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Last summer, I spent eight weeks on a series of short trips across Luzon. I called Manila my new home and each week I’d go out to visit particular places near Manila that I’ve always wanted to see but never got the chance before. I guess the reason was because I’ve put them off in favor of more far-flung and exotic destinations. I guess it seemed more appealing to visit Palawan, for example, than to spend some nights in Batangas or Laguna. Since I’ve already crossed out a couple of places in my “Philippine travel wishlist,” the time was ripe to visit a couple of interesting places that most Manilenyos have probably grown tired of by now. On my second week, I visited “Puerto Galera,” known as Manila’s cheaper alternative to Boracay. For me, however, I considered Puerto Galera as my gateway to Mindoro Island.
Before
- Puerto Galera,Oriental Mindoro 2-Day DIY Itinerary
- Apo Reef Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro 3-Day DIY Itinerary
Day 5
- 6:30pm – ETA Batangas Port
- Shared tricycle ride to Batangas City Proper / “bayan”
- drop off at Avenue Pension II along Cuta Road (approx. 2 blocks) from the city plaza / Basilica of the Immaculate Concepcion
- 8:00pm – Check-in at Avenue Pension II
- Fan room with double ben and private TB – P350 for 12 hours
- 1 hour at the internet café – P20
- Dinner at McDo – P100
- 1.5L H2O at 7/11 – P36
- Sleep: Avenue Pension II
Day 6
- 8:00am – Walk Batangas City Plaza
- 8:20am – Ride jeep to SM City Batanas
- 9:00am – Ride jeep to Batangas Provincial Capitol. Visit provincial tourism information office.
- 9:40am – ETD Batangas City. Ride “Lemery” jeepney to Taal (the town not the lake) – P38
- 10:50am – ETA Taal, Batangas. Drop-off at Taal town. Visit tourism information.
- Check-in at Casa Punzalan
- Fan room with two single beds and shared TB – P600
- 4:00pm – start Walking tour of Taal
- Taal Church
- Taal Old Houses
- San Lorenzo Ruiz Steps
- Lady of Caysasay Shrine
- Lemery town proper
- Dinner at McDonald’s Lemery (free WiFi)
- Sleep: Casa Punzalan
Day 7
- 10:00pm – Wake-up. Instant cup noodles for breakfast.
- 11:20pm – check-out
- 11:30pm – ETD Taal. Ride jeepney to Lemery (jeepney station at the corner of Hotel Punzalan) – P8
- 11:45pm – ETA Lemery. Drop-off near Lemery Church
- 11:50pm – ETD Lemery. Ride jeepney to Calaca (jeepney station infront of Caltex near the church) – P22
- 12:40pm – ETA Calaca. Drop off at the “palengke” (public market). Sshould have dropped off at the new municipal hall
- Tricycle ride to Calaca Church – P10
- Tricycle ride to “Balayan” jeepney station
- Ride jeepney to Balayan – P15
- 1:25pm – ETA Balayan. Drop off at Balayan Church.
- Walk to “Calatagan” jeepney station (near Jollibee; facing Jollibee entrance, follow the road to the right, a few meters away at the right side of the road is the parking area of Calatagan-bound jeeps )
- Jeepney ride to Calagan – P40
- 2:50pm – ETA Calatagan. Drop off at Calatagan Church
- Tricycle ride to Calatagan Lighthouse / Parola (30 minutes away from town proper)- P300 roundtrip
- Drop off infront of the Church (bus terminal at the “palengke” (public market); already missed the last trip of the bus going to Manila)
- Ride jeepney to Liam – P38
- 5:20PM – Ride aircon bus to Manila – P152
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.
