snapshots of my so-called life

Juk, Ric, Trish and I went on another fun trip/photo shoot session last June 6-9. This time, to Dumaguete, Negros Oriental. Ang primary motivation talaga namin for this trip is for the Inday Part 2 photo shoot. Hehe We shot the first of the two part series in Ilocos last September. 9 months after bago kami nakapagplan ulit for the sequel. We thought of going to Dumaguete because we heard that it’s nice there and there are lots of beautiful places to explore. In short, a very fitting setting for our “Inday” shoot.

Another motivation to go on vacation is the amount of stress that we face in the office on a daily basis. Sabi ko sa kanila, kung hindi pa kami magbabakasyon any time soon, baka masiraan na talaga ako ng bait. I badly needed a break. Hehe So napressure si Trish (our ever reliable Travel Agent) to book us a flight to Dumaguete. Our trip schedule was perfect because we only filed for one day leave in the office kasi Independence Day weekend that time. So everything’s all set, we were all very excited as we count down the days to our trip.

Come June 6, Juk and I agreed to go to the airport together since we’re both coming from Makati. Ric and Trish on the other hand, also agreed to go together. Trish was already at the Domestic Airport when we arrived there but Ric was not with her. As we got in line, we noticed that the check-in line was quite short and the officer at the counter was already yelling “last call”. When we checked the time, it was already 6:30 AM. Our flight was at 7:10 AM. As we got nearer the counter, we called up Ric to check up on him. He told us that he was still in Ortigas. WHAT?! Nung nasa counter na kami, we told the officer that another companion was still on his way. He told us that he can’t promise if he could still be admitted kasi ico-close na daw ang check-in counter. So medyo nagpapanic na kaming tatlo dahil baka nga hindi umabot si Ric. To make matters worse, the e-ticket was with us. So we decided to wait for him near the entrance. We found two airport officers there and we asked for help regarding our situation. They told us that if ever hindi umabot si Ric, he had to go to the Cebu Pacific office to check on the next flight and he needs to pay an additional amount for rebooking his flight. We were already thinking of the worst. I called up Ric and asked him if aabot pa kaya siya and was already discussing with him the worst case scenario. The officer told us to go check on the express check-in counter to ask if pwede pang humabol. So I decided to go with him while Juk and Trish waited for Ric. As I was telling the counter officer about Ric’s situation sakto namang dumating na si Ric. Lumabas yung hidden talent ko sa acting that time kasi as if iiyak na ko sa pakiusap para makapag-check-in lang si Ric. You have to hand me the best actress trophy kasi nagwork ang pagdadrama ko. Haha J This is the first flight ko na hindi na talaga ako naka-upo sa waiting area after check-in. As in direcho board sa eroplano! Ganun kami ka-gahol sa time nun!

Anyway, despite the stress that we went through we were just glad that we were all able to arrive in Dumaguete together in one flight.

DAY 1
- Harold’s Mansion Check-in
- Lunch at Lab-as Seafood Restaurant
- Tour of Valencia
- Twin Lakes
- Forest Camp
- Dinner at Jo’s Chicken Inato

Highlight of DAY 1:
- Yummy lunch at Lab-as Seafood Restaurant
- Long and winding road going to the Twin Lakes. Grabe magdrive yung Manong driver na nahire namin! Medyo hindi siya mahilig gumamit ng brakes eh ang dinaanan namin eh pagkahaba-habang rough zigzag road sa tabi ng bangin. Kung marunong lang ako mag-Bisaya tinanong ko na siya ng “Manong, are we there yet?!” ng ilang beses. Eh among the four of us ako yung hindi masyadong nakakatulog sa biyahe. Okay na ako sa short nap pero after a while, wide awake na ako for the rest of the trip. Feeling ko din, being the “ate” (Oo na, inaamin ko na ako ang pinaka-senior sa amin!) among the four of us, instinctively, I feel na responsibility ko na mag watch over them. So ako yung nakawitness talaga sa napakagaling na driving skills ni Manong while the three of them are in dreamland. Hehe When we finally got to the Twin Lakes, super worth it yung napakahabang biyahe and scary zigzag road. The sight of the lakes was indescribable. Natanggal lahat ng stress na dala-dala ko just being there. The air was fresh and cool, as in super breezy when we got there. Lake Danao was another story, it was incredibly beautiful! Kung pwede lang dun na lang tumira para walang stress and super calm and serene ng surroundings.

DAY 2
- Dolphin Watching
- Sand Bar
- Bais Mangrove
- Dinner at Mamia’s Bar and Restaurant
- Photo shoot at the Rizal Boulevard
- Drinks at Coco Amigos
- Fish Balls and Tempura at the Tempurahan along the Boulevard
- Coffee at Why Not Café

Highlight of DAY 2:
- We went dolphin watching at Bais. Super early kami umalis from Harold’s kasi the boat that would bring us to the dolphin watching spot was supposed to leave at 7 AM. Sobrang disappointed pa kami ‘cause it was raining so hard that time. Well, siguro, malakas kami kay Lord kasi when we got to the pier, the skies began clearing out. As in nakisama ang weather sa dolphin watching adventure namin. Kuya Art, our guide told us that the dolphins that we are about to see are different from those that we see in zoos and ocean parks. They should not be fed and should not be touched. Wild kind daw kasi yung andun. So we just had to be content in watching them swim and jump near our boat. As our boat slowed down, Kuya Art began clapping and a little later the dolphins began surfacing and swimming near our boat. They are so cute! Super swerte daw kami kasi some tourists daw who go there were not able to see even a single dolphin.
- Before heading for home, we had coffee at Why Not Café along Rizal Boulevard. Juk ordered for iced latte. Nung dumating yung order niya, binigyan siya ng isang baso na may yelo at isang mug na may latte. Iced + Latte nga naman. Hehe :p

DAY 3
- Silliman University Shoot
- Quick Stop at Sans Rival for pasalubong shopping
- Check-in at Bahura Resort and Spa
- Apo Island Adventure
- Dinner at Bahura Resort

Highlight of DAY 3:
- Check in at Bahura Resort. Anyone who wishes to go to Dumaguete must go and see Bahura Resort and Spa. It’s one of the best resorts I’ve ever been to. World class facilities, yummy food, friendly staff, perfect vacation place! Actually, we were contemplating on whether to stay in Antulang or Bahura. Reviews from the net showed that Antulang is perfect for couples and honeymooners. Bahura’s rooms and facilities, on the other hand are more for barkadas or groups. Based on this and the many great reviews we saw on the net, not to mention the nice pictures of the resort, we decided to go ahead and book an overnight stay in Bahura.

And we we’re so happy with our decision. We can’t help but be struck with awe upon entering the resort. We were greeted by coconut trees beautifully lined up in front of the resort. Our room was not a disappointment either. Everything was BIG! The room was so spacious, the bed was huge and the bathroom was also humongous! We

- Near death experience going to and from Apo Island. Feeling talaga namin mamamatay na kami nun kasi we rode on a small motorized boat na wala man lang upuan sa loob. As in naka-indian sit lang kami sa ibabaw ng bangka. Can you imagine that?
At ang maganda pa dun, wala kaming life vest! Kaya pala upon registering for the trip, we were asked to log our names and contact numbers. Little did we know that what we were about to experience was one helluva ride! Half of the trip, we were all screaming at the top of our lungs dahil sa sobrang lalaki ng alon and feeling namin, maooverturn yung bangka namin! ¼ pa lang ng ride, we were already soaked wet dahil sa lakas ng splash ng alon sa bangka. Wala ding safety harness or contraption na pwedeng hawakan kundi bamboo poles lang sa magkabilang gilid ng bangka.

Was just glad that we were able to survive the whole Apo Island boat ride ordeal. Worth it naman yung experience dahil super ganda ng Apo Island. We were not able to go snorkeling and scuba diving, though kasi ang lakas talaga ng alon that time.

DAY 4
- Breakfast at Bahura
- Swimming
- Lunch at Juk’s Folks
- Pasalubong Shopping
- Flight back to Manila

Highlight of DAY 4:

Bahura MTV! :-) If you want to view the video, please send me your youtube account so I can grant you privilege to access it. Sorry, it's not for public consumption. Ayaw kasi naming madiscover ni Ellen at ni Oprah. Low profile lang kasi kami. hehe :P