A Happy, Blessed Easter to everyone!

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Dumaguete Trip 2011: Let's take it to the streets

Hahaha, corny title I know. Anyway, while in Dumaguete Diwa and I were able to walk around a bit. I must say, Dumaguete really is such a chill town. It is called the Philippines' 'sleepy town' because it's so quiet and peaceful. Dumaguete's one of the places in the country you can retire in.

Dumaguete Trip 2011: Food Galore!

One of the things I always do when I go on trips is to enjoy the food in the places I visit. Dumaguete definitely did not disappoint. Although what I tried were mostly non-local food, what I love about the things I've tried is that they were all really good and pretty affordable. I wish I spent maybe 2 or 3 more days to just try all the restaurants along the boulevard and the hole-in-the-wall restaurants in the side streets. I will definitely visit Dumaguete again! Besides the food, I have to visit Casaroro Falls and Pulang Bato.

Day 1- Breakfast at Gabby's

Day 1 - Dinner at Kri

Day 2 - Early dinner after wind surfing at Mike's Dauin Beach Resort

Day 3 - Breakfast at the public market--tsokolate't suman with fresh mango! :)

Day 3 - Coffee at Cafe Mamia

Day 3 - Dinner at Hayahay

Day 4 - Coffee and Date & Walnut Dacquiose at Sansrival

Day 4 - Lunch at Mifune Japanese Food and Bar

Day 4 - Coffee at Cafe Antonio

Day 4- Dinner at Casa Blanca

Dumaguete Trip 2011: Apo Island

Working backwards as I mentioned in my previous post, on our third day in Dumaguete we went to Apo Island and spent more than half of the day there.

What is Apo Island? Apo Island is a small island off Dumaguete City. It's known for its pristine waters, snorkeling and dive spots, and the diverse marine life you can see without having to go far from the shore.

To get to Apo Island, you take a motorized bangka. There are bangkas that can seat a group of 4 or a group of 8. The rate per person's pretty affordable. We were able to rent our boat for Php 1,700 (that's Php 425/person). The bangka's driver will bring you to Apo Island and you just have to tell him what time to pick you up. Not bad, eh?

Anyway, this post will basically be full of pictures sharing with y'all the beauty of Apo Island. Actually, I think I need to go back because we weren't able to fully explore the place. We only stayed in the marine sanctuary area so we could go snorkeling and play with the fishies :)

Dumaguete Trip 2011: My Birthday!

Hey hey hey, finally making my post about my trip to Dumaguete last week. A quick background, my cousin Diwa and I have been planning this trip since last year so we decided to book our tickets to Dumaguete last December so that the seats wouldn't be that expensive ;) We spent my birthday weekend there, and I am so happy about it. This travel entry will be a bit different, as I'll be starting from the last day (well, second to the last since we didn't take any pictures on our last day because our flight to Manila was so early). Why? Because I want to share with you guys how special my birthday was this year :)

For 2011, I decided to spend my birthday with the girls of Casa Esperanza. Casa Esperanza is a shelter for abused women and children (all girls) in Dumaguete--mostly from the remote areas. Apologies if you can't see their faces clearly as I had to blur their eyes for security reasons.

the Casa Esperanza girls during their activity

I brought cake and goodies for the girls :) Diwa and I also met my aunt's YATTA girls. YATTA is my aunt's youth theatre group in Dumaguete. Her YATTA girls were the ones who conducted the fun activities for the Casa Esperanza girls. Kudos to these young ladies!

I was fighting back tears in this shot. The girls suddenly sang happy birthday to me. They even offered a prayer for me, so touched. Truly truly blessed to have met these girls and to have seen how much they're really trying to recover from the unimaginable things they've gone through. You wouldn't think that they've experienced so much, especially when you see them laugh and smile.

I've decided to try helping out Casa Esperanza since the shelter's not getting much from the city. I asked my aunt to send me the list of housekeeping items the shelter needs so that I'll send a box every month or every other month. Not a lot, but it's my way of giving back. We have so much and we often don't realize that there are so many people out there who need our help, most of them not so far from where we are.

April 11, 2011 truly was a happy birthday for me :)

birthday weekend preview

spent my birthday weekend in Dumaguete...

so excited to share it with y'all....

but before I do, here's a preview :)

Bukidnon 2011

I don't remember in which post I mentioned that I was going to Bukidnon for the Kaamulan Festival. Anyway, the festival was last month and I went home to Bukidnon to join in the festivities. It was way more fun this time because my good friend Val joined me in this trip! This post will cover our first two days in Bukidnon :)

on our way up to Malaybalay, we had to take a few shots of the beautiful scenery and the alalum waterfalls

after resting, we walked around the festival grounds...

lovely local handicrafts

...decided to just chill out on our first night and have coffee at my family's cafe (which is right in front of our house!)

day 2 was spent visiting our family's rubber tree farm...

...and the Transfiguration Monastery of the Benedictine Monks

I have a lot of things to share about our 3rd day because that was the day of the Street Theater/Dancing. So fun! Watch out for my entry on that ;)

If you're interested to visit Bukidnon, it is going to be quite a long trip. The fastest way is to take a plane from Manila to Cagayan de Oro City, then either rent a van or take a bus to Malaybalay City (which is the capital of Bukidnon). But if you really want to go on an adventure, you can take the Super Ferry and the ship will dock in CDO ummm...after 4 days. Hahahaha! I have yet to gather information on where to stay because I'm not familiar with the hotels and bed & breakfast inns there, but I will definitely try to get as much info from my friends there. Bukidnon is a place you go to if you just want to relax and get away from the city. Main objective of the trip is to REST. Believe me, that's what Val and I mostly did in this trip, haha! After every activity we'd take a nap and feel so rested and rejuvenated after even if we only had like an hour or two of shut eye. Yup, our sleep was that deep.

3 days to go!!

Dumaguete check list:

1. Bikinis - check!

2. Tanning lotion - check!

3. Sun dresses - check!

4. Sunnies - check!

5. On vacation mode - double (even triple) check!

These aren't the only items on my checklist :p I have yet to buy the goody bags I'll be giving to the kids and teens at the shelter where I'll be holding a party in. Yes, I decided to spend my special day with very special people. I asked my aunt who's based in Dumaguete to help me look for a community where I could spread a bit of cheer. She suggested I host a party at a shelter that was home to abused kids and teens. I have about 2 1/2 days to prepare everything. My aunt, who is also a theater professor in the prestigious Silliman University, and her class will be hosting a small workshop at the shelter so I'm sure that day will be awesome. I am so excited already! My birthday's about a week away but I feel like I'll be celebrating beginning Friday.

For my birthday this year, I'm also sponsoring the school supplies of five kids in Marinduque through the Big Brother Big Sister Foundation. I started sponsoring just last year and I plan on doing this for a long time. I love that this organization aims to provide school supplies to kids that will last for a year. I'm thinking of doing the same thing for next year, but more focused in Bukidnon. My grandmother suggested this, actually.

I love birthdays. I don't really have a problem getting older. I know it sounds cliche, but age really is just a number. I won't say I may be (turning) 24, but I'll always be 18. Nope. I'm owning the age! Being (almost) 24 means being a year wiser, happier, and hotter hahahaha! Kidding aside, I think we should all be proud of how old (or young) we are. Like the rings inside a tree's trunk, each year we experience adds and enriches who we are now.

in less than a week, I'll be here...

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