Summer is the best time of the year to wind up from stress and head to a relaxing place for fun and relaxation. It is also the months where most people seek the nearest beach or resort to cool down and enjoy the intense heat.
It was already felt during the month of March so I decided to visit the summer capital of the Philippines which is 243 kilometers away from Manila, Baguio City. But along Marcos Highway, I decided to test my endurance and dropping by at Pugo Adventures (PUGAD) was a nice idea. I tried the superman zip line, the rappelling, wall climbing and the Australian rundown. I also enjoyed their mini zoo having ‘Cheesecake’, a Burmese python and other animals such as Bearcats and birds. The pools enticed me to take a dip but unfortunately, I didn’t bring any swimwear. Stories here and here.
I made my way to Baguio City visiting Mine’s View, Good Shepherd, Wright Park, The Mansion and the Botanical Garden. It was my first time to try flower photography and Baguio as the flower capital was a great choice. I also climbed the hill on Lourdes Grotto and sampled the coffee and bread in Cafe by the Ruins.
A week before holy week, our town in Pangasinan celebrated the annual Corn Festival where I witnessed a grand street dancing competition and the different ways of cooking corn.
I stayed at home for the holy week enjoying a dozen of J.Co Donuts. The first Saturday of April was spent visiting the newly declared Guinness Record Holder of having the most number of puzzle collections in the world, Puzzle Mansion in Tagaytay City. We met the owner herself, Gina Gil-Lacuna who did the tour of her collection.
The next weekend, I attended the festival of festivals, Aliwan Fiesta in Quirino Grandstand featuring the different festivals in the Philippines where they competed for the Grandest Street Dance and Float. The day after, my workmates and I made to Calatagan, Batangas to experience Aquaria beach resort, a new attraction of the Playa Calatagan. This was my first encounter with the beach this summer. The water is clear but the presence of sea urchins and jellyfishes were felt making us enjoy the pools of the resort.
Another big event this summer happened last April 19 at Bonifacio Global City with the vision of discussing the issues of the environment. Earth Day Jam on its 12th year, invited lots of bands and artists to be part of the event and some people on different environmental organizations devoted to caring for Mother Nature.
For the last weekend of April, joining Eskapo of Dong Ho, we visited the paradise of Apo Reef Natural Park in Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro. The 12-hour trip to the natural park was worth it with the picturesque view the place has offered. It was my first time to sleep on the sand and see a sea turtle up-close! What a great experience.
May 1 was declared a national holiday, and I was not required to report on work. I was able to meet some awesome bloggers when Glen Santillan doing the #PHL50 arrived in Manila and scheduled a meet-up. Our company outing was held at Club Balai Isabel last May 11 again plunging into the pools. To spend Mother’s Day, together with my Mom, Tita and Sister, we visited the Our Lady of Manaoag Church. One of the events this summer was the midterm national elections where I exercised my freedom to vote; although I was a bit disappointed with the results of the senatorial list.
The following weekend was spent on the island of Magalawa in Palauig, Zambales together with my workmates. We experienced chasing the earliest bus to Zambales in Pasay resulting to be chance passengers. I was amazed how plenty the number of starfishes in the island, they’re everywhere near the shoreline.
However, summer is not yet over! I will be spending the next weekend in Calaguas in Camarines Norte together with fellow travel bloggers and probably try spelunking in the caves of Sagada in the first weekend of June.
This is my entry to Pinoy Travel Bloggers’ Blog Carnival for May 2013, with the theme: “Summer 2013 Epilogue” Hosted by Jona of Backpacking with a Book
