My Travels
Being a blogger for Explore Iloilo, I have visited my home province and nearby places in Wesern Visayas extensively. Starting in 2010, I’ve kicked off my dream of traveling to more places in the Philippines. My aim is to visit as many travel destinations scattered throughout the Country’s 7,107 islands. Join me on my trips to see the beauty of the Philippines by regularly visiting this blog and experience the places that I’ve seen and people I’ve encountered. I’ve also planned a few backpacking trips in South East Asia and will be posting my adventures and misadventures in other lands as well.
Travel Quotient = C- (2009)
| Travel Quotent = B (2010) |
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I was finally on my way back to Singapore. My first trip to Singapore and Malaysia overland was quite hectic, which made me look forward to a more leisurely tour of Singapore … and an even more relaxing cruise to Malaysia. Our whole trip was set for 4 days and 3 nights (4 nights if you count the late-night flight back to Manila). Since we were flying to Singapore via AirPhil Express, we decided to meet at NAIA Terminal 3 at 2:00PM (almost 3 hours before our scheduled departure).
AirPhil Express A320-200 plane at the passenger bridge of NAIA T3
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This is the itinerary I took during my first visit to Zamboanga City. I arrived from Davao City and spent three days in Zamboanga. I wanted to explore more of the Downtown area of Zamboanga City then squeeze in a visit to the famous pink sand beach of Santa Cruz Island.
On my last day, I had to take a connecting flight via Cebu since there were no direct flights from Zamboanga to Iloilo.
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Three day travel itinerary during my first visit to Davao City in Mindanao Island (Southern Philippines). Since it was my first time, my focus was geared towards getting a personal view of the downtown area of Davao City,Samal Island, “meeting” the mighty Philippine Eagle, and eating an actual Durian fruit.
Day 1 – Philippine Eagle Center, Jack’s Ridge
- 9:10am – arrival in Davao International Airport
- Walk to highway outside of airport compound gate (approx. 500m from the passenger terminal).
- Cross street and ride jeepney to Downtown Davao (has “Claveria” on the jeepney route) – P15 fare
- 10:00am – drop off at Bangoy St., Downtown, Davao City
- Walk to My Hotel Davao. Check-in.
- Single fan room (shared TB) – P250 per night + P200 deposit (refundable upon check-out)
- Walk to Bankerohan (Public) Market
- Ride “hop-on hop-off” van to Calinan (45 minutes) – P40
- Ride habal-habal to Malagos Water District – P20
- 1:15pm – Malagos Water District – P5 entrance fee
- 1:30pm – Philippine Eagle Center – P50 entrance fee
- Ride habal-habal back to Calinan – P20
- Ride jeep back to highway (“Ulas” intersection) – P20
Attempted to visit Eden Nature Park. I was discouraged when I went to Toril and asked about transportation getting there. There was no way to commute and it would have been too expensive to hire a tricycle/taxi by myself so I decided to go back to Davao instead.
- 4:45pm – Ride jeep back to NCCC Davao. Quick visit to NCCC and Matina Town Square
- Ride jeep to intersection going to Jack’s Ridge (cor MacArthur Highway – Santos Cuyogan Rd) – P7
- Ride tricycle to Jack’s Ridge – P10
- Dinner at Taklobo Restaurant, Jack’s Ridge
- Shrimp Tempure (Rebusado) – P243
- Rice – P23
- Garlic Rice – P27
- Taxi to My Hotel – P80
Day 2 – Davao City Commuting Tour
- 11:00am – walk to Davao City Hall area
- San Pedro Cathedral
- Rizal Park
- Osmena Park
- Museo Dabawenyo
- 11:00pm – lunch at Banok’s
- 1 grilled chicken inasal, unlimited rice, 1 coke – P75
- 12:00nn – walk to Bankerohan (Public) Market
- Buy 1 fresh (Arancillo) Durian and ate at the sidestreet – P35
- Ride jeep to Ateneo de Davao – P7
- Aldevinco Market
- Marco Polo Davao
- Ride jeep to Gmall Davao – P7
- Ride jeep along Santa Ana Avenue to Chimes Mall – P7
- Ride jeep back to Gmall – P7
- Ride jeep to Victoria Plaza / Pryce Business Park
- 4:00pm – Ride taxi to Crocodile Farm – P100+
- 4:20pm – Crocodile Farm – P150 entrance fee. No crocodile show that day. Scheduled for the next day.
- Ride taxi to Damosa Gateway – P7
- Ride jeep back to F. Torres St. – P7
- Walk to Kasagingan Kapehan
- Pre-dinner at Kasagingan Kapehan
- Maruya supreme - P75
- Chorizo Sandwhich – P55
- Dinner at Blue Carabao (Dr. 4-7 Sobrecarey St., Obrero, Davao City near Gmall). They have now transferred to a new location at 146 Montreverde St at the corner of Alveraz St. (near Magsaysay Park / Santa Ana Wharf right across the street from the Davao City Fire Department).
- Pork Adobo, Pancit, Rice, Coke – P120
- Ride Jeep to San Pedro St. 0 P7
- Extended stay at MyHotel for two more nights – P500 (P250 per night)
Day 3 – Talikud and Samal Island
- 10:20am – Breakfast at Kusina Davao (infront of My Hotel)
- Beef curry rice toppings – P55
- Native coffee – P15
- Taxi to Magsaysay Park – P60
- Walk to Santa Ana Wharf
- 11:30am – Bought fery ticket for 12:30nn “Jessa 3″ trip to Talikud Island – P50 fare
- 12:30nn – Ferry departure from Santa Ana Wharf
- 2:00pm – Arrived in Sta. Cruz Whard, Talikud Island, Island Garden City of Samal (IGaCoS)
- Habal-habal ride to Babu Santa Beach (20 mins from pier) – P150 round trip fare + P20 tip
- 3:00pm – Dropped off at Isla Reta Beach Resort.
- Walk back to Sta Cruz Wharf (10 minutes)
- 3:30pm – No passenger crossing left to Kaputian (Mainland Samal). Had to split a chartered boat with one other passenger – P300 for the whole boat or P150 each
- Ride “Island City Express” Bus to Babak (45 minutes) – P40
- Ride tricycle to Monfort Bat Colony – P60 roundtrip charter (P30 per way).
- 5:30pm – Monfort Bat Colony – P30 entrance fee
- Ride “Island City Express” Bus to Santa Ana Wharf
- crossed Babak, Samal to Sasa Wharf, Davao City via RoRo (Roll-on Roll-off) Ferry
- Ride taxi to Lachi’s – P50
- Dinner at Lachi’s
- Grilled Pork Ribs – P130, New York Cheese Cake – P45, Iced Tea (Sola) – P40, Rice – P20
- Walk to tricycle stop
- Ride tricycle to Davao Medical Center
- Walk to People’s Park
- People’s Park sightseeing
Day 4 – Davao to Zamboanga Flight
- 6:45am – checkout at My Hotel Davao. Claimed P200 deposit
- Ride taxi to Davao International Airport – P120
- 7:10am – arrived at the airport
- Breakfast at the airport
- Egg, Hotdog, Rice, Mineral Water – P110
- Check-in for Davao to Zamboanga Flight – P200 terminal fee
- 8:30am – Departure from Davao Airport
- 9:40am – Arrival in Zamboanga Airport
Money spent for the whole Davao leg – P4,000+
Next
What would possibly get a night owl like me to wake up 4:30AM in the morning? If I’m on the road, there would only be two possibilities: to catch an early morning flight/commute or chase a photo opportunity that MUST be worth the effort. Bernie, my travel buddy during my trip to Lake Sebu and blogger behind HabagatCentral, told me about his plan to take photos of the lotus flowers in Lake Sebu during the wee hours of the morning. It sounded interesting … a chance to photograph beautiful lotus flowers in a scenic mountain lake setting. But why do it so EARLY? Bernie answered that the lotus flowers in Lake Sebu only bloom during sunrise … It was a done deal, basically :| I was too intrigued by the morning lotus blooms to just brush the opportunity off. At first it was mostly because of curiosity … I haven’t read about Lake Sebu’s lotus flowers being featured by other bloggers. After pushing through with our mission to visit the “lotus fields” of Lake Sebu, I returned with one of the most beautiful sunrise experiences of my life.
Local kid riding a traditional T’boli canoe in Lake Sebu
I was craving for some downtime and a change to a less urban type of scenery after a busy itinerary in Naga and Legazpi City. No doubt, my #1 agenda for the whole trip to Bicol region was to visit the “Survivor” Islands of Caramoan! Caramoan became known internationally as the setting of several foreign “Surivor” TV series franchises in Italy, Isreal, France, Serbia, , Bulgaria, and Sweden. The islands have risen as one of the hot ticket destinations in the Philippines … of course, I wanted to get my fill of this tropical paradise. I stayed in Caramoan for two nights. Since I was traveling solo, I initially hoped to join other tourists for island hopping tour. Unfortunately, I failed to find a group when I arrived. I had to go island hopping all by my lonesome. The night before, I felt a bit scared. I’ve never done it solo before. Would I still enjoy it without any company? What could I possibly do the whole day alone? What if something happens to me while I’m in some remote island?
Solo Travel in Caramoan, Camarines Sur
The commute to Caramoan takes at least four hours from Naga City, Camarines Sur. Two hours land trip from Naga City to Sabang Beach and another two hour ferry (pumpboat) ride going to Guijalo Port in Caramoan. After quick morning tour of Naga City, I took a tricycle to the FILCAB terminal located across SM City Naga. The (L300) van left Naga City at 8:15am and arrived in Barrio Sabang, San Jose, Camarines Sur by 10am. Sabang Beach was just a couple of steps from where the van dropped us off. Looking around the long grey sand beach, it was easy to find the makeshift ferry waiting area since many of the passengers were already huddled together in that section of the beach.
Toploading the ferry pupmboat to Caramoan in CamSur
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Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia are two cities in Asia known for its multi-cultural diversity. Not only will visitors expect a convergence of different cultures in the region, the two cities also present a contrast between the Orient and the Western World. Just recently, AirPhil Express invited travel bloggers to try out their new package tour: “Double the AdvenTour! Fly to Singapore and Cruise to Malaysia!” As you could imagine, the experience was a lot different from my usual DIY travels because of the convenience of hotel accommodations and coach transfers. I really enjoyed our trip since we were able to go to attractions that I wasn’t able to experience during my first trip to Singapore and Malaysia last year.
Thien Hou Temple in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia with the imposing KL Tower and Petronas Twin Towers
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In the Philippine Ilonggo dialect, ambot ah literally means "I don't know." After graduating in college, I decided to hold off pursuing my profession and embarked on a free spirited journey of adventure and self-discovery. My travels have led me to many places across the Philippine Islands and South East Asia. I don't know where this path will take me but I'm certain I'll get a lifetime of stories out of it.
