Places

Hotel hopping in Iloilo

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The hotel you find for your vacation plays a significant part of how much you will enjoy your time. Even the most beautiful tourist spots will be forgotten if you get yourself into a bad hotel.  To avoid this problem, I refer to discounted agency travel packages to get an idea of the hotels to check out. TripAdvisor is a good resource too.

Since I have been hopping between Iloilo and Cebu lately, I would just like to share short reviews of the hotels I have stayed in in my short trips to this quaint city.

THE PRICEY ONES

Richmonde Hotel

Richmonde Hotel
Richmonde Hotel sits right in the middle of the new Iloilo Business Park.

Continue reading Hotel hopping in Iloilo →

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Adventures, Places

Water and Sands in the Philippines

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Just a few days ago Cebu registered a high 44.1 degrees heat index according to PAG-ASA Mactan. According to the said local state weather bureau, the heat index (also called human discomfort index) is the actual temperature felt by the body based on air temperature, humidity, and the surrounding environment. Quite a number of people on my FB feed shouted their discomfort with a slew of posts ranging from how polar caps are melting to comparisons of heat felt to the fires of hell reiterating how HOT this summer is becoming.

When it is this HOT, you can’t helped but think of the many places you’d rather want to be than stay at your sauna-like home. Luckily, the Philippines is blessed with a lot of wonderful places offering escape from the summer heat. As an archipelago, our country literally abounds with bodies of water that will refresh you!!! Here are a few outside of Cebu that I was fortunate enough to have visited over the years. I believe these will give you reason to hop on a ferry or book your next flight out of the city!

BLUE LAGOON, PAGUDPUD ILOCOS NORTE

blue lagoon, pagudpud ilocos norte Continue reading Water and Sands in the Philippines →

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Adventures, Places

Compact Bohol 1-Day Tour: 9 Beautiful spots in a day

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Travelling to Cebu’s next door neighbor has always been a plan but I never had the chance to explore the beautiful places of Bohol. So when I heard that my former classmate, Mich, along with her friends and cousins will be exploring the island, I got myself on board.

We were able to book a van for our Bohol Day Tour for P1,050 each for 12 pax inclusive of entrance fees and buffet lunch during the Loboc River Cruise. The itinerary included 10 tourist spots of Bohol: Hinagdanan Cave, Blood Compact Shrine, Dauis Church, Loboc Church, Loboc Floating Restaurant, Chocolate Hills, Man-made Forest, Tarsier Conservation Center, Hanging Bridge, and Prony. Continue reading Compact Bohol 1-Day Tour: 9 Beautiful spots in a day →

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Quotes

Selected quote: Lao Tzu

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30 January 2016

Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished. –Lao Tzu

In the haste of our busy lives, we are reminded to keep still and reflect to where we are heading. Sharing these photos of Lake Balanan in Siaton, Negros Oriental. The immense lake show the great artwork only time and nature can fashion.

Lake Balanan, Siaton, Negros Oriental
Lake Balanan, Siaton, Negros Oriental, PH. 2015.

 

Lake Balanan, Siaton, Negros Oriental
Lake Balanan, Siaton, Negros Oriental, PH. 2015.
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Adventures, Places

Canigao Island

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Canigao Island of Matalom, Leyte is my first trip in Eastern Visayas as a tourist. I once visited Palo and Tacloban, Leyte during a leadership conference a decade back but didn’t have a chance to tour around.

At work, our colleague in UP Cebu pitched for this lovely island for our summer vacation / adventure last year. We conceded gladly after a quick check over the Internet of photos featuring Canigao Island (Due also to a hospitable offer that her family in Matalom will send us off with food :)). Continue reading Canigao Island →

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Photography, Places

Northern Negros Occidental

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Northern Negros Occidental is a happy mix of rural and city life. A halo-halo of the old and new. Happy to frequent this quaint place.

The Ruins is mistaken as a Bacolod tourist spot. However, it is actually located in Talisay City and perhaps the most popular tourist itinerary for people who visit Negros via Bacolod or Silay (Related post: A quick visit to The Ruins).

The Ruins
The restoration efforts around The Ruins has transformed an abandoned, rundown mansion into Negros Occidental’s most famous tourist spot.

Continue reading Northern Negros Occidental →

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Adventures, Places

Gigantes Islands

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Located in Iloilo’s north, the beautiful Gigantes Islands of Carles Municipality share the Visayan Sea with the fisherfolks of Negros Occidental and Cebu. Going there would take around 2 hours of land travel (private vehicle) from Iloilo City to Estancia port and another 3 hours through the sea on a motorized banca from Estancia town.

The boat-ride is quite rough so those who are prone to sea-sickness or motion-sickness better take some medicine beforehand.

Your island hopping itinerary would be a mix of white islands and sandbar, the blue sea, a “living” cave, and good dose of fun minus the distraction of a mobile connection. To top that, cheap fresh seafoods abound. Shells sell at around 200 pesos to fill a basin.

Continue reading Gigantes Islands →

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Adventures, Places

South Cebu itinerary: Osmeña Peak, Tumalog Falls, Cangcua-Ay Beach, and Aguinid Waterfalls

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To maximize what remains of the holiday break for another adventure, off I went with friends to visit Cebu’s popular southern tourist destinations. On our itinerary were: Osmeña Peak in Mantalongon, Dalaguete; Tumalog Falls in Oslob; Cangcua-Ay Private Beach in Tan-awan, Oslob; and Aguinid Waterfalls in Tangbo, Samboan.

The itinerary was quite pain-inducing: A good climb and descent to/from Osmena Peak; an uphill walk through the steep road from Tumalog Falls; the 200+ steps of Cangcua-Ay Private Beach; and the trek through the 5 levels of Aguinid Waterfalls. Continue reading South Cebu itinerary: Osmeña Peak, Tumalog Falls, Cangcua-Ay Beach, and Aguinid Waterfalls →

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Places

Snapshots of Iloilo

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Visited Iloilo City again twice this month. Work has been a fly in and out affair from Cebu to Iloilo lately. During breaks, I got to visit somewhere new in Iloilo.

@ West Visayas State University (WVSU)

Founded 1902, West Visayas State University is among the oldest state university’s in the country predating even the University of the Philippines which started in 1908.

The university began in June 16, 1902 as Iloilo Normal School. It became West Visayas State College in 1965 and, eventually, became West Visayas State University in 1986. Continue reading Snapshots of Iloilo →

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The Bisaya Travels