Dasol

Sometime during January of this year we decided to go to Pangasinan as part of our annual excursions to not so famous but admiringly beautiful places in our country. I picked Dasol because it was an interesting and fun idea to camp out in a place called snake island. An island so small you can circle it in just 15 minutes. I went with my usual group of friends. 

My biggest mistake was that I overslept the night before and I missed the bus. My friends went on without me and  I was feeling guilty that I  planned everything but I was the one who could not make it. So I made a decision to follow them.. alone. I was an hour behind schedule but it didn't matter to me because I knew exactly how to get there. So I had to take a bus going to Alaminos. It is advisable to take the earliest bus going there as the trip would take around 4-5 hours but since I missed the first one, I had to take the second bus departing an hour later. From Alaminos, I had to take a jeepney going to Dasol. The scenery is breathtaking as I was greeted with warm fresh air and lush farmlands stretching for miles and miles. 

I arrived at Dasol town proper just in time for lunch and met my friends there. They gave me judging looks but I just told them I was sorry for what happened. We ate lunch and proceeded to hire a tricycle which would take us the coastline. Now this is the fun part as based on what we've read online it was going to be a long tricycle ride on a not so well-paved road. We were a group of six and we had to hire two separate tricycles. We haven't traveled far yet and suddenly one of the tricycles broke down with a flat tire. We had to wait there in the middle of nowhere for another tricycle to pick us up. Luckily after about 10 minutes we caught one on the way to the same destination we were going. The tricycle ride was torturous as the road alternated between smooth and rough. The tricycle's shock absorbers couldn't help so much so our butts had to endure every bump on the road so much so that when we finally arrived at our destination we couldn't feel our butts anymore. 

There was a hotel by the beach/jump-off point where we bought food and supplies which would last us two days as we were going to stay overnight in the Island. There are no inhabitants in the island save for a few snakes that visit every now and then and creep out unsuspecting campers. Nevertheless, we knew what we were getting into and pushed on. We brought a tent with us big enough to fit all of us.

We arrived at the island just a couple hours before sunset. We pitched our tent and settled there. We circled around the island for a good 30 minutes until the sun started retreating into the horizon. As usual the sunset did not fail to amaze us as it started to color the clouds and the sky with its beautiful afterglow. We stayed there by the big rocks and watched in awe as the sun showered its golden light upon us as it slowly went down.

At night there was nothing much to do except to lie down and watch the myriad of stars in the sky. From a distance we could still see several fishing boats floating in the sea noticeable only by the strong lights they carry with them as they try to attract schools of fish to sell the morning after. We put off the lights at half past ten so as not to attract any snakes as we were told the snakes are drawn to fires and lights. The winds were blowing strong that night but we were able to sleep peacefully.

We woke up early in the morning to catch the sunrise and again we were in awe as colors exploded in the sky. The cool morning breeze was refreshing enough to keep us all silent and in meditation. We just savored the moment as it felt priceless to be in it.

We went home just before lunch time. Took the same route as I described above... 

Backlit

Backlit photos are surreal. 

Bataan Squares

Early this March my friends and I planned a short weekend trip to Bataan to finally visit our friend's beach house there. Bataan isn't exactly one of the most exciting places to go to relative to other places in the Philippines. It maybe because of its proximity to the capital which makes it one of the default places to visit just like Batangas. But as I would always like to believe, there's always something new to discover so I was partly thrilled nonetheless. 

I read somewhere on the internet about the lighthouse in Sisiman Bay. I got even more excited when I saw stunning pictures of the lighthouse scattered all over the web. I knew I had to see it so I recommended that it be first on our itinerary. My friends are also suckers for lighthouses so they welcomed the idea of visiting the place even if it would take us to the very tip of the Bataan peninsula. 

We drove for around 4 hours and got lost a few times until we reached Sisiman Bay where the fabled lighthouse is supposed to be located. Ideally we would have left earlier in order to witness the sunrise over the bay but we ended up arriving with the sun already high up.

We parked in front of a burnt down structure of a house from which you would walk a couple hundred meters to gain a good vantage point of the lighthouse. Local children welcomed us as were anxious to see the lighthouse. 

Unfortunately though we were informed that the lighthouse has already collapsed. The lighthouse was brought down by a strong typhoon. We could not believe this so we still pushed through walking through boulders to see even just the ruins of legendary structure. True enough there was nothing there to greet us; Just the foundation lying flat rising just a few meters from the water. Nothing there to serve as evidence that a lighthouse used to stand there.   

We went back to the abandoned house instead to look around and take some pictures before leaving...

    

    

   

After a disappointing visit to the lighthouse, we pushed on and went to the Bataan war memorial. This is on top a mountain where US and PH forces made their last stand before being defeated by the Japanese during World War II. Here you will see the huge cross-shaped monument to signify the heroic efforts of those who died defending the country before being completely taken over by the Japanese. You can actually go inside the monument and take an elevator going up to the view deck where you will see a panoramic view of the Bataan Peninsula. 

                                          

Then after we proceeded to my friend's house where we spent the rest of the day bumming and fooling around. 

P.S. All pictures taken with Instagram APP :)

Bong Srolanh Oun, Siem Reap!

Before anything else, I must say it has been a while since I’ve written anything on this journal. I have been away for quite some time but I have to say that so far everything has been great for me as far as my life is concerned. Over the past year I’ve been to places I’ve never been in before and each one has proven to be such an unforgettable adventure for me. Add to that, I have someone else in my life I’ve been sharing a majority of my time with (read: girlfriend). Suffice it to say she’s been adding that extra awesome kick to my otherwise reclusive but unpredictable day to day mundane world. In short… I’m happy.

On to the topic at hand: well I know I have a half-a-year’s worth of backlog but allow me to start in reverse. Last week I went to Siem Reap, Cambodia as part of my month long plan of making March extra happy, fun and memorable. I went with my usual group of friends who never hesitate to hit that “book” button whenever a P1 seat sale appears on the Cebu Pacific website. I have to say I’m quite blessed to have them as officemates; they are an awesome bunch of people.

Siem Reap as I would describe it would be a city with an identity crisis. It’s a frozen time capsule with all the huge and vast temples scattered all over as if the city is one big exhibit of ancient civilization. Finding yourself exploring the temples is just sublime as you can’t quite grasp the enormity of the structures coupled with the intricacies of the design even to the very minute details.

 

Come night time, the streets light up on the stretch of Pub Street where all the tourists spend their post-temple escapades; They wind down with a massage (either by human hands or by fishes eating your dead skin) or satisfy their hunger and thirst with a healthy serving of tasty Khmer food with a few bottles of beer in the chic bars and restaurants lined up.

Suffice it to say the people are still coming to grips with the situation, at least from my point of view. The city relies heavily on tourism so much so that day to day life revolves around it. You would be surprised to know that most of the population can speak English with a very western accent. The most common English phrase uttered has something to do with selling souvenirs: “ for one dollah” followed by a barrage of a well made spiel aimed to persuade the tourist to buy the stuff offered. I’m pleased to announce though that the city is still pretty much provincial. Common mode of transportation is the bicycle (I am in love with them I want to visit every bicycle city in the world) and the tuktuk. Cruising your way on to the temples you would notice the countryside with the alternating expanse of rice paddies, forests, and small houses. The urbanization is concentrated in the centre of the city.

If I there’s one thing I would come back for in Siem Reap (besides for the temples I wasn’t able to visit and the temples my camera battery died in haha), it would be the people. They were infinitely warm, accommodating and sometimes funny. I almost felt like they were all my friends. I could easily talk to them. They are worlds different from other Asians and European snobs who are rude. They never hesitate to smile when I pointed my camera at them. They were always ready to assist us and we never felt like we were being scammed (at least in our experience).  Honestly, I felt like I had connection with these people. Despite their surroundings pushing them into the world of exploitative tourism they are still able to share the charm that is in temples which the city is famous for. And if anything, it is them I miss the most from this trip. It is nice to come across things/people which are very foreign to you but bring out a certain familiarity which connects to deepest recesses of your being.

Cagbalete Island

We boarded the bus at around 2:00 AM in the morning coming from katipunan still a bit groggy from a few bottles of beer we drank to kill time. There were originally four of us who were going on this trip but at the last minute friends of a friend decided to come with us. I didn't know who they were but I thought it nice to meet new faces once in a while and more so in an adventure like this. 

We were seated at the back of the bus just as always because we just like to stick together. Later on did we realize it was a wrong decision as those seats were the worst in the bus. We could feel every turn the bus made and it was amplified by the alcohol in our system. To make the long story short, we weren't able to sleep much, I for one dreaded every minute of that bus ride. If not for the free WiFi which at least gave us something to do, I would have sworn never to do it again.

We arrived in Lucena City at around 5:00 AM. A little bit earlier from what I initially expected but luckily the connecting bus going to Mauban port was already leaving so we didn't have to wait. The bus was of the open air kind which you would normally see in provinces carrying villagers from the suburbs to the center of the town where they can sell their farm produce. The bus kept on making stops to do just that. But it was a relaxing ride as we were greeted with the cool morning breeze and the sun just eager to break out into the horizon. We passed through vast rice fields which reminded me much of Isabela and through the distance you can see the outline of Mt. Banahaw, the supposed head quarters of the New People's Army. Then we went through mountains cruising through zigzag roads with a view of coconut tree covered hills enveloped in the morning mist and the sky being colored warmly by the slowly rising sun. And the familiar scent of air which indeed reminded me of the countryside; A fresh cold breeze rushing through our faces mixed with the smell of moist trees surrounding us and occasionally the smell of cow dung which distracted our minds every now and then.

We arrived at Mauban at around 6:00 AM. The bus dropped us a few blocks away from the port and so we walked around the town trying to find boats going to Cagbalete. We confirmed that the passenger boat owned by the government leaves the port at 10:00 AM and 2:00 PM which gave us a lot of time to wander around. We first looked for a bakery to buy some bread and eat breakfast. Then we walked towards the breakwater to just wait and relax. By 8:00 AM we were already bored so we tried to look for a private boat which would already take us to the island. The tourist information office gave us outrageous prices so we tried to negotiate with the local boatmen. We were able to charter a boat for a cheaper price so we went with that. But we were able to leave only at around 9:00 AM because the people at the tourist desk kept on stopping us. They kept on insisting that we pay published rates which irked us all because it was a total rip off. They eventually let us leave.

The boat ride was about a quarter hour long. We had to circle around as the waters surrounding the island were too shallow at that time of the day. The boat stopped approximately a hundred meters from the shore and could not take us further because of the low tide. So we had to walk from there under the blistering sun carrying our backpacks and cameras to the resort. We found out that the water recedes meters away from the shore from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM  in the afternoon. It exposes much of the beach surrounding the island to the point that a little island made of solid rock surfaces during that time near the island. You can easily walk towards the little island as a portion of the sea floor is exposed which you can use as a bridge. We reached the resort after a few minutes of walking and settled there. We pitched our tents and rested for a while. It was then that we realized that we forgot to bring food. We were so excited to take pictures we weren't able to bring anything to eat or even sunblock which we realized we needed so bad. We had no choice but to walk to the nearby village called Sabang to get food to eat. The locals said it would take around 20 minutes to reach the village but we were still exhausted so we decided to postpone lunch. 

 I decided to go to the little island made of rock because I didn't want to waste any of my time. It was there where my skin was burned as I braved the scorching sun without ever thinking of putting sunblock on my skin. When I couldn't take the heat anymore I returned back to camp and my skin was already stinging but it was already too late. My friends were hungry so we then decided to walk to Sabang. 

A couple of kids offered to guide us and so we went. The path goes through a mildly thick forest canopy which eventually leads to an open filed with coconut trees visible in the distance. After about 10 minutes of walking we already saw small huts. As we entered the village we saw the townspeople peering from the windows in their huts made of cogon slightly amazed at the presence of four wanderers walking around their little town. The kids smiled at us and we felt welcomed. The food there was surprisingly cheap. We spent 200 pesos total for the four of us.

We then went back to the resort to rest for a while then we set off to go to the river west of where our camp was. It reminded me of Nagsasa as the river was also lined with pine trees although a little bit smaller. The riverbed was so soft almost like quick sand which at one instance swallowed half of my leg. When I pulled out my feet, my slipper got stuck in the river bed. It took time before I was able to find it. We decided to head back to camp when the water tide was already rising. We noticed that it was already covering the trail along the shoreline that we took to go to the river so we hurried back. Upon reaching the camp, the tide was already high so finally we could swim. The water though was hot for some reason almost as if the beach was one big natural jacuzzi.

It was already past sunset and the light was fading fast when we decided to eat dinner back at the village. Our guide repeatedly hurried us because it would be hard to walk through the forest trail at night. But we pushed through and ended up scaring ourselves with the thought of stray snakes invisible under the cover of night lying some in our path going to the village. Or the fabled tiktik which personally scared me even more even though I'm not pregnant or dying. Nevertheless we reached the village  before everything faded in to the night.
 
We had a very delicious dinner of adobong pusit with sukang tuba, which is one of the best suka I've ever tasted (I eventually brought home two bottles of that strange concoction). Before going back to the resort, we bought mini flashlights so we can light our paths. We actually considered staying the night at the village just because we were slightly afraid of going back by ourselves. But we pushed on. Luckily there were other villagers who were going back to the beach but at a different side of the island. We decided to follow them then just walk along the shoreline until we reach the resort. It was a better choice in retrospect as I really was not confident we could trace our way back through the pitch black darkness.

So we walked and the most amazing sight showed itself to us. The sky was filled with a million stars and it was truly remarkable. It was something you can never quite appreciate in the city in its full glory because of too much artificial light polluting the sky. And so we pushed on our trail with our mini flashlights in hand. From a distance we could have been mistaken as a cluster of fireflies lost in the pitch black darkness; except that we cursed like a group of intoxicated men as we kept on stepping and tripping on sharp and pointed objects we couldn't see in the dark. It distracted us once in a while from the great cosmic event that is right above us. Nevertheless we were able to reach the shoreline as if by a miracle the starts guided us on our way even if none of us know shit about navigation. We walked along the shoreline which took forever. Eventually, we reached the resort and hung out for a little while then proceeded to sleep. The stars vanished by then as the thick clouds gathered to cover them...

The next day we woke up early to take snaps of the sunrise. We rested for a bit then proceeded to walk to the village to eat breakfast. We ate danggit paired with one of the best suka in the world. We walked around the village for a bit to take snaps of the people. They readily smiled at us. We went back to camp after I finished my very last roll of film. Along the way through the forest trail we chanced upon an ice cream vendor. It was a heavenly sight as the heat was already getting on our nerves.

We went back to the island made of solid rock which further toasted my skin to the color of medium rare steak. We fooled around until we couldn't bear the heat anymore and went back to camp to rest for a while.

Our boat was supposed to pick us up at 3:00 PM but we had doubts as to that because we weren't able to get the number of the boatman. We decided to wait and if ever they don't pick us up we could hire another boat to bring us back to Mauban. For lunch we decided to just order from the village because we were tired of walking already. We spent the rest of the afternoon resting and waiting. Just as we expected at 3pm the boatman wasn't there to pick us up. We were forced to hire a small boat which our group could barely fit in. It was a scary ride going back to Mauban as the boat barely could float in the open sea. I was scared even more when the boatman made a sign of the cross. I silently prayed to myself and just kept calm throughout the trip.

We arrived at the port at 5:00 PM. We missed the last bus going back to Lucena so we were forced to take the private van. There were 18 of us which surprisingly fit inside that van. The van could barely accelerate as it went uphill through the mountains. Our only reprieve was that we arrived early at the Lucena Grand Terminal. We ate at Jollibee before leaving then boarded the bus going back to Manila. We arrived safely at around 10:30 PM.