oslob in our itinerary.

We woke up around 3:30 a.m. and left Sugbutel without fixing ourselves around 3:45 a.m. We met Matt, a young traveler from Canada whom Mica met in Thailand, and he was already waiting at the lobby. Man, he’s cute.  He traveled to Cebu just to see the whale sharks and visit Bohol.

There were no jeepneys during that time and the security guard told us to just ride a cab going to South Bus Terminal. We took an ordinary Ceres bus and the fare was around Php 145.00. It was a 2 ½-hr ride to Brgy. Tan-awan, Oslob.

The bus ride was a like a wind as the driver was very competitive on the road. It was really fast and we had to hold onto our seat tight for the whole time. My butt was also sliding from left to right, then right to left for about an hour. Nonetheless, it was pretty much enjoying.

On our way, the view was very nice. Below the dark sky was a golden glimpse of horizon. The bus conductor was very alert to remind us that we’re already in Brgy. Tan-awan, Oslob. We arrived around 6:30 a.m. and immediately assisted by the restaurant owner and brought us to the guides.

There was registration then briefing. The fees were quite hilarious, I wouldn’t mind if the camera fee was only Php 50 but heck it was Php 100, what made more hilarious was the snorkeling fee. By the way, you don’t need to pay if you don’t have an underwater camera.

Here is the breakdown of fees:

Php 300.00 – Whale shark watching fee
Php 100.00 – Underwater camera fee
Php 50.00 – life vest
Php 100.00 – snorkeling set
Php 20.00 – snorkeling fee
Php 10.00 – shower fee

We were shortly briefed about rules when whale watching:

Do not touch the whale sharks or ride them.
No lotion or sunblock! They say it might poison them.
No flash photography.
Minimal movements only to avoid bubbles.
Viewing is 30 minutes only.

After briefing, we changed clothes and fixed ourselves. EXCITED much!  Geared with our poor cameras we then headed to the boatmen and by the way, you can choose random boatmen to bring you in the watching site, we were there around 7:15 a.m.

We saw one that was being fed by the boatman. It was lovely! I was very excited upon see them personally. There was funny little thing though, my excitement has somehow turned into fear by the time I submerged in the water. OMG Bitch, their mouth is like a big vacuum which looked like it would suck you and EEEEKK it was getting near me! SCARY fish!

I was frightened during the first 5 minutes of snorkeling, I was like, “Omg omg omg!! Here it comes! Here it comes!” And I would frantically swim away.

The whale shark was just beside me and I was being too careful not to touch it. I wouldn’t want to touch it not just because the rules says so, but because it felt like it would wiggle and strongly slap you with its tail when you do.

The boatmen said, “Di ka kakainin nyan..” (It will not eat you) I was stupid enough to forget that they are gentle giants. There was a noticeable odor everytime I get near them, it smelled like fish. I thought whale sharks are mammals but I figured out they aren’t. They are fish.

All of a sudden I remembered that we only have 30 minutes to interact with the whale sharks. My fear then shriveled and I bravely conquered the water.

I have a DiCAPac (an underwater SLR case) which I really didn’t like, because the last time I used it my D60 broke. DiCAPac for SLR was the worst invention ever. I was struggling to use it and I couldn’t take pretty photos!! I made a big mistake for buying this, next time I will be buying a real underwater camera.

A tourist attempting to touch the whale shark..

Will I go back to Oslob? Definitely yes. There were only 3 whale sharks that time, and I want to see more. The boatmen said that the day before we went there were 8 of them. How bold it will be swimming with the 8 gentle giants. Plus, the fact that I have a wrong camera settings, I want to have a clear shots of them next time.

They are yet the loveliest sea creatures I’ve ever met. Although, I believe that this practice (boatmen feeding the whale sharks) is not right. To enlighten you, you may read this article as well: Stop feeding whale sharks in Oslob.

My first ever travel for this year was trekking to the pristine peak of Mt. Pinatubo. I have always wanted to explore Mt. Pinatubo but due to budget constraints and not enough people to join me it never pushed through. I was really glad to join these group of 29 people and this maybe the cheapest trip to Mt. Pinatubo you will ever experience.

Usually, a day trip to Mt. Pinatubo which includes the transportation, food, tour guide, and 4×4 ride will costs you 2K or more; however, in this group that I joined, we only spent P1.6K each which is better than those group buying websites.

I was able to finally meet some travel bloggers which I only knew online. They are just great as their blogs, funky, full of dreams, energetic. All of a sudden, I felt pathetic that I am missing a lot of travel invites since I started working full-time.

Brenna doesn’t know there are people posing behind her

One of the highlights when going to Mt. Pinatubo is the 4×4 trek ride which was a 45-min to an hour ride. At first, we were all wishing to ride on an open 4×4 vehicle. I was one of the selfish people there who are dying to ride on open vehicle as you get to experience the rocky road; but for some reason, I was chosen to ride on a closed one and somehow felt bad (a little).

I was frustrated when I took this shot as I don’t get to see the outside well

Someone is taking a photo from the inside

But during the first half of the 4×4 trek ride, we realized that we’re lucky to be on a closed vehicle as it gets dusty outside. If you’ll notice, the fresh looking faces before now look terrorists.

Next challenge, is the 2 to 3-hr trek. As long as you have food, water, and great panting techniques, you will survive. The biggest mistake that I made on this adventure was that I’ve worn the wrong shoes and I was wearing pants! I should have worn shorts and trekking shoes as I didn’t research or ask for some tips prior to this adventure.

These shoes made my feet swollen and sore

After to to 3 hours of trekking, we finally get to the body of Mt. Pinatubo which is actually a 30-min trek to it’s peak (for young ones like us). The signage is misleading hehe. So I’m guessing this poor granny walked for 45 min to an hour going to the peak. Idol!

You will encounter lots of small body of water during this phase which indeed made the climb an extreme one. It’s really interesting to know where do this water come from, it’s clear, however you cannot drink them for sure it has a high sulfur content.

After 30-min of walking, we finally reached the breathtaking peak.. Never mind the exhaustion, it went away just by gazing the beautiful landscape from the view deck. LUSTROUS!

We’re lucky to travel that time as the water is moss green which said to be the normal aura of it. I’ve heard that whenever there’s an earthquake, water will turn to ashy gray and swimming is prohibited.

At the latter part, some chose to stay and swim at the accessible side of the peak and some chose to explore the other side of it for which I belonged.

As you get to the middle, try dipping your hands on the water as it gets warm. I’ve also heard that you cannot just swim in the middle as there is a strong undertow which can pull you down underwater.

Going further, we astounded by the astonishing scenic landscape of the opposite part of the peak. The water on this side is steamy. It is no longer therapeutic to which its nearly on boiling point, so don’t try to dip your hands or feet.

And you wouldn’t believe that this is the aftereffect of the monstrous eruption on 1991.

It’s so much fun going with these 29 people, we’re the biggest group who went there on that day. I’m truly grateful to Rob and Dong Ho who organized this intense adventure.

If you’re from the busy city of Manila and planning to have a microvacation, I highly recommend Nagsasa Cove. The whole trip would only take 2 to 3 hours including the ride to Mt. Pundaquit, where boats to Nagsasa are located. Going to Nagsasa is pretty simple. Just take bus going to Iba, Zambales from Cubao or Caloocan, ride a tricycle going to Mt. Pundaquit, then ride a boat going to Nagsasa (boat to Nagsasa from Mt. Pundaquit is Php 1,500, good for 4 people).

We left at 5 in the morning and arrived around 9am. In the cove, you can hear the soft and relaxing whooshing sound of the air coming from the mountains. It sounded scary at first and you might wonder, ‘What the heck was that?’ The sound is like when you cup your hands together and put it around your ears.

We stayed here overnight and paid Php 100 for the entrance, camping, and environmental fee. While we wait for the sunset, we seized the day by taking photos, walking by the beach, wandering at the lagoon, and climbing the mountain.

Climbing on top is the most exhilarating experience here in Nagsasa. The spectacular view from the top is amazing. Nagsasa Cove is truly one of the hidden paradises of the Philippines.

Imagine, we only brought Php 1,500 each that time and it already included the transportation (bus, tricycle, boat), entrance fees, and our overnight food. With that amount, we already got to see the beauty of Nagsasa, it is like the tropical version of mountains of Himalaya.

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Update your bucket list and include Nagsasa — best for small group and budget travelers. Also, going there with your friends will absolutely make the trip priceless.. But don’t go there during the typhoon season.

Here’s a simple instruction on how to get to this place: How to Get to Nagsasa Cove, Zambales

Team building activities are done by organizations to specialize in bringing out the best in a team to ensure self development, motivation, improve communication, leadership skills, and the ability to work as a team to solve problem. Being an employee of a corporate organization, I am guilty that this is one of my most awaited events — all-expense-paid.

Team building in Corregidor (Corregidor Adventour Challenge).
Photo courtesy of Aleah of Solitary Wanderer

Last April, I was lucky to be one of the participants to join the Corregidor Adventour Challenge. Surprisingly, aside from historical tour, Corregidor Island also offer this fun and exciting adventure challenge.

What’s with Corregidor? Anung meron sa Corregidor? I have heard this several times whenever I ask someone to join me explore Corregidor. Corregidor played an important role during World War II. It is the Philippine’s first line of defense against Japanese forces and they got bored. So, I added words like ruined barracks, hospitals, tunnels, forest, beach, ghost stories, kamikaze, when telling about Corregidor. I was like, Come on, aren’t you a fan of historical places?

Moving forward, we met up at Sun Cruises port, where the abandoned Jumbo Kingdom Restaurant is located. I finally met these young bloggers from Pinoy Travel Bloggers (PTB) and while waiting for others, I had the chance to know each one of them. I know this is going to be fun as we’re mixture of students, slackers, and employees. One of us ditched work only to experience this fun and exciting challenge!

We then arrived in Corregidor via Sun Cruises ferry. The trip from Manila to Corregidor is approximately 1 to 1.5 hr. The first thing I noticed was that, most of the tourist were foreigners in their 50s to 60s.

We geared ourselves up for the hot sunny day and started picture taking of the beautiful island of Corregidor. We then ride Sun Cruises special bus and toured the island. Ruined infrastructures are fascinating as we go along to the adventour site. We stopped at the Battery Way to change clothes in preparation for the challenge.

We also saw a huge beautiful tree which gave a refreshing mood.

The challenge started!! I don’t want to disclose how the game went through, you might know how we lost lol. I was appointed as the team leader of our group by the way hehe. The game includes physical and mental activities.

Here are some photos during the Adventour Challenge.

Some photos are courtesy of Aleah of solitarywanderer.com

After the game, a delectable buffet lunch was served and filled our empty stomach. We freshen up as we prepare for the last adventour part, the zip line experience.

Group hug shot. Thank you Sun Cruises Philippines and Ivan Henares for this wonderful experience.

Nice to know: Corregidor came from the Spanish word corregir, meaning “to correct.” All ships entering Manila Bay were required to stop and have their documents checked and corrected. Literally, Island of Correction.

The Adventure package costs P1,999 per person (same cost as Corregidor’s day tour with buffet lunch.

Day Tour Corregidor Adventure Inclusions:

- Round trip ferry transfers
- Shrine, entrance and terminal fees
- Corregidor Adventure participation fee
- Corregidor Adventure Kit (includes bottled water, sunblock, energy bar, towel)
- Corregidor Adventure Shirt
- Buffet or Boodle Fight Lunch

For inquiries or reservations contact (632) 527-5555 ext. 4511/4512/4515 or (632) 834-6657-58 / 831-8140. E-mail: corregidortours@ suncruises.com.ph or visit www.corregidorphilippines.com