The Beauty of Camiguin

Way back in college, I dreamt of going to Camiguin. Cebu Pacific gave us the perfect opportunity when we were able to book ourselves a roudtrip ticket to Cagayan for only 300 pesos. It was a long wait, but well worth the trip.

Cagayan airport

We landed in Cagayan airport, where my husband's cousin picked us up at the airport and treated us to a nice dinner. He then checked us in a hotel. The following day, he picked us up from the hotel to go to his dad's office, had a Chinese buffet lunch and then off to Camiguin we went.

The view from the boath...Camiguin island

Going to the island

It was already night time when we arrived in the island. We checked in Jasmine by the Sea, and rented a motorcycle the following morning to tour the island.Camiguin is just 64 kms in circumference, you could really just tour the island in a day. Armed with a map given to us by the caretaker of the resort, we toured the island stopping whenever we see a tourist attraction.

The ride itself is a joy! To our right was the sea, and to our left was the picturesque Mt. Hibok-hibok. Not to mention that it was the first time that my husband and I had ridden in motorcycle together.A view by the resort

Stopping by to take a picture of the breathtaking scenery

Church ruins

Sto. Nino cold spring

Sunken cemetery

Ardent hotspring

Going to the white island

While the Camiguin mainland had black sand, the white island is a miracle in itself...it has amazing white sands

Camiguin island is a paradise. It's a must-see for every nature lover.

The Start of Summer: Tambuli Beach Resort

We couldn't put up with the heat any longer. And the kids have been begging us to go somewhere cool and fun, a.k.a beach or pool so we decided to check out Tambuli Beach Resort.
It's a 30-minute drive from home. We didn't have to prepare early (like we do when we go out of town). That's the beauty of living in Cebu, everything is within reach.

We opted to stay in Tambuli West because it has several pools, of several sizes where the kids can just lounge and enjoy. However, they were preparing for a wedding reception there, thus they didn't have buffett. We went to Tambuli East for the buffet, and enjoyed the sand and the sea there as well. (Tambuli West does not have a nice shoreline, unlike the East.)
Entrace is PhP350, although PhP 300 is consumable. But if want to go for the buffet which is at PhP450, you have to shell out another Php150, but the food is really worth the price though.

I'm Going to Make it Work

So....I started the new year on positive note. I claimed that I will accomplish the goals I've set for this year and kick some habits that are not helping get to where I want to get. Also, I said "Yes" to a life-altering offer. I know it would mean more office hours, more stress, more responsibilities, but I'm aiming for greater rewards. I'm in for greater things...

Rantings

To be honest, I don't really know what I will write. I'm just trying to stick to my promise that I will be updating my blogsite every so often. I just wanted to ram into the keyboard and rant, rant and rant, even though I couldn't make out of what I'm saying. There are somethings about my work that I'm not allowed to share to the rest of the world due to confidentiality agreement so in as much as I want to blow up and vent out here, I couldn't. I almost got into trouble once because of doing that, and I'm not going to go that way again. But anyway, will just sleep coz I will be going back to the office in a few hours.

Cebu Pacific On Promo

Cebu Pacific is having a seat sale again. They are giving 50% discount on all domestic and international flights. Buying period is between Jan 6 - 8, 2010, and travel period is between Feb 1 - April 30, 2010. If you have plans on travelling between these dates, I strongly suggest you take advantage of this promo. As for me, I have resolved to stay put and save up for my Hongkong trip although my heart is dying to go to Manila to see my brand-new nephew. Sigh!

Using my Belle De Jour Planner

Since it's a new year, I've resolved to make sure that I update my blogsite regularly. It doesn't have to be on a daily basis, but to at least tend to it from time to time like I do with Cafe World, which I already given up on.

Speaking of resolutions, I also made a list of habits to break/start for this year and I am tracking my progress using the habit tracker in my Belle De Jour Planner, a gift I receive from Daddiyah. So far, I have only missed one habit, and has been able to follow through on the list that I made. Here's hoping I remain true to my resolutions.

Another year has passed....another year to look forward to. The year 2009 has brought about a lot of wonderful memories to remember, great experiences to savor and although it was not entirely wonderful, it's been a year of learning, and beatiful in its entirety, a full color page in this book called life.

I am looking forward to the new year with delight, with excitement, with sheer anticipation. I will continue to believe that God will be faithful in His promises, and I will be confident that nothing will happen that is not in His plan for me. Above all, I will receive with an open heart all the blessings that God has in store for me.

May everyone of us welcome the new season of blessings, new season of promotion, new season of victory, new season of increase, new season of hope, and new season of peace.

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!

I'm Mobile!

i haven't been really religiously working on my site for sometime. no, i take that back. i haven't been really working on it at all. my friend has been encouraging me to set up a new one complete with host and domain, and i have been putting it off for sometime.

i guess i woul have to be a little more diligent now that i'm mobile. so yes, eds, we'll work on that domain soon...

Facebook to Blame

It's weekend once again. The time of the week where I could spare a few minutes to tinker with the computer about non-work related stuff. Ok, I'm lying. I am usually in front of the computer almost everyday, even after work. It's just that I'm not really into blogging anymore, for the reason that Facebook has gotten the better part of me. hehehe

Reading updates from friends, seeing their pictures, watching videos and selling friends (in Friends for Sale) has taken me away from blogging. Instead of the broadcaster, I'm now more of a spectator. Instead of working my brains, I chose to be lazy.

Well, let's blame Facebook for that. =)

Life Goes On...

A few years ago, a friend of mine told me these lines.




"Well, it was not a surprise that you are getting married ... it's a shocker!!! hehe ... well the persona that you projected to the public is one that is far far away from marriage-hood. You are independent, marriage is limiting. You are carefree, marriage is serious. You are adventurous, marriage is settling down. You dream of great things, marriage is compromise. That's why people were taken by surprise."



I didn't have the chance to dispute, refute or confirm what he told me. My reply, if I remember correctly was a smile. I didn't really understand what he meant by then. At that point in time, in the midst of my wedding preparations, I was too excited and too naive to know what I'm really getting into to. And now, almost five years into marriage, I think I now have the answers.



Well the persona that you projected to the public is one that is far far away from marriage-hood - everybody is not what he seems he is. In most cases, people surprise other people, in which, i'm not the only one =)

You are carefree, marriage is serious - I am carefree, and yes I can be serious, too. Just because a person is carefree doesn't mean that I don't take things seriously. The two doesn't necessarily contradict.

You are adventurous, marriage is settling down - When I tied the knot, my adventorous spirit didn't get tied down. A major part of me still wants to explore the world, and marriage has not kept me from doing that. Thankfully, I have found a partner who shares the same spirit.

You dream of great things, marriage is compromise - whether or not you are in marriage, compromise happens. You compromise at work, you compromise with your family, with friends and there are somethings you have to give up in favor of other things. Compromise does not happen exclusively in marriage. I may have compromised a lot of things in the beginning of my marriage, but, this I'm truly proud to say, that my husband has shown me all out support for the things that I dreamed of, and has selflessly encouraged me in my pursuit of greatness.


I can honestly say that I'm truly happy with what my marriage has brought me, and what life, in general, has given me. But it doesn't stop there. At 28, I've gone to places, I've conquered some of my fears, reached some goals, given up on some dreams, build new ones .... but it doesn't end there. There are still places to visit, goals to reach, dreams to conquer and adventures that are yet to be taken. But the most beautiful part is that I have someone to share these things with, and having two adorable miniatures of ourselves, is definitely a bonus.

I just turned 28. Another birthday, another year, another beginning...but it's the same journey. Life goes on...

Stuckli Beach in Badian

Last May 2009, under the heat of the summer sun, we had an impromptu decision of beating off the humidity by going someplace cool and breezy.

We've heard about Stuckli Beach Resort in Badian and decided to check it out. Together with our colleagues, we headed northbound at 7am. We had a few stops to to get some supplies and arrived at the beach at around 11am. It shouldn't take that long actually except that the supposedly short stops took longer than usual. We had a hard time finding the place as it would appear that you are driving towards the middle of a mountain uphill, then we went downhill for a bit and discovered the beautiful stretch of white beach.

We didn't plan to go overnight, but because we got enchanted by the tranquility of the place, we decided to stay for the night.

For those of you who wants to get their contact number, here it is:


09273157259 and 2541057. Look for Rick.

The room rates are as follows:



ROOMS 1 and 2 (good for 2-3 persons) = P 1,000.00
ROOM 3 (A/C - good for 2-3 persons) = P 1,500.00
*HOUSE 1 and HOUSE 2 = P 2,000.00
**HOUSE 3 and HOUSE 4 = P 2,500.00
HUTS = P 500.00

DAY USE = Minus 50% of the Normal Rate
*Good for 6 persons with beds, electric fans, and toilet and bath.
**Good for 8 persons with beds, electric fans, and toilet and bath.
** For excess persons we charge P150.00 each.

Boracay: Return to Paradise

When I left Boracay last year, I made a promise that I would be back the soonest that I can. Cebu Pacific presented me a very good opportunity last February, so I booked a flight for our anniversary on June.

Since we already tried staying in station 1, we decided to try station 2. Also, I've researched that station 2 has cheaper restaurants and resorts. It's also where Talipapa is located which is their wet market where they sell live seafood and you can have them cooked by the surrounding restos.

Unfortunately, June is not a very good season to go to Bora. It's habagat season which means it's so windy and rainy. We didn't even get to land in Caticlan due to heavy rainfall and zero visibility. We braved the turbulence on air and attempted twice to land in Caticlan, until the pilot decided to land in Kalibo instead.

It was raining so hard when we got to Bora. There were several re-routes before we got to the island, and to the strip of white beaches. We got off from the pedicab in Talipapa where we treaded the waters of Bora - the "baha" (flood) water, that is. hehehehe

Nevertheless, we enjoyed our stay there. We got to try the really great food at very affordable prices. I forgot the name of the resort we stayed in during our first night, although I know it's in station 2. We stayed Orchids Resort in station 3 on the 2nd and 3rd night. We originally planned to stay in different resorts each night but decided to settle in Orchids Resort because the place is great and affordable, and the staff are also very friendly.

Setting aside some of the unfortunate events, my 3rd visit to Bora is still superb. And again, I still don't want to leave the place. hehehehe...Hopefully, I could go back with a larger group, and tag my kids along.