Captivated in Roxas City and Capiz

The last time I visited Roxas City in Capiz was in grade school. I still remember hanging out at my cousins’ house, running around Baybay Beach, and indulging in loads of seafood. My recent 3 day visit to Roxas City was definitely a major dose of nostalgia since it made me reminisce those fun memories when I was a kid. Thankfully, our busy schedule had distracted me from dwelling too much into emo mode. During the trip, I was with Junelle, JunJunn, Eric, Sheila and a few college classmates living in Roxas City. Our main agenda was witnessing the Western Visayas Tourism Assembly (WVTA) 2009 and touring Roxas City and Pan-ay.

Day 1

The Drive to Roxas City

I woke up early during the first day to meet Junelle and Junjunn. Fortunately, Junelle brought her car for the trip, which made it so much convenient for us to go to Roxas and tour the city and nearby Pan-ay town.

We drove from Iloilo City to Roxas City for around 2 hours. The road was acceptable except for the usual awful roads in Passi City and a section in Pototan and a few towns in Capiz.

Kangaroo Inn

After Arriving in Roxas City we went straight to Kangaroo Inn in Tambis St., Brgy. Tiza. Kangaroo Inn was actually a recommendation from Rex, who lives in Roxas City.

We were very satisfied with Kangaroo Inn since we only paid P690 for our (air conditioned) room good for 4 and it was near the venue (Villareal Stadium).

The only drawback is that (if you don’t have your own ride) it’s a bit far from the main road so you have to walk a bit to get a tricycle and it’s also not near the main commercial center / downtown of Roxas City.

Tourism Booths in Villareal Stadium

The Western Visayas Tourism Assembly is an annual gathering of all provinces and cities in the region. Villareal Stadium was the main venue of the event where the tourism booths, trade/product fairs, can be found. During our visit, we saw an exhibit of different houses of indigenous peoples in the Philippines.

I reckon it was built for the Indigenous Peoples Festival last month. We spent some time here to visit the booths and wait for Eric.

Capiz Shell Crafts

Lunch in Gaisano City Roxas Mall

Our first meal in Roxas was a quick snack in Jollibee Gaisano City. I was already very excited for a seafood binge that time :( but the parade was already going to start after lunch.

Roxas City Plaza

The Roxas City Plaza was the assembly area of the Parade of Festivals. It is the center of Roxas City with landmarks such as:

Roxas City Fountain

Capiz Provincial Capitol

Roxas City Bridge

Roxas City Hall

Immaculate Concepcion Metropolitan Cathedral

Ang Panubli-on, the Roxas City Museum

Balay Kapisnon

Parade of Festivals – Western Visayas Tourism Assembly

We were treated with the unique opportunity of seeing some of the best festivals in Western Visayas in just one afternoon. The street dance parade started from the city plaza all the way to Villareal Stadium, where they performed their  spectacular 5 to 10 minute choreographed dances.

View more pictures of the Western Visayas Tourism Assembly 2009

Dinner in Beng’s Seafood Restaurant in Baybay

Roxas City is known for being the “Seafood Capital of the Philippines.” A trip to this city wouldn’t be complete without eating in one of the seafood restaurants along Baybay. We actually didn’t know what restaurant the locals preferred to eat in so we surveyed the whole row and asked for their prices. A tip I learned in picking restaurants is to choose the one the most crowded one. This ensures that the food is good and always fresh. That time, Beng’s Seafood looked like the best choice.

The food was soooo good! You should try their grilled diwal (sold for P8 per piece), it is just heavenly … coincidentally, diwal is also known as “Angel Wings” because of the shape and color of its shell. We ate Grilled Blue Marlin, Grilled Scallops (P5 per piece!), Steamed Talaba / Oyster (P25 per serving), Dried Squid (P25 per stick), and Grilled Pantat / Catfish.