Snippets of The Banaue Rice Terraces

Do you remember back in preschool/gradeschool when your teachers ask you to bring postcards of any places in the Philippines and they post the pictures on the classroom wall? They then let you memorize the names of the places and you won't be able to go home unless you can identify the postcard they show you? I can vividly remember back then how I was the first one to go home because I knew what the Rice Terraces looked like. I was very much interested in the Terraces primarily because it was referred to and known worldwide as the 8th wonder of the world. I was also very much fascinated as to how such stairs (as I thought back then) exist and how it was done. According to historical accounts, the rice terraces were made mostly by the hands of the native Ifugaos and it was reckoned that if the Rice Terraces were to be placed end to end flat on ground, it will encircle half of the globe.

Random thought: A year ago, I have learned from my Humanities class that nature cannot be regarded as an art because it is God's creation. Nature is something incomparable to anything that's man made. however, looking at this picture made me ask 'what if nature becomes so marvelous because of man's hands?' Can it now be considered as an artfwork? 

People say that the Terraces is a perfect example of harmony between humans and nature and I absolutely agree. I mean, just look at that...how can you possibly just create something so unreal and unlikely to be shaped just by pure hand work. I kept on staring at the entirety of the Rice Terraces and it's so incomprehensible. It really is a living proof of the genius engineering of the Ifugaos. Unfortunately, this cultural heritage is slowly disintegrating due to climate change, erosion and other several factors. 

With Ma'am Roxy, Eirene, Sir Brian and Ma'am Ivy....and sir Rommel

Locals

Mom :)

With the 'gang' 

If you are a nature lover, like me, this place is a must see. It's truly a perfect escape from Manila's pollution and extreme heat.

Pictures from: Sir Brian, Sir Josh, Ma'am Eireen

Snippets of Puerto Del Sol, Pangasinan

On our third and last day in Pangasinan, we traveled two hours from Alaminos to Bolinao. We had a day stay in a resort called Puerto Del Sol. It's a pretty resort with a very fine 'interior'. I'll make the pictures do the talking for this blog post.

Cabanas right outside....

the houses. I didn't get to ask how much a night stay would cost but I think it's going to be a bit expensive than usual. The place is amazing.

According to the staff, the beach is always on low tide except in the morning. So you can walk real far and still have the water below your knees. That was the down side of the trip. We wanted to experience a different place to swim in so we opted to go all the way to Bolinao but we just all got disappointed when we found out that we won't be able to enjoy the beach. 

Funny faces :))

Pool was large enough to practice on your laps plus, the have a kiddie pool and a Jacuzzi. Since we couldn't swim in the beach, we had no choice but to abuse the pool. 

Me and Kaycee chillin

Lunch table :) In Puerto Del Sol, you can't bring your own food inside. You really have to buy in the resort's restaurant - another thing we didn't like. The food was very expensive and the taste didn't give our money any justice....except for the Buffalo wings :)

The best part of the day was the beach volleyball. What made it funner was the fact that half of us didn't know how to actually play the game. Like John's teammates were just all standing and they won sets because of John's spikes. Kuya Mari (John's brother) was the ultimate joker of the day. Like that one time when Aisha was about to serve the ball, kuya Mari shouted: "SERVING....FRIEND CHICKEN!" and we just died laughing! We played until 5 sets and our group won. That ended our Pangasinan trip. I enjoyed every bits of it!

See you in my next Travel experience. :D

Snippets of Hundred Islands, Pangasinan

I think I would consider this as my first ever out of town trip with friends - 5 hours away from manila - out of town trip that is. Before I write a 'travelogue-ish', I would first like to give my gratitude to the Cailles family for inviting me to their family trip in Pangasinan. You guys are very spontaneous and not to mention ververververy awesome!

We left Makati at around 2:30pm for Alaminos via bus. Oh! this was also my first ever bus trip going to a province. Everything went fine minus the heat wave inside the bus and the faulty air conditioning. I'm not entirely sure but I'm guessing that with the summer heat nowadays, even aircons can go berserk. But it was all part of the fun :) and it started to get cold during sundown so we easily recovered from that agony. Anyway, It was a 5 hour drive with three bus stops one at Tarlac and the other two I do not remember where. We arrived in Pangasinan at 7:30pm. 5 hours of sitting on the bus seat doesn't seem tiring...it is tiring. I just had to thank God that the bus actually had an intermittent wifi, haha.

We stayed in the family house of ate Billy, John's brother's girlfriend. It was a small concrete house with a plain rooftop. The environment was very homy and provincial type that when you look up you could probably see a wide array of constellations in every direction across the night sky (a total opposite here in Manila where the stars are either covered by air pollution or skyscrapers). Too bad the only constellation I can visually and immediately recognize is the small dipper which, if I remember correctly, was shown to me by a childhood friend years ago. The house had a comforting smell that goes with it and it felt like it was a home of our own. We slept on the floor covered with mattresses which was totally cool for me. I'm not the picky type of person when it comes to sleeping so i'll make do with anything that's available. 


We had a total of 3 days adventure in Pangasinan, two of which were spent in Hundred Islands and the last day at Puerto Del Sol. So here are the photos of the trip.

Julia, me and Kaycee on a tuesday morning ready to hit the islands and the beach

With John in the picture. It took us around 15-20 minutes from the house to reach the port where the bangka's were waiting. 

A shot of two islands among the many. Okay, so here's a fact people - When you hear the place hundred islands it doesn't mean that there is a total of 100 islands. According to a credible source, there is a total of 124 islands during low tide and 123 during high tide. So it is technically wrong to say that "I visited one island, 99 more to go." (but most people still say that even if they know...part of the fun, I guess :))

A bangka with tourists. There was one time we passed by a bangka with Korean tourists and they were all waving at us. Tradition or not, im not quite sure.

The very first islet we saw with a white sand. Very crowded. Not our thing.

Our Bangka for the whole day. We rented it for 2000 pesos and it carried all 18 of us. 

First Land on Hundred Islands! Sand was very much like Boracay :) It was not just white but very fine as well. 

Shoreline of our islet. Sceneries right and left are unbelievably stunning and I just couldn't stop taking pictures. The Blue water was clear and just a few steps away from the shore you can already wear your goggles on and snorkel. Can you see the sea color? Breathtaking. 

Me, Kaycee and J

Me and John. Grabe maka stomach in wahahahha!

(Nursing is making us all fat :() 

Why, hello there, future model :)

Inyaki and Kit (John's cousins)

Pong (Margie's friend) and Margie (John's sister)

J, Kaycee, Me, Pong and Margie

Tita Joy, John, Julia, Kaycee, Me, Margie, Pong and Aisha

John's parents. Thank you so much for everything!

Me, John, Kaycee and Julia on top of Governor Island. We had to go on a steep climb to reach this astonishing view of  Hundred Islands.

As I was researching about the history of Hundred Islands, I found out that the islands are actually ancient corals which rose to surface due to the lowering of the sea levels. No wonder some of them just look like crags with thin branches of trees rather than actual islands. 

The Island where we stayed on the Second day. Far more beautiful than the previous. There are only 3 among the 123 islands which were developed as tourist spots. If i'm not mistaken they are Governor Island, Quezon Island and Children's Island. We only visited Governor Island to take pictures but we didn't stay there due to the many people in the area. If you're the type who wants to feel like a rich person who just bought his own island in the pacific, I suggest you do the what we did. We searched for an empty island with a beautiful shore line and spent the rest of the day there all on our own. Twas more relaxing and enjoyable especially if you're the family-oriented type. 

They went to the other island but I didn't go with them because I didn't have goggles and I was too scared to cross the water. 

I really love this picture no matter how bad my figure is. I really need to get into shape fast. 

Sunsets are always awe-inspiring especially a view like this when the sun and the waters meet over the horizon. And the way the water sparkles as the rays touch its surface gives me a sensational feeling of calmness. A view so beautiful it can make you motionless for seconds. 

I have heard of Hundred islands way back in Grade school and I know most Filipinos are aware of this place. I never thought a time will come when I can actually see the Islands with my very own eyes. It's a favorite tourist spot and it truly is an enjoyable destination to stop by. Hundred Islands is undoubtedly a place everyone should see. Every penny will be worth it.

Every inch of the way and every place I visit makes me want to travel the world even more. There's so much I have yet to see and write about.

Thank you God for this opportunity to see one of your creations. You're amazing. :)